Blackpool Tower

Blackpool Tower

Blackpool Tower is a tourist attraction in Blackpool, Lancashire (northern England). It was inspired by the Eiffel Tower in Paris and rises to 158m (518' 9"). It cost £41,000 and opened to the public on 14 May 1894 and is a member of the World Federation of Great Towers. The tower can be seen from Barrow-in-Furness across Morecambe Bay 21 miles (35 km) away.

Unlike the Eiffel Tower, it is not quite free-standing: its base is hidden by the building which houses the Blackpool Tower Circus. The top level has views of much of Lancashire, southern Cumbria, North Wales, and the Isle of Man. Two other platforms and the "crow's nest" are accessible only to staff. In the lower platform (which is fully enclosed), visitors can look down to street level through a glass floor above the south-west leg. At the summit, a flagpole flies the Union flag.

During World War II, the tower was used for a time as an RAF radar station and was known at that time as RAF Tower.