A home for Sir Ken’s tickling sticks
A home for Sir Ken’s tickling sticks
Plus: paint your own Guinness and a 200-mile relay for lifeboats
Dear readers — a warm welcome to those of you that joined us over the weekend after the third instalment of Abi’s investigation into Big Help Project. That story broke a number of revelations about the charity — which started its life as a food bank in Knowsley — including that its former trustees, an ex and current Liverpool councillor, moved over £5 million from the charity into private companies they mostly own.
“Immensely impressed by this forensic article by Abi and co,” one of you wrote in the comments. “Another fantastic piece of investigative reporting, that’s why I subscribe to the Post,” said another. Make sure you catch up on that story below, as Part 4 of the investigation will be published as a members only story later this week. That’ll involve a journey to Wales to dig into some unusual property auctions, and a deep dive into another major housing company wrapped up in the Big Help empire.
Today’s edition brings you something more lighthearted on this rather rainy Monday. Liverpool comedian Ken Dodd will officially be celebrated with a four-storey venue opened in his name. Read more about that below — as well as our usual Post recommendations and cultural picks.
Editor’s note: Abi’s investigation into Big Help Project is based on over a year’s worth of research and hours of reporting. Stories like that mean conducting dozens of interviews, reviewing hundreds of pages worth of documents, and chasing leads wherever they might take us. All of this is only possible thanks to the generous support of our paid readership. For just £7 a month — less than a hearty sandwich from Polpetta — you can help fund a renaissance of trustworthy local journalism on Merseyside and enjoy an extra two members-only stories every week. And next time we carry out a major investigation, you can enjoy the warm glow of knowing you were part of making it happen. Please click the button below to join the league of local heroes who make it possible.
Your Post briefing
A group of lifeguards on the Wirral will be taking part in a 200-mile relay run to raise money for the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI). 38 lifeguards from across the North West will run continuously for around 40 hours over a five-mile stretch between Harrison Drive beach and New Brighton beach to raise funds to support the charity. Find out more about it here.
The woman behind the fundraiser to rebuild Spellow Library has been formally thanked by Lord Mayor Richard Kemp over the weekend. Alex McCormick set up the fundraiser after Spellow Library was set on fire during the riots over the murder over three girls in Southport last month. So far the fundraiser has raised over £250,000, with Lord Mayor Kemp adding that the efforts of local people to restore the library have “really captured the imagination of the people of Liverpool".
Business owners who were impacted by those same riots are also now being urged to claim compensation for damages. The riot compensation scheme has been introduced by Merseyside Police and Crime Commissioner Emily Spurrell, and aims to help owners of buildings which suffered structural damage, tenants who had stock stolen or vehicles that were damaged. “I want to ensure everyone affected by these appalling incidents can recover as quickly as possible and critical to that is accessing the financial support to which you are entitled,” Spurrell told the BBC.
And sad news for book lovers after a century-old independent bookshop announced its closure. Broadhursts in Southport confirmed it would be closing with “immediate effect” last week, but did not reveal the reason for its closure. The shop was opened in 1920 by owner Charles Kenyon Broadhurst and has been visited by many famous faces over the years, including music royalty Johnny Cash and author HG Wells.
The big story: A home for Ken Dodd’s tickling sticks
Top line: Plans to build a new £15 million centre dedicated to Liverpool comedian Sir Ken Dodd have been approved by the council, with the four-storey cultural space set to open as soon as 2027.
Context: A proposal to build the Sir Ken Dodd Happiness Centre was first submitted back in November 2023. Those plans suggested it should be attached to the Royal Court theatre in Liverpool, where Dodd regularly performed throughout his career. That proposal has now been approved, with Stirling Prize-winning architect Allford Hall Monaghan Morris leading on the project.
“The last great music hall entertainer”: Originally from Knotty Ash, Ken Dodd shot to fame back in the mid-1950s as a comedian and singer. He’s often described as one of the "the last great music hall entertainers", popular for his use of a red, white and blue tickling stick prop that he often introduced into his act. He was knighted in 2017 for his services to charity and entertainment, and continued to perform up until his death in 2019, at the age of 90.
The Ken Dodd Happiness Centre: The new centre will provide a home to Dodd’s famous tickling sticks, host comedy workshops and display around 1,000 books that he used to record his jokes during his lifetime. This is despite him leaving instructions for his wife to burn those books after his death. Speaking to the BBC, Dodd’s wife Anne Jones said his books were “unique” and “invaluable”, and needed to be saved.
Alongside the display of his books and tickling sticks, the Happiness Centre will also see a giant tickling stick statue erected outside the Royal Court theatre. This proposal, while a touching tribute, raised some eyebrows when it was first announced last year. Dozens of people took to X to brand the statue an eyesore, comparing it to “a huge toilet brush” and “kebab rotisserie”. “Sorry but, whilst I support the use, this looks absolutely awful. How can they do this opposite a GI listed building?” another wrote. “No wonder we lost our World Heritage status with stuff like this.” (The Post also expressed its… reservations).
Bottom line: Despite criticisms, the plans are going full steam ahead, with the centre due to open in time for Dodd's 100th birthday in 2027. His wife Anne added she was “thrilled” her dream of creating a legacy to celebrate Ken’s life has reached such a “landmark stage”.
Home of the week
For the Post reader who moonlights as a musician by night, this period property in Fairfield comes equipped with its very own makeshift music studio – though the keyboards are not included. It also has a large back garden, six (6!) bedrooms, and a view of Newsham park, all for £350,000.
Post Picks
🧛 Autumn is near, and acclaimed author Deborah Harkness will be bringing the spooky vibes to Oh Me Oh My restaurant tomorrow, to talk about her upcoming novel The Black Bird Oracle. Expect witches, daemons, vampires, and a dead raven bringing foreboding omens. £10, or £30 with a signed book included.
☘️ Continuing with the bird theme, on Wednesday you have the chance to attend possibly the most hyper specific Paint & Party event we’ve promoted here yet: an evening dedicated to painting your very own Guinness poster (the one with the pelican). The event, of course, will be held at Shenanigans Irish pub. Tickets cost £20, and the event was hugely popular last time, so get them quick.
☀️ Then on Friday, Lavender Nights will be hosting an optimistically al fresco Lesbian Summer Social at Sub Rosa (we’ve checked the forecast and it’s looking good). A self-described “chic summer party”, the promo promises DJs, crafts, and general sapphic fun – a good haul for under £10.
🎸 And finally, this Saturday No Play festival returns to Liverpool, this time to take over the city centre. The fully independent alternative festival will be hosted across three venues – Arts Club, EBGBS, and The Jacaranda – and judging from the poster should be pretty hardcore. Individual gig tickets are available from their website.
Recommended reads
Jurgen Klopp may no longer be managing Liverpool, but his legacy will be cherished by fans for time immemorial. Today we’ve been looking back on this brilliant long read by Lynsey Hanley on the power of Klopp – from Klopp T-shirts to Klopp murals to Klopp pies – to see just how the German manager took an English city by storm. You can read it over at the Financial Times.
And whether you spent the whole of Saturday prepping to get Oasis tickets, or simply couldn’t care less about the Gallagher brothers, there’s one thing that we can all agree upon: Oasis have the city of Liverpool to thank for their success. Marc Waddington over at the BBC explains how the Manc band owe their sound to two Scouse brothers – though whether that’s something for us to be proud of or not is probably up for debate.
On the Spellow Library reoport.
"after Spellow Library was set on fire during the riots over the murder over three girls in Southport last month"
The riot had nothing to do with the murders and other injuries suffered in this attack. The riots were sparked by a bunch of idiots that though they could get away with some exciting civil unrest. We be in better taste not to link these two things
I think it's fantastic. He was a brilliant performer and always gave people more than there moneys worth. If the Beatles have got all sorts of memorials to them then Ken Dodd should have something. At least he never left Liverpool, that was where his heart was. He brought lots of happiness to people and his act was alway based on that.