Italy to conclude World Fireworks Championship in Blackpool

Italy will conclude the 2023 World Fireworks Championship in Blackpool this weekend.

The Italian entry is the last of three countries to participate in the competition, with their display taking place on Friday 20 October.

The stunning display, which will set to music, will take place over the beach in front of The Blackpool Tower. The event is free to access an follows the entries of India and Switzerland earlier this year.

The performance, by Italian fireworks company Pirotecnica Soldi, will take place on the evening of Friday 20 October, to coincide with the launch of this year’s annual Lightpool Festival in Blackpool.

The company was founded by Francesco Soldi in 1869 as a response to architects who wanted to illuminate the facades of churches and buildings on special occasions. Since then, generation after generation has continued a tradition of handcrafting fireworks, which are still made for displays at its factory in Florence.

The team has participated in many International Fireworks competitions including Switzerland, Spain, Belgium, France, Great Britain and Canada. They last performed in Blackpool in 1999.

Over the years, the firework events have become one of the resort’s biggest draws. In 2022, each of the events attracted more than 50,000 spectators to the Tower Festival Headland.

Cllr Lynn Williams, Leader of Blackpool Council, said: “World Fireworks Blackpool is one of the most popular events in our autumn calendar.

“These are free family events and prove enormously popular with residents and visitors alike. We can’t wait to bring this magnificent spectacle back to the seafront later this year.”

The three displays form an integral part of Blackpool’s major events programme which this year will see the return of the two-day Air Show on August 12 and 13, Ride The Lights on August 29, the Illuminations Switch-On celebration on September 1, and Lightpool Festival from October 20-28.