Vintage Cleethorpes Postcards Inspire Composer’s Song

A composer is developing a song drawing inspiration from historical postcards sent from Cleethorpes during the 20th Century. Stuart Wood acquired 200 postcards dispatched from the resort between 1900 and the 1970s after relocating to the North East Lincolnshire town last year. He is collaborating with local community groups to assemble what he terms a “musical within a song.” Mr. Wood anticipates that the composition, titled Postcards from Cleethorpes, along with its accompanying video, will serve to promote Cleethorpes during the upcoming summer season. Speaking to BBC Radio Humberside, he stated: “As soon as I had them in my hands I thought it was like a musical because of the messages written on them and Postcards from Cleethorpes came from that really”. He commenced work on what he has characterized as a four-minute musical contained within a single song. “It’s about a divorced person that arrives in Cleethorpes which is a town that was built as a pleasure garden in a way,” Mr Wood said. The postcards, which feature depictions of coastal vistas including Cleethorpes pier and the promenade, are intended to form the visual background for the song’s video. “It will be a bit like Mary Poppins, combining animation with live action, but the background will be the postcards,” Mr. Wood commented. To realize this endeavor, he has engaged with various local groups, choirs, and the organization Create North East Lincolnshire. Mr. Wood hopes the video will be utilized in promoting Cleethorpes for its 2025 holiday season.