PhotoPool Returns For 2025
1 August 2025
by Visit Blackpool
PhotoPool 25: Blackpool’s Town-Wide Photography Festival Returns, 1–17 August 2025
This summer, Blackpool’s streets, galleries, and creative spaces come alive through the lens as PhotoPool 25 returns from 1st to 17th August 2025. Spanning exhibitions, workshops, talks, film screenings, and public installations, the two-week festival celebrates photography as a powerful tool for storytelling, community engagement, and creative expression.
Presented by Hive Arts and partners, PhotoPool 25 brings together international names, rising talent, and grassroots voices in a diverse, town-wide programme designed to showcase Blackpool’s growing visual culture.
Framing Blackpool Through Photography
At the heart of the festival is Hive Blackpool, hosting The Photojournalists, a compelling dual exhibition featuring the iconic reportage of Paul Berriff OBE and Albert Cooper, whose work spans decades of both global events and intimate moments of Blackpool life. The show opens with a special launch reception on Friday 1st August, 18:00–21:00, inviting the public to preview the exhibitions and meet some of the artists involved.
Other key exhibitions include The Barry Lewis Collection at Showtown Blackpool, which offers an intimate and often humorous portrait of British seaside culture, and I Am Martin Parr at The Backlot Cinema, a one-night-only screening event dedicated to the British documentary photography icon. The evening also features a recorded Q&A with Parr, Richard Oughton, and Kim Scott, plus a reel of work from local photographers.
Abingdon Street Market hosts two powerful collections starting from the 4th August: The Bernie Blackburn Collection - a deeply personal archive of everyday life in Blackpool, and The Alternative Studio Collection, featuring striking portraits and community work by Kim Scott Photography, Ant, LaurynEliza, and Simon Arthur.
Talks, Workshops & Creative Encounters
Across the festival, visitors can take part in a vibrant mix of artist talks, community panels, and hands-on workshops. Events include a Female Focus on Photography panel at Art B&B on 9th August, bringing together women photographers to explore themes of identity, environment, and lived experience.
Creative activities include a Pinhole Camera Workshop with Andrew Walker and Community Darkroom, a Long Exposure Night Walk led by Donna Hannigan, and Hive Jive Live, an immersive projection and performance showcase at The Alternative Studio.
A Festival for All
Whether you’re an experienced photographer or simply curious, PhotoPool 25 offers accessible ways to engage with photography. The festival invites everyone to experience Blackpool through new perspectives, highlighting creativity, diversity, and the everyday beauty found in the frame.
Follow the programme and get involved via Instagram.