Visitors flock to comedy show

Ken Dodd officially opened the Grin Up North exhibition

Museum staff say an exhibition of comedy stars from the North West has increased visitor numbers by almost five times.

The Museum of Lancashire in Preston has seen a 460% increase in the number of admissions since Grin Up North opened.

Liverpudlian comedian Ken Dodd launched the exhibition last month.

It includes exhibits from more traditional comedians like George Formby and Les Dawson to contemporary stand-up stars like Bolton's Peter Kay.

The museum says that more than 600 people visited the exhibition in its first week.

Morecambe's glasses

John McGoldrick, curator of Museum of Lancashire, said: "We always knew it was going to be a popular show, but it seems to have captured people's imaginations.

"There's a certain generation that it has been more popular with - the over 50s - because the comedian mentioned in the exhibition have brought back lots of memories for them."

The museum hopes that it will also attract repeat visitors as it adds more exhibits to Grin Up North.

An appeal to track down Eric Morecambe's favourite glasses prompted a collector of the star's memorabilia to come forward with exhibits for the museum.