Morecambe

Morecambe only got started as a club in 1920, and only made the Football League in 2007 – an event which is the subject of a highly detailed mural you will want to visit in town. Before that, they had a good run in the 1960s and 70s, capped off by winning the 1974 FA Trophy.

They built up again in the 90s, made a couple of nice FA Cup runs in the early 2000s, and otherwise were a solid Conference (now National League) side. One incident of note was in 2005, when their manager had a heart attack during a game; he survived but was replaced, and the new guy, Sammy McIlroy, finally got them into the Football League via the playoff final at Wembley in 2007.

This is what the mural is about, and it’s really something, actually an ode to various local sporting heroes, including motorbike racer John McGinnis, the “Morecambe Missile.” Alongside him and some local wrestling icons, the Shrimps of 2007 are noted for “netting” Exeter City via an 82nd-minute winner in front of 40,000 fans in London – 10,000 of them Shrimps fans. Population of Morecambe: 35,000. Not a bad ratio.

In 2021, they took the next step, again via the playoffs, gaining promotion to League One with a 107th-minute penalty in the playoff final. The following season they flirted with relegation but did make the FA Cup Third Round, where they led, 1-0, at Tottenham before Spurs threw on some starters and won it, 3-1.

In 2024, though, they dropped back into League Two, and spent a year teetering on the edge of financial ruin. Last season they dropped out of the League, still with no new ownership on the way.

2024–25 SEASON: 24th in League Two (relegated), 3rd Round FA Cup, 1st Round League Cup

2025–26 SEASON: National League (relegated in 2025)

Apparently it’s all about Accrington Stanley–odd because the 46 miles between them would seem rather large. It could be that, after making the league in 2007, it took Morecambe 16 tries to finally beat them. A much closer team they have only recently started playing is Fleetwood Town, just across the bay to the south. I happened to catch a couple of those in 2022, and I thought they were fairly feisty.

Morecambe Ladies were founded in 2005 and officially partnered with the men’s team in 2022. They play in the North West Women’s Regional Football League Division One North, with home games at the Mazuma Stadium.

Nothing in particular we’re aware of.

Though it’s fairly new (built in 2010) the 6,500-seat Mazuma Stadium is happily right in town. It’s a pretty standard affair for this level of the game: one stand (the Peter McGuigan) with seats and all the offices, two covered terraces behind the goals, and an uncovered one along the side. The latter could be uncomfortable for much of the season on the North West Coast.

Away fans will be behind one goal, and if it’s a big allotment, in part of the McGuigan Stand as well.

TOURS: None

GETTING THERE: It’s about a 30-minute walk from the train station, and worth it to extend a little to go via the waterfront. Other than football, it’s the thing to see in town.

PUBS: There’s a Wetherspoon in the center called the Eric Bartholomew (more on him below), and down on the seafront look for The Royal Bar plus the larger Kings Arms. There is also a less interesting Marston’s near the ground called The Hurley Flyer. Beer is reasonably priced in the ground, as well.

GRUB: The club is known for their pies, and honestly, we can attest to their quality. They won’t be the best pie you ever had, but “best pie at a football ground” is a much lower bar, and they are quite close. Made on site and priced £4 or less, it’s a proper pregame meal.

The town, though, is known for a thing called Potted Shrimps. You start with brown (or bay) shrimp, caught for generations by local shrimpers. Traditionally they would be cooked onboard in sea water, then boiled in nutmeg-flavored butter, then packed in butter (again!) which acts as a preservative. You might add some cayenne pepper to this. And then you spread this on bread. Apparently James Bond liked it, because the author Ian Fleming did. The place to get them in town is Edmondson’s Fresh Fish on Yorkshire Street.

AROUND TOWN: Morecambe is just your basic seaside town, known for a few things: the potted shrimp, a sandy beach, the football club, and a comedian you’ve never heard of unless you’re British. John Eric Bartholomew was born here in 1926, took the stage name Eric Morecambe, teamed up with Ernest Wise, and the two had a long career as Morecambe and Wise from the early 60s until Morecambe died in 1984.

He has a statue in town, and such was his legacy that Queen Elizabeth II herself unveiled it in 1999.

Otherwise, it’s a nice little seaside town which you are probably visiting from Manchester or the nearby and lovely Lancaster, so just eat some shrimp, walk along the seashore, check out the football and off you go.