Where else could you find yourself among a group of cowgirls, a 6-foot inflatable shark and the Incredible Hulk?
Only Wigan on Boxing Day.
This evening marks the 43rd year that the northern tradition continues – as hundreds hit the town for a night out in their best fancy dress.
Signs offering drinks for as low as 89 pence are plastered across building walls on King Street – the home to clubs and bars such as Jak’s, Reef and Coda.
The faint sound of groups of friends laughing and giggling could be heard as early as 7pm, as they geared up for the long-awaited annual spectacle.
READ MORE:Wigan’s legendary Boxing Day fancy dress costumes through the years – in pictures
The comedic tradition has seen a host of weird and wonderful fancy dress efforts throughout the years.
It is one of the biggest nights out of the year for Wigan, welcoming floods of revellers in an array of costumes – and tonight was no exception.
The buzz this evening was undeniable following the disappointment of last year, which saw the event completely cancelled and streamed virtually due to Tier 3 restrictions.
Wigan’ers have had to wait for two long years for this night.
And today, Covid still seemed on the minds of many – who spoke to the M.E.N of their desperation to have a night on the town with friends over fears new measures could soon be introduced.
High infection rates could have meant that 2021’s Boxing Day party was also set to be a muted affair, but with sell-out events and huge queues forming outside various venues early on, it seemed more and more unlikely.
Nicole Graves and Aaron Baron are both 18.
Tonight is their first ever Wigan Boxing Day experience – and one of their first nights out since becoming the legal age.
Dressed up as Thing 1 and Thing 2 from Dr Seuss’ Cat in the Hat, their excitement was obvious.
“We are best friends and since both turning 18, really wanted a night out together,” said Nicole.
“We are both a bit mad really and knew we wanted to go as a pair, so this just made sense and is pretty funny.
“It has been something we have been looking forward to for so long, we have heard it is absolutely manic from so many people. It is such a big deal in Wigan.”
Also experiencing the Boxing Day bazaar for the first time are three friends Megan, Emma and Courtney, who have come dressed as three cowgirls.
Megan told the M.E.N: “ Everyone from Wigan knows about the Boxing Day night out – it’s just absolutely mega.
“It has been a tradition for so long that everyone’s parents, uncles, aunties and other family members have been coming since they were young.
“It is our first time experiencing it and we just knew that after last year, it would be so busy.
“We wanted to come out early and enjoy the night. We really wanted to make this night out before Boris makes another announcement because we don’t know what he is going to say or if we could be in another lockdown.”
In hopes of enticing people out of their homes this evening and bring numbers back up to pre-pandemic levels, venues have been advertising their Boxing Day events for quite some time.
Clubs and bars such as the Reef Bar and the Coda Nightclub hosted ticketed events hoping to reel in queues of northerners attempting to cure their Christmas Day hangovers with the promise of another crazy and fun evening.
Speaking ahead of the night’s events, Ryan Fanthorpe and Lisa Howdle, Managers of Jak’s bar, said it is the ‘place to be’ in the town on Boxing Day.
This evening’s event, which had 400 tickets up for grabs, had completely sold out.
“Everyone from Wigan you speak to just tells you it is the maddest night of the year,” said Lisa.
“It really is just nothing but fun and just incredible. Wigan is known up and down the country for this night.
“We are expecting it to be just as big if not bigger than other years because people want one last big blow out before possibly losing their New Year plans.
“There is a lot of uncertainty, and so many young people will want to enjoy a fun night with their friends.
“Our tickets sold really quickly so it is clear there is a lot of interest. I don’t think that what happened last year will negatively impact any of the nightclubs in Wigan.”
As early as 9pm, King Street was continuing to fill up with queues stretching further down.
Many were crawling from one end to the other, starting at Revolution which was already filling up as early as 6pm.
Excited club-goers were chanting in the queues and taking selfies of one another in their bonkers attire.
And despite being early, many already couldn’t quite manage to walk up the street unaided – it could easily have been mistaken for a crowd of drunken stag or hen parties.
Men strutted in heels and pink sparkly dresses, as women wore full suits and hats.
Others, bitterly cold in the 3 degree chill, shivered and huddled up to one another as they waited to be allowed into the clubs.
Those in normal outfits – of which there were a small few – certainly stood out more than those in fancy dress.
Laura Baines and Sophie Edwards had also ventured out for their first night out ‘in months’.
Laura said: “We are both local and have never been here before, it looks absolutely amazing already.
“It is our first night out in a long time, and we both just decided to bite the bullet and go all out this year.
“To be honest, all we have heard is that it is absolutely manic. Why would you not want to come out and enjoy yourself after such a hard 18 months?”
Another group of friends, Beth, Kelsey, Stephanie and Lauren, said they were worried their New Year’s Eve plans may not go ahead, so wanted a big night out together.
“It is absolutely nuts, but that is what we love about it,” said Beth.
“We definitely knew we couldn’t miss it.
“We have all arranged to go out for New Years but think it might not go ahead, so this felt like our only chance to make the most of it and get dressed up.”
Sign up to the MEN email newsletters to get the latest on sport, news, what’s on and more by following this link
For all the latest World News Click Here
For the latest news and updates, follow us on Google News.
