Legendary Lighthouses Of Britain Illuminate Community And Identity

Whether it’s the shifting sands of Spurn Point or 17th century chalk tower at Flamborough Head, the North is home to many famous lighthouses across our varied coastlines.

While our reliance on these once vital navigational aids has evolved into novelty landmarks, admired for their handsome charm and purposeful design, Lighthouses are still a cornerstone for community heritage.

Accounting for this observation first-hand across the whole of Britain is Roger O’Reilly, author and illustrator of now two guides on the lighthouses that define our shores - ‘Legendary Lighthouses Of Britain’ being his latest release. 

Devoting many hours to exploring their history and illustrating every quirk and detail on offer, this documentation of Britain’s lighthouses truly underscores the enduring pride we hold in our coastline - a sentiment that can sometimes feel like it is slipping away.

We caught up with Roger to discuss how his passion project turned into much more: “I grew up a stone's throw from the sea on the East coast of Ireland and spent my time as a boy cycling down with friends and watching lighthouses rotate through foggy evenings out in the distance and had a real appreciation for it. Then of course, life takes over and you move away - in my case to Kilkenny which is pretty much as far from the sea as you can get.

“Time went on and I ended up taking my children to Loftus Hall one Halloween. It’s on a very quiet and isolated peninsula and is supposedly the most haunted house in Ireland. We were there and off into the distance rotating around eerily, was Hookhead Lighthouse. It just sparked something in me. I illustrated Hookhead. And then I was onto the next one. And then I decided there was no point stopping there and before you know it I’m now on my second book and I’ve seen some incredible lighthouses across Britain.”

With navigational advances, the need for lighthouses has almost completely dwindled leaving most unmanned with the removal of original bulbs. Despite this, Roger is sure that lighthouses are not obsolete and now signify community and identity. He says: “From my experience, everyone’s very proud of our lighthouses and for those saved from rack and ruin by the public, they’re now majorly successful tourist attractions. There’s an awareness that we need to preserve these lighthouses and come up with an affordable way of doing so and the public are just incredibly enthusiastic about that. They’re part of our heritage and anytime I talk to anybody, they’re adamant that they must stand and be preserved. 

“One of the things people forget in places like Whitby, for instance, is that there wasn’t any street lighting but if you had a small light in a window, it could be seen five miles away at sea. Now harbours have so many lights that lighthouses wouldn’t be seen like they used to be. If you talk to people on the boats though, they will tell you that while they do rely on GPS, they still love to see lighthouses flickering off in the distance - it gives them a sense that ‘we’re almost home’, that’s what it’s about now.”

For the North, our lighthouses also signify the major roles we played throughout history in both trading and the Industrial Revolution, Roger explains: “You can follow the history of the country by the way shipping changes over time, it’s a glimpse into trading and of course lighthouses always mark these areas. In the North shipping was incredibly important to places like Liverpool which was one of the busiest and wealthiest ports of the 19th century, similarly Hull made the East coast so important being the biggest whaling port of its time.  Whereas, on the North coast, St. Bees is one of the only major lighthouses because there wasn’t really any shipping there. It’s a fascinating insight into the past!”

As Roger O’Reilly’s work illustrates, lighthouses are far more than relics of maritime history; they are emblems of community, resilience, and cultural identity. As we look to the future, the continued preservation and celebration of Britain’s lighthouses is imperative in ensuring they remain a source of pride and a testament to our rich maritime legacy up North.

Legendary Lighthouses Of Britain by Roger O’Reilly is out now from Watkins Publishing.