A Lancashire man is the talk of the neighbourhood after he installed a 25ft Blackpool Tower replica in his back garden.
Now, he is giving the public the chance to rent out his property on Airbnb and wake up to a view of 'Blackpool Tower' every morning despite being eight miles away from the original.
Douglas Smith installed the 25ft Tower replica in his Hambleton garden around eight years ago.
The detailed replica was built in the 1940s and later used by Blackpool Tourism as an exhibition piece.
Douglas bought it for £3,000 in order to “own a piece of Blackpool history”.
Douglas, 63, said: “I had to do an awful lot of work on it because the metal work was damaged on it – but we brought it back to life.
“I am a big fan of Blackpool and spent most of my working life there – I also wanted it because not everyone has a 25ft Blackpool Tower.
“It is such a good replica of it too and it really is detailed.”
Douglas said the neighbours love the quirky addition – even if it does light up at night.
He said: “The neighbours love it – especially the kids.
“We took it down for eight months last year and everybody was asking where it was.
“We light it up on special occasions, such as the Queen's jubilee and various anniversaries; we had it blue for Ukraine for a while.
“Blackpool Tower were very complimentary when it first went up and they wished me all the best.”
The tower is just meters away from Douglas’ very own shed pub O’Smither’s, which has been named shed of the year twice.
The Irish and rugby themed pub also contains some historic Blackpool memorabilia, including a ‘blob machine’ sourced from the former Yates Wine Lodge on Talbot Road.
This machine makes drinks similar to hot toddies, traditionally using Yates’s Australian liqueur Wine and brandy, sugar, lemon and hot water.
If you fancy seeing the impressive structure for yourself, you can rent an adjoining annex on Airbnb for £80 a night.
Tower View Annex Airbnb is a modern spacious self-contained annex with its own private entrance joined to the family house.
It sleeps up to four people and has its own kitchen and decking area.
Douglas said: “I am renting out the annex to the side of the house which I have just listed on Airbnb.
“Here, you can wake up every morning to the view of Blackpool Tower.”
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