Ulverston’s indoor market may be small, but here you can find most of life’s necessities and quite a few of its luxuries, while the different stalls offer a surprising variety of services. On a quick walk through you can pick up basics like bread, cakes and pies at Grange Bakery; fruit, vegetables, herbs and maybe a joke from Billy; and cheese, bacon, cooked meats and salads at Blackledge’s, home of the famous creamy Lancashire cheese. Our furred and feathered companions are catered for by the Pet Stall, and Homecraft can provide you with cleaning essentials and bin bags. Recently someone who had taken the wrong suitcase while getting off the train turned up. Between Barton’s (underwear and nightwear among many other lines), In Style Fashions, who also sell shoes, and the Dress Agency, anyone in a similar predicament could be fitted out from top to toe, and choose a new suitcase from the Bag Stall for good measure. When you run out of something vital half way through a DIY job, Homecraft has all kinds of tools, nails, fillers, paint brushes and rollers, and A&L Aerials can supply you with cable and connectors if you are re-jigging your TV set-up. At clearing up time, hoover bags and belts can be found at Andy’s stall, next to the Sweet Stall, and this is also the place for mobile phone and computer accessories.
Planning a party needn’t be so daunting since the Card Stall will fill your choice of balloons with helium, a special cake can be ordered from Grange Bakery and Blackledge’s offer celebration cheesecakes, platters of cold meats and cheeseboards. Last minute presents certainly aren’t a problem: small wedding and christening gifts from the Card Stall; toys at the Sweet Stall; local pickles, jams and gift biscuits at Blackledge’s; a new book at a bargain price from the Book Shack or something unusual from Mystic Bazaar in the corner. If knitting and sewing are your thing, Barton’s has 84 colours of Stylecraft yarns together with knitting patterns, while Jackie’s haberdashery is a treasure trove of buttons, thread, ribbon and material. If, on the other hand, you prefer to leave fiddly jobs to others, Jackie undertakes alterations, especially zips and hems, and Homecraft will fit new watch batteries. On days the IT expert is in (check at the Sweet Stall), you can get all kinds of IT and phone advice at Andy’s stall, and A&L Aerials offer a complete TV installation and trouble-shooting service. For those in a mood to browse, Varykino is a magnet for collectors of stamps, old postcards, coins, badges, fossils and old football programmes, the Vintage Stall has second hand books, costume jewellery and small antiques, and the Book Shack has a wide range of new books.
This is only scratching the surface of what you can find. Don’t forget that you can enjoy home cooking in the Market café and, if you are caught out by the rain, the Bag Stall will happily sell you an umbrella and a shopping trolley for your purchases!
Stop Press A hairdresser is coming soon!
Helen Shacklady
