Old Pier Bookshop: Inside Morecambe's oldest book shop - an Aladdin's Cave where you can get lost

The Old Pier Bookshop opened in 1990, and is now crammed floor to ceiling with books including many over 50 years old.

A trip through time

Walking into the shop on Marine Road Central is like taking a trip through time. The aisles are narrow, the shelves appear disorganised and the ceiling and bookshelf ends are filled with old memorabilia and curios - from film posters to taxidermy.

Shelves are arranged roughly into genres, and lined with second-hand books that look satisfyingly weathered.

Hard-to-find books

The Morecambe store is filled with hidden gems and hard-to-find titles including books that have gone out of print.

It has been a bookshop for 35 years - but the building has been in the family since the 60s.

Owner, Tony Vettesse, explains: “I feel as though the shop is a living being, I’m just feeding it and looking after it. It’s developed its own personality.”

‘Tardis’ filled with books

The busiest sections are the sci-fi, fantasy and crime shelves. Although the shop is loosely organised into sections, the books are not alphabetised in any order or arranged by author.

‘Eee what a lot of books’

On Facebook and Trip Advisor, the store gets described as a ‘Tardis’ and an ‘Aladdin’s Cave’.

Tony adds: “My favourite is ‘eee what a lot of books’. You can get lost in here, go down one of these aisles and the sound disappears from outside.”

Family business

As a youngster, Tony Vettesse’s parents owned the building, which was run as a café and chip shop.

But when Tony gradually began introducing books into the shop, his mum suggested he turn it into a bookshop.

Tony grew up in an ‘almost illiterate’ household - but a teacher introduced him to reading and he was hooked. He adds: “Growing up I wanted a book store. It was my lifetime ambition and dream, and I never thought I’d get the chance to realise it.”

Watch the video above for a look inside The Old Pier Bookshop.