News
Sunrise swim celebrates the longest day at Peterborough Lido

You know something special is going on in Peterborough when even BBC Radio Cambridgeshire ‘re-discovers’ the city to broadcast live from there.
Today is June 21, of course, and the local radio station set up early for their breakfast show live from Peterborough Lido to celebrate the summer solstice.

Over 200 swimmers rise early for the 4:30am Summer Solstice Sunrise to take a swim in the city’s Lido Pool,
City Lido, Peterborough
Wednesday 21 June 2023.
Picture by Terry Harris.

Over 200 swimmers rise early for the 4:30am Summer Solstice Sunrise to take a swim in the city’s Lido Pool,
City Lido, Peterborough
Wednesday 21 June 2023.
Picture by Terry Harris.

Over 200 swimmers rise early for the 4:30am Summer Solstice Sunrise to take a swim in the city’s Lido Pool,
City Lido, Peterborough
Wednesday 21 June 2023.
Picture by Terry Harris.
200 people had booked a slot for the sunrise swim to celebrate the beginning of the longest day of the year.
This was an early start, even for me! The summer solstice sunrise swim at the Peterborough Lido. We’re live from 6 on @BBCCambs 🏊♂️🛟📻 pic.twitter.com/1vNPzHGCCS
— Dotty McLeod (@dottymcl) June 21, 2023
BBC breakfast show host Dotty Mcleod set the scene for the occasion, chatting to early risers, and discovering the history of the outdoor swimming pool which opened its doors to the public for the first time in 1936.

Over 200 swimmers rise early for the 4:30am Summer Solstice Sunrise to take a swim in the city’s Lido Pool,
City Lido, Peterborough
Wednesday 21 June 2023.
Picture by Terry Harris.

Over 200 swimmers rise early for the 4:30am Summer Solstice Sunrise to take a swim in the city’s Lido Pool,
City Lido, Peterborough
Wednesday 21 June 2023.
Picture by Terry Harris.
Matthew and his wife were among those who had queued to get into for the early swim and told Dotty their five-year-old daughter was attending the sunrise swim for the first time.
“We had been really looking forward to it,” he said. “We love it here and come down quite a bit.

Over 200 swimmers rise early for the 4:30am Summer Solstice Sunrise to take a swim in the city’s Lido Pool,
City Lido, Peterborough
Wednesday 21 June 2023.
Picture by Terry Harris.

Over 200 swimmers rise early for the 4:30am Summer Solstice Sunrise to take a swim in the city’s Lido Pool,
City Lido, Peterborough
Wednesday 21 June 2023.
Picture by Terry Harris.
He said he was wife was keen to celebrate the solstice “and my daughter wanted to do it too.
“So many are packed in here – it’s wonderful to see.

Over 200 swimmers rise early for the 4:30am Summer Solstice Sunrise to take a swim in the city’s Lido Pool,
City Lido, Peterborough
Wednesday 21 June 2023.
Picture by Terry Harris.

Over 200 swimmers rise early for the 4:30am Summer Solstice Sunrise to take a swim in the city’s Lido Pool,
City Lido, Peterborough
Wednesday 21 June 2023.
Picture by Terry Harris.
“And standing on the balcony watching the sun rise was just brilliant.”

Over 200 swimmers rise early for the 4:30am Summer Solstice Sunrise to take a swim in the city’s Lido Pool,
City Lido, Peterborough
Wednesday 21 June 2023.
Picture by Terry Harris.
Lido officials had been busy planning for the occasion for some time and tickets were snapped up fast.
Can you help us?
While you’re here, we are asking, for the first time, for readers to support us financially by taking out a modest subscription.
£2, or £3 or even £5 will help us achieve our goals. It will mean the second year of CambsNews will be livelier, healthier, and much better placed to cover the important issues affecting our everyday lives.
Your subscription simply means we can provide and expand our news FREE to all readers (Read More)
Will you help us? Simply click the link below to make a donation.