Barbara Castle Barbara Castle Barbara Anne Castle, Baroness Castle of Blackburn, PC, GCOT ("née" Betts; 6 October 1910 – 3 May 2002) was a British Labour Party politician who was the Member of Parliament for Blackburn from 1945 to 1979, making her the longest-serving female MP in the history of the House of Commons until that record was broken in 2007 by Gwyneth Dunwoody. She later became the Member of the European Parliament for Greater Manchester from 1979 to 1989 and subsequently a member of the House of Lords, having been granted a life peerage in 1990. One of the most significant
Blackburn Bus Company service uses two tone purple liveried Wright Eclipse Geminis. From 3 April 2016 the X41 which links Blackburn, Accrington and Haslingden with Manchester was branded "Red Express" with specially branded blue and red ex Harrogate Bus Company Wright Gemini bodied Volvo B7TLs formerly used on Harrogate bus route 36. The X40 from Whalley, via Great Harwood and Clayton-le-Moors, was withdrawn and no connecting services provided for any of the 25,000 residents of those towns and surrounding villages who wish to arrive in Manchester before 7am. Services now only operate between Blackburn, Accrington, Baxenden, Haslingden, Helmshore, Prestwich and Manchester Chorlton Street.