The famous side of Hull

Celebrating achievements of people connected with city – by Steve Mathie

Spin-it Records is celebrating its 29th year this year trading in trinity Market. We are the oldest “vinyl only” record shop in the country.

ten years ago, i had an idea to celebrate the achievements of the people from and connected with Hull. this idea brought about a book, the Famous Side of Hull (if we can do it, you can) and a gallery entitled the Wall of Fame, which is situated within my shop in the market.

Spin-it Records and the Wall of Fame have become an integral part of the Old town and is one of the only independent free attractions in the city.

the objective of the Wall of Fame is to inspire people to achieve their potential as others from the city have done before.

1Peter Martin – Actor

1941- 2023

Born in Hull in 1941, he was famous in the 1980s for his many t V commercials for Jewson’s Hardware. He played the fish shop man in First of the Summer Wine. He also played “Charlie the moonlighting gravedigger” in the Beiderbecke tapes. He was in the Royle Family as Joe, and played the part of Len Reynolds in it V’s Emmerdale from 2001 until the character’s death on May 17, 2007, in Emmerdale’s 500th anniversary episode.

2Richard Bean – Playwright

Born in Hull in 1956

His first full-length play Of Rats and Men went on to the Edinburgh Festival. He adapted it for BBC Radio, and it was nominated for a Sony Award. Subsequent plays include: toast, Mr England, the Mentalists, Under the Whaleback, Smack Family Robinson, the God Botherers, Honeymoon Suite, Harvest, the Hypochondriac and Up On Roof.

Between 1989 and 1994, Bean also worked as a stand-up comedian and went on to be one of the writers and performers of the sketch show Control Group Six (BBC Radio), which was nominated for a Writers Guild Award.

3

Paul Dakeyne – DJ/Producer

Born in Hull in 1961 paul has dedicated the past two decades of his life to record production and DJing. For six years he toured globally for the Ministry of Sound and has played DJ sets for the likes of U2 and Kraftwerk. paul has remixed around 250 records in his career as an artist in his own right. He also had one of dance music’s crossover hits with his 18 Strings by tinman, single scoring a UK top ten in 1994. He also co-wrote and produced the music for BBC’s Watchdog and Crimewatch when they were both revamped in 2001 and 2006 respectively. His other career highlights include an A&R stint for Mercury Records, lecturing in “DJ culture and music technology” and creating mash-up mixes for BBC Radio 1. paul now runs his globally popular 80s Electropop Radio Show and continues his music production activities from his home studio based in Hull. 4

Aka Old Mother Riley – Actor / Comedian

Arthur Lucan,

1885-1954 they achieved some success with a sketch called Bridget’s night Out. For this he first wore drag, and began to develop the character of Old Mother Riley. there followed a successful film career, a radio series and even a strip cartoon in the Radio times. in all, Arthur Lucan made 17 films, 16 as Old Mother Riley.

Born Arthur towle, he toured ireland, where he met and subsequently married Kathleen “Kitty” Mc Shane. together they developed a double act – Old Mother Riley and Her Daughter Kitty.

Whilst in Dublin, he changed his name to Lucan, and they continued to perform as Lucan and McShane. the act was so successful, they played it at the 1934 Royal Command performance at the London palladium, the most prestigious engagement of its time.

He performed literally up to his dying breath, collapsing and dying in the wings of the now demolished Tivoli Theatre in Hull in 1954.

5Andrew Penny – Conductor Born in Hull in 1952

As well as his contribution to British music, Penny has also conducted a recording of Mendelssohn’s Concerto for Violin, Piano and Strings iAwards of 1999, the Editor’s Choice Award was made to 22 Naxos discs as an outstanding contribution to 20th-century British music. Three of these releases were conducted by Penny.

6Gavin Scott – Broadcaster and Novelist

Born in Hull in 1950

Gavin Scott is a novelist, broadcaster and writer of the Emmy-winning mini-series

The Mists of Avalon, Small Soldiers, Working Title’s The Borrowers and Sci

Fi’s Legend of Earthsea.

He spent ten years making films for British television before becoming a screenwriter, creating more than 200 documentaries and short films.

His first assignment in the US was with George Lucas, developing and scripting

The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles. His work ranges from family entertainment (Dangerous Archeologists) to comedy (The Suit, The Book, The Film and the T-Shirt), science fiction and historical dramas. The list goes on.

7Dead Fingers Talk – Punk Band Formed in Hull in 1975

In 1969, Jeff Parsons and Rocky Norton put a band together called Bone. The band split after just a year. The same line-up went on to form Dead Fingers Talk (DFT) in 1975. In 1977, DFT moved to London and were signed to Pye

Records on a three-album deal but only released one, entitled Storm the Reality Studios, produced by Mick Ronson. DFT Released two singles, Hold On To Rock ‘n’ Roll And This Crazy World. The band split in 1979 in the middle of recording their second album.

8Barrie Rutter – Actor

Born in Hull in 1946

In the 1970s, Barrie Rutter worked with the National Youth Theatre and the Royal Shakespeare Company. In the 1980s, he performed in three adaptations by poet Tony Harrison, The Oresteia, The Trackers of Oxyrhynchus and The Mysteries,.

He founded Northern Broadsides in 1992. In 2003, he received the Sam Wanamaker Award jointly with Stephen Unwin for their work promoting Shakespeare in the Regions.

He has appeared in many films and television programmes, including a regular role in the early 1980s ITV sitcom Astronauts. More recently, he appeared in five episodes of the series Fat Friends in 2004-05, playing Douglas Simpson.

9Cosey Fanni Tutti –Performance Artist

Born in Hull in 1951

Cosey Fanni Tutti is best known as a part of the band Throbbing Gristle and Chris & Cosey.

In 1976, she co-founded the group Throbbing Gristle with Chris Carter, Peter Christopherson and Genesis P-Orridge. They disbanded in 1981.

In 2004, after 23 years apart, Throbbing Gristle reunited, with all four original members.

LONG GONE. This was how the area near Hull’s City Hall once looked. The picture, by artist FS Smith, shows the corner of Engine Street and Waterworks Street. In 1952, Waterworks Street vanished from the map when it became part of Paragon Street. Waterworks Street had previously ceased to exist, part of it being used for the City Hall. It was given its name because of waterworks in nearby Engine Street

A look at street artist FS Smith and his drawings

WHull’s collection of sketches by Fs smith contains more than 800 drawings of Victorian Hull and its surrounding region.

They were created by Frederick schultz smith between 1880 and 1920. They record many buildings and places that have long since vanished due to wartime bombing or redevelopment. Others still remain standing alongside newer properties.

Although Fs smith became a familiar figure sketching on street corners in Hull, he was not originally from the city. He was born in Worthing, sussex, in 1860. He came to Hull as a small child with his parents and he lived most of his life in the old st John’s Wood area in west Hull. He was still drawing in his sixties, shortly before his death in 1925.

The drawings are visual “snapshots” in time. They were often produced to record buildings that were due to be pulled down. One of his drawings shows the old Guildhall which stood on the same site as the present Guildhall. The drawing was created in 1913, the year after it was demolished, from earlier sketches. The only part of the building to survive today