Tag: Midget Gems

Cleckheaton

I’ve never been to Cleckheaton.

I won’t lie, I’m not certain that I even knew where it was until I realised that I had never been there.

Anyway, I thought that now might be the right time to take a look at this little Pearl of the… wherever it is and fill you in on whatever I eventually discover. 

I’ll be back in a minute…

Well, it appears that Cleckheaton is, as a matter of fact, the Pearl of West Yorkshire, occupying the gap that lies between Bradford and Huddersfield in the Spen Valley, by the picturesque banks of the M62.  It once lay on the Roman road between York and Chester, although there is no evidence that I can find that any Romans ever stopped there.  In the years through to the Industrial Revolution it was known mainly for textile production and religious non-conformity, with leaders such as Eli Collins (the Wizard of Wyke) and Alvery Newsome (The Wise Man of Heckmondwike).  In 1818, the Reverend Hammond Roberson secured government funding to build a church in the village and the local W.I. started making marmalade and knitting scarves.

The Twentieth Century saw little progress for Cleckheaton although, in 1903, the Lion’s factory did commence the manufacture of Midget Gems in the town where they are still produced today.  Consequently, there are few people in the UK of my generation who do not have a little bit of Cleckheaton in them.  The town also had a railway station that closed in 1969 and was, according to Wiki, stolen by a man from Dewsbury.  It currently has a bus station which, according to the same source, ‘has six stands’ and a school bus.

In case you are wondering, Cleckheaton was, in the past, famous for carding (No, me neither) which is apparently a process by which wool is pulled out into straight strands in preparation for spinning which took place, as far as I can see, in the far more glamorous metropolis of Wakefield (Some 10 miles to the west.  1 hour and 7 minutes by bus – provided all six stands are not full.)

I searched for ‘what to do’ in Cleckheaton and I discovered that you can ‘cycle, walk or run’ – clearly a unique combination of pastimes – never-the-less I decided that if I was going to make the most of my eventual visit I would need to find other things to do at times when I was not so keen on perambulation, so I searched for the five best places to visit in Cleckheaton and this is what I was told:

  1. The Town Hall – which boasts a theatre suitable for Am-dram performances and a selection of meeting and function rooms for hire.  Tripadvisor recommends I pencil in two hours for this diversion.
  2. Mill Valley Taproom & Kitchen – a trip to the pub with ‘a five barrel brewing system’ to fill the recommended 1-2 hours.
  3. The Old Silk Mill – which boasts two dance studios, a café and ‘downstairs toilets’.
  4. Terrier Antiques & Interiors Ltd – this is a shop that sells antiques for inside.  A welcome diversion for bored children who have had more than enough of availing themselves of the pleasures to be had using the downstairs facilities at the Old Silk Mill or glaring through the windows of the Taproom whilst the adults hover over the fifth barrel.
  5. The Treatment Room – where you can have your nails done.

Finally, in order to ensure that this really is a town worthy of a visit, I decided to check out the local news in case it should be a hotbed of vice or perhaps a main crossing point on the County Lines circuit and I discovered that Cleckheaton is very soon to have a new set of traffic lights, there are fears for the health of a cat stuck up a tree, up to 250 attended a city rock concert, and that a local football player saw what appeared to be a large black cat as he got changed after a match.  It does not say whether it had just got down from a tree.

I have absolutely no idea why my brain brought me to this place, but I guess that my body will one day have to follow it.  I’ll let you know when I decide to go, perhaps I can meet you there…

BTW, should you wish to know, all the ‘facts’ herein are completely true.

The brilliant hyper-talented cartoonist and illustrator Bill Tidy died on 11th March this year. I don’t know if he’d ever been to Cleckheaton, but hearing his name brought the place to mind. I don’t know why… R.I.P Bill Tidy.