BBC Newsnights Paul Mason talks Northern

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what a very honest and succinct artical, no bull just how it was for him, first class and well done Mike for spotting the connection.

yeah,cheers mike,a good honest read

jason

quality read

Gatsby style suit......who would dare..

made all the hairs on my neck stand on end.

well done

Brill Read...I had just started the senior school when this guy was going to places like wigan....jim jams in a bag to stay round your mates house...i did it once when me a good freind of mine went to the fleet all-nighter back in the 80's...first class exscuse...first class read...ktf...

nice one.

Brilliant !

Russ

Reading that was just like time travel !!!!

No bollotix....very interesting! Thanks for that its a refreshing change!

Mellytee

Well done Mike for spotting a connection & very well written, a part of all who attended WC is still there.

Great read that, and can only begin to imagine how amazing it must've been back then, hearing so many unbelievable records for the first time in such a "had to be there" venue like that. Thanks for posting!

Well I obviously caught his accent on Newsnight and I love his no-nonsense down to earth approach to the economic issues of the day (plus he nicely counterbalances Jeremy Paxman anyway), but I had no idea he was well-versed in Northern Soul. I'll send him a nice package over next week 'cos I can do it internally (Demon is owned by the BBC).

It's fantastic to see the kind of cultural reach that Northern Soul had on all kinds of teenagers in the 1970's from all kinds of diverse backgrounds. I love the fact that he kept his Wigan membership card plus the photo which reinforces the fact that Northern Soul was important to him and a key part of his experience. There's only a handful of 'real' Northern Soul fans in the upper echelons of the media so it's great to see that Paul Mason is one of 'em!

Great stuff Mike! It's brilliant to have serious fans in high places isn't it?

Ian D

Nice read, too much to hope he was there on the same night as Anna Ford........... Now that really would be a coincidence

Nice read, too much to hope he was there on the same night as Anna Ford........... Now that really would be a coincidence

I dunno Winnie. If you chuck in Stuart Cosgrove from Channel 4 and Jeanette Swift from 20th Century Fox U.S. (I think), then it seems that quite a few giants of the mainstream media spent a large part of their teens there.

I wish I'd bumped into Anna back then though.........

Ian D

that's the first I've heard Gary Ord mentioned since about '79, used to see him regularly at Leigh Casino early sessions

I dunno Winnie. If you chuck in Stuart Cosgrove from Channel 4 and Jeanette Swift from 20th Century Fox U.S. (I think), then it seems that quite a few giants of the mainstream media spent a large part of their teens there.

I wish I'd bumped into Anna back then though.........

Ian D

Eric Knowles not quite 'giant' enough Ian?

That's bloody great!

Mark R

Superb, his "dark" past unveiled --I think we can all relate to something in the text-proper soulie--nice find Mike !!

Eric Knowles not quite 'giant' enough Ian?

LOL you're right Winnie. He was probably a regular @ Burnley Cricket Club on those Tuesday nights in the early to mid 70's when I was probably too busy buying records off Brad........

Ian D

Eric Knowles of antiques roadshow fame was also a wigan regular i heard once

Memories lol

It's always been strange for me seeing Paul on BBC2 as I knew him back in the day and was aslo mates with the rest of the Leigh lads including Ordy (Gary Ord), Mick Davey, Billy Gannon, Dean Mitchell Docker & Kev Cooper ( who went out with his sister )

No one ever mentions the Sunday all dayers at Leigh Casino but they were great at the time ( the only all dayer I ever went to that closed at 5:30 for Tea then reopened at 7pm !!! )

He was a nice lad then and it seems that this has continued into his adulthood

An honest review of his time on he scene reflecting what I think was an innocence that was introduced to an intriguing underground scene that none of us ever thought we would still be into today

Today we walk different paths but our love for the music still remains the same

Steve

that's the first I've heard Gary Ord mentioned since about '79, used to see him regularly at Leigh Casino early sessions

Pete

I knocked about with Ordy and Mick Davey until the late 80s when I moved away from Leigh and havent seen Ordy since, do occasionally see Mick when I get back over which isnt often

Do you remember any of the fights a Leigh Casino on a Sunday between the Townies and the Soulies ?

Pete

I knocked about with Ordy and Mick Davey until the late 80s when I moved away from Leigh and havent seen Ordy since, do occasionally see Mick when I get back over which isnt often

Do you remember any of the fights a Leigh Casino on a Sunday between the Townies and the Soulies ?

Longy,

I used to hang around/sit on the right hand side near the stage as you look at it, with Ordy and Billy Gannon and a few others on Saturday nights, and sometimes go with the Bolton lot on a Sunday Night where it seemed to kick off at the end of the night every week,

It was a Saturday Night though that a Leigh lad for no apparent reason decided he wanted a go at me on the way out, I ignored him long enough to get away from the entrance and duly sorted him out, funny thing is I was an apprentice at Wigan Met at the time and worked on Higher Fold, Monday morning in the canteen all everone is talking about is Billy Smith (sure that was his name, not made up) got a kicking off a load of big Bolton thugs, I was about 5'8" 10 stone and with my girlfriend apparently he lived on the same estate I was working on so I didn't say anythin,

Edit -Only just seen your earlier post where you mention Billy Gannon, didn't know Dean til Golborne CC days in the 90s, where I met up with Billy again and for months didn't realise it was him lol

Always respected him on Newsnight, he has a down to earth way of explaining complex issues. Never associated him with the Northern Scene, despite the accent, but will respect him even more now!

Longy,

I used to hang around/sit on the right hand side near the stage as you look at it, with Ordy and Billy Gannon and a few others on Saturday nights, and sometimes go with the Bolton lot on a Sunday Night where it seemed to kick off at the end of the night every week,

It was a Saturday Night though that a Leigh lad for no apparent reason decided he wanted a go at me on the way out, I ignored him long enough to get away from the entrance and duly sorted him out, funny thing is I was an apprentice at Wigan Met at the time and worked on Higher Fold, Monday morning in the canteen all everone is talking about is Billy Smith (sure that was his name, not made up) got a kicking off a load of big Bolton thugs, I was about 5'8" 10 stone and with my girlfriend apparently he lived on the same estate I was working on so I didn't say anythin,

Only just seen your earlier post where you mention Billy Gannon,

Pete

So did I, and I remember your name but cant put a face to you

Billy was and still is one of my best friends although we live miles apart now

I also hung about with the Bolton lot such as Gal, Enty, Mildoo, Budgie etc

I'll mention it to Billy when I talk to him at weekend

ATB

Steve

Bit more interesting than rent boy MI5 spies https://griffinwatch-nwn.blogspot.com/2010/01/why-do-we-call-him-5imon-quids-in-darby.html

Longy,

I used to hang around/sit on the right hand side near the stage as you look at it, with Ordy and Billy Gannon and a few others on Saturday nights, and sometimes go with the Bolton lot on a Sunday Night where it seemed to kick off at the end of the night every week,

It was a Saturday Night though that a Leigh lad for no apparent reason decided he wanted a go at me on the way out, I ignored him long enough to get away from the entrance and duly sorted him out, funny thing is I was an apprentice at Wigan Met at the time and worked on Higher Fold, Monday morning in the canteen all everone is talking about is Billy Smith (sure that was his name, not made up) got a kicking off a load of big Bolton thugs, I was about 5'8" 10 stone and with my girlfriend apparently he lived on the same estate I was working on so I didn't say anythin,

Edit -Only just seen your earlier post where you mention Billy Gannon, didn't know Dean til Golborne CC days in the 90s, where I met up with Billy again and for months didn't realise it was him lol

Pete

The nights I was remembering were definately Sundays and it wasnt just a little scrap this was tables chairs all over the dance floor and 20 or more people fighting

Pete

So did I, and I remember your name but cant put a face to you

Billy was and still is one of my best friends although we live miles apart now

I also hung about with the Bolton lot such as Gal, Enty, Mildoo, Budgie etc

I'll mention it to Billy when I talk to him at weekend

ATB

Steve

Know and remember Gal, still see Mildoo (John Mills good friend of Dave Rimmer on here) sometimes, Billy is a great guy, will know me for sure, but when I mention Leigh to him he looks unsure lol but we got along great in the 90's, he's still with Netty I take it,

I have a feeling we're gonna get told this should be in all our yesterdays soon, sorry mods

Pete

The nights I was remembering were definately Sundays and it wasnt just a little scrap this was tables chairs all over the dance floor and 20 or more people fighting

Yea, I do, I just thought I would mention a personal one from a Saturday, remember stood on the main road at the bottom of Lord street waiting for the last bus to Bolton (Sunday), fighting the townies off wishin it would hurry up, remember Gazzo?

Do you remember any of the fights a Leigh Casino on a Sunday between the Townies and the Soulies ?

Leigh Casino, God that brings back memories. the only club I know that searched you for weapons on the way in and if you hadn't got one, gave you one.

Growing up in Culcheth, (For those that don't know it was a village about four miles away, but posh compared to Leigh !) Leigh always represented an exciting night out. There are legendary tales of Leigh & Culcheth gangs fighting in Leigh clubs. Does anyone remember Penny Lane nightclub. Now that was rough !

And I wouldn't change a thing. Great days, sometimes you won, sometimes you got a kicking, but that's all it was in those days, you were usually fit for the next weekend

Even going to watch Bolton on a Saturday became an adventure in Leigh Bus Station (Cos that's where we changed buses in the days before we were old enough to drive). There was always a gang of Man U fans hanging about in the bus station. Most weeks we'd been battling before we even got to Bolton.

I remember going to a Soul night with my then girlfriend, just the two of us. It was a risky proposition, and sure enough I started to get funy looks within minutes of arriving, but managed to get away with it by chatting to a few of the older Leigh lads that I knew. Thought we'd be ok until someone grabbed Alison's breasts, and she bottled him ! Got a right kicking that night.

Yeah, Leigh was legendary in the early to mid Seventies

very good honest no boll##s write up

As a post 'Post Wigan' fan of NS, I also enjoyed this write-up; interested to see PM's Top Ten; great choices,; (I've even got one of those.!)

One thing that did rather upset me was the mention of punch-ups; I thought the idea was to appreciate the wonderful music-Hi ho!

Despite that, great little piece of nostalgia; thankyou Paul Mason!

Brilliant stuff! I never met another journalist in all the time I went to the Casino. Mind you, it didn't always pay to give too much away about yourself, particularly if you were an off-duty copper!

longy / pete60

the other half kaz fleming[from warrington] is good mates with ordy, mick davey,billy gannon, chris rigger, angela rasburn, she tells me ordy goes in the colliers pub on firs lane she was chatting to him a couple of days ago. i used to go up with the bolton crew, dolly,ronnie hibert, gal, gazzo , don faulkner, johny burke .......... flanney,[rip] dave t [rip] , baz prichard [rip] linda pearson[rip]

neil / karen

A very interesting report. Well dug out Mike.

Makes me wonder whether we'll all take a greater interest in the world economy now that one of our own is doing reports on it as BBC's economic editor. :o)

Well done Paul Mason.

I enjoyed reading that. Thanks Mike and Paul for taking the time to submit it.

Leigh Casino, God that brings back memories. the only club I know that searched you for weapons on the way in and if you hadn't got one, gave you one.

Growing up in Culcheth, (For those that don't know it was a village about four miles away, but posh compared to Leigh !) Leigh always represented an exciting night out. There are legendary tales of Leigh & Culcheth gangs fighting in Leigh clubs. Does anyone remember Penny Lane nightclub. Now that was rough !

And I wouldn't change a thing. Great days, sometimes you won, sometimes you got a kicking, but that's all it was in those days, you were usually fit for the next weekend

Even going to watch Bolton on a Saturday became an adventure in Leigh Bus Station (Cos that's where we changed buses in the days before we were old enough to drive). There was always a gang of Man U fans hanging about in the bus station. Most weeks we'd been battling before we even got to Bolton.

I remember going to a Soul night with my then girlfriend, just the two of us. It was a risky proposition, and sure enough I started to get funy looks within minutes of arriving, but managed to get away with it by chatting to a few of the older Leigh lads that I knew. Thought we'd be ok until someone grabbed Alison's breasts, and she bottled him ! Got a right kicking that night.

Yeah, Leigh was legendary in the early to mid Seventies

Dave, nice to hear from you mate

2 things

1 I never knew you are a Bolton fan, there's not many of us who admit to it these days

2 Penny Lane was the only place I have ever been kissed by another man !!!! Scared me shitless and I think I ran home without stopping

We'll have to catch up next time I see you mate

ATB

Steve

longy / pete60

the other half kaz fleming[from warrington] is good mates with ordy, mick davey,billy gannon, chris rigger, angela rasburn, she tells me ordy goes in the colliers pub on firs lane she was chatting to him a couple of days ago. i used to go up with the bolton crew, dolly,ronnie hibert, gal, gazzo , don faulkner, johny burke .......... flanney,[rip] dave t [rip] , baz prichard [rip] linda pearson[rip]

neil / karen

I know/knew most of them Neil, I know you too, and you know me ,

That is really great! It sums up all the feelings about why we fibbed to our parents about staying at a friends house and instead going to the allnighter in Wigan, Paul describes the atmosphere very well, which we still find today and the memories of that special time NEVER leave us, Don't just keep the faith.... Share it! x

Eric Knowles was long time regular at Blackpool Mecca, Burnley Mecca, and Torch. I think he would have already moved south to work when Burnley Cricket Club opened, but probably did a guest spot when he came home as he and Geoff Salter were good buddies and both djed in their teens at Central Meths Nelson.

I spoke to Eric Knowles when he was on the antiques roadshow from Blackpool Tower Ballroom and he said he still had his Northern records in his attic!

LOL you're right Winnie. He was probably a regular @ Burnley Cricket Club on those Tuesday nights in the early to mid 70's when I was probably too busy buying records off Brad........

Ian D

He did do a few spots!

What an excellent story, I must have rubbed shoulders with Paul several times, I spent hours in M's every week.

Cheers.......Pete

Great article.

Thanks for sharing it x

really good read - Cheers Mike

I only went to Leigh casino a few times when I lived in Glazebury for a year or so.

Seems Paul gave up the Casino around the same time I did.

Great accent: great article!

HI ALL What a good interview I Just wonder if those Southerners he talks about, were Mick Smith Ady Crosdale Pete Wid & me as he bought records it would be good if he spent a night at the 100 Club, of corse I wont be there as he avioded the subject of chemicals? Wise MAN! Dave60

if any uk types were interested in the book that were briefly mentioned , I had the below passed on to me ref the book details....

I'm a publicist for No Exit Press who will be publishing Paul's debut novel, Rare Earth, in the UK later this year.

At the end of the piece you mention the book is published by Or Books, but they are only the American publisher.

UK publication details are as follows:

Rare Earth / Ebook / March 2012 (all formats)

Rare Earth / paperback / October 2012 / £7.99