Leeds
ByI arrived in Leeds yesterday. Leeds is a large city (pop. about 725,00) in the north of England, about 5o miles east of Manchester. For such a big city it is famous for a surprisingly small number of things: a football team who used to be good and…a football team who used to be good.
At least two-thirds of people in New York who ask me where I am from either don’t know Leeds or think it has something to do with Leeds Castle in Kent, which it does not. I usually tell them that Leeds is near Manchester because everyone knows Manchester. This is not good if you come from Leeds.
There is a particular rivalry between people from Leeds and people from Manchester. I’m not sure that anyone really knows why. Manchester is in Lancashire and Leeds is in Yorkshire and that seems to be reason enough.
People from Leeds are fiercely proud of their city. Until I left home I thought it was normal for everyone to be proud of where they were from. Then I met people from small towns and villages dotted around the UK and I discovered that many people are not at all proud of where they are from.
People from Leeds are rightly proud of where they are from because it is one of the best cities in the UK. But then again, I would say that, because I am from Leeds. As a Loiner (a person from Leeds) I can’t think of anything worse than living in Manchester.
14 Comments
December 14th, 2005 at 10:31 am
Isn’t your mum a Mancunian?
And it’s not that bad in Manchester … really. As I look out of the window in my south Manchester office, for once it’s not raining or damp to the bones, it’s just freezing.
December 14th, 2005 at 11:00 am
Don’t forget what else Leeds is famous for.
December 14th, 2005 at 11:55 am
Okay, okay, I admit it, my mum is from Manchester. But that does not make me half-Mancunian now does it? I am 100 percent Leeds
And thank you William for reminding the world of the other reason why people may have heard of Leeds.
December 14th, 2005 at 12:23 pm
My mum’s from Manchester too, but she came to Yorkshire to have all her children, so that’s got to count for something. Anyway, after years of therapy I’ve managed to come to terms with it. Paul, you’ve got to stop living in denial.
December 14th, 2005 at 1:18 pm
Ok, so more people know Manchester around the world but that’s largely due to a US-run company called Manchester United Football Club. And most people, famous or otherwise, are really from ‘Greater Manchester’, which generally consists of turdy little towns within 30 miles – or anyone who owns an Oasis album.
Aside from Leeds United, we have THE Rugby League team. And Leeds is the birthplace to gems such Alan Bennett, Vic Reeves, David Hockney, Ernie Wise, Malcolm McDowell. Even Sir Jimmy Saville for Gods sake!!
And you know the best thing to come out of Manchester? The M62 to Leeds!
December 14th, 2005 at 3:22 pm
…and the pinkest, most trunk-like legs ever seen on a human being (a female) were witnessed by me in a minicab office in Kirkstall. It was the height of winter and said female, not to be messed with on a dark night, or any night, was wearing a rather short mini-skirt. My female friend, studying locally, assured me this was par for the course in Leodian lasses.
December 14th, 2005 at 7:03 pm
I’m a Sunderland fan and I hate telling people ‘it’s near Newcastle’.
December 15th, 2005 at 5:18 am
As a Mancunian who spent his student years in Leeds, I fel qualified to have a go at you…
Both Manc and Leeds have been transformed in recent years, Manchester’s hastened by the IRA bomb. They feel quite similar to me now, except Manchester is bigger and better:
Royal Exchange, Urbis, Imperial War Museum, Lowry, City of Manchester Stadium, etc etc.
I love both cities, but if push comes to shove, Manchester has it.
December 15th, 2005 at 6:48 am
Them’s fighting words Rob
Be careful or Hugo Wells (AKA Wellsy) the Cranberry juice swilling softie from London will be after you!
December 15th, 2005 at 1:05 pm
We’re not afraid of soft southern jessies like him – especially when they are reduced to claiming Sir James Savile as a famous son…
I think anyone who champions a place containing Chapeltown and Hunslet should really think again before talking about turdy little towns. Stones and glass houses? And yes, I know Manchester has its equivalent districts- so does everywhere else. As for famous Mancunians, aside from the dreaded Gallaghers:
-too many footballers to list
-too many cricketers to list
Anthony Burgess (subject of a forthcoming book by me)
Elizabeth Gaskell
Amir Khan
LS Lowry
Sir Ian McKellen
Thomas de Quincey
Walter Greenwood
Sir Norman Foster
and many more…
Of course Wellsy omitted the greatest living Loiner: Tony Harrison
December 15th, 2005 at 2:34 pm
I studied in Leeds for a while and when I try and tell people here where it is, I have to use the Manchester link. But then people say ‘oh, it’s near London’. apparently everywhere in Elgnad is near London…
December 16th, 2005 at 7:52 am
Sir James Wilson Vincent Savile OBE of notable ‘Fix It’ fame should never be questioned or ridiculed! And whilst Manchester certainly has been positively developed since 1996 (largely down to Irish contractors with large quantities of explosives) the fact that Stuart Pearce has new changing rooms hardly constitutes city superiority.
And why is it fashionable for people to claim they’re from somewhere when they’re not? It’s like claiming to know a famous person because you’ve seen them in real life.
Leeds is Leeds with it’s good areas and turdy ones. It doesn’t claim other turdy areas like Keighley, Bradford, Wakefield etc. to form Greater Leeds. It’s just Leeds. A fine city and everyone should holiday there.
As for the Cranberry Juice incident… it happened once, I was young, I’ve moved on and put the matter firmly behind me.
PS…
Amir Khan – Born BOLTON 1986
Sir Ian McKellan – Born BURNLEY 1939
Walter Greenwood - Born CITY OF SALFORD 1903
Elizabeth Gaskell – Born LONDON 1810
December 16th, 2005 at 2:57 pm
Hey, you introduced the greater Manchester idea…
Gratified that you’ve gone to the trouble of investigating my famous Mancs though. I think we need to be told about the traumatic event that happened to you in Manchester, that’s obviously triggered this irrational reaction…
December 17th, 2005 at 9:34 am
…and interesting that all this banter produces Google ads for Manchester and London hotels – but not Leeds. Shame!