Hull's image Good or bad?

Just watched Countryside today on national TV.Showed Beverley Minster and market and it looked thriving and attractive .Then on to Hull and the " fishing port image".Showed the St Andrews Dock lock head.All run down and derelict.Film of trawlers going in and out and the Cod Wars.Interview with a ex trawler skipper who said when the fishing industry closed down,it killed Hull.More footage of derelict dock.The presenter then said "we will leave the fishing port and travel on"
Once again,Hull came across on national TV as an ex small fishing port to any potential developers or investors and seems such a shame.

This both infuriates and saddens me. It's also very lazy reporting. There is so much changing and moving in Hull. Sure it has its bad side - show me somewhere that doesn't - but it has so much of value. What a shame these lazy programme makers couldn't be bothered to look outside the outmoded and irrelevant stereotype.

We have so much to be proud of in Hull. What we really need is a foreward thinking local program maker or better still someone with some clout to get national telly around to see the good things. Succesive councils have failed to push the city apart from the clipper race. Yesterday me, my son,daughter, son in law and three grandkids went to the welly thing in east park. We had a fabulous time, the park is amazing now all the works finished. My son told me about a street party and market on Princes ave that I didn`t know about but would loved to have gone to and judging by the loud music I could hear last night, there was a concert going on some where.
All this apart from some of our better area`s. Garden Village is lovely and the Dukeries with the gorgeous big houses. Beverley high road, Boothferry road Wold road, I could go on. I hate it when they only show the run down side.

How many great industries have started up here in the city and port of Hull?

I really hate it when we get unfair coverage and press, like the politician who showed NHE as a hive of lazy, workshy doleites.....grrr. Send someone down here with the nous to look beyond the estates (not all estate dwellers are workshy just the few and they live anywhere in Hull) and see the good in Hull.

I think we dwell too much on the fishing industry to be honest. It went over 30 years ago. I daresay that there are some younger people in the city who are hardly even aware of the city's fishing heritage. I'm not saying we should forget it, but I think it's about time that it was realised that it is long gone and will never come back. Constantly harking back to a vanished past does nobody any good and only hampers the city's present and future image.

I agree that we get a bad press when we don't deserve it. Whilst it might be true that we have our fair share of poverty, benefit users, drug abuse, crime, and run down buildings. We also have some beautiful people, and yesterday at the "Race For Life" I saw thousands of these Hull ladies showing just that. Despite the pouring rain these brave women ran the 5k course and for a great course. They didn't have to, but they did.

Hull has had it rough over the years, we have seen bombing in two wars, plague, flooding, the earthquake, and we always bounce back.

Our history, although there isn't much left, is there for all to see, and our heritage is slowly being restored.

Some of the newer buildings across the City show groundbreaking designs, and the new bridge over the River Hull is slowly taking shape.

I would love to see the Bull Nose and St Andrews Quay turned into something that illustrates our heritage. We have the dock, so why not put the Spurn Lightboat, Arctic Corsair, and the Ferry in there, then why not turn Lord Line into a museum.

That would be good - and get the Lincoln Castle in there for good measure.

I agree with Mikes comments about St Andrews dock and I think the council would be foolish not to buy this area from Paloma. The price last year was around £2,000,000, an absolute snip for what it could turn into.

But the youngsters should be reminded of the fishing indusrty Trev, a lot of good men died for it, its part of Hull's heritage and should be spoken of as we do with the war. We won't and don't want that back and we all know there is no chance of reviving the fishing industry 'Maggie' made sure of that, but our kids and thier kids should know about it.

chiefdragon wrote:

But the youngsters should be reminded of the fishing indusrty Trev, a lot of good men died for it, its part of Hull's heritage and should be spoken of as we do with the war. We won't and don't want that back and we all know there is no chance of reviving the fishing industry 'Maggie' made sure of that, but our kids and thier kids should know about it.

I do agree with that Chiefy, it shouldn't be forgotten, it's just that I think we do tend to let the past take over a bit. If we can't put the past into context, we can't expect outsiders to do so. I think that's why most programmes which mention the city immediately make a point of mentioning the long gone fishing fleet. Which makes it difficult for them to properly focus on the good things that we have here. (and I think we have a lot).

Which begs the question Trev?

I have just returned from a holiday in the Cotswolds and visited Bath City.Nice place but my wife commented that the shops in Hull are better (and she is Scottish).She made the same remark about Edinburgh a couple of weeks ago when we were walking down Princes St. Of course I had to agree with her,but its true,Hull City centre has a lot to offer that others don't have,i.e Queens Gardens and the Marina.

When ive mentioned hull down south,they say things like,"oh ive heard of it, stinks of fish,all the women call the kids bains,they all live on council estates,all the fellers are on dole and spend their giros in the pub,and lots more jibes,untill i told them thousands of men had given their lives,children brought up without a father,lost brothers,sometimes half or all the male side of a family gone in one day,for poor wages,a hard and dangerous working life,but they made out like fishermen had the life of riley,i mentioned my father going overboard when i was four to put fish in their market,this just prevoked more jokes,but where the actual southern people get their information from god only knows,i told one feller in essex i was from east yorkshire,he asked if i was a farmer,even to-day i dont think they understand what people in the whole north are about,or have ever been about,like some americans they think if you are from the north of england then they have a picture in their minds of people wearing flat caps,boots,and a neckerchief,what on earth are they tought in school,perhaps a realy good documentery is in order if only to teach those who live down south that we who live in the north,do not walk around doffing our caps saying "ehh bye gum lad"and a few million poured into our fishing heritage,and the idea of doing something with st.andrews would be a fantastic start.

Well, I must meet a much better brand of Southerner. I quite often get, " Oh yes! Hull is a lovely place!" They have known about the fishing history and shown great respect, but then most Southerners I meet are in or from the South-west. All who have served in the Royal Navy know and respect Hull, but have a wry smile on their faces when they all remember "Tower for an hour"

However you find thickos everywhere and I agree we need to sell ourselves more and better to those who know us. As for those who don't? Well, they are useless to us anyway, because they are ignoramuses.

Why dont i know what tower for an hour means But then feel i should? is it something i should get about,or get a or will i just end up

"Tower for a hour" was possibly on "grab a granny night"And don't forget that Hull is also well known by seamen for the Earl de Grey.
I went in many years ago and stood near the juke box with a few friends.one said "look at my legs"There was a lady of the night siiting down behind him running her hands up and down his legs.If only he had had ten bob to spare!

Ill bet ive seen you in there barrow,we often went in as we lived in the area,the jukebox had some realy great tunes.i was even there when the parrots were on the go,and frank the barman was like part of the furniture lol

On the subject of the parrots, does anyone know what happened to them? I was in the History Centre the other day and heard a guy had travelled some distance to see what had happened to the parrots of Earl De Grey. It's odd that everyone can remember them, but nobody knows what happened to them.

I recall a story about a thief and the parrots, but this could be my often over active imagination.

One of them was killed by a robber, the other was just part of the furniture like the barman frank,i dont even think anyone noticed it vanish,it may have moved with the actual landlord,or the councils health dept told him to move it when laws became much strickter,but to be honest i was a regular and i never noticed it go.

Thanks Fozz.

I have seen a prime example of Hull being ignored when it has done something to be praised for. How many of you realise that Hull received an award in London not long ago for excellence in its recycling strategy and in fact was rated as the Best in Britain. If I didn't read Hull in Print I, for one, would never have known about the award. It is typical of the struggle that this wonderful city has to be recognised as anything other than a place of dole-ites, chavs and unmarried teenage mothers. What the devil is wrong with Hull City Council's publicity machine? Do they not have a PR department? This item of news should have been splashed across all the newspapers and tv news bulletins because I know as sure as God made little apples that if the story had been that Hull was the worst in the country it would have hit every newspaper in the country and the news bulletins on tv and radio. I have just spoken to a bloke at Streetscene Services called David, who is responsible for sending out press releases, and he tells me that this information was sent out to various organisations and does not seem to have been deemed worth running. That is probably because good stories don't sell papers. I am going to contact various new organisations about this and I will keep you all posted. I have been in touch with HDM and they tell me that they did actually run a story on this news item and that this coming Monday they are publishing a large article about Hull's green credentials. Maybe one of the nationals will pick it up.