Salford Lads Club
Encyclopedia
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Ordsall, Greater Manchester
Ordsall is an inner city area of Salford, in Greater Manchester, England. It is situated chiefly to the south of the A57 road and close to the River Irwell, the main boundary with the city of Manchester...
area of Salford
City of Salford
The City of Salford is a city and metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It is named after its largest settlement, Salford, but covers a far larger area which includes the towns of Eccles, Swinton-Pendlebury, Walkden and Irlam which apart from Irlam each have a population of over...
, in Greater Manchester
Greater Manchester
Greater Manchester is a metropolitan county in North West England, with a population of 2.6 million. It encompasses one of the largest metropolitan areas in the United Kingdom and comprises ten metropolitan boroughs: Bolton, Bury, Oldham, Rochdale, Stockport, Tameside, Trafford, Wigan, and the...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. The club was established in 1903 as a boys-only club, but today both boys and girls are welcome. The club organises recreational activities for local youth, including football, snooker
Snooker
Snooker is a cue sport that is played on a green baize-covered table with pockets in each of the four corners and in the middle of each of the long side cushions. A regular table is . It is played using a cue and snooker balls: one white , 15 worth one point each, and six balls of different :...
, table-tennis, computer games, boxing
Boxing
Boxing, also called pugilism, is a combat sport in which two people fight each other using their fists. Boxing is supervised by a referee over a series of between one to three minute intervals called rounds...
training, dance, community meetings, exhibitions, kickboxing
Kickboxing
Kickboxing refers to a group of martial arts and stand-up combat sports based on kicking and punching, historically developed from karate, Muay Thai and western boxing....
, excursions and Jujitsu.
It was opened on January 30, 1904, by Robert Baden-Powell
Robert Baden-Powell, 1st Baron Baden-Powell
Robert Stephenson Smyth Baden-Powell, 1st Baron Baden-Powell, Bt, OM, GCMG, GCVO, KCB , also known as B-P or Lord Baden-Powell, was a lieutenant-general in the British Army, writer, and founder of the Scout Movement....
, later the founder of the scout
Scouting
Scouting, also known as the Scout Movement, is a worldwide youth movement with the stated aim of supporting young people in their physical, mental and spiritual development, that they may play constructive roles in society....
movement. Among former members are actor Albert Finney
Albert Finney
Albert Finney is an English actor. He achieved prominence in films in the early 1960s, and has maintained a successful career in theatre, film and television....
, 1950s footballers, Albert McPherson, Steve Fleet, Eddie Colman
Eddie Colman
Edward "Eddie" Colman was an English football player and one of the eight Manchester United players who lost their lives in the Munich air disaster....
and Brian Doyle, Allan Clarke
Allan Clarke
Alan, Allan, or Allen Clark, may refer to:*Alan Charles Clark , Bishop of East Anglia*Alan Clark , British politician*Alan Clark , British keyboardist with Dire Straits*Alan M...
, the lead singer of 1960s pop group the Hollies
The Hollies
The Hollies are an English pop and rock group, formed in Manchester in the early 1960s, though most of the band members are from throughout East Lancashire. Known for their distinctive vocal harmony style, they became one of the leading British groups of the 1960s and 1970s...
, and Graham Nash
Graham Nash
Graham William Nash, OBE is an English singer-songwriter known for his light tenor vocals and for his songwriting contributions with the British pop group The Hollies, and with the folk-rock band Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young. Nash is a photography collector and a published photographer...
, guitarist, songwriter and singer with the Hollies who went on to form the folk/rock band Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young.
The Club has held an annual camp holiday in Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
since 1904. According to club worker and local artist, Leslie Holmes: "Salford Lads Club has a remarkable tradition that predates the first scout camps set up by Lord Baden Powell. Salford Lads Club first camp was at Llandulas in 1904 when 173 boys took part." Famous members, who have camped at Aberystwyth
Aberystwyth
Aberystwyth is a historic market town, administrative centre and holiday resort within Ceredigion, Wales. Often colloquially known as Aber, it is located at the confluence of the rivers Ystwyth and Rheidol....
with the club include Graham Nash and the Manchester United footballer Eddie Coleman.
Membership has fallen to around 150 compared to over 1300 in the early 20th century. The club building gained listed building status in 2003, as its tiled interior is virtually unchanged, with original fittings which include a boxing ring, snooker rooms, and a gym with a viewing balcony. A report by English Heritage
English Heritage
English Heritage . is an executive non-departmental public body of the British Government sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport...
said: "The building is thought to be the most complete example of this rare form of social provision to survive in
England." In 2007, the Manchester Evening News
Manchester Evening News
The Manchester Evening News is a regional daily newspaper covering Greater Manchester in the United Kingdom. It is published every day except Sunday and is owned by Trinity Mirror plc following its sale by Guardian Media Group in early 2010. It has an average daily circulation of 90,973 copies...
reported that the club building, which was used for the sleeve of The Smiths
The Smiths
The Smiths were an English alternative rock band, formed in Manchester in 1982. Based on the song writing partnership of Morrissey and Johnny Marr , the band also included Andy Rourke and Mike Joyce...
album, The Queen Is Dead
The Queen Is Dead
The Queen Is Dead is the third studio album by the English alternative rock band The Smiths. It was released on 16 June 1986 in the United Kingdom by Rough Trade Records and released in the United States on 23 June 1986 through Sire Records. The album reached #2 on the UK Albums Chart, maintaining...
, had come third in a nationwide hunt to find the most iconic buildings in the country.
History
The concept of the boys' club (lads' club being a term used exclusively in Manchester and the surrounding areas) grew up in the 19th century as a way of keeping young boys “off the streets” and encouraging them to become “good and worthy God-fearing citizens” The clubs were usually set up by local philanthropic businessmen, and it was soon realised that, to compete with the outside attractions of freedom from restraint and gambling, they must provide not only for draughtsDraughts
Draughts is a group of abstract strategy board games between two players which involve diagonal moves of uniform pieces and mandatory captures by jumping over the enemy's pieces. Draughts developed from alquerque...
, bagatelle
Bagatelle
Bagatelle is a billiards-derived indoor table game, the object of which is to get a number of balls past wooden pins into holes...
, and billiards
Billiards
Cue sports , also known as billiard sports, are a wide variety of games of skill generally played with a cue stick which is used to strike billiard balls, moving them around a cloth-covered billiards table bounded by rubber .Historically, the umbrella term was billiards...
but for more exciting pursuits that most boys could not otherwise obtain, such as gymnastics
Gymnastics
Gymnastics is a sport involving performance of exercises requiring physical strength, flexibility, agility, coordination, and balance. Internationally, all of the gymnastic sports are governed by the Fédération Internationale de Gymnastique with each country having its own national governing body...
, boxing
Boxing
Boxing, also called pugilism, is a combat sport in which two people fight each other using their fists. Boxing is supervised by a referee over a series of between one to three minute intervals called rounds...
, fives
Fives
Fives is a British sport believed to derive from the same origins as many racquet sports. In fives, a ball is propelled against the walls of a special court using gloved or bare hands as though they were a racquet.-Background:...
, swimming and especially, outdoor games.
In Salford
City of Salford
The City of Salford is a city and metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It is named after its largest settlement, Salford, but covers a far larger area which includes the towns of Eccles, Swinton-Pendlebury, Walkden and Irlam which apart from Irlam each have a population of over...
and Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
a number of these clubs grew up in the most deprived areas, the first of which was Hulme
Hulme
Hulme is an inner city area and electoral ward of Manchester, England. Located immediately south of Manchester city centre, it is an area with significant industrial heritage....
lads Club founded in 1850. Salford Lads club was founded in 1903 by two brothers, James and William Groves from the family of brewers that were partners with Arthur William Whitnall in the Groves and Whitnall Brewery on Regent Road in Salford. Built and designed by Manchester architect Henry Lord, who was also responsible for the former Salford Royal Hospital and Salford Museum and Art Gallery
Salford Museum and Art Gallery
Salford Museum and Art Gallery, in Peel Park, Salford, Greater Manchester, first opened to the public in November 1850 as the "Royal Museum & Public Library". One of the most important appreciation is that it serves as the first public library in the UK to provide free access to people...
, the club was opened on 30 January 1904 by Robert Baden-Powell, three years before he founded the scout
Scouting
Scouting, also known as the Scout Movement, is a worldwide youth movement with the stated aim of supporting young people in their physical, mental and spiritual development, that they may play constructive roles in society....
movement.
The Club has held an annual camping holiday since 1904. According to club worker and local artist, Leslie Holmes: "Salford Lads Club has a remarkable tradition that predates the first scout camps set up by Lord Baden-Powell. Salford Lads Club first camp was at Llandulas in 1904 when 173 boys took part". The camps have been held at Tan-y-Bwlch, Aberystwyth
Aberystwyth
Aberystwyth is a historic market town, administrative centre and holiday resort within Ceredigion, Wales. Often colloquially known as Aber, it is located at the confluence of the rivers Ystwyth and Rheidol....
during Whitsun
Whitsun
Whitsun is the name used in the UK for the Christian festival of Pentecost, the seventh Sunday after Easter, which commemorates the descent of the Holy Spirit upon Christ's disciples...
since 1934. Famous members, who have camped at Aberystwyth include Graham Nash and Eddie Coleman, who, at 21, was the youngest Manchester United footballer to die in the Munich air disaster
Munich air disaster
The Munich air disaster occurred on 6 February 1958, when British European Airways Flight 609 crashed on its third attempt to take off from a slush-covered runway at Munich-Riem Airport in Munich, West Germany. On board the plane was the Manchester United football team, nicknamed the "Busby Babes",...
of 1958.
Membership has fallen to around 100 compared with 2,000 in its heyday. The club building gained Grade II listed building status in August 2003, as its tiled interior is virtually unchanged, with original fittings including a boxing ring, snooker rooms, and a gym with a viewing balcony.
Music and film heritage
The 1960s pop group The HolliesThe Hollies
The Hollies are an English pop and rock group, formed in Manchester in the early 1960s, though most of the band members are from throughout East Lancashire. Known for their distinctive vocal harmony style, they became one of the leading British groups of the 1960s and 1970s...
used to practise at the club before they became famous. Allan Clarke
Allan Clarke (singer)
Allan Clarke is a retired British singer who was one of the founding members of The Hollies. He retired in 1999.-Career:...
and Graham Nash
Graham Nash
Graham William Nash, OBE is an English singer-songwriter known for his light tenor vocals and for his songwriting contributions with the British pop group The Hollies, and with the folk-rock band Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young. Nash is a photography collector and a published photographer...
were both members and their membership cards are still in the club's archives.
The club gained fame in 1986 when the alternative rock
Alternative rock
Alternative rock is a genre of rock music and a term used to describe a diverse musical movement that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1980s and became widely popular by the 1990s...
band The Smiths
The Smiths
The Smiths were an English alternative rock band, formed in Manchester in 1982. Based on the song writing partnership of Morrissey and Johnny Marr , the band also included Andy Rourke and Mike Joyce...
posed in front of the building for the inside cover of their album The Queen Is Dead
The Queen Is Dead
The Queen Is Dead is the third studio album by the English alternative rock band The Smiths. It was released on 16 June 1986 in the United Kingdom by Rough Trade Records and released in the United States on 23 June 1986 through Sire Records. The album reached #2 on the UK Albums Chart, maintaining...
. The committee were said at the time to be furious, and solicitors acting for the club claimed that;
inclusion of the photograph may generally cause any person reading the [album] or listening to the record to attribute the material to the club, its committee or its members ... we would cite for example the reference in the song Vicar in a Tutu to the singer being engaged in stealing lead from a church roof, or indeed the very title to the album itself and the tenor of the title song."
However, over the last few years the club has begun to embrace this more recent legacy and welcome the fans to the club. The photograph, taken by pop photographer Stephen Wright
Stephen Wright
Stephen Wright is an English football defender who currently plays for Hartlepool.-Liverpool:Wright joined Liverpool on a youth contract in June 1996, choosing to join Liverpool over rivals Everton, the club he supported as a boy...
was accepted into the National Portrait Gallery in 2008. The Smiths music video for the songs "There Is A Light That Never Goes Out
There Is a Light That Never Goes Out
"There Is a Light That Never Goes Out" is a song by the British alternative rock group The Smiths, written by singer Morrissey and guitarist Johnny Marr. It was originally featured on their third album The Queen Is Dead , and was released as a single in 1992, five years after The Smiths split up...
" and "Stop Me If You Think You've Heard This One Before
Stop Me If You Think You've Heard This One Before
-Smiths original:The Smiths' song, written by the usual combination of Morrissey and Johnny Marr, came out on the group's 1987 album Strangeways, Here We Come....
" also featured shots of the building's exterior. The club is on the corner of St Ignatius Way and Coronation Street in Salford and is a place of pilgrimage for many Smiths fans. It also featured in the music video for The Dream Academy
The Dream Academy
The Dream Academy was a folk rock band from England, comprising singer/guitarist Nick Laird-Clowes; multi-instrumentalist Kate St John; plus keyboardist Gilbert Gabriel. They are most noted for their hit single, "Life in a Northern Town".-History:Laird-Clowes and Gabriel met each other in the late...
's "Life in a Northern Town
Life in a Northern Town
"Life in a Northern Town" is a pop song by The Dream Academy, an English dream pop group. The song is the first single from their 1985 self-titled debut, The Dream Academy. Reaching #7 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart in February 1986, it is also their highest-peaking chart single in the US...
".
In 2003 a film documentary was made as part of the celebrations for the club's centenary. The film, which was introduced by Peter Hook
Peter Hook
Peter Hook is an English bass player, musician and author.He was a co-founder of the post-punk band Joy Division along with Bernard Sumner in the mid-1970s. Following the death of lead singer Ian Curtis, the band reformed as New Order, and Hook played bass with them throughout their career until...
, bassist for Joy Division
Joy Division
Joy Division were an English rock band formed in 1976 in Salford, Greater Manchester. Originally named Warsaw, the band primarily consisted of Ian Curtis , Bernard Sumner , Peter Hook and Stephen Morris .Joy Division rapidly evolved from their initial punk rock influences...
and New Order
New Order
New Order are an English rock band formed in 1980 by Bernard Sumner , Peter Hook and Stephen Morris...
, who lived on the Ordsall estate until he was 19, was made with the help of elderly residents and young members of the club and is a mix of interviews and location shots.
The musician Vinny Peculiar, alias Alan Wilks, has a longstanding association with the club, supporting various club events, performing for visiting Morrissey fans with ex-Smiths bassist Andy Rourke
Andy Rourke
Andy Rourke is a bass guitarist best known for being a former member of The Smiths.-Career:...
, and rehearsing with his band, which includes ex-members of The Smiths, Oasis
Oasis (band)
Oasis were an English rock band formed in Manchester in 1991. Originally known as The Rain, the group was formed by Liam Gallagher , Paul "Bonehead" Arthurs , Paul "Guigsy" McGuigan and Tony McCarroll , who were soon joined by Liam's older brother Noel Gallagher...
and The Fall.
The building has also been used as the location for a number of films and television dramas including Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
's Shameless
Shameless
Shameless is a British television drama series set in Manchester on the fictional Chatsworth council estate. Produced by Company Pictures for Channel 4, the first seven-episode series aired weekly on Tuesday nights at 10pm from 13 January 2004...
, Granada TV's 2002 remake of The Forsyte Saga
The Forsyte Saga
The Forsyte Saga is a series of three novels and two interludes published between 1906 and 1921 by John Galsworthy. They chronicle the vicissitudes of the leading members of an upper-middle-class British family, similar to Galsworthy's own...
, a 2004 music video: Life in a Northern Town Life in a Northern Town
Life in a Northern Town
"Life in a Northern Town" is a pop song by The Dream Academy, an English dream pop group. The song is the first single from their 1985 self-titled debut, The Dream Academy. Reaching #7 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart in February 1986, it is also their highest-peaking chart single in the US...
,the film version of the Jacqueline Wilson
Jacqueline Wilson
Dame Jacqueline Wilson, DBE, FRSL is an award-winning English author, known for her vast and diverse work in children's literature. Her novels have been adapted numerous times for television, and commonly deal with such challenging themes as adoption, divorce and mental illness...
's novel, "Illustrated Mum", the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
police drama Conviction
Conviction
In law, a conviction is the verdict that results when a court of law finds a defendant guilty of a crime.The opposite of a conviction is an acquittal . In Scotland and in the Netherlands, there can also be a verdict of "not proven", which counts as an acquittal...
and, in 2008, the remake of the 1970s BBC series Survivors
Survivors
Survivors is a British post-apocalyptic fiction television series devised by Terry Nation and produced by Terence Dudley at the BBC from 1975 to 1977...
.
The club can be seen in the opening sequence of BBC Sport
BBC Sport
BBC Sport is the sports division of the BBC. It became a fully dedicated division of the BBC in 2000. It incorporates programmes such as Match of the Day, Grandstand , Test Match Special, Ski Sunday, Rugby Special and coverage of Formula One motor racing, MotoGP and the Wimbledon Tennis...
's The Football League Show
The Football League Show
The Football League Show is a BBC One football television show hosted by Manish Bhasin, featuring highlights from the Championship, League One and League Two. It began on 8 August, 2009, at 11.45pm and immediately follows Match of the Day on Saturdays...
.
Fundraising
In recent years the club has fallen into disrepair and in May 2007, Warren Smith, Chairman of LPC Living and HRH Duke of GloucesterDuke of Gloucester
Duke of Gloucester is a British royal title , often conferred on one of the sons of the reigning monarch. The first four creations were in the Peerage of England, the next in the Peerage of Great Britain, and the last in the Peerage of the United Kingdom; this current creation carries with it the...
launched an appeal to raise £1m to restore the building to its former glory. The club has received publicity and funds after being featured in the Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
series The Secret Millionaire in November 2007. Property Developer Chek Whyte initially donated £15,000 towards repairs as part of the programme, then subsequently paid for roof repairs and has become involved with the club long-term.
Former Smiths' frontman Morrissey
Morrissey
Steven Patrick Morrissey , known as Morrissey, is an English singer and lyricist. He rose to prominence in the 1980s as the lyricist and vocalist of the alternative rock band The Smiths. The band was highly successful in the United Kingdom but broke up in 1987, and Morrissey began a solo career,...
has also donated funds towards restoration. He initially wanted to keep his donation of £20,000 a secret but was dissuaded from doing so, because the publicity would help the campaign.
In 2008 Vinny Peculiar released a single to support the club's £1m fundraising drive. The song "Lazy Bohemians" was taken from his solo album, "Goodbye My Angry Friend". The B side and bonus download track of the single called "Ghost Camp, a song he co-wrote with former Smiths guitarist Craig Gannon
Craig Gannon
Craig Gannon , is an English guitar player. Previously best known for being the second guitarist in The Smiths, he is now a composer for film and television.-Career:...
, was written for a Salford Lads Club award winning play. The writer said: "Lazy Bohemians is a self deprecating swipe against those whose talk about a revolution that never seems to get anywhere, a personal wake up call to political apathy. My goal for this song is to really attract people's attention and wake people up from the apathy surrounding the club, making them realise that if we don't help it, the club, its fine musical history, and all of the good work it does with local kids will eventually, disappear".
Volunteers
Two of the longest serving volunteers, Arthur Edward (Archie) Swift and Eric Salthouse have between them over 100 years of service with the club. They have both won accolades for their work; Archie was awarded the 'Salford Citizen of the Month' in April 2004 for his lifetime work as a volunteer at the club and Eric was named as 'My Hero' by Manchester entrepreneur Dave Tynan in the June 2004 edition of Social Enterprise magazine. Archie Swift was also awarded the MBEMBE
MBE can stand for:* Mail Boxes Etc.* Management by exception* Master of Bioethics* Master of Bioscience Enterprise* Master of Business Engineering* Master of Business Economics* Mean Biased Error...
for services to Young People. (Salford, Greater Manchester) In the HM the Queen's Birthday Honours List 2008.