The industry, the langauage and culture are no different to Sheffield or St Helens. I disagree that the Midlands was just “light industries” and that somehow would negate it’s belonging with areas just a few miles up the road.

Even in the 1980’s Nottingham city had a couple of working coal mines on the edges of the city — just 2 miles from the city centre. (Now Retail parks and Harvester Inns). As well as coal mines, there were huge textile mills — famous for the lace — as well as the huge manufacturing plants of Raleigh and Players. There were two well supported football teams, a horse racing track, greyhound stadium, musical halls, working men’s clubs and welfares, numerous breweries, and in Skegness our very own Nottingham-by-the-sea. All of these are indicators of a powerful working class “northern” cultural identity.

But above all we had in Alan Sillitoe and DH Lawrence, two world class writers whose different portrayals of working class culture have formed many of the classic or even cliched images of what it means to be “Northern”. Their writings have also helped both transform understanding and delight and entertain people. I was very sorry to see Alan Sillitoe go.