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Night time in Hull - © Larkin 25
It's the silver jubilee of Philip Larkin's death. Chris Moss visited the poet's adopted home and found what just might be England's nicest city.
The trip
Saturday evening. The bar at The Royal, facing the platform where the London train comes in. I thought about March 1955. That was the month Philip Larkin arrived in Hull to take up the post of librarian at the university. He'd stay 30 years; he'd turn down the poet laureate job, he'd never marry, he'd use binoculars to spy on young female students who attended the redbrick institution, he'd die in a pool of booze... and many other myths, half-lies and rumours.
The bar had his 1966 poem 'Friday Night at the Royal Station Hotel' up on the wall. It's classic Larkin, moving from a humdrum ennui - 'A porter reads/An unsold evening paper./ Hours pass,/ And all the salesmen have gone back to Leeds,/ Leaving full ashtrays in the Conference Room' - to a morbid, portentous conclusion: 'Now Night comes on./ Waves fold behind villages.'
Exploring Larkin's haunts
Against my general principle of avoiding literary pilgrimages, I was in the city partly to check out the city's attempts to mark 25 years since the poet's death. I'd started a Larkin-themed walking tour right here at the bar earlier in the day. Well, Larkinesque. Because my guide, Paul Schofield, was no robotic regurgitator of anecdote and the commonplace; he just used Larkin to show me some fabulous old pubs, winding, cobbled streets and lovely architecture in 'The Avenues' district of the city centre, the gloriously grey Humber, the Old Town and new artists' quarter right on its bank, and, finally, a small, suitably gloomy exhibition of Larkinalia on display at the Wilberforce House.
The objects included his bike, long johns, geeky glasses, some jazz records and several photos. As ever Larkin look like Eric Morecambe with depression. Just that morning, the ticket woman told me, she'd been berated for allowing a homage to a racist poet to be installed in the very house where the end of slavery was made possible. What a bore. And, if she'd looked at the other displays, she'd have seen slavery hasn't ended at all.
Over four hours Paul and I had a good, long hike round town and drank up the north sea breezes (though the sea proper is farther away from Hull than Calais is from Dover).
A source of inspiration
Hull was the moody backdrop to several of Larkin's poems but he doesn't often describe it explicitly. 'Here', the opening poem of 'Whitsun Weddings', is a stirring exception: 'And residents from raw estates, brought down/The dead straight miles by stealing flat-faced trolleys,/Push through plate-glass swing doors to their desires -/Cheap suits, red kitchen-ware, sharp shoes, iced lollies...'.
Larkin had been drawn to Hull because it wasn't full of writers or other aspiring pseudo-intelligentsia and was on the margins of England, much ignored, recently bombed, down on its luck.
But if you come to the city in 2010 in search of the poetically grim you may be disappointed. Hull is a bright and airy city full of affable folk - Paul said hello to about 25 people on our walk. Compared to other major cities Hull is joyously empty of people: about 260,000 residents spread over a huge area.
A friendly atmosphere
By day and night I only ever came across great little shops (Steve Mathie's Spin-It record store in the food market is one not to miss), a buzzing cultural life, friendly inns and handsome squares and streets full of energy.
One such place is Princes Avenue. I was at the Royal's bar a second time because I was waiting for an old friend, Mike, to arrive from Burtonwood in Lancashire. It took him aeons - because 'the windscreen wipers were broke' on his cross-country train - but eventually he made it. After a quick ale at the lovely basement pub the Hop and Vine (www.hopandvinehull.co.uk) we went to this smart social thoroughfare to the north-west of the city. We were going to take a taxi but the Hop and Vine's co-owner Janet said she'd run us. A new friend.
We dined out at Brimbles (www.brimblesbistro.com), a smart, small restaurant. We each had succulent pigeon with beetroot mash and a great Rioja before hitting a string of bars with Brimbles owner Dean. Another friend. We were becoming Hullers.
Saturday we went to The Deep, Hull's pretty awesome aquarium, which was full of sharks and kids, unfortunately separated by planes of thick glass. We passed the rest of the day drifting between the pubs Paul had recommended to me: The Minerva, Ye Olde White Hart, The Green Bricks, Ye Olde Black Boy (where Larkin caught jazz gigs), The George Hotel (site of 'the world's smallest window') and the The (new) White Hart. While we didn't quite die in a pool of booze, we tried our best. For moments - and I admit they were tipsy ones in general - I wonderd if Hull wasn't, after all, England's nicest city . That's something its best known literary resident would never have declared, but it seemed somehow apt to toast him for getting me there anyway.
Where to stay
The Townhouse
Hull's most stylish hotel, built in 1846, used to be the home of Queen Victoria's personal physician Sir James Anderson. It still has a grand façade of pillars and a stone staircase; after passing through the marble reception, you're shown to one of 27 rooms decorated and styled along clean, modern lines. All rooms have free WiFi, air con, plasma screens DVD players, fridges (with fresh milk), tea and coffee, Ipod docking stations, Jacuzzi style baths and power showers.
14 Albion St, 01482 219 878, www.thetownhousehull.co.uk
Doubles from £99 incl breakfast.
Where to eat
Artisan
Twenty minutes' taxi ride towards the west gets you to one of Yorkshire's best restaurants. For £50 you dine on a 'gourmet menu' of six exquisite dishes - slow-roast rare breed pork belly, roast rump of Devonshire estate lamb and Belgian white chocolate and raspberry pot with orange curd yoghurt ice cream are three of them - all prepared with dedication by Richard Johns, while his wife Lindsey serves and chats to you at the front. Refined, but very relaxed, it's one for a special treat.
22 The Weir, Hessle, 01482 644906, www.artisanrestaurant.com
Set dinner for two, Fri and Sat eves only - with wine £150.
What to see
The Deep
Hull's magnificent aquarium with around 3,500 fish, including rays, sharks and loads of monstrous, hilarious tropical fish. (www.thedeep.co.uk)
See www.realyorkshire.co.uk for more general info.
Paul Schofield's tour website is www.tourhull.com.
More on Larkin
A recent reading of 'Here', with visuals by Claslane media, featuring the voice of Hull-born actor Tom Courtenay can be seen here: www.larkin25.co.uk
Comments
Take a look at the site: yorkshireandhull.webeden.co.uk.
Many publications knock Hull but in fact you will see that this site actually promotes Hull and of course Yorkshire.
I would risk a bet that if you are reading this you have seen more than Hull's fair share of bad publicity so just look at this site, perhaps you may be pleasntly surprised.
I am Yorkshireman - The editor of the above named site, let me have your contributions to the site and tell me what you think of the site too.
i came to hull 3 year ago from london ,before i come to study hull uni ther was alot of coment about city i have to say so far this best city i ever live in uk.peple very friendly ther is alot of nice cafe bar like pave and larkin and most befull mix restaurant in the citiy.i live near uni and my absolute favorite place is mimosa restaurant which is Traditional barbecue restaurants ofering Different Choice of Food vegetarian,fish,bbq and stk..come ans see the citiy and all cafe bar and restaurant yourself
I moved back to the area and into Hull after living in Scotland for several years, latterly Edinburgh. I've lived in many places, isolated, coastal, rural and some cities too.
Encountering helpful and talkative people on the buses and streets in Hull came as a shock after the hustle and bustle of my previous home where its rich cultural calendar and beauty meant that life in the city was often frantic, unfriendly and overcrowded as it strains to cope with the thousands of tourists and visitors. Hull has less to sell itself, is smaller and in some ways really quite isolated.It has struggled with its identity, not helped in recent times by the national (and often local) media obsession of education, employment and property value statistics.
Consequently more often than not we are truly surprised when any recognition comes along and praise is given. We need to move away from expecting little recognition to expecting more. Believe and project that belief. Hull is no victim.
Thanks Paul for sharing the riches of our city!
Well finally someone has written a fair account of 'This Great City of the State' (as Queen Vicotria called Hull). I've lived in he Hull all my life and could never, for the life of me, understand why the media dealt with us so shabbily. And especially over the last decade or so the city has utterly transformed itself into one of the most beautiful in the country. Here are some places visitors should see that weren't mentioned in the article. Queens Gardens - a beautiful park in the heart of the city centre. Streetlife Museum in the Old Town (as good as Yorvik in York and it's free!). And while your're there don't forget to take a trip around the last of the deep sea trawlers, Arctic Corsair and listen to the first-hand stories of the guys who sailed on her. Drive around Hull's Garden Village and East Park - who needs Bouneville? Paragon Station with one of the most fantastic Victorian engine sheds you'll ever see. I could go on, and on, Hull New Theatre, Hull Truck Theatre, Newland Avenue, The Marina, The Old Docks, The New Docks, Holy Trinity Church, St Charles Catholic Church, but hey! just come and see for yourself. Once you've been you WILL come back!! Enjoy.
I am so pleased that this article has been published. At last someone has written a true report on what hull is really like. There is all of this and so much more in our fab city!
"We each had succulent pigeon with beetroot mash and a great Rioja before hitting a string of bars with Brimbles owner Dean. Another friend. We were becoming Hullers." Spoken like a man who has truly NO CLUE about what being a "Huller" actually means. Road kill, poncy veg and Larkin appreciation does not a Hully make!!
I have been pleasantly surprised with Hull which I didn't know well before doing business there - will now visit some of those pubs mentioned! Have made a couple of visits to the excellent Townhouse where local staff go out of their way to make my visit a really good experience. Can definitely recommend it.
The Larkin commemorations have given people - not just the national media but local folk too - a reason to take a look at Hull through new glasses. I moved here from Australia 17 years ago and am proud to call it home. That Hull is becoming a better city to live in and visit is no accident - local people and organisations are working hard to achieve change and their success is to everyone's benefit.
Its good to here nice things said about hull at last. I have lived here for 32 years by choice and have always thought that the city and its inhabitants under sell themselves. I love it here and could not envisage being anywhere else. Not only do we have a lovely city with very friendly people, we also have lovely seaside places and beautiful countryside on our doorstep. I'm proud to say i come from Hull.
Its good to here nice things said about hull at last. I have lived here for 32 years by choice and ahve always thought that thye city and its inhabitants undersell themselves. I love it here and could not envisage being anywhere else. Not only do we have a lovely city with very friendly people, we also have lovely seaside places and beautiful countryside on our doorstep. I'm proud to say i come from Hull.
Thank you Chris for telling people that Hull is a nice place! Don't tell too many people though, it'll get crowded.
Now you have at last read a number of positive comments about Hull, by golly dosn't it make a pleasant change.
As one citizen put it in her comments, "Something those of us from its raw estates have always known"
It is about time Kingston-Upon-Hull got the recognition that it truly deserves and all of those who take such pleasure in putting our town down want to shut up and begin reporting facts not fiction.
Visit: yorkshireandhull.webeden.co.uk - I am the Editor of the above site - Yorkshireman
Great article! Hull is a very special place. Peter Porter said it was the most poetic city in England. Douglas Dunn talks of its 'generous character', its 'indefinable identity', its appeal to the imagination, 'a town which by its very nature recommends the plainly human, the seriousness of what, in more glamorous places, is taken to be ordinary'. And then of course Larkin himself who talks of the 'end-of-the-line sense of freedom' felt when arriving back home, and the city's 'sudden elegances'. 'People are slow to leave it, quick to return. And there are those who come, as they think, for a year or two, and stay a lifetime, sensing that they have found a city that is in the world, yet sufficiently on the edge of it to have a different resonance'. I've been here 38 years!
Hull is an undiscovered delight. I moved there for university in 1995, found the love of my life and the perfect job.
The people have that wonderful attribute of understatement in every sense. The arts and music scene is booming and you will never feel the same way about chips until you've had the "special salt" that you don't find anywhere else.
I've moved away now but miss it every single day and can't wait to move back.
I can only echo the comments above. I moved to Hull from Manchester 16 years ago and am now proud to call Hull home. I honestly couldn't see myself living anywhere else. I would also heartily recommend the University to students from across the world...it's an excellent Institution and is what initially brought me to the city. It has also kept me because I am now employed there!
I'm so pleased my home town has been enjoyed by our southern guests - it's about time! I'm very proud to be part of the food scene here.
A marvellously picturesque and atmospheric city. Something those of us from its raw estates have always known. My partner Alison came to Hull to work, and is still here some twenty two years later. Although I do like to think that this is due in no small part to my influence. I've lost count of the number of folks that I have introduced to Hull, who have been surprised and delighted by what they encounter. If you are tempted to visit, yield to it. I would thoroughly recommend Paul Schofield's guided tour, and the newly opened Larkins Bar on Newland Avenue, just a stones throw from the social hub that is Princes Avenue.
A marvellously picturesque and atmospheric city. Something those of us from its raw estates have always known. My partner Alison came to Hull to work, and is still here some twenty two years later. Although I do like to think that this is due in no small part to my influence. I've lost count of the number of folks that I have introduced to Hull, who have been surprised and delighted by what they encounter. If you are tempted to visit, yield to it. I would thoroughly recommend Paul Schofield's guided tour, and the newly opened Larkins Bar on Newland Avenue, just a stones throw from the social hub that is Princes Avenue.
Agree with S.Green and Dean Webster, Hull is now where as bad as its often painted and when it finally gets finished it will be great, and hopefully it can accelerate this a bit to at least catch up with other great cities that have been through the same but emerged from the mire much quicker than Hull - being cautious and coming last generally doesnt attract many prizes.
I know so many people, including myself, who have spent time away and come back. I know all the places mentioned and because of Hull's location we've grown up different to the rest of England. We're 60 miles from the nearest other civilisation (not including the south bank) and that's given us a certain amount of uniqueness and charm with fabulous and very eclectic architecture.And, what's more we're very friendly. Everybody who comes here somehow ends up staying. Enough said!
Oh no! If this gets out our fabulous secret will be out, Hull is not really the worst place in the UK. Having moved here 18 years ago I can echo all of this, there is far more to this city than you would expect! Come and see for yourselves.
It is a real pleasure to read about my home town of Hull in such glowing terms. Chris and Mike will always be welcome at Brimble's Bistro as honary Hullensians.
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