009: Good News for Stoke & Staffordshire
Belstaff, Question Time, Films; Soulboy + Jawbone, Clarice Cliff Gets a Blue Plaque, Gladstone Girls at Tribeca, Jonty's House Podcast, Best Wrap in Staffordshire and Goodbye Signal One.
WHAT’S ON/THINGS TO DO ✅
Belstaff ‘Our First 100 Years’ Exhibition. 25th - 26th May, Gladstone Pottery Museum. If you didn’t know about Belstaff’s birth in Longton, you do now and you can celebrate their 100 year birthday with them. Limited-edition Belstaff pieces will be available to buy, food and refreshments at the Belstaff cafe. On Sunday, collectors and vintage sellers from across the country will be coming together for a one-off vintage clothing market.
BBC Question Time. 9th May, Stoke-on-Trent. It looks like the location is undecided (or I just can’t find it). You can apply to be on here.
Filmed in Staffordshire; Soulboy and Jawbone. May 4th, Potteries Museum and Art Gallery. Watch these two films shot in Stoke and Staffordshire for FREE in the cinema room at the museum. Soulboy - 70s coming of age drama with underground Northern Soul scene backdrop. Jawbone - boxing champ finds redemption and the boxing gym is the Spode site.
Your City Festival. 3rd and 4th May, Hanley. Last 100 tickets left.
Good News 🎉
Clarice Cliff Blue Plaque Unveiled. The life of this influential ceramic artist has been celebrated with a blue plaque outside her former home in Shelton, Stoke-on-Trent. She started working in the factory at 13 and became famous for introducing revolutionary art deco designs bursting with colour.
This is only the second blue plaque to be introduced as part of Historic England’s new nomination scheme. A Stoke-on-Trent and Staffordshire (born in Eccleshall) role model celebrated - this is delightful news. (BBC)
"Women today want continual change, they will have colour and plenty of it" - Clarice Cliff, 1930
Gladstone Girls to premiere at Tribeca film festival. This audio drama about a group of women in the pottery industry is a true story and many people are holding their breath to find out how they can get their hands on it. Patience, I’m told. More great work from Rachel Shenton and Chris Overton of Slick Films. (Rachel Shenton Instagram)
Jonty’s House launches with first guest Harry Redknapp. Stoke based Prem Management venture into podcast production with this new series hosted by Jonty Sargeant.
THIS WEEK: Good News Spotlight 🔦 World’s First Hand Painted Rollercoaster 🎨
In your inbox this week, a closer look at the world’s first hand-painted rollercoaster at Alton Towers by local artist, Rob Fenton.
Food Highlight - Zagros, fresh naan bakery 🌯
📍 https://maps.app.goo.gl/4LG4Uecd282eRpBA6
💰 less than £5
When I worked in Shoreditch I’d queue most days for a falafel wrap from a street stall. The falafel was made fresh and they handed you one whilst you waited. For £5, I thought it was a great falafel wrap.
Now I’ve been to Zagros In Shelton, I realise how wrong I was. This is how a falafel wrap should be made. Zagros is a fresh naan bakery. They make the naan right there in front of you, it’s as fresh as it gets. They make the falafel fresh too and you can add pickled salad or the standard stuff plus sauces. You’ve also got a chicken shawarma as an option on the same fresh naan.
It’s the kind of place that if you didn’t know about, you wouldn’t go in. For £3.50 i’ve not had a better wrap. The naan is light and doesn’t sit too heavy on you, for a lunch time pick up it’s bang on.
Travelling through Stoke, or stopping off at the station, it’s just round the corner and you heard it from me - it’s the best wrap going. Or, curry for dinner? Pick up some fresh naans on the way home. Do it.
PROPERTY 🏡
Let the light flood in with this exceptional 4 bed home on the edge of Cannock Chase.
KNOT HAVING IT ❌
Signal One Radio has become Hits Radio. My favourite memory of Signal One was listening to “Late Night Love Affair” whilst driving back from a KFC shift in Newcastle. Not much has changed with the move to Hits, other than the name, however it does seem to symbolise an end for this local radio station. A group of local producers and presenters are knot having it though, Blue Sky Radio is a new commercial radio station for Staffordshire and Cheshire with roots here, check them out. When something dies, something new can be born. Thanks for the memories Signal One and good luck to Blue Sky.
It’s been another good week and great to see so much of this region’s history being celebrated and brought to life. After the first Knot Networking event I’m feeling connected to The Knot readers after being able to put faces to email addresses. You are people that live here, that are open, that want to get out and do stuff, you’d like this place to be just a bit better, but don’t want to join the moaning and negativity brigade. I like that.
Everyone cares for those with less too and we know that the reason we want to raise Stoke and Staffordshire up, isn’t just for us. It’s for others, the younger generations and those with less opportunities. That’s why we’re here.
Right now, the thing I need most help with is distribution. Please know that every time you share The Knot with someone new or in a group you are part of - it hugely supports The Knot’s mission. I want 10,000 The Knot subscribers by the end of the year, I believe with that I can make The Knot a sustainable and viable news source in this region and I can compete with The Sentinel and SOT Live.
Cheers,
James Routledge.
FRIENDS OF THE KNOT 👋🏼
Thank you to support from our friends.
You are doing such great work James. I really look forward to these round-ups. Keep going 👍