Moseley is a suburb of south
Birmingham
Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1. ...
,
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
, south of the city centre. The area is a popular cosmopolitan residential location and leisure destination, with a number of bars and restaurants. The area also has a number of boutiques and other independent retailers.
It is located within the
Moseley and Kings Heath Ward of the city, in the constituency of
Hall Green
Hall Green is an area in southeast Birmingham, England, synonymous with the B28 postcode. It is also a council constituency, managed by its own district committee. Historically it lay within the county of Worcestershire.
Politics
Hall Green i ...
.
Historically it lay within
Worcestershire
Worcestershire ( , ; written abbreviation: Worcs) is a county in the West Midlands of England. The area that is now Worcestershire was absorbed into the unified Kingdom of England in 927, at which time it was constituted as a county (see H ...
.
History
Moseley was listed in the
Domesday Book
Domesday Book () – the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book" – is a manuscript record of the "Great Survey" of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 by order of King William I, known as William the Conqueror. The manus ...
of 1086 as Museleie.
St. Mary's Church, Moseley was licensed by the
Bishop of Worcester (authorised by
Pope Innocent VII
Pope Innocent VII ( la, Innocentius VII; it, Innocenzo VII; 1339 – 6 November 1406), born Cosimo de' Migliorati, was head of the Catholic Church from 17 October 1404 to his death in November 1406. He was pope during the period of the Western ...
) in February 1405, and the 600th anniversary was celebrated in 2005 with a series of special events. In 2012 the church bells which had been named as the worst sounding in the country were replaced. Moseley itself developed around a
Victorian shopping area known as ''Moseley Village''.
Moseley Hall was rebuilt in parkland in the late 1700s and rebuilt by 1795 after being set on fire during rioting in 1791. It was donated in 1891 to the City of Birmingham by Richard Cadbury and now forms part of Moseley hall hospital.
Spring Hill College (
Moseley School), a
Gothic revival construction built in 1857, is located in the south of the district. Former pupils include comedian
Jasper Carrott
Robert Norman Davis (born 14 March 1945), best known by his stage name, Jasper Carrott, is an English comedian, actor and television presenter.
Early life
Born in Shaftmoor Lane, Acocks Green, in Birmingham, Carrott was educated at Acocks Gr ...
and musician
Bev Bevan
Beverley Bevan (born 25 November 1944) is an English rock musician, who was the drummer and one of the original members of The Move and Electric Light Orchestra (ELO). After the end of ELO in 1986, he founded ELO Part II.
Bevan also was drumm ...
of the
Electric Light Orchestra.
St. Anne's Church, Moseley was opened in 1874.
Moseley was served by
Moseley railway station
Moseley railway station in Moseley, Birmingham, England, operated from 1867 to 1941.
History
It was opened by the Midland Railway on the Camp Hill Line on 1 November 1867. A previously named Moseley station on the same line changed its name to ...
from 1867 to 1941. It was opened by the
Midland Railway
The Midland Railway (MR) was a railway company in the United Kingdom from 1844. The Midland was one of the largest railway companies in Britain in the early 20th century, and the largest employer in Derby, where it had its headquarters. It ama ...
on the Camp Hill line. A previously named Moseley Station on the same line changed its name to
Kings Heath Station upon the opening of the station.
Moseley and the surrounding areas were much developed after 1910, being built upon the once extensive farm land that was predominant in this area. The new properties being mostly of large houses, designed to cater for the Edwardian middle-class families that settled in the suburbs surrounding Birmingham's industrial centre. These large houses relied upon at least one servant or "tweeny" as they were often termed, to help the lady of the house run the household. With the advent of the
First World War
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
, staff were hard to find to maintain houses of this size. The heating bills and high maintenance made them unpopular after the war and many were split into flats to cater for the requirements of the expanding working population who moved from the city centre as extensive redevelopment took place in the 1960s.
In some respects Moseley and the surrounding area suffered a serious decline in the last part of the 20th century. Much property fell into neglect, and problems with crime, drugs and prostitution became commonplace in the areas bordering
Balsall Heath
Balsall Heath is an inner-city area of Birmingham, West Midlands, England. It has a diverse cultural mix of people and is the location of the Balti Triangle.
History
Balsall Heath was agricultural land between Moseley village and the city of ...
. During this same period, however, with a great deal of cheap accommodation on offer, it is arguable that Moseley also enjoyed its most creative and cosmopolitan phase as the focus of artistic and student communities. In 1970s, the small triangular shaped green in the heart of Moseley village, which was then home to the underground public toilets, was a convenient meeting place for local youth, and was known as "Bog Island".
Today Moseley is one of the more affluent suburbs in Birmingham, although parts of north Moseley continue to suffer deprivation. The area has a mixture of residential properties, with some streets being among the most expensive in the city and others consisting largely of social housing and other rented accommodation.
Local band
Ocean Colour Scene
Ocean Colour Scene (often abbreviated to OCS) are an English rock band formed in Solihull in 1989. They have had five top 10 albums including a number one in 1997. They have also achieved seventeen top 40 singles and six top 10 singles to dat ...
flourished in the mid-1990s British
Britpop
Britpop was a mid-1990s British-based music culture movement that emphasised Britishness. It produced brighter, catchier alternative rock, partly in reaction to the popularity of the darker lyrical themes of the US-led grunge music and to the ...
–
indie
Indie is a short form of "independence" or "independent"; it may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media
Gaming
*Independent video game development, video games created without financial backing from large companies
*Indie game, any game (board ...
scene with songs such as "
The Riverboat Song
"The Riverboat Song" is a song by British band Ocean Colour Scene. It is heavily influenced by Led Zeppelin's "Four Sticks", from which it takes its main riff and a number of lyrics. The song is written in swing time.
The single was popularised ...
", inspired by locations within the suburb of Moseley. Their most successful album (in terms of weeks on chart) was ''
Moseley Shoals''. Moseley is also the birthplace of
Nick Rhodes
Nick Rhodes (born Nicholas James Bates, 8 June 1962) is an English keyboardist and producer, best known as a founding member, keyboardist, and only continuous member of the band Duran Duran. He is also informally monikered as "The Controller ...
of
Duran Duran.
The suburb is the spiritual home of the great
Moseley Rugby Football Club
Birmingham Moseley Rugby Club is an English rugby union club, based in Birmingham, that compete in the third tier of English rugby. They were historically the premier rugby club in Birmingham, reaching the final of the John Player Cup three ti ...
, regular cup finalists in the 1970s and 80s, and still regularly hosting one of the top 14 games in the country. Their new home is a few yards from the Moseley border at
Billesley.
The politician
Joseph Chamberlain
Joseph Chamberlain (8 July 1836 – 2 July 1914) was a British statesman who was first a radical Liberal, then a Liberal Unionist after opposing home rule for Ireland, and eventually served as a leading imperialist in coalition with the C ...
had his Birmingham residence at
Highbury
Highbury is a district in North London and part of the London Borough of Islington
in Greater London that was owned by Ranulf brother of Ilger and included all the areas north and east of Canonbury and Holloway Roads.
The manor house was sit ...
, on the edge of Moseley. The property was entrusted to the city after Chamberlain's death and is currently used as a conference venue and location for civil ceremonies.
Literature
J. R. R. Tolkien
John Ronald Reuel Tolkien (, ; 3 January 1892 – 2 September 1973) was an English writer and philologist. He was the author of the high fantasy works ''The Hobbit'' and ''The Lord of the Rings''.
From 1925 to 1945, Tolkien was the Rawlins ...
spent his early years in Moseley, living close to
Sarehole Mill
Sarehole Mill is a Grade II listed water mill, in an area once called Sarehole, on the River Cole in Hall Green, Birmingham, England. It is now run as a museum by the Birmingham Museums Trust. It is known for its association with J. R. R. Tol ...
in
Hall Green
Hall Green is an area in southeast Birmingham, England, synonymous with the B28 postcode. It is also a council constituency, managed by its own district committee. Historically it lay within the county of Worcestershire.
Politics
Hall Green i ...
before moving to the site now occupied by Shades Music off the Alcester Road.
Sarehole Mill
Sarehole Mill is a Grade II listed water mill, in an area once called Sarehole, on the River Cole in Hall Green, Birmingham, England. It is now run as a museum by the Birmingham Museums Trust. It is known for its association with J. R. R. Tol ...
is believed to have been his inspiration for the tranquil
Shire in ''
The Lord of the Rings
''The Lord of the Rings'' is an epic high-fantasy novel by English author and scholar J. R. R. Tolkien. Set in Middle-earth, intended to be Earth at some time in the distant past, the story began as a sequel to Tolkien's 1937 children's b ...
''. He also drew inspiration from
Moseley Bog
Moseley Bog and Joy's Wood Local Nature Reserve, formerly The Dell, is a Local Nature Reserve in the Moseley area of Birmingham, England, with an area of about 12 ha (29 acres).
History
There are burnt mounds on the banks of the Coldbath Brook, ...
for the landscape of
Middle-earth
Middle-earth is the fictional setting of much of the English writer J. R. R. Tolkien's fantasy. The term is equivalent to the '' Miðgarðr'' of Norse mythology and ''Middangeard'' in Old English works, including ''Beowulf''. Middle-earth is ...
.
Planning permission has been acquired for the erection on Moseley Green of a
statue of
Treebeard
Treebeard, or ''Fangorn'' in Sindarin, is a tree-giant character in J. R. R. Tolkien's ''The Lord of the Rings''. He is an Ent and is said by Gandalf to be "the oldest living thing that still walks beneath the Sun upon this Middle-earth.", bo ...
, an
Ent from ''The Lord of the Rings'', made by Tolkien's great-nephew,
Tim Tolkien
Tim Tolkien (born October 1962) is an English sculptor who has designed several monumental sculptures, including the award-winning ''Sentinel (sculpture), Sentinel''.
He has a metal sculpture and public Art business at Cradley Heath, West Mid ...
.
Local author,
Jonathan Coe
Jonathan Coe (; born 19 August 1961) is an English novelist and writer. His work has an underlying preoccupation with political issues, although this serious engagement is often expressed comically in the form of satire. For example, '' What a ...
has drawn on Moseley for inspiration, including the suburb in scenes in his books
The Rotters' Club and
The Closed Circle.
Sport
Moseley has a rich history of success in
Rugby Union
Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In it ...
. Its most famous team is
Moseley Rugby Football Club
Birmingham Moseley Rugby Club is an English rugby union club, based in Birmingham, that compete in the third tier of English rugby. They were historically the premier rugby club in Birmingham, reaching the final of the John Player Cup three ti ...
, who were one of Europe's best teams in the late 1960s to the 1980s. Notable players include
Sam Doble,
J. F. Byrne,
Peter Cranmer
Peter Cranmer (10 September 1914 – 29 May 1994) was an English sportsman who captained Warwickshire in first-class cricket and earlier in his career represented England at rugby union. After World War II he gave up on rugby and focused purely ...
,
Alain Rolland,
Mike Teague and
Victor Ubogu
Victor Eriakpo Ubogu (born 8 September 1964) is a former Bath and England rugby union player.
Arriving in the UK from Lagos, Nigeria in 1977, he attended West Buckland School in Devon he received the school's top award, the Fortescue Medal. ...
.
The
Moseley Wanderers team of 1900 won the
Silver Medal in the Rugby Union competition at the 1900
Olympics.
Present
Today, a monthly Farmers' Market in Moseley - set up by the
Moseley Neighbourhood Forum
Moseley Forum is a neighbourhood forum of local Moseley residents who represent a geographic area of Birmingham, England. The city has a number of neighbourhood forums, bodies recognised by the City Council
A municipal council is the legislative ...
- has won various awards including best FARMA Certified Urban Farmers' Market 2009 and in 2009 local farmer Dominic Butler won the Most Unique Produce award with his micro blue beetroots. Similarly, Moseley has a well defined and established community spirit and ethos, exemplified by
Moseley Neighbourhood Forum
Moseley Forum is a neighbourhood forum of local Moseley residents who represent a geographic area of Birmingham, England. The city has a number of neighbourhood forums, bodies recognised by the City Council
A municipal council is the legislative ...
- a neighbourhood forum - that works to develop the area for the betterment of everyone. The Moseley Society exists to protect the heritage of the area; meetings of the Society discuss and debate a wide range of local issues and the interests of its residents.
The Moseley Community Development Trust (CDT) invests in the social and physical capital of the area. Established with funding from
charitable
The practice of charity is the voluntary giving of help to those in need, as a humanitarian act, unmotivated by self-interest. There are a number of philosophies about charity, often associated with religion.
Etymology
The word ''charity'' or ...
trust funds and with the support of the
Moseley and Kings Heath Ward Committee, the CDT is now managing a series of initiatives to improve the environment of Moseley.
It has its own monthly magazine, Moseley B13 (formerly Birmingham 13), reporting on local events and personalities. It has been printing since May 1973.
A group of volunteers have formed Moseley in Bloom (MiB). Much like the Moseley Community Development Trust, the group undertake many projects which look at the greener issues around Moseley. Many projects take place throughout the year to enhance the landscape of Moseley as well as renovate dilapidated areas.
Every summer Moseley hosts Moseley Festival, a festival of arts and culture that sees people in the community come together and hold a series of music, art, food, cultural and sporting events.
Moseley Folk Festival happens later in the year, and attracts big names from the world of folk. Mostly Jazz, Funk & Soul Festival takes place in the park during the summer as well. Moseley also has its own literary festival, Pow-Wow LitFest, which has taken place annually at the Prince of Wales pub since 2011.
Moseley is also home to many
pub
A pub (short for public house) is a kind of drinking establishment which is licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term ''public house'' first appeared in the United Kingdom in late 17th century, and was ...
s,
restaurants and
café
A coffeehouse, coffee shop, or café is an establishment that primarily serves coffee of various types, notably espresso, latte, and cappuccino. Some coffeehouses may serve cold drinks, such as iced coffee and iced tea, as well as other non ...
s.
In 2015 Moseley was named as the "best urban place to live" by The Sunday Times, with the newspaper citing its 'Arts and Crafts', 'Bohemian culture' and 'Victorian Architecture' as reasons to live in the suburb.
This award followed its being highlighted by ''
The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'' in 2013 as a place to move, with similar reasons being cited.
''The Guardian'' also pointed out that if
HS2 is built it would be the ideal place for a wealthy London worker to live.
[
]
Education
Moseley has two secondary schools, Moseley School, a language college and Queensbridge School, an Arts College
An Arts College, in the United Kingdom, is a type of specialist school that specialises in the subject fields of the performing, visual, digital and/or media arts. They were announced in 1996 and introduced alongside Sports Colleges to England i ...
. It also has several Primary schools such as Moseley C of E Primary School a one form entry school that has connections with St. Mary's Church and Park Hill Primary School on Alcester Road and St Martin de Porres Catholic Primary School.
Moseley is also home to Uffculme School, an all age special school for children on the Autistic Spectrum.
Moseley also has Fox Hollies School.
Notable residents
Many people who have been born, lived or worked in Moseley have made important contributions, a few of the more high-profile ones are:
*Kabir Ali
Kabir Ali (born 24 November 1980) is an English former cricketer. A right-arm seam bowler and useful lower-order right-handed batsman, he played one Test match for England in 2003, while also earning 14 ODI caps between 2003 and 2006.
He star ...
, Worcestershire & England cricketer
* Edward Bach, Doctor, best known for developing a range of remedies called the Bach flower remedies.
*Dan Bull
Daniel G. L. Bull (born 27 March 1986) is a British rapper and songwriter known best for his songs about video games, which he publishes on his YouTube channel.
His videos feature him playing various games with fellow artist Dave Brown (" Boyin ...
, Rapper and songwriter
*Ali Campbell
Alistair Ian Campbell (born 15 February 1959) is an English singer and songwriter who was lead singer of the British reggae band UB40. As part of UB40, Campbell sold over 70 million records worldwide and toured the globe for 30 years. In 2008, C ...
, Singer UB40
UB40 are an English reggae and pop band, formed in December 1978 in Birmingham, England. The band has had more than 50 singles in the UK Singles Chart, and has also achieved considerable international success. They have been nominated for the ...
*Austen Chamberlain
Sir Joseph Austen Chamberlain (16 October 1863 – 16 March 1937) was a British statesman, son of Joseph Chamberlain and older half-brother of Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain. He served as Chancellor of the Exchequer (twice) and was briefly ...
MP, Statesman, Lord Mayor of Birmingham
Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1. ...
, philanthropist and Nobel Peace Prize
The Nobel Peace Prize is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the will of Swedish industrialist, inventor and armaments (military weapons and equipment) manufacturer Alfred Nobel, along with the prizes in Chemistry, Physics, Physiolog ...
winner.
* Neville Chamberlain, Prime Minister
A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister i ...
, MP and Lord Mayor of Birmingham
Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1. ...
(declared World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
)
*Carl Chinn
Carl Steven Alfred Chinn, MBE (born 6 September 1956) is an English historian, writer and broadcaster whose working life has been devoted to the study and popularisation of the city of Birmingham. He broadcast a programme on the BBC from the mi ...
, Historian, radio presenter, newspaper columnist, and media personality
*Alan Cottrell
Sir Alan Howard Cottrell, FRS (17 July 1919 – 15 February 2012) was an English metallurgist and physicist. He was also former Chief Scientific Advisor to the UK Government and vice-chancellor of Cambridge University 1977–1979.
Early ...
, Metallurgist and physicist.
* Fyfe Dangerfield, Musician, solo artist and lead singer of the Guillemots
* Roger Jon Ellory, Author
*Simon Fowler
Simon Geoffrey Fowler (born 25 May 1965 in Meriden, Warwickshire) is an English singer and acoustic guitarist, best known as the frontman of Ocean Colour Scene.
The Fanatics
Simon Fowler commenced his music career as the lead singer and songwr ...
, Musician and lead singer of Ocean Colour Scene
Ocean Colour Scene (often abbreviated to OCS) are an English rock band formed in Solihull in 1989. They have had five top 10 albums including a number one in 1997. They have also achieved seventeen top 40 singles and six top 10 singles to dat ...
*Claudia Jessie
Claudia Jessie (born 1989/1990) is an English actress. She is known for her roles in the third series of the BBC One police procedural ''WPC 56'' (2015) and as Eloise, the fifth Bridgerton child, in the Netflix period drama ''Bridgerton'' (202 ...
, Actress
* Trish Keenan, Songwriter, musician and lead singer of Broadcast
* Frederick W. Lanchester, Pioneer of the motor car
* Joanne Malin, TV presenter, co-presenter of '' Central Tonight''
*Herbert Mason
Samuel George Herbert Mason (1891 – 20 May 1960) was a British film director, producer, stage actor, army officer, presenter of some revues, stage manager, theatre director, stage director, choreographer, Production manager (theatre), produc ...
MC, Film director, producer, actor, stage manager, choreographer, production manager and army officer in World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
*Nick Rhodes
Nick Rhodes (born Nicholas James Bates, 8 June 1962) is an English keyboardist and producer, best known as a founding member, keyboardist, and only continuous member of the band Duran Duran. He is also informally monikered as "The Controller ...
, Keyboardist for Duran Duran
*Brian Travers
UB40 are an English reggae and pop band, formed in December 1978 in Birmingham, England. The band has had more than 50 singles in the UK Singles Chart, and has also achieved considerable international success. They have been nominated for the ...
, Saxophone UB40
*J. R. R. Tolkien
John Ronald Reuel Tolkien (, ; 3 January 1892 – 2 September 1973) was an English writer and philologist. He was the author of the high fantasy works ''The Hobbit'' and ''The Lord of the Rings''.
From 1925 to 1945, Tolkien was the Rawlins ...
, Author of ''The Hobbit
''The Hobbit, or There and Back Again'' is a children's fantasy novel by English author J. R. R. Tolkien. It was published in 1937 to wide critical acclaim, being nominated for the Carnegie Medal and awarded a prize from the ''N ...
'' and ''The Lord of the Rings
''The Lord of the Rings'' is an epic high-fantasy novel by English author and scholar J. R. R. Tolkien. Set in Middle-earth, intended to be Earth at some time in the distant past, the story began as a sequel to Tolkien's 1937 children's b ...
''
References
External links
Moseley Society
Moseley Forum - the neighbourhood forum for the village of Moseley
Moseley in Bloom - Moseley volunteers growing a cleaner, greener community
*
{{Authority control
Areas of Birmingham, West Midlands
Conservation areas in England