Whifflet ( sco, The Whufflit, gd, Magh na Cruithneachd)
/ref> is now a suburb of

Coatbridge Coatbridge ( sco, Cotbrig or Coatbrig, gd, Drochaid a' Chòta) is a town in North Lanarkshire, Scotland, about east of Glasgow city centre, set in the central Lowlands. Along with neighbouring town Airdrie, Coatbridge forms the area known as ...

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

, which once formed its own distinctive village. It is referred to locally as 'The Whifflet' (and pronounced ''whiff-lit''). Presently located in the

North Lanarkshire North Lanarkshire ( sco, North Lanrikshire; gd, Siorrachd Lannraig a Tuath) is one of 32 council areas of Scotland. It borders the northeast of the City of Glasgow and contains many of Glasgow's suburbs and commuter towns and villages. It also ...

Council area it was originally known as wheat flats (hence the vernacular pronunciation) but over time the name appears to have developed into Whifflet. It is dominated by its main street, Whifflet Street, which has many shops including an old sweet shop Tommy Tangos, pubs and

bookmakers A bookmaker, bookie, or turf accountant is an organization or a person that accepts and pays off bets on sporting and other events at agreed-upon odds. History The first bookmaker, Ogden, stood at Newmarket in 1795. Range of events Bookma ...

and is towered over by the post-war built Calder

flats Flat or flats may refer to: Architecture * Flat (housing), an apartment in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia and other Commonwealth countries Arts and entertainment * Flat (music), a symbol () which denotes a lower pitch * Flat (soldier), ...

. The two most prominent tower blocks are on Whifflet St. Whifflet is an area of

which, historically, has been the centre of a lot of mining activity. One of the Whifflet pits in the 19th century reached a depth of 330 feet underground.

Albion Rovers Albion Rovers Football Club is a semi-professional football team from Coatbridge, North Lanarkshire, Scotland. They are members of the Scottish Professional Football League (SPFL) and play in Scottish League Two, the fourth tier of the Scotti ...

football club was originally based in the Whifflet area at Meadow Park. Notable residents have included Jock Cunningham a

miner, mutineer and brigade commander on the republican side during the

Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War ( es, Guerra Civil Española)) or The Revolution ( es, La Revolución, link=no) among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War ( es, Cuarta Guerra Carlista, link=no) among Carlists, and The Rebellion ( es, La Rebelión, lin ...

who lived at number 77b Whifflet Street. In 1968,

Robert Plant Robert Anthony Plant (born 20 August 1948) is an English singer and songwriter, best known as the lead singer and lyricist of the English rock band Led Zeppelin for all of its existence from 1968 until 1980, when the band broke up following the ...

and

John Bonham John Henry Bonham (31 May 1948 – 25 September 1980) was an English musician, best known as the drummer for the rock band Led Zeppelin. Esteemed for his speed, power, fast single-footed kick drumming, distinctive sound, and feel for groove,J ...

, before forming

Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin were an English rock band formed in London in 1968. The group comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham. With a heavy, guitar-driven sound, they are ci ...

, did a Scottish tour with group

Band of Joy Band of Joy (sometimes known as Robert Plant and the Band of Joy) was an English rock band. Various line-ups of the group performed from 1965 to 1968 and from 1977 to 1983. Robert Plant revived the band's name in 2010 for a concert tour of No ...

in which they played the Marion Hall in Whifflet. Thomas McAleese, alias

Dean Ford Dean Ford , born Thomas McAleese on 5 September 1945 – 31 December 2018 was a Scottish singer and songwriter best known for his tenure as lead vocalist and frontman of the beat pop group Marmalade from 1966 to 1974. Ford (credited as McAleese) ...

was born and lived there and went on to achieve worldwide success with

The Marmalade Marmalade are a Scottish pop rock band originating from the east end of Glasgow, originally formed in 1961 as The Gaylords, and then later billed as Dean Ford and The Gaylords, recording four singles for Columbia (EMI). In 1966 they changed th ...

. Whifflet has a 400-metre long former rail tunnel, now sealed, running south from the Calder Street traffic lights.

Whifflet railway station Whifflet railway station is located in the Whifflet area of Coatbridge. Train services are provided by ScotRail. Until December 2014, it was the terminal station on the Whifflet Line, since when it is served by Argyle Line services. To the east ...

provides travel links to

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

Motherwell Motherwell ( sco, Mitherwall, gd, Tobar na Màthar) is a town and former burgh in North Lanarkshire, Scotland, United Kingdom, south east of Glasgow. It has a population of around 32,120. Historically in the parish of Dalziel and part of Lanarks ...

, and

Cumbernauld Cumbernauld (; gd, Comar nan Allt, meeting of the streams) is a large town in the historic county of Dunbartonshire and council area of North Lanarkshire, Scotland. It is the tenth most-populous locality in Scotland and the most populated t ...

. Whifflet is said NOTE: Extensive quote provided because the article may disappear behind a paywall. The text between square brackets is from an earlier paragraph in the same article. to have a particularly large Irish influence dating back to the early 20th century.

References

External links

Coatbridge Neighbourhoods in North Lanarkshire {{NorthLanarkshire-geo-stub