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Hucknall, formerly Hucknall Torkard, is a market town in the
Ashfield Ashfield may refer to: People * Ashfield (surname) Places Australia * Ashfield, New South Wales, a suburb of Sydney ** Municipality of Ashfield, a former local government area in Sydney ** Electoral district of Ashfield, a former electoral dist ...
district of Nottinghamshire, England. It lies 7 miles north of Nottingham, 7 miles south-east of
Kirkby-in-Ashfield Kirkby-in-Ashfield is a market town in the Ashfield District of Nottinghamshire, England. With a population of 25,265 (according to the 2001 National Census), it is a part of the wider Mansfield Urban Area. The Head Offices of Ashfield Distr ...
, 9 miles from
Mansfield Mansfield is a market town and the administrative centre of Mansfield District in Nottinghamshire, England. It is the largest town in the wider Mansfield Urban Area (followed by Sutton-in-Ashfield). It gained the Royal Charter of a market tow ...
and 10 miles south of
Sutton-in-Ashfield Sutton-in-Ashfield is a market town in Nottinghamshire, England, with a population of 48,527 in 2019. It is the largest town in the district of Ashfield, four miles west of Mansfield, two miles from the Derbyshire border and 12 miles nort ...
. It is the second largest town in the Ashfield district after Sutton-in-Ashfield. Hucknall is north-west of Nottingham, on the west bank of the Leen Valley, on land which rises from the
Trent Trent may refer to: Places Italy * Trento in northern Italy, site of the Council of Trent United Kingdom * Trent, Dorset, England, United Kingdom Germany * Trent, Germany, a municipality on the island of Rügen United States * Trent, California, ...
Valley in the south and extends northwards to
Kirkby-in-Ashfield Kirkby-in-Ashfield is a market town in the Ashfield District of Nottinghamshire, England. With a population of 25,265 (according to the 2001 National Census), it is a part of the wider Mansfield Urban Area. The Head Offices of Ashfield Distr ...
. The Whyburn or Town Brook flows through the town centre. Farleys Brook marks its southern boundary. Due to the mass amount of housing and industrial estates along the southside of the town. Hucknall is contiguous with the wider City of Nottingham with the suburbs of Bulwell and Bestwood Village both to the south and southeast. The town's highest point is Long Hill, at above sea level, with views over the city and Trent Valley, which descends to 22–24 metres (72–79 ft) AOD, flowing just beyond most of the city centre.http://getamap.ordnancesurvey.co.uk/getamap/frames.htm?mapAction=gaz&gazName=g&gazString=SK55 Ordnance survey website The town is surrounded by farmland or parkland. To the north-west lie Misk Hills and Annesley. To the north-east of the town are the villages of
Linby Linby is a small village and civil parish in Nottinghamshire, England. The nearest town is Hucknall which is immediately to the south-west. The village grew up around the mills on the River Leen, from which Linby's name is derived. Small strea ...
and
Papplewick Papplewick is a village and civil parish in Nottinghamshire, England, 7.5 miles (12 km) north of Nottingham and 6 miles (10 km) south of Mansfield. It had a population of 756 at the 2011 census. In the Middle Ages, the village marked ...
, and beyond these two, Newstead Abbey and its grounds, once the residence of Lord Byron. To the west lies
Eastwood Eastwood may refer to: Places ;in Australia *Eastwood, New South Wales **Eastwood railway station **Electoral district of Eastwood *Eastwood, South Australia ;in Canada * Eastwood, Ontario *Eastwood, Edmonton, Alberta, a neighborhood ;in the Ph ...
, birthplace of
D. H. Lawrence David Herbert Lawrence (11 September 1885 – 2 March 1930) was an English writer, novelist, poet and essayist. His works reflect on modernity, industrialization, sexuality, emotional health, vitality, spontaneity and instinct. His best-k ...
and an inspiration for many of his novels and short stories. To the east of the town is Bestwood Country Park. The contiguous settlements of Butler's Hill and Westville often appear as distinct entities on maps, but are generally seen as parts of Hucknall. They belong to its historic and present-day Church of England parish, although the town itself has no civil parish council. The identity is reinforced by being part of the post town and by being shared
wards Ward may refer to: Division or unit * Hospital ward, a hospital division, floor, or room set aside for a particular class or group of patients, for example the psychiatric ward * Prison ward, a division of a penal institution such as a priso ...
of Hucknall.


History

Hucknall was once a thriving market town. Its focal point is the Church of St Mary Magdalene, next to the town's market square. The church was built by the Anglo-Saxons and completed after the Norman Conquest, though its medieval chancel, nave, north aisle and tower were much restored and enlarged in the Victorian period. In 1872 a south aisle was added and in 1887 unusually long transepts, while the rest of the building apart from the tower was thoroughly restored. The top tower stage and the south porch are 14th-century. There are 25 stained-glass windows by Charles Eamer Kempe, installed mostly in the 1880s, and a modest memorial to Lord Byron. From 1295 until 1915, the town was known as Hucknall Torkard, taken from Torcard, the name of a dominant landowning family. Signs of the earlier name can be seen on some older buildings. During the 19th and 20th centuries, coal was discovered and mined heavily throughout the
Leen Valley The Leen Valley is the wide valley formed by the River Leen within the county of Nottinghamshire. The Leen Valley was once an important centre for hosiery and coal mining industries. Today, although light manufacturing continues, the valley is i ...
, which includes Hucknall. This brought wealth to the town and three railway lines. The first was the Midland Railway (later
LMS LMS may refer to: Science and technology * Labeled magnitude scale, a scaling technique * Learning management system, education software * Least mean squares filter, producing least mean square error * Leiomyosarcoma, a rare form of cancer * Lenz ...
) line from Nottingham to
Mansfield Mansfield is a market town and the administrative centre of Mansfield District in Nottinghamshire, England. It is the largest town in the wider Mansfield Urban Area (followed by Sutton-in-Ashfield). It gained the Royal Charter of a market tow ...
and Worksop, which closed to passengers on 12 October 1964, though partly remained as a freight route serving collieries at Hucknall,
Linby Linby is a small village and civil parish in Nottinghamshire, England. The nearest town is Hucknall which is immediately to the south-west. The village grew up around the mills on the River Leen, from which Linby's name is derived. Small strea ...
and Annesley. The Hucknall station on this line was known as Hucknall Byron in its latter years. In the 1990s the line was reopened to passengers in stages as the Robin Hood Line, the section through Hucknall in 1993, with a new station on the site of the old "Byron", though simply called Hucknall. The second was the Great Northern Railway (later
LNER LNER may refer to: *London and North Eastern Railway, a railway company in the United Kingdom from 1923 until 1947 *London North Eastern Railway, a train operating company in the United Kingdom since 2018 * Liquid neutral earthing resistor, a type ...
) route up the Leen Valley and on to
Shirebrook Shirebrook is a town in the Bolsover district in Derbyshire, England. Close to the boundaries with the districts of Mansfield and Bassetlaw of Nottinghamshire,OS Explorer Map 270: Sherwood Forest: (1:25 000): it had a population of 13,300 in ...
, serving many of the same places as the Midland south of Annesley. It closed to passengers on 14 September 1931, but remained in freight use until 25 March 1968. The station on this line was known as Hucknall Town. The third was the Great Central Railway (also LNER), the last main line built from the north of England to London, which opened on 15 March 1899. The stretch through Hucknall closed fully on 5 September 1966, but Hucknall Central station had closed earlier, on 4 March 1963. From 1894 until 1974 Hucknall was the seat of Hucknall Urban District Council. With the abolition of the UDC, local government was transferred to Ashfield. In 1956 the Church of St Peter and St Paul, Hucknall was built to serve western parts of Hucknall.


Toponymy

Hucknall was recorded as ''Hokeuhale'' (n.d.) and ''Hokenale'' (n.d.), suggesting “nook of land of Hōcanere” (a tribe), from Old English ''halh'' (
haugh Haugh may refer to: People * David Haugh, American sports journalist * Gabrielle Haugh, American actress *John Haugh, Irish hurler *Kevin Haugh, Irish barrister and judge who served as the Attorney General of Ireland *Mark Haugh, former lead guit ...
). This same tribe's name occurs in Hook Norton,
Oxfordshire Oxfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the north west of South East England. It is a mainly rural county, with its largest settlement being the city of Oxford. The county is a centre of research and development, primarily ...
. It has been suggested that the name Hucknall once referred to a larger area on the Nottinghamshire/Derbyshire border. Two other settlements in the locality are called Hucknall; Hucknall-under-Huthwaite, in Nottinghamshire, (known today as Huthwaite) and Ault Hucknall in Derbyshire. It is likely that Hucknall Torkard marked the southern boundary of this larger Hucknall Area. In the Domesday Book (AD 1086) the name appears as ''Hochenale'' (volume 1, pp. 288–290).


Heritage

The Hucknall Tourism and Regeneration Group (http://www.htrg.co.uk/) has a mission statement: "To help Hucknall regain its position as a strong, viable and prosperous town. To retain the historical legacy of the town and surrounding area. To attract visitors and boost the local economy by raising awareness of our heritage to both visitors and residents alike." The Hucknall Tourism and Regeneration Group (HTRG) was inaugurated in 2002. It consists of people from all aspects of Hucknall life, who have a desire to help regenerate the town, primarily through tourism, after the devastating loss of the mining industry and large portions of the textile industry. Members of the group include residents, business owners, volunteer workers and councillors. HTRG works with other well-established organisations such as the Hucknall Round Table, the Rotary Club of Hucknall, Hucknall Heritage Society, the Eric Coates Society,
St Mary Magdalene Church ST, St, or St. may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Stanza, in poetry * Suicidal Tendencies, an American heavy metal/hardcore punk band * Star Trek, a science-fiction media franchise * Summa Theologica, a compendium of Catholic philosophy an ...
, Ashfield District Council Nottinghamshire County Council, Hucknall Library and volunteer organisations, to prevent duplication of work and ensure the town is working together. The group seeks opportunities to promote the town through radio interviews, newspaper coverage, street exhibitions, events, leaflets and posters. Heritage trails have been designed, one for the town centre and a 20-mile (32 km) circular trail. To complement these trails, leaflets have been produced and free guided walks/bus tours take place throughout the spring and summer months. The town centre was pedestrianised in 2017, and an inner relief road opened from Annesley Road through to Station Street.


Transport


Railways

Railway history in Hucknall and the wider Ashfield District involved branch lines and sidings serving the area's collieries and factories. The town's five stations were as follows: *
Hucknall Town Hucknall Town Football Club are a football club based in the town of Hucknall, Nottinghamshire, England. The club are members of the and play at Watnall Road. History Hucknall Town were renamed from Hucknall Colliery Welfare in 1987 and for ...
was on the Nottingham to Shirebrook Branch Line and served the town. It closed in the 1930s and the line in 1968. The site is now occupied by a supermarket and its garage. * Hucknall Central on the
Great Central Main Line The Great Central Main Line (GCML), also known as the London Extension of the Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway (MS&LR), is a former railway line in the United Kingdom. The line was opened in 1899 and built by the Great Central Railw ...
from Nottingham Victoria to Sheffield Victoria. The station closed in the 1960s and the site has been redeveloped. The bridge and cutting are still traceable. *
Linby Linby is a small village and civil parish in Nottinghamshire, England. The nearest town is Hucknall which is immediately to the south-west. The village grew up around the mills on the River Leen, from which Linby's name is derived. Small strea ...
in the nearby village of Linby, was on the Nottingham Victoria to Shirebrook Branch Line. It closed in the 1930s, as did the line in 1968. * Linby (GNR) on the
Leen Valley Extension Lines Leen may refer to: *Leen (given name) *Leen (surname) *River Leen, a river in England See also *Leens Leens is a village in the Dutch province of Groningen. It is located in the municipality of Het Hogeland. Leens was a separate municipality unt ...
. Closed 1916 and the line in 1960s. Now a footpath. * Hucknall is on the Robin Hood Line. It is the main station.


Trams

The town is the northern terminus for the
Nottingham Express Transit Nottingham Express Transit (NET) is a tram system in Nottingham, England. The system opened to the public on 9 March 2004 and a second phase, that more than doubled the size of the total system, opened on 25 August 2015, having been initially ...
tram system and has a station on the Robin Hood Line. There is also a tram stop at Butler's Hill/Broomhill. The tram line was built in 2002–2004 and currently runs from Hucknall to the Toton Lane terminus. Since 2015, trams pass through central Nottingham to
Clifton Clifton may refer to: People *Clifton (surname) *Clifton (given name) Places Australia * Clifton, Queensland, a town **Shire of Clifton *Clifton, New South Wales, a suburb of Wollongong *Clifton, Western Australia Canada *Clifton, Nova Scotia ...
and Toton Lane.


Bus

Hucknall is primarily served by Trentbarton. The Threes into Nottingham and Mansfield, Connect and 35 which serves the Estates and links to the tram and other services and the 34 to Ilketon. The 141 hourly bus provides a link to surrounding villages such as
Linby Linby is a small village and civil parish in Nottinghamshire, England. The nearest town is Hucknall which is immediately to the south-west. The village grew up around the mills on the River Leen, from which Linby's name is derived. Small strea ...
, Blidworth and Rainworth which is run by
Stagecoach A stagecoach is a four-wheeled public transport coach used to carry paying passengers and light packages on journeys long enough to need a change of horses. It is strongly sprung and generally drawn by four horses although some versions are draw ...
.


Road

The town used to be on the A611, but this now bypasses it to the west with a single-carriageway road with roundabouts and access to junction 27 of the M1, some 3 miles (5 km) away.


Education

The National Academy The National Church of England Academy, formerly known as The National School, is a Church of England secondary school in the Ashfield Ashfield may refer to: People * Ashfield (surname) Places Australia * Ashfield, New South Wales, a suburb ...
was founded in 1788 by Frederick Ward and originally located at the southern end of Annesley Road. It relocated in the 1970s to a new build still on Annesley Road but at the north end of the town, near the roundabout of the
B6011 road New B roads are numbered routes in Great Britain of lesser importance than A roads. See the article Great Britain road numbering scheme The Great Britain road numbering scheme is a numbering scheme used to classify and identify all roads i ...
. The National School has a large science block with 10 labs and an astro-turf playing area, both opened in 2004 by Princess Anne. The school has an eco-friendly building. The Holgate Academy is on Hillcrest Drive in Beauvale, to the west of the bypass.
Holy Cross Catholic Voluntary Academy Sacred describes something that is dedicated or set apart for the service or worship of a deity; is considered worthy of spiritual respect or devotion; or inspires awe or reverence among believers. The property is often ascribed to objects (a ...
is in Leen Mills Lane, next to Leen Mills Primary School. It is a feeder primary school to Christ The King Academy in Arnold. It was voted third best school in Nottinghamshire in 2014 and in 2015.
Hucknall Sixth Form Centre The Hucknall Sixth Form Centre is a coeducational sixth form centre located in Hucknall, Nottinghamshire, England. It opened in September 2016 and is home to the collaborative sixth form of The National Academy The National Church of Eng ...
is on Portland Road, near the Byron Bingo Club, and now houses the sixth form provision for
The National Academy The National Church of England Academy, formerly known as The National School, is a Church of England secondary school in the Ashfield Ashfield may refer to: People * Ashfield (surname) Places Australia * Ashfield, New South Wales, a suburb ...
The Holgate Academy and Queen Elizabeth's Academy. The building was previously home to
New College Nottingham Nottingham College is one of the largest further education and higher education colleges in the United Kingdom. Based in the city of Nottingham in England, it provides education and training from pre-entry through to university-degree level at ...
.


Trading

Hucknall's Tesco superstore opened in 2003, creating a number of jobs for the town. In 2008, the store was extended to make it a Tesco Extra store. A Tesco Express store was opened in early January 2009 in Annesley Road. Other shop branches in Hucknall include
Wilko Wilko may refer to: People * Wilko Johnson (1947–2022), English musician * Wilko de Vogt (born 1975), Dutch football goalkeeper, mostly played for Dutch clubs * Wilko Risser (born 1982), Namibian-German football forward, mostly played for German ...
s, Card Warehouse, Argos,
B&M Bargains B&M European Value Retail S.A., trading as B&M, is a British-Luxembourg variety store chain founded in 1978 and incorporated in Luxembourg. It employs over 32,000 people. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange, and is a constituent of the F ...
, Fulton's Foods, Home Bargains, Bird's Bakery (http://www.birdsbakery.com), Boots, Peacocks, Specsavers, Iceland, Aldi, Co-Operative Food, and Sainsbury's. Independent local retailers include Branson's DIY store and Aquatic centre, Lawrence Severn and Son Ltd, butchers, and SP Electronics computer services. There is a branch of Morrisons in nearby Bulwell. Lloyds have branch banks in the High Street;
NatWest National Westminster Bank, commonly known as NatWest, is a major retail and commercial bank in the United Kingdom based in London, England. It was established in 1968 by the merger of National Provincial Bank and Westminster Bank. In 2000, it ...
,
HSBC HSBC Holdings plc is a British multinational universal bank and financial services holding company. It is the largest bank in Europe by total assets ahead of BNP Paribas, with US$2.953 trillion as of December 2021. In 2021, HSBC had $10.8 tri ...
and Yorkshire customers now have limited service via the Post Office. Hucknall has a Friday Market in the newly pedestrianised High Street. Ashfield District Council has more recently agreed to run a Saturday market too. When Costa Coffee opened a branch in Hucknall High Street in 2014, its local job advertisement attracted over 1,300 applicants. A new branch of McDonald's opened in November 2019, at a cost of £1,000,000, after the firm had appealed against a planning committee ban on grounds of noise, anti-social behaviour, smells and litter.


Industry


Mining

Hucknall was a colliery town from 1861 to 1986. The sinking of the mines caused Hucknall to grow into a market town in under a century. The Hucknall Colliery Company, formed in 1861, sank two shafts, Hucknall No. 1 colliery (Top Pit) in 1861 off Watnall Road (closed 1943), and Hucknall No. 2 colliery (Bottom Pit) in 1866 off Portland Road (closed 1986).


Rolls-Royce

Hucknall Airfield Hucknall Aerodrome was a former general aviation and RAF aerodrome located north northwest of Nottingham, Nottinghamshire, England and west of Hucknall town. The aerodrome had been operated by the Merlin Flying Club since 1971, and then by R ...
, built in 1916, became
RAF Hucknall Hucknall, formerly Hucknall Torkard, is a market town in the Ashfield district of Nottinghamshire, England. It lies 7 miles north of Nottingham, 7 miles south-east of Kirkby-in-Ashfield, 9 miles from Mansfield and 10 miles south of Sutton-in ...
. From 1927, Rolls-Royce began using the airfield for flight tests. During World War II, the aerodrome at Hucknall launched the first flight of a
P-51 Mustang The North American Aviation P-51 Mustang is an American long-range, single-seat fighter and fighter-bomber used during World War II and the Korean War, among other conflicts. The Mustang was designed in April 1940 by a team headed by James ...
fitted with a Rolls-Royce
Merlin Engine Merlin engine may refer to: *Rolls-Royce Merlin, an aircraft engine *Merlin (rocket engine family) Merlin ( cy, Myrddin, kw, Marzhin, br, Merzhin) is a mythical figure prominently featured in the legend of King Arthur and best known as a mag ...
. The Merlin, replacing the earlier
Allison V-1710 The Allison V-1710 aircraft engine designed and produced by the Allison Engine Company was the only US-developed V-12 liquid-cooled engine to see service during World War II. Versions with a turbocharger gave excellent performance at high a ...
engine, allowed the Mustang air frame to reach its full potential and achieve spectacular high-altitude performance. In the early 1950s, the Rolls-Royce site at Hucknall developed the world's first vertical-takeoff jet aircraft – actually a test rig, officially called the
Thrust Measuring Rig The Rolls-Royce Thrust Measuring Rig (TMR), was a pioneering vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) aircraft developed by Rolls-Royce in the 1950s. It has the distinction of being "the first jet-lift aircraft to fly anywhere in the world". The ...
, but soon nicknamed the '' Flying Bedstead'' because of its shape. The first untethered flight, piloted by Capt. Ron Shepherd, took place on 3 August 1954 before a distinguished audience. The rig rose slowly into the air and hovered steadily. It moved forward, made a circuit of the area, then demonstrated sideways and backwards movements, before making a successful landing. The flight was followed over the next four months by a number of free flights up to a height of 50 ft. There were pubs in Hucknall called ''The Flying Bedstead'' and ''The Harrier''. Rolls-Royce's flight test centre closed in 1971, but engines were tested there until late 2008. Some components are still manufactured at the site. In December 1940, during World War II, a German prisoner-of-war,
Franz von Werra Franz Xaver Baron von Werra (13 July 1914 – 25 October 1941) was a German World War II fighter pilot and flying ace who was shot down over Britain and captured. He was the only Axis prisoner of war to escape from Canadian custody and return ...
, attempted to escape by posing as a Dutch pilot and flying off in a Hurricane fighter. He was arrested at gunpoint as he sat in the cockpit trying to learn the controls, and returned to his camp in Swanwick, Derbyshire. Franz von Werra was eventually the only German PoW to succeed in returning to Germany, when he escaped from Canada to the United States, then to Mexico and into South America, over a period from January to April 1941. His exploits feature in the film '' The One That Got Away''.


Textiles

Framework knitting A stocking frame was a mechanical knitting machine used in the textiles industry. It was invented by William Lee of Calverton near Nottingham in 1589. Its use, known traditionally as framework knitting, was the first major stage in the mechan ...
was once the predominant industry in Hucknall.


Garden products

Among the bigger firms in Hucknall is Doff Portland, one of the UK's largest independent maker of
insecticide Insecticides are substances used to kill insects. They include ovicides and larvicides used against insect eggs and larvae, respectively. Insecticides are used in agriculture, medicine, industry and by consumers. Insecticides are claimed to b ...
s,
weedkiller Herbicides (, ), also commonly known as weedkillers, are substances used to control undesired plants, also known as weeds.EPA. February 201Pesticides Industry. Sales and Usage 2006 and 2007: Market Estimates. Summary in press releasMain page fo ...
s, pesticides,
fertilisers A fertilizer (American English) or fertiliser (British English; see spelling differences) is any material of natural or synthetic origin that is applied to soil or to plant tissues to supply plant nutrients. Fertilizers may be distinct from ...
and garden products, sold through garden centres, DIY retailers and retail multiples, and one of Europe's largest producer of premium
slug Slug, or land slug, is a common name for any apparently shell-less terrestrial gastropod mollusc. The word ''slug'' is also often used as part of the common name of any gastropod mollusc that has no shell, a very reduced shell, or only a smal ...
killer pellets. It also offers contract formulating and packing services.


Notable people

* Robin Bailey (1919–1999), actor *
Steve Blatherwick Steven Scott Blatherwick (born 20 September 1973) is an English football coach and former footballer He played as a defender from 1991 to 2006. He spent much of his career playing for Chesterfield; however, he had previously played in the Pre ...
(born 1973) played as a professional for football (soccer) clubs that included Nottingham Forest and
Chesterfield Chesterfield may refer to: Places Canada * Rural Municipality of Chesterfield No. 261, Saskatchewan * Chesterfield Inlet, Nunavut United Kingdom * Chesterfield, Derbyshire, a market town in England ** Chesterfield (UK Parliament constitue ...
. * Lord Byron (1788–1824), poet, philosopher and revolutionary, was buried in the parish church.St Mary Magdelene parish church
accessed 25 September 2008.
* Ben Caunt (1815–1861), a bare-knuckle fighter known as "The Torkard Giant", became Champion of England. He possibly gave his name to the Parliament bell
Big Ben Big Ben is the nickname for the Great Bell of the Great Clock of Westminster, at the north end of the Palace of Westminster in London, England, and the name is frequently extended to refer also to the clock and the clock tower. The officia ...
. * Eric Coates (1886–1957) composed work that includes the theme music for '' The Dam Busters'' movie and the "Sleepy Lagoon" introduction to the radio series '' Desert Island Discs''. *
Zachariah Green Zacariah D. Green, sometimes spelled Zacariah D. Greene, was an American lawyer, principal, and community leader in Tampa, Florida. He worked as a lawyer in South Carolina before moving to Tampa where he served as principal of Harlem Academy Sch ...
(1817–1897), philanthropist, is buried in the local parish church. There is a monument to his memory in Titchfield Park. * Jack Hall (1883–1938), professional footballer who played as an inside-forward or centre-forward for
Stoke Stoke is a common place name in the United Kingdom. Stoke may refer to: Places United Kingdom The largest city called Stoke is Stoke-on-Trent in Staffordshire. See below. Berkshire * Stoke Row, Berkshire Bristol * Stoke Bishop * Stok ...
, Middlesbrough, Leicester Fosse, and Birmingham *
Thomas Cecil Howitt Thomas Cecil Howitt, OBE (6 June 1889 - 3 September 1968) was a British provincial architect of the 20th Century. Howitt is chiefly remembered for designing prominent public buildings, such as the Council House and Processional Way in Nottingh ...
(1889–1968), architect, was the designer of Nottingham Council House. *
Paris Lees Paris Lees (born 1986) is an English journalist, presenter, campaigner and author. She topped ''The Independent on Sunday''s 2013 Pink List, came second in the 2014 Rainbow List, and was awarded the Positive Role Model Award for LGBT in the 201 ...
(born 1986), journalist, presenter and transgender rights campaigner *Countess
Ada Lovelace Augusta Ada King, Countess of Lovelace (''née'' Byron; 10 December 1815 – 27 November 1852) was an English mathematician and writer, chiefly known for her work on Charles Babbage's proposed mechanical general-purpose computer, the A ...
(1815–1852), daughter of the poet Byron, is buried in the parish church. She is credited with being the first computer programmer, having assisted in realising the potential of
Babbage Charles Babbage (; 26 December 1791 – 18 October 1871) was an English polymath. A mathematician, philosopher, inventor and mechanical engineer, Babbage originated the concept of a digital programmable computer. Babbage is considered ...
's
analytical engine The Analytical Engine was a proposed mechanical general-purpose computer designed by English mathematician and computer pioneer Charles Babbage. It was first described in 1837 as the successor to Babbage's difference engine, which was a des ...
. * Andy Turner (born 1980),
sprint hurdler Hurdling is the act of jumping over an obstacle at a high speed or in a sprint. In the early 19th century, hurdlers ran at and jumped over each hurdle (sometimes known as 'burgles'), landing on both feet and checking their forward motion. Today, ...
, gold medallist at the
2010 Commonwealth Games The 2010 Commonwealth Games (Hindi: 2010 राष्ट्रमण्डल खेल), officially known as the XIX Commonwealth Games and commonly known as Delhi 2010, was an international multi-sport event that was held in Delhi, India, f ...
and the
2010 European Athletics Championships The 2010 European Athletics Championships were the 20th edition of the European Athletics Championships, organised under the supervision of the European Athletic Association. They were held at the Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys in Barcelona, Cat ...
and bronze medallist at the
2011 World Championships in Athletics The 13th IAAF World Championships in Athletics () was an international athletics competition that was held in Daegu, South Korea. It started on 27 August 2011 and finished on 4 September 2011. The United States topped the medal standings in th ...
* Arthur Watson (1870-1937) a footballer most notable for winning the FA Cup with Notts County in
1894 Events January–March * January 4 – A military alliance is established between the French Third Republic and the Russian Empire. * January 7 – William Kennedy Dickson receives a patent for motion picture film in the United S ...
. * Enoch "Knocker" West (1886–1965), a footballer with Sheffield United, Nottingham Forest and
Manchester United Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...
, was accused of fixing a match and in 1915 banned from the game for 30 years. He protested his innocence for the rest of his life. *
Sam Weller Widdowson Sam Weller Widdowson (16 April 1851 – 9 May 1927) was an English sportsman of the Victorian era. He played cricket for Nottinghamshire and association football for Nottingham Forest and also played once for the England national football team, a ...
(1851–1927), a footballer who played for Nottingham Forest and England was said to have devised shin pads in 1874. He also played cricket for Nottinghamshire. *
Joe Worrall (footballer) Joseph Adrian Worrall (born 10 January 1997) is an English professional footballer who captains and plays as a centre-back for club Nottingham Forest. He has also represented England at youth level, and captained the England squad that won th ...
(born 1997), an English professional footballer who plays for Nottingham Forest as a defender.


Brass band

The Hucknall and Linby Mining Community Brass Band formed in late 2008 after players from the Newstead Abbey Brass Band sought autonomy. It is conducted by Paul Whyley. At the time, the town lacked a band after Hucknall and Linby Miners' Welfare Band moved out to become Newstead Brass. It plays a parish-church concert every Christmas, and around the local area throughout the year.


Cinema

The Byron Cinema, an Art Deco building designed by the local architect Alfred J Thraves, opened on 2 November 1936. It originally boasted a sweeping, curved façade of Thraves' favoured sandstock bricks and Portland stone, with a vertical tower to the right of centre, faced in cream terracotta tiles. Much was also made in the cinema's publicity of a canopy "provided to protect our patrons during bad weather." The ''Hucknall Dispatch'' newspaper was enthusiastic about the 1,189-seater facility: "The consensus of opinion was that it's a delightful house of rest and amusement, the seating being conducive to the utmost comfort, whilst the projection was without fault for the first time, so perfect has the art become in these days." Manager R. L. Kemp told the paper, "The Byron projection room fills us with great pride and the management cordially invite any of our patrons who so desire to view the projection room. 'Wide Range' is the latest improvement developed by Western Electric engineers. It will be remembered that Western Electric were the pioneers of talking pictures and Wide Range is their latest scientific achievement." On 13 October 1967, the Byron closed as a single-screen cinema and the building was split. The stalls area was turned into a bingo club that featured in the Shane Meadows film "Once Upon A Time In The Midlands", wherein Kathy Burke and Vanessa Feltz came to blows in the foyer. The upstairs balcony became a 404-seat cinema, which re-opened on 31 December 1967 with the James Bond epic " You Only Live Twice". It finally closed its doors in June 2006 and was bought in October 2018 by an Irish commercial property firm, Melcorpo, for a price believed to be £360,000. The new owners reopened to the public as The Arc Cinema Hucknall. After initially planning to open its doors in October 2019, Melcorpo had to scrap the plans due to delays. Construction and refurbishment were still underway in January 2020. It was scheduled to open in March 2020 as a four-screen, two-floor multiplex cinema.


Sport

The town's senior
football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...
team is
Hucknall Town F.C. Hucknall Town Football Club are a association football, football club based in the town of Hucknall, Nottinghamshire, England. The club are members of the and play at Watnall Road. History Hucknall Town were renamed from Hucknall Colliery Wel ...
Founded in 1945 as a colliery team (Hucknall Colliery Welfare FC), it changed its name in 1987 after closure of the pit.Hucknall Town FC
/ref> It rose steadily through the non-league pyramid, winning the
Northern Premier League The Northern Premier League is an English football league that was founded in 1968. It has four divisions: the Premier Division (which stands at level 7 of the English football league system), Division One East, Division One West and Divisio ...
title in 2003/2004, with promotion to Conference North, just two leagues below the
Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, the league is the oldest such competition in the world. It was the top-level football league in Engla ...
). It reached the final of the
FA Trophy The Football Association Challenge Trophy, commonly known as the FA Trophy, is a men's football knockout cup competition run by and named after the English Football Association and competed for primarily by semi-professional teams. The compet ...
in 2005. However, financial difficulties in 2009 led to demotion to the Central Midlands Football League for the 2013/2014 season. The works football team of Rolls-Royce was formed in 1935 and has undergone many name changes. In 2009 it formed again as
Hucknall Rolls Leisure F.C. Hucknall Rolls Leisure Football Club was a football club based in Hucknall, Nottinghamshire, England. Rolls-Royce Welfare F.C. were formed in 1935 when Rolls's Hucknall factory first opened its gates. Dissolved and reformed in the 1970s, they ...
and by 2013 was competing in the
Nottinghamshire Senior League The Nottinghamshire Senior League is an English football league. The competition is a feeder to the Northern Counties East League and the United Counties League. The league has five divisions – the Premier Division (which stands at level 11 o ...
. Hucknall
Cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by striki ...
Club, founded in 1890, currently has 1st, 2nd and 3rd XIs in various sections of the South Notts Cricket League.Hucknall Cricket Club.
/ref> Hucknall Sports Youth Club, formed in 1977 as Riden Sports, is one of the largest such clubs in Nottinghamshire. Its Founder President, Derek Day, won the Nottinghamshire FA Community award in 2012 for his contribution to junior football over more than 30 years. Hucknall junior parkrun started on 27 March 2016 at Titchfield Park, as the first in the ADC area of Nottinghamshire, with 69 runners on the inaugural run.


Local radio

Local DJ, Paul Jenner, and his schoolteacher brother, Steve, brought local commercial radio to Hucknall in the 1980s. WHAM ("Wonderful Hucknall AM") operated for several 28-day periods on Restricted Service Licences. The brothers are now part-owners of High Peak Radio and Ashbourne Radio, permanent independent local radio stations in Derbyshire.


Twin town

* Nachod, Czech Republic


References


External links


HucknallDispatch.co.uk local newspaperAshfield District CouncilHucknall Huthwaite OnlineBBC Guide to Hucknall
{{authority control Towns in Nottinghamshire Market towns in Nottinghamshire Unparished areas in Nottinghamshire Ashfield District