The Hull Story Year: A round-up of our top stories in 2021
In some ways 2021 has been a year of the “new normal”, as we continue our battle with Covid-19 while also trying to learn to live with it.
It was against this strange backdrop that Hull City were promoted to the Championship after winning the League One title in April - a fantastic achievement, but one for which the celebrations were inevitably muted by the absence of fans because of the pandemic.
Our Tigers correspondent Sam Hawcroft perhaps summed this up better than anyone by calling it “the best trip we’ve never been on” as she delivered her verdict on that season following the promotion-winning 2-1 win at Lincoln.
Click on the link below for the full story.
‘The best trip we’ve never been on’ - Hull City promoted to Championship
Picture credit: Hull City
The Hull Story began covering all City home games this season, which after a shaky start sees the Tigers head into the new year full of confidence and in fine form.
Like everyone else, we await with interest any further developments in the expected takeover of the club by Turkish media mogul Acun Iliaci. We wish him, and everyone at the club, a happy and healthy new year, however this pans out.
A month after City’s promotion, the club lost one of its greatest ever players when record goalscorer Chris Chilton died aged 77. He had been suffering from dementia.
You can read our tribute to ‘Chillo’ here:
Chris Chilton
This year also saw the passing of two remarkable women, in “Bee Lady” Jean Bishop, and pioneering barrister Lorna Cole.
Ms Bishop, who died a few months short of her 100th birthday, raised more than £100,000 for Age UK over many years of fundraising.
Famed for her bee costume, she also came to wider attention, carrying the Olympic flame in 2012 and winning a Pride of Britain award the following year.
Miss Cole, who died in August aged 93, was one of the first female barristers on the North-Eastern Circuit, and an “institution” in Hull, where she co-founded new Chambers and helped restore the reputation of the Bar in the city.
She was remembered in a eulogy at Hull Crown Court in November led by the city’s most senior judge. You can read our report of the special hearing here:
Lorna Cole
Many other families were painfully reminded of lives lost during the UK’s sudden and chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan in August, following a 20-year military campaign.
Private Gregg Stone, 20, from Atwick, near Hornsea, who believed in the mission to keep the Taliban out of power, was one of 457 British forces personnel or Ministry of Defence civilians to have died since the start of operations in 2001.
He paid the ultimate price on June 3, 2012, when he was shot during a bold mission to free a kidnapped Afghan policeman.
Amid criticism of the UK’s role in the conflict, Gregg’s mother, Angie Moore, urged ‘armchair critics’ of the conflict to spare a thought for grieving families, and insisted her son did not die for nothing.
You can read our exclusive interview with her here:
Private Gregg Stone. Picture courtesy of Angie Moore
May saw a big change to the political landscape in Hull when Councillor Steve Brady announced he was stepping down as leader of the Labour group, and therefore as city council leader.
Coun Brady played a key role in helping Hull become UK City of Culture in 2017, and also postponed plans to step back from frontbench politics to guide the city through the critical first year of the pandemic.
He had led the Labour group since 2007, and the council since 2011.
Coun Brady reflected on his career in his only in-depth interview about it here:
‘Don’t let anyone say you’re not good enough’: Council leader’s farewell message
Steve Brady
Aside from City’s welcome return to the Championship, the year’s biggest football story was Gareth Southgate’s England team thrilling the nation on its journey to the final of Euro 2020.
Although Italy won, what should have been a glorious sporting spectacle and a moment of national unity as the country emerged from lockdown, was instead marred by the racist reaction of some towards black England players who were blamed for the defeat.
There were also serious security breaches of Wembley as ticketless fans stormed the stadium.
It had all looked so positive going into the final, as reflected in our opinion piece here:
‘England are being propelled to glory by an unassailable moral authority’
Raheem Sterling
The summer also saw Hull’s cultural renaissance clash with public safety, when the city centre was invaded by a supposedly mythical sea creature called the Kraken.
Although the creature eventually slunk back to the depths from where it came, there were an alarming few days when its tentacles appeared at key locations, causing fear and delight in equal measure.
It is hoped the city’s plans to create a tourism boom through a celebration of its maritime heritage are not hampered by this dreadful apparition.
Here’s how we reported on it at the time:
Beware! Giant Kraken escapes as maritime heritage project gets under way
The Kraken emerging from the Maritime Museum
One of the streets in which the Kraken appeared was Whitefriargate, a famous and historic thoroughfare that was in the news again in October after getting its own poem.
Hull writer Vicky Foster, Whitefriatgate’s poet-in-residence, wrote The Constant Parade, a poem drawing on the street’s rich history and its long-standing role in the story of the city and its people.
The poem was unveiled on National Poetry Day on October 7, with lines stencilled onto the street.
‘The Constant Parade’: New poem celebrates rich history of Whitefriargate
An artist’s impression of how a revitalised Whitefriargate could look
Vicky is also a columnist for The Hull Story and writes about some of the great things to see and do in East Yorkshire, whether an established location or attraction, or something a little off the beaten track.
A good example of the latter was her visit to Bankside in March, which she memorably called ‘a place where industry is tucked up close against art and nature’.
It’s certainly a place that is unique to Hull.
‘Bankside is a place where industry is tucked up close against art and nature’
Bankside
This year also saw the conviction of prolific sex offender Pawel Relowicz for the rape and murder of Hull University student Libby Squire in 2019.
Libby’s disappearance sparked the biggest missing person search Humberside Police had ever seen, with hundreds of officers, as well as other forces, partner agencies and volunteers from the community, coming together to look for her.
Tragically, it was later discovered that Relowicz had raped and killed Libby, with her body being discovered in the River Humber seven weeks after the 21-year-old was reported missing.
Relowicz was jailed for life and must serve a minimum of 27 years in prison.
Jailed: Pawel Relowicz must serve at least 27 years for the rape and murder of Libby Squire
Libby Squire
Just before Christmas, the eagerly awaited opening of artisan food hall Hammonds of Hull took place in a former department store on Ferensway.
It is hoped the development will help transform the fortunes of city centre retail by greatly increasing footfall, and drawing shoppers and visitors from far and wide.
We were fortunate to have been given an early preview of what was to come with operator Eann Smith. You can read the exclusive report here:
Hammonds of Hull: First look inside artisan food hall that could revitalise city centre
Eann Smith
We conclude our review of 2021 with something else to celebrate, and with a story that we hope demonstrates what The Hull Story is all about - a finely crafted exclusive you just couldn’t read anywhere else - and that was the news we broke in April of the reformation of iconic Hull band Red Guitars.
The prophetic and trail-blazing 80s band are back together and busy rehearsing for a UK tour next year, including a hometown date at the Adelphi on Saturday, April 23.
Many thanks to our music columnist Russ Litten for this and other exclusives he has produced this year.
Red Guitars. Picture by Syd Shelton
Thank you to all our readers and supporters for being with us in 2021. We wish you all a happy and healthy New Year!