Aimee Howarth brings you an interview with The Yorker directors on the final day of the advent articles
Aimee Howarth speaks to YUSU's sabbatical officers about their Christmas Day routine for day 17 of the advent calendar
For the final time this term, Vicky Morris updates you on this weeks film news
50 years after the publication of 'James and the Giant Peach', the works of Roald Dahl continue to celebrate success.
Hmmm, now that name sounds familiar... Yes, Alcuin College is named after Alcuin of York, leading scholar, ecclesiastic, poet, teacher and architect. Alcuin was educated at the cathedral school in York, and became a monk and teacher there; he taught at St Peter's School which still exists today and is one of the oldest in the UK. In fact, Alcuin College might have been called Ealhwine, Albinus or Flaccus College, other names which Alcuin was known by. Flaccus College? I think I know why they chose Alcuin.
Probably the first name on the list for York's inhabitants when you mention their city and its historical celebrities in one sentence, Fawkes was born in Stonegate (where the ancient Guy Fawkes Inn stands today and from where the famous Guy Fawkes Ghost Walk begins) and baptised at St Michael-le-Belfry, where his baptismal register still exists. Fawkes was famously caught red-handed, match in hand, and on the point of lighting the fuse that would blow up the English Parliament and King James I in 1605. He was subsequently arrested, tortured (he held out for several days rather than give the names of his fellow conspirators) before being hung, drawn and quartered. Last year in York there were no official Bonfire Night celebrations (although there were of course many fireworks) and rumour has it that York's inhabitants were less than enamoured with the idea of putting their hero on the bonfire, although in reality York Council had a more practical deterent: it would simply cost too much. This year looks more promising, with celebrations hosted by Acorn Sports Club and York Maze.
Fairfax was a leading Parliamentarian general in the English Civil War who nevertheless suported the restoration of Charles ll. He was born in to an aristocratic family at Denton Hall, near Otley, Yorkshire. Thomas distinguished himself in Yorkshire campaigns and in particular played an important part in the defeat of Royalist forces at the Battle of Marston Moor in 1644. Fairfax House, a 92 bedroom student accommodation house located within the University of York is named after Sir Thomas Fairfax.
One of the great metaphysical poets, Marvell was born in East Yorkshire and educated at the grammar school in Hull. During his lifetime Marvell travelled extensively and mastered French, Italian and Spanish, as well as Latin and Greek in which languages he wrote his first poems. One of his most famous poems is To His Coy Mistress, an extremely clever and witty argument with the aim to seduce his lover (and to which T. S. Eliot makes reference in The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock and The Waste Land). Ted Hughes and W H Auden should also be on the list, but then you might suspect that I'm an English student.
Born in a small village in Yorkshire, Cook began his carreer sailing small ships known as 'cats' along the coast from the Tyne to the Thames, subsequently rising to Captain in the British Navy; he went on to map Newfoundland and achieve the first European contact with the eastern coastline of Australia and the Hawaiian Islands, as well as the first recorded circumnavigation of New Zealand.
Without Mr Priestley, born in West Yorkshire, we wouldn't have oxygen... well obviously not literally, but he was the one to isolate it in a gaseous state, declaring that this 'new air' was 'five or six times better than common air for the purpose of respiration'! He also invented soda or sparkling water, which he discovered on suspending a bowl of water above a beer vat at a local brewery in Leeds. So beer and invention do go hand in hand.
Best known for being a leader of the movement to abolish the slave trade but also a devout Christian and social former, Wilberforce was a native of Kingston Upon Hull, Yorkshire, MP for Hull and later MP for Yorkshire. He headed the parliamentary campaign against the British slave trade until the eventual passage of the Slave Trade Act in 1807; he was also one of the founders of the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.
I have chosen Emily, poet and novelist, over her sisters because I am a fan of Wuthering Heights, her only novel (published under the masculine pseudonym Ellis Bell), and I'm writing this article... Apologies to those who prefer Charlotte or Anne. Emily was born in Thornton, near Bradford in Yorkshire, the fifth of six children. The siblings enjoyed creating imaginary lands together and writing stories which they would read to one another. Unfortunately Emily's health was weakened by the harsh climate at home and at school, and she died of tuberculosis at the age of 30. If you get the chance, visit the Yorkshire Moors, the romantic setting for Emily's novel, and in particular, Brontë Bridge.
Famous for being the first female Speaker of the House of Commons, Betty Boothroyd was born and brought up in Yorkshire. On taking up this position, she instructed fellow MPs in the House of Commons (all men) to 'call me Madam' . She entered Parliament as a member of the Labour right wing in 1973, after 15 years of trying and at the fifth attempt. Now that's perserverance.
Barry was educated at St Peter's School, York, and also received composition lessons from Francis Jackson, Organist of York Minster. Among many other major film scores we most famously owe to Barry that memorable music that features in 11 James Bond movies and he did a great deal to influence the 007 series' distinctive style. It was notably in Goldfinger that he perfected this style, a rich mix of brass, jazz and sensuous melodies. There has been controversy surrounding the 'true' composer of the Bond films; sole credit has been attributed to Monty Norman but contemporary research suggests that John Barry more or less composed the theme to the bigger part.
Author and award-winning playwright (regarded by many as the best dramatist of his generation) Bennett was born in Leeds, the son of a Co-op butcher, and went to school there; he went on to study history at Oxford. He had a lively career in television, radio and theatre, his most recent (and one of my favourites) play being The History Boys (2004) which in 2006 was made in to an excellent film.
Dame Judi Dench, who was born and went to school in York itself, is one of the greatest actresses of the post-war period and in history. She has developed this reputation primarily through her work in theatre, although Dench has of course starred in many films including the latest Bond film Quantum of Solace, and will star in Bond 23 in 2010. Dench has won an impressive nine BAFTAs, six Laurence Olivier Awards, two Screen Actors Guild Awards, an Academy Award, two Golden Globe Awards and a Tony Award. Less well-known is her relationship to York, where in the 1950s she was involved in the first three productions of the modern revival of the York Mystery Plays, and played the role of the Virgin Mary in the 1957 production, performed on a fixed stage in the Museum Gardens. In February of this year she became the first official patron of the York Youth Mysteries 2008, a project to allow young people to explore the York Mystery Plays through dance, film-making and circus which culminated in a day of performances in June.
Born in Bradford (where he also attended the Bradford College of Art), Hockney is considered one of the most influential artists of the twentieth century. He was an important contributor to the Pop art movement of the 1960s; he also works with photography and photcollage and had an early infatuation with rockstar Cliff Richard who was an inspiration in much of his work.
Former England batsman for Yorkshire, later turned commentator, was born in a mining village near Wakefield in Yorkshire, and is today considered as cricket's most authoritative voice. In a stunning if at times controversial carreer from 1962-1986 Boycott established himself as one of England's finest opening batsmen, at times occupying the crease for a number of days. His obsession with success nevertheless upset some of his team mates and he was later to become an often outspoken commentator on radio and television. In 1998 he faced allegations of assaulting his former partner, Margaret Moore, and in 2002 he was diagnosed with throat cancer for which he underwent radiation treatment. He resumed commentating in 2003, however, and continues to attract a mix of admirers as well as critics.
Hinkes, who was awarded an Honorary Doctorate from the University of York in 2007, is an English mountaineer from Northallerton in North Yorkshire. He claims to be the first British mountaineer to have summited all 14 mountains with elevations greater than 8000 metres (so-called Eight-thousanders), however this claim is disputed. Nevertheless, I think you'll agree that there is something peculiarly Yorkshire in deciding to surmount all the world's 14 peaks over 8,000 metres - now there's a challenge for Ben Lairig soc. members.
While before researching this topic I was aware of Guy Fawkes and a smattering of famous writers and poets, I had not realised that so many legendary figures had their routes in Yorkshire. In fact, my search produced so many great figures that it was near impossible to narrow it down to fifteen, and no doubt many would disagree with this selection. With the 5th of November celebrations just around the corner, let us remember Guy Fawkes as a great Yorkshire legend, not just one, but one of many.
What? No Jimmy Saville in this list?
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