Pottering About

There has been a Stoke-on-Trent version of Monopoly released in time for Christmas. It's about time too as Stoke is probably the only city where the Monopoly price for property actually reflects the housing market. Actually thinking about it, a credit crunch version of monopoly would be fun. Instead of collecting $200 when you pass go your property value halves.

Anyway if Stoke is worthy of a Monopoly game then its about time I posted a Potted History of The Potteries (see what I did there), so here are a few of the  lesser known and even lesser wanted facts about my home city.

 

 

• Stoke-on-Trent is actually made up of six towns not five as Arnold Bennett would have it
• Stoke is almost exactly halfway between Birmingham and Manchester.
• Stoke has been referred to as the Barcelona of the midlands. Well it has now anyway.
• Stoke-on-Trent is cockney rhyming slang for bent (apparently)
• Stokes national dish is the Oatcake. Oatcakes are delicious especially with cheese and bacon, cheese and sausage in fact anything with cheese.
• The Potteries were once the home of the Sagger Maker’s Bottom Knocker, who worked in the iconic bottle kilns and is the stupidest sounding job ever to appear on What’s My Line.
• Stoke City are the second oldest football league club. Damn that Notts County FC. ...Thinking ?...who would the oldest team have played when they first started ?
• Stoke had the nations first ever drive through Take Away, which was a fish and chip shop, although the chips were rubbish if I remember.
• Stoke had the first ever Vision Express (possibly the dullest fact ever)
• Stoke has its very own Tunnel, although the Meir tunnel is not quite  as impressive as the Channel or Mersey.
• Hanley Forrest Park is thought to be the site of the burial of King Arthur, though only by me.
• The only movie set in Stoke is The Card staring Alec Guiness, although I think Carry On At Your Convenience may well have been too.
• Adam Faith died in a hotel in Stoke

 

Famous Potters:

Sir Stanley Mathews

Robbie once of the 'That

Slash from Guns and Roses 

RF Mitchel who designed the Spitfire

Captain Edward Smith of the Titanic

Nick Hancock offa the telly

Phil "The Power" Taylor

Frank Bough mmmmm 

Anthea Turner offa the telly and papers and stuff

Bruno Brookes offa the radio and Top Of The Pops

er.........Harry ?