Sporting Heritage Day 2024: A Reight Yorkshire Affair

Every year, September 30 is National Sporting Heritage Day. The Wakefield district has a wealth of sporting heritage! 

While the likes of Rugby League, Sykes and Slazenger are pretty well known, here we're shining a light on two of our region's more unusual sporting events.

They feature in our latest displays at Castleford Museum and the new Ossett Library Museum Hub - and have suitably Yorkshire names!

Ah’ll race thee!

We're celebrating the World Coal Carrying Championships in the newly refurbished and reopened Ossett Library in Ossett Town Hall.

 

The 'Ah'll race thee!' display at Ossett Library

Every Easter Monday the village of Gawthorpe comes together to stage the World Coal Carrying championships.

What could be more Yorkshire than running up a steep hill with a heavy bag of coal on your back after making a bet in a pub?

That pub bet in the 1960s has turned into a Guiness World Record annual sporting event!

The main adult race is a gruelling challenge. Contestants carry a bag of coal from the Royal Oak pub on Owl Lane in Ossett to the Maypole Green in Gawthorpe. 

The route covers 1012 metres. Men carry 50 kilograms of coal and women carry 20 kilograms. Each year a pigeon clock records the official race times.

The race is much more than a sports competition. Athletes take part for lots of different reasons. They run for charity, personal improvement, or on behalf of a loved one who no longer can.

David Jones’ Guinness World Record time of four minutes and six seconds was set in 1995 and still stands today!

See what happened in the 2022 event, the first after the COVID-19 lockdowns, in our video:

A Reight Neet Aht! at Castleford Museum

Between 1936 and 1957 Castleford held a star-studded sporting event.

Since 1932 the game of marbles has been officially classified as a sport. Local journalist Sid Colclough got the community together to host an annual marbles (or taws) tournament each year as a charity event.

The event was the talk of Yorkshire. The cinema and music hall star, Gracie Fields was a patron. In 1940, the star guest was entertainer, George Formby. 

In 1955 Chairman of the Daimler motorcar company, Sir Bernard and Lady Docker, attended the event, arriving in a golden car. They played marbles, resting their knees on golden cushions. Lady Docker became Women’s world taws champion, and they donated £1000 towards cancer relief.

Find out more about the fabulous 1955 event in this video:

In 1956 the event was given a ‘zebra’ theme, some marbles even had zebra stripes. Even cars arrived reupholstered with zebra skins!

Explore more about A Reight Neet Aht in our dedicated blog, or visit the new display and get your gladrags on at Castleford Museum.

The 'Reight Neet Aht' display at Castleford Museum

A Reight Neet Aht: Castleford’s famous fundraiser

The Reight Neet Aht was a unique charity gala with a distinctly Yorkshire flavour that put Castleford on a global stage.

From 1936 to 1957, the star-studded annual marbles contest attracted famous faces and international media interest. 

Read on to discover how appearances from stage, screen and sporting stars brought the glitz and glamour to Cas.

Explore each event in more detail with our interactive timeline!

Participants in the first All-Ladies Reight Neet Aht in 1955
Image courtesy of the Wakefield Council Libraries Photographic Collection

Knuckling off

Local journalist Sid Colclough started the Reight Neet Aht in 1936. Sid wrote a regular column inspired by the grumblings of a group of former miners known as the ‘Fed Ups’. One of the group joked about challenging councillors to a marbles match so Sid made it happen! He turned it into a charity fundraiser and added other games and entertainment for a full night out.

Souvenir ribbon from the first Reight Neet Aht in 1936

He held the event at the Cooperative Ballroom in Castleford. Guests were invited to come in their “glad-rags” and were treated to a packed programme. The marble contest “knuckled off” at 7:30pm. 

There were also contests in shuttlecock, skipping and whip and top, plus hours of dancing. 

Guests bought slices of a giant pie for supper and there were clay pipes for the gentlemen.

Marble used by 90-year-old William Furniss in the first Reight Neet Aht in 1936. William won the 1937 tournament.

Patrons and prizes

Over the years, Reight Neet Aht supported a number of local charities and good causes. Sid set himself a fundraising target of £50 for the first ever Neet Aht with the proceeds going to Leeds Infirmary.

Reight Neet Aht raised money through ticket sales and selling refreshments on the night. Reight Neet Aht often took place on Shrove Tuesday and organisers prepared piles of pancakes! 

Local companies and celebrity patrons also helped the fundraising by donating trophies, souvenirs and prizes for auction. 

Bagley's Glass in Knottingley made a special marble for the first competition in 1936:

Bagley's Glass special marble for the first Reight Neet Aht

They also supplied the trophy for the final event in 1957:

The trophy for the 1957 Reight Neet Aht, also made by Bagley's Glass

Singer, actor and comedian, Gracie Fields, was a huge star in the 1930s. She never made it to Castleford but she was a key supporter of Reight Neet Aht, putting her name to the prizes and donating memorabilia. 

A special commemorative marble decorated with the signature of Reight Neet Aht's celebrity patron Gracie Fields

Star signings

Sid Colclough was the driving force behind the success of Reight Neet Aht. He had a flair for publicity and turned the event into a national occasion. 

Famous cameos added glitz and glamour. Newspapers, radio and even cinema newsreels reported from Castleford. 

George Formby and his wife Beryl were the special guests at the 1940 Reight Neet Aht - the only wartime edition of the event.
Image courtesy of the Wakefield Council Libraries Photographic Collection

Star entertainer George Formby came to the 1940 Reight Neet Aht with his wife Beryl. The couple had met in Castleford. 

The George Formby Society have kindly lent this signed banjolele to Castleford Museum, where it is currently on display:

A banjolele signed by George Formby, currently on display at Castleford Museum

George Formby also signed Reight Neet Aht’s special visitor book along with other famous faces.

This page is signed by lots of people from the world press. The guest book is kindly lent by Wakefield Council Libraries.

A page in the Reight Neet Aht guestbook signed by members of the world press

Photographers capture the action. Image courtesy of the Wakefield Council Libraries Photographic Collection

A cameraman films as Councillor Ezra Taylor plays his match at the 1953 event. 
Image courtesy of the Wakefield Council Libraries Photographic Collection

Twists and turns

Sid kept interest high by adding a new twist to each year’s event. 

When the Reight Neet Aht restarted after the Second World War, each year had its own theme. 

One year was America vs Yorkshire with the U.S. Army playing in the marbles matches. Another year was an All-Ladies contest.

Advertising poster for the 1955 All-Ladies Reight Neet Aht event. Image courtesy of the Wakefield Council Libraries Photographic Collection

Here, the 1956 zebra-striped Reight Neet Aht event is captured on canvas by H.J.S. Henson. The glamorous socialite Lady Docker is once again the star guest - she is pictured in the centre, in a white dress:

H.J.S. Henson's painting of the 1956 A Reight Neet Aht. 
Image courtesy of the Wakefield Council Libraries Photographic Collection

Lady Docker with Reight Neet Aht's mastermind, Sid Colclough. Image courtesy of the Wakefield Council Libraries Photographic Collection

Interactive timeline

Explore our Timeline of the Tournaments to discover all of the themes, guests and highlights of the Reight Neet Aht events! You can view it below, or launch the timeline in a new window here

Castleford on the map

The last Reight Neet Aht took place in 1957. Sid invited a team of international students from Leeds University to play in the tournament as Yorkshire took on the world. 

It was a fitting final outing. For 20 years, Reight Neet Aht had put Castleford on the global map.

University of Leeds students played on special marble boards decorated with world maps at the 1957 Reight Neet Aht. 
Image courtesy of the Wakefield Council Libraries Photographic Collection

Nearly 70 years after the last Neet Aht, we're proud to celebrate this surprising local claim to fame. 

Visit Castleford Museum to uncover more of this fascinating, unexpected tale. 

You can even revive the spirit of the Reight Neet Aht with your own game of marbles. 

And we’d love you to leave us a message in our special replica guest book!

The Reight Neet Aht interactive display at Castleford Museum

Visitor information for Castleford Museum

The 1957 Reight Neet Aht trophy marble was one of our 100 Years of Collecting objects! Browse the 100 Years of Collecting online exhibition here.

Castleford Community Cases - New Displays at Castleford Museum

Castleford Museum’s latest exhibition honours inspiring local women from the worlds of education, art, politics and sport. 

Four new family-friendly and interactive displays showcase historic pioneers and the stars of the future!

Making their mark reveals how the influential art teacher Alice Gostick sparked a passion for pottery painting across the country. 

Following her example, talented craftswomen led Castleford’s proud tradition of hand decorating ceramics. 

The display focuses on the intricate work of five painters: Eva Arundel, Mrs England, Vera Ward, Ida Woodward, and Alice herself. 

The women’s beautiful pots are a rainbow of colour and pattern, each signed with their own unique maker’s mark.

Fryston Flying Pickets banner, on display in Joining ranks. 

Joining ranks pays tribute to the women who rallied together during the 1984-85 miners’ strike. Discover how they protected communities and often changed their lives in the process.

The display features key objects such as the hard-hitting ‘A-Z of a Miner’s Wife’ poster sold in aid of the Normanton and Altofts Miners’ Support group, which is kindly lent by the National Coal Mining Museum. 

It sits alongside a banner, handmade for two of Fryston’s flying picketers by their sister, and proudly adorned with Women Against Pit Closures stickers. The banner was donated to the Wakefield Museums & Castles collection in 2018 and is displayed here for the first time.  

Meg's fabulous black and silver Lee Bender jacket, on display in Degrees of style

Degrees of style tells the story of a miner’s daughter turned stylish socialite, who reinvented her life. Fashion follower Meg returned to education later in life and swapped glamorous parties for university and a career in design. 

Meg’s story is told by a close friend and the display centres on one of her prized fashion staples, a distinctive black and silver jacket by Lee Bender at Bus Stop, worn on the local 1980s dinner party circuit. 

You can also try on a range of vintage jackets for size!  

Castleford Academy girls rugby league team

Raising champions features some of the many girls’ rugby league cups and medals in Castleford Academy’s impressive trophy cabinet. Marvel at the school’s honours board, hear from former students who have made it to the sport’s highest level, and see the current stars in action. 

Former students who have made it to the sport’s highest level share their stories in their own words and explain what rugby league means to them, whilst training footage shows the Academy’s current stars in action. 

Young visitors inspired to follow in their footsteps can find out how to get started in the game, and take their celebration selfie with our museum trophy!

Share your story  

We also want to hear your stories! We are especially keen to hear about any women who were involved in the miners’ strike or worked in the pottery industry. Story sheets are available in the Museum for you to fill in with details of the amazing women in your lives.

The hand-painted coffee set by Alice Gostick and the Fryton Flying Pickets banner both also feature in our 100 Years of Collecting Online Exhibition.

Click here for full visitor and access information for Castleford Museum

Celebrate Summer with us!

Looking for free things to do in Wakefield, Pontefract and Castleford these summer holidays?

We’ve got something for all the family across our sites!

Super Summer at Pontefract Castle

Join us for a different fun theme every week at Pontefract Castle!

With free entry, wide open spaces, dark dungeons and heaps of history, there’s something for everyone.

• Be a Victorian Historian: Monday 31 July - Saturday 5 August

• Medieval Melee: Monday 7 August  - Saturday 12 August

• A Week of Tomfoolery: Monday 14 August  - Saturday 19 August

• Castle Attack and Defence: Monday 21 August - Saturday 26 August

• Unexpected Discoveries: Monday 28 August - Saturday 2 September

Activities, crafts and games 10am to 3pm each day

Free and no booking required

Click here for Visitor and Access Information for Pontefract Castle

100 Years and Counting!

2023 marks the centenary of the Wakefield Museums & Castles collection. We have been collecting objects and telling stories for 100 years!

We are celebrating our centenary throughout 2023 and into 2024 with new displays, digital content and events. 

We're launching the celebrations with a new Online Exhibition showcasing 100 objects that represent our 100 years of collecting. Click here to explore! 

But first, let's go back to the the very beginning...

10 July 1923 - Our first official objects 

The first ever entry in our accession books (the early handwritten records of all objects entering the collection) was on 10 July 1923. It was for 'One Mahogany Cabinet' containing 'Mosses' and 'Lichens', as well as 'Three Madonna Pictures from Board' 'and 14 cases of Birds'. 

An eclectic selection that paved the way for the 100 years of wonderful and weird objects to come!

The first ever entry in our accession books on 10 July 1923

The mahogany cabinet in question, our first ever officially accessioned object

Wakefield's first civic museum and art gallery

The doors of Wakefield’s first civic museum and art gallery opened at Holmfield House in Thornes Park in 1923. 

The first curator, Harold Parkin, had gathered a small but impressive collection for display. It included bullets and cannon balls found at Sandal Castle, Ancient Roman coins, and a night watchman’s Waits badge. There were also donations and loans of furniture, paintings and armour.

More on the first Wakefield Museum

Holmfield House, circa 1940s.

Visitors to a photography exhibition at Holmfield House in the 1930s - we do things a bit differently today!

From then - to now

Since then, our collection has grown and grown! We’ve opened new museums and moved between different sites. 

In 1934, Wakefield Corporation opened a dedicated art gallery on Wentworth Terrace. It was open until 2009. Today, the fine art collection is managed and cared for by The Hepworth Wakefield. 

In 1956 Wakefield Museum left Holmfield House for the former Mechanics Institute on Wood Street, where the displays included popular recreated room scenes from history. 

In 2012, we moved to the city’s newest civic building, Wakefield One, where you can find us today!

The beautiful art nouveau building housing Pontefract Museum

Pontefract and Castleford

In 1974 Wakefield Council began caring for and developing the collections from Pontefract Museum and Castleford Library. 

Pontefract Museum moved to our current home in the former Carnegie Library in 1978. We’re very proud to continue to care for the beautiful art nouveau building. 

In 2013, we opened Castleford Forum Library & Museum, sharing the history of the town’s origins as Roman Lagentium, its proud industrial past and present, as well as changing displays produced with our local communities.

From 1 to over 100,000 objects

We now look after over 112,000 objects that tell the story of our district from the distant past to the present day. We programme exhibitions and displays at Castleford, Pontefract and Wakefield Museums, Pontefract Castle Visitor Centre and our Museum Hubs across the district. 

Any objects that are not currently on display are cared for at our Museum Store, ready for future exhibitions and research. 

Online Exhibition - 100 Years of Collecting

We're launching the celebrations with a new Online Exhibition showcasing 100 objects that represent our 100 years of collecting. Click here to explore!

Check back on our blog over the coming weeks and months for more about our centenary, and object highlights compiled by our team and volunteers! 

You can also follow the project on social media with the hashtag #WMC100.

Albert Wainwright: Pride Month 2023

This Pride Month, we are proud to share a fantastic new addition to our collection!

We have recently acquired a small number of sketchbook pages by Albert Wainwright (1898-1943), an influential artist from Castleford.

A friend and contemporary of Henry Moore, Wainwright produced a large and varied body of work. This included ceramics, theatrical design and book illustrations, as well as watercolours and drawings. 

Although he didn’t reach Moore’s commercial success or recognition during his sadly short lifetime, Wainwright’s reputation has deservedly increased in recent years. 

His work is also significant in its depiction of gay love at a time when homosexuality was still illegal in Britain.

Sketch by Albert Wainwright, recently acquired by Wakefield Museums & Castles. Features drawings of schoolboys, including a pair where one is tenderly reclining on the other.

Wainwright was born and brought up in Castleford. He attended Castleford Grammar School and was taught by the inspirational artist Alice Gostick. 

Gostick encouraged Wainwright’s artistic potential and her support helped him to secure a place at the Leeds School of Art in 1914. 

Gostick’s influence on Wainwright’s art continued. He became a regular at her renowned pottery painting classes, hand-painting ceramics in a traditional style known as Castleford ‘Peasant Pottery’. 

In 1927, Wainwright returned to Castleford Grammar School as an art teacher, temporarily taking Gostick’s place after she became ill. 

Hand-painted vase by Wainwright in the style of Alice Gostick

Base of the same vase above, marked with Wainwright's monogram.

Gostick also encouraged her pupils to design costume, stage sets and programmes for school productions. 

The experience was invaluable for Wainwright, who went on to work as a theatrical designer. He received over a hundred costume and scenery commissions. 

His intricate watercolour designs spanned a wide range of productions.

Poster for an exhibition of Wainwright's work at Wakefield Art Gallery in the 1980s. It features an example of his costume design.

As well as his commercial work, Wainwright was a prolific draughtsman. 

He filled many sketchbooks with illustrations and watercolours of local landmarks and characters, capturing a snapshot of industrial Castleford in the 1920s and 1930s. 

Page from the 'Castleford Notebook', 1928 by Albert Wainwright. Sketch of the cemetery on Red Hill.
With thanks to The Hepworth Wakefield.

Page from the 'Castleford Notebook', 1928 by Albert Wainwright. Sketch of factories and mines in Castleford.
With thanks to The Hepworth Wakefield.

His personal sketchbooks also include many studies of people, including androgynous figures, young men and depictions of male intimacy. 

Wainwright was gay but homosexuality remained illegal in Britain during his lifetime. It was not decriminalised until 1967, 24 years after his premature death. 

Although Wainwright’s sketchbooks were not originally intended for public view, they are a rare record of gay love in the early 20th century.

We are very pleased to have acquired some examples of these sketchbook pages at auction earlier this year. They are a valuable addition to our collection. In addition to examples of Wainwright’s ceramics, theatre work and industrial sketches already in our collection, these sketches of male intimacy will help us to tell a fuller story of his life and career. 

They reveal a sometimes hidden LGTBQ+ history. 

Sketch by Albert Wainwright, recently acquired by Wakefield Museums & Castles. Features drawings of schoolboys, including a pair where one is reclining on the other.

Albert Wainwright sadly died from meningitis aged just 45 in 1943. 

He was living in and teaching in Bridlington at the time and had achieved a name for himself within his native Yorkshire. 

Today, his artistic achievement is increasingly recognised and we are proud to celebrate his work in our displays at Castleford Library & Museum.

Click here for more LGBTQ+ stories in our collections

Click here to read more about Alice Gostick

Click here for visitor information at Castleford Museum (opens in new page)

Roman Castleford and RomanFest 2023

By Jove! Castleford Roman Festival is back for 2023.

On Saturday 10 June all roads lead to Castleford for a Roman-themed family fun day.

We've got a whole host of Roman blog articles, activities and videos to explore ahead of the Festival on our Roman Castleford landing page!

March over to the Roman Castleford page to:

• Learn about how archaeologists discovered Roman Castleford
• Take a virtual tour of Castleford Museum's Roman displays 
• Discover how Lagentium embraced the very Roman tradition of bathing
• Taste the past with our awesome ancient recipes

Eggcellent Easter 2023

Looking for things to do this Easter Holidays in Wakefield? 

Here's what's on at Wakefield Museums and Castles for Saturday 1 to Monday 10 April!

Dragon Egg Week at Pontefract Castle

The Easter Dragon Egg Hunt at Pontefract Castle is back, and better than ever. Help Ilbert the Dragon find all of his eggs on a new trail available from Saturday 1 April to Monday 10 April.

Join in with different dragon activities throughout the week, including storytelling, eco-friendly crafts and the first ever Dragon Parade!

Almost all of our eggcellent Dragon Egg Week activities, including the trail, are free. 

Trail available 10am – 4pm daily from the Visitor Centre.

Click here for full information about all Dragon Egg Week activities

Castleford Changes at Castleford Museum

Monday 3, Tuesday 4 and Thursday 6* April

10am to 3pm

Free and drop-in

Have you noticed something different around town? We’re exploring how Castleford has changed over the last 100 years with a spotlight on the images from Albert Wainwright’s Castleford Sketchbook. 

Practice your sketching skills, make your mark on a community artwork, and look forward to what the next 100 years will bring! 

*Thurs 6: SEND families are welcome at all of our sessions but we are running this SEND session for those families who require a more relaxed atmosphere.

Let's Investigate Eggs! at Wakefield Museum

Thursday 6 April

10am and 1.30pm

As Easter approaches, it’s an eggciting time to investigate eggs! Join us to explore egg related objects in the museum’s collection. 

Decorate your own excellent egg cup and take historical recipes home to make together. 

£2.50 per child. Accompanying adults free

Click here to book Let's Investigate Eggs!

The Wild Escape

Go on an animal adventure around our museums and make some eco-friendly crafts with The Wild Escape! 

All activities are free and drop-in.

Castleford Museum - Tues 11, Thurs 13 & Fri 14 April* (relaxed SEND day) - 10am to 3pm each day.

Pontefract Museum - Weds 12 April - 10.30am to 12.30pm and 1pm to 3pm

Wakefield Museum - Fri 14 April - 10.30am to 12.30pm and 1pm to 3.30pm

The Wild Escape is a major new project led by Art Fund uniting hundreds of museums with schools and families in a celebration of UK wildlife and creativity.

Fred the Frog Finds His Way Home at Wakefield Museum

Thursday 13 April

10.30am and 1.30pm

Free - booking required

Help Fred the Frog find his way home in this interactive storytelling, singalong and play session for 2-to-5-year-olds and their adults!

You can also make your own funny froggy friend to take home.

Click here to book Fred the Frog Finds His Way Home

Let's Sow Some Seeds! at Pontefract Castle

Thursday 13 April

10am and 1.30pm

Join us for this fun multi-sensory session where we will see, smell and sample some of the tasty herbs grown at the Castle! 

You will also get to create together, decorating your own plant pots and sowing herb seeds to grow at home. 

£2.50 per child, accompanying adults free

Click here to book Let's Sow Some Seeds!

Click here for visitor and access information for all our sites

Click here for a printable PDF Easter Planner with all of our activities and workshops on