THE PLEASURE, THE PRIVILEGE
WAS MINE
Grand
Opening of New Display Panels at Salford Lads Club
I was thrilled and delighted to be asked by Leslie Holmes, the
Project Manager at Salford Lads Club, to officially open the new panels
installed in its Smiths Room on 3rd February 2018. These have been put in place
to enable even more photos of visitors from across the globe posing outside the
iconic building under the world famous sign to be added to the hundreds already
on display. The club held a special party to mark this momentous occasion, and
as well as myself performing the aforementioned ceremonial duty, an act by the
name of Ukelele Bobby entertained the audience in attendance by playing a
select few Smiths and Morrissey tracks.
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| Leslie handing over to me for my speech. Talk about nervous! |
My speech
in full: "Firstly, I'd like to thank Leslie for bestowing this
great honour upon me today. I was thrilled to be asked, the pleasure and
the privilege is definitely all mine! When, as a relatively fledgling fan of
all things Smiths and Morrissey, I first laid eyes on the hallowed doors of the
club as a 17 year old child from Huddersfield in 1990, I certainly never imagined
this!
I'd also
like to acknowledge the fantastic work that Leslie and his team of brilliant
volunteers undertake at the club to welcome its many visitors, as well as the
invaluable time spent nurturing the young people in particular in the local
community.
Finally, I
must mention the much missed Mr Craig Gill, whose passion and energy brought
countless people from across the globe to the club's doors. His wisdome
of the music scene of Manchester, Salford and extended areas (shout out to
Oldham!), his warmth, generosity and compassion will never be forgotten.
So then, I
am delighted to declare these here fabulous new panels open!"
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| Me cutting the ribbon! |
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| The Crowd in the Smiths Room at SLC checking out Ukelele Bobby
I should give a proper big up to the great Ukelele Bobby at this
stage, as he did a fantastic job entertaining everyone who came down. Bobby
played Spent The Day In Bed by Morrissey, Frankly, Mr Shankly by The Smiths
(with a line saved especially for participation by the audience!), Please Please Please Let Me
Get What I Want by The
Smiths, Everyday Is Like Sunday by Morrissey
and an impressive demo of How Soon Is Now? by The Smiths. Bobby's rendition of EILS was
absolutely stunning, and I must admit to getting a bit tearful and emotional as
I stood looking at all of the photos surrounding me, for it was this song
that started me on my wondrous journey back in Nineteen Eighty Hate and changed my life forevermore. It was at this point that I espied pictures of Craig Gill
and the recently departed Mark Edward Smith in the room which made me
incredibly sad and happy at the same time.
My husband Jay kindly recorded my speech, so I've added the video
to my YouTube channel. The link is:
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Great to meet you Angie. X
ReplyDeleteViva the Salford lads club x
Thank you! :-) x
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