Community Spirit - Arthur France MBE

Meanwhile, back to the Carnival. This picture is of Arthur France, the founder of the event, with two friends. We haven't a record of who he's with or which year of the Carnival the photograph was taken, so, if he or any of his friends read this, please let us know. There's an interview with him on this site, so I'll let him speak for himself.

Arthur believed that the West Indians, scattered across the country, “needed something to bind us together as people of the Caribbean”. By 1967 the first truly Caribbean carnival in the country, under a black British committee, took place in Leeds. It celebrated its Snow, or carnival queen, danced to the Gay Carnival Steel Band and entertained the city with its procession of fantastic troupes.

In 2009 it's estimated that over 150,000 people attended the three day event which takes place in Chapeltown and Harehills over the August Bank Holiday weekend every year.

In 1997 Arthur France was awarded the MBE for his work with the local community.

The embroidery was hand stitched by Sheila Exley and Jean Nichols on printed fabric (26 hours).

Local Faces - Jeremy Paxman

An extra post today. I've just been looking in the Evening Post and it's Jeremy Paxman's 60th birthday today. He's on the Local Faces panel so we couldn't let the day go by without wishing him HAPPY BIRTHDAY.

Born in Leeds and brought up in Worcestershire, Jeremy was educated at Malvern College and St Catharine's College, Cambridge. He began his career as a journalist covering Northern Ireland. After three years in Belfast he moved to London where, between 1978 and 1985, he was a reporter for Tonight and then Panorama. He's principally known as the anchorman of Newsnight, a role he has had since 1990. Since 1994 he has also been the presenter of University Challenge. His numerous books include the 1990 bestseller Friends in High Places: Who Runs Britain?, Fish, Fishing and the Meaning of Life (1994) and The English (1998). Extract from our database in 2000.

As well as being vice-chairman of the Wild Trout Trust conservation charity he's a Leeds United fan, so hopefully he's a happy bunny today.

Hand stitched on printed fabric by Myra Turner (3 1/2 hours).

Community Spirit Panel

This panel represents The Leeds Festival, instigated by Arthur France and originating in Chapeltown. The colorful procession winds down the road with fireworks in the distance and on either side of the road are many and varied community groups looking on.

Collecting images was probably more time consuming than on any of the other panels. Unlike the Civic Pride panel the people here are real and even when groups had expressed interest in being represented (over 1,000 community groups were approached by letter), there was then the lengthy process of getting suitable photographs of their members at events.

Jan Wells, free-lance photographer and video maker, worked with many individuals and groups to produce images of themselves authentically. Martin Banks and Paul Wilkinson were also hired to attend and record other community events. Other photographs were given by the groups themselves or by volunteers already with the Tapestry.

Community Spirit - Louise Read

In the early 1990s Louise took up the challenge set by Leeds City Council to undertake a project on the theme of making the most of retirement. After a lifetime of making clothes for her five children she staged three fashion shows with garments made by herself, with a bias towards clothing for the larger woman of the older generation. A farmer's daughter from Jamaica, Louise was one of 20 children, and came to England in 1955, followed one by one by her children who she has single-handedly put through college or university.

One of her greatest delights was being interviewed by Richard Whiteley after one of her fashion shows.

Photograph taken by Jan Wells.

Sheila Exley was awarded 2nd prize in Arts & Crafts section of North Seacroft Garden show in 2000 for this embroidery, hand stitched on printed fabric (20 hours to complete).

Enterprise Panel

When the Enterprise panel was started, in 1993, along with the Legal and Financial Panels, the project had a series of empty shops or office buildings in the recently refurbished Victoria Quarter to use as a showroom for the work.

Originally this panel was to represent Leeds as a great shopping centre and a 24 hour city, the design concentrating on the Victoria Quarter. Unfortunately not many of the retailers were willing to sponsor pieces, the exceptions being Samuel Taylors, Burton Group (Arcadia) and Harvey Nichols.

Unlike the Local Faces panel where the people are walking down a clearly identifiable street, Albion Place, the Enterprise panel has an amalgam of buildings from around the city. The Hotel Metropole, The Queens and the Market in the foreground; Samuel Taylors, Norwich Union and the Town Hall in the distance.

By the time the panel was ready for construction, the project had moved into the burling room at Armley Mills. Freda Copley, Sue and Sarah Hodgson were the three mainly responsible for putting all the pieces onto the background, finishing off the whole effect with silks and nets, bringing life to the panel.

The panel was unveiled 29 April 1997.

I'm not sure of the quality of images of the individual pieces on this and three other panels. We have huge high quality pre-digital photographs of the whole panels but they were made in the days before we had computers and each individual piece was not scanned.

Sport For All - Billy Bremner (1942-1997)

A sigh of relief from one whose extended family has both Leeds United and Hartlepool season tickets. For the last few seasons Boxing Day, and even once my birthday, have brought 'the family Derby' and the inevitable 'we was robbed'.

Next season Hartlepool stay in Division 1 and Leeds go up.

So, I add Billy Bremner to the blog.

Bremner was born in Stirling in 1942 and after being rejected by Arsenal and Chelsea for being ‘too small’ he joined Leeds in 1959. To quote Leeds United - A Complete Record he was ‘skilful, and his passing, leadership, never-say-die attitude and eye for the goal made him one of the game’s great midfielders’. He led United to 2 league championships, an FA Cup win and 2 Inter-Cities Fairs Cups. Billy Bremner moved from Leeds to Hull City in 1976.

"My family have always been supporters of Leeds United and it was such an honour to stitch Billy Bremner's statue on the Sporting Life panel. Most of my work however, was done on the Leeds in Bloom panel and I was thrilled to see it completed after many hours of work.
I have so enjoyed being involved in the creation of such a magnificent work of art and hope that future generations will enjoy it and that they too will be inspired."
Muriel Gabbitas 2003

Hand stitched on printed fabric, the image had been treated using Photoshop.

Sport For All - Leeds United players

Eirik Bakke (A Norwegian, he currently plays for SK Brann)


Olivier Dacourt (born in France he is currently without a club)


Alan Smith (Local lad now playing at Newcastle)


David Batty (Local lad, retired 2004)


Lucas Radabe (used to play for the Kaiser Chiefs - hence the name of our local band, named in his honour)


Today Leeds United fans find out whether the club get promotion, from league 1 to Championship. Once upon a time life was straight forward and the Leagues were numbered, now I believe, there are two divisions above 1 - Championship and Premier.

When the Sports Panel was planned and the book written (2002) the four players above were still playing for the team in the Premiership League. Since then fortunes have changed, the club was relegated from the Premiership in 2004 and the Championship in 2007.

Apologies to football fans if I've not been accurate - sifting through material as a non football fan is a bit of a nightmare.

Dorothy Wrench, who embroidered these footballers on printed cotton, is a football fan and totally approved of the choice of team members chosen by my then 13 year old son (2000) when she embroidered them. Wonderful socks and not a yellow boot in sight.

Good luck this afternoon Leeds.