What it means to be Grimsby

I was reading some of the posts on the Michael Jolly thread about how he’s “getting it” and got to wondering if between us we could define what being Grimsby is. Like what is it to be British but on a local scale. Like choosing the best team of the Fishy era what are the character traits and idiosyncrasies that make Grimsby folk and therefore Town fans who they are?

I’ll start off with moaning.

The Grimsby native is not by nature a cheery soul. Like the bloke who sits behind you at BP - never as happy as when he’s telling all who can hear him how this lot are shite and he doesn’t know why he bothers. Many such characters are contributors to the fishy, which if anything proves my point. The reason why this is a local character trait is no doubt because for years there’s been nothing to be cheerful about either in terms of the town generally or indeed the football club. But it’s must be more deeply ingrained than a recent run of form because the same chap was still moaning when Sir Alan had us punching several times our weight. To carry the plight of Grimsby analogy further when we were the largest fishing port in the world and the town was awash with money and jobs, there was a miserable old bloke in a flat cap and scarf sitting on the Pontoon complaining that it was better when the trawlers were sail powered.

On the other hand woe betide anyone who wasn’t born within smelling distance of the fish meal factory saying anything negative ABOUT either the town or the football club - shithole it may be but it’s our shithole and no one else is qualified to comment.

Self-absorbed for believing we are any different than anywhere else

I travel a fair bit and when I’m passing through caistor on the 46 and see the dock tower ..flying into humberside coming over the coastline or even coming in on the train passing through the outskirts I still get a sense of my town my roots and anybody who doesn’t like it get fooked

I've worked abroad, had holidays all over the world, met people who have their noses so far up in the air I felt sorry for them. I'm a Grimsby boy, always will be and I so enjoy telling people that my team is Grimsby Town FC to which the comment usually is ' why' , they just don't get it.

We are fed a diet of bad news and negative views. Our local so called rag fills its front page with the latest incident gleaned from the police. They fill pages with court reports. This creates the impression that these are the only events happening in the town. Never a balanced view, few good news stories. The majority of people want the town to be better. Good essential council services which affect everyone on a day to day basis. We keep on being promised better with one regeneration scheme after another, few of which have come to fruition. Don't hold your breath for a redevolment of the docks. We just fail to deliver promises. The heart of our town is a no go area for most people in the evening, that just cannot be right. Yet dear old Cleethorpes has pulled itself into the 21st century and attracted a range of businesses large and small which impress visitors. You can be proud to take people there, not so Grimsby. Yet despite being at the end of a very slow line the surrounding area and coast has much to offer. By and large the people are friendly and welcoming and will be pleased to have a natter. We are not great lovers of change or culture as a sizeable proportion of the population scrape by with little ambition. You could say the same about our football club. Which is why MJ is like a breath of fresh air. Just shows what a positive can do attitude can achieve. Well that's off my chest.

Quoted from oldun

By and large the people are friendly and welcoming and will be pleased to have a natter. We are not great lovers of change or culture as a sizeable proportion of the population scrape by with little ambition.

Don't disagree with the first bit the the second sentence is patronising. Some might not love culture but there's always a big audience for the arts when given the opportunity and GY has a strong musical tradition.

I liken the place as a sort of Liverpool of the East; a culture and dialect all of its own, shaped by the sea and the people who made a tough living from it that meant working hard and partying harder.

I suppose MJ will be getting a version of all this across to potential new recruits.  Not necessarily some romantic idea of Grimsby as some undiscovered heaven on earth, but a genuine town that loves its team.  

A young player who wants to do well and improve will be buying into a certain footballing idea by coming here.  If they want to have an easy life with no pressure and be at a safe, comfortable club in a leafy area, then go play for Crawley or Stevenage or Cheltenham.  If you want to learn from one of the best up-and-coming coaches in the game, and be part of a traditional northern football club with passionate supporters, a noisy away following and be at the heart of a community for a season or two, then we're the place for you.

Simply put.....you can take the boy out of Grimsby, but you will never take the Grimsby out of the boy....
We are a small town at the end of the most boring road(officially bored that too) yet we always will have the town, the people and a very proud history that remains strong in hearts regardless of where we live....one of the few towns in the whole country where most people support, in some way, the football club....be proud, be loud, be Grimsby!!

Quoted from oldun

We are not great lovers of change or culture as a sizeable proportion of the population scrape by with little ambition.

A sizeable proportion of the population spends most of its time on the roofs of East and West Marsh houses hurling slates at the police and pushing chimney stacks onto cars parked below only coming down on the promise of free fags and a finger down their girlfriend's knickers in the back of the police van before they are taken away

Quoted from Ipswin

A sizeable proportion of the population

Sizeable? Really?

Having lived away from GY for 27 of my 34 adult years I've found that there are far worst places to live with far less friendly people, im a proud Grimsby lad and always fly the flag and still get upset when people scoff at my home town or my team ,as someone has already said its a sh!thole but its my Sh1thole,yes its stuck in the 70s with a lethargic council who along with a proportion off residents who cant and wont accept change, who are happy too live in dog muck riddled streets with boarded up shops and brothels ,but then their are the things that make it wonderful THE PEOPLE well a majority off them anyway, the history off the town, the fishing heritage,the Nordic connection,the dock tower.the strange sense off humour that seems lacking in most other places ive lived and the football club(my first love),I still get goosebumps every home game when I first catch sight off the floodlights on my drive to the ground and I doubt  that feeling will ever leave me
why? because no matter were I live out the rest off my days GY is home, cut me in half and I'm Black and white through and through, IM GRIMSBY TILL I DIE

[quote=353]I travel a fair bit and when I’m passing through caistor on the 46 and see the dock tower ..flying into humberside coming over the coastline or even coming in on the train passing through the outskirts I still get a sense of my town my roots and anybody who doesn’t like it get fooked [/quote

I work in Caistor most days of the week and trundling back down the A46 it is by far the best view of our town with the iconic dock tower in the background.................

P.S. Soon to be improved when the Tower blocks of flats finally come down then just the magnificent dock tower will stand unrivalled as our backdrop.

Unless the useless   NELC  does something unthinkable like it as done with most of our iconic architecture.

It's a good job GTFC  employs its own groundsmen imagine the state of the pitch under NELC control.

Quoted from Ipswin

A sizeable proportion of the population spends most of its time on the roofs of East and West Marsh houses hurling slates at the police and pushing chimney stacks onto cars parked below only coming down on the promise of free fags and a finger down their girlfriend's knickers in the back of the police van before they are taken away

And Pizza Swin. Don’t forget they get Pizza as well.

Quoted from Civvy at last

And Pizza Swin. Don’t forget they get Pizza as well.

Ah now I understand, I'd do it myself for a pizza if a) I could actually climb onto a roof and b) I could be excused putting my finger down some girls knickers

Quoted from HackneyHaddock

I liken the place as a sort of Liverpool of the East; a culture and dialect all of its own, shaped by the sea and the people who made a tough living from it that meant working hard and partying harder.

I suppose MJ will be getting a version of all this across to potential new recruits.  Not necessarily some romantic idea of Grimsby as some undiscovered heaven on earth, but a genuine town that loves its team.  

A young player who wants to do well and improve will be buying into a certain footballing idea by coming here.  If they want to have an easy life with no pressure and be at a safe, comfortable club in a leafy area, then go play for Crawley or Stevenage or Cheltenham.  If you want to learn from one of the best up-and-coming coaches in the game, and be part of a traditional northern football club with passionate supporters, a noisy away following and be at the heart of a community for a season or two, then we're the place for you.

I live in Stevenage and lived in Crawley though there is a bit of grass and a few trees neither are particularly “leafy” most of Stevenage is former council estates and Crawley is similar, the locals in both places are usually ignorant tossers as well, people in Grimsby are much friendlier.

Some things spring to mind when I saw the title of this thread,

When you go on holiday you always meet someone from Grimsby or the surrounding area. Also I can’t understand why we don’t pack the park each week as everyone down here knows a Town fan.

How many people do you meet who when you say you’re from Grimsby they reply “oh it stinks of fish” like we’ve never heard that before ???😴

If you believe the GET you’d think the place somewhere like Compton or the UK equivalent Luton but I can tell you it’s not the worst place I’ve lived in or visited.

What makes me sad is when I drive down Freemo Victor St and Cleethorpe Rd I grew up around there and it looked very different then, this part of the Town needs a big regeneration kick start......... a football ground and community hub perhaps?

Being Grimsby is very special to me,

Living in Suffolk for over 30 years Grimsby will always  be home to me and my wife,

Suffolk people are strange they always look at you but will not speak first they always wait for you to start the conversation then they will join in,

Grimsby people are a friendly bunch on the whole and will always have a chat even if they do not know you.

The love for our club stands out more than most because we have had so many downs as well as ups.

I grew up in Grimsby and Cleethorpes but have spent the last 14 years living in Huddersfield and Leeds.

I'm the first generation of my family to move away since they settled here when the docks opened and I feel a deep-rooted connection to the town(s) - particularly because they've always faced an uphill struggle in terms of outside perception (Grimsby in particular).

However, while living in Leeds I got to work across the Castleford and Pontefract area - an extremely poor region of the UK with its own troubles and struggles.

But I also met some extremely nice, honest, down-to-earth people there, who are good friends. I think there's a strong sense of loyalty in towns that have lost their industries. Despite what the media might like to portray, there are more people willing to roll up their sleeves and give to others what they probably need themselves (Operation Promotion) than you'd find in more affluent areas of the UK.

Having lived there for 3 years and have been consistently coming back & forth to the town for going on 9 years, the place is pretty special to me.

It's similar to Darlington in so many ways and it has it's own class. I love knowing I spend a lot of time here; met some great people through my time here and long may it continue  

#AdoptedGrimbarian

Quoted from Ruston AT

I've worked abroad, had holidays all over the world, met people who have their noses so far up in the air I felt sorry for them. I'm a Grimsby boy, always will be and I so enjoy telling people that my team is Grimsby Town FC to which the comment usually is ' why' , they just don't get it.

Yeah thats a common enough reaction that I get too - we are not all plastic EPL male masturbators - my usual retort!

Quoted from HertsGTFC

I live in Stevenage and lived in Crawley though there is a bit of grass and a few trees neither are particularly “leafy” most of Stevenage is former council estates and Crawley is similar, the locals in both places are usually ignorant tossers as well, people in Grimsby are much friendlier.

Some things spring to mind when I saw the title of this thread,

When you go on holiday you always meet someone from Grimsby or the surrounding area. Also I can’t understand why we don’t pack the park each week as everyone down here knows a Town fan.

How many people do you meet who when you say you’re from Grimsby they reply “oh it stinks of fish” like we’ve never heard that before ???😴

If you believe the GET you’d think the place somewhere like Compton or the UK equivalent Luton but I can tell you it’s not the worst place I’ve lived in or visited.

What makes me sad is when I drive down Freemo Victor St and Cleethorpe Rd I grew up around there and it looked very different then, this part of the Town needs a big regeneration kick start......... a football ground and community hub perhaps?

In the mid 70's my wife's cousin, who was from Brixton, came to visit Grimsby for the first time. She was actually amazed that the town didn't smell of fish , the women didn't all wear shawls and the men didn't go round in clogs! She genuinely believed that was what she would see in Grimsby. I think her perception of Grimsby was based on pictures that she had seen depicting the Fish Docks during the 30's.

Been working in Rotherham today and a guy I was working with from Rotherham / Sheffield area spoke about how he loved clee as he called it and how he spent many happy weeks there growing up , everything he said was positive which sort of surprised me a bit tbh

I'm an exile and some friends of mine were in the habit of making, admittedly good natured, jibes about the place but had never actually visited the area. So I arranged a brief holiday for them.

We had a couple of very pleasant  days, visiting the docks, the boating lake, the Fishing Museum, surrounding countryside, dining on the pier, various eateries, strolling on the prom. They actually had a great time.

The reality of Cleethorpes/Grimsby is far better than the uninformed image held by many. There are plenty of worse places to live.  

I have followed this thread as another exile with great interest, and the general consensus that Grimsby's image is much worse than the reality is right I think. Many people like me rely on the Telegraph for keeping in touch with what is happening in the area but the reporting by the YTS bloggers there is so biased towards the bad side of things it must give anyone the impression it is the wild west. But would anyone really want to live in London if you believed the media?

They don't even know the town, look at the "kasbah" fiasco - they couldn't even spell it right and when they were told by scores of locals there was no such name, they even did another piece about it!

I've lived in the West Riding and the midlands and down here in Norfolk but Grimsby is the town I would call my home town. When I was a student I used to love to see those artics with Grimsby Fish in huge letters on the front and side, they were all over the country. There was a real sense of pride in that and I guess it was subliminal advertising for generations to now associate Grimsby with Fish automatically. In the 1960s if you'd been away for a while you could definitely smell you were home when you got off the train.

There was a more practical element too - in those days we went everywhere by thumb and looked out for those lorries.  I got a lift from Nottingham on a Wednesday afternoon in one, in time to watch us draw 2-2 with West Ham, have a pint and a few hours kip, get to Bradley Cross Roads and thumb back in time for lectures.

Grimsby is run down, no doubt about it. It has had a clueless council for years, its education system has been a joke and it completely failed to replace the disappearing industries and keep up the incomes and the spirits of locals. Its traffic system is a bigger mess than I have ever seen anywhere in the country. But,it has kept its local identity, unlike Kings Lynn for instance where you can walk the main street and not hear English spoken from one end to the other.

What Grimsby needs is an image makeover, a proper one. I hope they do something worthwhile with the East Marsh so that people coming into Riby Square from the motorway see something great and striking to the eyes. The Dock Tower to the left and ................ to the right. But please no signs pointing to a "Kasbah".

Its a traditional old school football club with a proud history and a club  I am proud to support

Quoted from Ruston AT

I've worked abroad, had holidays all over the world, met people who have their noses so far up in the air I felt sorry for them. I'm a Grimsby boy, always will be and I so enjoy telling people that my team is Grimsby Town FC to which the comment usually is ' why' , they just don't get it.

Always be true to your roots Ruston

If anyone gives you any stick just say we may be near the bottom rung of the football hierarchy  but variety is what allows life to continue.

Least your being true to your roots.

I use to support Liverpool as a boy eg media influence of growing up as a child .Realised at a bout 16-17 that its all plastic and you should support a team where you have some sort of connection to eg either through where you live or have family connections
to .Hence with me its the latter

Keep it real always  

Quoted from dapperz fun pub

Been working in Rotherham today and a guy I was working with from Rotherham / Sheffield area spoke about how he loved clee as he called it and how he spent many happy weeks there growing up , everything he said was positive which sort of surprised me a bit tbh

Before the package holidays abroad came in most Yorkies would come to places like Cleethorpes every year for their holidays,

Its a rite good place,  they would say and would not go anywhere else,

Then the cheap holidays abroad came in.

Quoted from grimsby pete

Before the package holidays abroad came in most Yorkies would come to places like Cleethorpes every year for their holidays,

Its a rite good place,  they would say and would not go anywhere else,

Then the cheap holidays abroad came in.

Its a “reet”  good place, Pete. Tha’s niver a proper Yorkie if tha dunt say like tha.

Most of the Yorkies I work with in Donny call Grimsby a shithole and are shocked to find out that Grimsby and their favourite seaside resort Cleethorpes are essentially the same place, the dafties.

Quoted from grimsby pete

Before the package holidays abroad came in most Yorkies would come to places like Cleethorpes every year for their holidays,

Its a rite good place,  they would say and would not go anywhere else,

Then the cheap holidays abroad came in.

I believe that a common occurrence was that some would ‘come fer day’ and then ‘stay fer week’   😉

From what I remember my great great Grandfather moved from London to Great Yarmouth to follow the fishing trade and was the oldest fisherman from Grimsby before government brought in the retirement age legislation, our family in Grimsby appears massive lol.  My dad was a fish filleter at Bluecrest for 30 years until it shut down.  Me, I moved to Lincoln 15 years ago, after I met my wife.  I still visit GY atleast twice a month sometimes depending on work 3 times.  Can't beat the old laids sunday dinner   and of course watch the fu(king mighty mariners

Quoted from Civvy at last

I believe that a common occurrence was that some would ‘come fer day’ and then ‘stay fer week’   😉

Fortneet if tha wa flush.