The Hull Daily Mail article about the hotel that has provided a Hull-to-English translation made me chuckle.

The usual confusion starts with expressions like these:

And finally, one of the biggest grudges in the area:

      “There’s no such thing as ‘umbersard”

       The region previously known as Humberside doesn’t exist any more

I haven’t ever managed to pick up the accent myself, but take great delight in asking my friends to repeat what they’ve just said, in English…but as they reply, “Nowt wrong wiv a Hull accent”

I can’t believe people have taken this seriously though and have been offended. The Hull accent is part of the City’s identity, surely, and I have to say it’s got to be better than a Brummy or Newcastle accent?

I blogged back in July about the Humber Bridge, saying there would soon be an update on a report commissioned to find out the impact of the tolls.

It turns out that scrapping the tolls would benefit the local economy by £1.1bn over the next 25 years, with the report listing improvements to the region if the tolls were abolished or even reduced to £1.

More to the point, it claims that Hull could gain a further £45m in retail opportunities, as it seems all those on the South Bank would prefer to go on a shopping spree on a trip to Lincoln or Meadowhall than venture across the bridge.

I’m not entirely convinced that the cost of crossing the Bridge is the reason for stopping people coming across to shop, but either way, reducing the tolls would certainly help both sides of the bank.

No doubt this will get thrown around in Parliament, yet again, but to help the cause, you can sign the Hull Daily Mail’s petition, A Toll Too Far, here

Yet again I hear about another Hull bashing on the grapevine.

Research done for the B&Q’s Brighten Up Britain bid has reported that Hull is the dullest place to live in Britain!

We got 17% of the vote – which was even more than Milton Keynes (11%) and then Birmingham (9%)…

I never used to be this defensive about Hull, but with nearly 1 in 5 people voting for us, someone needs to take a stand….

I am proud to say that I have never missed a Hull Fair.

Bob Carver’s chips, bright lights, stomach-churning rides, toffee apples and a great view of the City from the Big Wheel – what more could you ask for?

I know it’s got some complaints over the years - and with everything these days it seems to be more and more expensive each year - but I just think it’s magic. The weather always seems to hold out, I get wonderfully disorientated each time with all the distractions and you always end up with a prize.

Favourite memory? Winning the bingo and having the choice of a new kitchenware set or a desk lamp. Trust me, at the time, I was overwhelmed!

I love walking down Walton Street and seeing all the stalls, and a particular favourite has to be watching the terrified faces of the people regretting their choice of white-knuckle ride.

Don’t miss out on this year’s Hull Fair, it’s from Friday 10^th Oct to Saturday 18^th Oct (excluded Sun 12^th Oct).

The results are through for the past 6 months searches, which have led people to the Hull Cityvistor site from Google’s search engine.

It came as no surprise that hotels and restaurants have topped the charts, which are common search terms to look for in a particular city anyway.

What did amuse us, however, was that fancy dress was the third most popular search term. Perhaps the people of Hull are bigger party animals than we thought? I would imagine university students help boost these results, but even if you’re not part of that clan, feel free to let us know of any regular fancy dress parties that you may be hosting…!

Whether you’re a brand new sparkling Fresher or a wiser Third Year, you can track down everything you may need from Cityvisitor in Hull – from letting agents to cheap furniture stores, book shops to sporting equipment.

It’s also a great place to find fancy dress outfits, for all those nights where you can’t believe you really have to look that ridiculous, not forgetting takeaways when you get a bit peckish later on in the evening…

Yet again another good reason to visit Hull appears on the horizon; the Global Food Festival (22^nd – 24^th August).

As the hosts, the centre of Hull is set to be transformed for the giant food extravaganza, which judging by last year’s event, could pull in more than 100,000 extra visitors to the city.

The festivals website promises the line up will be “just as impressive” as last year too. They’ve organised cookery demonstrations on the big screen by Yorkshire-born celebrity chef, James Martin, and Celebrity chef and host of BBC2’s Ready Steady Cook, Ainsley Harriott, will be the taking to the main stage on the Saturday of the festival.

So, along with the success of Hull’s Business Week, which attracted the likes of Elle MacPherson, Gordon Ramsay and Sir Bob Geldof, Hull is proving yet again to be pulling out all the stops.

You can find out more about the festival here. Even if it’s not quite your cup of tea, the free samples alone should make the trip worthwhile…

It’s official. We’ve all got to move out of Hull and head down South.

The Yorkshire press has reported widely the new Policy Exchange Think Tank findings about the state of living in the North;

“Cities across Northern England - including Leeds, Bradford and Hull - are “beyond revival” and residents should consider moving south.

The controversial report by Policy Exchange said the regeneration of many towns and cities in the north was doomed to fail and residents should consider relocation as a way to avoid becoming “trapped” in poorer areas.”

The whole report is bizarre and even one of the authors of the report has said it may seem “barmy”. Shall we all up sticks and move? I think not….

From the Hull Daily Mail:

“Latest figures suggest up to 30,000 people in Hull need to become more physically active if the city is to close the gap on the healthiest places in Yorkshire. 

 

The statistics also show 61.4 per cent of people in Hull are overweight or obese, while binge drinking is over twice the national average for men and women.”

Another glowing reference for Hull. But the report hits the nail on the head when it says that with our three top-flight clubs, we are in a great position to improve health and fitness. Hull’s sporting success has been front page news thanks to Hull City FC, Hull FC and Hull KR. What more inspiration do we need?

Keen to jump on the healthy bandwagon? You can find a list of gyms in Hull here

Putting Hull on the map of headline acts

I’ve often heard people complain that Hull doesn’t attract the sort of headline music acts compared to the bigger cities, especially with the Birmingham NIA, Sheffield Arena and even Leeds Festival all drawing in the crowds.

They couldn’t be more wrong. Hull Arena constantly turns out quality bands and shows, and has had its fair share of headline acts; The Kaiser Chiefs, Faithless, Keane and Robbie Williams to name but a few. Now the Bridlington Spa has been refurbished, we’re also gearing up for the likes of the Sugababes (28^th Aug 08), The Kooks and Scouting for Girls (both November 2008).

No doubt these will all sell out. All we need now is something like Radio 1’s Big Weekend to choose Hull as their next venue and suddenly we’ll be on the map.

Don’t forget you can leave a comment to tell us all about it if you’re going to any of these events, or if you are visiting Hull and need somewhere to stay or eat, you can visit our directory, Cityvistor.