For a smallish former Mill Town, Dewsbury has had a lot of things to be proud of, some are listed below with apologies for mistakes + anything or anyone who is not mentioned. A - Ale - A special edition of the Dewsbury Reporter once pointed out that in 1930 there were over 200 places to drink alcohol within the Dewsbury boundary, 30 alone in the town centre. In the early years of 2,000, we had 2 micro brewery's in the town. B - The Reverend Patrick Bronte arrived here in 1809 to become Curate of Dewsbury Parish Church. ~ Charlotte Bronte came to teach at Healds House in 1837 where Anne became a pupil. ~ Brother Branwell who visited, still has his chair in the Black Bull in Haworth - a pub which my cousin John Pickard & his family (Thornhill Lees) started to run in early 2004. ~ Betty Boothroyd an ex-Eastborough schoolgirl made history in 1992 when she became the first woman speaker of the House of Commons ~ Baseball was played at Crown Flatt in 1936, & although Dewsbury Royals were founder members the Yorkshire League they sadly only lasted one season. C - Canals have played their part in the towns history with the 1 mile Calder & Hebble, 'Dewsbury Cut' section to Savile Town Wharfe still in popular use today with moorings, a pub and a boatyard. D - Dewsbury Rams (RL Club) made history on meeting Wigan in 1929, in the first ever Rubgy League Challenge Cup final to be played at Wembley Stadium. E - The Empire Theatre which stood alongside the Town Hall from 1909-1955 saw many famous names including;- Julie Andrews, Charlie Chaplin, Diana Churchill (Sir Winstons Daughter), Flanagan & Allen, Florrie Ford, Gracie Fields, Anthony Newly, Morecambe & Wise, Frank Randle, Terry Thomas & Frankie Vaughan. F - Eileen Fenton, a 22 year old swimmer from Thornhill Lees found fame in 1950 when she became the first woman home in a race from France to England. The channel crossing took her 15.5 hours. G - We have it on good authority that the Bee Gees have a small link to the town with Maurice's 2nd wife once living 'over the Savile Town border' in Thornhill Lees !. H - Hospitals have been located to my knowledge in Northgate (Cottage), Halifax Road, Willans Road and Staincliffe Road. The third site spent it last few years empty & under the responsibility of my wife Anne. During this time Actors such as David Jason & Celia Imrie took part in filming scenes for Darling Buds of May, Emmerdale & Frost. Actor Nick Berry opened the Nurses home at the current Staincliffe road site. ~ Wallace Hartley, the bandleader from Dewsbury is known for braveley conducting the orchestra as the ill-fated Titanic sank in 1912 I - Inspired by the Town of Dewsbury, Ossett Author Stan Barstow wrote 'A kind of Loving' the 1960 screen version of the book was to star Alan Bates, Thora Hird & June Ritchie. J - Journalist David Wilby from Radio Four's 'Today in Parliament', attended Savile Town Junior school. ~ Classmate, now Music Journalist Chris White started out with the Batley news and is now free-lance. Since moving to London many years ago he has interviewed & met the likes of Shirley Bassey, the Bee Gees, Marian Faithfull, Elton John and Sir Paul McCartney & Roy Orbison. K - Knees up Mother Brown is more often associated with the East end of London, but was actually penned by former Ravensthorpe Methodist Church organist Bert Lee. M - The cleaned-up Minster still proudly occupies a prominent position in town, a famous New Years eve tradition being to chime a bell for every year that has passed. ~ Marks & Spencer stores are usually found in cities, but we have had a small branch here since 1909. P - Actress Katzia Pelka was born here in 1962, some of her roles have been in Brookside, Coronation Street, Family Affairs, Heartbeat, & Peak Practice. ~ St Paulinus is reputed to have preached on the bank of the River Calder circa 628. R - Railways have been prominent over the years with the Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway - Market Place Terminus, opposite the Town Hall until 1930. The GNR Central Station (new market place) 1880-1964. The LNWR Wellington Road 1848-today & a Midland Railway freight terminus on Mill Street West. You could total 7 or 8 if you add the first three to former out-lying stations such as Batley Carr, Earlsheaton, Ravensthorpe, & Thornhill Lees. ~ Greg Rusedski the Tennis star is linked through his mothers birth here. S - Sky RL Pundit Mick Stephenson grew up on Warren Street, Savile Town & was captain of Dewsbury's Challenge Cup winning side in 1973 & part of the Great Britain RL World Cup winning team in 1972. ~ Patrick Stewart who hails from nearby Mirfield, once worked in the Dewsbury Reporter Offices & went on to play notable big screen roles in Star Trek & the X-Men ~ The Saville family are said to have owned land in Dewsbury from at least 1370. T - Our Town Hall which was sandblasted to pristine condition some years ago has seen Royal visits, various shows & live performers (incl. Slade) plus filming for the likes of Emmerdale & Frost. ~ Trams first ran from Dewsbury to Thornhill in 1903 and 2 years later to Birkenshaw ~ Actress Mary Tamm was born here in 1950 and her T.V. roles include Brookside, the Bill, Bergerac, Jonathan Creek, the Likely Lads & Doctor Who. W - Westtown born, 1926 Champion 'flat course' Jockey Tommy Weston remarkably won every Classic race at his first attempt. ~ John & Charles Wesley are said to have introduced Methodism to the town in 1742 ~ Eddie Waring, former Notts Forest footballer,Dewsbury RL Manager & journalist rose to fame in later years on T.V. Sport plus game show programmes such as 'Its a knockout'. Y - The Yorkshire Agricultural Show was said to have been staged or at least had a contribution from Dewsbury's Crow Nest Park in August 1892 !. ~Yusuf Sultan (Saleji) acted in his first big feature film in 2004, appearing alongside Om Puri & Sophie Dahl in the King of Bollywood. Born in India, but raised in Dewsbury he has also appeared in TV's The Bill, The Knock & chased Roger Moore through a Bazaar in the Bond film Octopussy.