Hull poet and legend Dean Wilson cropped up unexpectedly on Countryfile so our surprise TV correspondent Angus Young asked him about it.

Countryfile is one of BBC1’s most popular programmes and last night it featured one of our own local treasures. Self-styled Fourth Best Poet in Hull and Second Best Poet in Withernsea Dean Wilson appeared in an episode devoted to the beautiful natural wilderness of Spurn Point.

The beloved Curiosity contributor recently spent a day filming at Spurn with a three-man Countryfile crew. The results were screened on Sunday night as part of the latest programme in the long-running show which covers rural, agricultural and environmental issues.

Dean said: “I got a call from a researcher asking if I’d be interested in being featured in a programme they were planning to do about Spurn Point. It came a bit out of the blue but I couldn’t say ‘no’.”

On the day in question, Dean donned his trademark woolly hat and spent six hours being filmed on the peninsula. “It was a really great day because it was just like going for a day out at Spurn,” he said. “The crew were really nice, the weather was lovely too and I just talked about pebbles, poetry and what’s it like living in Withernsea.

“They filmed me talking about the pebbles I pick up along the coast, reading three of my poems and going up the lighthouse at Spurn to enjoy the view. I also talked about going to Spurn as a kid. It’s always been a magical place for me. Even though we were there all day, I was told they would only probably end up showing three or minutes of me but I don’t mind. Hopefully when people see the programme it will help shift a few of my books and allow a few more people to discover my secret genius!”

Dean watched the show on his settee at home in With, although he admits to not being Countryfile’s biggest fan. “I don’t really watch it very much,” he said. Was he nervous about the potential of suddenly becoming a national treasure after appearing on one of the BBC’s top-rated shows? “It’s either going to end up be the best thing I’ve ever done or I’ll never be able to leave the house again,” he said.

The Spurn episode on Countryfile is now available to watch on the iPlayer.

Angus Young

We’ll give you a clue – it’s posh and minty. Full answer revealed by our extinct games correspondent Angus Young.

It was enthusiastically described in one newspaper as “a red-letter day in the history of local sport.” The day in question was Saturday, 9th May 1896, the occasion was the first ever competitive polo match in Hull and the venue was a new ground complete with stables off Westbourne Avenue.

The game of polo originated in Persia in the 6th Century before spreading into the Middle East, China and India where it was enthusiastically taken up by British tea planters and Army officers in the mid-19th Century. The first competitive game in England was played in Aldershot in 1870 between two cavalry regiments and the new sport spread quickly among Royalty and the nobility. It took another 26 years for the game to reach Hull.

“The picture formed by the gay appearance of the members’ stand and enclosure  will no doubt linger long in the memories of those who assisted at the first appearance of the game of Polo in our midst,” continued  the newspaper report. The two sides in the first match were simply titled ‘Married’ and ‘Single’. Among the former was George Houlton, founder of the construction company which still bears his name today.

It seems Hull’s high society turned out in force to witness the Single team record 6-5 victory with as much attention being paid to the fashionable dresses of the ladies present. However, the lack of any effective policing of the estimated 6,000 crowd led to complaints from those who had paid an admission fee only to end up rubbing shoulders with those who had gained entry without paying anything. According to one report, paying spectators in the enclosure had their views spoiled by the “assemblage of un-privileged in front of the rails”. Barriers were installed at the next match while screens were erected to prevent people standing outside the open ground having a free if distant view  of the action.

The ground had been laid out on open land between Westbourne Avenue and Chanterlands Avenue which, at the time, only ran between Spring Bank West and Perth Street. It became home to the Holderness Polo Club, although the playing team was simply known as Hull.

Early matches against visiting teams did not go well with Hull losing 8-1 to York and then 10-0 to Leeds. Although results did improve and matches continued to attract Hull’s wealthiest figures in regular social gatherings, the last polo game at the ground took place in August 1907. The club’s demise seems to have coincided with a serious injury experienced by its best player Joss Stephenson in a fall from his horse a month earlier.

Another possible reason for its end was that most of the players who had started 11 years earlier were still in the saddle. Had they lost their enthusiasm for the game? Perhaps the expanding nature of Hull itself also forced them out.

In November 1908 city councillors were mapping out plans to extend Chanterlands Avenue to the high-level Hull and Barnsley railway line and connect the new route with extensions to Marlborough, Westbourne and Park Avenues. Within two years, these western extensions to the Avenues had been completed along with a new street called Perth Street West connecting to National Avenue and the new National Radiator Company factory.

A small terrace off Perth Street West was named Polo Villas to reflect the immediate previous history of the area. As for the rest of the ground, it was redeveloped with new housing.

Angus Young

Matt, of Humber Street Gallery, finally gets the the heart of the question we all really, really, really wanna zig-a-zig-answer to.

Chair of VHEY Chris Blacksell revisits a street that has played a huge part in his life.

Sarah, a senior producer for Middle Child, outlines what her job entails and how vital it is.

Our pointless structures correspondent Angus Young heads to the edge of Hull to admire some unnecessary crenellations.

There are many folly buildings and structures dotted around East Yorkshire but none can quite match the historical quirkiness of one in Ellerker. In many ways, the small hamlet ten miles west of Hull ticks all the required boxes to qualify as a quintessentially English rural village. Unlike some of its immediate neighbours, Ellerker has not been overrun with new housing development. Instead, it still boasts a scattered cluster of distinctive older buildings made with materials extracted from local quarries as well as paddocks, crofts, farms, meandering country lanes, a stream and a large public green.

As a recent appraisal report on the Conservation Area covering most of the village put it: “Ellerker retains an open character, built form and quality of landscape that represents a rare survival of a pre-industrialised settlement.” A lack of kerbs, road markings and signs only add to its timeless quality. Many signs removed during the Second World War in a pre-emptive attempt to confuse invading German troops simply never re-appeared once the war ended. The same fate also befell a historic milestone which was buried in a secret spot for safekeeping. The elderly resident who kept it safe later died without divulging its whereabouts.

However right in the middle of this peaceful agricultural environment is an odd-looking stone wall complete with crenellations and archways, resembling something you might see as part of an ancient military castle. A clue to the wall’s origins can be seen high up in one section. Hand-carved into the stone is the legend: SEBASTOPOL 1855 A.D.

Scholars of the Crimean War will immediately recognise the name of the besieged city and the date as key elements of the conflict between the Russian Empire and the Allied forces of Britain, France, Turkey and Sardinia. So was the wall brought back from the Black Sea port and re-built in Ellerker as some kind of memorial? Not quite, apparently.

According to local legend it was actually made from ballast used in ships sailing from Hull taking troops, ammunition and supplies to Crimea. At the time, stone for ballast was brought from Iceland by whaling ships. The same stone was also used to pave streets in Hull and nearby villages. Both the ballast and some of the vessels in question belonged to the owner of Ellerker Hall who is said to have decided to re-create a chunk of Crimea in the village.

Why it was built is not really known but the most popular theory suggests it was intended to spare the hall’s owner from having to see an elderly woman who lived in a cottage opposite using her outside toilet. Today, her former property is officially known as Sebastopol Cottage. I’m told it now has an inside loo.

Angus Young

University of Hull professor Robb Robinson tells another tale from Hull’s maritime history.

Have a look inside one the most fascinating and important places in the city.

Before you fork out for an expensive household items, maybe pop down Endike Lane and borrow it, says our appliance leasing correspondent Angus Young.

Here at Curiosity Hull we love our libraries. So when I needed a leaf shredder but didn’t fancy buying one I naturally headed to Endike Lane in North Hull to visit the rather wonderful Library of Stuff.

LoS works a bit like a traditional lending library but instead of books, the shelves are stocked with, well, stuff. Patio pressure washers, camping tents, sets of golf clubs complete with trolleys, a pasting table, disco lights, fondue sets and litter picking kits to name but a few. Currently the most popular item is the humble carpet cleaner.

Founder and director Alan Dalgairns is used to the inevitable question about just how many things are available to borrow. “We have got 1,600 items available and we typically lend around 100 items a week with the same number being returned which makes it pretty busy because we’re only open two days a week,” he says.

Run as a not-for-profit community interest company, the library operates through a membership scheme. You can choose between a £80 yearly membership which allows you to borrow items for free or opt to pay per item as listed in the library’s online catalogue after paying a £5 joining fee.

Prior to pick up, items can be reserved via the website and the typical loan is for seven days. Alan launched Library of Stuff in his own garage five years ago, keen to see if an idea he’d seen elsewhere would work in Hull. “It was March 2020, the week before the Covid lockdown so we were immediately shut for three months. When we were able to open again under social distancing I used to leave items half-way down the drive for people to collect.”

At the time there were only five other projects like it in the whole of the UK. Now there are 15 with London’s Library of Things boasting now fewer than 21 branches scattered across the capital. Although most operate slightly differently, they all share the common aim of allowing people to borrow things at affordable prices instead of them being forgotten about in a loft or ending up in landfill. “Unfortunately we live in a throwaway society but we are trying to buck that trend by  encouraging people to reuse things and donate items if they can,” said Alan.

Having worked in IT most of his life, he’s now relishing being part of a growing network of grassroots libraries lending practical hands-on things. “This is my first job working directly with the community and I’ve got to admit it’s been a breath of fresh air. Everyone has been fantastic and so supportive. Library of Stuff exists to make essential items accessible to everyone in Hull, regardless of their income. In times when families are choosing between heating and eating, we believe no-one should have to spend hundreds of pounds on items they will only use occasionally. We keep our borrowing fees intentionally low so that all families can access equipment they need.”.

Support for the LoS was underlined recently when a Crowdfunder appeal aiming to raise £7,380 to cover its annual rental, utilities and insurance costs ended up attracting  £11,000 in donations.

As well as its lending service, the LoS runs a monthly repair cafe at Unity in Community in Greenwood Avenue, North Hull, where people can book a slot to have items fixed while some of the library’s most popular items are also available to borrow from a number of special lockers based at the Freedom Centre in Preston Road, East Hull.

Angus Young

Actor Matt takes us for a wander (and a bit of shopping) down Hepworth’s Arcade.