LAST night the Advertiser had a leaving party for a real stalwart of local journalism.
Assistant editor Clifford Birchall has left the paper after a remarkable 38 years, during which he's done just about everything (he even revealed to a shocked audience that he once put his arm around Miss World, who borrowed his jacket!).
Cliff is a veteran of the local council/political scene and has been warming press benches across West Lancs since 1969. He's seen many legendary councillors in action, such as Phil Bond, a firebrand Labour councillor from Skem, and the avuncular Tory councillor Robert Hodge, a real gentleman of local politics who was respected right across West Lancs.
As a young hack, I knew that if I had a question about local council workings, Cliff would always know the answer, and then have a little anecdote to go with it. For someone all wet behind the ears, Cliff's knowledge was invaluable.
He once told me that at the old Skem & Holland UDC meetings, there would always been sandwiches laid on as the meetings were at such a time that many councillors wouldn't have time to go home. Apparently, they'd get there straight from work and debate right into the wee small hours! I don't know about the last bit, but the sarnies sound like a good idea.
So the Addy team got together last night to give him the farewell he deserves. After buying his presents, including a batch of Greenhalgh's potato cakes (his favoured lunchtime 'baggin') he had just short of £1 left over so Geoff, the sports ed, decided to put in on a horse.
He walked into the betting shop, observed the runners and racers and picked the aptly-titled News of The Day. He stuck 50p on it each way at 16-1 and remarkably it came in second, and therefore bagged £8 in winnings!
The 'do' was a great chance also to catch up with another reporting veteran Pat Roberts. I went to my first West Lancs District Council meeting with Pat and she showed me the ropes.
Her motherly instincts were a god-send for me, a rookie hack, who was a) scared stiff and b) didn't have a clue what was going on. That night, I didn't get to bed until 1am but believe me, I could have written a 2,000-essay from memory on the issues surrounding the council's Housing Revenue Account.
What last night proved (apart from the fact that the bitter in The Farmers' Club is excellent and strangely more-ish), is that down the years, the Addy has always put great importance on council/political issues.
Whereas some papers present it in a dull-as-ditchwater way, the Addy always tries to make it relevant to the man on the street by untangling the jargon, cutting through the spin and getting to the heart of the matter.
It's not easy at times, people will do anything to throw you off the scent of an important story or send you on a wild goose chase. This only makes us more determined to get to the truth.
So cheers Cliff, you're going to be a massively hard act to follow...
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