University town in the north east of England. Was once a thriving fishing and whaling port. Gave rise to the Housemartins, the Beautiful South, Kingmaker and Everything But The Girl. Also home to the poet Phillip Larkin. Another famous resident was William Wilberforce, who was a vociferous campaigner for the abolition of the slave trade. If you visit go for a pint in the Old Black Boy. Most of the docks have now been filled in to create business and leisure parks. However, there is still a marina on the River Hull, where you can decide which boat you would buy if you won the lottery. While visiting the marina you should stop for a pint in Minerva.

Hull (that is, the English city) is known as the city of origin of such greats as William Wilberforce, John Venn, Paul Heaton of The Beautiful South, Philip Larkin, Maureen Lipman, and me. Once a thriving port catering to a booming fishing industry, the place was heavily bombed in World War II and never really recovered. Known as the `north-east coast town' due to the way it was described (without using its real name) in newsreels of the time.

Immortalised in the maxim "From Hull, Hell and Halifax, good lord deliver us", and not without good reason IMHO.

A nice place to visit, with plenty of pubs and cheesy nightclubs. But don't ever live there. I for one was glad to escape. A lot of my friends in the Royal Navy, on hearing I came from Hull, went on about how great a place it was, rendering me somewhat suprised until I realised that they come in on ships, spend a couple of days sampling the various pubs, and then go away again. They don't stay for long enough for the place to begin to grate (about a week, IME).

I heartily agree with Bagpuss and would recommend Ye Olde Black Boy to anyone. While you're there, sample a pint or three of the Black Boy Bitter. Then leave.


Albert Herring points out that Paul Heaton was not actually born in Hull. It turns out he's from Birkenhead. Nonetheless the Beautiful South was formed in Hull, AFAIK... and the video to Rotterdam shows a lot of the town centre.

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