| Grimsby | |
|---|---|
    
| |
  Grimsby Location withinLincolnshire | |
| Population | 86,138 (2021 Census)[1] |
| Demonym | Grimbarian |
| OS grid reference | TA279087 |
| • London | 140 mi (230 km) S |
| Unitary authority | |
| Ceremonial county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Areas of the town (2011 census BUASD) | |
| Post town | GRIMSBY |
| Postcode district | DN31 – DN34, DN36, DN37, DN41 |
| Dialling code | 01472 |
| Police | Humberside |
| Fire | Humberside |
| Ambulance | East Midlands |
| UK Parliament | |
| |
Grimsby orGreat Grimsby is aport town inLincolnshire, England with a population of 86,138 (as of 2021). It is located near the mouth on the south bank of theHumber that flows to theNorth Sea. Grimsby adjoins the town ofCleethorpes directly to the south-east forming aconurbation. It is the administrative centre of the borough ofNorth East Lincolnshire, which alongsideNorth Lincolnshire is officially part of theYorkshire and the Humber region. Grimsby is 45 mi (72 km) north-east ofLincoln, 33 mi (53 km) (via theHumber Bridge) south-east ofHull, and 50 mi (80 km) east ofDoncaster.
Grimsby has notable landmarks includingGrimsby Minster,Port of Grimsby, Cleethorpes Beach andGrimsby Fishing Heritage Centre. Grimsby was once the home port for the world's largest fishing fleet around the mid-20th century,[2] but fishing then fell sharply. TheCod Wars denied UK access to Icelandic fishing grounds and theEuropean Union used itsCommon Fisheries Policy to parcel out fishing quotas to other European countries in waters within 200 nmi (370 km) of the UK coast. Grimsby sufferedpost-industrial decline like most other industrial towns and cities in the UK.[3]
Food production has been on the rise in Grimsby since the 1990s. The Grimsby–Cleethorpesconurbation acts as a cultural and economic centre for much of north and east Lincolnshire. Grimsby people are called Grimbarians.[4] The termcodhead is also used jokingly, often for football supporters.[5][6][7] Great Grimsby Day is 22 January.[4] Grimsby is the second largest settlement by population in Lincolnshire afterLincoln.
The town was named "Great Grimsby" to distinguish it fromLittle Grimsby, a village about 14 mi (23 km) to the south, near Louth. It had a population of 88,243 in the 2011 census and an estimated population of 88,323 in 2019.[8] It forms a conurbation withCleethorpes and the villages ofHumberston,Scartho,Brigsley andWaltham. The 2011 population of the conurbation was 134,160,[9] making it the largest built-up area inLincolnshire.
There isarchaeological evidence of a small town of Roman workers in the area in the 2nd century AD during Roman occupation. Located on The Haven, which flowed into theHumber, the site long provided a location for ships to shelter from approaching storms. It was well placed to exploit the rich fishing grounds in theNorth Sea.[citation needed]
Sometime in the 9th century AD, Grimsby was settled byDanes. Localfolklore claims that the name Grimsby derives fromGrim, aDanish (as an old term closer to "Viking") fisherman.[10] The commontoponymic suffix-by is derived from theOld Norse wordbýr for village (compare withNorwegian:by,Danish:by andSwedish:by). The legendary founding of Grimsby features in a medieval romance, theLay of Havelock the Dane, but historians see this account as a myth.
In Norse mythology,Grim (Mask) andGrimnir (Masked One) are names adopted by the deityOðin (Anglo-SaxonWoðen) when travelling incognito amongst mortals, as in the short poem known as "Grimnir's Sayings" (Grimnismal) in thePoetic Edda.[11] The intended audience of the Havelock tale, recorded much later as theLay of Havelock the Dane, may have taken the fisherman Grim to be Odin in disguise.
The Oðinic name "Grimr/Grim" occurs in many English place names in the historicalDanelaw and elsewhere in Britain. Examples are numerous earthworks namedGrimsdyke.[12] Other British place names with the elementGrim are explained as referring to Woðen/Oðin (e.g. Grimsbury, Grimspound, Grime's Graves, Grimsditch, Grimsworne), and Grimsby is likely to have the same derivation.
Grimsby is listed in theDomesday Book of 1086 as having a population of around 200, a priest, a mill, and a ferry.
In the 12th century, Grimsby grew into a fishing and trading port, at one time ranking twelfth in importance to the Crown for tax revenue. The town gained its charter fromKing John in 1201. The first mayor was installed in 1202.[13]
Grimsby is noted in theOrkneyinga Saga in thisDróttkvætt stanza byKali Kolsson:
Vér hǫfum vaðnar leirur vikur fimm megingrimmar; |
Grimsby had no town walls. It was too small and felt to be protected by the marshland around it. However, the town dug a defensive ditch.
Grimsby in medieval times had two parish churches,St Mary's andSt James. St James, nowGrimsby Minster, remains. It is associated with a folk tale of animp who played tricks in the church and was turned into stone by an angel. A similar tale is told ofLincoln Cathedral – seeLincoln Imp.
In the mid-14th century, Grimsby benefited from the generosity ofEdmund de Grimsby, a local man who became a senior Crown official and judge in Ireland.
In the 15th century, The Haven began to silt up, preventing ships in the Humber from docking. As a result, Grimsby entered a long period of decline until the late 18th century. In 1801, the population of Grimsby was 1,524,[14] around the size it had been in theMiddle Ages. By 1810 Joseph Smedley was hiring a purpose built theatre for seven Guineas.[15]
In May 1796, theGrimsby Haven Company was formed by theGreat Grimsby (Lincoln) Harbour Act 1796 (36 Geo. 3. c. 98), also known as the Grimsby Haven Act 1796, for the purpose of "widening, deepening, enlarging, altering and improving the Haven of the Town and Port of Great Grimsby". After the dredging of The Haven and related improvement in the early 19th century, Grimsby grew rapidly as the port boomed, importing iron, timber, wheat, hemp, and flax. New docks were needed to cope with the expansion. The necessary works were allowed under theGrimsby Docks Act 1845 (8 & 9 Vict. c. ccii).[citation needed]
In 1848, the arrival of the railway eased the transport of goods to and from the port to markets and farms. Coal mined in the SouthYorkshire coalfields was brought by rail and exported through Grimsby. Rail links direct to London and theBillingsgate Fish Market allowed fresh "Grimsby fish" to gain nationwide renown. The first true fish dock opened in Grimsby in 1856, and the town became central to the development of the commercial fishing industry.
TheDock Tower was completed in 1851, followed by theRoyal Dock in 1852.No.1 Fish Dock was completed in 1856, followed byNo.2 Fish Dock in 1877.Alexandra Dock andUnion Dock were completed in 1879. During this period, the fishing fleet was much expanded. In a rare reversal of usual trends, large numbers of fishermen from the south-east and Devon travelled north to join the Grimsby fleet. Over 40 per cent of the newcomers came from Barking in East London and other Thames-side towns.[16]
In 1857, there were 22 vessels in Grimsby. Six years later there were 112.[17] The first two legitimate steam trawlers built in Britain were based in Grimsby. A gale in February 1889 resulted in the loss of fifteensmacks and 70 to 80 lives. At that time it was thought to be one of the most serious losses to a single port.[18]
By 1900, a tenth of the fish consumed in the United Kingdom was landed there, although there were also many smaller coastal fishing ports and villages involved.[17] The demand for fish in Grimsby meant that at its peak in the 1950s it claimed to be the largest fishing port in the world.[19] The population grew from 75,000 in 1901 to 92,000 by 1931.
TheGreat Depression and restructured fishing caused a sharp decline in employment. After that the population was fairly stable for the rest of the 20th century.[20]
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The Royal Dock became the UK's largest base forminesweepers patrolling theNorth Sea. The Admiralty requisitioned numerous trawlers to serve the purpose of theRoyal Naval Patrol Service. Often the crew was ex-trawlermen, alongside Royal Naval Reserve and Royal Navy volunteers. Trawlers used the winches and warps from fishing operations to tow aparavane with a cutting jaw through the water in what was known as a "sweep" to bring mines to the surface and allow for their removal.
This hazardous work lost the Patrol Service more vessels than any other Royal Navy branch in the Second World War; 2,385 men died.[21] Grimsby's Royal Naval Patrol Service veterans financed a memorial beside the Dock Tower to ensure that the bravery and sacrifice of their comrades were not forgotten.[21][22]
On 14 June 1943, an early-morning air raid by theLuftwaffe dropped several 1,000-kg bombs, 6,000 incendiary bombs and over 3,000Butterfly Bombs in the Grimsby area,[23] killing 99 people. In total, Second World War bombing raids in Grimsby and Cleethorpes killed 196, while another 184 were seriously injured.[23] TheButterfly Bombs that littered the area hampered fire-fighting crews trying to reach locations damaged by incendiary bombs. The search for bodies continued for a month after the raid.[23]
HMS Grimsby is aSandown class minehunter (commissioned in 1999) currently in service in theRoyal Navy.
After the pressures placed on the industry during theCod Wars and theEuropean Union'sCommon Fisheries Policy, which redistributed fishing quotas to other EU nations, many Grimsby firms decided to cease trawling operations there. The sudden demise of the industry brought an end to a way of life and community that had lasted for generations. The loss of the fishing industry brought severe economic and social problems for the town.[24] Huge numbers became redundant, highly skilled in jobs that no longer existed, and struggled to find work ashore. As with theRoss Group, some firms concentrated on expanding industries within the town, such as food processing.
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Grimsby's trawling days are remembered through artefacts and permanent exhibits at the town'sFishing Heritage Centre. A preserved 1950s trawler,Ross Tiger, is located here. Few fishing vessels still operate from Grimsby's docks, but the town maintains a substantial fish market important in Europe.[25]
Grimsby was struck byan F1/T3 tornado on 23 November 1981, as part of a record-breaking nationwide tornado outbreak that day.[26] From the mid-1980s, the former Humber ferryPSLincoln Castle has been moored in Alexandra Dock. She was used during this time as a pub\restaurant, but despite her design and status as Britain's last coal-fired paddle steamer, the catering no longer yielded a profit. The ship was broken up in 2010.[27] Berthed in Alexandra Dock is theRoss Tiger, the last survivor of what was once the world's largest fleet of sidewinder trawlers.[28]
The town was described inThe Daily Telegraph in 2001 as one "subjected to... many crude developments over the past 30-odd years" and a town which "seemingly shuns the notion of heritage."[29] Redevelopment was planned as part ofYorkshire Forward's Renaissance Towns Programme,[citation needed] but the scheme was abandoned in 2012.
In the early 21st century, the town faced the challenges of apost-industrial economy on top of the decline in its fishing industry. The East Marsh ward of the town is the second most deprived in the country, according to government statistics.[30]
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A little under half of the population of Great Grimsby and Cleethorpes reported a religious affiliation in the 2021 Census, mainly Christian, with Muslim, Buddhist, Hindu, Sikh,Jewish and other minorities making up around 3% of the population.[31] In 2024, 95.7% of the population of Grimsby town identified with a white ethnic group.[32]
Since the December2019 general election,Lia Nici (Conservative) has been the Member of Parliament for theGreat Grimsby constituency, having won the seat from the former MP,Melanie Onn (Labour), who had served since 2015. This lost the seat to the Labour Party for the first time in 74 years, not least underAustin Mitchell (Labour), who held it from 1977 to 2015.[33]
| Great Grimsby | |
|---|---|
 Grimsby Town Hall | |
 Great Grimsby as a Borough of Humberside | |
| Area | |
| • 1911 | 2,868 acres (11.61 km2) |
| • 1961 | 5,881 acres (23.80 km2) |
| History | |
| • Created | 1835 |
| • Abolished | 1996 |
| • Succeeded by | North East Lincolnshire |
| Status | Town Charter Granted 1201 Municipal Borough (1835–1889) County Borough (1889–1974) Borough (1974–1996) |
| • HQ | Grimsby |
 Arms of Great Grimsby Borough Council | |
Great Grimsby formed an ancient Borough in theNorth Riding of Lindsey.[34] It was reformed by theMunicipal Corporations Act 1835 and became a Municipal Borough in that year.[35] In 1889 a County Council was created for Lindsey, but Great Grimsby was outside its area of control and formed an independentCounty Borough in 1891.[35] The Borough expanded to absorb the adjacent hamlet of Wellow (1889), also the neighbouring parishes ofClee-with-Weelsby (1889),Little Coates (1928),Scartho (1928),Weelsby (1928) andGreat Coates (1968). It had its own police force until 1967 when it was merged into the Lincolnshire force.[36]
In 1974, the County Borough was abolished[35] and Great Grimsby was reconstituted with the same boundaries asGrimsby non-metropolitan district in the new county ofHumberside, under theLocal Government Act 1972. The district was renamedGreat Grimsby in 1979.
In the early 1990s, area local government came under review from theLocal Government Commission for England; Humberside was abolished in 1996. The former Great Grimsby district merged with that ofCleethorpes to form the unitary authority ofNorth East Lincolnshire.[37] The town does not have its own town council, instead just a board ofCharter Trustees. In 2007, in the struggle for identity, it was suggested that the district be renamedGreat Grimsby and Cleethorpes, but this did not meet with favour among local residents, and the Council Leader dropped the idea a year later.[38]
North East Lincolnshire Council has eight Council wards within the area of Grimsby:
The main sectors of the economy are ports and logistics, food processing, specifically frozen foods and fish processing, chemicals and process industries and digital media.[24]Cleethorpes to the east has a tourist industry. To the west along the Humber bank to Immingham, there has been large-scale industrial activity since the 1950s, around chemicals and from the 1990s gas-powered electricity generation.
Grimsby is strongly linked with the sea fishing industry that once generated wealth for the town. At its peak in the 1950s, it was the largest and busiest fishing port in the world.[28] TheCod Wars withIceland, and theEuropean Union'sCommon Fisheries Policy sent this industry into decline for many years. In 1970 around 400 trawlers were based in the port, but by 2013 only five remained, while 15 vessels were being used to maintain offshore wind farms in the North Sea.[30] The town still has the largest fish market in the UK, but most of what is sold is brought overland from other ports or fromIceland bycontainerisation. Of the 18,000 tonnes of fresh fish sold in Grimsby fish market in 2012, almost 13,000 tonnes, mainly cod and haddock, came from Iceland.[30]
Grimsby houses some 500 food-related companies, as one of the largest concentrations of such firms in Europe. The local council has promoted Grimsby asEurope's Food Town for nearly 20 years.[40] In 1999, the BBC reported that more pizzas were produced than anywhere else in Europe, including Italy.[41]
Grimsby is recognised as the main centre of the UK fish-processing industry; 70 per cent of the UK's fish-processing industry is located there.[30] In recent years, this expertise has led to diversification into all forms of frozen and chilled foods.[24] It is one of the largest centres of fish processing in Europe. More than 100 local companies are involved in fresh and frozen fish production, the largest being the Findus Group (seeLion Capital LLP), comprisingYoung's Seafood andFindus, with its corporate headquarters in the town. Young's is a major employer, with some 2,500 people based at its headquarters. From this base, Young's has a global sourcing operation supplying 60 species from 30 countries.[42]
Traditional Grimsby smoked fish was awarded aProtected Geographical Indication (PGI) in 2009 by the European Union. The traditional process uses overnight cold smoking from sawdust in tall chimneys, roughly 1 by 2 m (3 ft 3 in by 6 ft 7 in) square and 10m high.[43]
Other major seafood companies include the Icelandic-ownedColdwater Seafood,[44] employing more than 700 across its sites in Grimsby; andFive Star Fish,[45] a supplier of fish products to the UK food market.
The £5.6 million Humber Seafood Institute,[46] the first of its kind in the UK, opened in 2008. Backed by Yorkshire Forward, North East Lincolnshire Council and the European Regional Development Fund, it is managed by the local council. Tenants include the Seafish Industry Authority andGrimsby Institute and University Centre. Greater Grimsby is a European centre of excellence in producing chilled prepared meals, and the area has Europe's largest concentration of cold-storage facilities.[47]
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ThePort of Grimsby has been in use since the medieval period. The first enclosed dock, later known as theOld Dock, was built in the 1790s by theGrimsby Haven Company. Major expansion came with the railways and construction of theRoyal Dock, Grimsby in the 1840s. AFish Dock was added in 1857, and the fish docks expanded over the next 80 years. The Old Dock was expanded to formAlexandra Dock in the 1880s. The Kasbah is a historic area between the Royal Dock and Fish Dock marked by a network of streets that remains home to many artisan fish-processing businesses.[48]
Fishing activities were reduced to a fraction of former levels in the second half of the 20th century. The current port has become a centre for car imports and exports, and since 1975 for general cargo. In the early 21st century, it has developed as a wind-farm maintenance base.
High-street shopping is grouped in central Grimsby between the railway and River Freshney, where Victoria Street acts as a central pedestrianised shopping street with an undercoverFreshney Place centre to the north. Freshney Place is visited by 14 million shoppers a year and employs over 2,000 staff.[49] The centre houses over 100 stores,[49] includingMarks and Spencer andHouse of Fraser. Constructed between 1967 and 1971 in a joint venture between the oldGrimsby Borough Council and developersHammerson's UK Ltd., it was known as theRiverhead Centre (so named as the development was adjacent to where the two local rivers, theFreshney and the Haven, meet). Hammerson's UK Ltd began a £100 million redevelopment of the retail centre, doubling it in size. The expanded centre was covered in a glass roof. Two multi-storey car parks were constructed at each end of the centre; with this development, the oldTop Town area of Grimsby was effectively privatised and roofed over. Stores are serviced at the first floor by ramps at the western end, which can accommodate even large vehicles. The ramp also provides access to the car park on the roof of the indoor market, which is operated by the local council. Freshney Place won a design commendation in the Refurbishment Category of the 1993BCSC awards.[50]
In the town centre Bethlehem and Osborne Street are also mixed in use, hosting retail, legal and service functions to the south of Victoria Street. Many local independent stores operate, several at theAbbeygate Centre off Bethlehem Street. Once the head office of local brewersHewitt Brothers, the building was renovated in the mid-1980s and now houses restaurants and designer clothing stores.
The town has two markets, one next to Freshney Place and the other inFreeman Street (B1213). This was a dominant shopping area with close ties to the docks, but industry and demographic changes have led it to struggle since the late 1970s. Previously the town centre area was rivalled by the Freeman Street shopping area, located closer to the docks. Freeman Street retains its covered market. Grimsby town centre has re-emerged in prominence as the docks declined and shops such as Marks and Spencer relocated to central Grimsby.
Other developments near the town centre since the 1980s include the Alexandra Retail Park and Sainsbury's to the west of Alexandra Dock, an Asda store between the town centre and Freeman Street, and the Victoria Mills Retail Park off thePeaks Parkway A16,[51] which has several chain stores, includingNext and close to aTesco Extra (the second in the area.[52]B&Q opened a large store off the Peaks Parkway to the east of the town centre.[53] Unlike many towns where shopping has been built on the outskirts, these and similar developments were placed around Grimsby's town centre. This keeps shopping in a compact area, easier on pedestrians and public transport users.
Some out-of-town development has taken place, with Morrisons building a store just outside the town in the parish ofLaceby. It is known as Morrisons Cleethorpes. This name derives from a period when the area was part of the now defunctCleethorpes Borough. Most major supermarkets have expanded in the early 21st century, including Asda, and Tesco at Hewitts Circus, which is technically in adjoining Cleethorpes.
Such is the quality of shopping in the area that bus services bring shoppers from acrossLincolnshire, especially smaller towns such asLouth,[54]Brigg, andScunthorpe.[55]
Grimsby is beginning to develop as an energy centre. In 2016, Grimsby generated more electricity from renewable solar, wind, biomass andlandfill gas than anywhere else in England.[56] In 2016, Grimsby sourced 28 per cent of its electricity from green sources.[56] Its proximity to the biggest cluster of offshorewind farms in Europe has brought around 1,500 jobs to the area, most of them in turbine maintenance.[56]
Grimsby is 45 mi (72 km) north-east ofLincoln, 33 mi (53 km) (via theHumber Bridge) south-south-east ofHull, 28 mi (45 km) south-east ofScunthorpe, 50 mi (80 km) east ofDoncaster and 80 mi (130 km) south-east ofLeeds.
TheEnvironment Agency has awardedSheffield-based telemetry company CSE Seprol a contract to supply flood-warning devices for risk areas inEast Anglia. The 18 sirens, at various locations round the flood-risk area of Grimsby and Cleethorpes, should reach 25,500 households to warn of flood danger. They will be sounded only in the event of theEnvironment Agency issuing a severe flood warning for tidal flooding, or if it is likely the sea defences will be breached. The sirens make various sounds, from the traditional wail to a voice message.[57]
Secondary schools in Grimsby includeOasis Academy Wintringham andOrmiston Maritime Academy.Private schools includeSt James' School.[citation needed] Park House mainly teaches pupils who have been suspended or excluded by other schools, and according toBBC News is "turning many of those lives around".[58]
Franklin College is asixth form college. TheGrimsby Institute offersfurther andhigher education courses mostly for vocational purposes. Its business courses have attracted a sizeable number of Chinese students in recent years.[59]
Grimsby lies 15 mi (24 km) from the nearest motorway, theM180, which continues asA180 into the town and acts as a link with the national motorway network.[24] The town is skirted by theA18, with theA46 passing through to provide a connection towardsLincoln, while theA16 links it toLouth and south and eastern Lincolnshire. The transport infrastructure was described in a report by theEuropean Commission as strong and as a help to Grimsby's transition to a food-processing centre.[24] It was once derided as being "on the road to nowhere" by the writer and criticA. A. Gill.[60]
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Grimsby's bus services are provided byStagecoach in Lincolnshire, which took over fromGrimsby-Cleethorpes Transport (CGT) in 1993. This had been formed in 1957 by a merger of separate Grimsby and Cleethorpes transport undertakings. Stagecoach had all the buses resprayed to their standard livery to replace the colour scheme of orange and white introduced in 1987. GCT ran a mixture of crewed and one-person operated services,[citation needed] but in 1982 the job of the conductor was abolished.
In 2005, Stagecoach bought outLincolnshire Road Car, which servedSouth Killingholme,Louth,Barton-upon-Humber and the Willows Estate. The company is now known asStagecoach in Lincolnshire. Joint ticketing began withStagecoach Grimsby-Cleethorpes in May 2006.[citation needed] From September 2006, a new fleet of low-floor single-deckers was introduced, making the fleet an unprecedented 85 per cent low-floor.[citation needed]
The main bus exchange in Grimsby isRiverhead Exchange.
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Grimsby has rail links viaGrimsby Town railway station andGrimsby Docks railway station. There is alevel crossing in the centre of the town acrossWellowgate.TransPennine Express provides direct trains toManchester Airport viaDoncaster andSheffield, whilstEast Midlands Railway operates services toBarton-upon-Humber, for buses toHull,Northern has Saturday service to Sheffield via Brigg but it is temporarily suspended. TheLeicester ViaLincoln &Nottingham are served byEast Midlands Railway. The service to Cleethorpes runs at least hourly during the day along a single track, passing stations atGrimsby Docks andNew Clee.
Grimsby had two tramway networks: theGrimsby District Light Railway and theGrimsby & Immingham Electric Railway.
Grimsby Electric was a normal-gauge tramway opened in 1912 betweenCorporation Bridge at Grimsby andImmingham. There was no physical connection with the railway system. It provided passenger services between Grimsby and Immingham until it closed in 1961. It is claimed that once this was controlled by the corporation, it had more interest in supporting the motorbus service, now No. 45.
Grimsby Light Railway opened in 1881 using horse-drawn trams. In 1901, these were replaced with electric tramways.[citation needed] In 1925 the Grimsby Transport Company bought the tramway company and in 1927 moved the depot to the Victoria Street Depot, an oldsea plane hangar.[citation needed] This system closed in 1937. The depot continues to be used by Stagecoach, although the old Grimsby Tramways livery is still visible on the front of the building.
Operating in the area until the 1950s was a network of electrically operated trolleybuses served by overhead power lines.[citation needed]
Humberside Airport is 14 mi (23 km) west of Grimsby and mainly caters for charter holidays. It is popular for general aviation, with five flying clubs based there.
The local football teamGrimsby Town F.C., nicknamed The Mariners, has played inLeague Two, the fourth tier of English football, since its promotion from theVanarama National League in the 2021/22 season. Its ground isBlundell Park inCleethorpes. It is the oldest professionalfootball team inLincolnshire and one of the oldest in the country, being formed in 1878 as Grimsby Pelham, with a home ground on land off Ainslie Street.
In the 1930s Grimsby Town played in the English First Division, then the highest level of the domestic game in England. Grimsby played in twoFA Cup semi-finals in the 1930s: in 1936 againstArsenal, and in 1939 against theWolverhampton Wanderers. The latter semi-final was held atOld Trafford, Manchester, and the attendance (76,962) is still a record for the stadium.
In May 2010, Grimsby Town was relegated to the Football Conference, losing its status as a League club.[62] It returned to the Football League after gaining promotion via theNational League play-off final in 2016, beatingForest Green Rovers 3–1 atWembley Stadium.[63] The team reached the FA Cup quarter-finals in 1987 and in 1998 won theAuto Windscreens Shield[64] and the second division play-off final. Notable former managers includeBill Shankly,Lawrie McMenemy andAlan Buckley.
Blundell Park's Main Stand is the oldest in English professional football. It opened in 1899, although only the present foundations date from that time. There have been plans to relocate the club to a new stadium, including one at the side of Peaks Parkway in Grimsby.[65]
Grimsby Borough F.C. is a football club established in 2003 and based in Grimsby. It belongs to theNorthern Counties East League Division One.
An ice hockey club has been based in Grimsby since 1936. It has teams playing at various levels throughout theEnglish Ice Hockey Association structure, under the name of Grimsby Red Wings. In 2009 the club added anice sled hockey team to ensure that it was able to offer a fully inclusive sport for the NE Lincolnshire area.
The amateurRugby Union side, theGrimsby RUFC, and an amateur cricket side, the Grimsby TownCricket Club, attract reasonable levels of support. The Grimsby ScorpionsAmerican Football team operated until 2014 before relocating toHull, where it merged with Hull's team asHumber Warhawks. Despite playing in another county the club maintains representation of bothEast Yorkshire andNorth East Lincolnshire.
Tennis teams from local clubs have been successful in various inter-county competitions. The men's team fromGrimsby Tennis Centre won the Lincolnshire Doubles League in 2005. Tennis players from the town represent the county on a regular basis at all age levels. Grimsby Tennis Centre underwent a major redevelopment of facilities in 2005 and is now wholly accessible to disabled people.
The town had one of the largest table tennis leagues in the country,[66] with over 120 teams competing in the 1970s, but like the game ofsquash, the sport has declined in the town during recent years.
Before the late 1960s many public houses in the area were owned by the local brewer Hewitt Brothers and had a distinctive local touch. In 1969, it was taken over by the brewerBass-Charrington. The pubs have been re-badged many times, closed or sold off.[67][68]The Barge Inn is a former grain barge converted into a pub/restaurant. It has been moored at the Riverhead quay since 1982.
Musical entertainment is provided at theGrimsby Auditorium, built in 1995 in Cromwell Road, Yarborough, near Grimsby Leisure Centre. The smaller Caxton Theatre is in Cleethorpe Road (A180) in East Marsh, near the docks. The Caxton Theatre[69] provides entertainment by adults and youths in theatre. Notable in the area is the Class Act Theatre Company run by the local playwright David Wrightam.
North East Lincolnshire Council has installed a Wi-Fi network covering Victoria Street in central Grimsby. The service gives access to the Internet to the general public on a yearly subscription.
Grimsby's Freeman Street cinema closed in 2004,[70] leaving the Parkway cinema in Cleethorpes to serve the town. Periodic plans to build a new cinema in Grimsby have been made since.[71] The Whitgift Film Theatre inJohn Whitgift Academy shows a programme of limited release and art-house films.
Grimsby is the site of aBlue Cross Animal Hospital, one of only four in the country, the other three being in London. Previously on Cleethorpe Road, the Grimsby hospital moved in 2005 to a new building, Coco Markus House, on Nelson Street.
TheGrimsby Telegraph, had an audited circulation of 14,344 copies in 2017. It is based in Heritage House near the Fishing Heritage Centre.[73]
The local radio stations areBBC Radio Humberside,Hits Radio Lincolnshire,Hits Radio East Yorkshire & North Lincolnshire andGreatest Hits Radio Yorkshire. The transmitter for Greatest Hits Radio andBauer Humberside is on top of ablock of flats in East Marsh.
Terrestrial television coverage based in the area comes fromBBC Yorkshire and Lincolnshire andITV Yorkshire, which has a news broadcast based inImmingham. That's TV Humberside (formerlyEstuary TV and Channel 7 Television) broadcast onFreeview channel 8 and onVirgin Media channel 159.
Listed in alphabetical order (Grimbarians were mainly born at the former Grimsby Maternity Hospital in Nunsthorpe, Grimsby. Many were born at the defunct Croft Baker Maternity Hospital in nearby Cleethorpes. Those born and/or brought up nearby include:
People with Grimsby connections:
Grimsby'stwin cities include:
As a port with trading ties to Continental Europe, the Nordic nations and Baltic Europe,[90] the town houseshonorary consulates of Denmark,[91] Iceland,[92] and Norway.[93] Swedish and Finnish honorary consulates are located in Immingham,[94][95] and that of Germany atBarrow-upon-Humber.[96]
The people of Norway have sent a tree to the town of Grimsby every Christmas since the end of the Second World War. The Norwegian city of Trondheim sent a tree for 40 years until 2003, since when the tree has been donated by the northern Norwegian town ofSortland and placed in the town's Riverhead Square.[97][98][99][100] During redevelopment of Riverhead Square the tree has been placed in the Old Market Place since 2013.
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