The Royal British Legion
Penistone RBL Club
RBL clubs in this country are mostly intended for service
(armed forces) and ex-service people with associate membership for non-service members. These days the members are mostly non-service. The Penistone RBL social club has always been a warm, comfortable and friendly place with a variety of company, entertainment and drinks. It used to be very difficult to join at one time (unless service or ex-service) with a long waiting
list but this has eased off in recent times as the rules have been relaxed to encourage more members. Even so, members must be proposed by a member and scrutinised by the committee to filter out any undesirable characters.
The Legion is mostly a haven for older people, who prefer a sedate atmosphere
with good beers at the right price.
I say 'sedate' here but entertainment in the lounge area can be as loud as any disco. Mind you,
that makes sense really - young 'uns like it loud and old 'us are more
deaf. The old gag is that the British Legion is 'a glimpse into the future'.
The lounge room is comfortably furnished with entertainment on various evenings and popular coffee mornings on Market Day.
Wednesday buskers' nights allow a platform for new and old talent. Popular Sunday quiz nights go on for a few weeks each year, with general knowledge and music quizzes using the often unpredictable PA system and with prizes of wine and beer vouchers. Monday Bingo nights were introduced into the lounge in Sept 2004 and have been popular ever since. The annual Harvest Festival is also a popular event (see below) and it is a must for New Year's eve.
The games room often has a lively atmosphere. It has two proper snooker tables
which are very popular and large-screen TVs for sports programmes. It can be very busy when major football matches are shown on TV.
Changes
Maureen and Robert Taylor had a very succesful stewardship of the club for something like eighteen years but retired from working in the club in 2008. The bar was then handed over to Steve and Helen Nursey, the former landlord and landlady of the Old Crown. The club was refurbished in 2001 and again a few years later, with false ceilings, general improvements and a somewhat troublesome air conditioning system. A new beer garden was built in 2008 at the front of the building and this has proved to be popular in the summer months. Another popular improvement in 2008 was the introduction of 'real ale' guest beer, which changes from week to week.
Penistone RBL Club History
The original local British
Legion was in the old 'Blue Ball' pub in Thurlstone, near the z-bend of the main road. It is long gone now and the building became a dwelling or possibly flats. It might be remembered for the word 'Skyliner' above the door in recent times. According to the 'Penistone and Stocksbridge Express' of 1935, the club moved to Penistone and opened in the old White Bear Inn 5th June 1926. It was entered by a door in the ginnel by the old cloth hall building which is now Clark's
Chemists. It moved to the current purpose-built building
in (I think) the mid nineteen-sixties. (Also see the Cloth Hall page).
Harvest Festivals
The RBL club has a Charity Harvest Festival every year after Penistone Show. The prize exhibits of fruit, vegetables and flowers from the Show are auctioned off, with shirts, hats, gadgets, etc. Local businesses also usually donate mystery prizes, such as a tankful of petrol or a meal for two, etc. Here are some 2007 pictures. The first view was before it started.
New Standard
An official standard is used by the RBL for ceremonial events. The old standard was replaced within the rules and traditions of the Royal British Legion. The new RBL Standard was dedicated at a well-supported special ceremony in Penistone Church, Sunday 20th September 2009. My thanks to Joe Pinguey, who was kind enough to send these pictures. Joe is a member of the RBL committee and their official photographer.
The National RBL Organisation
The Royal British Legion is a UK charity with a very proud tradition and is highly regarded for its work with the services. It was founded in 1921 to provide support to the serving and ex-Service community and families. It was granted the "Royal" prefix 29 May 1971 to mark its fiftieth anniversary. The RBL was a merger of four organisations: the "Comrades of the Great War", the "National Association of Discharged Sailors and Soldiers", the "National Federation of Discharged and Demobilised Sailors and Soldiers" and the "Officers' Association".
There are Royal British Legion social clubs in towns and cities throughout the country and it has 380,000 members in 2009. The organisation raises money for convalescent homes and other support for servicemen but particularly raises funds from the annual 'poppy appeal'. The paper poppies are sold in many shops and by volunteer sellers in the street. Other forms are also made, with some very large plastic ones and some affixed to small wooden crosses, for placing on graves.
It is a very British thing to wear a red paper poppy around October/November each year to commemorate those who have made the ultimate sacrifice in defence of our country in wars old and new. Most public figures and TV people in the UK make a point of wearing the poppy. The Queen always wears a specially made poppy for the cenotaph ceremony.
There is an annual British tradition to give two minutes silent contemplation or prayer in remembrance of those who died in the defence of our country. This happens throughout the country, even in shopping malls and on the more serious radio stations. It is 11am on the eleventh day of the eleventh month, the moment when the armistice of the Great War was signed. RBL clubs organise annual remembrance ceremonies throughout the country; in towns, cities
and many villages on the Sunday nearest to 11th November.
"They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old. Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn. At the going down of the sun, and in the morning. We will remember them." This is read out at every ceremony and the people join in and repeat at the end - "We will remember them"
Contact and Links
Please also visit the Remembrance Day page. 'Poppy Hero' volunteers are sought each year to help the work of the organisation and to sell poppies in the week or two before Remembrance Day. Anyone interested in helping can speak to club officials at the RBL club, Bridge St. Penistone or call organiser Denise Fudge on 01226 232083.
