THE HEDON BLOG audience grew in 2014 with 77, 971 visits to the website accounting for 303,239 page views (compared to 68,100 visits and 239,545 last year).
Our most popular new articles written during the course of the year covered a variety of subjects, but public appeals also pre-dominated:
- No. 5: Only written at the beginning of December, our appeal to keep your front doors locked had 1,167 views Burglar Alert! Lock your doors, even if you are inside!
No. 4: When Tilly the Staffordshire bull terrier was stolen from a Hedon garden in February the police contacted the Hedon Blog to share the public appeal for information. The subsequent appeal was widely shared on Facebook and after only a few hours the person who had bought the stolen dog spotted Tilly’s photo online and realised they had been duped. Tilly was soon re-united with her owners. 1,330 views.- No.3: A rather cynical post informing residents about the impending European Elections in May surprisingly makes number three. The tone of the article hinted that residents didn’t care or weren’t really bothered about the elections, but 1,569 views perhaps suggested otherwise?
- No 2: Following persistent rumours that the Hedon big Co-op Store on Hull Road would be closing down, the Blog contacted the Co-operative Food Group for a statement, in reply a spokesman said that whilst they aspired to develop more in the convenience sector (perhaps a hint towards what was to come in Thorngumbald with the intention to demolish the Royal Mail?) they had no plans to sell their larger stores. Co-op – rumours of store sell-off with 1,699 views.
- No 1: Our most popular single new article of 2014 was the news in January of the sudden closure of the Alison Hall Restaurant with 2,167 views. Interestingly, 6th on our list after the Top 5 above was the positive story about the opening of the new Zaika Indian Restaurant in the same Alison Hall building in July.
As well as the above new articles, some written previously have stood the test of time:
- In September 2011 we published a page about Takeaways in Hedon. The basic information hasn’t been updated since then (a New Year resolution perhaps?) but the information on the Shapla Tandoori Indian takeaway received 1,442 views during 2014.
- A favourite each year since first published in April 2009, Hedon’s Late Night and Hull’s Midnight Pharmacies continues to be visited regularly each year. 1,567 views during 2014 and 5,608 since 2009.
Some articles have just been a pleasure to write – especially those that recognise or celebrate the achievements of Hedon folk.
Peter Pawlett at 23 years old is becoming a soccer legend! The professional footballer plays for Aberdeen where he has lived since moving there from Hedon in 1999. He started playing for Aberdeen in 2009, but his first competitive games of football were at Hedon Inmans school! We re-discovered Peter’s links with the town in March when a 1980’s pop song brought Peter Pawlett to the attention of a wider audience! See: Peter Pawlett Baby!
Steve Robinson and son Harry Robinson are two other people to watch out for in the world of sport. The pair compete in the exciting, adrenaline-filled, coastal watersport of Aqua Cross. Steve came 3rd in the National Championships in 2014 and is currently ranked 7th top rider in the world! Harry only started competing this year when he reached the age of 14 allowing him to compete. But proving that the sport is in his blood, he still achieved 6th place for his class of jet ski in the 2014 UK competition. See: Hedon Boasts Champions!
Lucy Brooke hit the TV screens just last month when her novel-in-progress Static was highly praised by judges in a national writing competition to find a new best-selling author.
Steve Gallant is the Hedon man to watch as we head towards Hull’s historic City of Culture event in 2017. His appointment as a Board Member of Hull Truck Theatre puts the former music industry impresario in a great position to get involved with and offer his experience to that project.
Donna Piercy is another Hedon women to watch in 2015. Donna’s attempt to be the next Viking FM presenter got her through to 7th place in the radio station’s competition. Although not winning, we do keep on hearing about her on the radio…
PC Bob Pyle retired in April this year after being our Neighbourhood Policeman for 14 years. Hedon Mayor Councillor John Dennis presented Bob with a Hedon Shield and in the article gives a lovely tribute to him. We hope that Bob is enjoying his retirement.
Other articles were just fun to write!
Hedon Mayor Councillor John Dennis inspired the article which apparently was viewed with some trepidation by the powers-that-be in the Hull Guildhall. The discovery of an ancient urn in Hedon prompted plans to take over Hull! See: Hedon to regain lost Hull territory!
Back in April local explorers Keith Chadwick and Paul Sanderson (pictured) were seeking volunteers with big hands and strong backs to form part of an expedition to Ottringham Caves. The promised video footage of the expedition never materialised – apparently the camera was eaten by a whippet!
The Hedon Blog has also been the home to Malc Ripley’s Reminiscences – and we still have some of his photos still to publish! The series has proven and will continue to prove that articles on local history have ‘staying power’ – they are articles and photos that people will return to view again and again. So many thanks to Malc. The top item by Malc – just by a whisker – is this: Hedon – as it was!
The staple diet of the content on the Hedon Blog is the events organised by local people, particularly those to raise funds for charitable and good causes. To all those who have been involved in planning and preparing for such events – congratulations and well-done! You are the unsung heroes in the town.
The Hedon Blog pledges for its New Year Resolution to try to do even more to promote your efforts.
Happy New Year to all our readers. We wish you a healthy and happy 2015 😀
