WTF are Yorkshire people so obsessed with ‘God’s Own Country’

Zayn Malik, Emily Brontë and Bad Boy Chiller Crew. What do all these people have in common? While at first glance, they may seem like an unlikely trio, these individuals are connected by something deeper than their varying careers and backgrounds. They represent a unique facet of modern identity – individuals whose roots trace back to the county of Yorkshire, where a rich heritage of folk and distinct culture have shaped their journeys. Split into four counties, Yorkshire boasts a population of 5.5 million, surpassing Scotland.

On Saturday 22nd of October, Yorkshire Day will be celebrated at Avalon Café, in Bermondsey, London. Although traditionally celebrated on the 1st of August, Yorkshire Day is set out to bring together London’s Yorkshire community. The event created by Sel, 26 year old a Yorkshire woman who has lived in London since she was 18 years old says: “To all Yorkshire traditionalists out there, we thought it was best we get together an av a knees up! [sic]”

The event promises to be an immersive Yorkshire experience honouring “Gods Own Country” full of northern soul, Bradford bassline, Thatcher Piñatas and is set to hold London’s first Yorkshire Pudding eating contest.

But, Yorkshire culture and tradition isn’t just tea, yorkshire puds and pies. It has developed over the years, being  influenced by the cultures of those who came to settle in the region including the Romans, Vikings, and British Afro-Caribbean windrush generation communities from the 1950’s onwards. Ross Phillip, 33, who has lived in London for 12 years says: “It’s a far more diverse place than you’d expect, in terms of the English countryside.” 

Sel is trying to bring the Yorkshire community together in London but she is also confronting a more significant question: Is the Yorkshire identity being lost in London? The vibrant diversity of London  has led to a blend of cultures and identities, leaving people to wonder if the Yorkshire way of life is gradually fading within the hustle and bustle of the city.

“Outdoorsy, wholesome and easy going” is how Sophie Mei eloquently describes her hometown Cumbria, Yorkshire.  Sophie’s experiences in London as a Chinese-Yorkshire woman and her experience in Yorkshire as a Chinese woman which for Mei, created a struggle finding her identity her whole life. Sophie was adopted from China at 11 months old, she grapples with nuances of her nationality and cultural identity living in London. She says: “To their question “where are you from” I say Yorkshire. I am from Yorkshire! I was flown here, raised here, learnt the Yorkshire culture, I ate the food and drank the tea.”

Martha Armitage, 26 a Yorkshire Woman living in London describes the general feeling of being from Yorkshire as being “friendly and warm” which she says is a large part of what makes up Yorkshire culture and why all people from Yorkshire think it is the best place on earth.

“Cheap, friendly and strong” is how Martha describes her hometown Sheffield, Yorkshire. Martha has been living in London since she was 18, and faced her own experiences of ignorance of being from the North of England. “He said he was from Derby, but said he doesn’t associate himself with the North. This made me so fucking angry!” She then goes on to say “It was only until I moved to London, I developed a sense of Yorkshire pride. And then like many people, being Northern became a part of my personality and identity.

A large part of the question surrounding identity of individuals from Yorkshire, is largely connected to the profound influence that Margret Thatcher had on the region from 1979 – 1990. Thatcherism and Thatcher’s legacy still haunts towns of the North of England, but also shifted the way that southerners think of northerners. The North-South divide has long been a prominent and sometimes playful aspect of English culture. Arguments over matters of subjects like the way we eat takeaways, the pronunciation of words and even becoming territorial over athletes, television shows and musicians like chips and gravy, most popular in the north or chips and curry sauce most popular in the south.

The sense of unity, solidarity and identity ingrained in Yorkshire and the North of England finds its origins in deep-seated historical and political forces. During the implementation of Thatcherism, a significant shift occurred. Thatcher’s government, applying Thatcherism, prioritising the South of England and pursuing policies that disproportionately affected the North causing unemployment rates and child poverty had more than doubled in the North.

As the festival and other Yorkshire individuals endeavour to bring together the Yorkshire community within London, the central question still lingers. Can the distinctive Yorkshire identity not only survive but thrive in this metropolis “I feel proud to be from Yorkshire. I don’t feel like southerners feel like that? It’s pride in saying fuck you to the wealthy snobs” says Martha.

London has proven itself to shine as a beacon of diversity, where cultures can converge in harmonious coexistence. But, let’s not forget in this colossal urban jungle, smaller communities might feel like their identities are playing a game of hide and seek amidst the city’s chaos. Whilst London dazzles, remembering smaller communities, too, hold their own vibrant tales, identities and dazzle.