This is a film made by a Sheffield filmmaker William Gordon Gregory – so named after the famous organiser of the Gordon Riots who died shortly before his birth. When he was well into his 50s, Gregory made a large number of films in the immediate post Second World War period, many of them in colour. Gregory was not a climber himself, although he was a walker – and played hockey and football for the University of Sheffield. He got to know members of the newly formed Peak Climbing Club and made this film about a couple of walkers, the young man and woman shown at the beginning of the film gazing up at the climbers in a pose that may have something to do with the newsreels of the day – and not only from this country! One well known climber who features in the film as a young man is the legendary Ron Townsend, still climbing into his 80s – seen in his plimsolls. For more on Gregory see the Context for Tinker, Taylor . . ? World Of Opportunity.

In the years immediately following the war many similar clubs took off across the country, and of course Sheffield was, and is, perfectly placed for climbing, almost surrounded by good climbing places. Climbing as a hobby goes back further than this though. Mountaineering as a sport, as with many other similar activities, was begun by the British upper and middle classes – who had the money and the time. The inspiration was the alps, in Austria, Switzerland, France and Italy. A famous climb that has been credited with beginning it all was that of Sir Alfred Wills’ ascent of the Wetterhorn in 1854, followed by that of Edward Whymper of the Matterhorn in 1865 – a feat that was later to be attempted hilariously by the Goons (who sent up many an upper class adventure).

From the London Alpine Club of 1857, climbers turned to British mountains. The golden age of British rock climbing followed the Second World War, helped by a shorter working week, paid holidays and advances in man-made materials. Yet climbing by those from the working class goes back to the depression of the 1930s when unemployed workers came out from Sheffield. Ron Townsend himself came from a working clas backgorund, working for 43 years in steel industry in Sheffield – the fresh air providing a welcome break from the being inside a steelworks! Two other famous examples of working class climbers from just after the war are the plumber Don Whillans from Salford and Joe Brown from Manchester – not to be confused with the singer. Both of these went on to climb with Chris Bonnington, who was from the other end of the social scale.

A lot of the time they would go early on a Saturday morning climb all day. If they had brought sleeping bags they would sleep in the caves or in the open if it was fine, ready for climbing on Sunday as well. They did not use books to help them on their way up Stanage. If the route looked difficult they would drop a rope down to help them. There were only a few people who climbed at the time so everyone knew each other. Ron worked in the steel industry in Sheffield for 43 years and climbing was an escape from it. At work they would be breathing in smoke and fumes and to escape to the country was a great release for him.

The film shows how much climbing clothing and equipment has changed over the years. It will be seen that some of the climbers are wearing clothing not much different from everyday wear – without helmets. The boots were common at that time, and when trying to climb rock where boots were too cumbersome, army plimsolls would be worn, also in evidence in the film. Ron notes that they would use black soled plimsolls like the ones that children used in school, whilst trousers and tops would be got from charity shops. At that time hemp ropes would be used attached simply to the waist, before the introduction of harnesses and leg loops to spread the weight. If the route looked awkward a rope would be dropped form the top. Experienced climbers will doubtless notice many other changes.

The film shows the climbers out on Stanage Edge, which has enough crevices for non-climbers to get to and enable William Gregory to film. Stanage Edge is a particular favourite place for climbing, having a large array of climbs for both beginners and for those seeking extremely difficult routes. William’s son, Dave Gregory, did go on to become a climber, starting up at a young age in 1949, just after this film was made – and continuing still. Dave went on to become a climbing Graduate Training Officer taking schoolchildren from Sheffield out climbing, and a Secretary with the British Mountaineering Council, with whom he has a life membership. Dave has written climbing guidebooks as well as a book of climbing short stories, A Necklace of Slings: a mix of fact and fiction from his climbing life. He has gained a reputation both as a climber and as something of an eccentric.

Mountaineering has taken on a symbolic role in representing an activity that seems to serve no purpose. Famously the mountaineer George Mallory when asked in 1923, "Why do you want to climb Mount Everest?" replied "Because it's there". Whether or not he actually said this or it was made up, the answer has become emblematic for doing something just for its own sake, satisfying a desire to be adventurous. Today, most climbing routes in England have already been done and plotted, as Niall Grimes does for 1,300 climbing routes on Stanage Edge, in Stanage: The Definitive Guide. Back in the late 1940s things were very different: there were no guidebooks and the few climbers would all know each other. At that time the already daunting prospect of climbing these sheer crags must have seemed so much more so.

References

Malcolm Creasy et al., The complete rock climber, Lorenz Books, 1999.

Niall Grimes, Stanage: The Definitive Guide, British Mountaineering Council, 2007.

Climber magazine

Rock Climbing: The rock climbing uk blog of Gareth Hanson (and brother David)

Rock Climbing in the Peak District