I’m Hull born and bred. Me mam, Aina, came from Nigeria in the 1950’s. She met me Dad in the UK he was a truck driver also called Harry. Me son’s called Harry too! He always says I should write a book as I’ve got so many stories. I know about deaths, rescues, accidents, the lot…. Like when we were kids we used to fish in Princess Quay for the oak blocks they’d pulled up from the old streets. We used to get a bamboo pole, say 6ft long and attach a cage from a pram to it. We’d then sell them round here for 75p a bag for people to put on their fires! Or that we used to build bonfires on Acko’s yard a place that had been bombed, or how I caught a man from jumping off the bridge. When he sees me now he always shouts – You saved my life!
Our family was only one of five in this area in the 60’s and 70’s. I think there was only seven black families in all of Hull. I was really bullied by a certain family at school. Racism came from everywhere, kids, their parents, the teachers, shops….If you went home crying my brothers would bray me too. They toughened me up. It was hard, I had to fight. In the 70’s there was no other way. But you know what I wouldn’t change it. Now I have a beautiful life on this area and I wouldn’t live anywhere else. For what I have, I live in comfort.
I was one of the smallest of 11 of us that were my brothers and sisters. I used loved picking the eggs from our chickens first thing before school and looking after the geese and animals in our huge back garden. We lived on Coltman Street in one of them big houses. The garden was huge. We milked the goats and Dad grew lots of vegetables to feed our huge family. I guess he was self-sufficient. Our house was like the Walton’s, always lots of friends around. Me and brother used to get in from school and was told to get ouruniforms off and go and to get two chickens – we had to kill and pluck em, then gut them and get them pan ready, all in 20 minutes..We used to eat African food four days a week and English food the other days. Me Mam and Dad would take it in turns to cook English or African food. I learnt to make both. I still love to cook all the African food. I got the best of both worlds.
We used to shop at the only shop in Hull that sold African food – the Indian Continental Store, it was on Princess Ave. Now there’s hundreds of shops and all the supermarkets sell things too. We used to get oxtail, tripe and a bag of cows legs for cheap and make this huge broth. Now all that is so expensive. I make jerk chicken and okra soup, which is amazing. But also Sunday lunch. I’m like Jesus – call me and I feed people. It’s a joy.
I’m married to Abigail, we’ve been together 35 years. Our son Harry works at Siemens and is so tall. God knows where he got that from! I love being a father. I’m really proud of our marriage. Like my Mam and Dad we are black and white. Their marriage was pretty radical for then. My dad got called “N***** Lover”. I say everything good in the past was black and white – just like me Mam and Dad and just like us too.
People think I’m a ruthless character, they stereotype because I’m a black man. Yes I’ve got a gold tooth, yes I’m a charmer, loud, but so are others. Everyone presumes. I’ve been called everything. People have said I sold drugs, done things I’ve haven’t, it’s all bullshit. In many ways I’m a lone leopard. But I also like a laugh and I am always trying to make friends laugh. If I can do that my day has been good. But of course I’ve learnt to stand up for myself – no one dominates me. Lots of people are born and bred ignorant. They say daft things like “I’m not racist I’ve got a black friend”. So I treat bad bad and I treat good good.
