‘Postman's Leg’, Bobby Bill Harber and the accent: Quirky things you only know if you're from Barnsley

First thing that only locals are familiar with is the accent. Use “ar” instead of “ow” sounds such as town or in Barnsley “tarn.”

When in the tarn greeting someone Lynne Mcpherson says: “Ey up cock how's tha doing?”

Food

When it comes to grub, Barnsley Market is a popular place to go and Dad blogger behind Man Vs Baby and Barnsley Author Matt Coyne said: “Check out Postman’s Legs on the market, butchers sell huge leftover animal bones called a Postman’s Leg.”

A more well known butchery product from the town is The Barnsley Chop which is a large joint of meat, apparently named this by farmers from Barnsley Market.

When it comes to eating out, The Secret Italian in Barnsley is a top TripAdvisor haunt with reviewers raving about the decent portions and feeling “at home.”

One said: “Staff were friendly and made us feel welcome. I've never eaten so much food in one sitting!! The food was fresh and hot and very tasty.”

Places

Elsecar Heritage Centre, Wigfield Farm and Experience Barnsley museum are some of the top must-see list for tourists visiting the South Yorkshire city, but what makes Barnsley special according to locals?

BBC Radio presenter and DJ Steve White, from Barnsley, said: “The story of Reg Mellor the Ferret Legger and Bobby Bill Harber with the famous moustache are well known by locals.”

Reg Mellor, then 78, was the World Ferret Legging Champion, according to Record Holders Republic.

Reg claimed to have created the sport and broke the world record on July 5, 1981, when he kept two live ferrets down his trousers for five hours.

According to Record Holders Republic: "Reg performed the feat in front of over 5,000 people and although badly bitten in 'all the wrong places' he persevered to the bitter end. During record attempts, no undergarments can be worn, and the trouser bottoms must be firmly secured with string".

Bobby Bill Harber with the famous moustache was a traffic policeman, who became famous in Barnsley after decades of directing traffic through the town, he died aged 86.

People

Steve who also runs Wentworth Music Festival with Toby Foster added: “And this is a real favourite of mine, the story of Maurice Dobson - his little terraced house in Barnsley has even been turned into a museum, but nobody outside Barnsley knows who he was. It's a stunning story.”

Museums come in all sizes, but this one using Maurice’s collection of the area is special, according to famous poet Ian McMillan from the area who has written about Maurice’s life in the Yorkshire Post.

“Maurice was, to put it mildly, a very unusual citizen of the South Yorkshire coalfield of the 1950s and 1960s.

“He was a gay make-up-and-nail-polish wearing ex-soldier who ran a corner shop just across the road from the Cross Keys pub. My mother used to recall him and his partner Fred walking down the pit lane to Great Houghton holding hands and looking a bit like Barbara Cartland and Joanna Lumley, and I have a very early memory of going into the shop as a young lad and seeing Maurice perched on a high stool in a powder-blue suit as though he was a character from a Noel Coward one-act play.”

Darfield Museum website aka the Maurice Dobson Museum & Heritage Centre says the museum is a restored Georgian Yeoman’s residence where Darfield’s long history is “brought to life.”

There’s also a cafe inside the museum which serves up local specialities including a slice of the Darfield cake or a full afternoon tea which looks “delicious,” according to a TripAdvisor reviewer.

The reviewer said: “Apparently the Darfield cake has ingredients beginning with each letter Darfield and was wonderful.

Other well-known people from Barnsley include Radio DJ and public speaker Stephanie Hirst, folk singer Kate Rusby and footballer John Stones, said Youtuber behind Rate My Takeaway Danny Malin.

“When you think of Barnsley other than the best accent, you also think of brass bands like Grimethorpe Colliery Band who were featured on Brassed Off.”

Danny added it has a strong mining heritage with communities built around once thriving pits. He said this history is reflected in the picture on the crest of the Barnsley FC’s football shirts with two miners.

He added: “That’s not forgetting Kes, the iconic film.”

Kes was brought back to the big screen at Cineworld in Barnsley, which opened in September, who showed the legendary Ken Loach flick this December. When the new cinema opened earlier this year, David ‘Dai’ Bradley, who played Billy Casper in the film, cut the ribbon.