why are people from hartlypool...........

[Garry Spice]

could monkey hangers??? someone said you lot hanged a french monkey? right or wrong?

[Gemma]

Originally Posted by Garry Spice

could monkey hangers??? someone said you lot hanged a french monkey? right or wrong?

Right lol

[Chequered Flag Racing]

Hartlepool not Hartlypool

History lesson here

[Garry Spice]

soz about the spelling.....so wats the legend then???

[Gemma]

Monkey Hanger is the affectionate term by which Hartlepudlians are often known by other residents of Great Britain.
According to local folklore, during the Napoleonic wars, a French ship of the type chasse marée (literally, tide-chaser) was wrecked off the coast of Hartlepool. The only survivor was a monkey, wearing a French uniform (presumably to provide amusement for those onboard the ship). On finding the monkey, some locals decided to hold an impromptu trial on the beach; since the monkey was unable to answer their questions, and many locals were unaware of what a Frenchman may look like, they concluded that the monkey was in fact a French spy. Just to make sure, the animal was thus sentenced to death and hanged from the mast of a fishing boat on the Headland. Nowadays, many Hartlepudlians have positively embraced the term, and only a small minority still consider the term 'Monkey Hanger' offensive. It is often used to refer to supporters of Hartlepool United Football Club by supporters of their arch rivals Darlington.
In 2002, Stuart Drummond campaigned for the office of Mayor of Hartlepool in the costume of the local football team's mascot, 'H'Angus the Monkey'. He narrowly won. His election slogan had been "free bananas for schoolchildren", a promise he was unable to keep. Despite this, he stood again three years later and won with a landslide victory.

[Garry Spice]

ha ha, thats wicked...funny but wrong!

[Gemma]

Originally Posted by Garry Spice

ha ha, thats wicked...funny but wrong!

If you ever have the "experience" of driving through Hartlepool, there is actually stuffed Monkeys hung in Windows etc!

[Lee]

Some people dont like the phrase though as i found out a couple of years ago

[Gemma]

Originally Posted by Lee

Some people dont like the phrase though as i found out a couple of years ago

haha Nah I wouldnt recommend calling them Monkey hangers!!

What happened Lee? Do tell??

[Spoolio]

I've driven through Hartlepool. The sea crashing up at the Headland was impressive. God knows what they do of an evening though, there was bogger all there.