Saturday 23 August 2025, Vale Park, Burslem.

Ah, there it is. That look on the faces on those adventurers from Doncaster on reaching the mother town. It tells us everything we need to know. The dawning realisation that they do not belong here. Those quizzical stares say: “It is true, we are apprehensive. Our guards are up. We don’t understand your town, and we’re not sure we want to. Let’s be clear on this – we are the town that gave the nation Jeremy Clarkson and Janet Dibley, and we offer no apologies for it.”

“Now, that’s all well and good” say the sons and daughters of Burslem in response, “But do look up. Do you see her? The Angel of Burslem? Atop the old Town hall, gazing dutifully down on these very streets where Arnold Bennett gave life to Anna Tellwright and the Baines sisters – Sophia and Constance, their lives caught in the quiet struggle between duty and desire, permanence and change, a world where stoicism masked longing. They experienced, as much as anyone ever has,  the slow erosion of dreams, the weight of expectation, and that haunting question: What does it mean to belong? To endure?”

“And if that’s not enough, then look over there at our new statue. Lemmy. A walking riff on the absurdity of existence, a man who refused to be defined by the world. The grim smile? That grim smile of his? It is his testament to survival, to showing up when the odds are stacked and the skies are grey.”

“In the streets of Burslem and the terraces of Vale Park the question remains: What do we with the time we’re given? And our answer, whispered through the bricks and shouted from the stands, is simple: We endure. We sing. We believe.”

“You ask us if we feel the sting of defeat. Yes, of course we do, it is only natural that we should – but if you had been paying attention you would know that we are a people who understand the nature of pain, it is fleeting and it truly galvanises the soul. It is our liberator.”

“And this is why we do not begrudge you victory. You saw our generosity on the pitch. This moment belongs to you, and, of course, you are  welcome to it. It is worth remembering though, nothing is won or lost as autumn approaches.“