Northampton’s shoemaking heritage celebrated in UK TV show
18/12/2018
In earlier episodes of the BBC show, entitled ‘Made in Great Britain’, the craftspeople had been taught the historical and contemporary skills required to make chocolate, cheese, steel, pottery and hats.
In the finale, they were guided through Northampton’s shoemaking heritage by Scott McKee, master shoemaker of men’s footwear brand Tricker’s.
They started their journey of discovery in the 13th century, where they learned how to make a turn shoe, a traditional leather shoe used during the Middle Ages. Despite its simplicity, none of the craftspeople found the challenge easy, even leatherworker Jason Stocks-Young, who makes and sells small leathergoods through his JS-Y Leatherworks brand. This was his first experience creating a shoe.
They then moved on to the Victorian era, being shown the techniques used to create an Oxford shoe, still a staple of men’s footwear today. The challenge here was to cut and sew the six pieces of leather needed to make the upper. Each craftsperson was assigned a specific role as they worked together to make the final shoe.
After learning about how the adoption of the Goodyear welting machine helped Northampton-based factories significantly boost their production capacities, the craftspeople set about making a marching boot that was worn by the British Army during the Second World War. Other innovations from the time to feature in this segment included the mechanical clicker press for cutting out the different pieces of leather, a lasting machine and an electric sewing machine.
As the episode drew to a close, the presenter charted the decline of Northampton’s shoe industry in the 1970s and 1980s. This was primarily due to the competition from cheap imports coming into the UK from Asia. It was here that the importance of adaptability was emphasised, which is how companies like Tricker’s have managed to survive.
In the final challenge, the craftspeople were instructed in the finishing of shoes by master shoemaker Scott. They focused on the brogue and the intricacies of adding the final touches to this particular style of footwear. Their tasks included dyeing the edge of the sole, burning off the small pieces of cotton still on the leather and filling in the 150 individual holes in the brogue.
The four craftspeople, which as well as leather worker Jason included a blacksmith, a chef and a ceramicist, were commended on their performance by Mr McKee and all professed an enhanced respect and admiration for Northampton and its shoemaking traditions.
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