Westhoughton’s legendary musical ensemble, Wingates Band, is celebrating a truly remarkable milestone in 2023 – 150 years of unbroken history.

Formed in most modest fashion by the men of the Bible Class of Wingates Independent Methodist Church in April 1873, by the end of the 19th century, the band was universally regarded as the finest in the land, a reputation secured in perpetuity when, in 1906 and 1907, it did the remarkable ‘double double’, winning both the British Open Championship and British National Championship in successive years – the banding world’s equivalent of football’s Premier League Championship and FA Cup.

As the band’s ‘sesquicentennial celebrations’ unfold during the months ahead, we plan to bring you some fascinating glimpses of a truly remarkable history, which has embraced both triumph and tragedy along the way, but in the meantime, together with details of the inaugural celebratory event, we feature below a summary of some key aspects of that history, which emphasise what a terrific ambassador for its hometown the band has been down the decades, both nationally and internationally:

Throughout 2023, Wingates Band will be staging a series of celebratory concerts and other events to mark its 150th Anniversary, with the inaugural performance scheduled for Wednesday, 26th April, where, at the prestigious venue of Bolton’s Albert Halls, the band will be joined on stage by Bolton Youth Band, Bolton Youth Choirs, and Cantamus Community Choir.

A memorable evening is in prospect, when the massed bands and choirs will provide local music lovers with a feast of entertainment. The concert commences at 7pm, and tickets can be purchased by calling 07970 131460.

A TRULY REMARKABLE LEGACY

For many decades, on returning home from holiday or business travels throughout UK and overseas, countless Howfeners have proudly told tales of exchanges with new-found acquaintances, who, whenever ‘Westhoughton’ has been mentioned, have responded with: “Isn’t that the place where the famous brass band comes from?”

Such has been the fame which Wingates Band has enjoyed for a century and a quarter, with its remarkable story chronicled for the first in “From Bible Class to World Class”, a 320 page book published in 2013 to mark the band’s 100th Anniversary.

Crystallising the comprehensive story into some key highlights, the band can reflect with great pride, on the following achievements:

  •  30 National and International Championship titles
  •  6th best British contesting band of all time
  •  4 performances before Royalty
  • 90+ years of broadcasting, and one of the very first bands to be heard nationally ‘on the wireless’ following the establishment of the BBC in 1922
  •  Numerous UK and foreign tours, including excursions to America, France, Germany, Switzerland and Norway
  •  Over a century of recorded music, commencing in 1915, and embracing the shellac, vinyl, cassette tape, and CD eras, with only two brass bands in the world having a longer recording pedigree
  •  The FIRST brass band in the world to be commemorated by a blue plaque
  •  The FIRST British brass band to receive civic recognition via “Welcome” district road-side boundary signs
  •  Awarded Westhoughton’s Civic Medal in 2007, for “an outstanding contribution to the the Westhoughton community”

In addition to its many triumphs, the band has faced multiple traumas too, but thankfully it has proved to be a serial survivor, and in future issues of ‘Looking Back’ we plan to highlight just how inextricably linked have been the histories of the band and its home town, with details of the band’s involvement with The Pretoria Pit Disaster and World Wars I and II, as well as negotiating several financial crises, which saw the famous ensemble teetering on the verge of extinction.