Tory club finally lets in ladies...after 108 years
AS THE first woman admitted into a village Conservative club in its 108-year history, you might expect June Imeson to be hailing a victory for gender equality.
But the great-grandmother, 87, chuckled at the notion yesterday, insisting: “Sometimes the lads just need a place to call their own.”
Great Ayton and District Conservative Club was a men-only establishment when it opened in the North Yorkshire village in 1910.
The decision to admit women has not pleased some dissenters, but their complaints saw them branded “misogynistic dinosaurs”.
After a narrow vote in favour of admitting “lady members” Mrs Imeson became the first honorary female to step across the threshold, after being presented with a citation by former Tory leader William Hague.
Mrs Imeson, a lifelong resident of Great Ayton and a stalwart of the local Tory Party, said: “It’s very nice to be given honorary membership but I wasn’t one of those calling for women to be admitted.
“We have the Women’s Institute, the Mothers’ Union and suchlike, sometimes the lads just need a place to call their own and I didn’t see anything wrong with that.”
Mrs Imeson, a former leader of Hambleton District Council, added: “My father was a member. He didn’t drink but he would spend hours in there playing snooker and dominoes and talking to his friends.
“His picture hangs on the wall which I had a look at when they presented me with my honorary membership.
“I was never allowed in with him even as a young girl.”
At the weekend committee members were reluctant to discuss their step into the 21st century.
Club president Ernie Taylor said: “It’s become too political and we’ve reached a decision as a committee not to talk about it.”
But vice-president Rod Thrower said: “As we expected, we have had some dissenters. I started calling them misogynistic dinosaurs.” Mr Thrower, from Guisborough, said the decision to admit women was supported by the “vast majority” of members at a vote in December.
He said: “Like all licensed premises things are more and more difficult. We came down to two choices: cut costs, or we find a way of creating income. This from our point of view was a way to move forward.”
Women sign-ups total about 20 so far. Charles Littlewood of the Association of Conservative Clubs confirmed there are now just five men-only clubs remaining.
He said: “I think it is outdated.”