Steve Haake
Steve Haake is an author, TV presenter, Professor of Sports Engineering at Sheffield Hallam University and founding director of the Advanced Wellbeing Research Centre. He is married and has two grown-up children.
What’s your first Yorkshire memory? It was a trip across the Pennines from our home in Lancashire, for a holiday in Scarborough. I’d have been about seven or eight, and I vividly recall going through Leeds, on the inner ring road, and Dad being petrified of the traffic. At the coast the thing that sticks in my mind is that huge boating lake, with a sea battle re-enactment. I was really impressed with the puffs of smoke from the guns, and I couldn’t work out how they did it.
What’s your favourite part of the county – and why? It has to be Sheffield, because we’ve lived here since 1990 or so. It’s got everything – the hills, the green inner city, post-industrial architecture and, above all, the friendly people.
What’s your idea of a perfect day, or a perfect weekend, out in Yorkshire? In the morning and the afternoon, it has to be somewhere in the outdoors, on the fells or in the Dales, and to be able to stand on a hill somewhere that has a view. Then back to Sheffield in the evening to catch a performance of something at either the Crucible or the Lyceum. The last thing that we saw was their magnificent production of Coriolanus, which was spot on, a true “play for our times”.
Do you have a favourite walk, or view? The area around Malham, where the little icy river disappears and then reappears. That is just spectacular.
Which Yorkshire sportsman, past or present, would you like to take for lunch? The legendary Beryl Burton, the cyclist who broke so many world records (some of which still stand) and who was far superior to many of the men she raced against. There’s a story that, in one event, she just whistled past a fellow (male) competitor, and she passed him some liquorice sweets as she overtook him.
Which Yorkshire stage or screen star, past or present, would you like to take for dinner? Sir Michael Palin. Python, writer, presenter and a true Sheffield lad. He just has an eye for the unusual, and the great gift of describing it with an original tweak.
If you had to name your Yorkshire ‘hidden gem’, what would it be? The Don Valley Steam Engine, at Kelham Island in Sheffield. If you’ve never had the joy of watching it being fired up, then you have to put it on your “to do” list. It truly is one of the great machines of its age, and the power that it unleashes is quite incredible.
If you could choose somewhere, or some object, from or in Yorkshire to own for a day, what would it be? In Sheffield’s Millennium Gallery, you’ll find a beautifully crafted little goblet which has depictions of sport, science, steel and silver on it, and it is breathtakingly lovely. I’d take it home, put it on a table, and just spend my whole day admiring it and looking at it from every angle.
What do you think gives Yorkshire its unique identity? The language, and all the subtleties of the dialects. They change and vary wherever you happen to be.
Do you follow sport in the county, and if so, what? Yes, but I’m more interested in seeing how the smaller “minority” sports are doing, such as netball and ice hockey – where their followers have a level of passion and knowledge that is incredible. They seem to become part of such a tight-knit family, and that earns my profound respect.
Do you have a favourite restaurant, or pub? The Indian Chef in Crooks for the most wonderful, completely authentic cuisine and the great staff. That’s our Sheffield port of call, but if we are ever back in Leeds, it’s the Corner Cafe, near Hyde Park.
Do you have a favourite food shop? The Seven Hills Bakery. Saturday is not
complete without an early call there to smell the croissants baking, and to bring home bread in a rucksack over your shoulders.
How do you think that Yorkshire has changed, for better or for worse, in the time that you’ve known it? Well, Leeds is buzzing right now, isn’t it, and where Leeds pushes forward, Sheffield comes along too. There’s more diversity, more choice, and I truly believe that both cities have become far more friendly in embracing other cultures.
If you had to change one thing in, or about Yorkshire, what would that be? A transport system that made sense and was co-ordinated. HS2? What’s that all about? Being able to travel from Sheffield to Leeds by rail more quickly and conveniently, that would be an achievement.
Who is the Yorkshire person that you most admire? Richard Caborn, the former Minister for Sport and much-respected Sheffield MP, who was one of the major moving forces to get the Olympics to the UK in 2012, and who also helped so much to establish the Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park in Attercliffe. He loves his running, and he supports Sheffield United, and he’s someone whom I much respect.
Has Yorkshire influenced your work? Absolutely. I’ve been here for well over three decades now and it’s my home, my life and my professional base. We all have to keep on striving to make it a better place.
Who is your favourite Yorkshire author/book/artist/CD/ performer? Hilary Mantel wasn’t born here, but she certainly studied at Sheffield University, so I hope that qualifies her as one of my choices. She’s a superb writer, and may I also offer a shout out for the Brudenell Social Club in the Hyde Park area of Leeds, which manages to attract some of the best contemporary bands as well as talented up-and-coming acts. Its reputation for being a brilliant live music venue is well deserved.
If a stranger to Yorkshire only had time to visit one place, it would be? Sheffield – to prove to the visitor that it is no longer the place where you couldn’t see across the valley because of the smog. There’s a walk around the centre, a visit to the Winter Garden, and then to Ponds Forge and to Sheffield Wednesday. At every turn, they’d be overwhelmed by the warmth of the welcome.