Re: The Bull at Hellesdon. Names are important.

They are a huge part of our identity, individual and corporate, and provide links to our roots. In a sprawling suburban community such as Hellesdon we often struggle to find and engage with these attributes which are vital to our wellbeing. For many Hellesdon residents the name, 'The Bull', has resonances which go far beyond the troubled reputation of the immediate past.

Middletons Lane, where The Bull is situated, was previously known as Bull Lane or Bull Road, so-called because drovers regularly herded cattle along it to the sales at Horsham St Faith. The present building dates from the 1930s, but it is said that previously there used to be a barn-style shelter or drovers' inn on the same site. Whilst the drovers gathered strength for the last stage of their journey, no doubt with large swigs of ale, their cattle refreshed themselves nearby in a grassy enclosure with a pond, somewhere near The Bull Roundabout.

Besides this, many of us have very happy recent memories of The Bull. We recall excellent entertainment, sponsorship of local sports and community events, family parties, good food, carol singing at Christmas, barbecues in the summer, drinks and discussions after meetings and events at the next-door Hellesdon Community Centre. The relatively short troubles of the immediate past do not warrant a break with our history by renaming the pub. We wish our personal memories to be stirred when we see the traditional sign.