The first person to be made a Freeman of Brigg - a very high local honour - made a surprise appearance at the Town Council's latest monthly in the Buttercross to deliver good news about the return of an important historic item to be displayed in the town.
Tom Glossop, who served as a town councillor for 32 years until his retirement in 2011, visited the Buttercross to address present day councillors during the public forum at the start of the meeting.
Retired youth worker Tom said he had good news; an historic thesis about Brigg had finally been located.
It relates to a famous figure from the world of music who once had links with the town.
Brigg Blog can recall the first part of this long-running saga coming to light during a council meeting held in the Angel Suite nine years ago.
We reported in 2013 that correspondence between Brigg and Australia had followed the discovery that the local copy of Volume I of the Percy Grainger Thesis, with reference to his visit to Brigg, appeared to have been mislaid.
Percy was an Aussie-born composer, pianist and arranger - perhaps best known for the tune English Country Garden.
He came to Brigg early in the 20th century to collect folk songs and heard the traditional 'air' Brigg Fair being performed. It was later turned into a popular classical work by fellow composer Frederick Delius.
The meeting nine years ago heard that Tom - well known for singing Brigg Fair at various events - had been in touch with a university in Australia (holder of the original thesis).
Meanwhile, North Lincolnshire Council was to take on the task of tracking down the local document, it was suggested at that time.
Fast-forwarding to the present, Tom informed councillors on Tuesday that a version of the thesis was currently in Scunthorpe, but in his opinion should be housed in Brigg. He was in touch with library staff (at North Lincolnshire Council) to get the work returned to the town.
"That's my good news," Tom told councillors. "We've got it back."
Brigg Blog thinks many local people will be interested in viewing this historic document in the Angel building, in due course. This is the location of the Library and Brigg Heritage Centre.
The Angel was still a thriving hotel when Brigg Fair was performed by Joseph Taylor, of Saxby-All-Saints, at the Music Festival in 1900. This was a key moment in bringing the traditional folk song into the public domain and raising its profile.
Frederick Delius's Brigg Fair 'English rhapsody' (composed in 1907) remains a popular choice at classical music concerts and featured in The Last Night of the Proms 2021, broadcast by the BBC.
Located very close to the Angel, Brigg Corn Exchange hosted the music & drama festival for decades but was demolished by Glanford Borough Council in 1994, two years after its closure as a major venue.
PICTURED: The Corn Exchange prior to demolition and Tom Glossop with the coveted Freeman of Brigg scroll he received in 2011 - the first person to get this honour in the town. In the background, applauding, is Ian Cawsey, who would later become a Freeman of Brigg himself, together with seven others. View details here...
