National Championships of Great Britain
The National Championships of Great Britain took place at the Royal Albert Hall in London recently with Scottish representation in the form of Scottish Champions Newtongrange Silver and runners up Whitburn. Whitburn, under the baton of Andrew Duncan, played off an early draw and gave a good account of the test piece ?Eden? by Dr. John Pickard. As the day progressed however the dreaded ?early draw? effect took place as Whitburn were placed further down the field as more fancied contenders took the stage. The band eventually finished just outside the top ten in 11th place. Newtongrange Silver, in their first Royal Albert Hall visit for 15 years, were at the opposite end of the draw, being the nineteenth band to take the stage. Unfortunately for them they were sandwiched right between some real heavyweights with Black Dyke and Brighouse immediately before them and Grimethorpe Colliery following them. Conductor Raymond Tennant, the same man who took them to fourth place all those years ago, was unable to produce the same magic this year with the band eventually finishing 14th.
The field for this years contest was probably the strongest in years. Just like last seasons UEFA Champions League however an unfancied contender emerged from nowhere to take the top prize. Much had been written before the contest of how this was going to be a duel between the unstoppable Black Dyke and the Welsh dragons BAYV. They did indeed both produce almost flawless performances, as did other contenders, most notably Grimethorpe Colliery. The victors though were the Leyland band conducted by Scotsman Russell Gray, taking their first ever National Championships title
Much had also been written before the contest about the Leyland band and not all of it good. The band is now completely on its own having been sponsored for many years and stories abounded concerning the state of the bands finances. In a bit of a fairy tale story the bands principal Eb Bass player Chris Doran had entered the Cadburys ?Dream Come True? competition and said his dream was for the band to be able to go to London. Cadburys liked his vision and weighed in with an all expenses paid trip to the nationals and a new set of uniforms to boot. In true fairy tale style the band responded by providing the win, their first Nationals victory in their long history. Hollywood ? are you listening.
The SBBA sends its congratulations to all at the Leyland Band for a fine performance and a famous victory.
