|  | For those of us " Dinosaurs "
that remember the old 59 Club at Paddington, Father Graham Hullett will
be no stranger.
However, many of the " Baby Rockers " will
know nothing of the great effort he put into keep the spirit of the
rocker club alive. |
Whereas Bill Shergold was very much
enjoyed the media spotlight as the face of The 59 Club for the Church
of England over Curate John Oakley, the original founder of the London
youth club ; for the rebel rocker element, the real heart and soul of
The Fifty Nine Club was Father Graham Hullett. Graham was hands on with
The Club from 1962 until 1970 staying involved to at least 1973. Yup, it might surprise you to discover that The 59 Club was a church run
youth club intended to save the souls of errant yobs - but it was!
Graham was a biker from even before he went into the Army in Germany and a genuine friend to the young rockers.
Bailing them out of trouble, enjoying a laugh on the Isle of Man, seeing
them through hard times - often out of his own pocket and to his own
personal risk - and sharing their love of motorcycles.
This page is dedicated to the ongoing memory of Father Graham Hullett, a
real biker, and the real story of the rebel rockers of the 59 Club.
Although it was certainly the time of their lives for all parties, there
were always two sides to the 59 Club. The nice boys who came in from
polite suburbs with helmets and all the latest gear to be part of a
scene; and the greasy yobs that rode in hatless and gloveless on
whatever hardware they could string together from local estates for the
birds.
That cohort, that made up what was remembered as " The
Rockers ", were the scene;
" ... a leather jacket
did not a Rocker make. "
The Glory
Boys ; photo by Micky Sheehan * | [ * Micky Sheehan died on his motorcycle in November 1964,
aged 29. His daughter Rosy Charlton, a true Ace Cafe babe, would like
to meet anyone that remembers him or those days. Please contact her
through us. ] |
Whereas Bill felt he never
really fitted in with " The Lads " [ you can read it in his own words
elsewhere on this site ] and some of the the church sponsored committee had its own agenda that later led them to attempt to exclude the very same rocker element the club had been started to serve ; Graham was a friend to all, one of the lads and never
hesitated to get his hands dirty.
It is wonder that he had time to go about his church duties, because he
was kept busy giving character references at Court for the yob element!
Like Father Bill, Father Graham blessed many marriages between club
members [ - there were many girls in The 59 Club and good girls they
were too - ] ; counselling, protecting them and even marrying off.
We have many unseen photographs from the 60s, from the Rocker
Reunion days of the 80s and 90s and will be posting them here as time
allows. Along with fond memories, great laughs, saucy tales, shocking
controversies, these momentoes are part of the living heritage that keep
alive the spirit of the most exciting times for youth culture
ever.
For interested historians, Graham is still alive and well
and has recently been presented with a Royal Enfield Bullett by grateful
rockers. If you are interested in him visiting your club, please contact us.
 |
