From an utter skewering from George Orwell to a loving tribute by Richard Hawley, these are 10 of the funniest, most charming or slightly cheeky phrases ever coined with the Steel City at heart.
5. William Cobbett
"If the people of Sheffield could only receive a tenth part of what their knives sell for by retail in America, Sheffield might pave its streets with silver," said William Cobbett, an MP and journalist, who died in 1835. He clearly felt the city was getting a raw deal. Photo: Wikimedia Commons
6. George Orwell
"It could justly claim to be called the ugliest town in the Old World: its inhabitants, who want it to be pre-eminent in everything, very likely make that claim for it … And the stench! If at rare moments you stop smelling sulphur it is because you have begun smelling gas." - George Orwell, The Road to Wigan Pier, 1937.
What George was smelling was the work of an industrious steel city making some of the finest cutlery in the world, but he didn't see if that way. Photo: submit
7. Joe Cocker with a copy of The Star - 1 September 1994
"I never picked up a guitar as a kid, partly because my dad didn't want the noise in our little back-to-back in Sheffield." - Joe Cocker. Though he was a keen air guitarist, the late Joe Cocker never mastered the instrument itself, thanks to his brilliantly stubborn Sheffield dad. Photo: Sheffield Newspapers
8. Laura Wade
"I'm not posh at all. I grew up in Sheffield but never managed to pick up the accent - which was careless because there'd be some cache now in being a northern playwright, but I missed out on that one." - Laura Wade Playwright Laura Wade hits the nail on the head here - being from Sheffield will get you far in life these days. Photo: n/a