UPFRONT HOP HIDEOUT SPOTLIGHT ON:

Now approaching a decade since its formation, there aren’t many independent businesses out there that have left such an indelible mark on the Sheffield beer scene as Hop Hideout. Last month, we caught up with owner Jules Gray to discuss reaching this significant milestone, reflecting on the progress made over ten years and how there are plenty of fresh ideas still left in the (beer) tank!

With craft beer, micropubs and drink-in beer shops being a fairly common sight throughout Sheffield, it’s easy to forget that once upon a time, they weren’t such a ubiquitous amenity. It follows, then, that beer lovers throughout these seven hills owe a mighty hat tip to pioneers like Hop Hideout, a key player in opening the gateway for funky IPAs, rich stouts and tangy sours to flood into the Steel City.

Beginning life as a pop-up in the back of an antiques centre on Abbeydale Road, this “labour of beery love”, as Jules calls it, moved to a nearby café space in 2015, where she opened one of the country’s first drinkin beer shops. Hop Hideout became synonymous with the city’s growing craft beer scene, showcasing local breweries as well as stocking hundreds of beers from across the UK and indeed the globe, before its popularity necessitated a move to a bigger space at the GradeII listed Kommune food hall in 2019. Today you can pop in and browse 200+ refrigerated beers (rising to 300 if you include the additional downstairs storage) alongside a meticulously curated range of draught beer, farmhouse ciders and natural wines.

“It’s been great to have the support of Sheffield people over the years, and we hope that it continues because it’s really hard for independent businesses out there,” says Jules. “We’ve had fantastic regular support and are always meeting new customers along the way, so I think people really appreciate the commitment to quality and the ethos behind what we do.”

That ethos revolves around taking a conscientious approach to the producers they stock, championing women and minority-owned businesses in the beer industry and creating a genuine sense of community at home through regular events, the latter of which range from regular running and walking clubs to their standout Sheffield Beer Week event – a citywide beery celebration which has grown to include up to 40 venues and includes a diverse range of activities such as beer festivals, tastings, tap takeovers, brewery tours and educational Q+As with industry experts.

The much-loved annual occasion, which takes place in March each year, is opened up in style by the Indie Beer Feast – a two-day event in a city centre venue which features 19 handpicked breweries, plus a selection of street food, low intervention wine and cider. Pop-up tastings are hosted by renowned beer writers and speakers while attendees mingle, whet their whistles and get into the spirit of things.

“I think what I’ve always hoped for, and worked towards, is being able to help make the beer scene a more approachable, welcoming, diverse space to be,” reflects Jules. “Of course, I want to get across my passion for beer and the quality being produced by independent breweries, cider producers and small wineries. But as well as that, a big part of the drive is ensuring we have a broad appeal to a wider audience. No barriers.”

Always keen to share knowledge, Jules, who is a member of the British Guild of Beer Writers, has been recognised for her informative blogs (some of which have featured in this very magazine, no less!), and Hop Hideout regularly hosts tasting sessions so people can come and learn about the process and tasting profiles of various beer, ciders and low intervention wines. Throw in commercial TV and radio appearances, plus a wide variety of podcast appearances, and you certainly can’t say she doesn’t put the time into spreading the beery word!

With the big 1-0 just around the corner, Jules tells us that she won’t be resting on her laurels. As has been the case since its formation, Hop Hideout will continue to adapt, grow and innovate. A milestone birthday celebration beckons and a special brewing collaboration is on the cards (they hosted a memorable Bill Murray beer-themed bash for their 5th-year soiree), but we’re also told that further expansion is a goal, if and when the right taproom location is found, so don’t be surprised to see a second venue pop up in the not too distant future!

But in the meantime, you can pay homage to a true trailblazer on the Sheffield beer scene by paying a visit in person or ordering a box via their online shop (www.hophideout.co.uk).

Time to raise a glass to another ten years of commitment to community, good causes and superb drinks!

Hop Hideout

Unit 11, Kommune, 1-13 Angel St, S3 8LN www.hophideout.co.uk

@hophideout

Widely acknowledged as Sheffield’s most famed cinematic export, The Full Monty became a British cult classic after its release in 1997. Following a group of unemployed steelworkers from Sheffield, who, in a desperate bid to earn some cash, decided to form a male stripping troupe, the film touched the hearts of millions and sparked important conversations about masculinity, class and the legacy of Thatcherite politics.

Last month, a quarter of a century later, members of the cast reunited in Sheffield for the launch of an eight-part series which came out on Disney+.

There were plenty of recognisable faces present at the glitzy series premiere at Showroom Cinema, which showed the first two episodes before the cast and invitees headed over to the Leadmill for an exclusive Q+A .

Robert Carlyle, who won a BAFTA for his role in the original instalment, was at the event after reprising his role as loveable rogue Gaz. He was joined on the ‘blue carpet’ by Mark Addy, Lesley Sharp and Steve Huison, who have stepped back into the shoes of their beloved characters – Dave, Jean and Lomper, respectively – for the highly-anticipated reboot that explores what happened to the group after they put their kit back on, as well as highlighting the struggles faced by northern communities following years of austerity and risible attempts at the government initiating a ‘levelling up’ strategy.

Also making a trip back to his roots was Wim Snape, the Sheffield-born actor who first auditioned for the role of Gaz’s son, Nathan, while attending Dobcroft Primary School at the age of 11.

Representing a fresh influx of younger characters entering the storyline is Nathan’s half-sister, Destiny (played by Talitha Wing), a troubled teen navigating a tricky home life and getting into the types of tricky situations her dad would often have to deal with.

Ahead of the exclusive showing earlier this month, Exposed sat down with all of the above to discuss reprising their roles, their characters’ respective storylines and the grim similarities between the political contexts of both the film and series.

First up, Robert Carlyle (Gaz), Wim Snape (Nathan) and Talitha Wing (Destiny) grabbed a pew with Exposed before the film started rolling at the series premiere.

Let’s start with the newest member of the team, Talitha. How’s the experience been in joining a pretty iconic cast and story?

TW: I think it was equal parts nerve-racking and really, really exciting. I think it’s a unique experience to come on to something that has such a legacy and had such a big impact. Whenever I’ve told anyone I’m doing The Full Monty, they’ve been able to tell me when they saw it, what cinema and who with. So, it was quite daunting at first, but as soon as I got to the read-through stage and witnessed everyone seeing each other again, we just kind of fitted into the ‘Monty family’.

RC: You’re a young Monty.

TW: Exactly. We’re bringing the perspective of the younger generation into it, which I think is really exciting and important. Your character, Destiny, brings a fresh dynamic into proceedings and it’s almost a bit like the baton has been passed down from Gaz and now it’s his daughter getting into these crazy scrapes?

TW: Yeah, we meet Destiny at a time when everything in her life is quite chaotic. She’s at that age where you’re leaving school and having to decide what it is that you’re going to do with your life. She has this love for music, but at the same time she’s not very confident, and I don’t think she properly believes that she could make that into a career. There’s a difficult home life with her mum and her mum’s boyfriend, Brian, who she doesn’t get on with at all. And she has two little twin sisters who she looks after; that’s when you first begin to see the softer side of her.

In the first episode, you see her beginning to reconnect with her dad who she hasn’t seen much of growing up. How does that relationship affect the story?

TW: Yeah, Gaz kind of comes back into her life at the beginning of the series, and we begin to see the relationship blossom. I think she sees quite a lot of Gaz in herself, so it’s interesting seeing them learn how to communicate with each other. They’re two characters with tough exteriors, but they both have a softer side and a shared sense of humour. She does get herself into lots of trouble, but I think one of Gaz’s children was always going to turn out that way. It’s a bit like Nathan’s become a copper and gone one way, and Destiny’s gone the other. Probably a good point to bring you in now, Wim. You last played Nathan when you were 11 years old. How did it feel when you got the call to return?

WS: It was just a dream for me. You know, like a literal dream. When I got the phone call saying that we’re getting the band back together, it just blew my mind that this was actually going to happen. That said, it’s such an incredible story and one that needs to be told. When we first met back up and sat down with each other, it was like no time had passed at all. Me and Bobby [Carlyle] hadn’t seen each other for 20 years or something – he didn’t recognise me at first! But once we started rolling on the scenes it was like being transported to being 11 again. It was madness.

RC: It’s a beautiful thing. I mean, who often gets that opportunity to revisit characters after 25 years? It was a fantastic thing to get together with the gang again. I’d had a similar experience with the second Trainspotting film. So, I suppose it was familiar territory for me in that sense. However, I think the second Trainspotting film was probably always going to happen, but this was never really in the ether. I know that Simon Beaufoy had been asked a few times through the years to write a Full Monty sequel, but he was never interested because the film itself is so complete, you know? Where do you go from that last moment when the hats come off?

If you’re going to bring something back as iconic as The Full Monty, it needs to say something. What do you hope this series will say?

RC: One of the things about Simon Beaufoy’s writing is that he manages to address many issues and the politics are all around The Full Monty; it drives the whole thing. But Simon is great at writing in a way that means you’re not battered over the head with it. The issues that get brought up in the series are hugely important: the state of our schools, the state of our mental health services and the impact of austerity. You see how god knows how many years of austerity have chipped away at the country, its infrastructure and the people. There’s a full-circle aspect to it: so much has changed since we last met these characters, but also some fundamentals have remained the same?

RC: Yeah. The more things change, the more they stay the same. Going back to 1997, it was the end of a Conservative government and things had been really, really tough up until then. I remember it well, and I hope – I really hope – that history might be repeating itself here in terms of the timing of things. Maybe there’s going to be a change? I can see people want it.

What for you is it about The Full Monty that saw it become such a cult classic? What buttons were hit by this story and these characters?

WS: In terms of Sheffield, it’s an industrial city and obviously the Thatcher reign affected a lot of people, a lot of jobs and infrastructure in this region. I think the original film showed people finding a way to survive, and, I’m definitely biased since I’m from here, but the people of Sheffield are some of the funniest, nicest, kindest people you’ll ever come across. They come together when they need each other, and I think that’s why it resonates so well here in particular.

RC: I think from a male perspective, what the original film did – and what this series kind of follows up on – is asking what a man’s place is in society. These guys were used to being breadwinners as steelworkers. Suddenly, that’s not the case anymore, and you see them floundering when you first join the film. I think all the characters in the show are still trying to figure out where they fit into the world. I think that’s something that resonates: where do we belong? I think that is balanced beautifully with the younger characters, and how the baton of struggle is passed on.

TW: Destiny is also asking, “What am I doing? Where do I go next?” She initially sees herself as a bit of a rebel or outsider, but when someone does make an effort to help her, be that her dad or a teacher, you see how that exterior falls away a bit. The stories and characters all kind of link and there’s still a sense of community amongst them all, even though it’s a bit disjointed.

Exposed then spoke with Marc Addy, Lesley Sharp and Steve Huison to get their take on returning to the franchise 25 years on and its relevance today.

How does it feel to be revisiting these characters after such a long time away?

MA: Surprisingly, kind of comfortable even though it has been a long gap. It’s helpful that we have the same writer who has lived with these characters right through to today, so Simon Beaufoy and co-writer Alice Nutter have done a great job of keeping the characters true to themselves and their situation. I found it very easy just slipping back into Dave.

LS: It’s been like hanging out with an old friend, and then literally hanging out with old friends. Some of us have been fortunate enough to bump into one another since the film, and then there are other members of the cast that haven’t seen one another in the intervening years. But it just feels like it’s the right timing, the right time in the world to be revisiting these people in this city.

SH: Yeah, it’s just like putting on a familiar pair of gloves. I don’t think Lomper has ever left me anyway. There’s always been a bit of Lomper following me around, particularly when people are shouting it at me in the street. Of course, nobody’s the same as they were 25 years ago, so I really enjoyed exploring the maturity of the character and looking at the things that have happened to him in that 25 years. Has Lomper found peace? The film obviously followed him through a very life-defining period.

SH: Yeah, well, as much as you can do, I suppose. I think I’ve played it as though he’s had the life-changing part for him [in the film] – the social connections he made, going through the whole stripping process, and that experience gave him confidence. But I’ve also been looking at why he is slightly… odd, I suppose, and trying to maybe explore that. It’s a great opportunity to pick up a character 25 years later and revisit it. Dave and Jean’s story was a key one in the film, with their relationship going through some trials and tribulations before getting back on track at the end. How are they getting on 25 years down the line?

MA: Well, they’re childhood sweethearts, really. They’ve been married for 30-odd years. And you know, it’s not always a bed of roses. Dave is still the same in that he walks away from a lot of difficult conversations and doesn’t really want to confront certain issues which are causing tension between them.

LS: Throughout the film, Jean was Dave’s great cheerleader. She saw he had this amazing spirit and needed➢

➢to bring it to the fore. What we see at the beginning of the series is that Dave has become Jean’s great cheerleader. She’s moved on from working in a supermarket to being a teacher’s assistant and a teacher, to then becoming a deputy head and now running a school. However, in their relationship, they haven’t addressed the pain of not being able to have a family. It’s starting to get to a point where it’s causing the tectonic plates between them to shift to where they either have to address something that is very painful or move in opposite directions. You mentioned the timing was right to revisit these characters. Why is now, 25 years later, a good time to return to Sheffield and pick up the story?

MA: The Full Monty was a political film. It was about what state parts of this country were in at that time. Following 18 years of a Conservative government, I think Simon felt like we’d come full circle. You know, why in 2023 are working nurses having to go and use food banks? It’s crazy. So, it felt like the right time to explore what has changed for these people who were struggling back then, and through that also explore how certain parts of the country are still finding it really tough today.

SH: The first day I was here, we were doing some prep work at Bramall Lane. It’s the first time I’ve been in Sheffield for a long time, and as we drove in through Attercliffe I was really shocked by the number of closed shops. The only thing open was a bookies, and I thought to myself, this hasn’t got much better since we last filmed here. It’s clear that poverty is taking a grip in some areas, especially post-covid, and it’s kicking in all over the country. So, when Simon first called me about this, he told me he was really pissed off with what was going on and he wanted to say something about it using these characters.

LS: I think what Steve and Mark have said absolutely holds true. I would just add that what Simon has also done, which I think is really important, is to show that these communities that have the label of being working-class may well be financially undernourished, but they have each other’s back as a community. They deal with their hardships with wit, endeavour and graft; these are not doom-laden communities but tend to be full of life and really inspiring. And I think that Simon is also at pains to say that in the country we live in there are many who’ve got a lot, and the people who don’t have much are often part of incredible communities doing amazing things with very little. I think that is why the film got so much traction, and hopefully, this series will do the same because these are recognisable communities.

A massive testament to that is how people in Sheffield are still immensely proud of The Full Monty and have gladly sewn it into their cultural fabric. What do you think bringing it back as a TV series allows you to do that a film sequel wouldn’t?

LS: I think 90 minutes to tell a big arc story, a lot of which revolves around whether these guys are going to have the nuts to reveal their nuts is fine. But eight hours of a series gives you the opportunity to explore the psychological ups and downs and truths of the older characters, but at the same time, it allows you to bring in this tranche of fantastic young, vibrant characters who are bringing a whole other side to the story. You can explore much more this way.

The Full Monty is out now on Disney+