With no football to consider, let’s take a step back and consider the incredible progress the city of Wrexham is enjoying as a by-product of the club’s success.
Every football club is unique, with a narrative which is a living thing, changing constantly as each week unfolds, adding new plot lines to the meandering soap opera of their existence. While a major part of that identity is predicated upon their successes and failures, there’s something deeper which is part of each club’s DNA.
It can’t be detached from its locale. A football club is formed from the people that spawned and shaped it, and in return shines a light on that community.
I find this fascinating. Every football fan will claim their club is special – I’ve certainly heard that constantly from Wrexham supporters – and used to assume that was a misconception.
I thought the common experience of fandom means we all think we’re exceptional, but in fact we all experience broadly the same things, and are on the same journey?
I was wrong: there is something unique to cherish in each club’s identity, drawn from its environment.
We’ve been fortunate enough to go through a crazy journey which has illuminated the many positives we already enjoy here in our little patch of North East Wales
Rob McElhenney and Ryan Reynolds are story-tellers, and they’ve used “Welcome to Wrexham” to explore the rich range of narratives in the city with a deft touch.
The show isn’t just the source of publicity which keeps this glorious bandwagon on the road. It also fulfils the owners’ desire to support the local community.
We’ve enjoyed the beginnings of a regenerative process which is at odds with the rest of the country, where the effects of years of austerity have left a deep impression.
There’s a long way to go, but Wrexham is showing signs of recovery.
High Street, for instance, was a barren place in the last few decades, mostly composed of pubs and late night post-session takeaways. In the daytime it would lie dustily dormant, waiting to spring to life on Friday and Saturday night.
Now, it’s different. Restaurants and bars which offer more than a stop on the weekend pub crawl have sprung up, alongside the independent shops which reflect a growth in entrepreneurial spirit across the city.
It’s all a consequence of the intangible boost the takeover of the club has given us. From being a depressed town, ravaged in the 1980s as our core industries were pushed into obsolescence, we have found our confidence again.
Just knowing the biggest film star in the world had heard of Wrexham was a boost; his commitment to the city has had a miraculous effect on our self-esteem!
Also, it’s gratifying to see how satisfied international visitors are when they come to visit.
The positive image this creates of us surprises most Wrexham folk. I’ve often been asked “What do these Americans actually find in Wrexham to do?” “Why do these Australians come here?”
They don’t get a conventional holiday here. Instead, they experience what a place and its people are actually like, and they love it.
Sure, we’re rough around the edges, but that’s a strength. There’s a genuine warmth to us.
You often don’t appreciate what’s right underneath your nose but there’s a lot to Wrexham, and “Welcome to Wrexham” is a fantastic advertisement for it.
I have a bizarre piece of evidence to support my point.
Our stadium sponsors, SToK, asked me to provide the voiceover for an advert that ran in the States. It was a promotion where the prize was a holiday to Wrexham.
Tell any Wrexhamite this and generally they’ll burst out laughing. As if anybody would want a holiday to Wrexham! The very thought of it!
I assure you that is not the view overseas. The international market SToK are targeting see it as an exciting opportunity to come and experience somewhere special.
Last Friday, an edition of the BBC4 show “Mark Steel’s In Town” was recorded by the legendary comedian in the William Aston Hall1. It’s a terrific show with a simple but perfect format.
He’ll go to a town, do lots of research and get to understand it with all its glorious regional peculiarities. Then, he’ll deliver half an hour of typically sharp stand-up about the place.
He’ll affectionately poke fun at his target, and of course the local audience absolutely loves it.
The thing is, having got to know so much of the country this way, he found Wrexham to be just as charming as our international fans do. He’s not come to us with their positive expectations; instead, he’s a seasoned traveller who was still moved by our story.
He nailed our accent as well!
6. Unst (Shetland part 2) – Mark Steel's in Town
We’ve got a lot to be proud of in Wrexham: we just needed people from elsewhere to point it out to us.
Bizarrely though, considering the huge contribution “Welcome to Wrexham” has made to both the football club and the town, most people still insist on calling it the Netflix documentary despite it not being broadcast on that channel. There’s not so queer as folk.
Especially Wrexham folk.
- It will be broadcast on BBC 4 next October, so if you weren’t there you’ll have to wait. But you should have been there. ↩︎
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