Rob Hargreaves reports on the unveiling of a new plaque in June…

Memories of speedway legend Clem Beckett, who died a hero’s death in the Spanish Civil War, were affectionately revived by locals close to his boyhood home.

Almost a hundred years after a 40,000 crowd of adoring fans witnessed one of Clem’s record-breaking rides at Manchester’s White City stadium, a rather smaller gathering of fans assembled in the sleepy hamlet of Top o’ th’Meadows, on on the outskirts of Oldham, to pay homage to their hero. 

The new plaque is near Beckett's boyhood home.

The occasion was the unveiling of a plaque in Clem Beckett’s honour, by his 96-year-old niece, Margaret Barlow, who lives close to Clem’s boyhood home in Saddleworth. She enthralled her audience with tales of ‘Daredevil’ Beckett’s career as a motorcycle speedway rider and performer on the ‘wall of death’, before drawing back a curtain in the form of a chequered flag to reveal the plaque. 

Ready to wave the chequered flag: Karl Jones, who led the campaign, with Margaret Barlow, Beckett's niece.

Sheep farmer Karl Jones commissioned the plaque and had it erected on the side of his farmhouse. “I was very moved to learn about the connections we have with Clem Beckett, and to discover that Margaret was my neighbour”, he said. Before it’s unveiling, the plaque was fittingly covered by the chequered flag which marked hundreds of dirt-track victories for Clem.

During his astonishing rise from humble working-class roots to fame as a speedway rider in the 1920’s, Clem remained a loyal member of the Communist Party, and was among the first British volunteers to go to Spain when war broke out. He was killed in action, at the Battle of Jarama, manning a machine gun on the flanks of ‘Suicide Hill’, covering the retreat of comrades outgunned by fascist troops reinforced by Hitler and Mussolini. 

Supporters gather in the sun to remember International Brigader Clem Beckett.

Dolores Long, chair of IBMT affiliate North West International Brigade Memorial Group, and daughter of Sam Wild, who fought alongside Clem Beckett at Jarama, and later became the commanding officer of the British Battalion, thanked Karl for his efforts. She stressed the importance of memorials in preserving the memory of the 2,500 volunteers from Britain and Ireland who fought against fascism in Spain, of whom more than 500 were killed in action.