Wigan Album

I would like to read through that guide Ron. He painted The Crucifixion.

The cover of the guide is much in the style of the railway posters of that time & much copied these days.
I would like to look at it too Edna...

That must be a fascinating read! It surprises me that that beautiful cover is a Theodore Major painting. At the risk of bringing wrath down on my head, I can honestly say that I completely fail to see what others seem to see in Major's art-work. However, if all his work were like the cover of that guide I would be a fan. That is beautiful.

It’s very 1930’s he’s not my favourite ‘Grim up North’ Artist …I find them depressing. The cover is nice though. Although looking at his still life flowers he does see some beauty in his subjects…not to everyone’s taste. I remember seeing a documentary years ago and thinking what a load o’twaddle’ he was spouting.

Sorry if this appears twice....my laptop is playing silly beggars! I just posted a comment to ask if this is definitely THEODORE Major from Appley Bridge, and not a different "Major". It just doesn't look like his style but I am happy to stand corrected.

Irene, it seems others too are wondering if the artist is Theodore Major or someone else also named Major. You can read the booklet here too:- https://www.wiganlocalhistory.org/resources/1935-the-official-guide-to-the-town-industries

Thankyou Cyril. I had a read and it is very interesting. I particularly like the old adverts for shops and cafes. However, I really don't think the painting on the cover (which I love), is by Theodore Major. It's too neat and precise, and just not his style.

It will be one of his wife Kathleen paintings.
I used to knock about with their daughter Mary when I was about 16 years of age.

The local artist Gerald Rickards must have been inspired by this to adopt a similar collage-like style for many of his paintings of the townships in the Wigan area. He was born 4 years before Major painted this.
Strange there is no reference (apart from smoking chimneys and the gas lamp) to coal-mining in the Borough. Although I don't think there were any working mines within the original Wigan Borough by this time, there were still working mines in Pemberton, which came into the Borough in 1904. Perhaps the Council were trying to throw off the idea of Wigan being a mining town... which might explain their negative reaction to Orwell's Road to Wigan Pier three years later....

Blimey Mick! Is there any ones daughter you haven’t knocked about with?
If you add any more to the list we’ll have to rename you Mick the Sheik of Shevvy!

It will be Irene, I can't see anyone at that time in 1935 doing a painting for a front cover of a Wigan Town Guide and faking Theodore Major's signature on it, though they would and actually do so now. Compare the signatures here: https://www.theodoremajor.co.uk/

His paintings wasn't that bad and I quite like some of them, in this link you can see his painting Wigan crucifixion that Edna mentioned.
https://artuk.org/discover/stories/theo-major-a-forgotten-twentieth-century-master

Dtease that made me ‘guffaw’ with laughter. You’ve got me imagining Mick in his Sheik’s desert garb! “ Come into my Casbah my sweet pomegranate “…..

Having downloaded this guide, if this was to be produced today, would it be 83 pages full of what Wigan & District can produce and praise the approaches to the town in a elegant tone? I love the description of the market hall and its wares. Takes you back to those days when one could buy anything without ordering it.