The Christmas Bullfinch

The Christmas of 1949 was a prize-winning one for six-year-old Geoff, literally. And all thanks to a little British bullfinch.

“Back then, cage birds were a huge thing,” Geoff says, smiling at the memory. “There were cage bird societies in every town, and East Lancashire was the heart of it all. It was like cotton mills and cage birds just went hand in hand.”

Behind the rows of terraced houses, in backyards and sheds, people were busy breeding and training birds, all hoping to create the next big show winner.

“It was a proper money spinner,” Geoff says. “There were at least three bird shows every weekend. I’d tag along with my dad, and he’d get me a stack of pop and crisps to keep me happy while he showed his birds. My dad wasn’t just a breeder of budgerigars and canaries; he bred British and foreign birds, too. He was a breeder, exhibitor, lecturer, and even a judge. I’ve still got his old judging stick.”

“By now, Geoff was hooked. He wanted that trophy”

Geoff’s dad also ran a pet shop and was seriously into birds. “At one point, our house was home to about 500 of them, budgies, canaries, British birds, foreign birds, you name it.”

Growing up in the 1940s, cage birds were everywhere. “Pretty much everyone had one,” Geoff remembers. “Dad used to sell budgies for five shillings each, and he bred them right there in our front room. There were about 250 in there at one point. Out the back, he had massive aviaries full of birds.”

Mornings were always noisy, in the best way. “I’d wake up to a dawn chorus. It was lovely. The only downside was the mess, seeds everywhere! My mum used to complain, so Dad ripped up the carpets and put lino down instead.”

Their mantelpiece was lined with trophies from bird shows all across Lancashire. “If you won first in class, you got ten shillings, not bad at all back then. Win champion of the show, and that was a pound. Win three times in a row, and you’d get a five-pound note. Whenever Dad won one of those, he’d fold it up, pop it inside the trophy, and keep it for a rainy day.”

Geoff’s dad had good reason to celebrate. One of his budgerigars sold for £100 in 1954, which was an incredible amount of money at the time. “Every feather on it was perfect,” Geoff says proudly.

Naturally, Geoff wanted to follow in his dad’s footsteps. He decided to raise a bird of his own, but which one? After flicking through his book of British birds, one caught his eye: the bullfinch, with its striking red chest and blue-grey wings. “My dad already had two bullfinches, so he bred me one. I joined the British Bird Breeders’ Association and got a badge, I’ve still got it today. That meant I could show my own bird.”

Geoff’s first show was at Colne’s Municipal Hall. “There were about 200 exhibits. My dad won Best Budgie in Show and Best Canary in Show. He walked away with two trophies, and I didn’t win anything, but I didn’t mind. My bullfinch got Best in Class, which was good enough for me.”

Later that year, they went to the Trawden Show. Many still flock to the show each August, but back in 1949, the agricultural show attracted six thousand people. Once again, Geoff’s dad swept up the big prizes, but Geoff was thrilled to come third out of hundreds of entries.

By now, Geoff was hooked. He wanted that trophy. So, just before Christmas, he and his dad headed to Burnley with his bullfinch, who, against his dad’s advice, he’d secretly named Bertie.

“Dad always said not to name them, because you’d get too attached,” Geoff chuckles. “Bertie lived about four years though, not bad! We also had an African grey parrot that lived to be 80.”

At the Burnley show, Bertie was up against some tough competition, other finely bred British birds, but this time, Geoff’s patience paid off. He won Best British Bird and took home a shiny trophy and a prize of one pound.

“I was over the moon,” Geoff says. “It was about ten days before Christmas, and I went straight down to Gerrard’s, the bookshop, to spend my winnings. I bought two new annuals for the year ahead and still had change left for penny sweets and liquorice.”

That Christmas, Geoff wasn’t just celebrating with toys and treats; he had his first big win and a proper trophy to show for it.

After that, he caught the bird-showing bug for good. He and his dad travelled to competitions all over the North until 1954, when his dad decided to sell his famous £100 budgerigar and wind things down.

“I stayed a member of the BBBA until it disbanded, probably around 1960, when it became illegal to breed British birds,” Geoff explains.

Even though the days of bird shows are long gone, Geoff still has a soft spot for bullfinches. They are notoriously secretive, and you rarely see them in gardens. “You don’t see them often,” he says. “But when I visit my daughter’s house, there’s sometimes one at her bird feeder.” The sight takes Geoff back to 1949, to Bertie, and his marvellous Christmas win!

Read another nostalgic story from Geoff here.

Northern Life Winter 25