Frederick "Fred" Dibnah MBE (28 April 1938 – 6 November 2004), born in Bolton, was an English steeplejack, engineer and eccentric who became a television personality, a cult figure and, latterly, a national institution.
Dibnah was born in a country which then relied heavily upon coal to fuel its industry. As a child he was fascinated by the steam engines which powered the many textile mills in Bolton, but he paid particular attention to chimneys,...
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Frederick "Fred" Dibnah MBE (28 April 1938 – 6 November 2004), born in Bolton, was an English steeplejack, engineer and eccentric who became a television personality, a cult figure and, latterly, a national institution.
Dibnah was born in a country which then relied heavily upon coal to fuel its industry. As a child he was fascinated by the steam engines which powered the many textile mills in Bolton, but he paid particular attention to chimneys, and the men who worked on them. He began his working life as a joiner, before becoming a steeplejack. From age 22 he served for two years in the armed forces, as part of his national service. Once demobilised he returned to steeplejacking but met with limited success until he was asked to repair Bolton's parish church. The resulting publicity provided a welcome boost to his business, ensuring he was almost never out of work.
In 1978, while making repairs to Bolton Town Hall, Dibnah was filmed by a regional BBC news crew. The BBC then...
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