Back to School with
Mo Ward & Mike Cullen Birkenhead
This inconspicuous partnership, that took thirty years to find one another, hold their own and their heads high with what they achieve when they set their stall out to enjoy there pigeons. A partnership that is only five years of age yet is steeped in years of hope, enjoyment, winners and sometimes disappointment.
Mo Ward and Mike Cullen a pair of likely characters that would make you smile when waiting for pigeons that don’t appear. Based at Bidston in the Northern part of Birkenhead on the Wirral peninsular they ply their hobby of racing pigeons with a zest and fervour that is second to none.
Mo Ward & Mike Cullen
Mo Ward has a long standing back ground locally within the hobby, even today he is the secretary of his local club the Wallasey Homing Society. Mo got involved with pigeons at a young age with his mates in and around Birkenhead in the fifties, mates such as Harry Newton who still flies today from Prenton Gardens on the Wirral and Tony Toner who has since sadly passed away ”we were all kids together” recalls Mo. “We kept our birds in the garden in a painted striped loft. We didn’t race pigeons in a club in those days, we would put the birds in a cardboard box, no baskets for us in those days just boxes, we would jump on the number 77 bus to Moreton Shore to let them go, great times and happy memories, childhood memories”.
Mo can still recall going to visit Prenton Gardens as a lad “we just gazed in ore at the lofts on the gardens” he recalls, “the local men would be all talking across to each other, we weren’t part of their conversations we were on the outside looking into their world, these were pigeon men proper pigeon men”.
Having tried and failed to get permission for lofts at various residencies Mo finally got a start to race his pigeons when his son Frank met Harry Andrews and with the help of my family procured a loft and put it at my daughter’s house in New Brighton. Birds that were housed then were from Bobby Gordon and Harry Andrews. Further imports were then to come from Dean Pallet, Fountainhead Lofts, Red Star Lofts along with some Henry Muir Lion Hearts.
Mo, (whom incidentally was christened Duncan) is married to Marlene (the one who must be obeyed) since 1967 some 48 years of marriage that has produced eight children, twenty grandchildren, and four great grandchildren. Both Mo and Mike emanate from the area
The other side of this partnership was to start racing pigeons later in life. Mike Cullen is another local born and bred lad. A stone mason by trade Mike has been married to Julie for a healthy thirty three years. The couple have two children and one grandchild whom Mike dotes on.
Mick was to first fly his pigeons from his own garden in 1978, again in Birkenhead North, although Mike didn’t continue racing for any length of time due to ill health and although his success story may have not been as affluent as most in his former days, Mike was eventually to stop racing but kept his loft and his pigeons to maintain his interest in his own domain.
The racing lofts of Ward and Cullen
It was to be through a mutual friend Peewee who would introduce Mike to Mo, due to failing health Mo had been struggling to cope alone and was at one stage considering giving up the “ghost” as it were. When Peewee introduced us we would never have thought that it would be the start of an adventure that we hope will still have years left to run. Since Mike has come here and with his enthusiasm and endeavours things have really improved for me and in turn both of us now as a partnership. Mike has been a god send to me.
Mo, having flown in various partnerships such as Little, Price and Ward as far back as 2002, he also recalls winning his first ever race with a youngster who’s ring number was treble 7. These first birds were from Billy Locke who taught me a lot about my pigeons and also another flyer who helped me was John Walters and Sons, straight talking people.
When asked about significant moments in our hobby Mo also recalls his North West Combine winner “do you know that pigeon a 2006 young bird topped the combine from Wincanton some nearly 5000 birds, he also won a Chepstow club race taking third federation and then coming second in the Chester Two Bird young bird race from Littlehampton completed a great year for me”.
When you sit down and listen to stories (too many to mention I hasten to add) this likeable pair of local lads don’t stop smiling when talking about pigeons. The banter around these allotments was at one stage brilliant the pair recall, we even has an old toilet seat that the last person to clock on the allotment had to hang it on their gate for a week “I once had that bloody seat stuck on my gate for five or six consecutive weeks once” everyone who passed would comment on it”.
Today’s racing is not the same there are some win at all costs fanciers, but each to their own really some people thrive off winning, today we get a buzz from our pigeons, when both Mike and I come into this allotment it’s our domain and we love it to be honest. First to enjoy this hobby you must learn how to lose and both Mike and I have learned through our apprenticeships of many years how to lose pigeons and races. Now we sit here and appreciate what we have and enjoy what we got.
Yes we like to win, but it’s not at all costs. We have some nice stock pigeons and we breed some nice type of youngsters, we then do our best to nurture train, race and hopefully win a race or two with them but if we don’t we start again the following week with a smile.
The Stock Loft of Ward & Cullen
The pigeons that have helped this partnership win their federation young bird averages in 2014 are mainly from some well-known local and not so local fanciers: Crowe and Worrell of Widnes have an influence at this loft along with John Baptist of Newcastle. There are some pigeons from John Geenhalf of Royston not to mention Mr & Mrs Dickson of Spalding Lincolnshire, all have contributed greatly to our stock and to our successes.
I, as a “so called scribe” had been intrigued that the both these men were not sat talking about this win or that win, what they did tell me about was when the birds arrive on the allotments with some dozen or more fanciers participating in any one week it can be a bit hectic trapping to say the least, and Mo does enjoy showing his combine medal off but they don’t strike those any more.
What makes you tick they were asked what motivates you or drives you with your pigeons, I was slightly surprised at the answer “enjoyment” they say has to be first and foremost enjoy racing your pigeons” it has been normal for people to answer winning drives us but not here they ultimately enjoy their past time, they enjoy each other’s company and they win they are (in their words) “made up”.
So we understand the enjoyment so what has given you the most pleasure since teaming up together “that’s easy” Mike states, “it’s the RPRA one loft racing for schools” this was something that I (like a few I reckon) didn’t know anything about. We have all heard of the RPRA one loft race and various other one loft ventures but one for schools was a new idea to me.
Mike explained that his wife (Julie) had red about this and asked the partnership if they would mind supplying some youngsters on behalf of the local school to the ROPRA one loft race. This they did and the tow pigeons were despatched FOC to the RPRA one loft race loft on behalf of Holy Cross Primary School Birkenhead.
Each school per region “ours is the Western Region” Mike states “you get four free entries per region, all entries are put into a hat and four drawn out, we had two pulled out of the hat for the school which was brilliant”. After that the birds get trained and race in the schools name our pigeons had two seconds and one third during the hot spot racing winning the school £80. They were thrilled but we were just as excited anticipating the results we will be doing that again for them I’m sure.
In leaving these pair of enthusiasts you get the feeling that there is enjoyment to be had in this hobby of ours, if you sit and think as I was inclined to do when compiling this report, the first thing you have to be with your pigeons while they are resting or just in the winter is happy, happy to be with them, happy to feed them, just being happy with them is what these two Birkenhead lads left me with! A huge smile on my face.
The young bird loft of Ward and Cullen
First North West Combine diploma
The Gold medal Awarded By The North West Combine
Mo Ward’s North West Combine Winner
The children of Holy Cross Primary School with their three RPRA diplomas.
Left to right Mrs Julie Cullen. Michael Cullen (Ward & Cullen) and the school head mistress Mrs Bradley.
