My Yorkshire: Yorkshire County Cricket Club president Jane Powell on her favourite people and places

Sheffield is close to my heart, but I love York. I love the area around the Minster and the Shambles, and the history and splendour attached to it.

What’s your favourite view in Yorkshire?

I love the views at Filey. It’s quieter than Bridlington and Scarborough. We used to go to Filey every year for our summer holidays, spending hours on the beach playing cricket. The sand there was perfect for a game.

What is your favourite walk?

From where we lived on Scarsdale Road in Woodseats, the Peak District was obviously closer than the Dales or the North York Moors, so we’d regularly go walking towards Hathersage.In the winters, we’d also go for a walk in Ecclesall Woods collecting horse chestnuts.

What is your idea of a perfect day/weekend out in Yorkshire?

I’m going back to my childhood when the perfect weekend would be with the family going to cricket, preferably playing and then going to the pub afterwards. I always remember eating little cheese biscuits with pickled onions on the top.

Who is your favourite sportsman or woman, past or present, who you would like to take out for lunch?

Sitting here in the Carnegie café at Headingley, it’s appropriate that I should talk about Leeds Rhinos’ stars Kevin Sinfield and Rob Burrow who are outstanding individuals. Rob has so many great qualities which is why so many individuals have supported him throughout his illness. So, I’ve chosen Rob. Interestingly, I could have also picked Seb Coe because we were at school together in Sheffield and we still call each other by our first names when we meet.

Which Yorkshire stage or screen star, past or present, would you like to take out to dinner?

There are two people who stand out for me: Sean Bean and Michael Palin, both from Sheffield. Sean’s a Sheffield United fan like me. Apart from having dinner with him, I’d also like to go to a game at Bramall Lane with Sean, discussing the match and finding out more about him. Regarding Michael Palin, I love his travel programmes and prefer them to the Monty Python sketches.

Do you have a hidden Yorkshire gem?

I’ve just recently moved to Hawksworth near Guiseley and the places around there like Baildon are beautiful. In fact, I think there are more hidden gems that we don’t know about than we do, and when you drive and explore towards the villages near Harrogate, you see what I mean.

What do you think it is which gives Yorkshire its unique identity?

I’m very proud to come from Yorkshire. You are never left guessing what a Yorkshire person thinks, so I think it’s the authenticity of the people. Folk from the South probably feel we are blunt, but I feel we are honest and true. People here tell you straight and that’s one of the admirable characteristics.

How has Yorkshire influenced your career in teaching and sport?

A lot and especially the Yorkshire values I learnt from my parents growing up, such as telling the truth. I think Yorkshire has made me aware of other people and made me look beyond myself. Everything ingrained in me is from my Sheffield background, and now that I’m Yorkshire president, I’ve got more scope to influence other people as well.

How do you think Yorkshire has changed since you’ve known it, for the better or worse?

I think the picture is mixed. I think we promote the gems of Yorkshire far better and people now recognise it’s a great place to live, areas like the Dales, the coast and the North York Moors. Now, I think as a region, we are much more joined up. When I was growing up, the emphasis was very much on South Yorkshire and the West Riding, whereas now you feel part of Yorkshire as a whole.

Who is the Yorkshire person you admire the most?

My parents. My dad, Tony, encouraged me to play cricket when women didn’t really play, and my mother, Barbara, was a stalwart too. They’ve always been my role models.

What’s your favourite restaurant or pub?

I love fish and chips, so it has to be Harry Ramsden’s. They don’t make fish and chips right in the South, and as to a pub, the one that’s becoming a favourite of mine is the Hudson’s Arms on Mill Lane in Hawksworth.

What’s your favourite food shop?

It’s got to be Morrisons. They’ve got a solid Yorkshire background. Morrisons have an excellent salad bar and a decent café.

If you could own part of Yorkshire for the day where and what would it be?

The Crucible in Sheffield. I do like going to the theatre, and when the Crucible was built, it was just unreal because it was different. It’s a circular stage and unlike any other theatre I’d been to. The Crucible is versatile because of the snooker and if I owned it, I’d be thinking of other activities we could do there.

What do you want to achieve as Yorkshire president because you don’t want to be just a figurehead?

I want to rebuild trust for a start and then because my day job is the Disability Performance Manager with the ECB, I’d love to see a game for the disabled at Headingley, and I’d like to see the girls feel more welcome. For example, Headingley has all the famous men’s names on honours’ boards, so I’d like to see women’s names up there too, girls who’ve played for Yorkshire and England. I want everyone to feel they have a part in Yorkshire cricket. I feel honoured by this responsibility and the opportunities it has given me.

If a stranger came to Yorkshire and you had time to take that person to one place only, where would that be?

I’d say the last day of the Ashes Test at Headingley where people love their cricket and are so passionate about sport. The stranger, he or she, would get the feel of what it means to be a Yorkshireman or woman.