{"id":2198,"date":"2020-10-15T20:28:48","date_gmt":"2020-10-16T03:28:48","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.bassettbranches.org\/newsblog\/?p=2198"},"modified":"2020-10-15T20:28:48","modified_gmt":"2020-10-16T03:28:48","slug":"reg-bassett-orchestra-of-staffordshire-england","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.bassettbranches.org\/newsblog\/reg-bassett-orchestra-of-staffordshire-england\/","title":{"rendered":"Reg Bassett Orchestra of Staffordshire, England"},"content":{"rendered":"

Reginald Guy Bassett descends from #16B John Bassett of Alstonfield, Staffordshire as follows:<\/p>\n

John Bassett (d. 1667) and wife Dorothy
\nRobert Bassett (b. 1609)
\nRobert Bassett (b. 1656) and wife Dorothy Ratciliff
\nRobert Bassett (b. 1708) and wife Joan Bonsel
\nThomas Bassett and wife Hannah Fraggatt
\nMary Bassett (b. 1794)
\nRalph Bassett (b. 1819) and wife Hannah Shenton
\nJoseph Bassett (b. 1854) and wife Ellen Hall
\nLeonard John Bassett (b. 1886) and wife Mary Clare Weaver
\nReginald Guy Bassett<\/p>\n

Evening Sentinel, Wednesday, May 25, 1988
\nIn Character
\nMusical way of conducting big business
\nBy. Alan Cookman<\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 At 75, the mellow and avuncular boss of the giant Bassett transport group may now seem an unlikely cupid.<\/p>\n

Yet generations of North Staffordshire couples were sent quickstepping to the altar under the obliging baton of Reg Bassett.<\/p>\n

The former resident bandleader at Trentham Gardens was the Joe Loss of North Staffordshire for over 50 years. New ballroom fashions and rhythms came and went, but Reg Bassett was immovable.<\/p>\n

It all started in the 1930\u2019s when his mother organized a dance in the local Tittensor school to raise funds for a new village hall.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey were stuck for a band,\u201d Says Reg. \u201cI\u2019d played the drums in the cadets at Alleyne\u2019s School, so I volunteered to get some pals together. We were a big success.\u201d<\/p>\n

Gigs at village halls in and around Stone followed, and during World War Two Reg and the boys entertained the troops and factory workers. Later came success in the Melody Maker band contest and engagements in two halls and ballrooms across the North and the Midlands.<\/p>\n

The original five-piece band had grown to a 15-piece orchestra when the legendary Geraldo, then resident musical director at Trentham Gardens, signed them up in the Fifties.<\/p>\n

\u201cJackie Trent was one of our singers, and we played alongside bands like Harry Roy, Ted Heath, Joe Loss, Victor Sylvester and Ivy Benson,\u201d says Reg, who finally put away his baton in 1978 on doctor\u2019s orders.<\/p>\n

\u201cI loved every minute of it. For me it was a relaxation, an escape from the pressures of business. I was really touched by all the letters I received when I retired. I got messages from people all over the country.<\/p>\n

\u201cNow we get together twice a years, with some top class musicians from Manchester, to play the Lord Mayor\u2019s Ball and the Lady Mayoress\u2019s Ball.\u201d<\/p>\n

If Reg Bassett\u2019s band-leading days are all but over, he is still firmly in control at the Tittensor headquarters of what is one of Britain\u2019s biggest independent haulage companies.<\/p>\n

Founded by his grandfather, Joseph Bassett, who operated horses and carts, steam rollers and heavy traction engines from Strongford Farm, the business was expanded by Reg\u2019s father, Leonard Bassett.<\/p>\n

When Leonard died in 1934 at the age of 48, Reg inherited a fleet of 15 vehicles. \u201cI was only 22, but I already had plenty of experience in haulage,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

During the next 50 years, the family concern grew into a vast operation, with 75 lorries, 200 trailers, 23 coaches and an annual turnover of betweenmillion.<\/p>\n

Reg, whose wife Marjorie still works full-time at the sprawling complex beside the A34, runs the business with sons Leonard (42) and Ashley (40). He seldom takes a holiday and, at 75, still puts in 12 hours a day.<\/p>\n

Road transport has come a long way since Leonard Bassett hauled boilers and bricks by iron-wheeled traction engines before the Great War. Today, for example, a modern unit and trailer can cost well over<\/p>\n

A grandfather of five, whose interests outside music and transport include a passion for model railways, Reg Bassett now has the contented air of a man who has achieved outstanding success in two widely contrasting fields.<\/p>\n

Yet the two can overlap \u2013 for thousands of people, the sight of a Bassett\u2019s wagon or bus still evokes fond memories of the foxtrot, the cha cha cha or the twist on the Trentham Gardens dance floor.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a> \"\"<\/a>Picture from \u201cBassetts of Tittensor, 100 Years of Transport, 1897 \u2013 1997\u201d<\/p>\n

To read a previous article about the Bassetts of Tittensor, click on the link below.<\/p>\n

http:\/\/www.bassettbranches.org\/newsletters\/2011\/04\/201104.shtml<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Reginald Guy Bassett descends from #16B John Bassett of Alstonfield, Staffordshire as follows: John Bassett (d. 1667) and wife Dorothy Robert Bassett (b. 1609) Robert Bassett (b. 1656) and wife Dorothy Ratciliff Robert Bassett (b. 1708) and wife Joan Bonsel … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2198","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bassettbranches.org\/newsblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2198","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bassettbranches.org\/newsblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bassettbranches.org\/newsblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bassettbranches.org\/newsblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bassettbranches.org\/newsblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2198"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.bassettbranches.org\/newsblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2198\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2201,"href":"https:\/\/www.bassettbranches.org\/newsblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2198\/revisions\/2201"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bassettbranches.org\/newsblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2198"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bassettbranches.org\/newsblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2198"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bassettbranches.org\/newsblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2198"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}