Spaghetti Eating Race 1959

From The British Pathé Digital News Archive. Click on the thumbnail, then on the Play button that appears.
The narrator explains:

"The party is, in fact, a contest to see who can swallow spaghetti fastest - the beauties from London's Talk of the Town, or the hairy gentlemen of the Handlebar Club - who are recognised (in some places!) World Champion Spaghetti Eaters"

19 members of Belgian-based club Europese Snorrenclub Antwerpen lead by their President, Willy Dupon will arrive on 9th October for a 3-day visit to London. The Handlebar Club is delighted to meet and entertain them on the evening of Friday 9th October at the Windsor Castle - this is in addition to the regular first Friday the weekend previous.

As heralded at the 2009 AGM, the annual Darts Match with The Pipe Club of London has been resurrected, and will take place at Thatcher's Arms in Great Warley, Brentwood, Essex from 14:00 on Saturday 17th October 2009. It will be a charity event as usual with proceeds going to the Children's Liver Disease Foundation, a charity close to the heart of HBC and PCoL member Alan 'Rocky' Rockcliffe. Put the date in your diary, find the way there, and get your eye and a pint in for 2pm on the day.

Such is the power of The Internet and 'The Web' - (oh, are they two different things? Well, yes and no - one is the carrier for the other) - that the generously-moustached gentleman we were looking for is quickly found and established as Paul Larsen, our latest Overseas member. You can find out more about him in the Gallery of Members.

The Svenska Mustaschklubben was started in 1984 by Sten-Erik Molker as a 'nest' of the Handlebar Club, and we still have very strong ties with them. 11 Brits, a busload of Belgians, a gaggle of Germans, a dash of Dutch, and a smattering of Swedes celebrated this weekend event in Köping, Sweden on 4th and 5th September. Andy Lear was there as usual, eating and drinking his way through the weekend. It's a must-read experience...

On Saturday 19th June in Stirling, Scotland, The Handlebar Club treasurer Alex McBride (centre) presented a £100 donation to The Scottish Veterans Association chairman Mr John Richardson ex. RAMC (right), accompanied by SVA Secretary and Handlebar Club member Rev Dr. Bill Mackie (left).

Following in our footsteps of last year, our brother club The British Beard Club recently challenged the Eggheads team in a closely-fought bid to dislodge them from their proverbial wall. Did their team of buttered bearded soldiers beat those hard-boiled eggsperts, or were they left pointed end up and past their shell-by date with scrambled brains? You'll have to wait rather more than 4 minutes for the answer by watching out for the show on BBC2 Television!

Andy Lear's 427 stanza epic poem The Battle Of The Haggis, written to honour The Halbert of McHalbert's valiant struggle during the 2009 AGM in Edinburgh, has received less attention than it deserves (it says here). Now, in its full glory with witty illustration by Kate Harrison, it becomes obvious where true artistic genius lies. Judge for yourself and relive The Glorious Fourth of April.

The third bi-monthly meeting of The British Beard Club took place at The George Inn, Borough High Street, London on 21st June 2009. It was a great success for the new Club, and was the most-attended meeting so far. Read TBBC Organiser David Dade's illustrated report.

The next World Beard and Moustache Championships is on May 17th, 2011 in Trondheim, Norway, so you have still have time to grow a competition-quality moustache or beard! If you want to try growing more than just a moustache, why not join The British Beard Club and they'll help and advise your beard growth progress.

From the Cumberland News:
Keith said,"I am a great fan of the TV programme Eggheads and a group of men from The Handlebar Club were on that. I decided to join and enter the competition."

The Handlebar Club's annual visit to Belgium took Steve Parsons to the 2009 Antwerp Moustache of the Year event, hosted by Snorrenclub Antwerpen. Steve describes a weekend of processing through the streets of Antwerp then drinking more Belgian beer, and you'll find out what the town of Leuven is famous for.

The Handlebar Club World Beard and Moustache Non-Alaska Awards 2009 contest took place in a leafy Kent village while all the fuss continued in Alaska. Tom Cutler recalls what he can remember about the event.

The World Beard and Moustache Championships 2009 took place in Anchorage, Alaska, USA on May 23rd, and Andy Lear recounts The Handlebar Club team's experiences, what he drank and ate, and hardly anything about the contest itself, as usual.

Talented student photographer Rokas Darulis featured some of our members in his BA degree show, held at the Old Truman Brewery in Brick Lane from June 4th to 8th. Take a look at Rokas's impressive work. The 'Moustache' section is the one you're after.

The Handlebar Club 2009 AGM took place in Edinburgh in early April, and Andy Lear recounts his experiences - or at least those he can remember....

The Svenska Mustaschklubben is based in Malmö, Sweden, and was founded in 1984 by Swedish members of the Handlebar Club. 2009 sees their 25th Anniversary celebrations, which take place on 4/5th September in the Swedish city of Köping, near Stockholm. There's more about the club on their Web site. Click on the Union Jack for the English translation.