The majority of individuals will select a calendar with charming animals or a popular film star to hang on their wall. So Kevin Beresford was taken aback when his calendar, which featured his hometown of Redditch’s benches, became a huge hit.
His subject matter’s distinct dullness has struck a connection with the British audience, and he’s now dealing with hundreds of orders while running a full-time calendar factory out of his apartment.
“Every day, I have to get another 100 printed.” We’re probably over a thousand people now. The 69-year-old, who is retired but used to own a small printing firm, added, “It’s all we’ve been doing, night and day.”
From filthy street benches covered with empty beer cans to gorgeous oak seats on remote village greens, the A3 calendar depicts a range of benches in Redditch and its environs. A war memorial bench is located in November, and a picnic bench with disability access is located in August. “There’s something for everyone,” Beresford adds.
In 2003, he released his first calendar, the Roundabouts of Redditch, in an attempt to raise awareness for the community. “We didn’t have much going for us at the time because we had three prisons and no cinema,” he said.
Car Parks of Britain and the Wonderful World of Jack Grealish’s Calves are among the five calendars he’ll be selling this year (another big hit).
He concedes that some are more successful than others: “I made a roadkill calendar one year, but no one wanted to buy it.”
When asked how he picked the themes for his calendars, he stated he sought for commonplace things that had been missed. He said, “I like to take slices of English life that no one else bothers with.” “I like to concentrate on the ordinary; artists have always done so.” You have Tracy Emin’s bed, and Andy Warhol produced a soup can.”
He’s a proud member of the Dull Men’s Club, and in 2018, he was named anorak of the year. “When people ask if I’m offended when they call me the dullest man in Britain,” he says, “I say it’s a badge of honor for me.”
Lee Carlson, the club’s founder, expressed his delight in Beresford’s accomplishments. “We have a motto that says, ‘Celebrate the Ordinary.'” “There are simple pleasures right in front of us that we often overlook,” he remarked. “Simple things like park benches can be found almost anywhere, and they’re just a great place to sit and relax while watching the world go by.”
Over the summer, Beresford made his now-famous benches calendar in a single day. He knew which seats he wanted to include since he had lived in Redditch for 15 years. “It’s a kind of egalitarian calendar because I don’t just photograph picturesque ones; there’s one with cigarette butts in there,” he said.
May features his particular favorite, a circular bench around a tree on the village green in Sambourne, a short drive from his home. He captioned it, “Benches don’t come much better than this.”
The majority of people in Redditch are perplexed by the calendar and love counting how many benches they recognize. Many people have watched it on the national news and are pleased to see the town receiving favorable attention. “I believe it’s a fantastic concept. David Talbot-Sykes commented, “It’s great to see the town getting some national attention.” “It’s nice to celebrate the commonplace, but many of the benches have backstories.”
According to Beresford, the art of a good bench wasn’t simply in its construction. “It’s all about location, location, location when it comes to a nice bench.” It’s almost as though they’re meditation gadgets.”
What boring subject matter does he have in mind for his 2023 calendar? He’s done roundabouts and postboxes, benches and car parks, so what dull subject matter does he have in mind for his 2023 calendar?
He said, “Rubbish tips.” “I’m going to tour the United Kingdom for that.”
Meet the world’s most boring hobbies in the pursuit of boredom.
The Dull Club, which has over 10,000 members on Facebook, demonstrates that an increasing number of individuals are enjoying the mundane.
The yearly calendar of the club features the greatest boring hobbyists from all around the globe. This year’s winner is Massachusetts’ Steve Silberberg, who has collected 3,161 airsickness bags. “I thought it would be fun to collect something that no one else has,” he said. However, his website, airsicknessbags.com, already has 265 collectors from all over the globe.
There’s also Louis Chung, who shoots trash bins in Hong Kong; Ton Merckx, who has acquired a massive collection of cycling jerseys; and Gianni Bellini, who has the world’s biggest collection of football stickers.
However, the British people have a remarkable talent for finding delight in the mundane. Andrew Dowd, a mathematics teacher, has photographed all 2,548 railway stations in the United Kingdom. He concluded, “Most aren’t very interesting.”
The world’s biggest collection of traffic cones belongs to David Morgan, while the world’s largest collection of vacuum cleaners belongs to James Brown of Derbyshire.
Nick West, from Somerset, has relocated twice and constructed an addition to accommodate his massive collection of unusual beer cans, which he has amassed over the years – he now has over 9,000 of them.
Archie Workman, a photographer based in Cumbria, is interested by the geometry and interconnections of drain covers. He told his local newspaper, “I do dull.” “Celebrating the ordinary is something I enjoy doing.”
Thanks to Jessica Murray at The Guardian whose reporting provided the original basis for this story.
