In a clearing stands the boxer

and a fighter by his name

For a small town, Hinckley has a surprising number of Blue Plaques. This one has always intrigued me as I thought `pugilist` was just another name for a boxer.

Nat Langham was born into abject poverty in Cross Keys Yard. Left to his own devices as a child, an incident at 8 years old left him with a severe speech impediment. He stole a hot potato from a street vendors cart, the vendor caught Nat and shoved the potato into his mouth causing severe burns and swelling to his tongue.

He became a bareknuckle boxer (pugilist) and his fighting career took off when he was about 22, his most memorable being his bout against Tom Sayer in Lakenheath Surrey. This lasted just over 2 hours and ended in Sayer being knocked out in round 60.

Langham died aged 51 from TB. His grave can still be seen in Bromptom Cemetery