Notable people include Labour British Prime Minister Harold Wilson and film star James Mason.

Two Prime Ministers spent part of their childhood in Huddersfield: Harold Wilson, who was born locally and attended Royds Hall School, and H. H. Asquith.

In 1920, the Corporation bought the Ramsden Estate from that family that had owned much of the town at least as to the reversion of long leases (a minor, overarching interest) since 1599, for £1.3 million.

Kirklees was the first part of the country to have a Green or other environmentalist party councillor – Nicholas Harvey – he was instrumental in protesting against the intended closure of the Settle and Carlisle Railway line.

Larger outlying communities such as Upper Hopton, Grange Moor, Highburton, Farnley Tyas, Netherton, Honley, Outlane, Slaithwaite, Wellhouse are exempt from this.

[25][24] A subsidiary aim is to encourage play, sport and leisure,[24] through woodland, moor, streams, green meadows, fields, small bogs.

This area of business, along with the chemical and engineering industries that emerged to support the manufacture of textiles, was the basis of the town's nineteenth and early twentieth century prosperity.

The number of people who work in textiles has declined greatly, but the surviving companies produce large quantities of woollen products with little labour.

On its 50th anniversary in 1954 it employed more than 2,000 people and, with Ernest's sons Frank and Jack in charge, was the largest exclusive producer of AC motors in the world, and had a turnover of £4,500,000.

That same year Brook Motors Ltd operated 10 factories in Huddersfield, its biggest being Empress Works on St Thomas's Road, and opened one at Barugh Green, Barnsley.

Princess Royal Hospital provided maternity facilities until the risks of not being able to get an ambulance to A&E in the event of complications were judged to outweigh the benefits of specialist service provision.

The campaign was led by Save Huddersfield NHS which elected a councillor, Dr Jackie Grunsell in the Crosland Moor ward.

This sparked uproar in local communities as it would mean journeys from some areas of over 40 minutes to and from the hospital assuming that the main road into Halifax was not congested, as it frequently is.

There are many pubs, restaurants and night clubs, one of which, Tokyo, which closed in 2019, occupies the former Huddersfield County Court, a 19th-century Grade II listed building.

The Piazza offers an outdoor shopping mall near the public library, with a grassed area, used for relaxation and events throughout the year such as entertainment, international markets and iceskating in winter.

[33] Most notability the closure of British Home Stores (BHS) in 2016 left a large shopping unit empty in The Piazza Centre.

Its history was chronicled in the book 'And The Glory',[35] written to commemorate the society's 150th anniversary in 1986 – its title derived from a chorus in Handel's landmark Oratorio Messiah.

On Christmas Day 1977, the Sex Pistols played their last two British shows, a matinee for the children of striking firefighters, at Ivanhoe's nightclub, before embarking on an ill-fated US tour which saw the group's acrimonious collapse.

The Electric Spring festival is an exploration of electronic and experimental music, featuring the 50-channel, 64-loudspeaker Huddersfield Immersive Sound System (HISS).

Ian Berry was born in Netherton, Huddersfield and was educated in the town and went to Greenhead College[40][41] and is internationally renowned for his art using only denim jeans and was named as one of the top 30 artists under 30 in the world in 2013.

[42][43] In 1996 aged 11 he won the Huddersfield Daily Examiner 125th Birthday competition that saw his design printed on to mugs, tea towels and posters.

The 2007 show was performed by French company Plasticiens Volants, which used large inflatable sea creatures in a parade through the streets as they told the story of 'Pearl'.

The M62 passes about 2+1⁄2 miles (4 kilometres) to the north, and Huddersfield is linked to it by three junctions: Mount (A640, J23 – limited access), Ainley Top (A629, J24) and between Brighouse and Cooper Bridge (A644, J25).

There are local stopping services operated by Northern linking Huddersfield with Barnsley, Bradford Interchange, Brighouse, Dewsbury, Halifax, Leeds, Sheffield and Wakefield Kirkgate.

The Penistone Line passes through mainly rural stations towards Barnsley and Sheffield: Lockwood, Berry Brow, Honley,Brockholes, Stocksmoor, Shepley and Denby Dale.

In 1921–22 Huddersfield won the FA Cup and between 1923 and 1926 became the first club to win the League Championship three times in a row, an achievement matched only by four other teams.

After several decades in lower divisions, Huddersfield Town FC returned to top flight football in 2017 when the club entered the Premier League for the first time.

Huddersfield has produced multiple Yorkshire CCC cricketers including 14 internationals, such as Alec Coxon, Billy Bates and Chris Balderstone.

Kirklees Metropolitan Borough Council amended the original 'Freedom' and transferred it to the Yorkshire Regiment, at a Freedom parade on 25 October 2008.

[80] Other famous people whose association with Huddersfield is not as notable or well-known, though they were raised there, include H. H. Asquith (born in Morley), who served as the Liberal Prime Minister of the United Kingdom between 1908 and 1916.