Hackney Women Harriers: Janet Clift
By Janet Clift August 2026
I joined the running club right at the beginning with my partner Jane. We were already running and going to the gym when my friend Mary mentioned a new women’s running club in Hackney and encouraged us to go with her to the introductory meeting in the Duke of Wellington Pub. It was a great meeting with like-minded sporty women and we knew from the start it was right for us.
The club was first based at Victoria Park and we were called the Victoria Park Vixens. We’d run round Victoria Park and along the Canal. Later we became the Hackney Women’s Harriers and ran mainly round Clissold Park, Springfield Park and along the River Lea.
Sunday runs on Hampstead Heath were memorable. The route is etched in my brain and the tracks of our feet are probably still visible in the soil! Part of the route took us through the men’s cruising ground and men would sometimes pop out from behind the bushes as we ran past. The best bit was reaching the top of Parliament Hill and knowing that it was all downhill from there to the cafe at the bottom for coffee and cake.
As the club grew we produced our own kit. I loved the black hoody with the interlocking women’s symbol designed to look like two runners that was a subtle clue that we were really a lesbian running club. We wore our kit proudly at running events and races.
I came away with a few medals for competing in races even though I was never going to win. Just being brave enough to compete was enough of an achievement for me. When I couldn’t run (my knees were always dodgy) I’d become the bag lady and look after everyone’s kit while they raced. The shopping trolley we used for the bags was affectionately called Vera.
Apart from the running we were a very sociable club. We had some amazing fancy dress parties. Mary’s costumes were always the highlight – none of us will ever forget the snorkel, flippers and flashing bra ensemble! Our HQ was the Duke of Wellington in the early days and then Due South.
The running club naturally ended as women started to move in different directions. Jane and I moved to North Devon. The coast here is beautiful and we swim, surf, kayak, cycle and walk the coastal path and Exmoor. Sadly, my knees are even more dodgy these days and the only running I can manage is if I’m late for the bus.
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