Bedlington Open Casting Video

[Owen]

Cracking Video Bedlington Open Casting

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mIEno4cG2S8

site is where the golf course is now.

[mobius]

A tremendous find Owen!

Hard to believe it's all gone.

[threegee]

Did you notice the East end of the town (up Bedlington Bank) at about 3.40?

Those Bailey bridges used to sway when the Euclids went over them. The roads were a total mess with the clay off the Euclid wheels oozing down from above. You didn't want to be underneath at that time so you either stopped short, or pedalled your bike like ^&^&^%!

Did you know that during WWII (20 years earlier) the parts for Bailey bridges just like those were made in and near the Market Place?

A really good find; pity about the "music "!

[Owen]

the bridges were only temp styled army bridges.....its the coal board for ya...cheap and quick all the way lol

[Symptoms]

Brilliant! Just to get some sense of scale of the drag-line buckets the Dad of a pal of mine (he was the top spark at the site in the mid to late 60s)took a few of us 'down the hole' in a Land Rover which he parked in the bucket ... there was still plenty of room at each side even after we opened all the car doors wide to get out. The Euclids in the film (tractor/trailer jobbies) I seem to remember were superceded by the mid to late 60s by those yellow American brutes ... but maybe others here have clearer memories. There was a rather interesting 'grave yard' dump for all the old & knackered tackle (including some of the types shown in the film) ... yep, it all went in the hole at the end. The explosives shed (a big red steel box) was never locked! - oh, what fun us lads had on the site. Wasn't the coal screening site at Bebside ... I seem to remember another Bailey bridge going over the road next to Jacky Reed's garage?

[threegee]

the bridges were only temp styled army bridges.....its the coal board for ya...cheap and quick all the way lol

No, not the Coal Board. Open cast was always private mining AFAIK. Acorn Bank was operated by Costain Mining.

Can't immediately recall who the company (Wimpey?) operating the site at Horton Road, Bebside was, but (probably as part of PR) we youngsters were invited down the cut there on more than one occasion. Couldn't see that happening today on H&S grounds alone!

Yes, Symptoms is right, there was another Bailey Bridge crossing Bebside Road. There was yet another crossing Hartford Road at one time. But that was before the track of the road was moved, thus providing space for the golf course. These bridges can't have been too popular with the United Bus cleaning staff, or drivers; on wet mornings I can remember the bus getting really splattered with the grey stuff.

[HIGH PIT WILMA]

A bit late noo,but just for the record,the opencast WAS owned by the National Coal Board Opencast Executive,and operated by Richard Costain

Mining Co..

The big yellow American Brutes never worked Acorn Bank,Butterwell was first to get those.

Acorn Bank had the 44-ton articulated Coal-haulers.

Noo THEY used to make the river bridge bend and bounce up and down like a yo-yo!! 

WE didn't need authorisation for visits,or group parties...etc!!.....we just casually went reet doon into the cut,and played all over the dragline!![running alang the feet etc!

This was always on a Sunday afternoon,when work had ceased...and we,[my friends and me..] were only aboot ten years old onwards!!![H n S..?....!!!!!!!!] 

I have the video which had been rescued from a skip,in old 8mm cinefilm,and transferred to disc.