The Shows

[paul mann]

Wee can mind the shows that came te toon for the miners picnic? Some years doon the pit rahs, some years at Millfield; the Waltzer, the shuggy boats and the Oriental Continental. I remember one year blokes deein' a brisk trade sellin' little cornets of willicks at the entrance.

[Maggie/915]

Happy Daze!

If you had any money to spend.

[Canny lass]

Did ye not call them 'the hoppins' like we did in Netherton? I once won a goldfish at the hoppins. My mother wasn't at all happy about having to buy a goldfish bowl and thought my father was an idiot for letting me choose a goldfish. My father thought it was OK, a jam jar would do as the fish would be dead in a couple of weeks, he said. She had to give in after a month or so and it lived to the ripe old age of 14 years. sorry about the underlining. I have lost all Control over bold face, italics, underlining and crossing out. Capital letters seem to have developed a mind of their own as well!

[paul mann]

The hoppins were at Newcassel on the Toon Moowah. Ah ahlways called the ones at Bedlinton the shows.

[Canny lass]

Well lucky you! I Think I was over 20 Before I got to the Town Moor. I never experienced it as a Child. By then I just called it the Town moor.

[Maggie/915]

Wonder if The Hoppings' is anything to do with 'Hopping It' in Kent to go and pick the hops for beer.

Maybe Kent miners coming up North.

I called the Bedlington Shows the Hoppings sometimes.

I liked the 'shuggy boats'

Some shows seemed a little too dangerous and expensive for me.

Self preservation.

[Keith Scantlebury]

We just louped the wall from where we lived to get to the Whit weekend shows in Milnes field.

Edited September 2, 2013 by keith

[Canny lass]

We just louped the wall from where we lived to get to the Whit weekend shows in Milnes field.

That must be the Bedlington Station Spelling is it Keith? I Always spell it as lowped.

[paul mann]

louped - love that word. Another favourite is gowk.

[Maggie/915]

One of my favourites is spelk.

Maybe Keith got a spelk or two from 'Lowping/ louping over the wall and into Milne's field.

Is that too L!

[keith lockey]

I used to go out with a girl who worked on the shows. She took me for a ride. (Hee Hee.)

Edited September 3, 2013 by keith lockey

[Canny lass]

One of my favourites is spelk.

Maybe Keith got a spelk or two from 'Lowping/ louping over the wall and into Milne's field.

Is that too L!

Louped it is! Even this is a left-over from the Vikings, hlaupa. Still in use in Iceland.

[Keith Scantlebury]

That must be the Bedlington Station Spelling is it Keith? I Always spell it as lowped.

Aye cos its the reet spellin, us at the station are quite posh yi kna borderin on been intelijunt

[Canny lass]

Aye cos its the reet spellin, us at the station are quite posh yi kna borderin on been intelijunt

What can I say! I bow to your superior intellect Keith.

[Symptoms]

At the Picnic it was ALWAYS the Shows on 20 acres. My favorite was the boxing booth where all the so-called 'hard' local lads fancied their chances against the inhouse pro. Up they'd get for the three rounds and end-up getting a proper hiding.

[keith lockey]

At the Picnic it was ALWAYS the Shows on 20 acres. My favorite was the boxing booth where all the so-called 'hard' local lads fancied their chances against the inhouse pro. Up they'd get for the three rounds and end-up getting a proper hiding.

I never saw that at 20 acres but I did see it at the Town Moor. There was this wiry old bloke stripped to the waist and I thought he doesn't look much....until I saw him in action. Looks are deceiving, that's all I'll say.

Edited September 7, 2013 by keith lockey

[Symptoms]

Another attraction for us lads (once the 'juices' had started to flow through our bodies) was the Fan Dance Show. Sucked in by the amazing paintings outside the attraction and by the fine words of the barker we paid our tanner to get in. I'm sorry to report that the lady doing the fan dance didn't look anything like the ones on the external mural ... oh, and she was so fast with the fans that nothing was revealed. Our 'juices' went unsatisfied!!!

The Shows usually ended with a mass brawl ... one year it was so bad that a candyfloss caravan got knocked on its side (with the gadgy still inside) when all the Peelers charged. Brilliant fun to watch.

[keith lockey]

Bedlington always got a bad reputation due to the Shows and The Domino / Lucifer's / et al.

It became a battle ground, even I can remember that from the 70's onward. People from all over would converge on our rural pastures on Picnic Day and at the weekends and fights were the order of the day (or night).

The newspapers (especially the Blyth News) were always spouting that fights broke out once more in BEDLINGTON on Picnic Day or that the only nightclub in the area - at BEDLINGTON - was the scene, once more, of drunken billigerence.

What got me was it was mostly the outsiders battling with other outsiders - Bedlington was just the scene of the crime. Now I'm not saying we didn't indulge in the odd bout of fisticuffs or that we didn't defend our hallowed ground, our sacred soil, but I always thought it was unfair of the press to suggest that we Bedlingtonians were the culprits on every occasion.

I wonder if that is why they closed down Lucy's and shipped Picnic Day to that place that shall not be mentioned.

[Symptoms]

Another great venue for mass punch-ups in the mid to late 60s was the Market Place Club. Every week they had live groups on in the upstairs hall ... it was a tanner transfer paid to the old guy who sat at the bottom of the stairs (girls were let in free of charge). Anyway, the rock bands would play, the girls would get onto the wooden dancefloor at the front and do their stuff around their handbags (yes, they DID dance around their bags!) and all the blokes would be getting their pints in at the bar at the rear of the hall. During breaks everybody would sit at the rows of tables between the bar standing area and the dance floor. I remember the place was ALWAYS packed. Then somebody would get pushed or be accused of 'tapping-up' somebody's girl then it would all kick-off ... these were proper punch-ups. The Peelers would be called and they would come storming in thumping anybody with reach ... those captured were dragged outside and given a good tuning by the boys in blue. Happy days.

[keith lockey]

I know Picnic Day had it's fair share of fights but was anyone ever seriously hurt on any of the shows in all the years it ran? I mean people falling off the big dipper or flung out of the waltzer? Because I can't recall any accidents.

[Keith Scantlebury]

I remember one Bedlington lad giving the boxer a right good pasting. We still talk about it till this day.

[keith lockey]

I remember one Bedlington lad giving the boxer a right good pasting. We still talk about it till this day.

Would that be Geordie L, Keith?

[paul mann]

I remember the Clayton Ballroom as the most popular venue for punch-ups - all that adrenalin and hormones!

[Canny lass]

I remember the Clayton Ballroom as the most popular venue for punch-ups - all that adrenalin and hormones!

And that was just the lasses, Paul!

[Symptoms]

Another attraction at the Picnic Shows was the Wall of Death ... just been reminded of it by this segment of the Beebwebsite today.  Like in this film punters would be invited to ride pillion on the bikes.  Happy days!

 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-29861511