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Just a heads up that there is a long overdue Gallery update coming in February. The way images are added is staying the same but there will be some fairly big improvements in how the images are presented to members. The main changes are the awful screen overlay is being removed and the overview page will be much better at highlighting images that are being commented on.

2nd load went off yesterday from the Community Centre.

I know it's earlier than normal but I keep thinking my PC might catch an omicron variant, 'Desktop Lock Out'. Stay safe. Eggy

Merry Christmas from the cold NE i wish everyone a healthy 2022

Wilf's here! It's officially Christmas! A very merry Christmas to you all. Stay safe and avoid Covid and we'll see each other in the new year. Meanwhile, I've said this before and it's worth repeating:

Have a good one Alan, Merry Christmas to every one and a Happy New Year

Billy Mcglen was my Grandad. I often (on what would have been his birthday) Google his name. This year I came across your post. It's nice to think he is so well remembered.

Wow!

Merry Christmas to everyone and Happy New Year

Merry Christmas to all.

Merry Christmas to everyone in this group from Bygone Bedlington:-

Happy to pay the necessary earlier this year to turn the old dilapidated building at West Lea Cemetery into a suitable base for the Friends of West Lea Cemetery. Instead of making their Xmas wreaths in their respective kitchens and having pine needles and holly all over their houses to pick up they can now use this. It took well over a year to sort out with the legals themselves taking for ever, but it been worth all the time and effort put into it. Anyone visiting the cemetery and the lasses are there just say “Hi”, I’m sure they will be pleased to chat and I know anyone wanting to join them in their quest to make this cemetery the very best it can be will be very warmly welcomed. And a big round of thanks for all the help off NCC cemetery staff!

Happy Christmas to you all Maggie

Following a long absence on this site I have just become aware of Derek's passing today, sad news indeed. A true gentleman respected by all who were fortunate enough to have the pleasure of his company.

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYBODY! Hope it's a better one than thi last one was! Cheers Bill.

@ShaunL Hi Shaun. Like you, I've come across this site by accident. I was a seafarer, and studied at South Shields. In 1974 I was parachuting at Usworth (before Nissan goth there) and managed to break my leg. After surgery at Sunderland Orthopaedic Hospital, part of my recovery programme was a spell at Hartford Hall. At the time I lived in Cramlington New Town, but was still admitted as a residential patient. I think it was your Dad at the time who had a VW Beetle, and was having trouble with his carburettor. One or two of us fancied ourselves as amateur mechanics, and spent a happy afternoon diagnosing and fixing the problem for him. I remember Joyce Miller very well: I was once invited round to her house for dinner, and gave her a Bohemia cut crystal fruit bowl and water jug in return (cheap as chips in Poland, and I had a house full). Very down to earth, and loved a good chat. She was a bit of a match-maker, though. One of the other residents was in for treatment for a broken neck, and somehow he managed to slip on a walk down to the river, and broke his wrist. He had a yellow Triumph Sprite, which he asked me to look after, since he couldn't drive. One of the junior physios was a lovely Canadian girl. I was 27 and single, so Joyce tried to fix me up with her by telling me to take her home one evening. Being naive, I assumed she only wanted the lift home for a chance ride in the sports car, so dropped her off like the gallant gentleman I was, and drove back to the hall. The next day Joyce gave me a right going over for not asking her out. Those were the days! For my sins, I ended up doing a second spell at the hall in 1975, after a further operation, and this time it all worked out OK, so I have some happy memories of that place.

Have a merry Christmas and happy new year to all.

https://www.northumberlandline.uk/post/bedlington-works

Merry Christmas to all my gud friends on wor great channel!...Nice ti see ye back Brian..mind aav been idle an aal...but aam chinkaplonka,it's looking after Cath full on noo,that limits time for me..nivvor mind,one thing a wud like ti remind ye aal...if ye get tipsy,keep ya phones switched off!!...aam a teetotaller,so aam fully aware constantly......aav had aboot a dozen scam texts and calls owa the last few months,more so this last few weeks..from Lloyds Bank..[supposedly!],Royal Mail wanting 2 quid for a parcel ti be redelivered..[nonsense!]Hermes,[same thing],and just last week and today,a text saying "I think you are in this Video"..beware that one,my marras have fallen for it,thinking it was from old Pit Marras,but it scans all your contacts....I dont know if this has been covered already,apologies if it has,better be safe than scammed! Cheers and all the best folks! Bill and Cath xx

Thank you kind sirs! I am delighted, honoured and humbled to receive this prestigious award. I coudn’t have done it without your help - and the help of Covid which gave me, and you, loads of spare time. There are a couple of others I’d like to mention and thank for their help along the way: My parents, who provided the raw material. The people of Bedlington and Netherton who moulded that material. Friends and colleagues around the world who made adjustments and amendments to the design. The many educational establishments who nurtured my thirst for knowledge. Esther at the corner shop. Tommy the milkman. The colliery pollis at Netherton. The next door neighbours, here and elsewhere. Santa Clause. The Witch of Wookey Hole. Moscardini’s coffee shop. Lidl’s. The staff of Keenleyside’s. The Swedish Government, for letting me in. The British Government, for letting me out. Bedlington YMCA. The Metropolitan Police Force. The Canadian Royal Mounties. The Toon Moor. Newcastle United FC. Morrison’s. SAAB motors. … and not forgetting: Robson’s the printers. Jack, the ice-cream man. Netherton Socail Club. Prestos, Market Place, Bedlington. Jimmy Millne. The French Onion Sellers. The Beano. The nr 48 United Bus. St Cuthbert’s Church. Doncaster Royal Infirmary. … and, last but not least, Old Uncle Tom Cobley (and all). Thank you once again kind people of Bedders.

Greetings and best wishes from Oz. (35 degrees here in Adelaide today). May you all have a wonderful and safe Christmas .

Merry Christmas,and a happy new year to all,if we get that far!! Hope to be seeing you all a bit more next year,past two years have been disastrous ,healthwise,with my Wife. The NHS have been absoloutely MAGNIFICENT ,between Wansbeck,The RVI,The Freeman,and The Mount at Morpeth,all the Consultants and Staff,all the way down the ranks,deserve medals,solid gold ones the size of dustbin lids! My Wife and me hope the NHS gets the Appreciation,and funding that it deserves Nationally. ALL THE BEST! Bill.

Merry Christmas Alan and to all of our friends, followers and families, and a safe and happy New Year.

Just to keep our friends overseas in the loop........

If the project comes off, and I should know better after next week, trees will be supplied.

Hi Justine, welcome to the forum. I'm pretty certain that I can help you with that. Benjamin Graham never lived at Garton House. That is a spelling mistake or a printing error in the newspaper article. Benjamin lived at GARDEN House in Bedlington Station (often referred to as West Sleekburn). I don't know if you know the area but I'll try to explain its location. The site may well be occupied by a bungalow today but the remainder of the neighbouring houses are certainly still there. Benjamin's father moved into Garden House when it was newly built around 1910-12 and the family were still living there in 1939. Benjamins father, originally a carting contractor, branched out into market gardening and possibly the house got its name from that. The house was situated between the Railway Tavern (which was located on the site of the new car park) and Milburn House which is now number 2 Melrose Villas. Here is a map of the area Railway Tavern marked with black + and the 9 houses of Melrose Villas, marked in red. previously had the address 'Melrose Terrace, plus house name only (no number). These names were (in order from the Railway Tavern to Bank Top): Garden House, Milburn House, Wesley House, Prior House, Rothley Shield, Bernicia, Thurston Villa, Gladstone House and Cresswell House. Milburn House, Bernicia and Cresswell House have retained their names. Milburn House is arrowed in black and Cresswell House is arrowed in yellow. The adjoining terraced row, Melrose Terrace is marked in Green. Here are some pictures. I think Garden House may have been replaced by the bungalow. I myself have no recollection of a bungalow there but perhaps someone else can throw a bit of light on when it was built. However, the other houses, all built within a couple of years can give you an idea of how Garden House was. Melrose Villas looking towards Bank Top. The first of the 2 storey, semi-detached houses is Milburn House: If you zoom in you can see the name above the door. The last of those 2 storey houses is Cresswell House and the name is still above the door:

Its getting pretty acrimonious this election period. First rebuttal, "It seems the Labour canvassers going around today are saying the schemes and projects I’ve listed in my ‘CV’ post are only what I’m claiming to have been part of or done, in other words a figment of my imagination? Well the lists are there if you want to challenge them, Im quite happy to justify each and every one! In fact if you want some more………. Ill just say this in response, we had a Labour councillor for the four years before I got in and he picked up the nickname……..”The Invisible Man!” Lets not go back to those dark days! We have lost trust in the national government in record time, God forbid the same happens to our county!" Second one, "Just by way of a post script to my last ‘political’ post another claim by the Labour canvassers was that I always vote with the Conservatives. Doesn’t take too much effort to show that’s not true either! As part of the last NCC pre Budget presentations all councillors were given a large number of papers to read through. As I said at the time the financials alone were 467 pages. It would seem I was the only one to pick up on the Advance proposals they contained. You might think with tens of millions of pounds at stake it would be a stand alone item but I could only find three quite curtailed references to it. As usual I asked about it because I didn’t understand completely what was intended. Once I had the explanations my words were……….”That’s a deal breaker for me, if I went along with it I couldn’t look my residents in the eyes ever again!” Now I’ve put that in inverted commas because that’s exactly what I said at the time in the faces of the main political and professional players at County Hall and that why I voted against the conservative proposed budget. Fast forward to the recent vote on the restructure of Advance, only a month or so ago, and we see the whole Labour group vote with the conservatives on this issue with only Independents voting against. These days I only believe half of what I see and nothing of what I hear, that might be good advice for residents in what is fast becoming a pretty acrimonious election period. I’m trying to remain positive and not descend to levels others are crawling around in, but it’s hard!"

I had it confirmed this week that West Lea in Bedlington will get its new Playzone. This is something I've been fighting for since they were first considered for Northumberland! Originally 12 were projected, none for Bedlington but I managed to get that decision changed! It represents a substantial investment not just in terms of finance but in leisure activities as well! So for anyone who doesn't know what a PlayZone is, and they are not just for football, here is a taster...........

Seasonal Greetings to all here and wishing you all a happy New Year.

Is that Wilf i can see loitering by the traffic lights? Hopefully it is, cos that means it's officially Christmas! Whoopee!!! A very merry Christmas to everybody. I hope to be a bit more active next year as two eye operations have meant I've had to rely on someone else to read and write for me for a couple of months. Reading has been a little bit easier but only if I lift the laptop to within an inch of my face. However, I'm on the mend now but can't get new specs until the beginning of February when everything is healed. Have a great Christmas and knock hell out of what's left of the year!

Hope everybody has a better 2024 than this year!! Aal thi best Folks!!

Thank you Alan, Merry Christmas to you and yours, Merry Christmas to all members.

Im a week or two behind but the Gallery updates are now live. Hopefully you'll find it more usable.

Happy New Year HPW, and all forum members.

Happy new year everyone, Bill and Kath, wishing you both the best of health.

Thank you Malcolm, and the same to everyone in the grouo

Hope you and the family fully enjoy your visit. You might meet up with @John Fox (foxy) - @Andy Millne or @Malcolm Robinson if you visit the Red Lion.

Happy New Year 2022 We are going to celebrate and see the New Year in at the clock tower in Morpeth. We were last there 33 years ago . We won’t be there in 33years time . Happy days

Ellie, In answer to your questions: There is a definite mix of residents in the Town these days. It’s seen as an attractive option for people who, like yourself, work in the Newcastle environs. The shops are here and should soon be added to! The nightlife does centre around just a few pubs etc. though. However even these provide for differing client bases so most tastes catered for. As Andy says there are groups to suit a wide variety of choice and some new ones being established. For me the Town still feels a bit ‘villagey’ which adds to its charm. There is a great Country Park stretching from almost the Cambois riverside right up to Plessey Woods. Also Gallagher Park almost right in the middle. We will soon see a train station so access to the east coast mainline, and onwards, will be easy. It’s like everywhere if you want to get involved I’m sure you can, if you just want to kick back then fine too.

Yoohoo everyone! I’m having a little holiday near Haltwhistle 😁x I saw this and thought of you:-R🌈xxxxxxx

More great news for our area and more skilled jobs on offer. Like I said at a recent NCC meeting this will soon be the employment centre for the county! https://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/news/north-east-news/130m-factory-offshore-wind-cables-21692953?fbclid=IwAR0-0RpkeA9cXFV7Q-ygarMhrt4BxLcxl4nJREz4Pl-wL5aZttBl1x6LV3A

Ex-pats, how about planting a tree? Of course, we'd have to get Malcolm to do the digging - or at least delegate it to someone.

Howw Man,wa Geordie folks on this site,[whey...my Son keeps correcting me...wa not Geordies at aal...wa Northumbrians!! ...wat thi hell!!]...wat does toot de sweetie mean in punds shullin's ind pence?!!....n wa not Frogs eetha!!Heh heh...nea disrespect..ignorance is bliss we used ti say!! When aa was 15 yrs aad,in 1959,a used ti waak from Hollymoont Square,in the deep snaa,when the Buses were laid off,and waak up the Railway [Tanky]line from the Low Pit,at Scotland Gate,reet up ti the High Pit,a stryght mile,mind that WAS hard work,trudging through Snaa two feet deep and deeper wheor the snaa had drifted![ a total of Fower Miles,afore wi even clocked on!!] The point of aal this is,we wad nivvor hae thowt that one day,ye wadn't see the line,for a lovely wood waak,the Friends of Choppingtin Woods have worked a miracle in creating that haven!! But a canna help but think,when a used ti gaan up the entrance road from Guide Post road,[the PIT ROAD!!]wi LBJ,a used ti stop where the Pit Baths were,and reminisce,get me bearings reet,the Winder Hoose was owa theor,[a gud aad Steam Winder..100 yrs aad!],the Timber Yard doon heor,and the Lamp Cabin and Tally Cabins owa thoer....!! A detested that pit,but noo that a haven't got wee LBJ,ti get me oot,a have luvly memories of gaan doon thon woods in the orly mornin sunleet..Magic!! Aye,Alan's the BUGGER ti see if ye waant ti knaa owt aboot Barn'tin!! Cheers Folks!! HPW.[absent a lot,but still kicking aboot!]