HIGH PIT WILMA

Welcome back lads,[Den n Jo!],seein'  as aam a teetotaller,it meks nae diffrince ti me..as lang as a can get me Milk fo' me porridge,and me Toastie loafs,an' of corse,me tetties,baigie,cabbage ,carrots,an' dry peas,fo' wa dinna...wa aalreet,wi'll not starve!![er,n me Yorksha's as weel..like..man..!!]

Unfortunately,aam afraid that the mad scenes we've seen where croods of yungin's are delibritly brekkin thi rules,yung lassies ignorantly and shamelessly hoying thasell's in front of the camera's,thinkin tha cool,when in actual fact they luk like pure sluts,and therefore shud aal be put doon,cos sure as god med little apples,sooner or later,SUMBODY,oot o' croods like that,are gaana be responsible for the death ..s  of some poor innocent souls who they cum inti contact wi,by spreading the Virus,through a lack of consideration for fellow Mankind.

Sorry...Rant owa! ....a got carried away and spoke me mind,which,as an aad Pitman,a elvviss hae dun  aal me adult life.

Again,unfortunately,[for me i.e.!],speakin' ya mind sumtimes gets ye inti trubble...!!

Noo where were we?!!

The reason a get het-up,is cos thas that menny keep sayin this is aal a hoax,and that this Virus doesn't exist,when one of my best loved Friend's and Nybors ,of nearly 50 yeors,caught the Virus while in Hospital earlier this yeor,was given the all clear,returned to the Care Home where she lived,caught the Virus in the Care Home [ this was the Second Attack mind!],was re-admitted to Hospital..and very sadly passed away.

Another Friend's Husband caught the Virus in Hospital, was sent home "Clear",still had it silently,passed it on to His Wife,who caught ill with the Virus,and within two weeks,also passed away,leaving her Husband,who has since recovered.Life will not be the same for him now.

What will the Families of those who have fallen victim to this invisible enemy,think,and feel,when they see scenes of Breaches of the Law like they have shown on the News.?

Being a Musician,a can aalwis think of a song to fit an occasion....."When will it ever end?....When will it evvvver ..[accent!]...end?"!![from the 1960's]

Bobby Pattinson,famous Geordie Comedian...." Big Geordie  waaks inti thi Lifeboat Stayshun at Tynemooth...he says ...Hae yi got eny jobs Mista..?...Fella says ti him ....Hoo taal are yi?...Geordie says ..Aam six foot twelve ....Fella says ...Can ye swim?..he says ner,but a can plodge a lang way oot"!!

Priceless!!

His DVD Performance is worth every penny ti a Geordie Twang lover!!

..an aftathowt...me Son went ti live an' wark in London 30 yeors ago,so he had ti larn ti taak glaaky doon theor ,so thi buggaas wud unnerstand 'im.

Noo ,as yeors went by,he had an Album ti record an' Engineer,owa in Denmark,by a Band caaled "EFTACLANG"..they were a top Band at thi time,like the Beatles war heor,mevvis not exactly thi syem,but enywheh,he was suprised by thi amoont of words n' phrases they hae owa theor,wat are like wors.."Gaan Yem"...etc...[suppose them buggaas browt thi twang owa heor in thi forst place eh?!!]...a knew Kirk was aad ,but a didn't think ee wuz that aad...!!Heh heh!

Thi forst time he foened back yem,efta he had been in Londin for a while,he was taakin' aal bay windae,[a bit like wor Big Jack...R,I,P, Jack.]...but mekkin' a hint-end o' hesel' ivry utha worrd!!...[like them buggaas ye see on thi telly in thi Soaps,wat wor lass waatchis...thi sing wen tha taakin']..if us buggaas taaked like that doon thi big black hole,we'd be crucified by thi wit of the ones who were a wee bit "Intoxicated by the Exuberance of their own Verbosity...!"...[so ti speek!]..heh heh!!

Waatcheor Bonny Lad,[JoJo],aal slap ya chops if a heor ye caal wor twang ..."Silly Daft Twang"! 

Ye waana mind o' thi fact that if it waasn't fo' Pitmen,gett'n Coal oot fo' Industry at thi start of thi Idustreeal Revolushin, ye wadn't be clartin on heor wi ya fancy bliddy new-fangled thingy's..!!

Is aal them fowks doon thonder posha thin wat we are heor like?...it's US that taak proppa man,aal them foriners frae owa thi waata taak a bit glaaky.!

Noo,Jo-jo,a expect, wi YOR browtin's -up,that ye'll knaa when wi say Foriners,wa not been Raysshhill or owt  stupit,wi mean any bugga from owa the waata...meanin' the Tyne!!  

Did ye knaa thi Smith family,or the Bell's hoo had thi Ranch,owa aside thi Lonnen? ..when thi pulled thi pit hooses doon,in thi late 1940's,a lot o' Netherton fowks moovd doon ti Hollymoont Squaor aside my Fowks,so a knew a lot of thim,a med new mates,canny fowks they were,a ended up menny yeors lator,worrkin doon thi pit alang wi sum o' thim as Marra's.[Jimmy Burke and Stan Taylor cum ti mind stryght awa...]

Them wa thi days wen wi had clarty back streets,like at Choppintin,wi play'd aside thi Barnt'n Born,whoer it was aal slecky.

Ootside Netties,nae posh lavvy papor in them days,an' yi had callises on ya hint-end...!!..wi'll keep thi entortaunmint leet eh?!!

A hevn't been redd aroond lang, and aav just gett'n the tcheble cleored n thi dishis aal weshed...[nen brokken thi neet! ....buggad-up hands are nae gud for weshin' dishes wi!!]

It's great ti see ye on the forum Jo Jo,hope wi heor a lot mair frae yi.. an a just waant fowks ti knaa a hevn't desartid wa great site heor,its' just that aav hooked up wi a few lang-lost Marra's from thi '60s ...an' otha kind fowks,it's hard ti split me time up,an' a get carried awa once a start.....![....eh?...they say...nivvor in thi world....wi nivvor knew...!!]

Aal thi best ti aal me Marra's on heor!!

Hi Alan,I would hate to be seen as nitpicking,but only for correctness,there were a lot of years when the "DHSS" was called the "Department of HEALTH and Social Security",did the logo " DSS" not come about in the latter few years?...I still refer to them yet ,in conversation,as the DHSS...canna mind when the change came,but me being a hoarder,I could sift through my DHSS records back to God knaas when!!..probably the 1970's at the very least!!...wor lass pulls her hair oot cos aal thraa nowt away..!! 

Sorry a canna contribute ti thi topic in question,me being a proppa Bedltntonian....from up in the posh end o' toon...near the Vicarage!..

Hi ti everybody who aav missed having a gud crack wi!!

Heavy gaanin at yem,canna cum on as often,will get better in time hopefully,Wor Lass recovering from an operation!

Hi Odin,welcome to the forum! I lived in Hollymount Square in Bedlington,from 1947,from it being only partly completed.

When Netherton Colliery Houses were being demolished,around 1948-ish..they moved the Netherton Village folks down into the Square,and Mr and Mrs Carr were our next door neighbours for many years. Mr Carr's name was George,and I cannot remember Mrs Carr's name was.They had a Daughter called Joyce,whose Husband worked at Woolsington Airport,[as it was known,he was an aircraft fitter..so this might be of some assistance to you if you were to trace the Airport staff in the years during and after the war..].

There are a few Carr's knocking around,I worked with a different George Carr when I was only 17 yrs old,at Choppington High Pit,around 1961-5. George was a colliery fitter ,and I was a heavy transport lad . 

My Niece is Married to another of the Carr family..I tell you,there are a few Carr families..!

Hope I have been of some help,even if this is of no connection to your family...at least you can eliminate!

Best of luck Odin! 

Cheers,

Bill. 

Thanks Eddy,for confirming my memoirs of the High Pit,John Dickinson and John Wardlow were the two I started working with on Transport,and when they both went for face-training down the new Top Busty Drift, Old Ned Cushing came to me and said aam getting ye a new Marra,Wilma,and he seems a reet canny young lad,and a think ye two will get alang great.....

So on the Monday Morning ,ye came in wi aad Ned,and mind,wi DID get on great!!

Sorry,Alan,drifting again,but aal see if a can post this picture of an article which was common ti every miner,in the country...in latter years!

Eddy,can ye mind your number of your Baths Locker key,at the High Pit? ...mine was 294.[was yours 239?...where have a got that from?!!]

Mind,this was my last Pit Baths Locker key from Ashington Pit  which closed in 1987..and aa was med redundant.[A stll have it for posterity!]

Hi Folks! Dozens of these families were  moved to Hollymount Square from 1947 -on as the Square was being built in phases,over a few years..the council budget must have been really low after the War!

My oldest Sister married into the Bell's,and ran the Ranch up Netherton Lonnen,with Raymond,My older Brother married into the Smith family,nearly all of my playmates were from Netherton Pit Village,as were a lots of my Schoolfriends also.

Jacky Black was my Parents' neighbour down at the bungalows where the post-war Pre-Fabs used ti stand...next to the 20 Acres at Millfield.

Seeing this list of names brought a lot of memories flooding back from my youth!

Thanks for posting it Alan,hope everybody is keeping ok!

[ Aam showing off noo!...aav fund oot hoo ti post pictures and advorts n things!!]

LITTLE IMPS,MADE IN BELGIUM..TRUE FLEMISH FLAVOUR!

SO IT SAYS ON THE BLURB!!

Wat a bonny wee bairn ye were Al.!!

For a split second ,and looking through me Varifocals at the wrang angle,[which has a distorting effect to the vision!]..

...a thowt ye had been in the Tardis...it luks like ya haadin' ya mobile in ya hand...!..typical of the world we are in...anywheh,sum great aad pics here,a once got a bar of McGowan's Chocolate Toffee,from me aader Sister,when a was aboot ten years aad..[we didn't get pocket money at aal till we started work after leaving Schyuul,so me Sister,who was then working at the Bedlington Store,next ti thi Lock Hall..],bought me this Taffee bar.

It was like a gift from heaven,and a waanted it ti last!!..but it didn't!

Vic,THESE  are more like thi  shape a remember,they weren't the round ones,they were like wee cushion-shaped pellets,but were three-cornered instead of four.Seems there were different versions of the same theme knocking around,and I am now thinking they were called "Little Imps",Wor Lass remembers them,so aam not imagining it!

A see tha's loads of Retro-Sweeties being made again....where?....where ivry bliddy thing else is made!! [Naa just kiddin'....ut one or two are made there!]

There's summik queer gaaning on wi this Editor,when a try and gaan back ti correct me typo's,it's deleting letters and CREATING TYPO'S!

Is it my Laptop,or is anybody else getting the same grief?

Like...!..Easing of Coronavirus Lockdown rules...!

Great ti get back doon ti Cammis!

...then we cud aal gaan aroond singing.."Thas a Moose Loose...Aboot thi Hoose.."!!!

Nippits were black Liquorice sweets wat got inti ya teeth and were hard as hell..and hot!

A tiny bag wat lukked like nowt ,wud last a kid aal day at school,slyly slipping them aroond ahint him ti pass them ti he's mates, sitting behind him...cos tha wud be hell on if aad Mowldy Cheese got her beady eyes on ye chowing in class!!

A wonder if Dennis Green can mind o' them days,he's Dad was Engineer at the Aad Pit in Bedlington,and Dennis used ti caal in ti Binksy's shop next ti the Whitley Schyuul,and get 2 oz of Midget Gems,[or wine gums],and 2oz of Dolly Mixtures,and occasionally,a packet of Nippits,he knew we were hard up and got nae pocket money,and he used ti share his bullets wi us  reet through oot the day..

One kid who had everything he wanted but was nivvor a spoilt brat,a real canny kid..in later years a played at hes' 21 st Birthday party,wi me group.

So howweh,folks,hoo can mind o' "NIPPITS"! 

They lukked like wee chippings of black pitch wat we used ti chow,when Tarmac became the new road surface,and big chunks of pitch were hoyed at the roadsides for the tar-sprayer machine to fill up with alang the road,as he was gannin...!

 Heh heh!...aam gettin auld...!..[taakin' as if aa was an aad - timer.......aam oownly 17 yr aad...in me heed!]

NIPPETS! It just came to me while weshing me brikfist dishes just noo!

They were tha smaalest sweeties on this planet..the size oof a wee breadcrumb...but hot as hell...queer shaped little things.

You gotta remember we were green as grass in them days..nea telly,nae wireless,nae phones ,nae food hardly..rations were still on from WWII,we used to pinch a baigie oot the farmer's field,bite the peeling off and sit high up a tree chowing away...famished...even better if ye fund a field o' milky baigies!!

There was also "Saucer-eyes"..who used to terrorise us...in wor imagination..Gilly the Ghost..a fella who used to jump oot the hedge at neet wi a white bedsheet aroond him...poor bugga needed help..and Tramps who would pinch aal ya claas and shoes if they caught ye oot at neet in the dark...!

Hi Cheesah! Welcome to the forum.

We kids from Hollymount Square used to go down the Bedlington Bank to what became the Miner's Picnic Field,in the early 1950's,it was a lovely grazing meadow wi lang horned coos in in them days.

Hunter's Farm was the lovely old Hoose at the bottom of the bank which the guy has re-built in recent years.

Hunter the farmer had a Jelly gun,and if he caught you he fired it at you ,and clumps of jelly would be aal owa ya claas.....

Ownly he never caught us..but  we were terrified of thi gun....the imagination of the bigger lads was amazing!!

A aalwis thowt that we were the ownly kids who had a farmer wi a Jelly Gun!!

Tragic isn't the word for it is it?...makes me wonder if,at that time,it was so commonplace,that they would expect at least one part of their family to die young,and also if they became so despairing,that they just accepted it, whole communities would be affected by plague etc,we were the lucky ones to have been born and immunised against so many of these terrible diseases.

St Cuthbert's Church has a few VERY interesting headstones from the old ages..the oldest I can think of is one where I took photos of in the 1960's,pleased I did cos last time I saw it,just a few years ago ,it had weathered so much,that the inscription was barely legible.

It has a Skull and crossbones in the centre,with Gargoyle's carved at each side of the Skull..and it was dated 1760 if I remember correctly.

I have often wondered what was the cause of death,and why such a gruesome looking Headstone?[ Death by plague?...or similar?]

When our two Sons were just wee Bairns,we  went to Scotland a lot of times for Summer Holidays.

One place we stayed at was up in the Mountains called "LeadHills"...an old Leadmining village...absoloutely ancient.

We went to the Churchyards,while we visited the old Churches,and almost every headstone had lists of very young children,who had died from Lead poisoning..a lot of them were employed from six years old,to climb up and sweep the flues clean,cos an adult wouldn't be able to fit into the narrow flue ways.

Made me wonder..why didn't they just build them so adults COULD get into them!! 

Stinks of greedy Mine-owners,employing cheap or free child labour.

That place had an eerie presence that Cath and me both felt..it was creepy..dilapidated looking buildings...not a soul to be seen..the whole area just one big slag heap,not like coalmining where at least we had a big pit heap....but just ONE!..this place was slag heaps everywhere we looked around us..obviously ancient and no organised transport system like rope haulage or owt like that to transport the slag waste.

We never went back!!  

Aye, and wa STILL GUD MARRA'S,ownly wi nivvor see each otha these days!

A wish a had ye for a Nybor Eddie,wadn't it be great....pit taak,jam sessions when Cath's health permitted..bike taak......theor a gaan!

Noo!Wheor dae a start?!!

Tha's that many points a wud like ti discuss on these great pics by Aad Grundy,a divvent knaa wat ti taak aboot forst!

Ed,forst of aal,welcome ti this great forum,ye winna find any muppets on here,like otha places,just aal canny helpful folk.

Wor aad Chep's Family members worked at the Winning Pit,which was the nickname for West Sleekburn ,shown here,but aa was too young ti knaa any of them .Noo if anybody cums up wi nyems,aal knaa them,just as nyems,not fyesses.

Eddie,No 4 pic,luk like tha waiting on ye and me tekking a new fyess motor cyebble inbye for them....!!

Nice conditions,like a palace,as we used ti say undagrund,nowt like where me and Eddie used ti be wading through up past the knees,sometimes at waist height,the waata level,in 100 yard lang swalleys..!!

Edie,aav telt aal me stories aboot thi High Pit,if ye get a chance ti read some of the topics,ye might kindly add some more wat a might have forgotten aboot,and confirm also that a haven't got a vivid imagination!!..it's aal as true as if we were still there amang it!

The seam is aboot three feet high,on a few pics,nice hard clean coal,could be the Yard Seam,and the others are in aboot four feet high coal,cud be any other seam,cos seams varied in height and geological conditions from pit to pit.

Where Eddie and me worked,at the High Pit,we were up in the Beaumont Seam,where it went from ten feet high ,filthy coal,full of bands,on one face,and reet doon ti 18 inches high,and full of water on the faces and roadways..in the other side of the districts.

Noo at Bates Pit,the Beaumont was aboot 3feet 6inches high,clean coal,nae bands,straight and level,and bone dry..just the opposite,and it was miles oot under the sea!!..[thi High Pit was way oot west,heading owa Hepscott way..and rising quickly ti the surface.]..[it was 25 feet from the surface when they stopped the 2nd West Face....remember that one Eddie?!!...turnips and rabbits running aboot...they used to tell strangers ti thi pit!!]

Notice the corrugated steel "Straps"..or "Planks",keeping the roof up?...aa carried one of them from owa the fields aback of me hoose,it was part of the farmer's rickety fencework,it came from the Bomarsund ["Thi Bomar"] Pit heaps,when the Cooncil landscaped the heaps and forrested it,god knaas hoo it ended up in the fence,many years ago,but noo it's at thi bottom of my garden as a curio..bent ti 90degrees wi roof pressure underground on the coalface,and probably came oot on a pit tub and was ditched.

They didn't ditch them at the High Pit,they had a portable hand-operated hydraulic-ram straightener.

It was a monotonous job,working a handle back and forward aal day lang..tekkin and hoor ti stryten one steel plank!

Notice the Driller has stood he's Carbine lamp up on the left side,on the stone strata,facing away from the camera,so as not ti spoil the exposure?

Taaking aboot the camera,Eddie,if my memory is correct,Grundy had  a Rollieflex [twin-lens reflex ] camera,when we were Marra's..[and just for the record..off-topic like..but dae ye still have the Oris wristwatch ye used ti hae on yor wrist!!?]

A still have the Halina 35X [35mm film] camera wat a tuk aal your Photo's wi,in thi 1960's!...which are still in my albums!!..[ye knaa thi ones!] and that is the camera a used ti tek pics doon Bates Pit in 1986!![Check the Bates Pit Gallery oot Ed,tha's sum great pics on there!..including big Bill Etheridge]

Cheers folks!

Hungry and tired..!

Stay safe and alert!

Bill.

Aahh! Thanks for your kind greeting Canny Lass!

Aav missed aal thi crack ,ye knaa wat it's like bonny lass,caring for your loved one..full time just noo for me..in fact it's treble time withoot owatime pay!

Cath is gaan through a really bad patch,so a haven't been able to come on as much,wat time a  dae get afore bedtime,aav been settling doon wi a u-tube music video ti relax.

Anywheor frae rock-n-roll music..ti opera,and classical organ works..a recently discovered a wee lassie from your end o toon,[whey,she ain't a wee lassie NOO..!..she is a big bonny lassie,caaled AMIRA..[ [ Holland''s Got Talent winner aboot 2013].

She was nine years aad,singing "Nessun Dorma,and Ave Maria" like a seasoned adult opera singer!

A daein't watch telly at aal,but she came up in my google search for Nessun Dorma by Harry Secombe,from the  1960's!!

Anywheh,I digress!..a hope you are both keeping weel and stayin' safe as weel!!

Noo,Can ye mind o' the Chinese takeaway that Tony is on aboot?

Alan,thanks ti ye also,a PM'd ye just noo.

Is the "Ginny's" Fish shop ye mentioned,opposite the Black Bull pub?..when aa was aboot five years aad and growing up,Bill and Jean Gates had that fish shop,and in them days,when ivry otha property in the street was a pub or Working Men's Club,tha was queue's a mile lang at hoyin' oot time...ivry neet!!..

Cheers folks,Stay safe and alert.!

50 yrs ago,in 1970,a shifted ti Stakeford,and a had aalriddy been living in wi me Angel Mother in Law,for 2 years..doon at Grange Park.

So a was oot o touch wi Bedlington itself.

We had a Chinese Takeaway starting up next door ti the Lord Barrington,on Gleggie's corner.

A think it was caaled The Monsoon,but stand to be corrected on that one.

A was famished one neet and went up ti hae a luk in ti see wat a cud get.

A was faced wi 2000 choices of Chicken this and that....wi Beansproots..etc etc!

A settled for an English mixed grill.

 A waited aboot  20 mins,taaking ti the young Chinese kid aback o the coonta.

He was the loviest natured kid ye cud ever wish ti meet.

His Brother Jimmy Lee,painted this huge picture of a Leopard in the Jungle...it was like a photo..hangin' on thi waal above the serving hatch..it was aboot 6 feet by 4 feet high,and magnificent!

He said do you llike paintings?..I show you some more what my Brotha Jimmy has done..

He pulled a stack of Artist sized drawing pads...like 2 feet by 18 inches or maybe bigger..they were all of big Cats..amazing.

 A got me mixed grill on a foil dish,it was that big a had ti carry it wi both hands stretched oot,and me arms were aching by the time aa got doon yem...aboot 200 yards.

Mind,that,was what aa caaled ...a dinner!!

As years went by they moved,and new owners came in...then aal the cats in the neighbourhood went missing...including two of ours...[at different times].

Whey rumours flew thick and fast,and it was reported that they were raided and there were cats and rats in the fridges!

The rumours came oot aboot every Chinese restaurant that ever opened!!...after that..the poor guys had a really hard time ti get a decent reputation.

It's unthinkable nooadays,but even the Kam Tong was raided and closed doon for the same accusations,in the early 1960's,it was the first time I ever stepped into a place like that ,and only cos we had been playing at the Big Club in Blyth,and me Marra's in the group suggested it.

Aa was green as grass..nivvor been owa the plate-ends in me life,so a was that famished,a had Chicken and chips,just that..[nowt else!]...but ordered a second lot after finishing the forst lot.

Me group Marras thowt a was a greedy sod,but aa was,and still aam,used ti having a big plateful of tetties ,baigie,cabbage,carrots,peas,and broccoli,wi meat and yorksha puddings...!!

This Chinese Chicken meal wadn't o fed me little Black Jess..that's hoo a ahad ti hae a second helpin' !!

Me aad Marra at Bates Pit,was a Butcher by trade,afore gaan doon thi pits..[a knew a few gud tradesmen who went doon the black hole for better pay in the aad days..],and he telt me that the only difference between a Cat,and a Rabbit,was the shape and size of their Kidneys,and both could be flavoured and cooked ti taste like Chicken.

Whey aav had me share of Rabbits in me lifetime,and aal tek sum convincing that ye cud possibly cook a rabbit ti taste like Chicken..but theor yi gaan!

Aam back again folks!,canna cum on like a used ti,me Wife isn't weel at aal,and aam full on caring for her,just gud ti put me oar in again...!!!

Stay Safe folks..Cheers! Bill.

Hi Maggie,aam a bit late on catching ye up aboot the photo,of the two workmen.

It was taken during the construction of the big "New" roundabout at Guide Post,sometime in the 1960's,a think,but not 100%!!

The fella on the left was my next door Nieghbour,at Hollymount Square,when I was a young kid.

His Name was Jimmy McCullough,and if you like The Shadows ,and Country music,you might like to watch his Grand -Daughter

Zoe McCullough,and her group..."The Crickettes",on U-Tube..she is a great guitarist!..has lived in Wales for a canny few years noo.

Stay Safe Maggie!

Bill.

Hi Folks,aye, a knew a lot of them youngin's,only cos a was transferred ti thi aad pit mind,Dyevvy Bower,Stevie Locker,Alan McGuire ,and Micky, they were a canny set of youngun's,they were aal on timber-leading and shaft-bottom work,they aal got on doon the pit and oot thi pit,same as aa did wi my Marra's at Choppington High Pit,working together underground,and oot on motorbikes most nights in the summer nights,and oot for waaks wi the dogs when we weren't biking.

Aam sorry ti hear of the lads who passed on too soon in life.

Thi pits had a comradeship like no other industry..other than the Armed Forces,methinks.

Jammy,me and Wor Lass usually have UK GOLD on the DAB radio in the hoose,it's constantly 1960-70's..aal day lang.

We have an APP called "TUNE-IN" on our phones,it's aal 60's and the sound quality is only as good as the cans you wear...obviously the speakers are crap,better than none!, but a decent set of cans sound great...ti my 75 year aad deef lugs enywheh!!..oh!...and that  app is a free download.[Check it oot..]

Mebbe the Gold you mention,is the same station,but with UK pre-fix to the Station name for Radio.

Alan,I didn't know Raymie Tyrie,but a worked wi a lad at Choppington High Pit,in the very early 1960's,caaled Ken Tyrie,he was a young apprentice Fitter.

He lives doon Grange Park noo,wud Raymie be his Brother?,also was Val a wee bonny dark haired lass wi an attractive tooth-gap..used ti gaan ti the Clayton Ballroom skating on a Wednesday neets,where aa met my Wife,who was friendly with a lass called Val..an unusual name among the crowd aa kew..?..[my Lass also has the tooth-gap which attracted me the first time aa saw her!!...but she hates it!!]

A think at that time,my Val was gaan wi one of Davy Bower/Stevie Locker's marra's  nickamed "Butch",he was a smashing natured lad,like aal he's Marra's...but they were aal only aboot 16 or 17 yrs aad...if they were that!!

A still see Ronnie Ince noo and again,at the station...nivvor seen any of the other lads for decades since thi aad Pit closed.

Cheers,and Stay Safe ,folks!

Bill.

Jammy,it's late and aam buggaad,aal hook up wi ye thi morn!

Cheers.

Bill.

Hi Folks,Alan,Billy Winters was the oldest,as far as I always gathered,He was on Coalface work long before Dennis.

I started the Aad Pit in 1965,when I was transferred there from Choppington High Pit.

We were regarded by the Aad pit union as "Strangers",and " The Choppington Men".

They were very clanny at the Aad pit,even when other pits closed,like the Doctor Pit,and Cambois Pit,they were also "Strangers"...and strangers had to stand at the back of the queue when it came to drawing for spare Cyevils...[spare men were needed to fill the vacated jobs of those men who were idle].

So,after being on coalface work as a Coalcutterman,and Coalfiller,aged 21 yrs,I suddenly found myself working at the shaft bottom area of the pit.[where trainees usually start their first jobs underground!]

Dennis Winter worked on the Loader-end,at the High Main shaft bottom..and that is where I met him,and worked with him,till I got a cyevil on Composite work,with an older [41yrs old!!] Cambois Coalcutterman called Joe Hickman..a hell of a worker!

Tom came down the pit as a 16 yr lad not long afore the pit closed..I remember him as being a smashing natured ,jovial kid,who would do owt ti help anybody.

I never knew Gordon,or Willy's Sister.

Jammy,I worked with all the Hillsy's,The old timers were "Famous" Coalcuttermen at the aad pit,and Billy was a Shearer/Coalcutterman at Bates.

Norman was a canny kid.

Uncle Billy,at Bates pit,used ti play "Lily the Pink" on his mooth organ owa the "DAC" [Coalface Tannoy system],which was connected throughout the pit,reet ti thi Control Centre at Bank..[the surface],so ivrybody in the whole pit,used ti hear him,and shout for requests..!

The Manager had ti quietly ask him ti stop!

Just ti clarify a point..he only ever did that when there was a major Conveyor belt stoppage,and all the Machines were standing...in case anybody though it was a crazy unsafe thing to do...and nothing in the Coal Mines and Quarries Act 1954,says you cannot play ya Moothie when the belts are standing!!

I also worked with Alby Douds,Cappy Foreman ,Tommy O'Neil,Billy Crackett,Dusty Miller,and a fella called Billy Miller,who trained me to work on the Coalcutters..he was a hell of a Cutterman as weel. R.I.P. Billy Miller.

There were 900 men at the Aad Pit,and I knew hundreds of them at any given point in time..it didn't take lang ti get ti knaa them,when there were 30 men on each face,in each shift!...

Cheers Folks.

Stay Safe!

Bill.