HIGH PIT WILMA

Hi NE22,welcome aboard! One of my old friends who i grew up with,in Hollymount Square,Bedlington,in the 1950-60's ,went onto Bedlington Council,and even then,his main ambition was to press for a leisure-sports centre in Bedlington......he was on the Wansbeck council all the years from the 60's,through to the recent years,and had to retire through ill-health...... ...He couldn't convince them lot who control the purse-strings,that facilities in Bedlington were sadly lacking......somebody among "them lot" must have had a vested interest in Ashington,to continue extensive expenditure in that area over the years! ...meanwhile...back at the ranch...............!!

Welcome to the site Broony,hope you enjoy this crowd,i certainly do! EdAdy,i'm itching to ask you if Geordie Adey was any relation to you! We worked together at the Bedlington A pit in the mid-sixties,and as for work,it was a struggle to keep up with him,cos he didn't know when to stop!! If he was related,then you need to feel very proud of the fact,believe me!

Jack,i wouldn't have grown up with you,and known you by the name of John,would i?[at the old Whitley School] Also,was Tony your Dad,a lovely natured fella? Bill.

Vic,i am pleased you said that Doreen was at Westridge from 1956-59,cos someone on the forum elsewhere doubted my word and relied on a book he had read,which stated the school opened in 1957!! As if you could forget what day you started a big,brand new school,on the day it opened from being built! Cheers Marra!

HEH HEH!...welcome Anna! .....you're gonna have have to work hard to beat me when i get started,Anna,cos i don't know when to shut up sometimes!!!!!!!!! This is the shortest post i ever did!] Cheers,hope you enjoy the banter!

Hi Katy!Welcome aboard! The glove factory must have been there since at least the mid-fifties,cos my oldest Sister worked there when she left school,[not directly after leaving school,but within a short space of time]. She used to bring homework,which consisted of turning all the fingers and thumbs out the right way,ready to be sewn onto the palm sections...and i used to help her,this might have around 1955-ish. ...i would have been about 11 years old,and my Sister about 17 years old. She also worked,as a lassie of 15 yrs,in 1953-ish,for old Doctor Hickey,of Choppington,[who brought me and all my Family,and everybody in Choppington!!....into the world,before and during the second world war!],as his housekeeper. She also worked at the nylon factory,at the Welwyn premises,about the same period in time...can anyone remember that one?!!

When i was just 15 years old with no money,cos my 5 bob pocket money from my pit pay,used to be spent on a Rossetti Lucky Seven,which i couldn't take out of the shop till it was paid for,i used to stand and drool at the guitars and Selmer Truvoice Amplifiers inside the shop,at Kitchens. Bert Weedon used the Truvoice amp,[blood and custard model]and it always sounded gorgeous on records and on radio,and telly. They were 15 watts at first,and were about 50 guineas. I later bought a Selmer Thunderbird 30watt twin 12inch speakers absolutely gorgeous looking,and sounding, amp. That was in about 1963-ish,at Jeavons,where i also got my Watkins Dominator mki 17 watt twin..amp,and my red Futurama 3 guitar. No distortion in those days,we endeavoured to produce as clean and perfect a sound as was possible! Happy days!

Eeee,a cud tell yi an aaful story [aaful for me...that is!]aboot P.C.Mann.......!! Noo let's think...hoo can a put it nicely...! The year?-1954-ish...[i was ten years old] The place?-Whitley Memorial School The story starts... I asks teacher if i could go to the toilet,and gets permission to leave the class. In the cloakroom area i see a letter and envelope lying on the floor..important-looking. I pick it up,intending to give it to my teacher,but forget all about it and take it home..my Mother puts it on the sideboard under the old huge pre-war radio cabinet,which has never worked ever..that i knew of...just a bit of furniture. Next Morning,Mr Nicholson,Headmaster,announces a theft from the cloakroom,[during his morning assembly speeches],that had taken place the day before. Being a well-brought -up laddie,i told my Mother about it and she freaked out with me,for not handing the letter in straight away. So i took the letter after dinner-break to Mr Nicholson's office personally,and got a pat[!!!] on the head from the one who usually terrorised us with his caning behavior. Later that afternoon,Mr Nicholson sought me from my class and took me to his office,where two men were sitting smoking. They were dressed in detectives typical caped-back macs,and their trilby hats were on the table by their side. They said who they were,C.I.D.officers,and they informed me that i was under suspicion of stealing a pound note from the envelope,before handing it in...[ 10-years-old...nobody with me like my parents to be with me...][and a pound was a hell of a lot of money in 1954.] The letter was an invoice for Orange's Garage's,for payment for car repairs to a lad called Morgan Dawson's Dad.[any relation John?] Well,i was cross-examined for the rest of that afternoon,accused of lying,told by these two men to admit i stole the money,and spent it on sweets...i was literally shaking all over,in tears at the finish,I had to stand outside the office in the cold corridor,in winter,freezing,shaking,to"think it all over very carefully,then come back and tell us the strory again" I did this about a dozen times,then was sent home..no letter,no escort home cos everyone had already gone home and i was late. I told my Mother about it and she went beserk with me,threw my jacket and shoes back on,and physically dragged me off my feet to the police station,all the way to the top-end from Hollymount Square...a canny hike for little legs. She barged into the police station like the proverbial bull..demanding to know what was going on,and what proof,or rights,did they have to accuse her Son of this crime. The C.I.D. men were there,and they did a repeat of the performance earlier,in the Headmaster's office. At last,to my relief,one said,[and i rember this event traumatically],"i think the boy's telling the truth,he's certainly sticking to his story.." To which the other one stood up,ten feet tall to me..it seemed...and said.."Well it's obvious that the Boy is telling lies,...."to which he got no further...!!!! My Mother,and i can picture this clearly,flipped her lid,and clasped her hands around the detectives throat screaming.."Aal bliddy kill ye,if ye caal my son a liar,....the bairn's terrified,he's telling ye the truth........" The C.I.D.man was totally unprepared for the attack,and went back off his feet....... P.C.Jimmy Mann,and Sargent Lucas knew my Mother to be a good God-fearing Mother with four kids to bring up,all with good characters,never in any trouble,till now. Jimmy Mann grabbed my Mother,and did his best to pacify her,saying.."Jean,come on now,we don't want you to get into trouble do we.." The rest went back inside and Jimmy stayed with my Mother,cos she was in a state of shock,and crying,and so was i,with all this commotion going on,and i thought they would take my Mother away. After a while we went home. Next night she howked me back up to the police station again,screaming,"aam bliddy sick of aal this carry on..next time yi see owt lying..leave the bugga where it is for sumbody else ti get wrang for" Apparently,the C.I.D. men had been to see my Mother at home,and wanted to see me again. By now,i was just a jellified wreck,terrified at the mention of the police. I have always been very strong-willed,and an individual,who wouldn't copy others to keep in with them... I had it in my mind that these two big terrifying men in trilby hats like i saw in gangster movies at the Saturday Matinees at the top-end picture hall,weren't going to make me say i had done something i hadn't done. So we went through another two hours of questioning,i think this time it was a bit more gentle after my Mother's outrage the day before! No derogatory comments today!!...."Well, Mrs Allison,we will keep in touch with you......that's all" We went home,me shaking like jelly,and Mother giving me an earful all the way home. A few days later my Mother heard from Matty Hall,my Teacher,that the real culprit had owned up to the crime. Mother got no official apology from the school,from AAD NICKY the headmaster,from the Police,C.I.D....NOBODY!!! I think P.C. Jimmy Mann quietly smoothed out the attack on the Detective,nothing said about it..case closed.. Except for one little matter.......... For years after if i walked up Bedlington main street,and saw a Policeman coming,i would start to shake like jelly all over,and i mean a physical wreck! I finally got to realise my rights as a citizen by the time i was eighteen,and shed my fears. I related this story word for word,to a new marra at Bates pit,when i went there ,in 1971,as a new Deputy,and after listening to me,he got up from his Bait seat,and arrogantly declared that he didn't believe one word of it,who did i think i was trying to kid........the C.I.D. wouldn't have sent two men,for two days,to investigate one-pound theft............ THIS MAN ...was a "Special Constable",which i hadn't known,and he was as hard as hell,he used to talk about shopping his own Mother for motoring offences!! Anyway,little Bedlington created some terror in my little brain for years to come! Before i went out to play,my Mother used to wave the big bread "gully" [like a sword!!]in front of my face,and say.."if aa hear yi swearing,or hear aboot ye being impitent ti anybody ootside,or daeing owt yi shudn't be daeing.......aal cut the skin off yi strip by strip mind ye little bugga's...[ti me older Brother also..],and aal cut ya bliddy tongue oot dae yi hear....?"....."Aye Mother...we'll not dae owt rang..promise." "Gaan on then,get yasel away doon the river,and divvent cum back droonded,or else aal morda ye's...." With that terrifying statement,she would give us a kiss and a big cuddle,telling us she really loved us and would kill anybody who harmed us....and away we wud gaan..oot ti play!! She aalway's said these things,it was almost like saying prayers!...but we took notice of her and never got into trouble. We had the best Mother in the world in those hard post-war rationed times. Aye,me story seems a bit funny noo,but believe me,it certainly wasn't funny then...it was so traumatic,that's how i remember every single word spoken,and by whom!! Thanks for letting me relate this story about Good old Bedlington in the old days!!

Heh Heh! Thanks John,things seem to have settled doon,aam deaing aalreet noo! By hell,ye brought me sum gud aad memories there noo,Ted Candlish,a used to trail aal the gearboxes,motors,coalcutter parts,conveyor belt installation,everything heavy,wi me powny. Me and me marra used ti work wi Ted,and he's marra Geordie Carr,building up the conveyor drive-heads,etc as weel as aal the other fitter and electricians,like Eddie Hagerty,["Uncle Ed..!!] Smashing blokes ti work with,aal the Nicholsons filled coal in stretches next to each other,they took the whole face up between them!Raffi Nicholson,was [still is!]a big lad,he was timber-leading before filling coal. So did the Dryer family,aal luvly blokes,especially young Dor,who,even though he was a few years older than me,was still more like my age than the old-timers.We got on really great,but then,i got on well with most every man at the pit,considering i was a kid growing up fast,among older men. I knew every man at the pit,when the workforce was only about 300.Bart,John,Harry [Harper],Stewpot,Big Toss,[although some were at other pits where i worked.] My Father worked with Toss and Bart,and Old Salt,Les,["Fingers"],and all the rest,cos He started High pit in 1929 aged 14 years old.

I learned that St Cuthbert's Church was originally laid,probably a wood building,and consecrated,in the year 611 ad.[yes...not 1611....but 611ad.!] The Saxon's built the stone church,and the original Chancel Arch still stands with typical Saxon zig-zag pattern. The Norman's came and destroyed most of the Church,rebuilding it with their own designs. Apparently,with the Norman's,religion didn't play a part in their building work,it was more to be of a grand scale to show enemies and people of the lands they concquered,how superior they were with their building skills.Symbols of power,so to speak...if it's true what you read!! ..Then what about the recent vicar who had the ridulously horrific idea,of burying the historic font in the Church grounds....so future Archeologists could make a sensational find in their day.......[he happened to be an Archeologist!]

Symptoms,i'm the same with distant recall..i can mind right back to the time i played in willow bridge front and back fields,just about two-and a bit..but i seriously canna mind what i did yesterday,or what the weather was like etc. I blame "life-saver"pills i have to take,having had a heart attack a few years ago. Like i said earlier,i can recall practically everyone in my class,and also the positions they sat,relative to each other..and we had up to 43 pupils in our class at any one time! I think that's how i find myself hogging the forum,unintentionally,it's just that i get carried away with my reminiscing! Right!...aam gaana say nowt mair!!.....................

One of my good schoolmate's was Micky Lucas,Son of Sargent Lucas,a massive bloke,and much feared in small Bedlington,in the old days![this was at the old Police Station,at the top-end] Micky was over 6' tall at 14 years old,and the most gentlest,quiet-spoken,good-humoured lad you would want for a school-mate. I often wonder how he got on after leaving school,i can name all of my mates right through school from thi infants..up to leaving....well,almost all,give or take one or two!![that includes girls as well!..including some who came and didn't stay long,to go to another school] Bobby Cross started the village infants school when i did,and is on the class photo i would like to post here. As a ten year-old,he wanted to be a journalist.At fourteen he played Mark Antony in the School Dramatic Society's production of Julius Caesar..[shakespeare],and so much impressed the whole School,[us pupils also-we were thrown over by his performance],that the school Governor went to his dressing-room to shake his hand personally,and congratulate him. Well,he ended up playing a Shotfirer,in the '60s tv series,"The Stars Look Down",about the mines,in the days of the Coal-owners..[late 1800's] I ended up working as a heavy transport lad,down Choppington B pit[High Pit],with,funnily-enough....Bobby's Dad ..[a real live overman-deputy-shotfirer!]....in charge of me,and my marra's!!! Well,the last episode with Bobby starring in it,the men had told the colliery manager,that they were going to "hole through "into old workings,and faced being either flooded out,or gassed ,or both....The manager ignored the men's pleas to abandon the working place and seal it off for the pit's safety. Bobby fired the shots,to blast out the coal to be got,and there was an almighty explosion,and flood,killing Bobby,and all the miners in that district.[based on a true story]. The next day,i was talking to old Bobby,[his Dad],underground,and remarked how good young Bobby still was,as an actor. His reply stitched me up!!! "Whey aa divvent knaa aboot being gud,cos thi bugga ownly fired one shot....and closed thi bliddy place..!!!!" Eh,They were both really nice lads,the two Bobby's,aad Bobby was well-respected as an overman,and very well-liked. A bet yi canna gaan roond most factories,nooadays,and find gaffa's with the same respect and with affectionate remarks passed aboot them from the workforce!!

Hi James,i don't know who Paul Mann is...maybe Jimmy Mann's [the policeman in Bedlington at the time]Son?...no? Maybe the official opening of the school was in 1957,as they do with these thing,all the dignitaries etc,and of course the builder's were in the classrooms in 1956,didn't i tell you that we all got sent home on the first day,by Mr Hemming,because the stationary,and pens and pencils hadn't been delivered?Things were cocked up in a few places,such as the outside landscaping,etc. Now we started on the morning of the next day,but didn't commence lessons for a week or more. Don't forget,everybody was new to this school,the Staff and Pupils alike,had to learn where every classroom and facility was,all the fire escape routes,drill,assembly points,fire points,Headmaster's rules,this daft "House system",then there was the whole School curriculum,the selection of those that were considered bright enough to be put up into the "Upper Remove"[and Middle,and lower remove also]....all this organisation had to be put into place,and i can tell you,that,coming from a smaller school like the Whitley Memorial,the organising of 500 pupils,in one block,as opposed to the normal school intake,was a helluva project!! I can distinctly remember just wandering all around the school and grounds with groups of my friends,like it was a holiday camp,just familiarising ourselves with the general layout,marvelling at the Science labs,the Metalwork shop......Metalwork...???????...what was that?!!! Biology lab,.....again...what was that?!!! .....a stage with full theatrical lighting system and control panel....wow!! By contrast,the old Whitley was a run-down shanty school with archaic teaching curriculum.. When we left the Whitley,Maths was long-division,and History was all about the Dinosaur age. Suddenly,at Westridge,we were thrust into simple and compound interest,and pretty soon,Logarithms,and Algebra. Kids from the other Schools were fully up to date,but to me and my friends,log tables were tables made of logs!!We had never heard of Mr Abrahart's Crimean war in 1854!![a bit of a jump from the Dinosaur age....!] Well,here i go again...just can't help myself from rabbiting can i?!! Now when i can get to my school classwork folder,and my reports and leaving certificate,which i have safely filed away,but very difficult to access,i will see if i can scan them and post them,along with my school badge from my blazer,which is still as good as new![quality wear in those days!!] 1956 was a long year,for the builders to do the snagging,till August/September when the big day came for us....no doubt about it!! As for books,no disrespect intended,but to show how mis-prints go through proof-reading,the Durham Mining Museum Archives clearly state official N.C.B.figures,as Choppington B colliery working the "Upper Busty" ,in 1959....... Well,i know it's nowt to do wi Westridge,but by way of good example,Choppington B pit only worked the Beaumont seam,in 1959, and didn't start to drift down to the Top Busty,until about 1961-ish,with a workforce of about 300 men,in 1959 [not 600 as stated] ,but rising to 600 by closure in 1966.[how do i know?..cos i started the pit IN 1959.....!]So am i to dispute these good author's? Let's just rest at knowing what we know,without having to really accept all we read,due to mis-prints and other typo's!!

Symptoms.....iv'e just gotten oot o' bed,after suffering a stomach bug..[diaorhh...and sickness....],,,,,,and now you haven't half cheered me up with this tale!!!...how the hell did you think them up? Keep em coming...!

I was married in 1967,and lived with my dear old Mother-in - law,for two years,till we got our own place. She was closer to me than my own Mother in lots of ways,but that,s beside the point i wanted to make We lived at Grange Park,and one night,about 11-30pm,our bedroom windows went as bright as day,with a yellow flickering glow....obviously a big fire somewhere near.. Now this could have been anywhere between late 1967,to mid 1970..[when we moved] Anyway,me being a nosy sod,got back oot'o bed,dressed,inti me little yellow Ford Anglia 105e ,[with the reverse-angled rear window!],and away up to Moorland Avenue.[no spine road then,and no cross-roads] I parked up on the left and ran along to the big fence which was the playing field perimeter ......and there was the most awesome sight!!!!! The school was totally ablaze....and the firemen were playing it as best they could but really just had to do what the rest of us were doing...watch helplessly!!! Normally my camera would have been firing [ugghhh!] from the hip,but because i was awakened by all this....i forgot to take it,then the police moved all of us away,even though we were a real long distance away to start with. Noo,was this the Woody school you all talk about?

I thoght it was a smelter factory in Rio..........

Nah,Malc.!...no such thing as a beat combo in the 60's that i ever heard,apart from the Bill Black Combo,but that wasn't rock n' roll as we know it!...Beat Groups,later on,but in the early 60's we were billed as "Fantastic Rhythm Groups"....or "Pop Groups"....the Evening Chronicle enternainments page was full of every Working Men's Clubs in Northumberland,with lots of clubs putting groups on four or five nights a week. We had Communities then,before thatcher-the-hatcheter festered the country..

Noo,back ti Symptoms' wicked tales of a cad ,and a bounder,maybe even a Montgomery....to boot!! A canna wait ti hear aboot the Great Grand Piano Scandal!![me being a musician.....] Sym,aam in the process of writing my life story,[been at it for over two or three years...a bit at a time...], noo hae yi ever thowt aboot daeing thi syem thing,but only recalling your wicked deeds!...aam sure it would make very interesting reading!!! Get started!!

Hi James! Westridge opened in August/September 1956,[not 1957],I started there the first day it opened. The farm was just about opposite and to the right,cos me being a nature-boy all my life,i distinctly remember standing at the Schoolgates,at break-times,[we were big lads ,noo,nae "play-times"for us!], with my friends,Martin,Dennis,Derek,Pete,and others,watching the coos waaking in a lang line,up the field, at the same time ivry day,to be milked.[aye!!,we DID used to produce summik wasell's,in them days!] One day,we aal rushed owa ti the gates cos tha was a helluva lot of moo-in' gannin on. Just across from us in the field opposite the gates,aal the coos were in a circle,mooin'like hell! We aal just stood,wonderin wat thi hell was gaan on,when,after a quarta of an 'oor,or sae,sum of the coos moved aroond,and here we saw wat the commotion was..... A mother was giving birth to a babby coo..! Within anotha ten minutes the babby was struggling ti get up onto it's legs,ti waak. Then wa break was owa,it must hae been wa dinner break,for the length of time we stood there watching this miracle of nature. For weeks after we watched that little coo grow,even though the rest of the herd aal calved,but none of them so close to the road that we could watch. A never forgot that. A sad memory about Westridge was,one cold February snowy morning,a was hurrying up to the School entrance,when a heard me name being caaled oot,from behind. Me mate,Pete,was hurrying ti catch me up,"Bill,hae yi hord thi news on the wireless?"...."No Pete,wat news?"...[we had nae telly in them days] "Buddy Holly's been killed in a plane crash"..... A didn't believe him at first,then when he said "Honest Bill,Mother's Death..."...then a knew it was true,and a nearly burst into tears,even though i was 14 yrs old at the time,and in another 12 months time,a would be working underground in the coalmines..like a said before...growing up fast.!! But this news brought a lot older people than me,to tears,it was a day i will take to my grave,i couldn't concentrate on my lessons,i kept thinking about my older Brother,3years older,both born on the same day,three years apart,and he was already a miner of two years experience. He was down the pit and wouldn't have heard this tragic news,and he was the biggest Buddy Holly fan i ever knew,along with myself. To this day,and I am approaching 70 years,next year,i can still play Buddy's songs,like "Peggy Sue, Oh Boy, Peggy Sue got married" etc! Only thing is,noo,Buddy had that much energy,he didn't knaa that aad bugga's like me,wi knackered hands [pit injuries],and a knackered pair o' lungs [pit dust][,short o' breath,wadn't be able ti belt his songs oot like he did,more like a feeble attempt ti try and dae thim,purely for nostalgia and self-enjoyment.!!

A heven't taaked yi ti sleep,hev a Richie?!

A Tickford 2.8 T Capri.........and yi "played" in it.........!!!!!!!!! The Manager,Jim Donaldson,lives along a few doors from me,if he knew yi were playin in it,at the time,tha wudda been hell on,a bet!! aaaaaahhhhh!!!!...happy days eh?!! A wus taakin ti him a while back,and he was telling me a bit o' history aboot the firm,it was interesting.

This site just gets better and better,for meeting up wi aad friends,who a thowt aa wud nivvor see again!

Whey yi bugga man!! Richie!,a wud nivvor hae placed yi!! Hoos yor aad chep?..nivvor seen him fo' a few yeors,hae yi seen wor Youngin' ,like has Yor Aad Chep seen Wor Youngin' lately...they were the best of Mates,as gud as yi wud get! Ask Pa if he's checked oot me photostream on Flickr. Tell him aam askin efter him and ya Ma....eh yi bugga!!!,who'd a thowt a wud catch up wi yi efter aal this time......on a computer! A can mind yi comin wi ya Pa ti wor hoose noo,wi Joe N.,and Joe had a jam on Wor Daz's Welson Festival organ.[we were aal still at the pit then..Bates] If Joe still gaans ti see yor aad chep,will yi pass me kindest regards to him as weel,thanks Richie. Aav got a gorgeous Ibanez [red] Artcore AF75T,Electric/Acoustic [ or,as the modern day Youth caal them,"Semi-Acoustic!]...which is incorrect, cos a true Semi-Acoustic,is a guitar body which is hollow,["Acoustic"],but has no sound -holes cut into the body,so helping to suppress feedback,at loud volumes,as on stage. Heh,heh!!...here a gaan,ain't seen yi for 30 years,and a start a lecture on the technicalities of guitar making!!!![just like Wor Youngin!!...but not as gud a taaker....but Yor aad chep wud say different,a a bet!! Nice ti meet yi again Richie!!

Naa...!...Mrs Gates,bottom end,aside the Black Bull,couldn't be beaten...Maggie's reet except for a missing "h"....it's "scramshuns"!!!Everybody ti tha aan,a say!

Me luvly aad Mother-in-law,Jinny,lived at Puddler's raa,afore the war,[she might even have been born there,in 1909,cos she lived next door to her Parents....!!],and she used ti say "waatch yi divvent trip owa them "LORKS" in the carpet......! I never heard of that one in my part of Bedlington[East-end] . Also she would often say.."Wa gaana hae sumbody knocking on thi door,tha's a stranger on thi bar.."[referring to biggish pieces of sooty flakes on the coal fire grate bars moving back and forth with the updraft in the chimney!].