Symptoms

Merl ... I wasn't aware that Northumberland used the American busing model to draw the nippers in from that far & wide but I still want to make the general point about kids being ferried to school. I'd be interested to know how many schools, which drag-in their kids from nearby, shut-up shop; as I hinted we appear to have been made of stronger stuff back then (said with tongue in cheek!). I know that staff will live further away these days and as a result may have problems getting in - generally, many teachers in my school days lived locally so walked to work. Anyway, I think the Woller kids could at least have made an effort ... farmers' kids - tough - huh!

Why can't the kids walk to school ... we had to back in the day! Has everyone gone soft 'cos a bit of snow's fallen? Just watched the Beeb news tonight where they reported on some primary school, in some hill town, which has stayed open whilst all the others closed; picture the scene ... kids at lessons, falling snow seen through the windows, break-time approaching, interviewed Headteacher says the kids can't go out into the playground 'cos of 'elf & safety concerns. No mass snowball fights, no 'scrubbing' the lasses so no fond memories for those kids to look back on when they're older. Yep, I'm sure they'll fondly remember that Maths lesson and the resentment at been kept in and not that great day in the snow. I remember with joy the mass snowball fights us Westridge kids had with Biscop (I don't know if it was called that then ... we just referred to it as 'The Cathers')back in the 60s. Happy days.

I'm with my 'old sparring partner' Monsta on this one. It's wall-to-wall celebs everywhere you look ... cheap & nasty telly (fodder for ITV usually), most of the newspapers, they even infect the so-called serious news programmes. There's even the occasional intrusion into my beloved Guardian ... outrageous! I've got nothing against them as people and yes, they should be welcomed back home, but, but, but, not with a chasing (often invited) pack of paps following in their wake. It always seems to be a cynical manipulation/PR type of event (designed to pander to the needs of the pathetic 'star-struck') when really these celebs should visit their nearest & dearest on the quiet. It's all terribly embarrassing really. Anyway, who is this Janet Middlemarch?

Aye, innocent times! Are there any of those marching bands still around? Every community had them, some even had international fame ... the Pelaw band as featured in Get Carter.

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?

Jester - you must resist the attractive temptation of 'taking the law into your own hands'. Don't shout at them, don't chase them, don't touch them, don't restrain them unless you want to invite the '4 o'clock knock' from Plod. A pound to a pinch of dog turd if you do any of the above their feckless parents will report you and you will be prosecuted ... you're an easy target for the forces of law and order. We've all read in the press the outrageous tales of decent folks being criminalised because they felt helpless before the tide of teenage anti-social behaviour. You posted that "St.Benet Biscops say it's out of school hours...not their problem" ... well of course it's their problem; if these little shits can be identified as being pupils there then they are bringing the School's name into disrepute and can/should be disciplined. If the Head doesn't do anything then go over his head to the Chair of Governors and send a copy of the complaint to the Top Bish at the Diocese. Try to get the local press involved ... they loves these type of stories ... and there's nothing more potent than press involvement to oil Plods works (and the School's). Shame them into action! Others here have talked about Asbos (conditions can include 'exclusion zones'), maybe worth instigating but I don't know how. Anyway, I blame it all on Esther Rantzen for founding Childline, that august body dedicated to child protection. Trouble is they also protect the shits from their parents who try to discipline them; how many parents out there have heard the refrain "if you ground me/smack me/hold-back the pocket money/no telly/send me to my room/ I'll call Childline and complain of abuse"? Of course some decent parents run scared whilst the feckless lot couldn't give a monkeys what their brats are up to. Oh dear, I'm morphing from a Guardian reader into something that takes The Daily Mail!

The Field of Screams.

Well, that promise made a few years back must have eventually reached that galaxy far, far away. They came at night but found the barber's shop closed.

Naughty, naughty Ms Hair, what'll Ofsted say about leaving your lesson preparation so late? National Curriculum, Schemes of Work, etc., are supposed to 'button-down' (restrict!) your freedom to do this sort of thing ... you should have had this lesson planned months ago! There's no place to do anything spontaneously.

Well, at least they'll be safe from kiddy fiddling; yep, a decent night's kip at last! I also spoke too soon ... again, my beloved Guardian devoted four pages in the main paper this morning AND 'a special souvenir supplement' (8 PAGES !!!!) ... well you can image the splutterings over my morning croissants and latte. I feel a letter to the Editor is necessary.

I wrote earlier "...the terrible part will be tonight's Newsnight Review probably running a piece on his contribution to popular culture." Well guess what? There's going to be a 'Special' Jacko tribute programme on earlier in the evening (7.30pm BBC1) ... it's enough to make you sick; we had to put-up with tribute shows to the Queen Mum but this is just too much. Oh, and what do you think will be served-up when that bitch Thatcher goes to take over Hell? Even my beloved Guardian had to soil itself this morning with a full-page Obituary on the perv and to make matters worse it was juxtaposed to an obit on the former fragrant Farrah Fawcett.

Oh, no ... it'll be wall-to-wall media tributes, news footage of wailing fans, and the terrible part will be tonight's Newsnight Review probably running a piece on his contribution to popular culture. The guy was a 'kiddy fiddler' who bought-off his accusers ... just wait 'till they come out of the woodwork to state that it really did happen. It's a disgrace that the UK Government allowed him entry for his forthcoming sold-out tour and those who bought tickets should hang their heads in shame .... all double standards when you consider how his chum Gary Glitter was treated. The good thing is that the kids in Blighty should be safe .... for a while anyway!

Victory! "Ayo Gurkhali" ... and for those not fluent in Nepalise - "the Gurkhas are coming".

I'm not sure of his new username but perhaps he's also trying to disguise his appearance:

To my old sparing partner Monsta: ... have a happy birthday but be tucked-up in bed before dark 'cos you'll be having visitors: and then sweet dreams: Cympil - is that your Vizsla or a stock photo?

How many here consider the Government's strategy in dealing with the older group of Gurkhas shameful? The premise that 'if you're prepared to die Blighty, you should be allowed to settle here' seem fair to me. 45,000 died for us in WW1 & WW2 and even this weekend Cpl Kumar Pun was killed in Afghanistan (he was also the son a former Gurkha). The cost of the proposal to allow settlement seems to me to be modest in the grand scheme of things. Sure, there'll be the usual racist insects who'll baulk at this notion of fairness ... probably spouting the usual line 'if you let one lot in you'll have to let the rest in nonesense', or calling them 'just common mercenaries who shouldn't have any right to come here twaddle'. Amazing how badly the Government have handled the issue - didn't they realise the British people have a fondness for the men from the foothills of the Himalayas?

Micky - clearly you're on the rozzer watch list ... maybe a legacy from your mining community connection. The cops have very long memories. I'm suprised you didn't get the rubber glove treatment for good measure.

Ralph - the following is a quote from The Northumberland Collections Service Newsletter Edition 2 July 2007: "... the old Newbiggin Colliery banner became Lynemouth Colliery banner when the majority of men were transferred to Lynemouth after Newbiggin closed in 1967." Apparently, banners were sometimes reused by other lodges by over-sewing a patch on. It was donated by the Northumberland NUM and is now part of the Woodhorn collection of 16 banners, others are according to the Newsletter: Ashington Federation Banner, Bomarsund, Cambois & Bates, Dr Pit, Ellington, North Seaton, North Walbottle, Pegswood, Rising Sun, Seghill, Sleekburn A, West Sleekburn, Whittle and Woodhorn. A further group Northumberland banners are elsewhere, Ashington Group of Collieries banner, Backworth Federation banner, Burradon & Weetslade banner, Cowpen and Crofton banner and the Dudley and Brenkley banner. Follow mrsvic's advice and contact Woodhorn (www.experiencewoodhorn.com) for pics or visit. Hope this helps.

Excellent news ... let's now get on with building those much needed coal-fired power stations. Fingers up to those pesky Russians and their gas tap ... I say we should start digging-up our 200 years worth of coal reserves to feed a new generation of coal-fired stations. Even if the builders are a bit slow with the carbon capture technology the only folks to suffer will be a few fish and reindeer eaters in Scandiavia ... letting them choke is a small price to pay so we can keep warm.

Malcolm wrote: "I think your are mixing ‘metaphors’!" Technically correct - I was trying to directly connect apparently unrelated subjects in this instance for the purpose of humour, ... I think sucessfully. I'm in good company using this device; Euripides, Sophocles, Aeschylus, Shakespeare, all the great poets, and of course, Blackadder. I think we can now add Malcolm to this list of greats for: "I think you will find GGG has Bedlington running through him like a stick of Blackpool rock!" Yeh, but who gets to lick the end?

blank wrote: " ... only because they only seem to sell shoes for the over 70's." Ah, desert boots (for our younger viewers - ankle high, beige lace-ups with a crepe rubber sole), sheep-skin lined Tartan Granny slippers, winkle-pickers, brothel creepers, Hush Puppies, sand-shoes and basketball boots (and the young-uns think that Converse All Stars are new). See-through rain macs* Monster??? At least wearing one of those will save you having to unbutton it when out flashing. (joke) *In the day ... known as Pack-a-Macs

GGG wrote: "I've done more than Gordon has in running a successful business for decades ..." then Malcolm wrote: "I think if you walk into any corner shop up and down the country and ask the Asian gentleman there to run the country they will do a better job!" does this mean that GGG is from the Indian Sub-Continent or from somewhere else over there?

HP - my daily diet of essential nourishment (brain food) is an aperitif, usually the Guardian's Sport Section. A starter is always the main Guardian paper taken with my porridge (which has been garnished with blue-berries). The main course is generally a choice of something light from BBC4 or something more wholesome from Sky Arts 2, an opera or a ballet maybe. Now with dessert I'm spoilt for choice ... the Guardian's G2 or a nibble of Newsnight. Bliss, shear bliss, and not an ounce of fat in sight.

Excellent work so far! Grey is the new black ... very stylish, and I vote to keep it. Just a note to those responsible; consider automatically introducing a riot of coloured chintz, flock-wallpaper background to monsta's postings and I'll have a black and white striped one please. As to the "bedlington.co.uk" at the masthead, as a graphic it is perfectly acceptable to use all lower-case lettering; as a proper noun, the word Bedlington (when used within a text) should always start with a capital letter.