New Year's Eve Winter Carnival

Newcastle's annual New Year's Eve Winter Carnival was held this evening, culminating in a firework display at the Civic Centre.

Pan Haggerty

Pan Haggerty is a restaurant on Newcastle's Quayside.

Tel und Gina's

Tel und Gina's Bratwurst booth at the Sunday Market on Newcastle's Quayside

tinsel warrior

in a shop window in Newcastle upon Tyne

sole food

a Garrafish salon in Newcastle upon Tyne. This  recent pedicure craze has raised health concerns.

in Palestine a long time ago...

Newcastle All Stars

The accomplished Newcastle All Stars Steel Orchestra entertaining shoppers at Grey's Monument recently

rainbow

part of the protest encampment at the base of Grey's Monument in Newcastle upon Tyne.

not working

these were seen on Sunday at the market on Newcastle's Quayside

Cycling Santa

This cycling Santa was spotted on Sunday at The Baltic on Gateshead's Quayside

Xmas grotto

in a garden at a house in the Heaton suburb of Newcastle upon Tyne

Burke & Norfolk

The current exhibition at Side Gallery on Newcastle's Quayside contrasts photography from two Afghan wars separated by about 130 years.

Side Gallery is one of Newcastle's cultural gems, please visit it if you have a chance to do so.

Unit 44

Unit 44 is a superb Gallery specialising in 'street' art , and is to be found in Hoults Yard , Newcastle upon Tyne. The gallery celebrated its 1st Birthday last night.

Hoults Yard was once a depot for Hoults removal company but has been re-developed as a location for creative media businesses. The site is run by Charlie Hoult.

Xmas cheer on Northumberland Street.

The Mask on Northumberland Street

rent a reindeer

this forlorn looking creature was  in a pen on Newcastle's Grey Street this afternoon

Turner Prize at The Baltic

and a Pardew in a Pear Tree

a festive advert at the club shop at St James Park, home of Newcastle United FC

Turner Prize 2011

The Turner Prize finalists are currently on display at  The Baltic in Gateshead .This year's winner is Martin Boyce

Xmas Decorations by Helena Seget

These delightful porcelain Xmas decorations are made by Helena Seget in her studio at Lime Street Studios in Newcastle upon Tyne

uphill struggle

 a street in Newcastle's artistic quarter in the Ouseburn valley

Dear Newcastle

Dear Gateshead

Gateshead is Newcastle upon Tyne's nearest neighbour divided only by the River Tyne. The two places are increasingly marketed as one entity  'Newcastle Gateshead'

Open Your Eyes

Many public sector workers are on strike today in protest against Government plans to alter their pension entitlements. Protest 'camps' have also sprung up in various city centres, including a small one at the base of Grey's Monument in Newcastle, where this picture was taken.

Newburn Church

Newburn  is about 5 miles to the west of Newcastle upon Tyne and  has a long history dating back to Roman times during which it was the most easterly fordable spot on the River Tyne. There has been a church on the site since at least the 11th Century.

mushrooms

mushrooms in Blaydon Burn Nature Reserve, a few miles west of Newcastle upon Tyne

Clara Vale War Memorial

Clara Vale  is a small former coal mining village to the west of Newcastle upon Tyne . Its war memorial is unusual as it refers to the dead 'of  the colliery' rather than the dead of the village.The memorial bears the names of the 56 men employed at the Colliery who were killed during the Great War. The site was a gift from the Stella Coal Company which owned the colliery. The memorial also lists the names of two men from the village who died during the Second World War

navigation lights

Navigation Lights on the River Tyne near Bill Quay

VR

this is an old Victorian, now unused, post box on the International Paints site at Gateshead on the River Tyne. International paints are part of the AzkoNobel Group which is a Global Fortune 500 company.

Clara Vale Lodge Banner

 

In 1889 two shafts of Clara Vale Pit ,in County Durham, were sunk by the Stella Coal Company. In 1897 the pit produced 180,000 tons of coal and at its height employed nearly a thousand men.  The pit was nationalised in 1947and  was closed in 1966 for economic reasons. The old lodge banner hangs in the Community hall which was once the village school.

Tyne View

Clara Vale

steps

steps on the breakwater  at South Shields on the River Tyne

invoices

In the North East Maritime Trust in South Shields, 19th Century invoices pertaining to River Tyne establishments. 

a back lane in Sandyford

back lanes like these run behind rows of terrace houses and are a common feature in Newcastle. This one is in the Sandyford area.

Bast Art in the Ouseburn

Bast  is a Brooklyn based street artist who currently has an exhibition  at the Lazarides Gallery in Newcastle upon Tyne. he has been busy down in the Ouseburn valley where this picture was taken.

Liddle-Henzell Glass-works

marking the site of the glass-works in the Ouseburn valley, Newcastle upon Tyne

roofs

near Wallsend on Tyne

The Kittiwake Tower

  The Kittiwake Tower is in in Gatehead on the south bank of the River Tyne.

Harbour Master

The Port of Tyne's Harbour Master's launch passing the Akzo Nobel works on the River Tyne.

underpass

an underpass near Scotswood Road  , Newcastle upon Tyne.

Quaylink

a bus stop on Newcastle's Quayside for the Quaylink bus service.

The service was originally operated with hybrid diesel-electric buses but these  were replaced in August 2010 with new low-emission diesel buses.

Inksomnia

I love the name of this tattoo parlour which is located  in a western suburb  of Newcastle upon Tyne

Masonic 'Briael' Place

In the graveyard of Newburn Church, the  tombstone of Tomas and  Elizbeth Callender from 1792. The symbols hint strongly that Tomas was a Freemason from Newcastle upon Tyne

The Bridges Festival

the dark waters of the River Tyne were beautifully  illuminated by lights and fireworks on Saturday evening as part of the Newcastle Gateshead Bridges Festival. There are seven bridges which cross the gorge between the two.

The RMS Mauretania

In a house on the banks of the River Tyne a replica of a  painting of the RMS Mauretania is underway. The original painting The Mauretania leaving Tyne 1907 was painted by T. M. Hemy can now be seen at The Discovery Museum in Newcastle upon Tyne.

The Mauretania was built on the River Tyne at the Swan Hunter and Wigham Richardson  yard in Wallsend . She was launched on 20 September 1906 and at that time was the largest and fastest ship in the world. She held the speed record across the North Atlantic for twenty-two years.