The St. Oswald

The St Oswald is a fishery Protection Vessel operated by the  Northumberland Inshore Fisheries and Conservation Authority (NIFCA)  . It is seen here entering the River Tyne yesterday.

The St Oswald was built at Hepworths Boatyard on the Humber in 2001. The vessel is 21 metres in length with a 6 metre beam and is powered by twin 500kw Caterpillar engines. 

Newcastle Summer Beach

click photos to enlarge

Newcastle's Quayside has had a beach installed for the summer

new bike hire scheme

A new bike hire scheme was launched in Newcastle upon Tyne on Friday . This bike rack is on The Side under the shadow of the magnificent Tyne Bridge

Bessie Surtees House

see: Bessie Surtees House

the loneliness of the long distance runner

on Newcastle's quayside this evening.The wondeful building shown is the Sage concert hall which is currently hosting the Summer Tyne Americana Festival.

mud flats

Mud flats exposed at low tide on the River Tyne near Lemington.

Blaydon Races

The Blaydon Races were a horse race meeting  first held on an island in the River Tyne about 1 mile west of Blaydon, later transferring to  Stella Haugh where the races were held until 1914.

 The races were to give their name to a song of the same name written by George Ridley and recorded as having been sung at  Balmbra's Music Hall in Newcastle upon Tyne on 5 June 1862. The song was to become, and remains, a Geordie Anthem recognised by everyone on Tyneside and sung to this day by supporters of Newcastle United FC.

river view

in this picture can be seen   Newcastle's 12th Century Castle Keep, 14th Century St Nicholas Cathedral, Moot Hall 1811, High Level Bridge 1849, the old Fish Market building ( foreground)

Spiller's Tyne Mill demolition

for comparison please see similar view on 1st May:

http://newcastleandnorthumberlanddailyphoto.blogspot.com/2011/05/kittiwake-tower.html

a bend in the river

click to enlarge

HMS Tyne

HMS Tyne was on a courtesy visit to the River Tyne at the weekend. She is the 6th ship in the Royal Navy to have been named after the River Tyne.

HMS Tyne serves as a  fishery protection unit within the United Kingdom's waters along with her two sister ships Mersey & Severn.

Mouth of the Tyne Festival

The Mouth of the Tyne Festival takes place every July in Tynemouth and South Shields, towns which lie either side of the mouth of the River Tyne. This morning there was a children's carnival procession in Tynemouth

Durham Miners' Gala. 9 July 2011

 

The Durham Miners' Gala   developed out of  miners' trade unionism, with the first Union being established in 1869. The Durham Miners' Union organised the first Gala  in 1871 and it developed into the largest unofficial miners and trade union gathering in the United Kingdom . It is  locally called "The Big Meeting" or "Durham Big Meeting". It is a highlight of cultural life in the North East of England.

There are no working pits left in the  Durham coalfield but the Gala remains a paean to the proud political and cultural heritage of the former  mining communities   which are   represented by colourful banners, each typically accompanied by a brass band, which are marched through Durham City to site of the old racecourse  where political speeches are delivered. In the afternoon a Miners' service is held in Durham cathedral.

This year two of the trapped Chilean Miners were guests of honour and a Chilean flag was flown on the balcony from which local and national dignitaries observe the procession..

Bowes Museum

Bowes Museum is in Barnard Castle, County Durham

signs

signs in Alwinton in Northumberland's National Park

Temple of Minerva

seen at the Temple of Minerva in Hardwick Hall Country  Park, County Durham today