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Showing content with the highest reputation since 26/04/23 in all areas

  1. Following a long absence on this site I have just become aware of Derek's passing today, sad news indeed. A true gentleman respected by all who were fortunate enough to have the pleasure of his company.
    4 points
  2. 3 points
  3. Didn't one of those on the left used to be Wemyss (sp?), the wholesale confectioner, back in the mid 1950s? I can remember carting an unstable load of empty crisp tins there on my bogey as an infant. Yes, those packets of crisps with the little blue bag of salt used to come in oversized biscuit tins to keep them fresh. My motive was purely economic - to pocket the deposit on them. Mr Wemyss, however - god rest his soul - wasn't prepared to cough up the going rate, likely embossed on the tins, and all I got was a pittance (or maybe a few sweets) for my trouble. The sweets are long forgotten, but the bitterness lingers on - such is life! 🀣
    3 points
  4. You should just be able to drag and drop the video into your post or upload to the gallery. If it's not a playable format inline it will embed as an attachment for download. You can also upload to Youtube/Vimeo and paste the link from there and it will embed inline here. e.g.
    3 points
  5. I know its a few years since the last post on this thread, but I'm doing some family history stuff and searched 2 gate house... it would appear my ancestors lived there between yours! Mine were there in the 1921 census, and moved on by 1939! Thanks so much for that map canny lass!
    3 points
  6. Hope everybody has a better 2024 than this year!! Aal thi best Folks!!
    3 points
  7. My pleasure this morning to give the lasses who are the Friends of West Lea Cemetery their newest award, off our friends at Bedlington.co.uk. This is the 2023 Piper award and given a lot of members on that site are ex-pats it’s nice to know they still keep up with current going-ons in Bedlington. Given in recognition of someone or a group who have made outstanding efforts in the Town over the last year, a well-deserved award. Well done girls.........
    3 points
  8. It’s that time of year again when thoughts of old friends emerge again and fond memories stir the soul. I hope everybody here is well. Wishing you all good time over the holidays and a safe happy New Year. Sym
    3 points
  9. .... and the same from me! Merry Christmas to everybody. Take really, really, REALLY good care of yourselves and we'll meet again in the new year.
    3 points
  10. Thank you Alan, Merry Christmas to you and yours, Merry Christmas to all members.
    3 points
  11. Had a bit play and I have come up with this template for this year and future years And for 2023 I added the info + our group logo Still need to look at the dimensions of the certificate to match the dimesions of popular frame sizes.
    3 points
  12. @Andy Millne @John Fox (foxy) @Malcolm Robinson @Vic Patterson @HIGH PIT WILMA @Bedlingtonian @Pete @Jammy @Maggie/915 @_pauls @James @Symptoms @Mal @Tonyp @Beano @7RIrF @carly @Bill Straughan @oldtimer @Dave Twist @6233jane @threegee @Darren Smith @jfk @B Davison @DJA 24 @anniemarr @Katherine Hyde @Jr6468 @Sheila Prouten @Joe McNally @Patricia Wadsworth @SouthernGeordie @rosco @Linray @lynnewatson @sallywoo1971 I have posted the message and the images onto the Facebook page of https://www.facebook.com/Thefriendsofwestleacemetery @Mal had a think, and clart, on what you proposed re certificate and anything is possible but naturally on something that is normally a pure online award there will be some issues to overcome. These are the tnings I am thinking about :- design and produce a certificate using my Winows Vista + Microsoft Digital Image pro 10 (as that is the only software I have print off the certificate - and as I am no professional that would be to an A4 sheet of paper. What dimensions would the certificate be = what are the standard picture frame sizes, between A5 & A4, that TFOWBC could by to fit certificate into Posting a certificate to TFOWC - looking at their FB page they don't have an address for where to post anything to and if they did it would have to have a letter box wide enough to accept an A4 sheet,8.27 x 11.69 inches or 21 x 29.7 centermeters, wth cardboard support to stop it getting bent/damaged in the post. ------------------------------------------------------ I will let you know if I come up with anything
    3 points
  13. I have made the 2023 award and as long as all are happy with this years award going to The friends of Westlea Cemetery (TFOWC) I will post the following text and images on TFOWC Facebook page. To the volunteers at The Friends Of Westlea Cemetery. In 2020 on the Bedlington community group (bedlington.uk) it was suggested that a yearly award (purely online) be award to anyone that had helped the group or anything to do with Bedlington. It was decided to name it The Piper Award after Ainsley Piper who bred the Bedlington terrier in 1825 in St Cuthbert’s Vicarage. This December the members of the group have voted for the online award to go to your volunteer organisation that has helped so many people in Bedlington, and beyond. So the members of bedlingto.uk would like to say thank you to the work your volunteers have done.
    3 points
  14. Aye he takes a canny snap!
    3 points
  15. Coach Road is shown in blue on the attached 1897 map of Bedlington East End. The road is still there leading to Spring view and the last houses were demolished in the early 1950’s. The East End Church of England school was only about 250 yards from Coach Road so is fair to assume that this is the school in the photo. The school (shown in yellow on the map) was closed in the early 1900’s and the site is now part of Hollymount Square.
    3 points
  16. "There will be a shuttle bus to get people from one side of the crossing to the other..." Well, I can dream! This one was supposed to be flying by 2018, and it seems there are quite a number of such designs. Maybe it's going to take Elon to bring one to reality!
    3 points
  17. Kings Coronation 2023
    3 points
  18. Hi We are moving to bedlington as we have just bought a property on front street. The property in question has a blue plaque on the wall outside (Gibsons who i believe were a family who made nails) and I've been told used to be a wholesalers and such over the years prior to becoming a home in the early 2000's, id be really interested if anyone has any old photographs of 36 front street (opposite the Black Bull) prior to it becoming a home. thanks
    2 points
  19. Coming soon! This is an interesting family and I've been researching them this week. I'll post soon, probably on John Dawson's thread The Last of the Nailers. It will probably be long so it may need a few posts.
    2 points
  20. My Gt Grandmother and Gt Grandfather had a building business. His name was James Johnson Mole and he married Catherine Easton. I often wondered if the cottages were any connection to her.. They lived in Gibson house in I think Rothesay Terrace. Their son Robert who was my Grandfather built a lot of houses in Stead Lane and you will still find manhole covers saying JJMole on the pavement in Bedlington. I was born at 9 Stead Lane, which my grandfather built and the house Pearmans next door as well and I remember very clearly the shop which I was sent to get messages for my Grandmother Alice Mole nee Green. In 1944 my Dad came home from the war and being a cockney we had to come doon sooth which broke my heart as I loved Bedlington. Alas, there is nobody I know now, either they moved away or died but my heart is still a Geordie and I can still speak the language fluently. We played with David and Arthur Fenwick, Olive Tipple, Tony Savilly who was called by us Tony is a billy because we could pronounce his surname, his Mum married an Italian and lived in the house right next to the shop. We played lots of games on Stead Lane, no traffic then, went to pledge doon the river Blyth, a children’s paradise The memories come flooding back. KATHLEEN NOTT - Maidstone Kent
    2 points
  21. Our Government (Canadian) is giving away millions to foreign companies to come and build facilities for making batteries, we have most of the "ingredients" to make them, but the environmentalists rather we get others mine it, using less friendly methods.
    2 points
  22. 2 points
  23. Sorry you've had to wait. It's been a hectic week! Here are the answers to the Christmas quiz: 1. 1. 1920s 2. 7 swans a swimming 3. 221 feet 4. No number is mentioned. The book of Matthew, the only gospel to mention the Kings, doesn’t say how many there were only that they brought gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. We just assume that they were three because of the three gifts. 5. Kentucky Fried Chicken. It’s so popular you have to order several months in advance or join queues that have started to build on Christmas Eve. 6. Iceland. They’re a canny bunch of lads but if you’ve been badly behaved you’ll just get a rotten potato. They β€˜ve got some great names too: Sausage -swiper, Door-sniffer and Window-peeper, to name just a few. 7. Little Women by Louisa May Alcott 8. Donald Duck 9. Light Emitting Diode 10. Newcastle-upon-Tyne 11. A 50-pence piece. 12. Isaac Newton 13. Capricorn 14. The Indian Ocean 15. December 26 16. Jolly careful 17. c) making a noise. (It’s no wonder that baby was awake!) 18. Paris 19. Donner 20. False. The average gain is 1 lb. I'll take the opportunity of wishing each and everyone of you a happy, prosperous year in 2024. May it be filled with health, wealth and happiness. I'm off tomorrow morning to celebrate an 80th birthday in Scotland. New Year's Eve and a birthday rolled into one. It's bound to be a good one! I remember (just about) the 70th birthday party and if it's half as good it'll be great. Take good care of yourselves and we'll meet again next year.
    2 points
  24. A well-deserved award indeed! Like Vic I also greatly appreciate the hard work that these girls do. It's a great comfort to ex-pats like myself who can't visit often and have no relatives left in the area who are willing or able to do so. I know that my parents and my brothers are well looked after. Thank you.
    2 points
  25. @Mal there is a fault on the one above - I have corrected it in this one.
    2 points
  26. 10-12-2023..UPDATE!..LOST KEYS RETRIEVED AT LIDL THIS MORNING.MANY THANKS TO THE KIND AND HONEST PERSON FOR HANDING THEM IN!
    2 points
  27. These programmes maybe of interest to members in the coming months .
    2 points
  28. 2 points
  29. During WW2 my maternal Grandfather was working a double shift in the middle of the night (to help the war effort) when he was injured underground by a rock fall causing crush injuries to his legs and back. His mates dug him out, brought him to the surface and stretchered him the mile-and-a-half back to his home. The doctor was called, meds given and an ambulance was called to take him to hospital in Durham ... he worked at Sherburn Hill Colliery near Durham City. My Grandmother had to pay the Doctor for the home visit and for the ambulance - it cost her two shilling and six pence. You had to pay for all this stuff when the pits were privately owned and there was no NHS. He got plastered-up and was back at work a couple of months later.
    2 points
  30. Excellent suggestion Eggy.............In effect just two lasses spending all their free time helping to make the cemetery somewhere everyone can be proud of. They are currently making Xmas wreaths and all money raised is spent in the cemetery. BTW, Look out for a huge revamp at the Garden of Remembrance and the path behind!
    2 points
  31. Hope everybody's keeping well,apologies for absences,Hope 2024 is a better year than the last four years!![we keep saying that..!!] Cheers Bill!
    2 points
  32. hello @Canny lass from Wilf
    2 points
  33. It's a man thing. Trust me, I'm a woman!
    2 points
  34. Don't you forget to make time for yourself! Caring for a loved one can be hard work at times and you need time for rest and relaxation if you're going to cope and keep your health intact.
    2 points
  35. Hi David,Dad never talked about his rescue work,well none of them did,and I never knew he had been badly burned..that really was a savage way to be injured..and his thinking about the accident being caused by an illegally lit cigarette,underground,was 99% justified..[at the High Pit that is..if that is where the accident happened..].I never saw anybody smoke in any other pit where I worked..the High Pit was different..I have never smoked in my life,therefore I could,and still can,now,at 79 yrs of age,detect cigarette smoke a mile away. I remember being threatened by one Deputy underground,when I was about 17 years old,to be reported and sacked by the Manager,if I didn't get off my pit horse's back..[okay it was illegal..and a horse carrying me wasn't suffering..it was safety issues that made it illegal!]...anyway,I got down off the horse,but as I did,I blurted out to the Deputy.."Ye report me ...and aal report ye for sitting there smoking alang wi the coalfillers..ye are risking blowing us all ti pieces..ya mad..!" He didn't need to reply to me..aal the coalfillers [a dozen of them],said Wilma,ye better f.... off noo the time thi game's gud or else we'll hing ye.."..[hang you]..I quickly went and got on with my work,and they all went inbye to their jobs on the coalface,they had stopped at the halfway point to rest,as all the roadways going inbye were on a steep rise to the west..the coal seam outcropped over the fields past Hepscot. Nowt mair was ever said about the incident,and I got on well with that Deputy,he was a real canny sociable fella,who was the spitting image of the old Television Comedian ,Arthur Haynes..if anybody can recall watching his shows in the 1960's! Choppington High Pit had very poor ventilation,and was really wet throughout the mine..so wet and with never any evidence of Methane being detected,it was considered safe to smoke..the Chief danger down that pit wasn''t Methane,it was Blackdamp..[more correctly known as "Blackdampfe"...from German "Dampfe"= GAS]...and which miners called "Stythe"..or "Styfe".. it was a dead cert that if the Barometric Pressure dropped sharply..the roadways and faces in the pit would quickly fill up withthis deadly gas,which isn't poisonous,it is Asphyxiating to the exclusion of Oxygen..and therefore men used to just suffocate when the mine got styfed out before they got to bank..[the surface!]...that pit should never have been opened in the first place!! Hope I haven't gone on too long David..Cheers Marra!
    2 points
  36. 8 years later... ..and this cool-laid-back is even built in to the software! I did come across a reply to a "how to" technical question on a forum last night posted five years after the question was asked; but it's nice to know that Bedlington.uk is right up there with the best!
    2 points
  37. Now if we had said that Canny lass!!!!!πŸ˜‚πŸ˜‚πŸ˜‚
    2 points
  38. Ticket office Vic? They are trying to close all but a handful across the country.
    2 points
  39. "It is strange what Ryanair are doing compared with the other airlines. Could it be that they don't have any spare aircraft to send out and bring holiday makers home - or is it just all about money?" The latter, for sure! It's a completely unprincipled outfit run by a moron! Other ex-pats here say they have no choice, but I've managed not to give him a bean over more than a decade. I hate it when Mrs 3G flies with them, particularly when I have to drive her to the airport at some ungodly hour to meet their scheduling. But she's quite canny and knows exactly how their rip-off charging system works, knows what days to fly, how long to book ahead, so plays the system for the cheapest possible seat. Ryanair: I'd rather cycle it! Steer clear of EU countries in any case, they have only ever been after our money, and will rip you off in an instant. If you want that, and want to be treated like cattle, then good luck to you, but don't moan about it afterwards!
    2 points
  40. when it gets to 22C I'ts too hot for me. Fortunately the jet Stream has been looking after me for the past few days
    2 points
  41. Ah CL this explains why we haven't heard from you for some time, so pleased to hear you are recovering, again! Yes Covid is still around, I believe it will always be here and just considered another Flu with more deadly symptoms. Our health is so important as we get older, take care.
    2 points
  42. Don't let anybody tell you it's over! It's still running amok. Despite five vaccinations and still rigorously hand washing, I am now recovering from my second dose pf Covid in 3 MONTHS!! Feeling, and probably looking, like a half wrung out floor cloth at the minute. Trying to catch up on the reading but don't expect any real input from me for a while. Stay safe!!!
    2 points
  43. I put the proposed map up on my page................ Doesn't look good for us to me!
    2 points
  44. Bedlington Station Entrance Design Options - link posted by @Malcolm Robinson on his Bedlington West ward Facebook page :- https://www.northumberlandline.uk/post/bedlington-station-entrance-design-options?fbclid=IwAR1-e_bna1GnTyjBSsaQ5T0O_EmWcMb9FwxFBJbWKPO0H-enMUVigubf1xo
    2 points
  45. Hi David,life down Choppington B pit [aka "The High Pit"]was really tough..I should have said ROUGH! I left school aged 15 years in 1959,and followed in my Father's and Brother's footsteps,as a lot of kids did in those days,and went to work down the mines.After preliminary training at Seaton Burn pit,The Coal Board sent me to The High Pit..even though at the interview stage,all the trainees were given two choices as to which pit they wanted to go to..I chose Bedlington A pit..[aka "The Aad Pit"],or as a second choice..Bedlington D Pit ..[aka "The Doctor Pit"].. My Father went mad when he opened the letter informing me that I was being Posted to the High Pit...HE started down that pit in 1929,aged 14 years old straight from school also. He told me stories about how it was "Aal rough and ready.."..and how men were being killed or injured on a regular basis..and he was going to see about putting a stop to me being sent there. Whey,he calmed doon and within a haaf an hoor,said Billy,aa nivvor wanted ye ti gaan doon thi pit ,but ye wadn't listen ti me,ye med ya bed hard,so ye can lie in it!! SO,a went into the timber yard at first,and also helped out on the screens,picking stones off the conveyor belt,to clean the coal up..then went down the pit at 16 yrs. By the time I was 17 yrs old,I was on heavy transport and salvage work,doing a really strenuous job,trailing heavy bits of gear like Motors,Gearboxes,Conveyor belt driveheads,200 yard long heavy thick cables for the coalcutters,using my pit pony and tracing chains. Ronnie and Eddie were the Deputies in two adjacent coal faces,which were really rough,with roof water teeming in,constantly,bad roof conditions,swalleys of water 100 yards lang and up to the ponies belly..i.e. up to our waist in some places..men WERE getting injured and killed frequently,I have permanent injuries which I never reported and which have affected me my whole life..also the pit horses suffered cruel conditions and were frequently injured or killed,or had to be humanely put to sleep because of serious injuries. In conditions like this,it is inevitable that tempers were raised sometimes ,and that happened with Ronnie and Eddie at times..they were both in conflict with me and my Marra Keith Cooney..[now deceased R.I.P. Keith].Not just with Dad and Eddie,but other Deputies as well,it was because we were under the charge of Joe Barratt,the Overman,who was in overall charge of the mine underground...including the Deputies,generally.[but when it came to Safety Health and Welfare of the men in the Deputies' charge..the Deputy was the Kingpin!!..Nobody,not even the Manager,nor the Chairman of the Coal Board..were allowed to enter a Deputy's District,until they met the Deputy at the entrance to that district..[i.e."The Kist"].But in practice we went into every district in the pit,cos if we didn't,the pit would close down..we supplied the men on the faces with girders,timber,coalcutters drillers..everything they needed to produce coal!.. SO!...sometimes us girder lads would be trailing girders etc right up to the coal face as close as possible to ease the burden of the faceworkers,and the Deputies would complain that we were "getting in the way of the men"..and would phone and complain to the Owaman..Joe Barratt.. On one occasion,Dad was livid,and spitting blood,so to speak..we were trying to do our job,he was doing his..and we ended up in a confrontation..so when he complained to Joe Barratt,he was told to "Leave my Lads alen..tha daeing wat aa telt them ti dae..ye hae nowt ti dae wi it"..!..Sixty odd years later it seems funny that a row could brew up oot of nowt ,but like a said..in hostile conditions,where everybody's lives were at constant risk,tempers flared,and a lot of shouting went on..but ye see ,David,pitmen fell oot,and a quarter of an hour later,they would have forgotten aal aboot it,they HAD to watch each other's backs for roof falls of stone..Comradeship was second to none doon theor! We had to jump wor horses OWA fast moving rubber conveyor belts ti get them into other roadways..totally against the law,but we were threatened with "wa cards" if we stopped the belts ti get the horses owa..so horses like my Dapple Grey Charlie,who a bonded with very closely...got so seriously injured,trapped between the moving belt,and the steel structure poles,that he had to be put to sleep by the Vet.I was in tears at 19 yrs of age,and still well up thinking about him..he was as close to me as my LBJ..my black Labrador/Cross who was put to sleep four yrs ago..I miss them both terribly. SO,David,life wasn't a picnic doon theor,and aa was pleased as hell when they announced that the pit would close in 1966. Other pits I worked at were rough as well,but nowt like High Pit. Cheers David,every word I write is purely my own experience and every word is true. Hope aav given ye an insight how tough it was! Bill. p.s. I haven't any knowledge about Dad being burn't..maybe before my time even..
    2 points
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