Newcastle City Guides | City tours 2016

Newcastle City Guides

City Tours 2016 Newcastle City Guides are a group of knowledgeable, trained volunteers who provide interesting and informative walks on the history and heritage of Newcastle, Gateshead and the surrounding suburbs.

www.NewcastleCityGuides.org.uk

Arrangements for City Highlights walks may differ during Heritage Open Days 8-11 September. For further details please check www.NewcastleCityGuides.org.uk

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Performances

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Two performances are included in this brochure that take place in the Guildhall on the Quayside. Booking for these is essential. Tickets cost £5 per person and include the performance and a tour of the Guildhall.

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Ticket prices for all walking tours: £4 for adults, £3 for over 60s, accompanied children under 16 are free.

Season tickets: Season tickets cost £30 for adults or £25 for over 60s and can be purchased from www.NewcastleCityGuides.org.uk or in person from Newcastle Castle. They are valid for all walking tours, other than the Winter Warmers and performances.

Season tickets are non-transferable and must be presented at the beginning of each walk or the standard price will apply.

Daily Walking Tour - City Highlights

Heritage Walks 2016

A fascinating introduction to the history and culture of our wonderful city.

Most walks are on a ‘just turn up’ basis unless otherwise stated. All walks and events last no more than 2 hours, unless stated and are non-smoking.

City Highlights tours run every day from 1 June until 30 September, and every Saturday in May and October. The tour starts at 10.30am outside JG Windows in Central Arcade on Grey Street (NE1 5BQ) and finishes on Newcastle’s historic Quayside at approximately 12 noon.

Please note: Newcastle and its surroundings have steps, some steep slopes and uneven surfaces. Where this is the case, it is stated in the tour description.

No advance booking is required unless you have a group of over 20 people.

Please email info@ngi.org.uk with group booking enquiries.

Sunday 3 April 2.30pm

Jesmond Old Cemetery

Meet at Cemetery Gates on the south side of Jesmond Road.

Explore this fascinating 19th century private cemetery - the resting place for many of Newcastle’s eminent citizens.

• Please wear suitable footwear as some areas of the cemetery are overgrown and can be slippery, especially in wet weather, and the ground is uneven in places.

This walk includes a steep downward slope to the Quayside, so guests with wheelchairs or reduced mobility may prefer to finish their tour at Newcastle Castle. Please discuss with your guide before the tour starts.

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Sunday 1 May 2.30pm

Sunday 10 April 1.30pm and 3.30pm

Trials and Transportation Guildhall performance

Sting in the Trail (New walk)

Meet and finish at Wallsend Metro Station.

A walk around the centre of Wallsend where Gordon Sumner (Sting) was born and where he spent his early life. Find out where he was born, the places he lived, the schools he attended, record shops he visited and places of entertainment where he performed.

• Booking essential see www.NewcastleCityGuides.org.uk Tickets £5. A Guildhall Special featuring genuine trials, which took place at the March Assizes 1839, including an infamous murder. Find out what happened to some Newcastle people who fell foul of the law at a time when there was no right of appeal and cases were dispatched quickly by the judge. Includes a small display about transportation.

Wednesday 4 May 6.30pm

Grainger Town

Meet and finish at Grey’s Monument.

A walk that encompasses all that is beautiful in Newcastle’s classical architecture, from the curved lines of Grey Street and the majestic Theatre Royal, to the imposing Central Station.

Hear about Richard Grainger, the man who made it all possible.

These performances take place on the first floor of the Guildhall, accessed by stairs only.

Sunday 17 April 2.30pm

Dickensian Newcastle

Meet at the Royal Station Hotel. Finish on Pilgrim Street.

What did Charles Dickens think of Newcastle?

Find out on this literary tour and explore where his theatre group performed, where he carried out his celebrated readings and what he would have seen on his visits.

Wednesday 20 April 6.30pm

Gateshead Grand and Grim

Meet at Gateshead Old Town Hall. Finish at Trinity Square.

Gateshead was a Victorian boom town and by the time the town hall was built, had become a town of great contrasts. Civic pride vied with slum dwellings. If you lived in central Gateshead, no matter in how fine a house, slums were never more than half a mile away. In this circular walk we discover a panoramic view from Gateshead’s first public park at Windmill Hills.

Sunday 24 April 2.30pm

When Paddy met Geordie (New walk)

Sunday 8 May 2.30pm

Homer, Simpson and Cullercoats Baywatch (New walk)

Meet at Grey’s Monument. Finish at Gateshead Millennium Bridge.

As we commemorate the centenary of the Irish Easter Uprising, 24 April 1916, examine the part played by Tyneside Irish Nationalists seeking an Independent Ireland and find out why Irish refugees fleeing the 1845 Potato Famine were welcomed on Tyneside.

• Some steep slopes or steps on this walk.

Meet at Cullercoats Metro Station. Finish outside Monks Haven (Cullercoats Bay).

Learn something of the history of this fascinating coastal village, the important industries of the past, the people who lived and worked here and its landmark church.

• Some steps and uneven ground.

Wednesday 11 May 7.00pm

Wednesday 27 April 6.30pm

Burt and Erick

Eastenders

Meet at Grey’s Monument. Finish on Northumberland Street.

An unexpectedly interesting tour which looks at part of the city not often seen, behind the shops and office blocks of Northumberland Street and beyond.

Meet at Morrisons supermarket on Shields Road.

Finish at Byker Metro Station.

Shields Road was once the main route leading from Newcastle to North Shields. Enjoy a stroll and remember bygone times when Byker was a busy community, bustling with shops and industry.

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Thursday 26 May 10.30am

Thursday 12 May 10.30am

Merchants and Mansions

Markets Past and Present (New walk)

Meet at Alderman Fenwick’s House, Pilgrim Street. Finish at the Redhouse, Sandhill.

Visit the remaining buildings where prosperous merchants conducted their business and family lives. Detailed inside visits to Alderman Fenwick’s house and Bessie Surtees house with an external study of the Cooperage and House of Tides, finishing at The Redhouse inside and out.

Meet at Grey’s Monument. Finish on The Close.

Discover where everyone shopped for their basic provisions, and take a look at the sites of the old and new markets of the town.

Sunday 29 May 2.30pm

Nostalgia in North Shields

Meet and finish at North Shields Metro Station.

From the origins of a small fishing port to the growth of a town, discover buildings and why coal caused conflict, and find out where a Hollywood legend spent his youth and how he is now remembered.

Sunday 15 May 2.30pm

Last Orders (New walk)

Meet at Haymarket Metro Station.

(Northumberland Street entrance opposite the Boer War Memorial). Finish on the Quayside.

Explore the history of Newcastle pubs from Haymarket to Quayside with characters and stories to whet your appetite if not your palate.

• A steep slope (Side) is part of this walk.

Wednesday 1 June 7.00pm

Greasepaint and Celluloid

Meet at Grey’s Monument. Finish on Westgate Road.

How did the people of Newcastle enjoy themselves. Take a look at some of the cinemas and theatres in the centre of town.

Wednesday 18 May 7.00pm

Tynemouth Pleasures and Punishment (New walk)

Sunday 5 June 2.30pm

Meet and finish under the clock at Tynemouth Metro Station.

This circular walk will encompass Northumberland Park and return back to station.

An interesting insight into Victorian social history, looking at how people enjoyed their new recreational time and what punishment they could expect if they misbehaved.

• As there are a number of steps, this walk may not be suitable for those with limited mobility.

Dunston - Staiths, Steamers and Teemers (New walk)

Meet at the car park on Staiths Road, Dunston, NE11 9DR at the bottom of Ravensworth Road.

Finish on the Staiths. (Bus to intu Metrocentre passes the Staiths or walk from the Swing Bridge along Keelman’s Way).

Walk onto this restored scheduled monument, find out the history of the Staiths and discover the industry and history that was once seen on both banks of the Tyne.

• Steep steps onto top of Staiths - alternative ramp will be open.

Sunday 22 May 2.30pm

Gosforth and Garden Village (New walk)

Meet at South Gosforth Metro Station (West side corner of Rectory Terrace). Finish at Regent Centre Metro Station.

This new walk looks at the development and enlargement of the suburb, its industry, pastimes, housing and education.

• A footbridge with steps makes this walk unsuitable for those with limited mobility.

Wednesday 25 May 7.00pm

Secret Newcastle

Meet and finish at Grey’s Monument.

Discover the hidden city looking at familiar sights and features, which thousands of people pass every day and just don’t notice. After all which other city has a vampire rabbit?

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Sunday 26 June 2.30pm

Wednesday 8 June 7.00pm

In Sickness and in Health

Gorgeous Gosforth

Meet at the Castle Keep. Finish at the corner of St. Thomas Street.

Old hospitals for the poor, the Royal Victoria Infirmary, Doctor Gibb. ‘Dirty Dick’s‘ and Lucozade are just some of the medical topics you will hear about on this fascinating tour.

Meet at the corner of High Street and Moor Road South. Finish at All Saints Church.

Enjoy a stroll around Gosforth looking at many of the great houses, remembering when this was the place for the seriously rich to live.

Wednesday 29 June 7.00pm

Secret Garden

Sunday 12 June 1.30pm and 3.30pm

Meet at Grey’s Monument. Finish opposite Central Station.

This route via Chinatown covers familiar territory but there are unusual things to see including a banana warehouse and a secret garden.

The Mayors’ Tales Guildhall performances

• Booking essential see www.NewcastleCityGuides.org.uk Tickets £5. A staged presentation in period dress of the stories of Mayors throughout Newcastle’s history from 1216-2016, involving political intrigue, kidnap and ransom, murder and execution.

• These performances take place on the first floor of the Guildhall, accessed by stairs only.

Wednesday 15 June 7.00pm

Black and White Friars

Meet at the Castle Keep. Finish at Blackfriars.

On this walk hear about medieval Newcastle, the Civil War Siege, 18th century polite society and more.

• This walk includes some steep steps.

Sunday 19 June 2.30pm

Whitley Bay Wander

Meet and finish outside Whitley Bay Metro station entrance on the town centre / coast side.

See how the little village of Whitley grew into a major seaside resort. Hear how the famous Spanish City developed into a landmark tourist attraction, how its popularity declined and what the present plans are to restore it to its former glory. Walk along the Promenade, visit the Giant Sandcastles and historic street lamps that burned sewer gas, and discover one of the rarest telephone boxes in the country.

Sunday 3 July 2.30pm

Lest We Forget

Meet at St. Thomas’ Church, Haymarket. Finish at Grainger Market.

This is a walk about Newcastle in time of conflict, not just in the Great War but throughout the centuries. Join us to remember the fallen as well as some of those who survived, in this the 100th anniversary of the Battle of the Somme.

Wednesday 22 June 7.00pm

Newcastle Port

Wednesday 6 July 7.00pm

Meet at the Guildhall. Finish outside Tyne Bar in the Ouseburn.

Take a walk along Newcastle’s Quayside, looking at how it has developed from an overcrowded slum area to a Victorian port and, most recently, an exciting place to live and work.

Deeds Not Words

Meet at Haymarket Metro Station (Northumberland Street entrance opposite the Boer War Memorial). Finish at the Central Station.

Celebrating the women who campaigned for the vote. Find out where Emily Wilding Davison was arrested in Newcastle and how Newcastle women met, marched, and behaved badly, in order to win the vote.

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Wednesday 27 July 7.00pm

Sunday 10 July 2.30pm

How the Other Half Lived (New walk)

Wallsend Walkabout

Wednesday 13 July 10.30am

Sunday 31 July 2.30pm

Meet and finish at Haymarket Metro Station (Northumberland Street entrance opposite the Boer War Memorial).

Looking at the links between health and education, this morning walk follows the story of two great Newcastle institutions. We will find some old brewery offices, an Edwardian gem and Victorian tiles preserved in a 21st century building.

Meet at Haymarket Metro Station (Northumberland Street entrance opposite the Boer War Memorial). Finish at Cowen’s Monument, Westgate Road.

A walk covering a wide variety of monuments, memorials and plaques, which abound, in the city and the stories surrounding them.

Meet at Newcastle Guildhall. Finish at Carliol Square.

Come along to hear about the poor of Newcastle, and where they lived and worked.

Hear stories about almshouses, overcrowded slums, fever dens, beggars and soup kitchens.

• Steps make this walk unsuitable for the less mobile.

Meet at Wallsend Metro Station. Finish at The Green area.

Memories of Wallsend with its name derived from the days of the Romans at Segedunum and remembering former industries such as shipbuilding and coal mining. We walk past the ‘Penny Wet’ on the way to the quite unexpected village green.

Peacocks and Crows

Plinths and Pedestals

Sunday 17 July 2.30pm

Lovely Low Fell

Meet and finish at the Boer War Memorial, Durham Road, Low Fell.

Discover how a pitman, an enterprising publican and the development of a new road changed Low Fell from an area of desolate waste to a prosperous Victorian suburb.

Wednesday 20 July 7.00pm

Park Life

Meet at the Bobby Robson Statue, St James’ Park.

Finish at the Bobby Robson Garden, Gallowgate.

St. James’ Park is the oldest football stadium in the North East and Leazes Park was Newcastle’s first public park, both originally part of the Town Moor. Walk around the outside of St James’ and inside Leazes Park and hear of the development of the two parks featuring intense local politics over the years.

Sunday 24 July 2.30pm

Wednesday 3 August 7.00pm

Railways and Riverside

Swinging Sixties Newcastle

Meet at the west door of the Sage Gateshead.

Finish at the Swing Bridge (Gateshead end).

Discover how early railways, industries and bridges have now been joined by modern art and find out just what the Sage Gateshead’s car park was originally used for!

Meet under the Council Chamber, Civic Centre.

Finish on Westgate Road.

These boots are made for walking - are yours?

This tour will recreate the social culture of the swinging 1960s. Visit the hip and trendy places of the day, see the modern buildings and recall your shopping sprees. Put on your miniskirts and flares and join us on a magical mystery tour of yesteryear, when man stepped on the moon, Strawberry Fields were forever and a pound in your pocket could last you all week.

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Sunday 7 August 2.30pm

Cackett, Burns Dick and Mackellar were Newcastle’s leading architects in the first half of the 20th century. This walk looks at the diverse range of buildings in the city centre that they designed, and sees how they were able to work in a varied range of styles.

Brandling Village (New walk)

Meet and finish at Jesmond Metro Station.

A walk around Brandling Village, taking in the original 19th century core and its grand surrounding streets and houses.

Sunday 21 August 2.30pm

Wednesday 10 August 7.00pm

West Walls and Blackfriars

South Shields, Trains, Boats and Elephants (New walk)

Meet at Grey’s Monument. Finish at Blackfriars.

Medieval Newcastle had one of the strongest town walls in England. See the West Wall with its towers and unique turrets before reaching Blackfriars, one of the country’s few remaining medieval friaries.

Meet and finish at South Shields Metro Station (King Street exit).

South Shields, sitting at the mouth of the Tyne, has a long tradition of seafaring and industry.

Victorian splendour is in evidence but be surprised by the elephant!

Wednesday 24 August 6.30pm

Pilgrims and Pandon

Meet at Grey’s Monument. Finish at Sandhill.

From one of the city’s oldest streets, step into one of its oldest suburbs and then enjoy a walk along the Quayside, with memories of medieval fairs, friars, travellers, mariners and merchants.

Sunday 28 August 2.30pm

North Shields Quayside

Meet at North Shields Metro Station. Finish at the end of the Fish Quay.

See where industry and fishing once thrived.

Discover a hidden World War Two structure, the notorious ‘Jungle’ and a famous ‘Wooden Dolly’.

• Some steep steps to negotiate on this walk.

Sunday 4 September 2.30pm

St. Thomas to St. Thomas (New walk)

Sunday 14 August 2.30pm

Saltwell Park Stroll

Meet at the Newcastle end of the Swing Bridge.

Finish at St Thomas’ Church, Haymarket.

From the site of the medieval Bridge Chapel of St. Thomas, to its early Victorian replacement at Barras Bridge, this walk visits a number of sites of religious significance. On the way you will hear the story of an agile bricklayer, of boilers used for soup as well as prison laundry, a secret chapel and a city centre church moved brick by brick to Byker.

Meet and finish at the park entrance opposite the Little Theatre, at the corner of Saltwell View and East Park Road, Gateshead.

Walk around this beautiful Victorian park, discovering stories of past and present. Find out the oddities of Saltwell Towers, the tale of the park’s oldest inhabitant and the story of the disappearing bandstands!

Tuesday 16 August 6.45pm

Newcastle Civic Centre

• Booking essential see www.NewcastleCityGuides.org.uk Meet under the Council Chamber, Civic Centre.

See behind the scenes, and walk the corridors of our town hall, with a rare opportunity to climb the Carillon tower to look across the city.

Heritage Open Days, 8-11 September A selection of walks will be offered as part of this event. Details will be posted on www.NewcastleCityGuides.org.uk and the Heritage Open Days website www.hodstw.org.uk. Booklets will be available from libraries nearer the time.

Wednesday 17 August 7.00pm

Style Matters (New walk)

Meet at Haymarket Metro Station (Northumberland Street entrance opposite the Boer War Memorial). Finish at Newcastle Castle.

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Enjoy exploring NewcastleGateshead by joining one of the walks with Newcastle City Guides www.NewcastleCityGuides.org.uk Sunday 16 October 2.30pm

Sunday 18 September 2.30pm

Wonderful women of Newcastle

Ouseburn Valley

Meet at Haymarket Metro Station (Northumberland Street entrance opposite the Boer War Memorial). Finish at Sandhill. (There is an alternative finish for less mobile / wheelchair users at the High Level Bridge).

Women with a pioneering spirit, women who were “the power behind the throne” and women who went against the tide and risked their lives in the process! Join us on a walk to celebrate womankind.

Meet and finish at The Ship Inn, bottom of Stepney Bank.

A kaleidoscope of old and new, with bridges towering above and a burn down below. Today the old industrial buildings are being reborn and include art studios, music venues and the like.

Sunday 25 September 2.30pm

Seedy and Sophisticated

Meet at the Cardinal Hume statue, outside St. Mary’s RC Cathedral, opposite the Central Station.

Finish at St. Nicholas’ Cathedral.

While revolution and war gripped Europe, the good people of Newcastle enjoyed a life of late 18th century elegance and culture in the Westgate area of the town. But this was not for everyone.

Sunday 23 October 2.30pm

Within the Walls

Meet at the Guildhall, Quayside. Finish at St John’s Church, Grainger Street.

A perambulation around today’s Newcastle to trace the town within the walls from the 1300s.

We will trace the extent of the walled Newcastle - east, west, north and south, locating churches, monasteries, markets, civic administration, walls, steps, streams and fairs. This is a good brisk walk with a surprising number of surviving buildings and spaces.

• Some steps to negotiate, may not be suitable for those with reduced mobility.

Sunday 2 October 2.30pm

Nightmare in Newcastle (New walk)

Meet at the Castle Keep. Finish at the Centre for Life.

Hear about mysteries and strange and terrible happenings, both real and as imagined by published authors, which took place in the centre of Newcastle.

• Steps make this walk unsuitable for wheelchair users or people with reduced mobility.

Sunday 9 October 2.30pm

Summerhill Sunday

Meet at the Cardinal Hume Statue opposite Central Station. Finish at Discovery Museum.

An early 19th century development, Summerhill is a delightful, but little-known backwater. Come and explore this hidden area, home to some of Newcastle’s prominent Quaker families. Find out where Robert Stephenson lived and where the Victorian cricketer W.G. Grace once played bowls.

Wednesday 12 October 7pm

Sunday 30 October 7.00pm

Meet and finish at the Guildhall.

A circular walk with ghost stories, witches, bodies fished out of the river, and murders on both sides of the Tyne.

• Booking essential see www.NewcastleCityGuides.org.uk Meet at Grey’s Monument. Finish at Quayside.

Do you dare join us at Halloween? Who will we bump into on this walk around haunted Newcastle?

Ghostly and Grisly Quayside Tales

Walk on the Dark Side

Grey’s Monument tours Tours of the iconic monument are available on select dates during the year. Tickets cost £4 for adults and £2 for accompanied children (5-16) and must be booked online in advance.

Please check www.NewcastleCityGuides.org.uk. for more information:

Winter Warmers

Two walks will be offered as usual between Christmas and New Year. Please see www.NewcastleCityGuides.org.uk for more details.

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Cover photos with thanks to Graeme Peacock