Forty archive images from the Chronicle bring back memories of how Newcastle and other parts of the North East looked and how people lived decades ago. The photos cover the period from 1979 to 1984, which is the time frame for the new stage adaptation of the epic tale Our Friends in the North, making its debut in Newcastle this autumn.
The hit TV series of the nineties followed 30 turbulent years in the lives of Tosker, Geordie, Nicky and Mary, played by Mark Strong, Daniel Craig, Christopher Eccleston and Gina McKee. Set in the North East, it portrayed a time of political and economic upheaval, with relationship dramas set against a backdrop of city change.
Stage debut at the Theatre Royal
A new version of local writer Peter Flannery's story will take to the stage at the Theatre Royal in October. The production, a major theatre collaboration also involving Live Theatre and Eastlake Productions, will focus on two main episodes from the original series, spanning 1979 and 1984 – described as pivotal years in Newcastle's history.
The 40 archive scenes, presented in no particular order, offer a visual journey back to that era. They include everyday street scenes, major events, and notable personalities of the time.
Highlights from the archive
Among the images are Kevin Keegan saying farewell to Newcastle United in May 1984, the first Great North Run crossing the Tyne Bridge on June 28, 1981, and the first Metro train crossing the Tyne's newest bridge on June 19, 1981. Other pictures show the first Metro passengers in August 1980, Newcastle Quayside's Sunday Market in March 1979, and The Police, with Sting centre, arriving at Newcastle Central Station in April 1980.
The collection also features Woolworth Department Store on Northumberland Street in August 1984, passengers inside Newcastle Central Station in 1980, and a view from the Tyne Bridge of the Quayside in 1980. There are traffic jams on the Central Motorway in June 1979, Haymarket Metro Station in 1980, and the construction of Eldon Garden Shopping Centre in July 1988.
Sport, music and everyday life
Sports and entertainment figure prominently: Newcastle United's new signing Kevin Keegan besieged by fans as he opened the club's new souvenir shop at St James' Park in August 1982, actor Kevin Whately at the start of his career at the Newcastle Playhouse in December 1979, and Elton John fans queuing overnight in sub-zero temperatures outside Newcastle City Hall in February 1979.
Other scenes include American punk rock band The Dickies at HMV in Newcastle in May 1979, a busy Shields Road in Byker in 1979, and youngsters who appeared in the historical television drama When The Boat Comes In in 1981. The images also capture Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip officially opening Kielder Water in May 1982, striking miners marching past the National Coal Board headquarters in Gateshead in October 1984, and scenes from the 1984-85 Miners' Strike in the Durham Coalfield.
The drama's world premiere run takes place from October 15-24, marking the 30-year anniversary of the 1996 story.
