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Sunday 19 May 2024
19/05/2024
The QT is an online media platform with an emphasis of quality journalism that is worth paying for. No obtrusive ads, pop-ups  or clickbait headlines , just independent journalismfree from spin and political bias. Click here to subscribe for less than a week cup of coffee.

Unpaid carers are ‘victims of government mistakes’

Social Care

A North East-based carer has claimed many of those being controversially asked to return Carer’s Allowance overpayments to the authorities are “paying for the government’s mistakes”. In a week when the BBC shone a light on the impact the Department for Work and Pensions’ retrieval methods are having up and down the country, unpaid carers …

Employment

Charity urges rethink on plan to ban zero hours 

The head of a leading North East charity has issued a warning about the consequences of an outright ban on zero-hour contracts. A future Labour government would introduce such a ban as part of their flagship workers’ rights proposals —  proposals which were agreed last July and reaffirmed this week during a meeting of senior …

Prize could spread volcanic dust worldwide

The spreading of volcanic dust on farmland to increase crop yields and capture carbon could become commonplace across the world if the UK-based company championing the process wins a $50m prize UNDO, a carbon dioxide removal company launched by former Durham University student, Jim Mann, has been selected as one of 20 finalists from a …

Climate

Arlen Pettitt

A region divided by a single party?

The Secretary of State for Business dropped a clanger this week, referring to Tory peer Ben Houchen as the Tyne Tees Mayor. It was a slip which drew the inevitable suggestion that perhaps the Conservatives weren’t really paying attention to the North. The Labour Party, on the other hand, confirmed it most definitely was paying …

Michael Chaplin

The world of Charlie Rogers

One Monday morning long ago, a young man called Charlie Rogers limped down Bensham Road in Gateshead, wincing as he went. Two days before, this ‘ageing left back’ (his description) was playing in a Cup-tie for Kibblesworth Colliery Welfare when he got ‘a hefty whack on an already dodgy left knee’. The doctor studied it, …

Visitor Experience

History and a wee dram — the perfect blend

Cross Wooler Water, a tributary of the Till, from the south and it’s impossible to miss the majestic Ad Gefrin museum and distillery, dominating the hillside to the left.  As the modern embodiment of the Golden Age Of Northumberland, its imposing glass facade, mix of traditional and modern architecture and prime location at the foot …

Exhibition

Not the middle of nowhere…

Joanne Coates is a photographer whose star is on the rise following residencies, commissions and reams of positive coverage. She calls herself “a working class visual artist using the medium of photography”. Her favoured themes of class, inequality, rural life and community cohesion arise from her own experience of growing up in rural North Yorkshire …

EYES &

EARS

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Off The Record

‘How sweaty shin pads saved my life’

The sun popped out last weekend. Cue long-sleeved shirt, jacket and irrational panic. I was properly baking as I headed to St James’s Park but at least those pesky UV rays couldn’t penetrate my multiple layers. Better sweat buckets than risk death. Seriously. Twenty years ago I was more gung ho. You’d even see me …

My life through a lens: Maria Maza

Growing up in Madrid, Maria Maza admits to being a bit of an “annoying” child when it came to photography. “My dad was a keen amateur photographer, nothing fancy, point and shoot stuff, 35mm colour film and slides, but he had a good eye and taught me a few basics of composition.  “I must have …

THE STORYTELLERS

Dear Mayor, give us a region where civil society can flourish

Rob Williamson

So, here we are. Devolved! The North East has its first Mayor. The months up to the election saw an accumulation of hope for — and demands on — what our Mayor should do. At the many hustings and debates that took place, I lost count of the number of times candidates were asked ‘what …

Theatre

Newsflash: Drop the Dead Donkey is back…

What was in the news on August 6, 1990? Over to the studio of GlobeLink News where the next bulletin is taking shape. Iraq has invaded Kuwait, there’s something about Alastair Burnet (youngsters had better Google) and the Queen Mother; and there’s a story cooking – or being cooked up – about crop circles. This …

Energy

Investment Catapults Blyth’s offshore ambitions

Blyth Valley MP Ian Levy says Northumberland can look forward to a ‘prosperous’ future following the news that a world-leading wind turbine testing facility is to be built in the county. The £86m investment was announced earlier this week by Science, Innovation and Research Minister, Andrew Griffith, with the new facility equipped to test 150m …

THE CONVERSATION

Why people self-harm: ‘You have no other voice and no one would listen anyway’

On a May evening in 1991, a tense interview between music journalist Steve Lamacq and musician Richey Edwards led to one of the most infamous and challenging images in the history of pop culture. Lamacq had come to see Edwards’ band, the Manic Street Preachers, but suggested they were less authentic punk rebels than cynical …

TECHNOLOGY

Digital memories are made of this for children in care

Chris Brock has a big heart.  It’s part of the reason why he’s the perfect person to lead Virtual Memory Box, a digital solution enabling children, young people, carers and social workers to safely keep, share and access memories. “Children who go through the care system often have physical memory boxes but by the time …

The QT is an online media platform with an emphasis of quality journalism that is worth paying for. No obtrusive ads, pop-ups  or clickbait headlines , just independent journalismfree from spin and political bias. Click here to subscribe for less than a week cup of coffee.

Veteran actors give students some pointers

News

North East acting stars have been offering inspiration and advice to aspiring performers at the University of Sunderland. A series of special events have given students studying Screen Performance the chance to interrogate Jimmy Nail, Robson Green and Melanie Hill, whose collective CVs are peppered with TV classics such as Coronation Street, Soldier, Soldier, Spender, …

HEALTH

Doctor’s mission driven by father’s death

The son of a distinguished medical officer in the Polish resistance during the Second World War, Dr Andrzej Hubert Szemis was a brilliant, active, and intensely proud man. Having been the director of a hospital in Poland, the eminent psychiatrist came to England at the end of the Cold War in 1984, settling in Leicester …

Out of Africa and into Toon

A colourful and vibrant event celebrating the rich cultural diversity of Africa is set to take place on May 25 at One Strawberry Lane in Newcastle.  This is Africa is a one-day family-friendly event promising to be filled with Afrobeats, flavourful culinary delights and an abundance of colour. Despite the long-standing history of African communities …

News

Food and drink

Great grub and still proper pubs

Karen Errington points to the chalkboard in the pub she owns with her partner Phil Mason. Its handwritten temptations are obvious but she insists they don’t run a restaurant. “I’m very proud that I can say this is a pub,” she declares.  The Rat Inn at Anick, near Hexham in Northumberland is undoubtedly a pub …

SIMON RUSHWORTH

Helping the next generation – on and off the court

Leah Kennedy knows it’s good to talk. In fact, had it not been for one chance conversation then her life — and career — could have taken a very different turn. “A girl I used to coach reached out to me a few months ago,” explains Leah, a former England netball international. “I hadn’t talked …

News Digest

Eyes and ears

MAYOR STEPPING DOWN:  Dame Norma Redfearn has announced she is to step down from her role as Mayor of North Tyneside in 2025. Having held the position since 2013, she has decided against standing for re-election for a fourth term. The news was confirmed via an email to local Labour Party members earlier this week. …

History

City’s own West End show

A project set up to gather and maintain a vast collection of archive images of Newcastle’s West End is celebrating its 40th anniversary. The Newcastle Photo Archive, previously West Newcastle Picture History Collection, now numbers around 50,000 images. The volunteer-run organisation is based at the West End Customer Service Centre and Library on Condercum Road …

Life has been awarded a UK Space Agency cash boost to help expand its innovative work with schools from urban deprived or rural areas. Click HERE to find out more

Review

That’s Livin’ Alright

If you’d dropped me, blindfolded into the basement bar at Newcastle City Hall on Saturday night and asked me to guess the evening’s on stage attraction, I reckon I would have got it within 30 seconds. Standing in the ridiculous queue, weighing up the longevity benefits of a two-pinter versus the inevitable —  and even …

Floral inferno at the Faith Museum

If you haven’t been to the Faith Museum, I can recommend a visit. Mine was a lightning one since I was allowed in a moment or two after the stipulated last entry time so many exhibits passed in a blur. But I know a good blur when I see one and sometimes ample time can …

Art

Clouds have a silver lining

Dark skies

While the Northern Lights have been all the rage across the North East since their spectacular appearance last weekend, stargazing experts are pointing to another rare sight that’s set to decorate our skies this summer. Night shining clouds are an ethereal phenomena; noctilucent clouds that exist in Earth’s upper atmosphere that become visible from mid-May …

Football

Hidden talent of Hebburn revealed

As a production line for professional footballers, Wallsend Boys Club has a widely acclaimed record. But a 1914-15 photograph which has surfaced has helped reveal how another Tyneside town has its own enviable record as a ‘football factory’. The picture of Hebburn Argyle is being sold by Graham Budd Auctions, with people able to place …

Exhibition

Putting Franki Raffles in the frame

Following the recent success of its Chris Killip exhibition, Baltic has returned to photography with a brace of exhibitions showing the work of female photographers. Joanne Coates, recipient of this year’s Vasseur Baltic Artists’ Award, shows on Level 2 and we report separately on her exhibition, Middle of Somewhere. But her exploration of young women’s …

Energy Claims

Small businesses in the dark over energy claims crisis

A North East firm leading the charge in the pursuit of rogue energy companies fears ignorance could be the biggest barrier to success. Business Energy Claims hit the headlines in March when The QT told how the North Tyneside litigation experts took on global player Engie… and won. The BEC team helped to recover more …

Culture news

Culture digest

RIP Supergran The actress who blazed a trail for grandmothers everywhere has passed away. For people of a certain age (those of us who watched children’s telly in the 80s), Gudrun Ure was an absolute legend. The Scottish star of the Emmy Award-winning series, which followed the adventures of a super-powered, superhero pensioner, died this …

Upskilling

Cash boost is just the job

A project to support adults into work across the region has been awarded £1.3m — one of the first schemes to get financial backing from the new North East Combined Authority. The Open Doors: Beyond Barriers project, led by Newcastle College, aims to offer individuals with tailored support plans, personal development activities and the next …

CULTURED NE

Artworks Rooted in local landscapes

Painter Katherine Renton looked to the Northumbrian coast for an exhibition based on the relationship between artists and the environment. But instead of portraying the castles and beaches, Katherine took an early morning trip to sketch empty car parks at Beadnell, Craster, Alnmouth, Bamburgh and Seahouses. The exhibition, titled Rooted, features the work of 18 …

THE CONVERSATION

Balancing freedom of speech with student safety

Students expressing solidarity with Palestinians and protesting about Israel’s war in Gaza have set up encampments on campuses around the UK. Around 15 encampments have emerged in Oxford, Cambridge, Newcastle, Edinburgh, Warwick, Manchester and others. They’ve also cropped up in other countries including France and Ireland. Broadly, students are calling for transparency over and divestment …

Leisure

Shaking up the night-time economy

Two of Newcastle’s most popular nightspots have been acquired by one of the city’s rising leisure and hospitality firms. The Mushroom on Grainger Street and Mimo on Pudding Chare have been purchased by Market Shaker Group. The two venues will join Market Shaker’s other holdings which include Market Shaker and Pumphrey’s, both in the Bigg …

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