Born in 1954 in Newcastle, in a house that stood where the Civic Centre now stands, i can honestly say the councils have been destroying the city and outlying areas for all of my lifetime. Such a shame they couldn't have loved Newcastle as much as those who lived and worked there. Great video 👍
I was around in 1972 and felt we had lost things which could never be replaced (such as Eldon Square). Some were no great loss but the Central Motorway and other linked roads and walkways ruined many places which today would probably have been repurposed. Excellent work, thank you Jordan.
When I was doing my A levels at Walbottle Grammar in the 1960s two of us used to wag off to the Library and spend days in the reference library doing our own learning and as it happened that year we were the only two to get their A level in Biology. I believe the teacher got moved on. A tragedy that this lovely old library got trashed.
My Scottish town has not torn down a single historic building and instead maintain them really well so they still look brand new. They knew the buildings were far too beautiful to be torn down and I think have been legally protected for quite a while now. Our town hall, some hotels, churches, some housing, shops all date back to the 1800s. I never took these beautiful stone structures for granted but now I just respect them even more. Fantastic production quality though!
Lanark is the same very very old buildings dating as far back as the 17th century possibly earlier a lot of people don't know this,but William Wallace even attended a church there and hid in caves down in the falls
The destruction hasn’t ended either. Just look at the demolition of the Odeon Cinema, the last of the city’s historic cinemas. Or the almost intact medieval hall that was discovered during the redevelopment of High Bridge, which was then conveniently ‘accidentally’ knocked down to make way for the new version of the Bacchus pub. Those developers should have been prosecuted, but no doubt back room deals were done. There’s very little of left of pre-1970 Newcastle, and nothing that has been built in the years since has been designed to last. Look at Manors area - the Warner Cinema complex built in the late 80s. Demolished a few years later to be replaced by office blocks, which are now in the process of being demolished again. Redeveloped three times in a little over 30 years? That is sheer madness.
The recurring problem Newcastle has is that there is simply not enough demand in the local economy to justify spending extra money on "nicer" buildings of any scale. We see the problem encapsulated by Hadrian Tower - the owners have gone bust and half the flats haven't sold because there's no demand. The Gateshead quayside is similar. Full of hideous buildings because there's no economic rationale in building better ones.
@@zeddeka The outside wasn’t very attractive for sure, but it was the art deco interior fittings that made it special. Sadly those features were allowed to ‘disappear’ so the owners could claim it had no architectural value and therefore wasn't worth preserving.
I started my first job ín Newcastle in 1971 walking from the old Haymarket bus station past St Jame's and the Newcastle Brewery on to Blandford St to the dress factory I worked in at Duke House .I went back recently and there are no original buildings left. I can remember being sent to the button factory and collecting the daily newspapers from the little newsagents on the corner of Westmoreland Road near the Marlborough cafe.
Excellent video. It's so sad. I visited Newcastle for the first time last year and was in awe, seeing the beautiful architecture of Granger Town but how much better could Newcastle be now if these other buildings hadn't been demolished and replaced by eyesores? The problem is, even with all the progress we've made in the past 100 years, we are no longer able to create beautiful buildings.
In Newcastle's case (and with a lot of other smaller cities) the answer is largely economic. They don't build "nicer" buildings because the economic demand in the local economy just isn't there to justify the cost. We saw something like that in Newcastle with the Hadrian Tower recently. The company that built it has gone bust and a large number of flats haven't sold. They have put the whole tower to for sale for £14 million. Some individual flats go for more than that in London.
The demolition of the original Eldon Square with its C18th (listed) terraced buildings to make way for the shopping mall cause a huge controversy in the early 70's . T Dan Smith Newcastle's former Chief Executive had led the assult on the city in the late 60's wanting to turn it in to the "Brazilia of the North" as he put it. Smith was later jailed for corruption for his part in the Poulson Affair which had involved architects construction companies and local politicians all over the North of England who had syphoned off public funds during their redevolopment of a several major city centres.
Totally agree . Destruction by the old boys club of free masons . that were rife within Newcastle city council members at that time . . Some still exist there to this day . FACT .
The people at the time didn't see much value in a lot of the old buildings, many of which were in a terrible state. The whole ethos of that era was that Britain wore its last like a milestone round its neck and that modernisation was required. They made a mess of it, but they (usually) did it with the best motives
Absolutely brilliant that Jordan. The way you used old footage and new footage and narrated it to bring it all together. Some of the things you pointed out really have ruined parts of the city. Demolition of the Town Hall was absolutely senseless and the raised parts by the central motorway are a bloody eyesore. Keep up the good work!
There was a fair amount of corruption involved, allegedly. Shame really - it could have been a real gem of a city with all its industrial revolution era architecture. I was born in 72 so never saw it in its original state. However, it still remains one of my favourite cities - friendly, liveable, accessible, and still way ahead of many of most of the cities in the midlands where i now live.
Great vid. At nearly 60 I can recall visiting the scap yards/ cars etc at the Quay side with my father, I'm still in awe at the transformation. A great miss to me is the pub known as the Robin Adair placed at Scotchy Bridge [ Scotswood- named incidently where the Scots rested before attacking ] The Robin Adair with the large plaque showing a coachman coach and horses , the pub built entirely from slate placed horizontal. What an amazing building I'd always admired ... vanished ! The Scotswood Road itself lined with pubs/ clubs all the way into Newcastle ... all gone ! And their unique architecture/ design. There's still a vast amount of stunning architecture from stone to rose granite everywhere. A link to the history of Newcastle formerly called "Monkchester " before the conquest and the building of the New-Castle
we used to play snooker in the royal court snooker hall big market 1970 just up from the town hall, had some good times in the mayfair, 3am breakfast at bowers near central station,
At 1 min 40sec that’s my dad driving the blue Crows Transport wagon pulling up to the traffic lights, at that time Crows was based in Gateshead behind what is now the Sage Bldg and I remember going to the yard with him in the early 70’s. How the passing years have changed the landscape with my dad passing in 2003, if only he was here so I could’ve showed him
This made me somewhat sad. Looking back, I can be glad my city (Maastricht) was before 1985 way too poor to tear down and build anything new. In 1980 it looked pretty much like 1950. In the 90ties, when more investments came, they learned from the mistakes from others and repurposed as much as possible.
Not all the Slums were destroyed. The Garth Heads Industrial Tenements(that’s what they were called),where my mother and a family of seven were brought up in a two roomed flat.This building is now Student Flats and is still standing close to the City Bridge. The Post War Diaspora meant my Mother escaped the dire situation,it was so bad anyone with any sense sought to leave.The People we’re the strength of Newcastle and I loved their friendliness and honesty in my many visits with my Mum. But you could taste the Grit in the air and the need for a better life for its poor or ordinary inhabitants.But the Grand Old Civic buildings would not be demolished now but preserved.But the Slums in Byker etc had to go and good riddance off to Longbenton you go. Newcastle was a prime example of how not to redevelop will city’s like Newcastle ever learn ?
They destoyed many of the beautiful old buildings of my town, Sunderland, too, including the exquisite town hall. How this council-led vandalism was allowed to happen is both a mystery and a tragedy.
It was the spirit of the time. The older buildings were viewed as symbolic of a decaying past that Britain needed to modernise out of. Many of the old buildings were also no longer fit for purpose. The whole modernisation thing back then was viewed as cutting edge and the path to the future. Of course, they got an awful lot wrong.
Such beautiful old buildings they demolished they would of prob still been there today Much prefer the old architecture to todays so called modern buildings
The demolition of those old building was nothing less than criminal. Nothing new should be erected. unless, it's buildings built from the same materials and of the same architecture as the old buildings they will stand with., for the next few hundred years.
I never realised what had been before....I was born in 1974 and didn't appreciate the scale of what was lost. Tragic. The city centre has seen a lot of change since and not for the better. Some area have become dark and ugly. Modern is not always best. Great video 😊
The destruction started with the castle and our city walls, which a historian who wrote about the ancient history of Newcastle upon Tyne, wrote that the great walls of Newcastle were the greatest walls of any town in all of England and most of the European towns. Also Newcastle was once called monkchester apparently due to monks who came live in the city to defend it due to there belief that men not of this world once ruled town. There's alot about our city and region that we are not taught, it was the richest city in the county due to the amount of coal we had , even starving London of coal though a bad winter, there was a saying once referring to a pointless exercise, it's like taking coal to Newcastle.
You're right about the coal, even as far back as the 1300s it was a big boost to the local economy. It actually seems to have been monks who were the pioneers in its use. The monks at Tynemouth produced a lot of salt using coal to boil seawater. The Romans were using coal as well by the way, they have found the ashes at Hadrians Wall.
Talking about Hadrians wall, most of the stone was removed by nearly everyone who wanted to build over the centuries. Including Newcastle walls. There's even a plaque in Corbridge on a house on the main st stating its built entirely from the wall.
Agree with all of that apart from Newcastle being the richest in the country. I don't think that's ever been the case. Certainly in the middle ages, London and Norwich were the richest. Surprisingly, Norwich was also the second largest city. It thrived because of its proximity to the Netherlands and benefited from the wool trade. Also interestingly, a lot of people from Manchester have ancestors from Norwich. When the industrial revolution started and trade moved to the west coast because of cotton trade with the new world, many from Norwich moved to Manchester
What a great job, you did there. Having the want in you, to make this. Then, editing and your presentation skills. Plus, cinematography! Plus... the caring! Nice one!
As someone who was around in the 1950/60's I now hate what back then was known as modern architecture. Now I am sad to see what we lost to concrete and steel. I'm sure many people my age nowadays would agree. Also the slum clearing, which had to be done was done far too quickly, whole local areas ripped down and residents scattered far and wide rather than clearing streets a few at a time to maintain neighbourhoods.
Well produced ❤ video 📹 👌. My first sight of Newcastle was as a 16 year old coming into the Railway station from Scotland and then back out to the South. It was very impressive, all the bridges, etc. Now I'm 55 and still visit occasionally 😊. A beautiful place and always love the accent. Geordie cousins ❤
Newcastle council have always been crap, and it seems they still are, but they’ve been neglecting the Tyne Bridge for years and now it’d in a disgusting state. They should be jailed.
Eh, other than that main motor way connected to the Tyne bridge I find most of the city centre to be very walkable and easy to navigate. The redevelopment on the Quayside was great as well as the pedestrianisation of a lot of streets
From the slum clearances of the 1960’s until 1972 seems to have been happening all over, Ian Nairn did a series on the changing fabric of many British cities with deep criticism coming out for the way a lot of this was done. Newcastle was not unique in all this unfortunately, progress was the name of the game without any concern for the consequences. A good video, thanks.
I was born in 1972 so Newcastle and Eldon Square went hand in hand. It was watching GEt Carter and Michael Bradys location site ( sadly now long gone) which awakenen my interest in the development of the city since the 60s. I was a student in newcastle in 1990. I have hardly visited in the last ten years. Change is a constant , i just find it all a step too far. THere was no need for a new central library. The Haymarket has been truly destroyed with the new university buildings. At least the Claremont bridge and tower was set back somewhat. I remember circa 2008 , the demolition of the old brewery buildingsAs a child in the late 70s, a rare treat was catching the train into newcastle. ( ii live 25 miles away) the first thing that struck was the smell of the hops , churned my stomach.Wengers department store, beautiful building. At least it was put back to some use . I find it fascinating that there are still street signs for Trafalgar street and Oxford street which exist only fractionally. THe remodelling of the Haymarket in the mid 90s was the worst for me. THe loss of the Farmers and the prefab shops with old hitz records.Thanks Jordan for uploading these gems. Its obviously a passion for you and wonderful to watch.
@@JordanReeveyou have to look at what was happening at the time. It was a period when the British public were conscious that we were talking further and further behind other similar countries. Our living standards were substantially lower than many other comparable countries. The diagnosis was that Britain was trapped in the Victorian past, with rotten old buildings that were no longer fit for purpose. Demolishing them and building new buildings was seen as the path to new economic prosperity, and dragging the country out of its outdated attachment to the Victorian period.
Excellent vid… the now & then fascinates. Fortunately with Newcastle some of the “Old” is still around here & there & gives the City its fundamental character.
A lot of this demolition was down to the then Council Leader T. Dan Smith, who I think ended up in prison for fraud. He did a better job than the Luftwaffe. Please do a video on the Byker Wall by architect Ralph Erskine and I'm also interested in your views on this development (does it work?).
Great work. The current redevelopment of the original city council offices site from 1970s office space does reflect a low life expectancy for modern development. Whilst this may only involve 're-using an existing building I do feel that demolishing buildings after a 40 to 50 year life span is wasteful and reflects poor planing and short term gain.
Loved this video It's good seeing how things used to be in the toon before I was born fun fact though I actually did a few films with Amber productions
The videos you're making on our city are fantastic, thank you so much. Poor planning and the focus for city's to accommodate cars rather than making decent spaces still has left Newcastle with some real problems. Smackhead double is due to be torn down and replaced with a hotel, and new buildings thrown up on pilgrim street and around St james I think shows the same lack of utility within public space from town planners. They all seem to lack a coherent plan or fit together in a way to make city life better, not just that but nobody seems to use them. It's almost as if the process for permitting a new project really is "we've got a space, how much money can we get?" That destroys heritage and makes it a more depressing place to be.
Sad so many beautiful old buildings were destroyed: demolition was a shoddy short term policy applied to so many cities (including Bath that perfect Georgian gem). Their 70's replacements look like aching teeth in damaged mouths; thanks for posting.
I may sound selfish because I don't live there but for me, I love the old, solid, built like a tank buildings. When I visited Lodz Poland in 2022 I saw a lot of old buildings being leveled which is sad. There is something "Old world" and "European" about the old, classical buildings. I wish they would just gut them if necessary but have them remain charming.
Although a lot of buildings were sadly destroyed (I think most places had this attitude around that time) at least the motorway plans were cancelled when they were
To understand why so many older buildings were demolished (not just in Newcastle but across the country) you have to look at what was happening at the time. It was a period when the British public were conscious that we were falling further and further behind other similar countries. Our living standards were substantially lower than many other comparable countries. The diagnosis was that Britain was trapped in the Victorian past, with rotten old buildings (and industries) that were no longer fit for purpose. Demolishing old buildings and building new ones was seen as one path to new economic prosperity, and dragging the country out of its outdated attachment to the Victorian period. It was the era when Harold Wilson talked about how the "White heat of technology" was going to transform Britain into a modern country and there was a huge appetite for change from what was perceived as the rotten, decaying past. In fairness they had a point. There were some lovely old buildings but there was also a huge amount of squalor. The country did need a massive update. They sadly then got an awful lot wrong.
I am in two minds about destroying old buildings. On the one hand, I fully support the idea behind listed status and ensuring the character of the nation is maintained over time through its buildings and public spaces. On the other, where would we be today if our ancestors had not knocked down buildings and rebuilt them a new. That being said, the arrogance they had in the 60s and 70s was rooted in this idea of endless abundance that they had at the time and this arrogance that their culture was and history was less valuable than it is.
New sub, it sickens me to watch this video and realise what we've lost, but I've seen the decline of Newcastle over the years, Westgate Hill was known all over with bikers, one by one the major manufacturers left, M&S motorcycles are the last big shop, how long before they leave?
I'm definitely not defending some of the 1970s architecture choices which were short sighted in my opinion, however the Newcastle of the 70s and 80s was a pretty bleak place and if you've ever been inside some of the ancient buildings (e.g. the old Cooperage) it's doubtful that they could have been repurposed. Certainly some of the changes they made in the 70s contributed to the bleakness of the 80s. It wasn't all bad though - I still lament the loss of the fountains and UFO restaurant in Eldon Square! In more recent times the redevelopment of the Grey Street, Grainger Street and Westgate Road areas in particular has been a massive success. When I was young you had to have a good reason to go down Grainger St, it was grim.
The accelerated change in city centres is, in my opinion being pushed by the loss of pubs. These are bought by speculators and cowboys. Mysteriously burning down and rebuilt into cheap flats.
Eldon Square should never have been demolished I bought my first pair of Levi's at the American Pant House if anyone remembers that shop. The handyside arcade was a great hangout for kids into music and alternative lifestyles. A "fire" got rid of that after permission to demolish it had been rejected because of its historical importance as one of the first (if not the first) covered in shopping streets in the UK. At least they didn't demolish the Central arcade when the new Eldon Square was built. They wanted to demolish it but thankfully the planners were laughed at..
What was the buildings used that were heavily graffitied near the Laing art gallery I’ve lived in the north east for 25 yrs and it’s always looked like this
We seem destined to repeat the same mistakes. Much of the North East in particular still has fantastic architecture built when the area prospered and represented the epicentre of the Industrial Revolution and innovation that changed the world. I hope there is enough intelligence to keep that and repurpose it for the next revolution
Whenever the changes to Newcastle are discussed T Dan Smith is blamed, he was Council leader until 1965 so had very little to do with the demolition shown here. Also his conviction was not related to his time as council leader. The old town hall was despised and unused, the reports of the time are very clear, it was a rat-infested wreck of several buildings bodged together. It was in danger of structural collapse going back to the 1930's, when some of the tower was removed for safety reasons. The replacement is a monstrosity but thats a separate discussion, in my opinion, it should have been left as an open space allowing a greater view of the cathedral.
Its odd i own city center property and belive me the rats are still there maybe worse then the 1970s the rats are the only thing which never changed Odd that when i think about it loL
T Dan Smith was responsible for the whole City in the Sky idea, which was the beginning of the demolitions. He might have been out of office by 1972 but redevelopment doesn’t happen overnight and many projects that came to fruition later were undoubtedly conceived under Smith.
Thats so sad... This happened everywhere to some extent... What the German boming didn't destroy the planners finished... Its ok, they probably lived far away. My citry was also vandalised, as a new town.
50 Years later and I still lament the loss of many of these buildings. However, we still got Grainger town, Grey Street, Theatre Royal etc they still look great 🙂
The central motorway especially is so useless and destructive. From Exhibition Park all the way to Cuthbert House it's like a scar and sore. I hope the next time the city has some money they blow it up. Probably good that the A1 doesn't run down Northumberland street these days, though, 😀.
The modern A1 was developed to the west as a bypass, which involved a fair bit of compulsory purchase and demolition along the route. The chunk of an M road in the city centre is similar to Birmingham, with the A38(M). Fashions come and go with a lot of urban design, especially the idea of segregating footpaths and roads, with tunnels/underpasses. In many places, they are no longer popular, being attractive to certain groups of people.
some parts have changed for the better ............take a walk along the quayside or appreciate pedestrianisation of grainger street etc of course it's not all perfect ................
Newcastle has been progressively vandalised over decades. Although the bones of the city, by which I mean the land, the structure remains strong, the edifices and the construction upon it are like awful plastic surgery on the face of a once beautiful woman. So what I’m saying is, Newcastle once looked as good as Leslie Ash in Quadroohenia. Now, it just looks like Leslie Ash.
And now many of those concrete eyes sores have been levelled to the ground, whats left of the sky walk ways are neglected, covered in graffiti and stink of urine and cars are no longer welcome into the city center apart from through a few restricted routes, a truly terrible vision on our beautiful city.
Newcastle town planners NEVER LEARN their lesson. There has never been a site anywhere, Byker, Walker, anywhere that’s been ‘redeveloped’ into something better. Right up to the handysides arcade being demolished nobody in the city departments have EVER cared.
Born in 1954 in Newcastle, in a house that stood where the Civic Centre now stands, i can honestly say the councils have been destroying the city and outlying areas for all of my lifetime. Such a shame they couldn't have loved Newcastle as much as those who lived and worked there.
Great video 👍
Remember these beautiful buildings, breaks my heart to see the monstrosities they’ve been replaced with….
I was around in 1972 and felt we had lost things which could never be replaced (such as Eldon Square). Some were no great loss but the Central Motorway and other linked roads and walkways ruined many places which today would probably have been repurposed. Excellent work, thank you Jordan.
Thanks Rita, I’m glad you enjoyed it
Hi Rita do you live in Newcastle
Ye I lost my youth.hehe49er.
When I was doing my A levels at Walbottle Grammar in the 1960s two of us used to wag off to the Library and spend days in the reference library doing our own learning and as it happened that year we were the only two to get their A level in Biology. I believe the teacher got moved on.
A tragedy that this lovely old library got trashed.
I often wonder what used to be where the BRUTAL ARCHITECTURE now stands. Thanks for sharing Jordan.
My Scottish town has not torn down a single historic building and instead maintain them really well so they still look brand new. They knew the buildings were far too beautiful to be torn down and I think have been legally protected for quite a while now. Our town hall, some hotels, churches, some housing, shops all date back to the 1800s. I never took these beautiful stone structures for granted but now I just respect them even more. Fantastic production quality though!
what town?
Dumfries? Melrose? Crieff? Must be a small town.
@@marc21091 I don't live there anymore but it's Lerwick.
Lanark is the same very very old buildings dating as far back as the 17th century possibly earlier a lot of people don't know this,but William Wallace even attended a church there and hid in caves down in the falls
As soon as the word council is mentioned in any town or city it just spells disaster the Big Market town hall is a good example
The destruction hasn’t ended either. Just look at the demolition of the Odeon Cinema, the last of the city’s historic cinemas. Or the almost intact medieval hall that was discovered during the redevelopment of High Bridge, which was then conveniently ‘accidentally’ knocked down to make way for the new version of the Bacchus pub. Those developers should have been prosecuted, but no doubt back room deals were done.
There’s very little of left of pre-1970 Newcastle, and nothing that has been built in the years since has been designed to last. Look at Manors area - the Warner Cinema complex built in the late 80s. Demolished a few years later to be replaced by office blocks, which are now in the process of being demolished again. Redeveloped three times in a little over 30 years? That is sheer madness.
The Odeon was an utter eyesore. Glad that particular one has gone
The recurring problem Newcastle has is that there is simply not enough demand in the local economy to justify spending extra money on "nicer" buildings of any scale. We see the problem encapsulated by Hadrian Tower - the owners have gone bust and half the flats haven't sold because there's no demand. The Gateshead quayside is similar. Full of hideous buildings because there's no economic rationale in building better ones.
@@zeddeka The outside wasn’t very attractive for sure, but it was the art deco interior fittings that made it special. Sadly those features were allowed to ‘disappear’ so the owners could claim it had no architectural value and therefore wasn't worth preserving.
fascinating to see how short-term some of those redevelopments proved to be - makes you wonder about the longevity of current projects
It's always evolving, needs change, people change...
@@hashtag_thisguy Evolution should be an imperceptibly slow process, though. When it happens too fast - that's cancer.
I started my first job ín Newcastle in 1971 walking from the old Haymarket bus station past St Jame's and the Newcastle Brewery on to Blandford St to the dress factory I worked in at Duke House .I went back recently and there are no original buildings left. I can remember being sent to the button factory and collecting the daily newspapers from the little newsagents on the corner of Westmoreland Road near the Marlborough cafe.
Brilliant video on what in many cases is a tragic destruction of the city.
Excellent video. It's so sad. I visited Newcastle for the first time last year and was in awe, seeing the beautiful architecture of Granger Town but how much better could Newcastle be now if these other buildings hadn't been demolished and replaced by eyesores? The problem is, even with all the progress we've made in the past 100 years, we are no longer able to create beautiful buildings.
Polytechnic architects and. Spastic councillors and 13 Tory austerity years equals concrete cancer slum Britain
Very true, egotistical leaders to blame.
@@malc.s.5373 corrupt City planners and construction companies.
In Newcastle's case (and with a lot of other smaller cities) the answer is largely economic. They don't build "nicer" buildings because the economic demand in the local economy just isn't there to justify the cost. We saw something like that in Newcastle with the Hadrian Tower recently. The company that built it has gone bust and a large number of flats haven't sold. They have put the whole tower to for sale for £14 million. Some individual flats go for more than that in London.
The demolition of the original Eldon Square with its C18th (listed) terraced buildings to make way for the shopping mall cause a huge controversy in the early 70's .
T Dan Smith Newcastle's former Chief Executive had led the assult on the city in the late 60's wanting to turn it in to the "Brazilia of the North" as he put it. Smith was later jailed for corruption for his part in the Poulson Affair which had involved architects construction companies and local politicians all over the North of England who had syphoned off public funds during their redevolopment of a several major city centres.
Great work Jordan. I really enjoyed seeing some of the fantastic architecture we once had before the town was plundered.
Totally agree!
What was done to the original Eldon Square was sacrilege in my veiw
Totally agree . Destruction by the old boys club of free masons . that were rife within Newcastle city council members at that time . . Some still exist there to this day . FACT .
So many town and city centres were destroyed in the 60s and 70s.....such short-sighted planning philosophies have destroyed so much of our heritage.
The people at the time didn't see much value in a lot of the old buildings, many of which were in a terrible state. The whole ethos of that era was that Britain wore its last like a milestone round its neck and that modernisation was required. They made a mess of it, but they (usually) did it with the best motives
Absolutely brilliant that Jordan. The way you used old footage and new footage and narrated it to bring it all together. Some of the things you pointed out really have ruined parts of the city. Demolition of the Town Hall was absolutely senseless and the raised parts by the central motorway are a bloody eyesore. Keep up the good work!
Thanks Christopher!
There was a fair amount of corruption involved, allegedly. Shame really - it could have been a real gem of a city with all its industrial revolution era architecture. I was born in 72 so never saw it in its original state. However, it still remains one of my favourite cities - friendly, liveable, accessible, and still way ahead of many of most of the cities in the midlands where i now live.
Great vid. At nearly 60 I can recall visiting the scap yards/ cars etc at the Quay side with my father, I'm still in awe at the transformation.
A great miss to me is the pub known as the Robin Adair placed at Scotchy Bridge [ Scotswood- named incidently where the Scots rested before attacking ]
The Robin Adair with the large plaque showing a coachman coach and horses , the pub built entirely from slate placed horizontal.
What an amazing building I'd always admired ... vanished !
The Scotswood Road itself lined with pubs/ clubs all the way into Newcastle ... all gone ! And their unique architecture/ design.
There's still a vast amount of stunning architecture from stone to rose granite everywhere.
A link to the history of Newcastle formerly called "Monkchester " before the conquest and the building of the New-Castle
Brilliant video mate iv done loads of researching on old newcastle and what the council did to our city and areas around if a discrace
DisGrace
we used to play snooker in the royal court snooker hall big market 1970 just up from the town hall, had some good times in the mayfair, 3am breakfast at bowers near central station,
to be honest a think the whole country was destroyed them 1972 was a bad time. it was the start of the down fall of a great civilisation
I really enjoyed your video and agree about the brutal demolition of historic buildings that were replaced by substandard edifices that don't last.
At 1 min 40sec that’s my dad driving the blue Crows Transport wagon pulling up to the traffic lights, at that time Crows was based in Gateshead behind what is now the Sage Bldg and I remember going to the yard with him in the early 70’s. How the passing years have changed the landscape with my dad passing in 2003, if only he was here so I could’ve showed him
They did the same in my home town which is the oldest in Wales so had loads of history. Entire streets torn down for a generic style shopping precinct
This made me somewhat sad. Looking back, I can be glad my city (Maastricht) was before 1985 way too poor to tear down and build anything new. In 1980 it looked pretty much like 1950. In the 90ties, when more investments came, they learned from the mistakes from others and repurposed as much as possible.
That’s lucky they missed out on one of the most destructive parts of many city’s history’s
You didn't examine the role of corruption. This certainly led to more destruction.
Not all the Slums were destroyed.
The Garth Heads Industrial Tenements(that’s what they were called),where my mother and a family of seven were brought up in a two roomed flat.This building is now Student Flats and is still standing close to the City Bridge.
The Post War Diaspora meant my Mother escaped the dire situation,it was so bad anyone with any sense sought to leave.The People we’re the strength of Newcastle and I loved their friendliness and honesty in my many visits with my Mum.
But you could taste the Grit in the air and the need for a better life for its poor or ordinary inhabitants.But the Grand Old Civic buildings would not be demolished now but preserved.But the Slums in Byker etc had to go and good riddance off to Longbenton you go.
Newcastle was a prime example of how not to redevelop will city’s like Newcastle ever learn ?
They destoyed many of the beautiful old buildings of my town, Sunderland, too, including the exquisite town hall. How this council-led vandalism was allowed to happen is both a mystery and a tragedy.
It was the spirit of the time. The older buildings were viewed as symbolic of a decaying past that Britain needed to modernise out of. Many of the old buildings were also no longer fit for purpose. The whole modernisation thing back then was viewed as cutting edge and the path to the future. Of course, they got an awful lot wrong.
Such beautiful old buildings they demolished they would of prob still been there today Much prefer the old architecture to todays so called modern buildings
Some would, some wouldn't. The old town hall for example was not fit for purpose any longer
As Joni Mitchell sang, “you don’t know what you’ve got til it’s gone”.
The demolition of those old building was nothing less than criminal.
Nothing new should be erected. unless, it's buildings built from the same materials and of the same architecture as the old buildings they will stand with., for the next few hundred years.
Eldon Square what they destroyed there beautiful buildings
really interesting and so well made! glad my recommended brought me here
Glad you enjoyed it!
I never realised what had been before....I was born in 1974 and didn't appreciate the scale of what was lost. Tragic. The city centre has seen a lot of change since and not for the better. Some area have become dark and ugly. Modern is not always best. Great video 😊
Thank you, this was the Newcastle I remember and loved as a child, blackened with soot the buildings were still beautiful to me ❤
The destruction started with the castle and our city walls, which a historian who wrote about the ancient history of Newcastle upon Tyne, wrote that the great walls of Newcastle were the greatest walls of any town in all of England and most of the European towns. Also Newcastle was once called monkchester apparently due to monks who came live in the city to defend it due to there belief that men not of this world once ruled town. There's alot about our city and region that we are not taught, it was the richest city in the county due to the amount of coal we had , even starving London of coal though a bad winter, there was a saying once referring to a pointless exercise, it's like taking coal to Newcastle.
You're right about the coal, even as far back as the 1300s it was a big boost to the local economy. It actually seems to have been monks who were the pioneers in its use. The monks at Tynemouth produced a lot of salt using coal to boil seawater. The Romans were using coal as well by the way, they have found the ashes at Hadrians Wall.
Talking about Hadrians wall, most of the stone was removed by nearly everyone who wanted to build over the centuries. Including Newcastle walls. There's even a plaque in Corbridge on a house on the main st stating its built entirely from the wall.
Agree with all of that apart from Newcastle being the richest in the country. I don't think that's ever been the case. Certainly in the middle ages, London and Norwich were the richest. Surprisingly, Norwich was also the second largest city. It thrived because of its proximity to the Netherlands and benefited from the wool trade. Also interestingly, a lot of people from Manchester have ancestors from Norwich. When the industrial revolution started and trade moved to the west coast because of cotton trade with the new world, many from Norwich moved to Manchester
Source your statements please
What a great job, you did there. Having the want in you, to make this. Then, editing and your presentation skills. Plus, cinematography!
Plus... the caring!
Nice one!
Great video mate, really love your content :)
Thanks Gaz!
Fantastic piece this, mate! Thanks for all the hard work and presentation you've put in to it
As someone who was around in the 1950/60's I now hate what back then was known as modern architecture. Now I am sad to see what we lost to concrete and steel. I'm sure many people my age nowadays would agree. Also the slum clearing, which had to be done was done far too quickly, whole local areas ripped down and residents scattered far and wide rather than clearing streets a few at a time to maintain neighbourhoods.
Well produced ❤ video 📹 👌.
My first sight of Newcastle was as a 16 year old coming into the Railway station from Scotland and then back out to the South. It was very impressive, all the bridges, etc.
Now I'm 55 and still visit occasionally 😊.
A beautiful place and always love the accent.
Geordie cousins ❤
Great videos thanks for sharing
Newcastle council have always been crap, and it seems they still are, but they’ve been neglecting the Tyne Bridge for years and now it’d in a disgusting state. They should be jailed.
Eh, other than that main motor way connected to the Tyne bridge I find most of the city centre to be very walkable and easy to navigate. The redevelopment on the Quayside was great as well as the pedestrianisation of a lot of streets
From the slum clearances of the 1960’s until 1972 seems to have been happening all over, Ian Nairn did a series on the changing fabric of many British cities with deep criticism coming out for the way a lot of this was done. Newcastle was not unique in all this unfortunately, progress was the name of the game without any concern for the consequences. A good video, thanks.
I was born in 1972 so Newcastle and Eldon Square went hand in hand. It was watching GEt Carter and Michael Bradys location site ( sadly now long gone) which awakenen my interest in the development of the city since the 60s. I was a student in newcastle in 1990. I have hardly visited in the last ten years. Change is a constant , i just find it all a step too far. THere was no need for a new central library. The Haymarket has been truly destroyed with the new university buildings. At least the Claremont bridge and tower was set back somewhat. I remember circa 2008 , the demolition of the old brewery buildingsAs a child in the late 70s, a rare treat was catching the train into newcastle. ( ii live 25 miles away) the first thing that struck was the smell of the hops , churned my stomach.Wengers department store, beautiful building. At least it was put back to some use . I find it fascinating that there are still street signs for Trafalgar street and Oxford street which exist only fractionally. THe remodelling of the Haymarket in the mid 90s was the worst for me. THe loss of the Farmers and the prefab shops with old hitz records.Thanks Jordan for uploading these gems. Its obviously a passion for you and wonderful to watch.
Really interesting video, similar old buildings were demolished in the 70's here in Wales
From what I read, it seems to have been the same everywhere in the UK
@@JordanReeveyou have to look at what was happening at the time. It was a period when the British public were conscious that we were talking further and further behind other similar countries. Our living standards were substantially lower than many other comparable countries. The diagnosis was that Britain was trapped in the Victorian past, with rotten old buildings that were no longer fit for purpose. Demolishing them and building new buildings was seen as the path to new economic prosperity, and dragging the country out of its outdated attachment to the Victorian period.
Now it’s apartment buildings devouring the rest of the beautiful thoughtful architecture of those masters .
Good watch cheers
Excellent vid… the now & then fascinates. Fortunately with Newcastle some of the “Old” is still around here & there & gives the City its fundamental character.
Nice one, and an excellent choice of music to go with it, well done.
I was home on the cold morning you filmed part of this it seems.
A lot of this demolition was down to the then Council Leader T. Dan Smith, who I think ended up in prison for fraud. He did a better job than the Luftwaffe. Please do a video on the Byker Wall by architect Ralph Erskine and I'm also interested in your views on this development (does it work?).
The Labour Party have overseen the systematic decline of the North East for decades...
Great work, Jordan
Well done and thanks from Ireland.
Great work. The current redevelopment of the original city council offices site from 1970s office space does reflect a low life expectancy for modern development. Whilst this may only involve 're-using an existing building I do feel that demolishing buildings after a 40 to 50 year life span is wasteful and reflects poor planing and short term gain.
Loved this video It's good seeing how things used to be in the toon before I was born fun fact though I actually did a few films with Amber productions
The videos you're making on our city are fantastic, thank you so much.
Poor planning and the focus for city's to accommodate cars rather than making decent spaces still has left Newcastle with some real problems. Smackhead double is due to be torn down and replaced with a hotel, and new buildings thrown up on pilgrim street and around St james I think shows the same lack of utility within public space from town planners. They all seem to lack a coherent plan or fit together in a way to make city life better, not just that but nobody seems to use them. It's almost as if the process for permitting a new project really is "we've got a space, how much money can we get?" That destroys heritage and makes it a more depressing place to be.
Quality content!
This is painful to watch! Newcastle has some beautiful city centre buildings but I can’t believe all the others which were lost
Sad so many beautiful old buildings were destroyed: demolition was a shoddy short term policy applied to so many cities (including Bath that perfect Georgian gem). Their 70's replacements look like aching teeth in damaged mouths; thanks for posting.
I lived in those flats in ouseburn in 2013/2015
I may sound selfish because I don't live there but for me, I love the old, solid, built like a tank buildings. When I visited Lodz Poland in 2022 I saw a lot of old buildings being leveled which is sad. There is something "Old world" and "European" about the old, classical buildings. I wish they would just gut them if necessary but have them remain charming.
Although a lot of buildings were sadly destroyed (I think most places had this attitude around that time) at least the motorway plans were cancelled when they were
Fantastic work. Love these types of videos
More to come!
To understand why so many older buildings were demolished (not just in Newcastle but across the country) you have to look at what was happening at the time. It was a period when the British public were conscious that we were falling further and further behind other similar countries. Our living standards were substantially lower than many other comparable countries. The diagnosis was that Britain was trapped in the Victorian past, with rotten old buildings (and industries) that were no longer fit for purpose. Demolishing old buildings and building new ones was seen as one path to new economic prosperity, and dragging the country out of its outdated attachment to the Victorian period. It was the era when Harold Wilson talked about how the "White heat of technology" was going to transform Britain into a modern country and there was a huge appetite for change from what was perceived as the rotten, decaying past. In fairness they had a point. There were some lovely old buildings but there was also a huge amount of squalor. The country did need a massive update. They sadly then got an awful lot wrong.
Interesting video but the audio is blown out by the music
I am in two minds about destroying old buildings. On the one hand, I fully support the idea behind listed status and ensuring the character of the nation is maintained over time through its buildings and public spaces. On the other, where would we be today if our ancestors had not knocked down buildings and rebuilt them a new. That being said, the arrogance they had in the 60s and 70s was rooted in this idea of endless abundance that they had at the time and this arrogance that their culture was and history was less valuable than it is.
Very sad indeed.
New sub, it sickens me to watch this video and realise what we've lost, but I've seen the decline of Newcastle over the years, Westgate Hill was known all over with bikers, one by one the major manufacturers left, M&S motorcycles are the last big shop, how long before they leave?
At nine seconds in - I'm sure I sometimes dream about that place. Was that quite close to the quayside?
I'm definitely not defending some of the 1970s architecture choices which were short sighted in my opinion, however the Newcastle of the 70s and 80s was a pretty bleak place and if you've ever been inside some of the ancient buildings (e.g. the old Cooperage) it's doubtful that they could have been repurposed.
Certainly some of the changes they made in the 70s contributed to the bleakness of the 80s. It wasn't all bad though - I still lament the loss of the fountains and UFO restaurant in Eldon Square!
In more recent times the redevelopment of the Grey Street, Grainger Street and Westgate Road areas in particular has been a massive success. When I was young you had to have a good reason to go down Grainger St, it was grim.
I sense detest for the internal combustion engine. I concur. It's depressing how readily we swapped our souls for it.
Brilliant video . Still happening today. I miss the old newcastle
Many thanks.
It's a beautiful city, in spite of it all
❤
Improved for the better.
Just like St James Park over the years.
The accelerated change in city centres is, in my opinion being pushed by the loss of pubs. These are bought by speculators and cowboys. Mysteriously burning down and rebuilt into cheap flats.
Eldon Square should never have been demolished I bought my first pair of Levi's at the American Pant House if anyone remembers that shop. The handyside arcade was a great hangout for kids into music and alternative lifestyles. A "fire" got rid of that after permission to demolish it had been rejected because of its historical importance as one of the first (if not the first) covered in shopping streets in the UK. At least they didn't demolish the Central arcade when the new Eldon Square was built. They wanted to demolish it but thankfully the planners were laughed at..
What was the buildings used that were heavily graffitied near the Laing art gallery I’ve lived in the north east for 25 yrs and it’s always looked like this
We seem destined to repeat the same mistakes. Much of the North East in particular still has fantastic architecture built when the area prospered and represented the epicentre of the Industrial Revolution and innovation that changed the world. I hope there is enough intelligence to keep that and repurpose it for the next revolution
Whenever the changes to Newcastle are discussed T Dan Smith is blamed, he was Council leader until 1965 so had very little to do with the demolition shown here. Also his conviction was not related to his time as council leader. The old town hall was despised and unused, the reports of the time are very clear, it was a rat-infested wreck of several buildings bodged together. It was in danger of structural collapse going back to the 1930's, when some of the tower was removed for safety reasons. The replacement is a monstrosity but thats a separate discussion, in my opinion, it should have been left as an open space allowing a greater view of the cathedral.
Its odd i own city center property and belive me the rats are still there maybe worse then the 1970s the rats are the only thing which never changed Odd that when i think about it loL
T Dan Smith was responsible for the whole City in the Sky idea, which was the beginning of the demolitions. He might have been out of office by 1972 but redevelopment doesn’t happen overnight and many projects that came to fruition later were undoubtedly conceived under Smith.
both newcastle and sunland lost too many great buildings to 50-70's brutal architecture
Thats so sad... This happened everywhere to some extent... What the German boming didn't destroy the planners finished... Its ok, they probably lived far away. My citry was also vandalised, as a new town.
So much lost in the 70s
The Old Town Hall and Douglas House, probably the worst decision's of the time for demolition.
Just what the Liebour council did to Glasgow as well.
50 Years later and I still lament the loss of many of these buildings. However, we still got Grainger town, Grey Street, Theatre Royal etc they still look great 🙂
Heartbreaking to see beautiful Victorian buildings decimated all about money shame on council 😢.
Can you cover cities like Birmingham?
T.Dan smith & co ruined a lot of the city.
The central motorway especially is so useless and destructive. From Exhibition Park all the way to Cuthbert House it's like a scar and sore. I hope the next time the city has some money they blow it up.
Probably good that the A1 doesn't run down Northumberland street these days, though, 😀.
The modern A1 was developed to the west as a bypass, which involved a fair bit of compulsory purchase and demolition along the route. The chunk of an M road in the city centre is similar to Birmingham, with the A38(M). Fashions come and go with a lot of urban design, especially the idea of segregating footpaths and roads, with tunnels/underpasses. In many places, they are no longer popular, being attractive to certain groups of people.
How is it, no matter how hard they try, modern buildings never looks a good as what they replaced? Or is it just me?
And it sadly continues eith tge old odeon, and even everything but the facade of the old breeze creatives block.
some parts have changed for the better ............take a walk along the quayside or appreciate pedestrianisation of grainger street etc of course it's not all perfect ................
We give up alot of our space to the car.... City centres should be car free. (Obvs there are some exceptions).
Newcastle has been progressively vandalised over decades. Although the bones of the city, by which I mean the land, the structure remains strong, the edifices and the construction upon it are like awful plastic surgery on the face of a once beautiful woman. So what I’m saying is, Newcastle once looked as good as Leslie Ash in Quadroohenia. Now, it just looks like Leslie Ash.
And now many of those concrete eyes sores have been levelled to the ground, whats left of the sky walk ways are neglected, covered in graffiti and stink of urine and cars are no longer welcome into the city center apart from through a few restricted routes, a truly terrible vision on our beautiful city.
Newcastle town planners NEVER LEARN their lesson. There has never been a site anywhere, Byker, Walker, anywhere that’s been ‘redeveloped’ into something better. Right up to the handysides arcade being demolished nobody in the city departments have EVER cared.
🖤love the Toon🤍
T Dan Smith had a lot to answer for?.