Day 46 - Blyth to North Shields

21 May 2023

This morning started with a real surprise. Mum and I decided to visit the Blyth South Beach, only to discover that this weekend is when they hold their annual Blyth Battery re-enactment celebration, so we were greeting with hundreds of people in costumes from WWI and WWII, plus vehicles, weapons, camp set ups, and lots of music and fun. We do seem to be very lucky with stumbling upon interesting events. The beach itself is a lovely golden sand beach that stretches all the way south to Seaton Sluice and has pretty multi-coloured beach huts that can be hired.

It was such a sunny and warm day, so Mum and I decided to visit the heritage listed Seaton Delaval Hall, a large family home built in the late 1700s which is nestled in formal and informal gardens and woodland. Much of the home was lost in a fire 200 years ago, but what remains was well worth visiting, with some parts being quite eccentric (including an upside down room) in a nod to the Delavals family love of theatre and surprises. The hall was designed and built by Sir John Vanbrugh, who also built Blenheim Palace. The gardens were spectacularly colourful and we found ourselves enjoying them in a hedged garden, on these wonderful canvas deck chairs eating ice-cream. It was extremely relaxing.

Top right is of South Blyth Beach, the other photos were taken at Seaton Delaval Hall.

This afternoon we arrived at North Shields, where we will be staying for the next few nights. We were expecting the area to be industrial but instead have so far found it to be very charming, with new developments done in keeping with its heritage, and wonderful restaurants and pubs making the most of being beside the River Tyne. After a wonderful English Sunday roast dinner, we walked back up the hill, away from the river, and came to Christ Church. In this church Mum’s 2^nd Gt Grandparents, John William Nichol and Annie Clark, were married plus many of the Clark children were baptised here. The Clark family were from the North Shields area, and this afternoon we were able to find the streets that they lived in (Linskill St, and the very stylish Dockwray Square), plus where Cuthbert Clark has his painting business set up in Rudyerd St.

 

Clockwise from top left: Christ Church in North Shields; the entrance to the River Tyne; Mum with the view looking up the River Tyne towards Newcastle; the garden and view over the river from Dockwray Square.

Tomorrow we are planning to firstly visit the North Shields library to search for local history, and then to catch the metro into Newcastle to explore the places where the Nichol family lived and worked. I can’t believe how much we are managing to fit into our action-packed days!