A History of Tyneside

Modern Tyneside (1x7)

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Local television arrived in the region in 1959 in the shape of Tyne Tees Television, bringing local accents to the small screen for the first time. Often the station had to report on bad news of more job losses in local industries, often with no obvious replacements. Starting in the 1960s Tyneside began producing popular music acts that went on to achieve worldwide fame. At the same time the controversial T. Dan Smith, leader of Newcastle City Council, forged ahead with massive city centre redevelopments but was ultimately sent to prison for accepting bribes from architect John Poulsen . The 1980s saw a more successful redevelopment with the phased opening of Metro Centre, Europe’s largest shopping centre at the time. The coal industry, which had been in decline for many years that accelerated after the 1984 miners’ strike, closed its last working pit in Northumberland in 2004, and the following year Tyneside started importing coal from overseas. But as Tyneside entered the 21st century new icons began to emerge – the Angel of the North, Gateshead Riverside, Sage Gateshead, Newcastle Quayside, and Gateshead Millennium Bridge. Salmon have returned to the once heavily polluted River Tyne. Tyneside has renewed confidence and pride, and is renewing and rebuilding itself.