culture

TV detective drama George Gently filmed in the North East

Gently does it in Geordieland By Michael Hamilton Pictures by Dave Foster TV detective drama Inspector George Gently was filmed for the first time where it is actually set – in the North East – for the new two-part show on BBC1 screened on Sunday September 26 and October 3. We led the call to film the series here at home, last year. In exclusive interviews both Geordie actress Jill Halfpenny who starred in last year’s series and Tyneside writer Peter Flannery – who also penn

Newcastle writer Lee Hall, who penned Billy Elliot, on the phenomenal success of his

Portrait of a playwright Tyneside writer Lee Hall shot to fame with the 1999 hit movie Billy Elliot and adapted it for the stage in 2005, winning an award for best new musical. Now his latest award-winning play The Pitmen Painters is back touring in the North East.  Exclusive interview by Michael Hamilton MH: Tell me how The Pitmen Painters came about. Lee: It came about by accident in a way. I saw a copy of William Feaver’s book in a bookshop and thought that’s a

Happy fifth birthday to the Sage Gateshead

Let's get this party started Picture copyright Graeme Peacock The internationally-acclaimed Sage Gateshead celebrates its fifth birthday with a bumper weekend celebration headlined by Northumbrian piper Kathryn Tickell and Tyneside superstar Sting. The birthday weekend party (December 18-20) also features Dame Evelyn Glennie playing with the Northern Sinfonia, influential British jazz saxophonist Andy Sheppard, and the Zehetmair Quartet. The Sage has championed all

Our Friends in the North writer Peter Flannery talks about BBC TV's George Gently

Our friend in the North Hit BBC detective series Inspector George Gently is set in Northumberland in the Sixties - and was actually born in the North East Exclusive interview by Michael Hamilton * Following this interview the good news is that the next series of George Gently is to be filmed in the North East Award-winning Geordie screenwriter Peter Flannery – who wrote the epic BBC drama Our Friends in the North in 1996 – was browsing in books

Watercolour artist Alan Reed paints the Toon

Painting the Toon red One of the region’s most popular watercolour artists talks about his work, his influences – and his love of the Toon An extraordinary childhood experience – you might even call it an epiphany – set the course of North East artist Alan Reed’s life in more ways than one. The roots of his work, his strong family ethic and his Christian faith could all be traced to this early memory. It happened when his grandfather, a keen amateur artist, had returned home from hospital to re