Fishermen in Newbiggin were telling a whale of a story in May 1959.
This is the story of a battle at sea with a 40-foot whale which tangled up in the nets of the coble Green Pastures and had to be killed by rifle fire.
Mathew Stanton, 39, and 19-year-old Henry Rowe, both of Newbiggin, were quietly fishing for salmon a few hundred yards offshore in Druridge Bay when a whale larger than their 30ft boat charged into their nets.
In the second part of our look at the fire on the Empress of Scotland in Blyth, we look at an eyewitness's account of the fateful day in 1930.
James Bruce joined Hughes Bolckow in 1924. He was successively oxygen plant engineer, works engineer and works manager. Since 1953 he was director and general manager. This was his account.
Five o'clock on a bitter morning in December is not the most inviting of times to be called from one's bed. So it was with reluctance that I stumbled downstairs to answer a frantic knocking at the front door. A figure hardly recognisable in the darkness confronted me: "The ship's on fire," it said. "Get to the yard right away."
Wansbeck MP Ian Lavery's weekly column from the Ashington & Morpeth Extra newspaper
People in Wansbeck are going to be hit by huge, unfair bills for heating and electricity this summer, unless something is done to bring the out-of-control energy companies to heel.
Following Scottish Power's unfair decision to hike bills by a fifth, I am backing Labour's calls for tough action to ensure fair prices, and increased transparency over the way bills are calculated. I am firmly on the side of the consumer on this - people in Wansbeck are already being squeezed by the global downturn, and the Conservative/Liberal Democrat coalition government cuts to jobs and services.
At 4am on Wednesday, December 10, 1930, the last public viewing day, the skeleton crew on the Empress of Scotland were awakened by a cry of "fire".
Almost at the same moment, a ferryman on the High Ferry saw a tongue of flame from the rear of the ship. He sounded the ferry buzzer as an alarm and a startled Blyth rubbed the sleep out of its eyes and sprang into life.
The Empress of Scotland arriving at Blyth in 1930
Within minutes, a cloud of smoke began to roll out to sea; in the houses across the river, bedroom windows reflected the glare of flames which were soon 20ft high.
I thought we would have a look at some history of Ashington sport. The following "random pluckings" make interesting reading.
Ashington began football in the North Eastern League in the 1914-15 season.
Ashington in 1914
In the previous season they were champions of the Northern Alliance, and before that, they were runners-up in 1905-06, 1910-11 and 1911-12.
Local transport charity WATBus are celebrating a double gift of £1000 from the Linden Family Trust and £1000 from Rio Tinto Alcan.
Transport Manager Lynn Mcintosh said: ''We are experiencing increasing demand for our Minibus service at a time of rising fuel and maintenance costs which is stretching our resources to the limit. We are very grateful to the Linden Family Trust for their timely injection of cash towards our running costs and to Rio Tinto Alcan for supporting our WATBike cycle maintenance programme.
"Two of our minibuses are now ten years old and we are trying to raise funds to replace them. Since November we have raised £18,000. When we reach £25,000 we have been promised another £10,000 and that will enable us to buy a super new mini bus with electric tail lift for wheelchairs''.
Wansbeck MP Ian Lavery's weekly column from the Ashington & Morpeth Extra newspaper
Last week I met with representatives and members of the Northumberland Disability and Deaf Network. Like many other credible organisations representing people with disabilities, they are extremely worried and concerned at this coalition government's attack on sick and disabled people.
One particular concern relates to disability living allowance (DLA) and the proposed cut of 20% to DLA.
This week I thought it would be interesting to read some remarkable historic records in connection with our local area.
Strongman William Carr
June 1, 1819: There were 67 vessels in Blyth. "A dinner was given by the owners of Cowpen Colliery at Mr Bowers to all the captains in the harbour, and the afternoon was spent in the most agreeable manner."
Wansbeck MP Ian Lavery's weekly column from the Ashington & Morpeth Extra newspaper
This week Parliament has been in recess and I took the opportunity to get out and about and meet individuals, community groups and businesses in the constituency.
I had great pleasure in attending the Newbiggin Ladies Club, which meets in Newbiggin Central Club.
The meeting provided me with an opportunity to meet the members, listen to their views and concerns and respond to the questions they posed.
It was Sunday, February 19, 1882. The time was three o'clock in the morning. A fairly strong wind blew in over the bay, but Newbiggin was quiet with sleep.
In the darkened houses the fishermen were dreaming. Perhaps of fabulous catches, for times were bad. Many of them, in fact, were working on the boats of their more fortunate neighbours.
Fishing vessels on the beach at Newbiggin
But before them was the day of rest. And the boats had been hauled up on the shore to wait well above the high water mark for the bustle of Monday morning and the start of another week of hard toil.
Bedlington
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