Culture Digest 13.12.24
A round up of some arts and culture stories from across the North East which caught our attention this week
Sunderland’s music community come together for memorable charity concert
A mixture of Wearside music’s biggest stars and up-and-coming talent came together at The Fire Station last Sunday for a fundraising (and roof-raising) performance.
Organised by Sunderland Music City, Music Against Child Poverty LIVE saw 10 acts taking to the stage, Live Aid style to perform a string of classic hits.
The Futureheads, Field Music, The Lake Poets, The Cornshed Sisters’ Liz Corney, Maximo Park’s Paul Smith and Andrew Lowther, Frankie and the Heartstrings’ Frankie Francis, Nadeja, Olive’s Ruth-Ann Boyle and SLUG’s Ian Black were among those belting out hits from the likes of Queen, David Bowie, Elton John, Phil Collins, George Michael, Madonna and Hall and Oates.
They were joined by acts including Stockton Road Hit Squad, Lottie Willis, Beccy Young, Isabel Maria and…. Look North’s Jeff Brown who channeled the magic of eighties singer Paul Young.
More than £50,000 was raised, with more donations still to be counted. All proceeds will go to charity Love, Amelia, which helps local children and their families access the essential supplies they need.
Michelle Daurat, chief executive of the Sunderland MAC Trust, which delivers Sunderland Music City, said: “What a night! We’ve never seen anything like this in Sunderland before; it was a truly unique and memorable show that highlighted the incredible musical talent we have in this city. And even more importantly, it raised a lot of money that will go directly towards helping local children.
“We’re so grateful to everyone who gave up their time and put in the effort to help raise money for such a vital cause. It’s because of that hard work and the overwhelming generosity of the people of Sunderland that we’ve been able to smash our fundraising target. That money is going to make a real, tangible difference to disadvantaged children in our area.”
Anyone wanting to relive/listen in on the evening can enjoy a Spotify playlist of songs played throughout the night.
Read more: Mani Kambo exhibition at BALTIC
Christmas spooks and sparkles at Newcastle’s Star and Shadow
Newcastle’s volunteer-run Star and Shadow Cinema has lit up its programme for the festive season and it’s certainly wide ranging in its appeal.
Film screenings, readings, live music, storytelling and crafts are just some of what’s on offer.
Trailer and release date for 28 Years Later revealed
Supporting artists and locations who were involved in the filming for Danny Boyle’s 28 Years Later in and around Northumberland and the wider North East this year, will have to wait until next summer to see if they made the cut… unless they’re in the trailer, of course. (The faint-hearted should proceed below with caution.)
Following 28 Days Later and 28 Weeks Later, the movie provides the third instalment of the cult horror series.
It was confirmed this week that the film will get its UK release on June 20, 2025.
Read more: Beloved tale brought to life - balletLORENT’s The Velveteen Rabbit
Roger Melly will be getting his **** Chris Donald poster signed. Will you?
Chris Donald, brother Simon and one-time Viz colleague Davey Jones “will be happy to ruin your books, comics and anything else you ask them to draw on”.
That’s the enticing offer from the Globe Gallery in North Shields where the trio will be present between 2pm and 3pm on Sunday (December 15) for what is more conventionally known as a signing session.
The occasion is Chris’s exhibition of North East-themed spoof railway posters which is running at the gallery under the heading Jolly Days and has just spawned an offshoot on the bridge linking the platforms at Tynemouth Station, known as the Bridge Gallery.
Gordon Burn Prize longlist unveiled
The 12 books long-listed for the £10.000 Gordon Burn Prize 2025 have been revealed.
Founded in 2012 by New Writing North, publisher Faber & Faber and the Gordon Burn Trust, the literary honour has built a reputation for celebrating brilliant books that often find readers outside the mainstream.
It was established to celebrate work that shows an affinity with the unique writing talent of Gordon Burn - an acclaimed Newcastle-born journalist and author - and ‘recognises exceptional writing which has an unconventional perspective, style or subject matter and often defies easy categorisation’.
Unsurprisingly then, all genres are eligible including biography, memoir, novels, and short story collections.
The longlist is:
Headshot by Rita Bullwinkel (Daunt Originals); Prairie, Dresses, Art, Other by Danielle Dutton (Prototype); The Strangers: Five Extraordinary Black Men and the Worlds That Made Them by Ekow Eshun (Hamish Hamilton); Ootlin by Jenni Fagan (Hutchinson Heinemann); Mrs Jekyll by Emma Glass (CHEERIO); I See Buildings Fall Like Lightning by Keiran Goddard (Abacus); White Terror: A True Story of Murder, Bombings and Germany’s Far Right by Jacob Kushner (Mudlark); Poor Artists by Gabrielle de la Puente and Zarina Muhammad (The White Pube) (Particular Books); Only Here, Only Now by Tom Newlands (Phoenix); The Lasting Harm: Witnessing the Trail of Ghislaine Maxwell by Lucia Osborne-Crowley (4th Estate); England is Mine by Nicolas Padamsee (Serpent’s Tail); and The Horse by Willy Vlautin (Faber & Faber)
The judges, including journalist Terri White (chair) and writer for radio, stage and screen, Sarah Phelps, will whittle the above down to a shortlist which will be announced in January.
The winner will be revealed on March 6, 2025 and will receive £10,000 and the chance to undertake a writing retreat at Gordon Burn’s cottage in Berwickshire.
Review: Blitzen on Tyne at Live Theatre, Newcastle
An artwork to stand the test of time
An artwork will double as a time capsule at the heart of the DLI Museum and Art Gallery which is currently being redeveloped.
Durham County Council commissioned local blacksmith artist Graeme Hopper to emboss an inscription on to a steel plate, which will form part of the new structural framework of the cultural attraction at Aykley Heads, near Durham City.
The engraving reads: ‘Bravery runs through our history; courage sparks new ideas’.
It is inspired by the building’s past, but also its future an exhibition space and creative hub, where new ideas are explored.
James Corden to give David Miliband lecture
Gavin and Stacey co-creator and star, James Corden will visit South Shields in January to give the annual David Miliband lecture.
The actor and writer will deliver the address, entitled: To America and Back: James Corden - telling his story at Harton Academy on Lisle Road, on January 25 at 6pm.
Established in 2001, the lecture series is organised by former South Shields MP and Foreign Secretary, David Miliband..
Previous speakers have included Hilary Clinton, John Major, Gary Lineker, Patrick Stewart, Jo Brand, Sam Mendes and Danny Boyle.
Mr Miliband said: "James Corden is a true British superstar. Having conquered the London stage, British TV and American late-night TV, the South Shields lecture is the obvious next venue.
“I promised that the South Shields Lecture would bring global talent to South Shields. After Hillary Clinton’s appearance in 2022 I am thrilled that James Corden is bringing great British talent to South Shields. When I explained to him the history of the town and the lecture he jumped at the chance - but his diary has been a handful."
Tickets for the event are free but must be booked in advance by emailing events@hartonacademy.co.uk.
The sponsors of the 2025 lecture are the University of Sunderland and Durham University, along with Colmans of South Shields
Book your place at Bay Tales
Tickets are on sale for Bay Tales Live 2025, the popular day-long crime fiction event at Whitley Bay Playhouse.
Panel discussion events, in conversations and book signings are all on the contents page.
This year’s programme includes Ann Cleeves in Conversation with William Shaw and the Pan Macmillan Panel, which will be moderated by TV presenter, Steph McGovern and will feature authors Sarah Hilary, Tracy Whitwell and Ellery Lloyd.
Special guests for 2025 are best-selling crime writers Tom Thorne creator Mark Billingham and C.L. Taylor
Full programme and ticket details can be found on the website.
North East heritage mined for new solo album from The Futureheads’ Barry Hyde
The making of a second solo album from Sunderland’s Barry Hyde took The Futureheads’ frontman into unexpected territory.
“What started off as an interesting local arts commission, became a personal journey into the folk tradition and my family history, which uncovered a terrible tragedy that occurred to my ancestors,” he says of Miners’ Ballads, which will be released early next year.
The concept album, which was commissioned by Sunderland City council and Paul Emerson, is inspired by the coal mining heritage of the North East with emphasis on Sunderland and Washington.
Keith Gregson, a retired history teacher, historian, musician and friend, who had previously helped Barry research his family tree (as well as working with The Futureheads on their a cappella album Rant) remembered he’d discovered two of his ancestors Thomas, 13 and Joseph, 14 had been killed in a mining disaster in February 1882 in Trimdon, County Durham.
The final track on the album is dedicated to them. Meanwhile the title track, which Barry describes as “a traditional collier's song about the dangers, hardships and bravery of those that worked underground.” has been made available for streaming and download, here.
Riverside venue set to close
The owners of one of Newcastle’s top music venues has announced it is to close.
Tokyo Industries, which also runs nightclub, Digital in the city’s Times Square, announced that The Riverside, which has played host to an array of music acts since opening in 2010 - including Interpol, Royal Blood, The Coral, The Zombies and Sam Fender during the early days of his career - will shut its doors for the last time on New Year’s Day.
In a statement, a spokesperson for the company said it had become “increasingly impossible” to run The Riverside - which is based inside the former Quayside fish market - as a standalone music venue, adding that the Government’s recent Budget had been a contributing factor.
They said: “This decision has been exacerbated by the UK Government’s November Budget where it has become very clear that it has little understanding of the cultural benefits of grassroots live music, despite music being a major UK global export.”
All planned events will move over to Digital and a new operator is being sought for the venue.
Panto joins forces with NSPCC for free performance
The Exchange 1856 in North Shields is putting on a show for children who may not otherwise enjoy the festive fun of pantomime this year.
In the true spirit of Christmas, theatre company Mendes Management has joined forces with children’s charity the NSPCC.
And the special performance of classic pantomime Cinderella is set to pull out all the stops for local kids who might otherwise miss out on a magical night on Monday (Dec 14).
Christmas spirit and top entertainment in full flow at Newcastle Cathedral
Finishing this week’s Culture Digest in a similarly lovely way to how we started it, last night (December 12) saw this year’s Christmas at the Cathedral gig take place.
A fundraising event for the Sir Bobby Robson Foundation, the show is an annual coming together of talent from the North East and further afield giving audiences a festive feast of music and comedy inside Newcastle Cathedral.
A packed audience of more than 800 - including Sir Bobby’s widow Lady Elsie - were treated to musical performances from the likes of Liam Fender, Emmerdale star, Chelsea Halfpenny, rising stars The Dolders (Dani and Zara) and the Swing Bridge Singers.
Laughs aplenty came courtesy of performers including standup Cal Halbert, ‘Geordie Santa’ Davey Nellist and Auf Wiedersehen, Pet actress, Julia Gobin.
Meanwhile poet Scott Tyrrell and BBC Look North’s Carol Malia both gave readings.
Event producer and the evening’s beat-keeper, Lindisfarne drummer Ray Laidlaw said: “Christmas at the Cathedral is a very special event unlike anything else that I’m involved in.
“The 2024 show was a cracker. My thanks to the wonderful cast, crew, volunteers, sponsors and the cathedral staff who all helped to create a memorable experience.”
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