newcastlecentric

When you go about building bridges across rivers, bamboo is rarely the construction material of choice.

Not that it matters, because this bridge won’t be open to traffic. Or even people. Read full story

We didn’t used to be big fans of the mojito; that sugary sour mouth of cold mint really didn’t appeal to the cocktail lovers and manly pint drinkers amongst us.

Yes, we were all very innocent to their pleasures until the arrival of Mojito Wednesdays at Popolo. Then we found after the fourth or fifth serving, they were actually quite nice. Read full story

10 years ago, the idea of a party to celebrate the Angel of the North would have gone down like a bag of spanners.

Now we’ve come to accept the towering, if somewhat rusting beauty as part of our heritage, a 10th birthday bash seems entirely appropriate. Read full story

It’s tradition, an old charter or something. The end of June means it’s time for a trip to the Hoppings, to enjoy the aroma of fried onions, bags bursting with candy floss and vomiting yourself inside out after one too many trips on the waltzers.

Stretched out across the Town Moor, the 126th fair opened earlier this afternoon and the first visitors to the site were in for a shock; fun at the fair has never been less affordable. Read full story

The Bootleg Beatles should have enjoyed global success, record sales in the millions and debauchery on a scale unimaginable. Sadly, they were too slow on the uptake by a couple of decades and beaten to the spoils by the Beatles themselves. Read full story

Like every city, the skyline of Newcastle is constantly evolving. Currently the city centre is caught up in condo-mania, throwing apartments and flats up into the sky wherever there’s a spare inch of soil to build on.

This Sunday that silhouette loses one of its oldest and most iconic buildings, when the final remnants of the Tyne Brewery are demolished in a controlled explosion. Read full story

It’s difficult to know what to expect if you visit an exhibition entitled Holy Sh*t. It could be a collection of adult episodes from the Adam West era of Batman. Or… well actually, we’re not quite sure what else it could be.

In fact, Holy Sh*t is a collection of work by Pittsburgh-born artist Dave Kinsey on display now at Quayside gallery Lazarides. The theme? Holy sh*t, obviously. Read full story

We’re not huge fans of Boyzone. Honest we’re not. But somebody has to be. Go on, admit it. It’s you, isn’t it? You’re off to see them tomorrow night and Wendesday night at the Metro Radio Arena, aren’t you?

Given their impressive statistics, there must be fans of the five lads from Dublin lurking everywhere. Assembled by Louis Walsh in 1993, Boyzone began their UK singles career with 16 consecutive Top 5 hits. There’s also the small matter of six UK Number 1 singles, plus four Number 1 albums and total album sales exceeding 15 million. So don’t pretend you don’t like them. Read full story