Painting 'The Blaydon Races'
by William Irving
reproduced by
kind permission Newcastle Marriott Hotel, Gosforth Park
The short film produced by the Blaydon Day Centre takes in the sites and characters detailed in the famous song as it follows the route from Newcastle to Blaydon, now the route of the present day road race.
Click here to see the Blaydon Day Centre Choir
singing the Blaydon Races
MPEG1; 3.69 MB
George Ridley
George Ridley |
Following
serious injury in an accident at the Gateshead Iron Company in his early
twenties, George Ridley was forced to seek alternative employment. Drawing on a
considerable talent for writing and performing he made his name filling his
songs with reference to local characters and events. It seems likely that in
this tale of the chaotic journey by horse omnibus from Newcastle to Blaydon he
was recalling events from 1861, the previous year. The modern day Blaydon Races starts outside Balmbra's pub in the Bigg Market, Newcastle. |
| Aw went
to Blaydon races Click here to hear the
Blaydon Day Centre choir singing the chorus |
The start
of the 2001 Blaydon Race
|
|
O lads, ye shud
only seen us gannin, We passed the foakes upon the road just as they wor stannin; Thor wes lots o' lads an lasses there, all wi smilin' faces Gannin' alang the Scotswood Road, to see the Blaydon Races |
 |
| Scotswood Road, c.1910 | |
|
We
flew past Airmstrang's factory Chorus - O lads, etc
|
 The railway bridge at Scotswood Road (1950s) |
|
Armstrong's Elswick Works, c 1887 |
W.G. Armstrong first established his armaments works in Elswick in 1847. By the time Ridley wrote the song fifteen years later the success of ‘Armstrong’s factory’ was transforming the area as a rapidly expanding workforce were housed in terraces North of Scotswood Road. By the end of the century the population of Elswick had risen from 1800 to 60,000 and Scotswood Road flourished, becoming famous for its 44 pubs- one on every street corner- such as the ‘Robin Adair’. |
| When we gat the wheel
put on away we went agyen, But them that had their noses broke, they cam' back ower hyem. Sum went to the dispensary, an 'uthers to Doctor Gibbs, An sum sought out the Infirmary to mend their broken ribs. Chorus - O lads, etc
Click here to
see Blaydon Day Centre's video footage of this part of the song |
Newcastle Infirmary c 1850 |
 |
Dr.Gibb (1824-1916) was originally House Surgeon at the Old Infirmary from 1849 to 1854, later setting up private practice on Westgate Road. His consultation fee for rich and poor alike was 2/6d and, evidently popular enough to merit a mention in the song, was said to have ‘taken the Infirmary with him’ when he left. |
| Noo when we gat to Paradise
thor wes bonny gam begun, Thor wes fower-and-twenty on the bus, man, hoo they danced an' sung; They called on me to sing a sang, aa sung them 'Paddy Fagan'. Aa danced a jig an' swung my twig that day aa went to Blaydon
Click here to hear the
Blaydon Day Centre choir sing this verse Click here to see
video footage of this verse |
Before Geordie Ridley’s time the route leading West out of Newcastle took in areas of great natural beauty. A writer of the time told of ‘…kingfishers seen flashing their way across the Tyne, larks hovering over the water meadows, and foxes spotted on their bellies in the undergrowth.’ Inevitably the effects of industry make the naming of places such as ‘Paradise’ seem quite ironic over the years. |
| We flew across the Chain
Bridge reet into Blaydon toon, Chorus - O lads, etc. Click here to see the Blaydon Day Centre's video footage of this part of the song (including the 2001 Blaydon Race) MPEG1; 3.13 MB |
The Mechanics Institute, Blaydon
|
 The Scotswood Bridge c1880 |
Like the old ‘chain bridge’ replaced by the present day Scotswood Bridge in 1965, much of the old Blaydon has now disappeared or been replaced. Similarly, gone are the days when the town crier Jacky Brown could be seen pronouncing the days news and events or, as Geordie Ridley slyly reminds us, his own show that evening in the ‘Mechanics Hall’.
|
|
The
rain it poor's aw the day, an myed the groon'd quite muddy, Chorus - O lads, etc.
Click here to view the Blaydon Day Centre
singing the final chorus |
Coffee Johnny |
John Oliver, the ’Coffee Johnny’ mentioned in the last verse of the ‘Blaydon Races’ was born in nearby Winlaton. He had a great reputation as a bare knuckle fighter and was an ardent fan of hunting and horseracing. His joke ‘whe stole the cuddy’ was a reference to the lack of horses on race day caused by torrential rains making it difficult to get the horses across to Blaydon Island where the races were then held.
 Site of Blaydon Races Race Course 1861-65 |
In its chequered history the Blaydon races were held at three different locations from 1811, finally being abandoned in 1916 after a riot sparked by allegations of race fixing broke out. However, 1915 saw the publication of the book ‘Tyneside Songs’ in which ‘The Blaydon Races’ was collected and a song, which had remained largely forgotten after Geordie Ridley’s death in 1864, captured the imagination of the public and was embraced as the ‘Geordie Anthem’, as it remains to this day. |
Reproduction of the Blaydon Races lyrics is by kind permission of T&G Allan.
