Long time ago North and South of the TyneMost people worked in the shipyards and the minesBut now it's a diff'rent world, a sign of the timesThey'll soon be carrying coals to Newcastle The mines have all closed down from the Tyne to the TeesThe shipyards repair the ships built overseasAnd now we're making motor … Continue reading Carrying Coals to Newcastle
CHORUS: Yes me father was a Geordie and Geordie's understandWe've always had the dole queues, they're part of Geordie land Me father was a grafter and worked hard for his payHe would take any job, many would turn awayHe lived through the depression, hunger marches then were rifeWe've always had the dole queues, they're part … Continue reading Part of Geordie Land
I'm breaking from tradition with this post, to share a totally different (and honestly my most favourite) side to Dad's songwriting. Way before The Jarrow Marchers, my earliest memories of Dad are him singing songs from The Beatles and Lindisfarne, as well as his own pop style compositions.
There was me an’ the wife an’ the mother in law went to the silvery sea The mother in law gets in a boat, a sailor she would be Well the’ hadn’t been twenty yards when aa hears a shoot The mother in law is in the sea and there she’s splashin’ about
I wish I was back where I was born in Newcastle on the TyneIn England's North East country with all those friends of mineWalking down Northumberland Street then 'round to Eldon SquareI wish I was back in Newcastle, I wish that I was thereI wish I was back in Newcastle, I wish that I was … Continue reading I Wish I Was Back in Newcastle
Three, six, nine, on the banks of the Tyne, here comes Bobby ShaftoeCanny day doon the Waggon Way, we'll may the Keel Row CHORUSDirty back lanes, kids playing gamesSkippys and marbles and kick the blockClippy mats, up and down flatsDays when your back door would never be locked When I was young, we made our … Continue reading Dirty Back Lanes
This is the third part in my series of posts about Dad (Wilf Mitford)'s achievements. It's a summary of the impact of his work. All of the posts in this series are taken directly from an award nomination made by my Mum, Maggie, back in the late 1990s, which is an absolute gem in terms … Continue reading Achievements Part 3: a summary
This is the second part of an award nomination letter written by my Mum that outlines some of Dad's achievements. It puts so much of his work into context and order and will be enormously useful for me in compiling Dad's archives in a meaningful way. "Achievements between 1st August 1992 and 31st August 1993 … Continue reading Achievements Part 2
When going through Dad's things I found this award nomination that my Mum wrote, no doubt with some input from Dad. It's an absolute gem of a piece of writing as it clearly outlines what he produced, when, and the reception it received. I couldn't resist sharing it. I've left it pretty much as written, … Continue reading Achievements Part 1
I'm very sad to share the news that my Dad, Wilf, passed away on 20th September 2022.
When w'put wa hoose up for sale, w'got loads of nosey parkersWho would caall around at aawkward times, when you're in the bath and starkersY'knew they didn't want to buy, they would aalways mek an excuseOh the trials and tribulations when tryin' to sell ya hoose Y'd get these funny people who didn't keep their … Continue reading When Trying to Sell Ya Hoose
There is a place in Newcastle's WestLately it has had bad pressThough people there think it's the bestThe bonny banks of Benwell Now Benwell folk don't have a lotYou won't see them out on their yachtsBut they'll give you all that they've gotOn the bonny banks of Benwell Benwell's changed throughout the yearsThey've knocked down … Continue reading The Bonny Banks of Benwell
Ev'rybody get your duds We're gannin doon to Plessey Woods See the squirrels in the trees Plessey Woods the place for me
Four twelve lang months they gave it a try, to this day I divvent kna why, cos the weather was never warm nor dry, on the Cambois nudist beach
Chorus
So it's goodbye Killingworth Towers, You should never have been built at all, There'll be plenty of cheers and not many tears, When Alcatraz begins to fall
Mitford Music 