10 things I love about Toon
With unashamed sentimentality, departing editor GEMMA DAVIES
counts down the things you must do before you leave Newcastle
For many of you the next few weeks will not only be a time for crash-course revision, spending hours on end in the library hidden under a sea of books that don’t seem to be making sense anymore. But for graduating students once that final exam has passed there will be the inevitable realisation that you’re (more than likely) leaving Newcastle.
The three years have passed by faster than you ever thought they would and now your list of things you must do before you leave is so jumbled up you don’t know where to start. That’s where we come in.
The Courier has compiled a list of the 10 must-do day trips and events that to call yourself a Newcastle resident, you must have experienced once. It’s the touristy stuff you never quite got round to and now you have no excuse. Tick them off one by one and make sure you enjoy your last few weeks in the place that’s been your home for three years…
(And for those of you who aren’t graduating – enjoy anyway!)
1. Angel of the North
When this Northern, um, ‘treasure’ celebrated its 10th birthday earlier in the year, many a debate was had in the region whether the Angel was something to love or hate. For those of you who drive home via the A1 will know that the sight of the Angel when driving back after the holidays officially means you’re back. Take a road trip with your mates to see the 54m tall, rustic sculpture by artist Anthony Gormley. Then you can make your own mind up on whether it really does symbolise Newcastle, or on the other hand, if it’s a big fat waste of money.
2. Centre for Life
Before I spent a day at the Centre for Life, I must admit I didn’t really know what it was other than the place that was next to Digital. Then when I was told it was kind of a discovery museum, I thought, ‘that’s just for kids!’ How wrong was I? For the bargain price of just £6.95 I learnt boring facts by playing! With lots of show and tell type displays there’s lots to keep us big kids entertained whatever the exhibition theme! My personal favourites were pretending to be a weather girl (even if it was only for five minutes) and the chance to see what you’ll look like when you’re old and decrepit…
3. The Baltic
Whether you’re arty or not a visit to the Baltic is a must, if only to debate if what theirs is actually art! The website has full details of what exhibitions are on when but there’s usually something intriguing and to suit most tastes. The highlight of the Baltic is the fifth floor viewing box which gives some of the best views of not just the Quayside but all across the city. All for the bargain price of...nothing!
4. Experience live sport in the North East
The North-East is one of the best places in the country to catch live sport. Whilst the atmosphere at St. James Park for the football is difficult to beat, you don’t have to watch football to experience top level sport in the city and as the most pricey of the sports, it might be worth your while looking to the alternative. Why not hop on the metro to Kingston Park to watch the Newcastle Falcons rugby team or go to the Metro Radio Arena for either ice hockey or basketball. And if you’re still not happy with those solutions, how about the horses races or the dogs?!
5. Breakfast at Belle and Herbs
If a café can have a queue outside week in week out every Sunday for breakfast, I’m guessing it’s going to be good. Breakfast at Belle and Herbs in Heaton is not to be underestimated. I’ve never seen such an extensive menu and so many variations of bacon and eggs! This is the kind of breakfast fill where the portions are that big you don’t need to eat until tea time…if you can face food by then.
6. Drink Newcastle Brown Ale
If you go on holiday to Italy you have a pizza and a local wine to wash it down; if in India you have a curry, if you live in Newcastle you… drink Newcastle Brown Ale. Well, at least once. Every bar and club in town must serve this local delicacy by law (well, ok maybe not) and every local resident must be a fan! If Newcy Brown isn’t your tipple of choice you can’t leave this city without stumbling out of Bar 42 or Basement for a Newcastle treble.
7. Jesmond Dene
I managed to go a whole year living in Jesmond without visiting the Dene but once I discovered this treasured gem when the summer months hit I couldn’t keep away. Once the sun shines grab your make-do rounders kit, disposable barbeque and your mates for a day in the sun. Make sure you get there early to grab the best spots! If the weather isn’t so kind, have a walk around the scenic surroundings and pay a visit to the petting zoo.
8. The beach
We don’t realise how lucky we are to live in a buzzing city centre that’s just a short metro or car ride away from the beach! A visit to either Tynemouth or Whitley bay is a must before you leave and no trip would be complete without sampling the speciality dish of the coast – fish and chips. The weather doesn’t always match the beach surroundings but such is the beauty of the North-East coastline! Whitley Bay has infamous bars so a post-beach drink or two on the way back to the Metro is the perfect way to end the day.
9. Take a day trip
Not only is Newcastle full of enough hidden gems to keep even the most active of minds happy, but just a short train ride away is even more things to keep you occupied. The best two day trips from the city are Durham and Northumberland, both of which have the rural and traditional elements that Newcastle lacks. If you’re a Harry Potter fan, head to Alnwick Castle and for those of who are bookworms, Barter Books is one of the biggest second-hand book shops in Europe. Durham’s great for seeing what it’d be like to go to uni somewhere quiet, quaint and um, not as fun as Newcastle!
10. Brave the Bigg Market
Without wanting to risk the lives of our graduating students and sending you to the Bigg Market amongst the locals and stag and hens of a Saturday night, a traditional night on the Bigg Market is what Newcastle is to the rest of the country. When we first moved here we thought of drunkards out on the Toon and football hoolies, and then when we got here we realise that’s the minority. Try fancy dress and no one will notice you’re a student!
And one you’ll never get to do…
Experience the Boat’s revolving dancefloor! Those of you are you finishing your fourth and possibly third years at Newcastle will no doubt remember Monday nights at the Tuxedo Princess. The legendry revolving dancefloor has officially spun its last dance and left a lasting impression on my years at Newcastle.
Stop Press
CHRIS KAY discusses why increasing numbers of students are turning their backs on quality newspapers
It is sometimes surprising what 30p can buy on Campus. It seems like every other day some national rag will set up a stand in the Union Shop and start trying to flog discounted newspapers along with the usual freebies, such as fair-trade chocolate and fruit juice (The Independent), ecologically friendly washing up liquid and muffins (The Guardian), and A-Z road maps, umbrellas and even, bizarrely, from a student’s perspective at least, a top-class hotel guide book (The Daily Telegraph).
But are the freebies and discounts really necessary? Is it really that hard to get supposedly intelligent students into current affairs and politics? Apparently so. According to British Social Attitudes report, published by The Guardian (January 23rd, 2008), only 20% of graduates regularly buy a ‘quality’, or ‘seriously minded’ newspaper, such as The Times, The Independent, The Guardian, The Daily Telegraph or The Financial Times, a massive drop from 50% of graduates in 1986. 
All newspapers in the last 10 years have been reporting steady circulation declines, and it seems that all the ‘quality’ rags mentioned are frantically scrambling around campuses to secure what was once a stable and reliable market to influence post-graduate media trends and their future readership.
Those marketing newspapers have found it increasingly harder to get papers into the hands of paying students. Andrew Wood, who runs Campus Mags, a company that offers discounts and promotional services to various papers around universities, considers that students have, for a number of reasons, become an increasingly harder market to pitch to.
He says: “It is certainly true of the last five years, papers sales are definitely going down in the student sector, which is true across all campuses.”
“The most obvious thing is attitude. Students and the public in general are less politically motivated then they used to be, there is a general apathy towards politics and current affairs right now. British students also don’t protest that much, unlike French students for example.”
“There also has been a change to the way news is consumed. In the past students would either buy a newspaper or wait until the evening news on the TV. Now there is 24 hour rolling news on lots of other media, such as the internet, which offers similar content.”
It may be easy to point the accusing finger at the rise of internet media as the cause of declining student readership, yet according to the same study only 5% of those who don’t buy a newspaper regularly visit a newspaper’s website. There hasn’t been a student exodus to the internet to get their fix of the news. Students are just not as interested as they used to be.
In the opinion of Michael Watt, 20, a 2nd year History & Politics student, it is developing student loyalty, even among Politics students, that newspapers have to work on. He says: “Students are much more discerning consumers. Most people don’t follow strict party politics in their lives and are more likely to be attracted by the newspaper’s front-page story rather than their political bias.”
He claims that The Sun, The Daily Express and the Daily Mail are generally not bought by politics students, and that most of his politics lecturers will tell students to read The Guardian “because they are sandal wearing hippy types!”
“Politics students will regularly buy newspapers, but most people aren’t political in their choice and don’t care as much about the politics of their newspaper. The problem for newspapers is that you can watch BBC 24 and in 10 minutes you will have a succinct summary of the day.”
It seems that most other students have developed a weary apathy to the politicalisation and heaviness of ‘quality’ reported current affairs. Andy Buckle, 25, a 3rd year Zoology student admits he rarely ever buys a quality newspaper. He says: “I occasionally buy The Sun not so much for the news but more for the humour as well as the crosswords and Sudoku. If I really want to see what is in the news I will catch it off the TV because I’m lazy.”
It could also be argued that the recent expansion of higher education across the country has lead to a demystifying of education elitism among students and as a result it has made them reconsider their attitudes to traditional media consumption.
In one sense, Craig Moffat, 21, a 3rd year Ancient History & Archaeology student, argues that he feels under “pressure” to buy the quality newspapers which are heavily subsidised in campus shops and obviously targeting him under the assumption that “because I am educated I should be reading high brow newspapers.”
He adds: “Sometimes you just don’t want something so heavy; you just want to read The Mirror or The Sun. Sometimes you just want to read The News in Briefs.”
By Chris Kay
Breaking the Volunteering Myth
Whenever I tell people that I have been volunteering at St Oswald’s Hospice over the past year, they usually respond with a wince and say something along the lines of “that sounds miserable, why would you do that?!”. What they do not realize is that a hospice is not just a place where people go to die; it is not a miserable, dark place, in which you can hear the excruciating groans of the ill. It is a place where they largely deal with pain management and symptom control for children and adults; working on improving quality of life through a holistic care approach. St Oswald’s clarifies in their newsletter, that as you “Walk through our doors … you’ll quickly see that St Oswald’s is all about life. There’s a lot of bustle, a lot of laughter and a huge dollop of care and attention. At St Oswald’s, it’s about living life to the full, no matter how much time you have left.” I would like to dispel the stereotypical notions of the hospice by declaring that it is one of the most pleasant places that I have volunteered, and believe me, I have worked at many care homes and hospitals. The Hospice is different, not least due to their amazing gardens and light and airy hallways. Walk into their Day Services and you will hear laughter, jokes and well wishes, the place would be buzzing with people. Most of all, it is the knowledge that my simple presence there is vastly important to the day-to-day running of the Hospice. St Oswald’s has over 650 volunteers who each contribute to the care provided, they state that “Some volunteers work directly with patients; others provide crucial support behind the scenes or in our shops. Without the support of our volunteers, we simply could not provide all our vital services to local people.”Each volunteer at St Oswalds is vital; they become a part of the multidisciplinary team that provides care. The Hospice ensures that their care is available to all by not making any charges for their services. They are a registered charity and have annual running costs of £6 million per year, of which £4.5million must be raised through voluntary giving. Therefore, the volunteers enable the Hospice to keep control of their costs and concentrate their finances on patient needs, making them an integral part of the organization.I would therefore suggest that if you donate some of your time to a great cause and get involved with St Oswald’s Hospice today, not only is it great to build up your CV but its also extremely rewarding. So make the most of your time at university or even over the summer and become a part of something truly great. to find out more or call 0191 285 0063
Go online at www.stoswaldsuk.org
To make a donation call 0870 700 30 30.
