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Durham
Durham
The cathedral city of Durham was once part of the County Palatine of Durham, a semi-independent jurisdiction ruled by the prince bishops of Durham. The city is home to Durham Cathedral and Durham Castle, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The cathedral contained the shrines of the Anglo-Saxon saints Cuthbert and Bede and was a great Benedictine cathedral priory until 1539, after which it was re-founded as a secular cathedral by Henry VIII.
Newcastle upon Tyne
Newcastle upon Tyne
Beneath its modern cityscape, Newcastle upon Tyne encompasses all chronological strata: from the Victorian industrial city, through the early modern town, the medieval port and its castle, the Anglo-Saxon era, to the Roman occupation. Although much of medieval Newcastle was lost between the 16th and 19th centuries, it still retains much of its eponymous castle, parts of its city walls, and the cathedral of St Nicholas (with its distinctive 15th-century lantern tower).
Newcastle's Theatre Royal regularly hosts Opera North, the Scottish Ballet, and the Royal Shakespeare Company. On the south banks of the Tyne, the Glasshouse hosts the Royal Northern Sinfonia, Folkworks, and a thriving educational programme. Newcastle-Gateshead is also home to notable galleries, including Newcastle's Laing Art Gallery and Gateshead's Baltic Centre for Contemporary Art.
Northumberland
Northumberland
Northumberland is one of the most beautiful parts of England, with an incomparably rich history. Explore the hauntingly beautiful Bamburgh Castle, perched on a rocky outcrop overlooking the North Sea, or travel to Holy Island to view the stunning Lindisfarne castle.
Flowing from the Pennines to the North Sea, the River Tyne runs parallel with Hadrian's Wall past Hexham's Augustinian priory. It provided a transport highway in the industrial era and is now a centre for tourism and leisure. Kielder Water, in Northumberland National Park, is one of England's biggest inland lakes and a centre for sailing and mountain biking. One of the least light-polluted areas in England, the National Park also includes the Cheviot hills; south of the Tyne are the wild Pennines.
Bring bike: a vast network of disused railway lines, another legacy of the region's industrial past, gives us some of the best and most extensive off-road routes on the National Cycle Network.
Bring boots: the Pennines, Cheviot Hills and coastline have excellent cross-country paths.
Historic sites of interest in Northumberland and County Durham: Brinkburn Priory (a favoured recording venue), Hexham Abbey, Lanercost Priory, Alnwick Castle, Bamburgh Castle, Dunstanburgh Castle, Warkworth Castle, and the Holy Island of Lindisfarne (accessible by causeway: check the tide timetables).
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