The local organising committee for the Newcastle/Gateshead Spring Meeting are confident that the quality of the scientific programme will be sufficient to encourage BGS members to attend the conference.

However, we felt it important to provide you with some further fascinating facts about the region in order to persuade you that it really is worth a visit next Spring.

Architecture
The Spring conference will be held in the fantastic new Sage centre, designed by Sir Norman Foster. Looking a little like a cross between a misshapen donut and an extraterrestial space ship, with enough “bling” to dazzle, the Sage is a must-see for enthusiasts of the strange but beautiful. Beyond the Sage, visitors will probably be pleasantly surprised by the quality of the architecture in the City of Newcastle upon Tyne. There are more than 1500 listed buildings in central Newcastle alone. This includes the famous Grainger town area, much appreciated by all visitors to the city. In fact, Grey Street in Newcastle was recently voted the best street in the United Kingdom by listeners to BBC Radio 4 - clearly a most discerning audience!

Bridges on the Tyne
Staying with architecture and civil engineering, the bridges linking Newcastle and Gateshead are synonymous with the region. The famous Gateshead Millennium Bridge is of course, the Millennium Bridge that did not wobble and is the world’s first tilting bridge. The bridge has won the country’s top architectural prize, which is the Royal British Institute of Architects Stirling prize for building of the year. We have organised a special “blinking” of the bridge on the night of the conference welcome reception, when you will see this dynamic piece of engineering closing and opening.

Black and white
These of course are the favourite colours of all Tyneside natives, who automatically become members of the “Toon Army” at birth. St James’s Park, the home stadium of Newcastle United football club, is the second biggest stadium in England, seating 52,000 people. Unfortunately, the team are playing away from home on the weekend of the BGS Conference. However, if you wish to catch a local derby, you could make the trip to Middlesborough to see Newcastle United playing Middlesborough FC on 8 April. Whilst the football club is well known, Newcastle, of course, is also home to the Falcon’s Rugby Club, club of Jonny Wilkinson who brought home the latest Rugby World Cup, and also of the Eagles who won this year’s basketball championship and trophy.

Hollywood on Tyne
Over 600 films and television productions have been shot in the north-east of England over the past 10 years. These obviously include the seminal gangster movie, “Get Carter”: the multi-storey car park is still standing in Gateshead. More recently, films such as “Goal!” starring Anna Friel and “The One and Only”, starring Patsy Kensit have also been filmed here. Further afield in the north-east, film locations include Alnwick Castle, which was a substitute for Hogwarts School in the Harry Potter movies and Alien 3 was also partly shot in the north-east.

Liquid refreshments
There is ample opportunity to sample the local specialty, “Newkie Broon”. This was in fact created by Colonel James Herbert Porter (a southerner) in 1927. It is even possible to buy “Newkie Broon” flavoured ice cream in summer.

Haute cuisine
It is often assumed by visitors to the north-east that the local cuisine consists of stottie cakes filled with ham and pease pudding, washed down
with a large glass of “Newkie Broon” (see above)! For the uninitiated, stottie cakes are large, flat bread buns, the name arising from the Geordie word for bounce due to the heavy and often indigestible nature of the bread. A true Geordie can eat an entire stottie cake at one sitting. However, Newcastle and Gateshead actually boast a fine range of restaurants with cuisine ranging from Japanese to Mongolian and including a Michelin star holder.

Internationally famous Geordies
Some famous sons of the north-east are of course, instantly recognisable e.g. Gazza, Jimmy Nail and Bobby Robson. However, you may not realise that Sting was born in Newcastle and Bryan Ferry hails from Washington, Tyne and Wear. In addition, Mark Knopfler of Dire Straits spent most of his childhood in Newcastle.

Retail therapy
I am sure that no delegates will have any time to look for retail therapy opportunities, but should these be desired you could always hit the shops in Newcastle City centre or at the nearby Gateshead Metrocentre, the biggest shopping mall in Europe and easily accessible by the Newcastle Metro.

Places of interest
Space constraints do not permit me to list all of the numerous historical and cultural places of interest in Newcastle, Gateshead and the surrounding area. Highlights might include the Angel of the North, Durham Cathedral and Hadrian’s Wall (which ends in Newcastle, at Wallsend, of course). There is also the unspoilt Northumbrian coastline and countryside (good weather never guaranteed!)

Party city
Newcastle and Gateshead are justifiably proud of their reputation as a party city. Dr Steve Parry (social convenor) has spared no expense or hepatocytes in drawing up a detailed list of recommended drinking establishments for the use of BGS members! I would like to offer you one handy hint if you wish to blend in with the natives. Don’t wear a coat, even if there is snow on the ground, and ladies, shoestring straps are de rigeur.

Geordie culture is much more than flat caps, whippets, beer and football. We are of course, not upset by the fact that we did not get the European City of Culture title in 2008, our deprived friends on Merseyside probably needed this much more than we do!

Please come to the Spring Meeting in 2006, we may not be able to guarantee good weather but you will certainly have a “reet canny welcome”.

Janice O’Connell
Senior Lecturer in Geriatric Medicine
On behalf of the local organising committee