Kenton Bar Estate - A Blast from the Past

The ruffians, bounders, peasants and cads from down the bottom went to Hillsview School(Now demolished-site: a wasteland of nothingness) The normals from the middle of the estate went to Kenton Bar School. Now interestingly enough at some point Kingston Park Estate was built, but without a school initially, though there is one now, so that meant you got a lot of posh kids from there coming to Kenton Bar for a while-they didnt go to Hillsview where the bounders, cads, ruffians and peasants went, obviously. As for the posh kids from up the top and Leeches estate, I can only assume that they had private tuition at home...

The green bridge connected kenton bar with the ultra posh Leeches estate. It was demolished to allow for the development of the western bypass. It has been replaced by the grey bridge, built further south. As aformentioned in the article'The chip shop' you had to have a monocle to even set foot on that estate on the oither side of the green bridge. However,I am not here to wax lyrical about Leeches estate, but rather the green bridge. I remember many times going up on the top part to do a traffic survey for a badge(me beeing a cubscout) in the summer, and once I was up there noticing that the bushes betwixt kenton bar and that estate to the west,(was it Newbiggin Hall?) were all ablaze, set on fire by what I would only describe as gangs of hooligans, chasing each other back and forth alongthat path behind the hedge...... I also remember silhouettes of people rushing back and forth going 'ARGHHHH'! and 'WHARRRRRRGHHHHH!' with what looked like sticks, etc...I...

Shades said he was in his thirties at the time the estate was being built so this would rule out T Dan Smith. Does anyone have any idea who the architect was? – This may be the first step in tracking down  some plans or photos of the elusive pyramid. Anyone got any ideas Technorati Tags: Kenton , Architect , Shades , estate , Smith , plans , ideas , photos

I wonder how the architect felt about the pyry and all her intricate design features being decimated then erradicated after what, 30 odd years?When exactly was the pyry demolished? What did they do with it ? ... Can you imagine if you had designed this wonderful thing, this mecca, this utopia of socialist paradise... only for it to be erased from the face of the Earth...who was this architect, hmmm?Was he still alive when it was tolchecked (smashed) down?...I demand we find out more of him...This man deserves RECOGNITION!!!!

Once again, I can only recall one on the estate, that was the one by the fish and chip shop up at the shops. Were there more?

I can actually only recall one of those lovely red phone boxes, which was in between Dr Raj's surgery and the number 8 bus stop by the shops. I remember one time horrid bully boys (probably from the bottom end) forced me in it and tied it up with rope so I couldnt get out. I was crying. I had to phone the brave and noble fire brigade to rescue me... Anyone remember where other red phone boxes were on the estate?

A better view than the two visible in the photo to accompany the 'Garages' article. However this one was taken up at the garages at the very top of the estate...

I found it and claim the biscuit from the master! 'A bollard improvised by filling a grey section ofPVC plastic pipe and then imbedding it in the ground' Located at the top of Ryal Walk-the only one left on the estate...?

The kind and noble shopkeeper agreed to put up a 'wanted' poster in the newsagent window free of charge. I put the 2 pictures of the pyry on plus text-Lets hope we strike gold! The text reads: Do you have another photo of the Kenton Bar Pyramid? If so please please please let the whole world see the 8th wonder of the world! Email us at: submit@thunderbirdink.com Check out the blog: Kenton Bar Estate A Blast FromThe Past

S HE walks in beauty, like the night Of cloudless climes and starry skies, And all that's best of dark and bright Meets in her aspect and her eyes; Thus mellow'd to that tender light 5 Which Heaven to gaudy day denies. One shade the more, one ray the less, Had half impair'd the nameless grace Which waves in every raven tress Or softly lightens o'er her face, 10 Where thoughts serenely sweet express How pure, how dear their dwelling-place. And on that cheek and o'er that brow So soft, so calm, yet eloquent, The smiles that win, the tints that glow, 15 But tell of days in goodness spent,— A mind at peace with all below, A heart whose love is innocent.

In memory of our beloved sadly departed pyry, for only you are worthy... 'She walks in beauty, like the night Of cloudless climes and starry skies And all that's best of dark and bright Meets in her aspect, and her eyes...' Lord Byron

This was a prefab that appeared at some point on the scraggy field directly opposite the north face of the pyry. I can only recall it being used as a bingo hall for the old dears, one of which was my dear old nanna whom I used to walk up and down from it on a night. I remember at the end of the bingo session, as I stood outside waiting the door would open and a blue fog of stinking fag smoke would roll out, and from the mist would stagger all the old dears, one of whom was my lovely old nanna. I cant remember what else they used it for. Whatever, it is now gone. Was it burned down like Dr Raj's surgery?...

If you look closely at photo 2 of the pyry there is much to be gleamed... 2 names,'Tony' and 'Steve' are clearly visible in tar. Notice also the 'tar' tracks going up the pyry as they have 'tarred a path' as they climbed up, much like a mountaineer puts hook things in the rock as they climb... To the left of the unknown hooligan climbing the pyry you can see the tar track on its west side is more a tar smear/line because that side of the pyry was possibly the most popular side to climb:it was unusual for someone to try to conquer the pyry by climbing its south face. Hopefully one day we will have photos of the pyry from the north and east faces(yes photo 1 shows the east face, but this photo may have been taken before the discovery of 'tar') and can analyse the tar evidence there on... I remember as a kid to be able to say you 'climbed the pyry' required you to have climbed itvia all vertices and all faces...'only then had you truel...

Hey, the blog has already hit 50 posts! :)

The ramp, which is just visible on photo 1 of the pyry was obviously designed to allow prams etc from the bottom and middle areas of the estate to be pushed to the shops.(The posh types from the top end therefore had no need for this ramp) Shades, in his most excellent and interesting description of the pyramid and its intricacies in his blog 'Shades of Grey:Valley of the Kenton Bar Kings' points out that the tiles on the ramp were originally electrically heated in winter to stop it freezing over. This was something I had no recollection of. However, the ramp was not just used for prams. Kids on chopper and chipper bikes loved riding down it, as did the skateboarding hoards who also used the blue bit visible to the right of the pyry in photo 2 to practice their techniques and jumps on the sloping sides. Once the underfloor electric heating stopped working (or was switched off due to cost who knows?) the ramp was a perfect place to make a slide on in the icy winter...plus a...

This was another'game' we used to play...two teams, one foxes and one hounds. Once again, borders were set, basically all players had to keep on the estate, borders were Hazeldene Avenue Road, Hartburn Walk Park, no access to Kenton School fields(Hartburn Walk path being the limit)...we would play this game for hours. Again there was a prison which had to be guarded to stop captured prisoners being released by touching...Another rule peculiar to the estate was that no one could hide upon the flat roofs of the garages or bungalows...

We used to play this up at the shops on the 'plaza' bit next to the pyry proper, where the step pyry and alcoves with benches were, opposite the chippy. Our variation started with all players standing in a circle with shoes touching and a tennis ball was dropped inside the circle... if it rolled towards your shoes you were allowed to hit it 'pinball flipper' style but without moving your sabogs(shoes) too much. Whose ever legs it went through was 'on' and had to count to say 50 whilst everyone else legged it and hid round about the pyry/shops, but within a preagreed boundry zone. After counting to 50 the person who was'on' had to try to 'hit' a runner with the tennis ball. Once this was done, the person caught had to go to the 'jail' usually the aformentioned 'step' pyramid.(You were allowed to defend the throw of the tennis ball by the jailer using only your clenched knuckles-if it hit these you were ok, but if it hit any oth...

We used to play a game called 'garages' here which was a variation on the game of 'havas' already published on this blog by the master. Garages was identical except you had your own garage instead of your own hava to defend. If you conceeded 3 goals on your garage you were out, and the winner was the last man standing. Note here in the photo they have knocked down the garages to the right and landscaped them. Note also that the 2 black drainpipes on the garages to the left have been encased by a metal shroud presumbably to prevent kids climbing up on top of the garage roofs. This is the case for all drainpipes at all garages on the estate now.

This was a cuboid shaped building just afterthe row of shops after the offie. It is long gone as it was burnt down by hooligans I believe. The site is now a grassed area marked by a blue sign saying something like'welcome to Mallowburn Cresent shops' Dr Raj was the only doctor. Here is a photo of the site. The little path in front of the red post box led to a map, now long gone. The surgery itself was to the right of that horrible white 3 legged rusty sign which lists the names of the types of shops to be found...no doubt incorrect and outdated now. I presume there is now no surgery on kenton bar and the residents have to treck miles away to see a doctor...

Alas master, my visit to Kenton Library in the hope that the file on Kenton bar might contain the 4th photo of the 8th wonder of the world, the Pyry proved fruitless...However I was inspired to delve deeper into the past and will provide 3 photos on 'bygone Kenton Bar' which may be of interest. I realise margarine is not butter, but I shall never give up my master's quest to find the holy grail...

Kenton Bar, with the old Kenton Bar pub(inn) on the right. The finger post indicates Kenton Lane, and beyond it an old toll bar.Tolls were collected until the early years of this century. This view therefore looks north up Ponteland Road. So what's the estate named after students, the pub or the toll!?

This photo shows the original kenton Bar pub to the left of the horse and cart just behind the wall. The building to the right was the 'Kenton Post Office' The roadleading to the left was the original Kenton Lane. This view therefore looks south down Ponteland Road. The site today is completely covered by the roundabout at Kenton Bar.

This view is the approach to Kenton Bar from the north. On the horizon to the left of the road is the new Kenton Bar pub. It front of it then, must be the fields where the built the new estate and the 9th wonder of the world, the Pyry...

The last photo taken 1/2 way down Hazeldene Avenue, just after Apperley Ave shows some fool who ignored the new give way sign or was off his/her head....

Next we have a photo of a scar of one of the rediffusion cubby holes on Hartburn Walk. The new bricks mark where it was. I remember one time on FA cup final day some ghastly scoundrels somehow opened it and turned the switch off, in the hope of ruining the FA cup final coverage for the whole estate...dont know whether they were sucessful or not... By the way, fools would put black and white electricians tape over the 'H' on HARTBURN WALK, changing it to 'FARTBURN WALK' and black electricians tape over the 'DD' on the sign of STUDDON WALK, changing it to 'STUBBON WALK' ... 'The simplest things amuse the simplest of minds... '

At my master's behest I once again returned to Kenton Bar Estate. This time I took three photos. Theis one shows a front view of one of those 'car wash thingies' bought to my attention by the master. It is broken and useless, as they were when I was a little kid. I saw 3 more at least and all are broken and useless.

He e-mailed me yesterday privately - apparently there is a file on 'Kenton Bar" at the Kenton Library and he is going to view it soon............lets hope for some more pics and the elusive 4th Pyramid Pic.....please please please!!

I remember as a kid suddenly becoming aware of graffiti on the estate appearing at some point, maybe early 70's, on walls and in particular on the concrete walls down from the pyry: KBAB-this I subsequently discovered meant 'Kenton Bar Aggro Boys' At North Kenton shops all over the place was: NKBB-'North Kenton Boot Boys' NKHM-'North Kenton Henchmen' NKMM-'North Kenton Mad Mob' NKCW-'North Kenton Clockwork' All the estates round about had variations on this theme, I suppose an early form of tagging, but group tagging. The 'clockwork' thing I believe stemmed from the book 'Clockwork Orange' by Anthony Burgess, a most marvellous book. The film version by Stanley Kubrick is pathetic in my opinion, and was banned for years, unobtainable on video. When I finally got to watch it with alacrity I was horribly disappointed as it was nothing like the book, the imagery being coarse and crass, and indeed Burgess himself hated it as it ...

I just had to put up more footage... Remember, the blond in the flowery skirt...keep your eyes on the blond! Kenton Bar Pyramid Appreciation Society

The YWCA or 'why dub' as we used to say was located not actually on Kenton Bar Estate but a stone's throw away from it at the end of Thirston Way/Hartburn walk just down from the Hartburn Walk Park - actually if you look at the photo published with 'the desolation of Hartburn Walk Park' you can see to the far right behind the cars some new houses which were built upon the site of it. Anyway, it was the nearest think there was to a 'youth club' for us and I remember going through glam rock/ska/early punk era, at which point I switched my allegiance to Tommy Moors Youth Club. My favourite memories of the Y Dub were however the Northern Soul dancing and music which for some reason had a big hold in the club. Here is a video from utube to show how NOT to dance northern soul...Keep your eyes peeled on the blond in the flowery dress...The others aren't too good either, compared to some of the dancers at the Y Dub!   Kenton Bar Pyramid Appreciation Societ...

Yes – along with the Great Wall of China – two of the remaining climbing frames on Kenton Bar estate are visible from space………………….see this comment from ‘The Bosnian’  HERE Images are from Google Earth – the greatest ever web application……if you have not installed it – then do so NOW!!! First one is near the 3-storey flats at the bottom of the school field – nr. Hartburn Walk on the top of the small hillock. The second one is on Ryal walk – same as the one that Mensforth mentioned earlier – the table and chairs a La “Le Corbusier…….” Technorati Tags: Visible , Kenton , street , Furniture , Great , Wall , China , estate , Bosnian , HERE , bottom , Hartburn , Walk , hillock , Ryal , Mensforth , chairs , Corbusier

Aside from bollards there were other various pieves of street furniture – among them were these curious little “huts” that had a standpipe inside supposedly for car washing. I never saw one that worked (if it were opened) and all the closed ones seemingly had no keys. Anyone else remember the location of these little blighters? Here is one I found at Eland Close Technorati Tags: Wash , Thingies , Aside , street , furniture , location , Here , Eland , Close

Ok – a gauntlet was thrown down by Shades….find the “drain pipe bollards” – for those of you not in the know these were bollards improvised by filling a section of grey PVC drainpipe with concrete and then embedding it in the ground. Designed as a method to stop people driving their cars on the paved areas. I had thought that there would still be a fine example at the top of Thirston Way – but alas the evidence gleaned from Google earth says no…. Anyone else remember which streets that bollards were erected? if so get going on Google earth and see if they are still there…… Technorati Tags: Elusive , Bollards , Shades , method , example , Thirston , Google , earth , areas , streets

Anonymous also requested this! The circle scar is all that remains of the curved climbing frame in Reestones Place. In years to come no-one will know why it is there and what it was...

'Anonymous' requested a photo-so I went back and took one! This one is the one at Reestones Place.

As you can see there is nowt left, except a few bumps. Having said this, I can only remember the park in its glory for the first few years of my time on the estate. I wonder why they removed it all? Health and safety issue? there was, as I have said a roundabout, weird spinning hat thing, slide and swings. I seem to remember that the roundabout and weird spinning hat thing were removed first. Then, probably over time the rest of the park was vandalised... until it was rendered useless. I recall unsavoury peasant types used to throw the swings over and over the top bar time after time until the chain wrapped round the top bar so as to make the swings unusable. As for the slides the bounders would cover the slide bit with tar, (like that mentioned by my master used to climb the pyry) so spoiling it making it a 'stick' rather than a 'slide'... The bungalows to the left of the photo half way along the path were two bungalows knocked into one which was a childrens ...

photographed through the fence which now surrounds the field. I said it was no more but clearly it still is. It now has extensions to it, and seems closer, but maybe that's because I'm an octogenarian old man. When we were kids the plateau seemed miles away! I remember when I went to Kenton Comp and did PE Mr Lawrence would make us run up and down the plateau at the start of every PE lesson several times over. I began to hate the bloody plateau...

Took this photo from top bank on that little field above Hartburn Walk bungalows. The new school has been built in a totally new place, on the old fields, much closer to Kenton Bar Estate. Old school has gone-anyone know what they intend to do with the original site?

Whilst doing more of mein master, El patron's bidding I took four new photos. Here is the first. Now this rather pathetic effort at a rockery is, for some odd reason located rather haphazardly on the left side of Hazeldene Ave at the end of GunnerstonGrove as you drive down, up on the bank. I spotted it and suddenly remember another memory from childhood days strangely enough probably on the exact spot. I remember one morning we were out on our bikes and at this spot there apperared to be 2 or 3 cows buried up to their necks with only their heads showing. On closer inspection there was a fourth 'head' on its side with no body attached-presumably someone had killed the cows to sell the meat and dumped the heads as they drove past-A pretty horrific rather than hilarious sight. The police came and the heads of the poor cows were removed...

Anyone remember the time a kid called Norman discovered the body of a 'tramp' in the undergrowth on the middle of the big roundabout at the top of Kenton Bar?apparently he had been there some weeks...

Whilst doing my master's bidding I found out why they have a rotating security camera up on a lamp post up by the shops.(I was surprised to see it as Ive only ever seen them where the 1991 'riots' were- in meadowwell and scotswood.) Apparently the shops were constantly getting broken into/set on fire/smashed up etc by youths congregating under the awning which used to stick out above the front of the shops-I say used to because the awning has been taken down so the camera can see whats going on there, and stop them smashing burning etc...

Well actually there were none, nor are there any now! There was of course the 'Kenton Bar' at the top(Now the Crofters Lodge ha ha ha-I never saw no farmers round kenton bar!-get off my land!) but technically that was not 'on'the estate. Other options were the 'Kenton Quarry' along by Kenton Shops(Alas no more) or the 'Kings Court' at Kingston Park Shops-alas no more, now a Boots/Next. I never liked the kenton Bar a)because it was a right chore to trail up the bloody hill and b)it wasn't an S+N pub and didnt sell Ex(exhibition)-in fact it was a Vaux pub which = mackums=taboo!(I didnt like vaux beers either) The posh kids from the top ended up using the Kenton Bar, the peasants from the bottom the rough Quarry whilst the normals went down the Kings Court...(what nonsense...! ;)

I remember one time in the lovely snowy winters we used to have which alas we have no more, ( nor indeed do we have summer, but rather'cloudmer')-anyway i digress-I recall that during those lovely flip dark chill winters nights, (unsavoury peasant type ruffians (from the bottom end of the estate no doubt) would come up to the shops to the back of the lower flats down from the pyry...They would creep up on that back field bit and look up to the flats, searching for flats where the idiot occupier had left the 'slat bathroom window' horizontal, that is to say basically open. You could see all the silhouettes of the toiletries on the shelf...Next the horrible ruffians would make and throw snowballs through the slats, knocking all the toiletries off the shelf KATOOOOOMPHHH!!!!! Then they would run off into the night, laughing, leaving chaos and disorder. How do I know of this deed? Because I was always doing traffic surveys fora badge for the cub scouts. It used to upset ...

I remember one time, maybe early 80s? The Sun newspaper did a 4 page article about'football hooligan gangs' in England. I remember laughing my head off at what they said about Newcastle United hooligans-apparently they were called the 'Kenton Bar Boys' and wore dweeley boopers(or was it deeley boppers?) on their head with black and white kilts!(they may have also said starza jumpers, but Im not sure...)-All the kids on the estate thought this load of bollocks a great thing, but of course it was pure nonsense, made up by the Sun. I have tried to find this article but have been unable to. It may be possible to find it in the Sun archives online-(they charge for this however)but it was true I tell you! anyone else remember this?

Forward:For the unsavoury peasants, ruffians and vagabonds who came from the bottom end of the estate and wont know what these words means: An alumnus is "a graduate or former student of a school, college, or university. Notable means like important or famous... eg alan shearer who went to gosforth high school Was there anybody from Kenton Bar Estate, or even Kenton school who went on to be a 'notable alumni'?

we used to play massive games of football on the 'big field', that is/was kenton school field in the lovely summers we used to have but alas have no more. These went on for hours until it was pitch black. In the autumn as the field was all muddy we used to play on the tarmac down from the pyry, using the concrete wall with a goal chalked on it and jumpers for goalposts for the other one. We just used to have to ignore the climbing frame in the middle of the pitch. The ramp served as the one sideline as did the kenton bar school lower wall, so there were rarely throw ins. You could also play golf up on kenton school field-there was a course made by kids which was there for years, or you just go and sit up on the plateau. Some ruffians and bounders, probably from the rough bottom end used to fire golfballs at kenton school windows from the plateau, shouting "four!"That was shocking... Also, the posh kids from up the top, the one's with the RAF havas with 2 s...

I looked at the pitiful comment from Herr Mensforth  (you can see it HERE ) and noticed that he has been less than diligent in the discharge of his noble duties – i.e. he has NOT done my bidding correctly. Now I have had to waste my own very valuable time trawling the interweb to find out the street names of Kenton Bar Estate.  There are in fact 18 street names as follows:- Hazeldene Avenue Fawlee Green Ryal Walk Apperley Avenue Beal Green Byrness Close Mallowburn Crescent Studdon Walk Hartburn Walk Reestones Place Hazeley Grove Hazely Way Thirston Way Laverock Place Fourstone Closes Dunnykirk Avenue Eland Close Gunnerstone Grove I found an excellent map at this address HERE – ...

More Tudor crisp related stuff. I remember those butterfly freebies very well – made from a kind of felt – looking nowt like real butterflies at all. Technorati Tags: Tudor , freebies

Wear-em-Scare-ems - someone did actually collect them. Aparently a set was offered for sale on eBay recently. Here is a picture.... And here is the Tudor Crisps factory in Peterlee And some more lovely pics from the web coming soon.........including this one - the boy from the advert.

Apparently Mensforth never heard of Google image search……and Wikipedia….. It breaks my heart to know that Tudor crisps came from Sunderland. Not sure the list of flavours is correct though – what about Sausage and Mustard? From Wikipedia:- Tudor Crisps were launched and produced in the city of Sunderland , North East England in 1947. In 1961 they were purchased by Smiths Crisps . The brand focused on more unusual choices of flavour over the years including tomato ketchup, pickled onion, fried onion, fried tomato & bacon, kipper and even chocolate. Sales of the potato snack soared on the back of the ‘canny bag of Tudor crisps’ catch-line. The memorable 70s ads featured a paper boy, bribed with a ‘canny bag of Tudor’ to brave delivering his papers to a very tall tower block (In reality the Derwent Tower in , Dunston, Tyne and Wear ). In the 1980s the ads gave cult status to their star Allen Mechen, who played the adult paperboy who returned as a successful and ...

This was a pond with an island over the motorway and green bridge beside the 'posh' leech estate-we called it 'leeches pond'. I remember in the winter, in the lovely snowy winters we used to have which alas we have no more, the pond always froze. When we were 16/17 and had left school we used to play a game called 'tuggy on ice'-as in tuggy someone was'on' and had to 'tug' someone else to pass the 'on'-however the 'offs' or runners would smash a hole in the ice with their hoof heel then retreat behind the hole and antagonise the person who was on to run into the hole...and end up knee deep in the frozen lake! as there was maybe 20+ playing the game it was very difficult to remember where the 20+ holes were!It occupied our time very well! There was also a den built there which could compete with the tunnel complexes of the Vietcong!-(by a gang from the top of the estate(posh) Incidentally, recommended reading:'the pit' by ...

Shades, I thank you for inspiring me to wax lyrical about...Tudor Crisps. I remember they were only 2 and a half pence a packet and were lush. I remember one time at the shops someone somehow via the letterbox at the offie (I think it was with a stick with a hook on) managed to pull the Tudor crisp stand to the letterbox. Then Tudor crisps were accessed via the letterbox to the hordes of of kids for 'free'. Naturally I did not partake in this shocking crime and watched aghast at the deed... anyone provide a photo of Tudor crisps? anyone remember the flavours? why did they stop making them? :(

Anyone got any memories of trekking across the field from Kenton School at a lunchtime and using your dinner money to get some nourishing chips instead of the proper school dinner? I cannot remember what was there before the chippy and I am told it is STILL a chippy – but – on rare days I had enough for chicken and chips but most days it was a plain old mince pie and chips and a can of cheap pop (that’s soda for our Trans-Atlantic cousins). I remember one time one of our bunch, and to this day I cannot explain why, picked up what seemed to be a dried dog poop from the field and ate it – NO it was not me!! I am sure it was some sort of sleight of hand whereby the dried poop was replaced somehow by a nice sweety – but it has stuck in my mind for the last 25 years or so…..! Of course now the kids are not allowed to trek across the field and I am sure they have some nut cutlets on offer at the school instead of chips….. Technorati Tags: Chip , Shop , memories , Kenton , School , lunch...

Weel – they mean anything to anybody? – Mensforth?

At the behest of Monsieur Mensforth I have put the photos side by side with the pictures he recently took whilst doing my bidding on Kenton Bar Estate. The shots show two views of the pyramid – yes only 2 of the three in the world!! The second photo is dated as 1/1/81 so it has an age – I suspect the first picture is much earlier judging by the lack of graffiti. I have to attribute the first photo to a chap called Ian Grey – I took the image from his excellent blog “Shades Of Grey” that can be found HERE This is the  a comparison of  the  view towards the small stand of shops at Mallowburn Crescent As you can see the pyramid is now totally erased What a sad sad sight. This is a comparison of the view towards the other direction - towards Studdon Walk. Again the pyry bank, pyry and all the crappy ponds are gone. Now all is covered in flowers to paraphrase...

I thought I would publish Mensforth's research as a post instead of a comment - for all to see he is doing his master's bidding properly. From Mensforth's mouth:- hava's 'For carrying stuff to school, a briefcase or a haversack was recommended...I rapidly transitioned to a Haversack which whilst having two straps was only to be worn over one shoulder otherwise you were categorized as a Puff or a Spaka.' Thanks to original poster, shades, for this quote. What he is on about is the uniform requirement for Kenton school, an item of which was the haversack or as we called it, the 'hava'. You could get it in grey or yellow/kharki/brown-most went for the latter. However, my recollection was that, yes, it was only 'cool' to use one strap, BUT....only geeks and poor fools kept the other strap on, dangling down loose because I recall watching in abject horror at break time at Kenton school as horrible hurtful types hunted down poor geeks and v...

Yeah yeah yeah – I know – it is not strictly Kenton Bar related but many of us did go to Kenton School so here goes….. Yes Kenton School did have a game that rivals Eton's wall game AND Harry Potters Quiddich - we had the magical game of "Havers" - The brief rules were that a ball was kicked between in informal set of goals, each player defending their own "goal". The Goal consisted of either a school bag (for the posh kids) or a haversack or school sweater placed on the ground. Havers was usually played on the tennis courts or in the lower yard. I even remember it played with a stone replacing the ball on those days no one could nick a tennis ball to play with. AS a side note – most kids had the usual brownish coloured haversack and posh kids has the RAF blue one….we used to paint the lid of the haversack in an attempt to to waterproof and personalize it. I myself painted mine with metallic blue enamel paint (Hammerite actually stolen from my Dad's tool...

Mensforth has been busy!! Here are some photos from the camera of Mensforth himself. Kenton Bar Estate – the scene of the pyramid. Basically they have knocked the pyramid down and replaced it with some horrible landscaping. Instead of the beautiful concrete and tarmac they have this – what a travesty of justice. Le Corbusier would turn in his grave. Odd concrete climbing thing -'There was also a 3/2/1 thing by the flats at Hartburn Walk-on the little plateau by the school fields' (to go with Mensforth comment on parks)-aside:wonder if it was meant to be some kind of step pyramid?-still there today and indestructible ! These are photos from the same angles as the pyramid photos published below He tried to photograph them from the exact same spots as the originals on the website! Sadly the pyramid is gone :( Imagine running along this, leaping over the stairs(about 2m gap) to land on the blue!-what a height to drop if you got it wrong!'...(from original thu...

Whilst the rest of us were strumming ourselves Monsieur Mensforth has been busy doing my bidding. I dispatched him down to library and he looked through their archives. he found the grand sum of two photos of Kenton bar:- This is a view of Kenton Bar from Kenton lane looking down towards the top of Ryal Walk (does anyone know where the street names came from on Kenton Bar?). Just to the right of the lamppost you can see one of the legendary maps!!!. And – next the THIRD picture of the Kenton bar Pyramid on the web – see it here first…… If you click on this image you will be able to see the full size version. Just to the right of the lone tree you can see the top of the pyramid peaking over the rooftops.  This next image is from the brochure used to promote Kenton Bar as the place to live (I presume by the developer?) It shows a lady in a sheepskin coat whilst some kids gambol in the background. The reality is that the place she is depicted as standing in would have been cov...

Can anyone think of the good points about the flat roofs on kenton bar? Here are mine: but first, the getting up on them-we used to climb out of top back window on the split levels-as for the bungalows-we just used to run and bunk up!-the 4 bedroomed houses-access to top roof via bunking up on porch roof then bunking up to very top! So all roofs were climbable. 1. I recall we and everyone else climbed up on the roof to see concorde come to newcastle airport once-there were hundreds of people up on the roofs! 2. Sunbathing-excellent for this purpose, as wasps etc didnt go up that high 3. Snowballs-go up on the roof when it was dark and make several snowballs( from lovely virgin snow). Next hurl snowballs rapid fire at nearby flat windows/across into other bungalow squares and listen for the....KASHTOOOMPHHH!-then-leg it back into house! Ha ha ha!