Friday 17th April 2026: Jubilee Hall
7:15pm for 7:30pm
Industrial Archaeology in and around Longframlington
Speaker: David Willoughby
The industrial archaeology around Rothbury reflects a landscape shaped by extractive industries, innovative engineering, and medieval water power.
1930 image of the Longframlington to Whittle Aerial Cableway. It shows the ‘midway station’ with a loaded tub suspended high above the fields
The local economy was historically underpinned by the extraction of coal and limestone from the Carboniferous rocks that define the Coquet Valley’s geology.
Longframlington was a primary mining hub from the 1860s to the 1930s. The Colliery once employed hundreds and utilized a 4-mile aerial ropeway to transport coal to screens at Whittle Colliery.
There was also a 3-mile aerial ropeway running from The Healey Cote pit across the river to Brinkburn Station.
The Tosson Lime Kiln is a standout example; built in 1888 for Lord Armstrong, to produce quicklime for agricultural improvements. It operated until WWII, when its nighttime glow was deemed a risk for attracting enemy aircraft.
Friday 15th May 2026: Jubilee Hall
7:15pm for 7:30pm
Houses and Hearth Taxes In 17th c Northumberland
Speaker: Dr Adrian Green
The hearth tax (1662–1689) acted as a census-style map of 17th-century Northumberland. By using fireplaces as a proxy for wealth, these records provide an unparalleled look at the region’s social and economic hierarchy. For the population, this tax was a significant financial and psychological burden; at two shillings per hearth annually, roughly a full day’s pay for a skilled tradesman, it forced many to choose between warmth and solvency. For the first time they felt the weight of state surveillance, as ‘chimney men’ held the intrusive legal right to enter private homes to verify counts. This led to widespread resistance, with some residents bricking up fireplaces, a desperate move during the Little Ice Age. Ultimately, the records capture a society in transition from a defensive mindset lingering from the era of the Border Reivers to one facing the growing administrative reach of the post-Restoration government of Charles II.
Friday 19th June 2026: Jubilee Hall
7:15pm for 7:30pm
The Rise, Fall and Rise again of Seaton Delaval Hall
Speaker: Liz Finch
Our speaker, Liz, will take us on a journey through the history of Seaton Delaval Hall, a dramatic Baroque masterpiece designed by Sir John Vanbrugh. She will also take us behind these grand stone walls to uncover the chaotic history of the ‘Gay Delavals’—an aristocratic dynasty that treated their magnificent mansion as a giant, mechanical funhouse. In the 18th century, this notorious family invited high society to wild, candle-lit parties, only to be terrorised by rigged bedrooms featuring sinking beds, disappearing walls, and upside-down rooms. Yet beneath the laughter lay a chilling reality: a suspected family curse struck down generations of male heirs through bizarre, untimely deaths, wiping out the family line shortly before a mysterious, devastating fire gutted the central hall in 1822. Today, the estate stands as a haunting, romantic monument to England’s most eccentric family.
Trip to Seaton Delaval Hall
Wednesday 22 July 2026
August 2026: Summer Break
Following our entertaining and well-received talk by Liz Finch from the National Trust, we are proposing a trip to Seaton Delaval Hall on the 22nd July. The visit will take the form of a short guided tour (Liz has said she will try to be our guide that day) and information about the Hall, with time to spend exploring the Hall, gardens and grounds.
Transport
We have booked the Community minibus for the day; space is limited & if demand is high, we may ask if people can share cars.
Facilities & Accessibility
The site has most of the facilities you would expect. There is a lovely coffee shop but we can’t book so you might want to take a picnic. The property is likely to be quite busy.
Most of the property and estate is accessible, and there are mobility scooters for free hire on site- please contact me for more information and booking.
Cost
Transport costs: for the minibus or fuel- approx £5 per passenger
Entry: special group discount £14.25pp (Free to NT members)
Signing up
Members will be given preference. At this stage, numbers and costs are still to be finalised, and to do this, we ask all members interested to sign up by filling in the attached form, or replying to this email and providing the following information:
Names (members)
Name (non member) Space cannot be guaranteed
Special requirements (eg access)
Are you a NT member?
Do you require a minibus place?
Would you be happy to use your own transport/offer a lift?
Please reply no later than 6th JULY
Friday 18th September 2026: Jubilee Hall
7:15pm for 7:30pm
Photographing The Coquet Valley 1890s-1930s
Speaker: Stan Owen
Join us for an exclusive local history presentation uncovering the rare, historic landscape photography of Sydney Victor White and Walter Percy Collier. Together, their remarkable collections provide a vital window into one of England’s most isolated landscapes across two vastly different eras.
Discover how these two pioneering documentarians tracked the River Coquet from its wild, high-altitude source near Makendon down to the coastal harbour of Amble.
Sydney Victor White (1890s)
A prominent commercial photographer from Berkshire who travelled north with heavy glass-plate cameras. His exquisite late-Victorian monochrome prints capture Upper Coquetdale as a bustling, independent civilian farming valley long before military intervention.
Walter Percy Collier (1912–1937)
The legendary Bellingham photographer who traversed the valleys by bicycle. His iconic interwar postcards preserve the final years of traditional rural life, the old river water fords, and local farming families right before the modern world took over.
Friday 16th October 2026: Jubilee Hall
7:15pm for 7:30pm
Border Irregular Marriages
Speaker: Linda Bankier
RUNAWAY COUPLES & LOVERS
Seeking a Speedy & Lawful Union,
ATTENTION!
WHEREAS the late oppressive Act of the English Parliament hath unlawfully restricted your natural Liberty, strictly forbidding all Secret Weddings and demanding the tedious reading of Church Banns or the harsh Consent of Parents: Know ye that a safe Sanctuary awaits you just across the Scottish Border at Coldstream Bridge!
LET IT BE KNOWN to all brave and amorous Souls that the ancient Laws of Scotland view Matrimony not as a heavy religious Burden, but as a Free and Mutual Civil Contract. No Church, no Priest, and absolutely NO PARENTAL PERMISSION is required to secure your everlasting Bliss! By the simple Exchange of mutual Consent before two Witnesses, any Youth or Maiden of lawful age may be legally and indissolubly joined in wedlock in an Instant.
Secrecy, Dispatch, and Moderate Fees may be firmly relied upon by all who flee the English Law!
Coldstream History Society hold records of irregular marriages.
Click here to find Rothbury folk who eloped to Coldstream Bridge.
Once on the site select one of their books. Then click Ctrl and F together and then enter Rothbury or a surname into the search box in top right of screen to find record(s) of interest.
Friday 20th November 2026: Jubilee Hall
7:15pm for 7:30pm
The Border Liberty of Islandshire
Speaker: Paul Barrett
The Border liberty of Islandshire was an historic administrative enclave and semi-independent jurisdiction (liberty) located geographically in the far north of Northumberland. Remarkably, despite being entirely surrounded by Northumberland and the North Sea coast, it was a detached exclave of the County Palatine of Durham and was ruled directly by the Prince Bishops of Durham until the 19th century.
The territory of Islandshire was bounded to the south by a stream aptly named the County Burn. It traditionally comprised:
• Lindisfarne (Holy Island) and the adjacent Farne Islands.
• Five mainland parishes in north Northumberland, with major settlements centred around Tweedmouth and Scremerston
Friday 18th December 2025: Jubilee Hall
7:15pm for 7:30pm
Bamburgh and Beyond
An Evening of Music, History & Imagery with Andy Craig
Experience the spirit of the Northumberland coast with “Bamburgh & Beyond,” a multimedia presentation by local landscape photographer and singer-songwriter Andy Craig. This unique evening seamlessly weaves art, nature, and centuries of history into a captivating live performance. Guests will be treated to stunning slideshow of Andy’s signature photography, capturing the raw, breathtaking beauty and changing moods of the shoreline.
Accompanying these images is an evocative acoustic set featuring original songs inspired by the rugged nature of the Northumberland coast. The heart of the performance introduces a collection of storytelling songs written specifically to chronicle the tales, ancient legends, and dramatic history of Bamburgh Castle.
Friday 15th January 20267 Jubilee Hall
7:15pm for 7:30pm
The History of The Holy Grail
Speaker: Michael Thomson
Fragments of Faith: Did the Grail Leave a Mark on Northumberland?
Can there be any truth in the many stories about the Holy Grail coming to Europe, and even to Northumberland? From the Arthurian legends of Bamburgh Castle to the whispered Jacobite secrets of the Radcliffe family, the rugged north has long been haunted by tales of a hidden vessel. When historian Michael set out to investigate these myths, he expected only medieval fiction. Yet, he began to uncover an unexpected truth.
His journey led toward tangible, enigmatic discoveries—most notably the 5th-century lead chalice unearthed at Vindolanda. While mainstream archaeology claims there is no evidence of the Last Supper cup in Britain, Michael’s research reveals that this fractured artifact provides a hauntingly authentic “layer of reality” behind the legends. The line between Northumberland’s myths and its buried history might be much thinner than we think.
February 2027: Winter Break.No events
Friday 19th March 2027: Jubilee Hall
7:15pm for 7:30pm
Transatlantic Blues
The North East Music Scene and the US Civil Rights Movement in the 1960s
Speaker: Prof Brian Ward
Professor Ward will take us on a journey back to the 1960s Tyneside blues explosion—the era that birthed legendary local bands like The Animals. Discover how the North East’s vibrant music scene was deeply shaped by African American blues, and how our region responded to the unfolding US Civil Rights struggle.
The talk highlights an extraordinary convergence in 1967, when both Dr Martin Luther King Jr. and Jimi Hendrix famously visited Newcastle.
Don’t miss this unique look at how global politics and legendary sounds collided right on our doorstep.
