Columnists
Lighting the way ahead
8:50am Tuesday 17th September 2019
IT’S the darkest of subjects but please stick with it – there’s light to be found through the power of music and friendship.
Farewell to Darlington's table tennis king Wilf Gilbert
11:20am Saturday 14th September 2019
IN the week that the judging took place for this year's Local Heroes Awards, it's so sad to hear about the passing of the wonderful Wilf Gilbert, one of the stars of last year's event.
Singing out a mnemonic for a no-deal exit
2:33pm Thursday 12th September 2019
THE Brexit Party rally at Sedgefield Racecourse on Wednesday was frenetic. A strong, chill September wind blew wrappers from the burger stand across the paddock so that they wrapped around the ankles of people caught up in the hubbub, while a Norwegian camera crew ambushed people in the queues, looking for close-ups of the turquoise party shirts as they tried to understand what the hell the British were up to.
Acting the fool
5:00am Thursday 12th September 2019
AS she toddles joyfully towards her third birthday next month, Chloe's imagination is becoming ever more magical.
Mike Amos meets the man behind the revival of Shildon Carnival
5:00am Wednesday 11th September 2019
FOR medical reasons which need not now detain us, there wasn’t going to be a column this week. Then Paul Evans got in touch about matters close to – well, close to the bit of the anatomy which now diverts the docs. This very weekend, Paul’s resurrecting Shildon carnival.
The Crook lad who joined the 1860s gold rush to Australia
10:30am Saturday 7th September 2019
It was just a passing reference, a throwaway line as they might almost say in the Crook and District Games League, whose annual presentation we reported a fortnight back.
Julia Breen: Checkmate for 'United' Kingdom
10:00am Thursday 5th September 2019
AS I write, the Commons have just passed the Brexit delay Bill.
Filibustered out by a big girl's blouse
3:08pm Thursday 5th September 2019
THE tension in the House of Commons in the last 72 hours has provided for some extremely notable speeches, principally from Sir Nicholas Soames and Kenneth Clarke, and some extraordinary outbursts.
Exploring the Old Shildon vein
5:00am Wednesday 4th September 2019
A LITTLE book called Blanchland’s Lead Mining Heritage makes much of exploring the Old Shildon vein.
Friends in need – service helping bereaved children at risk of closure
6:00am Monday 2nd September 2019
JACK and Toby are “besties”. With beaming smiles, and arms round each other’s shoulders, they burst, noisily, through the door.
Julia Breen: Not 'Project Fear' - but now a very real possibility dark days are ahead
12:25pm Friday 30th August 2019
AT the risk of (again) incurring the waspish wrath of our most vocal Brexit-supporting readers, I have to say, I told you so.
Transporting the next generation to a thriving future
11:11am Friday 30th August 2019
AUGUST is a month of exam results: less than a fortnight ago, young people across the Tees Valley received their GCSE results, and the week before that, many more got news of how well they did in their A Levels.
Mike Amos travels to a village flooded with community spirit
5:00am Thursday 29th August 2019
WHEN they told the new editor of the Reeth Gazette that the news would come to him they may not have imagined the awful, awe-ful events of Tuesday, July 30.
Silly suds - why men shouldn't be let loose on the washing-up
8:30am Wednesday 28th August 2019
THIS column has always been unashamedly written from a male perspective. The intention has been to bang the drum for dads (and now grandads) in the hope it might inspire greater understanding and perhaps even bit of sympathy along the way.
Back where they fell in love - ashes of wartime sweethearts flown from Canada to former RAF base
9:01am Monday 26th August 2019
UNANNOUNCED, the two women stood drenched and silent, shedding a few tears, as they carried out their parents’ last wish in the pouring rain.
Headline Challenge - 2019 so far in quirky headlines
6:00am Friday 23rd August 2019
The Headline Challenge is played every weekday morning on the BBC Tees breakfast show (95fm). Peter Barron, and occasionally Chris Lloyd, bat for The Northern Echo, coming up with a funny story from around the world and challenging listeners to produce a better headline than theirs. Points are awarded for the best headline each day and it's double-points for a song title, film, play or book.
"I can't envisage doing a show without her" - Punch and Judy entertainer Brian Llewellyn on the loss of his wife
4:50am Monday 19th August 2019
JUST like Punch and Judy – Brian and Marilyn were a double-act that fitted like a hand in glove.
Plenty to celebrate on a Saturday afternoon in Tow Law
5:00am Wednesday 14th August 2019
AS ever when blessed by Norman Deacon’s green fingers, the flower festival at St Philip and St James’ church in Tow Law proved a magnificent occasion. As with so many other churches, it was also good to be there and not be attending a funeral.
A case worthy of investigation
7:40pm Monday 12th August 2019
CRAMMED into a battered old brown suitcase, amid the usual bric-a-brac of a car boot sale, a terrifying but precious glimpse into wartime life in a North-East town has emerged.
Hannah Chapman
Opinion on the issues of the week by The Northern Echo's editor.
Mike Amos
Characterful people and colourful places of the North-East.
Chris Lloyd
Chris Lloyd on a quest to understand today’s world.
Peter Barron
Weekly columns from The Northern Echo's former editor.
Chris Moncrieff
Weekly political comment from Chris Moncrieff.
Julia Breen
Anti-injustice, pro-equality, sometimes ragey.
Ben Houchen
Monthly column from Tees Valley Mayor, Ben Houchen.
Mike McGrother
Encouraging people to talk about mental health.
Mike Barton
Durham Police chief Mike Barton's monthly column on policing.
