Sixty-five years ago - and the heavy industry that had come to define Tyneside still held sway on both sides of the River Tyne.
Our latest video offering, courtesy of the North East Film Archive, might not possess 21st-century high-definition - but the aerial footage, captured from a plane flying the course of the Tyne from the North Sea, still vividly recalls the shipyards, factories, workshops and smoking chimneys that once lined the river, and the myriad vessels that sailed on its waters.
The silent colour film Bridges On The River Tyne was shot around 1957 by amateur cameraman Milton Newton. Beginning at the mouth of the river, with both piers clearly visible, our footage shows North and South Shields, before much shipping and industry appears as the aircraft flies inland westwards above the Tyne
READ MORE: Tyneside in 1978 - 10 photographs from around our region 45 years ago
The well-known ‘David and Goliath’ crane can be seen at Vickers-Armstrong’s naval shipyard at High Walker, and the Ouseburn can be seen flowing into the Tyne. Approaching Newcastle and Gateshead we see the unmistakable shapes of the Tyne Bridge, Swing Bridge, and High Level Bridge. (The Millennium Bridge, QEII Metro Bridge and modern Redheugh Bridge were still decades away from being built).
And there are more bridges - the King Edward VII and the old Redheugh - plus views of the famous Vickers-Armstrong factory at Elswick, Dunston B Power Station, followed by the old Scotswood Chain Bridge and the now-disused Scotswood Railway Bridge. The industry and housing finally give way to green fields and less dense settlements as the plane flies above Newburn, Wylam and beyond.
For anyone wanting to watch more archive footage like this, but in DVD form, Newcastle On Film has been specially produced by NEFA. Presented and narrated by Pam Royle - latterly of ITV Tyne Tees News fame - it pays homage to life on Tyneside and features lots of wonderful archive film footage.
The DVD Newcastle On Film is priced at £12 (including postage and packing), and all profits from the sale go back into the valuable work of the North East Film Archive. Buy it here. See more from the North East Film Archive at www.yfanefa.com
READ NEXT:
Tynemouth Plaza - a vanished seaside attraction that stood for nearly 120 years
The lost Gateshead cinema that attracted moviegoers for half a century
- 10 years since Newcastle United's last European away day: 10 photos of fans in Lisbon, Portugal
A launch on the River Tyne in 1968 - and the lost world of Tyneside shipbuilding
A vanished rural North East railway station - and its rebirth in a new location
