We step out in West Street, Gateshead - an area that's undergone much change since our earlier photograph was captured 35 years ago.
At the centre of our two images, captured and kindly shared by amateur photographer Trevor Ermel, is the distinctive sculpture Sports Day . As the first work in Gateshead's new public art programme in the mid 1980s, it was intended as a focal point for an extensive scheme of environmental improvements in the town centre.
The four-metre high sculpture of reinforced, painted concrete was built on site by Mike Winstone, Gateshead's sculptor in residence in 1986. As Gateshead Council points out: "Although alluding to Gateshead's renown in sports and the International Stadium, the sculpture avoids clichéd representations of athletic prowess, tensed muscles and 'action' poses."
READ MORE: A night out in Newcastle 50 years ago - and a very different city centre
If Sports Day remains unchanged, the surrounding area has undergone much transformation. Trevor points out: "The older photo was taken in January 1987, three days before the closure of Shopping City, the former Shephards department store. Sports Day was a new addition to the scene, only unveiled the previous year."
Shopping City was based on the concept of offering a mix of brands where retailers could rent their own space - but most folk of a certain age will prefer to remember the building when it was home to Shephards of Gateshead. The popular department store occupied the West Street premises from 1949 - when it was rebuilt after fire destroyed an earlier store - until 1980 when it closed and Shopping City took over.
Unfortunately, the recently opened Metrocentre and easy Metro access to the shops of Newcastle had severely dented footfall and in January 1987, Shopping City was getting ready to shut up shop for good, with ‘closing down sale’ signs visible in the store’s windows.
Trevor adds: “Sports Day still dominates West Street today, but the new buildings on the right have completely transformed the area.” Those buildings replaced the brutalist, concrete, 1960s-built Trinity Square shopping area and its looming multi-storey car part which sparked endless controversy during its lifetime.
The car park fell into gradual disuse and the shops struggled for sustained business. In July 2010, the bulldozers moved in and the whole place was demolished by early October. It had stood for little more than 40 years. In 2013, a new, re-built Trinity Square complex opened at the heart of Gateshead’s rejuvenated shopping area, boasting leading retailers, big-name chain restaurants, and the state-of-the-art Vue Cinema.
READ NEXT:
- The well-known Newcastle building and a very different view 160 years ago
- Farewell to Sunderland Airshow: How it began and 20 photos from down the years
- 55 years of the Tyne Tunnel - 10 photographs recall its early days in the 1960s
- Tyne Tees' stylish TV adaptations of Catherine Cookson's Tyneside novels
-
Ashington Railway Station, Northumberland: Its rise, fall, and a planned return
