TV star Tim Healy grew up in the Benwell area of Newcastle in the 1960's and had what he described as a "normal but happy childhood."
And having always stayed true to his roots, Tim is passionate about helping the youth of the North East. He has teamed up with Children North East and told ChronicleLive about their importance this Christmas.
He also reminisced about his childhood in the city. "I lived at the bottom of Colson Street. My family had a shop and we lived in the upstairs flat in that building. It was a wonderful community and everyone who lived in the area either worked in the mines or the shipyard," he said. "It wasn't a rich place, sometimes a wagon would come and dump half a ton of coal and we'd collect it to keep us warm.
