Culture Digest 03.07.26
Our weekly round up of the arts and culture stories which caught our attention this week
Coming to the Bowes - a David Bowie treasure trove
How to follow a Vivienne Westwood exhibition? The Bowes Museum has surely found the answer with an exhibition of more than 100 items from the David Bowie archive at the V&A (London’s Victoria & Albert Museum).
The County Durham venue is included on the tour itinerary for David Bowie: On Tour, hosting what it has dubbed Bowie at The Bowes from October 2027 until January 2028.
For Bowie fans in the North East and from further afield it promises a remarkably intimate insight into the world of one of pop music’s most fascinating performers and innovators.
The tour, featuring items never previously displayed in public, will open at V&A Dundee in November this year and then proceed to Blackpool before arriving at the Bowes Museum next year.
Victoria Wood’s dinnerladies heading to Stockton Globe
More than 25 years after it first aired, dinnerladies is returning in a new stage adaptation, with Les Dennis leading the cast as maintenance man Stan.
The production, the first commissioned by the Victoria Wood Estate, will visit Stockton Globe from March 9-13, 2027, following its premiere in Manchester.
Adapted by Beth and Emma Kilcoyne and directed by Sean Foley, the new show promises a fresh storyline inspired by the much-loved sitcom’s original characters and episodes.
Dan Jackson tells the story of Newcastle United - and the city behind it
The story of Newcastle United Football Club is being explored through the lens of North East history in a new book by bestselling author Dan Jackson.
Howay the Lads!, published this autumn, traces the club’s journey from its Victorian roots to the modern era, arguing that Newcastle United’s fortunes offer a window into the wider social and cultural history of the region.
The acclaimed author of The Northumbrians, examines the club’s rise to Edwardian football dominance, its long pursuit of silverware and its enduring relationship with the city and supporters who have remained fiercely loyal through triumph and heartbreak alike.
Along the way, he revisits iconic figures including Colin Veitch, Jackie Milburn and Alan Shearer.
New operator takes plunge at City Baths
A new operator has been found to safeguard the future of Newcastle’s listed City Baths and Turkish Baths.
The building, an Asset of Community Value, originally opened in 1928 and is one of only 11 remaining Victorian-style Turkish Baths still open in the UK.
Greenwich Leisure Limited (GLL), the UK’s largest public service charitable social enterprise, has now formally taken control of the centre. Read more
Unearthing new voices at Live Theatre
Live Theatre’s Unearthed Festival returns tonight (June 30) with a distinctly feminist focus, shining a spotlight on female, non-binary and trans voices as part of a packed celebration of new writing and emerging talent.
Kicking off with Mother? a new play about the realities of motherhood from Rachel Stockdale the annual festival will once again transform the Newcastle theatre into a buzzing hub for fresh ideas, work in progress and first-time performances with a programme of shows, readings, scratch nights, socials and masterclasses designed to support the next generation of theatre makers.
This year’s edition, which runs until July 11, sits within a wider Live Theatre season framed by powerful feminist voices, including the recent run of Shelagh Stephenson’s Astell and Woolf and Alison Carr’s All At Sea, which will premiere in the autumn.
In a blog accompanying the festival launch, John Dawson, Live’s artistic development producer writes: “These works remind us that the stage can be a place of resistance and reclamation. They ask who gets to speak, who gets to be remembered, and who gets to imagine themselves at the centre of the story.”
Time to look ahead to two North East light shows
It seems time is having a light-bulb moment of sorts as two installations prepare to offer illuminating experiences across the region.
First up is Luxmuralis will return to Durham Cathedral this autumn with Time, a new immersive light and sound experience inspired by humanity, history and imagination.
Running from October 7–11, the after-dark installation will transform the cathedral’s interior with projections and soundscapes exploring the mysteries of time, drawing inspiration from H G Wells’ The Time Machine.
Marking Luxmuralis’ fifth consecutive year at the cathedral, the 45-minute experience is expected to be another sell-out, with advance booking strongly advised.
The theme will then continue in Newcastle a few weeks later when festive light trail, Northern Lights returns to Leazes Park from November 20 to December 31 with a new offer: A Christmas Time Machine.
Organisers say this year’s experience will take visitors on a nostalgic journey through Christmas past and present with new light installations, interactive moments and immersive storytelling. Tickets on sale now.
New creative night aims to give North East artists a first audience
A new monthly showcase designed to support emerging North East creatives is set to launch at The Blue Star pub on Barrack Road in Newcastle this summer.
Blueprint will provide a space for musicians, poets, spoken word artists, actors and other performers to share new work in front of a supportive audience, with organisers keen to champion creativity in all its raw, unfinished forms.
Held on the last Tuesday of every month (by our reckoning that means July 28 for its debut outing), the event will feature pre-booked performers alongside potential open mic slots.
Organisers say they are particularly keen to hear from emerging and working-class artists looking to test new material, find collaborators and become part of a growing creative community.
To find out more or register your interest, email blueprintne@outlook.com
Northumberland fort gets Lottery boost
Britain’s most complete Roman fort has been given a funding boost to improve its status still further.
English Heritage has been awarded a development grant of £286,623 from The National Lottery Heritage Fund for the Shared Horizons Project at Housesteads Roman Fort in Northumberland.
The grant will allow the charity to work with its partners, the National Trust and Northumberland County Council, to plan further phases of the project, including improvements to the museum building, reinvigorating and broadening current site interpretation, refurbishing the activity centre, creating pathways for accessible access and improving on-site facilities, as well as making the site more environmentally sustainable.
English Heritage said the award represents an important next step in delivering a long-term project to transform the historically significant site on Hadrian’s Wall, making it easier for more people to explore and telling more of the fort’s remarkable stories. Read more
Tributes paid to comedian Paul Sneddon, who helped shape North East comedy scene
Paul Sneddon, the comedian and writer better known to audiences as Vladimir McTavish, was remembered yesterday as one of the comedy circuit’s great good guys - a sharp, politically astute performer whose warmth and generosity off stage left a lasting impression on countless fellow comics.
The Scottish comic has died aged 70, prompting tributes from across the UK comedy world, including many in the North East where he played a significant role in shaping the live comedy scene.
Alongside comedian and actor Dave Johns, who shared his sadness at his passing yesterday, he co-ran the Newcastle Comedy Festival for almost a decade from 1993, bringing major comedy talent to North East audiences.
Over a stand-up career spanning more than 30 years, Sneddon became a fixture of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and appeared on numerous BBC radio and television programmes.
He was a director of the acclaimed Stand Comedy Club, which has venues in Glasgow, Edinburgh and Newcastle. Announcing his death, a heartfelt statement from The Stand statement described him as “a much treasured and loved” figure on the Scottish comedy circuit.
Baby and book prize make it an eventful week for Satomi
A new children’s book prize took its first public bow in Newcastle with a ceremony in the appropriate setting of Seven Stories, the national centre for children’s books, which is currently celebrating its 21st anniversary.
It was a lovely event and an encouraging one for northern authors and illustrators who might have been feeling a bit out of things.
Emma Layfield, who co-founded the Children’s Books North Network (CBNN) Prize with two colleagues and in partnership with New Writing North, has been feeling their pain.
She told the audience that class and geography presented “serious obstacles” for authors and illustrators based in the North.
“The further they are away from the London bubble the more hurdles there are to overcome,” she said. Read more
Cars on the Concourse
Synth-pop pioneer Gary Numan is set for a special performance at The Glasshouse later this month.
Performing in the venue’s Concourse on July 18 as part of its Summer Mix Tape programme, the Cars singer will bring music spanning a career of more than four decades.
Though forever linked to his early electronic hits, Numan’s darker later work has continued to influence generations of artists across industrial and alternative music. Tickets here.
Final sale celebrates Wooler artist’s legacy
An exhibition of work by a prolific Northumberland artist will conclude tonight (July 3) with an auction of 100 of her paintings.
The display of artworks by Joyce Tully, who lived in Wooler, has been running at the town’s No6 Gallery in High Street.
This evening, there will be a final gathering at the gallery followed by the sale by local auctioneer Jim Railton at 7.30pm.
Joyce Tully was born in 1933 and died in 2023, and many of her works featured Northumbrian scenes.
Royal Metro enters retirement in style
The Metro train on which Queen Elizabeth travelled when she officially opened the system in 1981 has been donated to a North East museum.
Carriage 4020 has been given to the North East Land Sea and Air Museum (NELSAM) at Washington, where it will go on public display.
Metro operator Nexus said it was delighted to have found a home for the train, fulfilling its pledge that two would be retained for heritage purposes as the old fleet is phased out.
The Queen travelled on the train from Monument to Gateshead when she visited the region to officially declare the Metro system open.
King Charles also travelled on the same carriage in November 2021 when he visited Newcastle, as Prince of Wales, to mark Metro’s 40th anniversary.
Metro’s last remaining old trains completed their final runs in customer service on June 26. Read more
Gordon Burn Prize opens for entries
Entries are now open for the 2027 Gordon Burn Prize, with the winner set to be announced in Newcastle next March.
Founded by New Writing North, Faber & Faber and the Gordon Burn Trust in 2012, the prize celebrates bold, boundary-pushing writing that challenges convention and reflects the spirit of the late North East writer and journalist Gordon Burn (1948-2009).
The deadline for entries is August 1. Details for entry can be found here.
The 2026 prize was won by Maria Reva for Endling.