Tourism and travel

If your boots are made for walking, then come along and join in the fun. This is a walk for independent walkers led by the Friends of the Park. Walks take place in and around the park and South Shields area. Some for further afield.

A one hour walk exploring the parks and coastal routes of South Shields

A photography exhibition unlocking the hidden world of algae is currently on show at the Great North Museum: Hancock. Celebrating the extraordinary diversity of this curiosity of natural history and the important role that algae plays in aquatic ecosystems and in the maintenance of life on Planet Earth.

The Hidden World of Algae includes a series of photographs of a variety of algae which over the years have been shortlisted or have won the Hilda Canter-Lund prize. Over the past three years, the competition has attracted entries from around the world. The exhibition also features photographs and original prints by Hilda Canter-Lund herself.

Hilda Canter-Lund was a freshwater biologist based at the Freshwater Biological Association in the Lake District. She was interested in the microscopic algae that live suspended in lakes, and in the even smaller fungi that parasitize these. In addition to her scientific studies, she was also an excellent photographer whose photographs were featured in many books on natural history. She died in 2007, upon her death, the British Phycological Society, a scientific society dedicated to the study of algae, established the Hilda Canter-Lund Prize in her honour.

Discover the rise and fall of Gibside’s families, including Mary Eleanor Bowes, one of the 18th-century’s richest heiresses, whose torturous marriage was a cause celebre of the Georgian era and subject of bestselling book, Wedlock.

If you’ve ever been inspired by watching the Olympics, seen a sport on TV you’d like to try, or have been thinking about getting back into an activity you once played - then the Active 500 campaign will make it easier to turn your thoughts into reality.

Active Newcastle is absolutely determined to make the 2012 Olympic Games, which take place in the UK for the first time since 1948, something the people of Newcastle will feel a part of and remember for generations to come.

In the lead up to the Games, Newcastle upon Tyne, as an official Olympic City, will host Active 500 - an innovative campaign that aims to encourage people, in the 500 days leading up to the start of the Olympics on July 26th, to get involved in one of the 30 Olympic, or 21 Paralympic, sports.

With the help of sports clubs around the City, the centrepiece of this campaign will be the Active 500 calendar which will run from the 15th March 2011 until the opening day of the 2012 games. This 500-day calendar will be themed into ‘sport weeks’ - with each Olympic activity being allocated two specific weeks.

During these weeks, City sports clubs will run sessions to inspire people, of all ages and abilities, to get involved in an Olympic sport. These sessions might be an open evening, a free taster session, or even an open performance for people to watch! In addition to this participation by sports clubs, Olympic sports sessions will also be held in Newcastle City Council, and partner, facilities to widen the opportunities for people to get involved.

The Active 500 campaign intends to capture and reflect the rising sense of anticipation and excitement as the 2012 Games draw near. For Newcastle to be one of the host cities is a fantastic opportunity for the region and by raising participation in physical activity it is hoped that people will be inspired to really feel, and be a part of, the Olympic spirit.

Other elements of the Active 500 campaign will include the School 500 Games in June 2011 (the largest single-authority multi-sport event ever to be held in the UK) and a history project aiming to identify as many people as possible that have been touched by the Olympics in the last 65 years e.g. competitors, volunteers, coaches, officials, and spectators.

The Launch Event for Active 500 will take place at the Newcastle Civic Centre on the 14th March 2011 (500 days before 2012 games begin) and will include a video address by Lord Coe, interviews with past, present and hopefully future Olympians, Active 500 sports club testimonials, a dance Performance, and the unveiling of the Active 500 sports calendar.

Ultimately, Active 500 is all about harnessing the enthusiasm that the 2012 Olympic Games will bring to the City - to get More People, More Active, More Often! The campaign is also a fantastic opportunity for the City’s sports clubs, that deliver Olympic sports, to raise their profile, attract new people and be a part of the 2012 Olympic celebrations.

If you live or work in Newcastle, are a visitor to the City and would like to find out more or if your sports club is interested in getting involved and would like more information on the Active 500 campaign please contact Kate Hall by E-mail at kate.hall@newcastle.gov.uk or telephone 0191 278 3348.

A newly-commissioned contemporary intervention by Barnaby Barford responds to the Laing Art Gallery’s Permanent Collection. It explores a contemporary morality tale relating to themes in the collection, through a series of seven sculptures that touch on our insatiable appetite for celebrity culture and living beyond our means.

Old skool ingredients, dub, reggae, retro hip hop, funk, soul, and tasteful elektro, with a hint of nu skool spice from DJ's Paul Campobello, Robbie Mc and Seamus Appleton. Plus two live sets of experimental bass and beats from Stephen OJAY Jones and inter - active visuals from FLY FILMS.

The first in a new touring exhibition traces the use of collage in British art, from the first influences of the Parisian avant-garde in the early work of Ben Nicholson and Surrealists Eileen Agar and Roland Penrose through to present day artists such as Steve Claydon, David Noonan and Idris Khan.

It will include traditional collage on paper, alongside painting, sculpture, film and slide projections, all drawn from the Arts Council Collection.

Artists involved: Ben Nicholson, Eileen Agar, Roland Penrose, Steve Claydon, David Noonann, Idris Khan and more.

Artists involved: Ulla von Brandenburg, Mark Wallinger, Yves Klein, Camillo Paravicini, Michael Crowe, Katja Mayer & Peter Chadwick, Chris Cornish, Samantha Clark, Georgina Mascolo, Susanne Ludwig, Victoria Jenkins, Natasha Caruana, Hannes Ribarits, Anton Corbijn, Tom Pope, Tereza Zelenkova, Michelle Hannah, Jason Dee, Martin Kellett and Sophie Helas-Kwo

‘The Wonders of the Visible World’ brings together 18 international artists who use photography and video to explore the relationship between the visible and the invisible worlds. The artists explore the ongoing potency of myth and illusion in the visual arts – finding that the world we imagine we know is far less secure than we might first believe. As all of the artists use lens-based media, they all capture physical phenomena that defy belief, or defy description.

The Laing Art Gallery’s unique collection of artworks charts the changing face of art over the years. Drawing on that resource, this display showcases extraordinary works from artists including Laura Knight, Augustus John and Frank Auerbach. From the realistic, to the abstract and surreal; it presents a journey through a century of art.