The Tyne Bridge is getting a long-overdue repaint, and will be restored to its famous "Hollybush" green colour.
But the Tyne Bridge has not always been green.
And the task of painting it has never been easy.
A short thread... 🧵
The Tyne Bridge was originally painted with three coats of special paint supplied by J Dampney and Co of Gateshead. The outer coat was Dampney's Superlative Middle Green.
In more recent years, the bridge has been repainted with a British Standard green known as Hollybush.
But the Tyne Bridge has not always been green. For a couple of decades, it was blue.
In 1961, Newcastle Council decided to paint the bridge "Persian blue" (with ash grey, crimson red and Wedgewood blue detailing).
The bridge was blue until 1985.
The blue Tyne Bridge can be seen in the 1976 Likely Lads movie.
Here's Bob:
The 1985 Tyne Bridge repaint made national news when painter Terry Donnelly was pictured in the Daily Mirror performing a handstand on the top of the arch, 193 feet above the river.
Terry was sacked, and his boss said he would be better off working in the circus...
The Tyne Bridge urgently requires repainting. It was last fully painted in 2000, and the whole structure has been neglected.
But a recent funding announcement means work has now begun, and over the next 2 years the bridge will finally be restored.
(Spot the workman...)
The image on the front of my new book shows the Tyne Bridge on its opening day in 1928, shining with a fresh coat of Dampney's Superlative Middle Green.
Click here to read more and to get the book:
tynebridgebook.com/
Paul Brown
@paulbrownUK
Writes about stuff: history, football, true crime, rocketbelts. New book: The Tyne Bridge: tynebridgebook.com Newsletter: singulardiscoveries.com
