A year of triumphs and of heartaches

Dec 26 2008 by Chris Robinson, The Journal

JANUARY

AS Sam Allardyce was paid off by Newcastle United after seven months, the Messiah returned to Tyneside.

Kevin Keegan arrived back at St James’s Park to cheers of thousands of fans “walking in a Keegan wonderland”.

More than 20,000 tickets were sold in just two hours for the team’s first match with King Kev at the helm.

A JOURNAL investigation uncovered emails from British Library staff against the Lindisfarne Gospels being returned to the North East.

One high-ranking official described the campaign to bring back the 8th Century work in honour to St Cuthbert as “regionalism gone mad”.

BRAVE schoolgirl Emily Clark was treated to her first haircut after battling cancer.

The five year old had been diagnosed with condition Wilm’s Tumour and specialists found a further three tumours inside her body.

But the smiling youngster finished her chemotherapy and also enjoyed her first holiday with sister Lily and parents Claire and Stuart.

NORTHUMBERLAND air base RAF Boulmer was saved after a Journal campaign.

The base, the single biggest employer in Alnwick, generated £18m for the local economy in salaries.

The Ministry of Defence announced Boulmer’s air surveillance and control system would remain and would not be scaled back.

IN a late night call to The Journal, Newcastle businessman David Abrahams, the man at the centre of the Labour Party donations row, said he had had nothing but “begging letters” from people after his alleged involvement.

And in more political shenanigans, disgraced MP Derek Conway, the former Tory leader on Tyne and Wear County Council, admitted using taxpayers’ money to overpay his son, hired as his personal assistant.

A committee ruled Freddie Conway, a student at Newcastle University, was “all but invisible” during his employment, at a cost of £40,000.

MEANWHILE, we urged our readers to Buy Local, Use Local and Eat Local, in a campaign to promote the benefits of buying and using locally-sourced foods.

FEBRUARY

THE Emerson family were a surprise hit online with their musical antics singing Chirpy Chirpy Cheep Cheep.

The nine-strong breed, from Walbottle, Newcastle, were filmed in an exuberant performance while celebrating a 50th birthday renaming the classic Middle of the Road song Chorpy Chorpy Cheep Cheep.

Singer Mike Emerson said: “In the first couple of weeks it only had a couple of hundred hits ... but things just went ballistic.”

NEWCASTLE United legend Paul Gascoigne was detained under the Mental Health Act following a disturbance at the city’s Malmaison hotel.

It was claimed he was walking around the building with a plastic parrot under his arm and making it talk to other guests.

Fans and friends, including Kevin Keegan and Sunderland boss Roy Keane, came out to support the troubled ex-player .

A TEENAGER was convicted of killing his two young sisters in a house fire.

Shane Spence, 17, was cleared of murdering Tatum and Demi-Jade but found guilty of their manslaughter. The fire started at the family’s home in Lisle Road, South Shields, on April 4, 2007.

TROUBLED bank Northern Rock was nationalised.

The news sparked fears of job losses for the 6,500 staff many based in Newcastle.

Chancellor of the Exchequer Alistair Darling said returning the bank to the private sector was the Government’s long-term goal.

SIR Bobby Robson celebrated his 75th birthday by launching a major fundraising scheme to help people in the region beat cancer.

He announced he would raise money for a new cancer research centre in Newcastle after revealing he was fighting the condition for the fifth time.

CLERICAL assistant and fun runner Leanne Symonds became the millionth entrant to the Great North Run. The 32-year-old of Cramlington, Northumberland, was preparing to take part in her first half marathon from Newcastle to South Shields when she received the news.

Race organiser Brendan Foster said: “I have met Leanne and I know her number so I’m sure I’ll be saying a few words from the commentary box.”

PLANS were revealed to build a hotel room on top of Grey’s Monument.

Promising to be the ultimate room with a view Hotel Monument would be 40-metres above ground.

The idea came from Japanese artist Tatzu Nishi and announced as part of the 2008 Culture 10 programme.

A MAJOR rescue operation was launched after 200 people were stranded on a major North East road in a blizzard. About 130 cars were abandoned on the A66 outside Bowes, near Barnard Castle, County Durham.

Drivers were forced to leave their vehicles on the road and a bus of pensioners was also rescued from the ferocious conditions.

MARCH

THE killers of disabled Brent Martin, who kicked and punched their victim for more than an hour, were jailed.

William Hughes, 22, Marcus Miller, 16, and Stephen Bonallie, 17, were said to have acted “like a pack of animals”. They were jailed for a total of 55 years and Judge John Mitford considered handing out sentences above Home Office guidelines to act as a real deterrent.

Their sentences were cut three months later on appeal.

KEVIN Keegan, back to save the Toon, was promised the time he needed to overhaul the Newcastle squad.

Chairman Chris Mort said he had seen enough from the style of play Keegan has brought to Newcastle to earn him time, despite another St James’s Park defeat.

Speaking at the time he said: “Kevin came in knowing it was going to be a very difficult job. He is capable of getting our team playing in a manner everyone appreciates.”

JORDAN Jobson, aged just 15, was convicted of murdering 18-year-old Samantha Madgin in a Wallsend alleyway.

On a cocktail of drink and drugs, she stabbed the young mother to death, prompting questions over the availability of alcohol to youngsters and society’s attitude to knife crime.

Samantha’s mum Alison later went on TV show Trisha to get the message out to teenagers about using knives.

A BAD run of form put Sunderland in a difficult position towards the end of the season, but Roy Keane was pleased to finally be able to select his strongest side ahead of a crucial run of fixtures. Carlos Edwards, Kieran Richardson and Kenwyne Jones had still not featured in the same side, but the Black Cats had a strong squad against top-half teams Everton, Chelsea and West Ham United.

They went on to face relegation rivals Fulham and Newcastle, in games which ultimately decided which division Sunderland would play.

AS heavy winds swept across the North East, people in Northumberland were surprised to see the fields of wind turbines shuddering to a halt.

Operators had to stop the turbines because winds were too strong, which opposition groups say was yet another flaw with wind energy. The next day, national air traffic control bosses said building turbines was “disastrous for the environment”.

THERE was a dramatic day for North East rugby when Newcastle Falcons parted company with director of rugby John Fletcher, hours after the club’s star player Jonny Wilkinson had been dropped by England.

Although some had expected Wilkinson’s exclusion, the removal of Fletcher, along with forwards coach Peter Walton, came as more of a shock.

Fletcher took over as director of rugby in August 2006. The club’s coaching and technical director, Steve Bates, was put in as replacement.

A JOURNAL investigation uncovered a website selling fake university degrees.

The website, which also offered transcripts with a fake breakdown of marks, said it would customise the certificate with the customer’s name, university and degree.

It disappeared following The Journal probe. In national news on the same day, missing schoolgirl Shannon Matthews was discovered.

NORTHERN Rock announced a third of its workforce would be made redundant.

They decided at least 2,000 staff would be axed over the next three years as the bank changed to conform with European Union rules on state aid.

A rapid response unit was set up tasked with finding employment for the workforce as quickly as possible. The next day’s The Journal looked at how to rebuild the Rock.

THE Journal discovered massive delays on the East Coast mainline, causing millions of pounds worth of lost time.

Vandalism on the railways contributed to more than 9,000 hours of delays in the North East and over £200m in lost time for passengers in just one year.

The East Coast Main Line running through the North East was ranked as one of the worst in the country for delays and disruption second only to its counterpart in the West.

DESPITE his troubles, Newcastle United player Joey Barton found support from one of his fellow team mates.

Nicky Butt told his team mate that he himself had suffered at the hands of the crowd, but had won them over with his consistently good form.

He told Barton that the sort of form which made him an England international would mean Barton could enjoy a similar change in fortunes.