A Trip to the Newcastle Quayside Market
Share:
When my parents were growing up back in the 1970s and 80s, a weekend would not be complete without a saunter around the Newcastle Quayside market, and I too have one or two memories of visiting from my younger days. Whilst my parents didn’t take me to the market regularly, I do recall, on the odd occasions I passed through, seeing a dying market feeling very sorry for itself, selling little more than cheap tat. Compared to my parents’ memories of a thronging hive of activity, it seemed a shadow of its former self.
How times change…
Visiting last Sunday (market day), the Quayside market had amassed a considerable crowd for a crisp November’s morning, a respectful number of shoppers for any time of the year in fact. I weaved my way through crowds of people taking in the work of skilled local craftsmen including artists, bakers, butchers and even a man making mirrors. There was plenty of characterful street food on offer, too, at reasonable prices and, in the summer at least, there’s the exotic Quayside beach to lounge on. Redevelopment of the Quayside started at the turn of the twenty first century, with the Millennium Bridge taking centre stage. Today the vibrant Newcastle and Gateshead Quayside is perhaps the best cultural venue in the North of England and the jewel in the crown of an already venerated city.
The market has changed with the times too. People aren’t merely interested in bric-a-brac anymore; they want unique and high quality products from independent retailers. Markets also help to put the pleasure back into shopping – browsing stalls and interacting with their owners makes visiting a market a very engaging and unpredictable experience, where you never know what you might find. The market experience truly is a world away from the stuffy, artificial and over-commercialised world of the Metrocentre.
Like the Tynemouth Market, the Newcastle Quayside market is a perfect example of a market fit for the modern age.