Opened 9th November 1936 as a cinema. Converted to a Bingo Hall in 1961. Damaged by air raids during the war. Unusual interior layout - seats run at right angles to the road with the screen being on right hand side of building as viewed from Forest Hall Road. This arrangement was adopted to save the housing behind when it was constructed. LOCAL LIST

Perfect example of a traditional seaside ice cream parlour. One of the very few remnants of Whitley Bay's heyday as a popular seaside resort. This landmark building is much loved by generations of locals and visitors. Edwardian seafront leisure facilities in brick with Diocletian windows. An atmosphere of time gone by. Internal lighting, floor coverings and counter survive. Shown on Ordnance Survey 4th edition. LOCAL LIST

Seventy-bedroom hotel on The Promenade. Once home to a popular folk club. A host of well known musicians played here in the early days of their careers, including Gerry Rafferty, Billy Connolly, Ralph McTell and Lindisfarne, who 'came home' for the club's 1970 Christmas party following the release of their first album, "Nicely Out of Tune". The hotel had quite small beginnings. In December 1906 the Waverley Hotel Company submitted a planning application for a temperence hotel. It was one of a chain, the others being located in Barrow, Whitehaven and Penrith. Over the next ten years, the Waverley Hotel swallowed up the neighbouring houses on the Promenade and vacant land on South Parade. A 1920s pamphlet described the Waverley as one of the largest and most up-to-date private residential hotels on the North East coast. It then had 150 bedrooms and a heated garage. Behind there was a private tennis court. In 1937 the hotel obtained a license to sell alcohol for the first time and about the same time changed its name to the Rex Hotel. LOCAL LIST

An impressive decorative structure, circa 1925. Complete with name, its inter-war white faience façade stretching around the corner site. Burtons is now part of a national chain known as the Arcadia Group.
In 1903, Montague Burton was only 18 years old when he borrowed £100 from a relative to open the Cross-Tailoring Company in Chesterfield. "Good clothes develop a man's self-respect," was one of Burton's insights. He was dedicated to providing high quality made-to-measure suits at a reasonable price, revolutionizing the industry with his promise of "A five guinea suit for 55 shillings." At the start of World War I, production changed from suits to uniforms which clothed nearly a quarter of the armed forces. By 1929 Burton had four hundred shops, factories, and mills when the company went public. Montague Burton was knighted in 1931 for his efforts in "furthering industrial relations and international peace." He was appointed Justice of the Peace, a post he held for many years. His ambition was not only to clothe the nation and to raise the bar on the quality of life for his employees, but also to co-operate and collaborate with those working for the advancement of culture and education worldwide.
The House of Burton played a major role in creating the United Nations Association. In 1934, the Princess Royal Mary visited the Burton factory in Leeds where she met throngs of cheering factory girls and complimented Sir Montague on his magnificent achievement in creating a pioneering welfare system for the workers. On the eve of World War II, The House of Burton again turned to the production of uniforms for the troops. After the war, Burton produced a suit for war veterans nicknamed "The Full Monty". In 1952 Sir Montague passed away. At the time of his death the company was the largest multiple tailor in the world. LOCAL LIST

Built between 1921 and 1930. Also known as the Gaumont Cinema and Empire Theatre. Later Sylvester's Nightclub.

Dilapidated concrete bunker with corrugated metal roof. This was the Operational Base of Kibblesworth Auxiliary Unit Patrol which was part of Area No. 3 (along with Hetton, Haswell, Wheatley Hill, Washington and Birtley). Area No. 3 was commanded by Captain A C J Burningham. The patrol was formed in 1941. The patrol targets were Kibblesworth Bombing Decoy site, the East Coast main railway line, the Consett to Sunderland railway and the Tanfield Railway, local roads and bridges. The patrol members were trained locally and at Middleton on the Wolds. An Operational Base is an underground structure intended for use by members of the British Resistance Organisation in the event of invasion. GHQ (General Headquarters) Auxiliary Units were specially trained secret units. Winston Churchill appointed Colonel Colin Gubbins to form the units in summer 1940. Auxilliers were recruited from the Home Guard. The men were trained on weekend courses at Coleshill House near Highworth, Wiltshire, in the arts of guerrilla warfare including assassination, unarmed combat, demolition and sabotage. They were trained in explosives - fire pots, time pencils, cordite, ordinary fuses. The unit was equipped with revolvers, rubber truncheons, sten guns, rifles, commando knives, blasting gelignite explosives, fire pots with time pencils, cordite wasp fuse cord, grenades and sticky bombs. Each Patrol was a self-contained cell, expected to be self-sufficient and operationally autonomous in the case of invasion, generally operating within a 15-mile radius. They were provided with a concealed underground Operational Base (OB), usually built by the Royal Engineers in a local woodland, with a camouflaged entrance and emergency escape tunnel; it is thought that 400 to 500 such Obs were constructed. All patrol members were issued with a cyanide capsule and were instructed to use it if wounded or captured to avoid compromising local residents.

In 1924 Watergate Colliery (HER 7000) was opened by Priestman Collieries Ltd, who built the Broom Lane Housing Scheme at Whickham to house the miners. The architects were Watson & Scott from 160 Pilgrim Street, Newcastle. A designated path led from the estate to the colliery (HER 9302).

Priestman Collieries Ltd built a designated footpath from their Broom Lane housing estate (HER 9303) to Watergate Colliery (HER 7000) to ensure that the miners got to work on time. The cobbled path still survives as do the 'miners steps' built of colliery bricks stamped with the letters 'APC' and concrete. There is a second set of steps, recently uncovered by park volunteers, again built of bricks with sections of stone and concrete, but less well-preserved. There is also another path NZ 2122 6039 to NZ 2168 5983 also from Broom Lane.

In January 2007 after deep ploughing of a field by the Woodland Trust to create wild flower meadow grassland, a distinctive circular feature was revealed, formed by a dark soil with coal and shale inclusions, against the surrounding pale plough soil. Almost certainly a bell pit. There is probably a second pit some 30m or so to the south-west. Found by the Sunniside Local History Society.

Former maternity hospital. Shown on Ordnance Survey third edition of c.1919.