Voices
Giving local leaders a platform for their views on all things Tees. Photo by Ian Robinson.
The Joys of ‘Patch Birding’
This month I am going to share with you some of the joy I get from bird-watching (or birding as we tend to call it these days) on my local patch – a scrap of grassland, wetland and woods along a 1-mile stretch of Ormesby Beck in Middlesbrough – by describing a typical...
Julie Donaldson: The loss of a legend
At the end of October, Julie Donaldson, a multi award-winning radio presenter, passed away at James Cook Hospital due to Covid. The Tees lost a legend. Julie is probably best known for hosting the midweek breakfast show on Zetland FM. She has been a “hugely valued...
Remembering Club Bongo
Club Bongo - a beacon for inclusivity, diversity and multiculturalism by Lisa Lovebucket, with contributions from local historian Jay Tee, artist Bobby Benjamin, playwright Ishy Din and music producer Donny Jevs "Abdillahi Warsama had been catalysed into opening his...
Being an ally to the Black community
"So how can we stand with black people in the fight against racism? How can we be an ally to the black community and create a fairer society?" Take these facts: Black people are nine times more likely to be stopped and searched by police than white people Black people...
The transformational potential of Black History Month
"Black History Month, at its most powerful links the ‘ordinary’ and the suffering of these lost lives." Black pain and suffering is a familiar occurrence in the things we watch, read and scroll past on social media. From 12 Years a Slave to Kidulthood our movie...
Ivy – Villain or Hero?
The familiar lobed leaves, which give the name to several other unrelated plants (such as Ivy-leaved Toadflax and Ivy-leaved Speedwell) are found on young plants only. More mature plants have simply oval-shaped leaves. What comes to mind when you think of Ivy? For...