Test your knowledge on TV show
Are you a Mastermind? – and would you go on national TV to prove it?
Hat Trick/Hindsight Productions are currently casting contestants for the next series of the longrunning BBC Two quiz show and inviting applicants from the North East to get involved.
Casting director Ayrton McGurgan said: “We are looking to cast a diverse range of people. Anyone can apply as long they are over 18."
Successful applicants will have a Skype audition involving a short general knowledge quiz and learn more about why they’ve chosen your specialist subjects. The audition will only take 15-20 minutes.
To apply, email mastermind.hth@hattrick.com for a link to an online application form.
Applications close on Monday May 24 2021.
Beast from the East 2 – spare a thought for the people of Sunderland who faced a winter with 67 days of snow on the ground.
Did you live through the Arctic blizzards of 1963? Plenty of you did and what a winter it was.
A s we have been in the grip of snowstorms for a few days, we take a look at the hazards Sunderlandfaced58yearsago.
Phil Curtis from Sunderland Antiquarian Society takes up the story.
Six million tonnes of snow fell on Sunderland that year. It lay 13 inches deep at times.
It was so cold that Sunderland went through 45 days of snow falling, and 67 days of it lying on the ground.
Phil said: “The real cold weather arrived at the end of December with Christmas Day 1962 the coldest since 1947, but the real blizzards arrived on Wednesday, January 2 when a three-day blizzard hit Sunderland.
“Sport was an early casualty on January 1 when a record number of football matches were postponed including 29 of the 32 FA Cup ties.
“One of the games that did go ahead involved Sunderland who were away at Preston. Thousands of fans made the hazardous trek to Lancashire and were rewarded with a 4-1 victory.
“Snowfalls over the next few days came in freezing blizzards raging for hours at a time. By January 9, bitterly cold gales up to 70mph whipped the snow into giant drifts, up to 15 feet high.
“Arctic nights were followed by daily snowfalls lasting hours. Sunderland had 12 snowploughs and eight gritting machines all working flat out clearing bus routes.
The first two weeks of that January saw 13 inches of snowfall on Sunderland. Many areas were regularly cut off by blocked roads and gridlocked traffic.
Motorists in difficulty were told to help themselves to the contents of the town’s 50 grit boxes so snowploughs would not have to make unnecessary journeys.
People clearing their footpaths were told not to dump it in gutters in case Sunderland’s drains became overwhelmed.
To make matters worse, a measles epidemic saw 200 cases reported in the first two weeks of the year and there was also an increase in pneumonia among the elderly.
By January 15, temperatures rose slightly but this brought a new problem – burst water pipes. The following day, Wearside was back in the ‘deep freeze’ with 11 degrees Fahrenheit (-11ºC) of frost, more snow and more
blocked roads.
Burst water pipes continued to rise and the Water Company warned about the dangers of explosions from lighting boilers after the hot water system had frozen up.
January 24 was the coldest of the winter so far and even saw reports of anti-freeze having frozen in cars.
On February 1, three hours of continuous snow came and burst pipes reached 12,196 since the turn of the year.
By February, the snow was so deep that some of the snow ploughing was abandoned. Heavy fresh falls throughout the month continued.
Phil added: “As March arrived so did the thaw. The ‘Mini Ice-Age’ thankfully was over.”
Did you live through the winter of 1963? Tell us more by emailing chris.cordner@ jpimedia.co.uk
A former fly-tipping blackspot has been transformed into “attractive new homes” thanks to a partnership between public and private sectors.
Monkwearmouth-based housing company MCC Homes has worked with Sunderland City Council to complete five bungalows in Elmwood Avenue, Southwick, with the construction of another 15 properties expected to start soon.
Founded in 2017, the firm specialises in delivering smaller residential developments on unused pockets of land.
Operations director Luke Lee said: “We are delighted to be developing a strong partnership with Sunderland City Council and we are really pleased that in working with us, they’re backing a local business and Sunderland supply chains, who we always prioritise on our projects.
“As someone who was born and lives in Sunderland, it’s fantastic to be able to work on projects that add value to my home city and that give us spending power to invest in the local supply chain, delivering homes that are made in Sunderland, by Sunderland people, for Sunderland people.”
MCC Homes previously concentrated on its own private developments, mainly in Sunderland, and expanded its horizons when Luke and his brother, Jordan, were joined by managing director Paul McCoy.
The council’s investment in the bungalows is part of a plan which has seen the local authority once again become a Registered Housing Provider, renting its first homes in more than 20 years.
It has also started a programme of construction – building its first new properties in 40 years – as well as buying homes developed by
MCC Homes.
Councillor Rebecca Atkinson, dynamic city portfolio holder at the council, said: “This is a fantastic partnership, that shows the value of the work we are doing as a local authority to invest in our communities.
"Not only are we creating a range of attractive new homes that will meet the needs of people across the city, but we are supporting the local economy in the process, working with local businesses who in turn reinvest that spending power into local people and other local SMEs.
"Local community wealth building is absolutely central to our ambitions as a council."