Club Meeting, Vice Chairmans Challenge 3 - Tuesday 8th April 2025.
Following the success of his previous challenges, ‘My Home’ and ‘My Town,’ Jeremy Cooper presented the results of
his third and final Vice Chairman's Challenge on Tuesday 8th April 2025. Members were invited to submit five images
centred around the theme of ‘My County.’ Fourteen photographers accepted the challenge, contributing over seventy
images of Northumberland.
The evening opened with images by Stephanie Robson who stated that Northumberland is a wonderful county with
castles, gardens, woodland and rivers and illustrated this with shots of Alnwick Gardens and of Warkworth Castle
viewed from the Coquet Estuary. Peter Downs followed with a different approach, showing images taken from the
air during a pleasure flight giving a new perspective of our beautiful villages and coastline. Picturesque walks and
stunning beaches were also showcased by Paul Appleby, with examples of local wildlife included in his selections.
Pat Wood highlighted the wide-open spaces and deserted beaches of Druridge Bay, Alnmouth and Holy Island. Closer
to home Keith Prat identified the quaint alleyways and street furniture he had found in Morpeth and the offshore Couple
Sculpture at Newbiggin by the Sea. Karin Jackson took us around the lakes, gardens and woodlands at Cragside, which
were complemented by the unique architecture captured in her image of Cragside House.
John Thompson had captured the stunning beauty of the Cheviot Hills with a series of images taken over many years
of exploring this wild area of Northumberland. Dramatic skies over rounded hills, autumn colours and winter scenes
were included in his presentation. Jeremy Cooper followed with images that showed the natural beauty of the area
and people, sheep, horses and visitors at a traditional Country Show. Glyn Trueman also featured pictures of people at
the Northumbrian Gathering, with the Morpeth Gadgie, musicians, and storytellers among his well-captured selections.
In another change of direction, Eric Anderson featured the architecture of National Trust properties at Wallington and
the calm and tranquillity of the QE2 Country Park and lake. Davy Bolam featured monochrome images of castles in
Northumberland with brief notes on their history, whilst David Pitkeathley also covered the architecture of Capheaton
Hall, Codgers Fort Folly and the bridges and city walls of Berwick upon Tweed.
David Moore also viewed Northumberland from a different perspective, from the saddle of a horse with rides around
Hulne Park at Alnwick and the area around St Cuthbert's cave. Dave Bisset started at the Chain Bridge on the River
Tweed, led us south down the coast, reminded us of the mining history of the area with a visit to Woodhorn Colliery
and finished at the old Northumberland/Durham border in the Tyne Pedestrian tunnel.
Jeremy thanked everyone who had contributed to the evening and recognised that a lot of hard work, planning, and
thought had been put into each submission. The images confirmed that the County of Northumberland is indeed Britain's
best-kept secret.
Davy.
his third and final Vice Chairman's Challenge on Tuesday 8th April 2025. Members were invited to submit five images
centred around the theme of ‘My County.’ Fourteen photographers accepted the challenge, contributing over seventy
images of Northumberland.
The evening opened with images by Stephanie Robson who stated that Northumberland is a wonderful county with
castles, gardens, woodland and rivers and illustrated this with shots of Alnwick Gardens and of Warkworth Castle
viewed from the Coquet Estuary. Peter Downs followed with a different approach, showing images taken from the
air during a pleasure flight giving a new perspective of our beautiful villages and coastline. Picturesque walks and
stunning beaches were also showcased by Paul Appleby, with examples of local wildlife included in his selections.
Pat Wood highlighted the wide-open spaces and deserted beaches of Druridge Bay, Alnmouth and Holy Island. Closer
to home Keith Prat identified the quaint alleyways and street furniture he had found in Morpeth and the offshore Couple
Sculpture at Newbiggin by the Sea. Karin Jackson took us around the lakes, gardens and woodlands at Cragside, which
were complemented by the unique architecture captured in her image of Cragside House.
John Thompson had captured the stunning beauty of the Cheviot Hills with a series of images taken over many years
of exploring this wild area of Northumberland. Dramatic skies over rounded hills, autumn colours and winter scenes
were included in his presentation. Jeremy Cooper followed with images that showed the natural beauty of the area
and people, sheep, horses and visitors at a traditional Country Show. Glyn Trueman also featured pictures of people at
the Northumbrian Gathering, with the Morpeth Gadgie, musicians, and storytellers among his well-captured selections.
In another change of direction, Eric Anderson featured the architecture of National Trust properties at Wallington and
the calm and tranquillity of the QE2 Country Park and lake. Davy Bolam featured monochrome images of castles in
Northumberland with brief notes on their history, whilst David Pitkeathley also covered the architecture of Capheaton
Hall, Codgers Fort Folly and the bridges and city walls of Berwick upon Tweed.
David Moore also viewed Northumberland from a different perspective, from the saddle of a horse with rides around
Hulne Park at Alnwick and the area around St Cuthbert's cave. Dave Bisset started at the Chain Bridge on the River
Tweed, led us south down the coast, reminded us of the mining history of the area with a visit to Woodhorn Colliery
and finished at the old Northumberland/Durham border in the Tyne Pedestrian tunnel.
Jeremy thanked everyone who had contributed to the evening and recognised that a lot of hard work, planning, and
thought had been put into each submission. The images confirmed that the County of Northumberland is indeed Britain's
best-kept secret.
Davy.