Our River Stories: Gilly Long
Now Gilly Long has taken the baton from Phyll Thorman to share her trip down memory lane…
“Our River Stories: This concert is especially close to my heart and ‘Big River’, ‘All in a Day’ and ‘Black Trade’ are particularly poignant for me.”
“I was born in Walker (and have a twin and older sister) very close to Walker shipyard. My two uncles worked there as Pattern Maker and Electrician. My father worked in the accounts department of a firm called Hawthorn Leslie Engineers Ltd based on the river at St. Peters. The firm was involved with engine making and development. My parents met and later married due to my two uncles match-making with their friend, who later became my father.”
“I have vivid childhood memories of the daily siren sounding at 12 midday. The workmen would stream up the main road from Walker Shipyard and return at 1pm with the siren. As my father was a white collar worker he was lucky enough to be allocated tickets for the launches of the ships! It wasn’t far for us to walk down to the river to see the magnificent ship. We were even luckier to be able to have a tour of the ship before she was launched. The actual launching of these ships was an amazing and emotional experience even as a young girl with her sisters and parents.
The photo above is the launch HMS Angola in 1948.”
“My husband’s mother used to work on the other side of the Tyne at Hawthorn Leslie. She worked as a Tracer as my father worked on the opposite side!! Malcolm and I were obviously meant to be together. All due to the River Tyne and the emotional ties and memories it has for so many people!”
