Photography

When my late mother, Veronica, answered an Amber Films advert in the 1980s, she never imagined how much those North Shields singalongs would change her life. From the smoky nights of the New Clarendon pub to cassette recordings capturing forgotten songs, characters, and the warmth of Shields community spirit, this story revisits a lost world. Featuring connections to Amber’s iconic dramas like Shields Stories and In Fading Light, and even a German film crew’s visit, the tapes reveal both laughter and poignancy. As I press play nearly forty years later, voices rise again — reminding us of a time when everyday folk filled local pubs with music, humour, and camaraderie. This is more than history: it’s a community memory waiting to be rediscovered.