KingHarkinian

Anyway I admire both bridges even if the wear bridge is a like a younger brother to the tyne one. http://www.this-is-sunderland.co.uk/ I've found this, possibly the best sunderland photography site on the web. Unable to post any of the pics directly on here due to the pics being displayed via flash player.

Penshaw Monument-Washington...... I used to work on Hind street in the early 90s. Every day i had to walk through the town centre- it was an absolute dump, to put it mildly. My current work takes me into sunderland on a fairly regular basis, as well as travelling into and working on buildings on a nationwide basis. The regeneration in the Sunniside area around the pictured square is to be commended, but its a very small area when compared to the town centre as a whole.The whole town centre needs knocking flat and rebuilding( with the exception of some of the older Victorian Buildings on Fawcett St and John St.) The "Landmark " buildings ,like the Echo Building(the new high rise beside the wee tyne bridge in pics for those not aware) are really pretty average. I say that , not as a Geordie seeking to put the mackems down, but as someone with a professional and personal interest in innovative architechture. The National Glass Centre is a feckin embarrassment- missed a huge opportunity there mackem city council. If the proposed high rise tower gets the go ahead, I sincerley hope the council look at such examples as the Beetham Towers in Leeds, Liverpool and Manchester. when it comes to high rise towers , its the easiest thing in the world to make a monstrosity, harder to make a building people can admire. If you want to convince anyone on here about any merits of your wee backwoods outpost, you should be flagging up places like The Elephant Tea rooms, Corder House etc. The pics you have posted are really average. Take some better ones then come back and argue I didn't take one of those photos . I have a good resolution digital camera aswell, I might do just that As for the proposed high rise tower, it is thornfield properties that are behind the design and not the council. A £180 million contract was signed between the two parties in july, for the tower in particular and for the regeneration of the whole Holmeside area (which to be fair is a derelict dump). Here is a concept model for it.

Local bias? I have never lived in Newcastle and I've seen many many other cities and towns across the country and I've seen some real fucking dives. sunderland isn't the shittiest hole in the country, but it's just not beautiful. The pictures you've posted are proof of that. They're mundane... I don't doubt on the right day, in the right light and if you tilt your head, just so, there are some pretty places South of the Tyne and North of the Humber, you just did very badly with your choices. That's fair enough tbh.

If anything that is your own slanted opinion rather than fact, it is the same with what the things I say of course, but it means nothing more. The same goes for Alex's opinion above. My opinion on Sunderland is based on having seen the place. I formed the opinion on the photos on a similar basis Well how comes I live and see the place, yet my opinion is also different to yours? I personally don't think its half as bad as people make out, though when you use and live around Newcastle city centre on a regular basis, you're going to be used to a higher standard and hence you're automatically going to look at Sunderland on a lower perspective, aren't you? It's quite clear that Newcastle city centre pisses on Sunderland's sadly enough, but that doesn't mean Sunderland should be put down altogether. Newcastle is ahead because it has held city status for centuries, gaining far more influence, fame, infastructure and advantage. Newcastle didn't undergo the industrial decline on the scale Sunderland did, and any industrial decline it did have was soothed faster because of it's city status and higher profile allowing larger scale investment. Sunderland on the other hand was a town and it pretty much lost everything, city status was gained in 1992 to help combat the problems created, and since then there's no doubt it has made a huge deal of improvement to heal the damage inflicted by the loss of it's former industry. Again most Newcastle people don't realize that, and I don't put them down for saying that simply because they've been use to higher standards, this is where the "shithole" tag sadly comes from. A classical city is always going to have a slight advantage over the post-industrial former town isn't it? Though still I don't want the place to be put down altogether, what it was originally like in the 1990's far, far worse than currently. Sadly I think the opinions of what it previously has been like still exist because of the inveitable lack of interest in the place by the Newcastle people, again I don't blame them by saying that, there is no reason for them to come to sunderland other than for football currently. But hopefully in the future years, more development will see that change. Things like the Sunniside developments have been a massive step forward for the area, you laughed at them in here but actually the area is very attractive, very modern and very pleasant. It's attracting a lot of new businesses which is boosting the local economy quickly, and it's becoming a nice area to visit aswell. Sunderland in its own terms has progressed very well in the past couple of decades, of course against Newcastle which has blatant historical and economical advantages, it obviously isn't going to look like much for now. That's as fair as I can put it really. Rome wasn't built in a day, so the transformation of a post industrial town to a "proper city" is going to take time. It isn't the nicest place in the country no, but its no shithole tbh.

If anything that is your own slanted opinion rather than fact, it is the same with what the things I say of course, but it means nothing more. The same goes for Alex's opinion above.

I say that, yet it looks like I've caught the bait... Seriously though, they are good photos, and are brilliant aspects of Sunderland. If I done similar things to the other photos of tyneside in this thread, then I would be shot down in flames. 1) not really like, they're average pics at best. The first and third are just different shots of the same square. A park, a small version of the Tyne Bridge, a folly in Washington,some paddles, and a cafe /art centre (located very close to the two shots of the square). 2) course you would you tit- its an Nufc board & you are a mackem you like numbered lists do you? I'll strike back with bullet points The first and third pics are of the same area well done, but the items potrayed on both photos are of different directions so couldn't possibly be potrayed in the same one unless I had a panaroma (which I don't). Despite being a "small version of the tyne bridge" the wearmouth bridge was here first for a matter of fact and was built in two phases first in 1796, about 125 years before the tyne bridge, and then reconstructed in 1927 before the tyne bridge was built. A folly in washington? None of those pictures are in Washington. For "A park" it's still quite attractive and got same scenery, being voted the Best in britain in 2008. A cafe and art centre maybe, but of a slightly iconic and very attractive design, and yes it is in the same area as the 3rd and 1st shots but so what? Sunniside has undergone outstanding regeneration since 2007 and has attracted two national urban regeneration and landscaping awards from the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors. Considering what it was prior to all this it is certainly an improvement, added to the fact that despite a recession, 47 new businesses opened there in the 2009/2010 period. Some paddles? That's just one sculpture in a quality marina. Just because I am a "mackem" on a nufc board does not make my view any less valid or considerate to yours, that also does not automatically mean sunderland should be treated like shit. I tried to be considerate to the whole region and all you can seem to do is take the piss. Yes I rate sunderland and you have a clear problem to that, but overall I still do rate Newcastle higher, and Durham higher still. At the end of the day why let a football rivalry or general bitterness twist your opinions on certain subjects? You are clearly the tit for that comment, not me. Being a NUFC board means you're always going to be slanted to NUFC stuff of course, but this is not really football is it? Why not enjoy support and hope for the success of this wonderful region as a hole rather than putting bits of it down? You should really praise regeneration successes in sunderland (such as the regeneration in sunniside) just as much as Newcastle. It's annoying that you can't see past your football black and white tinted glasses and take an eccentric and more open view at things. I don't take the bad perspectives of Newcastle (many which are similar aspects to Sunderland's), and use them to put down the entire place as a whole. As some clearly enjoy doing here with Sunderland. One Northeast it should always be!

I say that, yet it looks like I've caught the bait... Seriously though, they are good photos, and are brilliant aspects of Sunderland. If I done similar things to the other photos of tyneside in this thread, then I would be shot down in flames.

can I have some of what you're on please?

they're all very much real, I really hope you're on a windup.

are they fuck.

also I think this place deserves a mention on here

I have to chip in with this place Minus pennywell and Hendon of course, but it isn't half as bad as some make out. Of course Sunderland isn't on the same level as Newcastle yet sadly, but over the years it has seen some good regeneration which is starting to boost it's appearence. Sometimes I feel people jump the word "shithole" a far bit too much on places, without really looking at the other side of the argument. The Northeast is a cracking region, and I'd rather tyneside and wearside worked together for the good of that, than rival each other.

Because of the size of your squad, and the blatant fact that it is weaker than what it was last year and even then it wasn't top notch. There is virtually no chance of you winning a cup this season, your squad simply hasn't got the depth or the quality to do so but hopefully this thread is a "what would you have have" than a "what should we aim for" type, but when looking at some of the posts on it, it makes me wonder. A cup would always be a special moment for the club and the fans, but promotion should always be the first challenge as it will be more beneficial to the club in terms of finance and reputation long term, than a cup would be. You need to take things one step at a time and walk before you can run, relegation has been a massive setback and ultimately the only objective of this season is to get back in the premiership and reverse the damage which has been done, and even when that's complete the season after will also have a primary objective over winning a cup, restablishment and survival in the premiership. If you did challenge for a cup this season, then because of the size of your squad and such the extra games would likely make your promotion challenge suffer, extra games would tire players, cause more injuries and suspensions. Had Keegan stayed on the previous season and it hadn't become a complete disaster due to Ashley's fuckups, then the conditions would have certainly been apropriate for a cup challenge. If you're in the premiership or not though, 99 times out of 100 the cups on offer will go to the "big four" teams.

Now that Shola has allegedly broke his foot, the chances of promotion are surely dented considering the form he's been.

I just got mine today, 2 A's, 7 B's and 1 C. Which is not bad, for a mackem I guess

A short memory you have then, Sunderland V Gillingham, in the 1987 relegation playoff at Roker Park. There was several hundred of you inhabited the roker end to cheer them on to send us down.

How Ironic! One of your lot has been spotted in the crowd at carrow road, watching Norwich V Sunderland, on SS1.

Sunderland 2-0 up at Norwich

Your recent form, suggests that setting sights on automatic promotion isn't really that deluded. Yes the league is long and can be a drag, but it would suprise me if you were even to conceede goals in double figures looking at the way things are going. Middlesbrough are likely going to be the only side who are going to give you a game...

Why is the OP getting abuse? much to my dissapointment, I couldn't name any other team in the championship with a better starting XI than Newcastle's. However questions can be raised over whether the squad will be deep enough to keep up a promotion challenge for the whole season, whether Hughtons managerial skills are good enough to keep newcastle pushing for promotion all season, are also questionable. Also despite you loosing some players, your squad still looks superior to that of Burnleys, Hulls, Stokes, Portsmouths and Wolves in the prem.

Oh the irony looking at this thread, but anyway, may I point out that virutally every single response on that post is making fun and laughing at the original poster anyway for his stupidity. He does not represent a majority, but you have to admit it is funny that you get that on the smb when you also have 200+ plus long posts full of people moaning about their own attendances and how your crowds are (unfortunately) superior (any suprise with people like him!), when 75% of the ones who complain don't even go! Even as a mackem, I have to admit the smb is sad as fuck at times. That game will finish Newcastle 3-0 Leicester, you heard it here first!

He did that for real???

I'll repeat, not gonna happen. It's cringeorthy how you're all clutching straws that we will end up relegated, although 6 points out a possible 9 for us already (Loosing only to Chelsea out of those games) would suggest otherwise for now.

Whilst I know its only your "preferred" to go down, I have to say, not gonna happen Unrealistically these are the teams I'd like to see relegated the most. 18. Tottenham 19. Manchester United 20. Manchester City

They managed to turn it around though and I am not suprised why Allardyce was unpopular amongst Newcastle fans, I have to say currently there is no other side that plays a more hideous game than Blackburn do currently, and to add to that it isn't helping their form eithe. Could be relegation candidates in the prem this year. As for Ipswich, well it looks like it's Bryan Robson all over again for Roy Keane. Without the money he had at Sunderland to help him (which despite a large amount of his signings being overpriced shite), the job at Ipswich has summed him up well and truly as a useless, clueless, twat. That poor dog of his will be suffering tonight. Who are you? & What are you? 1) I am king Harkinian the 2nd of the mystic kingdom of Hyrule. 2) I have a minor genetic variation from newcastle fans, which places me into the Homo Genus subspecies "Homo dopieus mackemus"