Blaydon Races

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Lore & Background

The former village of Blaydon lies on the south bank of the River Tyne about 4 miles west of Newcastle upon Tyne. The races were of some antiquity and had been mentioned in a song dating from around 1830. Prior to 1860, they had not been held for more than two decades due to the building of the Newcastle & Carlisle Railway. In 1862, as in the previous two years, they were held just north of Blaydon on an island in the river Tyne called Dent's Meadows. The revival lasted only until 1865, but the races began again in 1889 at a new course on Stella Haughs. The final meeting on 1–2 September 1916 was abandoned on the second day after serious rioting followed the disqualification of the even money favourite Anxious Moments. Ridley first performed his song at a testimonial concert for local oarsman John H. Clasper, held in Balmbra's Music Hall on 5 June 1862. The final verse was added for a concert given on the evening of 9 June at Whickham Mechanics' Institute in Blaydon, where it was reported by the local press that Ridley's "local songs" were received "with great applause". Although the account of the trip to Blaydon is fictional, the heavy rain was noted in the Newcastle Daily Chronicle, as were the missing horses, which were unable to ford the river due to an unexpected rise in the water level.

In Their Own Story

The Blaydon Race is a 5.9-mile athletics race from Newcastle to Blaydon that takes place on 9 June every year and starts off with the singing of 'The Blaydon Races', as the words are used as the basis for the whole race. "Blaydon Races" is often used as a chant by supporters of Newcastle United Football Club, by whom it was sung repeatedly at the 1974 FA Cup final. In the late nineteenth century, the tune was adopted as a march by soldiers of the British Army's Fifth Foot infantry regiment (The Royal Northumberland Fusiliers), of Fenham Barracks, Newcastle upon Tyne. Today it is the Regimental Song of The Royal Regiment of Fusiliers, the modern descendants of The Royal Northumberland Fusiliers. The song was also adopted by the Durham Light Infantry.

Reader's Guide

The song is set to the tune "Brighton", which refers to "On the Road to Brighton", an American blackface minstrelsy "sleighing song" of 1858, with words and music by Lon Morris. The lyrics are quoted from the author's manuscript in Allan's Tyneside Songs of 1891. The song is now usually sung with more modern language, but retaining something of the Tyneside dialect. The Blaydon Race is a 5.9-mile athletics race from Newcastle to Blaydon that takes place on 9 June every year and starts off with the singing of 'The Blaydon Races'.

Did You Know?

• The song mentions places such as Scotswood Road, Armstrong's factory, the Robin Adair pub, Paradise, Newcastle Dispensary, Newcastle Infirmary, and the old Scotswood Bridge.
• People mentioned in the song include Dr Charles John Gibb, Jackie Broon (the Blaydon town crier), and Coffy Johnny (John Oliver, an ex-blacksmith from Winlaton).
• Centenary events were held on Tyneside from 2–9 June 1962, with a budget of £21,000 allocated by Newcastle Corporation, and attended by Labour Party leader Hugh Gaitskell.
• A class 91 locomotive operated by East Coast was named "Blaydon Races" in a ceremony at Newcastle railway station on 5 June 2012, attended by former Newcastle United footballer Alan Shearer.

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