TRIBUTES have been paid to a talented artist after his death aged 93. Birtley Aris was born in Sunderland to parents Dorothy and Frederick. He attended Chester Road and West Park Central schools before going on to study at the Sunderland College of Art and Craft. During World War II, he was a Bevin Boy coalminer at Silksworth Colliery. He then went on to work at stained glass studios in Newcastle, London and Brighton, before a stint in the civil service in London, where he met wife Jean Robbins, who died in 2019. Birtley and Jean married in 1955 and in 1960, welcomed daughter Jo.
FROM street parties to giant stotties and Guinness World Record attempts. That s the legacy of an event which has made such an impact on the Tyne Valley and beyond over the past half decade. The annual Northumberland Day has become a leading event on the county s calendar, celebrating the county s culture, heritage and people. And while it couldn t take place as normal due to the coronavirus pandemic last spring, Northumberland Day proved it could still be a real hit with a host of online activities. The celebration was the brainchild of Dr Stuart Madnick, the American businessman who grew to love the Tyne Valley and Northumberland as a whole.