Initial ideas for my script, written for my documentary

1. Script ideas
Intro + The Empire
Live musicissomethingwhichhasbroughtjoyandescapismtomany people overthe yearsandwill
continue todo so formany more.While live musicdatesbackto 100,000 yearsago, I thinka good
place to beginisthe 1950s – betterknownas,the birthof rock and roll.Starslike BuddyHolly,who
wentonto performat our veryownStocktonGlobe on hisonlyUK tour inMarch 1958 pavedthe
wayfor the future of rock and roll,and Britain’sfirstrockand roll star Tommy Steele makinghis
debutat SunderlandTheatre inthe 1950s, whichis where we begin.
Sunderland’sTheatre,alsoknownasthe Empire Theatre,hasplayed asignificantrole inthe history
of live musicperformanceswithinthe Northeastoverthe years.OnNovember5thin1956, 19-year-
oldTommySteele made hisdebutperformance atthe venue,makinghimthe firstpersontoplayan
electricguitarinside of the empire, afirefighterbeinginattendance asaprecaution!Steelewas
quicklydubbedasBritain’sanswertoElvisPresleyandwentontoperformseveral timesatthe
venue inhiscareer.
Despite crowdsof people attendingthe venue,inMayof 1959 it unfortunatelyhadtoclose due to
the growingphenomenonof televisionandcinema,butthisdidn’tlast long,asitreopeneditsdoors
once again in1960 whenSunderlandCouncilboughtit.Three yearslater,amonthbefore their
debutalbumwasto be released,the venuehostedThe BeatlesonFebruary9thof 1963 whowere
fourthon an eleven-actbill,headed by16-year-oldHelenShapiro.Months lateronNovember30th
the band returnedtothe Empire’s stage butwouldunfortunatelybe forthe lasttime.
I was luckyenoughtogainaccess to the venue andwasshownaroundby Steph,their Creative
LearningOfficer,takingme toeachcorner possible while discussingthe incrediblehistorytogo
alongwithit.UnfortunatelyIwasn’table toaccess the stage and standwhere these incredible
artistsonce did,but justbeingable towalkaroundlike somanypeople have overthe yearswhile
learningsuchpersonal storieswasanincredible experience initself.
( 2 minsapprox.)
The Rink
Anotherpopularvenue atthe time alsoinSunderlandwasThe Rink,whicharguablyhaditsheyday
inthe 1950s whenthe residentband wasAl FlushandhisOrchestra. Rightthrough the 50s and 60s,
Saturdaynightswere alwaysthe mostpopularwithlongqueuesformingearly.Duringthe early60s
manyfamouspop groupsperformedatthe venue,one of those being,again,The Beatles,whotook
to the stage on May 14th
in1963, my ownnana and auntie beinginattendance,makingme
extremelyenvious. Atthe time, theywere No.1in the charts with‘FromMe to You’ andqueuesto
see themwere 10-deepandran well intothe towncentre.Entrywas5/- (25p) and the ballroomwas
absolutelypacked.Bencheshadtobe placedaroundthe boundaryof the stage as a barrierto keep
back the fans – thiswas the beginningof Beatlemania.
( 50 secondsapprox.)

2. The late 1960s and early‘70s saw the demise of bigdance bandsand broughtaboutthe introduction
of DJsto The Rinkas well asappearancesbypopularstarsincludingayoungDavidBowie.Other
stars to appearwere the groupsStatusQuo and ThinLizzie whoappearedthere togetheronthe
same bill onSeptember29,1972. By that time,discowaspopularandsmall nightclubswere the
orderof the day.To combatthis,in1974, The Rinkhada partitionwall builttolowerthe capacityto
below2000 and itsname was changedto Fusion. Thislasteduntil 1984 whenitclosedforthe final
time.
( 35 – 40 secondsapprox.)
The Locarno
Whenit came to big namesplayinginthe city, youwould normallyfindthematThe Locarno, or
whatsome known as The Mecca. The club firstopenedasa Locarno Ballroom,whichwere the
flagshipsof the Mecca Empire,alsowithabowlingalleyunderneathwhichopenedinJune 1964, the
projectcosting£300,000. At its peak,itwasa majesticballroom withanimpressive stage,pullingin
thousandsof customers. Justsome of the top stars whoplayedthere feature LedZeppelin in
November‘71,where ticketshadbeenonsale at Bergs recordshop,for just75p! Takenfrom
Vintagerock’sWeblogwhoattendedthe event,bythe time the door’sopenedthere was massive
queue rightdownthe ramp whichusedto leadintothe venue,alongthe street,andoverthe roadto
the Wheatsheaf pub whichstoodonthe corner. Referringtothe SunderlandEcho,a lotof people
have fondmemoriesof the venue,including the BBCreportingitsopeningnight,the burgervan
outside, andworkpartiesafterthe Saturdayshiftwould end.The clubwasknownbydifferent
namessuchas the Mayfairand the Palace,before closingforgoodin 2003, laterbeingdemolishedin
2012.
( 1 min5 secondsapprox.)
The modernday
In today’sage,you’ll findthe biggernamesplayingNewcastle ratherthanSunderland,due tothe
city’sincreasingnumberof venues,butthisisn’ttosaywe don’tget any at all.I wasluckyenoughto
attendSunderland’s‘RockThe Northeast’festival whichtookplace atHerringtonCountryParkback
inAugust2021, where anumberof bignamesfromthe 80s took to the stage to singtheirmostwell-
knownhits,includingThe HumanLeague,Heaven17,Go West,and more.
( 50 secondsapprox.)
Andwhile Sunderlandmaynothave a great selectionof venuesforartiststoattend,luckily
Newcastle does,allowinglive musicto thrive inthe Northeast,andformany more yearsto come.
Due to these venues,Ihave beenluckyenoughtosee some of myfavourite artistslive, including
Blossomsatthe o2 Academy,supportedbyThe LathumsandThe Magic Gang, whichto date is the
bestgigI have everbeento,the atmosphere leavingme speechless,listeningtoa crowd of people
singback my favourite songstomyfavourite band. The venue firstopenedin1913 as a Picture
House,knownbylocalsas The NewWestgate,The Westgate, andThe Gaumont,and afteralmost
fourdecadeswas rebornas a MajesticBallroom inthe late 1950s.
Withinthe nexttwomonthsI alsogot to see Inhaleratthe University’sstudentunion, supportedby
DylanFraserand Wet Leg, as well asthe Northeast’sfavourite SamFenderatthe UtilitaArena,

3. enteringthe stage toGeordie anthemTheme of the Local Hero.Throughoutthe nightwe heard
songsfrom hisdebutalbum,aswell assongsfromthe new album, previouslyvotedthe bestalbum
inthe world,SeventeenGoingUnder,andafterbeingpushedbackforseveral monthsdue tothe
pandemic,Ican definitelysayitwasworth the wait.
On the otherhand,2022 seemstobe the yearlive musicmakesa comebacktothe city,withbig
nameslike EdSheeranreturning,andEltonJohnmakinghisdebutatthe Stadiumof Light thisJune.
Thistakesme back tomy 16th
birthday, inJune of 2018 whenthe Spice Girlsplayed there –and safe
to say,it was a memorable birthday.While Imaynothave beenclose tothe stage,the concert truly
was suchan incredible experience andtobe able to sayI’ve seenone of the biggestgirl groupslive is
such a great feeling.The crowdsangalongwitheverysongwithoutmissingasingle word,andasthe
showcame to a close withtheirhitWannabe,the stadiumeruptedintocheers,andIhope whenI’m
inthe audience tosee EltonJohn,Igetthisfeelingonce again.
Zoom Call withTom
Questionstoask:
- What do youlike aboutperforminginthe Northeast?