The last combination was the Birtley Town Service 23 which ran from Barley Mow to Malone Gardens from the mid 80's until the early 2000's.
There was the 184 also, which ran from the top end of Birtley to the Galleries. Several years ago, the two were combined.
I think it came about after Stanley Buses were bought out by GNE. GNE ran the 184 (having had the 23 at various points earlier on) for a period and then stopped it. Nexus stepped in and combined the two.
So based on 20 odd years of history, it is a combined 23 & 184, but as you say prior to that, was a number of different services.
RE: Service Suggestions