So, just to ruin what would be one of the longest days in Newcastle taking photos of the trains... Demonstrations.

Does anyone have first-hand experience on demonstrations? How will Metro cope? Is it safe? Are buses going to be safe? Will it be safer for me and my mam to go by train from Morpeth to Newcastle?

Any help on this matter will be appreciated,
Tommy.

Edit: the demonstrations will be on the 28th February. 

I'd recommend avoiding Newcastle on the 28th if at all possible. You have two demos and a football match going on. Police are going to be stretched to the max across the city, and I'd imagine they'd have to go as far as drafting in help from other forces?

The demos themselves will be a tense affair. One is a far right demo, and one is a counter demo to it. Although in two different places (Biggmarket & Newgate Street), there'll inevitably be clashes as a result. Because it's the first demo by the group in question, nobody really knows how it'll turn out.

You'll get people coming into Newcastle by train and Metro, so I'd probably avoid both! I'm not sure if buses will be diverted, but if not, there'll be delays of all services coming out of Newcastle I'd imagine.

(23 Feb 2015, 5:35 pm)aureolin wrote I'd recommend avoiding Newcastle on the 28th if at all possible. You have two demos and a football match going on. Police are going to be stretched to the max across the city, and I'd imagine they'd have to go as far as drafting in help from other forces?

The demos themselves will be a tense affair. One is a far right demo, and one is a counter demo to it. Although in two different places (Biggmarket & Newgate Street), there'll inevitably be clashes as a result. Because it's the first demo by the group in question, nobody really knows how it'll turn out.

You'll get people coming into Newcastle by train and Metro, so I'd probably avoid both! I'm not sure if buses will be diverted, but if not, there'll be delays of all services coming out of Newcastle I'd imagine.

http://www.simplygo.com/news/newcastle-c...ruary-2015

(23 Feb 2015, 5:37 pm)Dan wrote http://www.simplygo.com/news/newcastle-c...ruary-2015

Very informative, but could have been quickly summed up as "utter chaos"

About 18months ago, I was with the little un (now the middle un) on a trip to the coast.
It was just us two.

As we pulled into South Shields on the Metro, I suddenly remembered about an EDL demo that was about to start.
It was quite raucous on the platform and surrounding streets, so a quick change of plan saw us scoot down towards the ferry landing and head over the river.

Lots of police, lots of EDL members with shoppers, me and my (then) 2 year old mingling amongst them.

I didn't feel threatened or uncomfortable, but was concious of the little one being caught in the middle of something.

I sort of got myself involved with the EDL in Newcastle in 2010 when they demonstrated it was one of the stupidest things I did, while I tried to see the good in what they were saying to me, I witnessed things like a big, burly taken offence to and spitting on an Israeli flag and taking offence at what he called 'poofs and dykes', there was the obvious nasty racism the P bomb, N bomb, monkey noises and horrible shit like that.

I had been warned for years about people like the BNP and had been on the fringe of the far right since 2004 when I went to Nottingham to meet up with a group who called themselves the United British Alliance and again in Blackpool a year later. I actually saw a friend of mine at the Counter Demo to the EDL in 2010 and it was a mixture of that and my mentor pulling me to one side and reminded me the work I had done with The Local Authority and for people in care would have been for nothing if I got to embroiled in far right politics and made to remember the good times I had with my friend who was, as someone put it, my enemy that day in Newcastle and we go back a long way.

Today, the potential for carnage in Newcastle is massive, when you throw 2 demonstrations into the mix with rival football fans it could be a long day for the Pollis...I will stay away, been in too much trouble lately

Riot vans at the ready outside of Monument Metro!

(28 Feb 2015, 9:44 am)Dan wrote Riot vans at the ready outside of Monument Metro!

Let's hope no horses get punched... 

Oh, wow. They're literally dotted every few metres along the roads.

Five riot vans and a couple of police cars outside of St James' Park.

(28 Feb 2015, 9:49 am)Dan wrote Oh, wow. They're literally dotted every few metres along the roads.

Five riot vans and a couple of police cars outside of St James' Park.

Riot vans were arriving at Newcastle Central at around 0930