Inspiration for Nicholas Nickleby by Charles Dickens

Tucked into a loop of the broad-flowing Tees, the landscape around Barnard Castle does not look like the setting for cruelty or violence. It's a beautiful market town in a stunning setting. However, in Victorian England, reports of abuse in cheap Yorkshire boarding schools catering for unwanted - often illegitimate - children, started to spread .

It is not surprising then that Charles Dickens turned his attention to the deplorable conditions common in these institutions, denouncing them as examples of "the monstrous neglect of education in England". He must have read about the trial of Shaw’s Academy in Bowes and its headmaster, William Shaw, who had been convicted of negligence against some boys in his care some years earlier. Dickens set off to research the story for his novel Nicholas Nickleby, the story-line of which had been agreed in advance with his publisher. The novel was to serve as a vehicle for exposing the dreadful conditions in the Yorkshire schools.

Depend upon it, that the rascalities of Yorkshire schoolmaters cannot be easily exaggerated, and that I have kept down the strong truth and thrown as much comicality over it as I could.

Charles Dickens on his finished novel Nicholas Nickleby

Old Durham Town

"I got off at Durham... and fell in love with it instantly in a serious way. Why, it's wonderful - a perfect little city.... If you have never been to Durham, go there at once. Take my car. It's wonderful." Bill Bryson

I grew up in Durham, a beautiful historic city and home to the world class university. However, as a teenager I thought it was exceptionally selfish of my parents to have moved to a place with just two nightclubs and an aptly named pub called the “Fighting Cocks”. However, I remember driving back home one Christmas from university and saw the stunningly beautiful cathedral and castle lit up against the night sky and realised how privileged I was to call this home.

North Eastern men do banter best

One of the things I am most proud of being  a North Eastern lass is the sense of humour of our men. Where ever I have gone in the world, if I hear that accent...I know I am going to have a hilarious evening.

Ant & Dec often feature in my dreams. Not like that...they are just around. I think because they are so similar to the kind of male friends I had growing up in Durham: funny, easy going and always keep your feet on the ground. A few I am still in touch with and they can still make me laugh with their cheeky one liners. You can't get pretentious or precious around Northern blokes, they will just tease you and I love them for it.

A case in point. I like getting "thought for the day" emailed to me. You know the kind of thing:  "Plant seeds of peace now and you will create a life of peace in the future."  One day, I thought I would share this spiritual wisdom with some friends, in order to enrich their lives, so emailed it on. The response from my Northern friend Paul:  "What was that reet pile of gobshite Blakey? Look lass, get ower yersel, we knaa where you came from."   Straight to the jugular.

In second place on good banter come the Welsh boys and the Scots.