Benwell Towers (The Mitre)

Built in 1831 Benwell Towers, designed by the Tyneside architect John Dobson, replaced an older house on the site which was built in 1221. It became the residence of the Bishop of Newcastle in the 1880's and has since provided a number of different functions. During World War II it became a fire station, and then became a training centre for the National Coal Board in 1947.

By the 1970s the building had become The Mitre pub, before achieving national fame in 1989 as the Byker Grove youth club in the BBC children's television series, Byker Grove. The final episode of Byker Grove was filmed in August 2006.

Benwell Towers has been up for sale since summer 2007, and is still unused.

The towers were also in our local newspaper The Evening Chronicle recently due to a problem with Japanese Knotweed. Evening Chronicle - Byker Grove site blighted by Japanese weeds

More information:

• Wikipedia - Benwell Towers
• Images of England - Benwell Towers Detailed Record
• BBC - Byker Grove feature
• Newcastle West - Medieval Times
• Byker Grove 'haunted'. Benwell Towers, where the TV programme Byker Grove was made, is now attracting the interest of ghost hunters.
• An old photo of Benwell Towers c1910
• YouTube: 100 Greatest Kids Shows - Byker Grove