Concern are transforming the poorest children’s lives through education. If you needed proof as to why we’re doing this please look at some of the videos on the Concern website. If you only watch one video make sure it’s this one Concern Twestival 2010 featuring Moby song from Concern Worldwide.

Your support is needed and will never be so clearly felt than in generation of children your money will help  escape poverty through education.

On the same page there are some ‘Tweet’ sized facts regarding Corcern’s work and education projects so please re-tweet them and drive the message out to your contacts. Did you know. ‘ The number of students in parts of Niger increased from 14,567 in 2006 to 22,302 in 2009, doubling female students, thanks to work by @concern’ or that ‘An extra year of primary school raises a girl’s lifetime wages by 10-20%.’ I didn’t know, so please help spread the word and make sure Concern receives all the support it deserves. If your not following Concern on Twitter please do so @concern.

We’re really keen on making Twestival good value for attendees but also a good return for Concern. The mystery boxes were a big hit last year and we’ll be doing them again this year but we want every company to spend a minimum of £150 on their mystery box to ensure we sell boat loads of raffle tickets on the night.

£150 might sound like a lot but compare that with the ability to help a girl spend another year in primary school and it’s impact on that girls life. 10% - 20% more earning capacity for the rest of her life, think about that.

If you can’t run to £150 we’ll be happy to take micro mystery boxes at £50. Every pound counts.

The Tyne Bar stands at the mouth of the Ouseburn where it meets the Tyne at the east end of Newcastle Quayside, a site which has been the location of a pub since the 19th century.

The original pub on the site, the Ship Tavern was opened in 1850 and was frequented by the sailors and worker of the thriving Newcastle quayside by Spiller’s Wharf which bustled with the trade of the Tyne river and the various warehouses around the area.  Unfortunately this first pub had a very short life, lasting only 45 years before it was destroyed by fire in 1895 and had to be rebuilt. The original building was quite a bit smaller, as you can see from this picture (you may note the lack of the Ouseburn School in the background, as this wasn’t built until 1893).

As you can see, even the bridge over the Ouseburn was remarkably different then from the iron and pipe version we know today.
The fire ravaged building was rebuilt quickly and re-opened as the Ship Tavern and the look of the building was mostly as you would recognise it today. The pub was built with some fantastic decorated sandstone pillars, arched windows set in brick and even leaded stained windows upstairs with the panes on the ground floor engraved with “Ship Tavern” A couple of photos from the 60’s and 70’s give you an idea of the area a little bit more recently.

Known by most of the locals as the “Bottom Ship” to avoid confusion with the nearby Ship Inn on Stepney Bank, the Ship Tavern was what some might know as a “Spit and Sawdust” kind of bar, being pretty rough around the edges and the kind of place that most people would keep away from (at least those who liked to avoid casual bar violence). Though the modern Tyne Bar is known to many as a place of great entertainment and music, the entertainment at the Ship Tavern used to take an entirely different form, famous as not only somewhere to have a swift pint after work, but also for the brothel that was ran in the upstairs of the pub.

Things changed in 1995 when the former staff and management of the well known and much loved alternative bar which had been massively popular in the 80s, Barley Mow on City Road knew that an alternative bar would still thrive in Newcastle, so upped sticks and moved down under the Glasshouse Bridge at the site of the Ship Tavern and renamed it to The Tyne Bar (Having left the Barley Mow when the Firkin chain took it over and turned it into the Fog & Firkin). Things were cleaned up, the bar was refurbished and now its most definitely more at home to bands playing tunes than ‘Band Of Gold’, as well as some great real ales brewed both locally and internationally, a great atmosphere and friendly staff.

Despite its chequered history, the Tyne Bar remains one of the best watering holes in Newcastle and undoubtedly a great location for the 2010 Tyne Twestival.

As you might have heard, this year’s Tyne Twestival is kindly being brought to you by the lovely folks at Northern Film and Media. It’ll be held at the fabulous Tyne Bar (www.thetyne.com).

For those of you who haven’t managed to make it that far along the Quayside yet, you’ll find The Tyne Bar snuggled under the Glasshouse Bridge on Maling Street, where the Ouseburn meets the Tyne river proper. (Click on the link to Google maps over on the right, if you’re still confused). 

It’s the only place in the country with a beer garden under a road bridge (and there’s a case of red wine on offer if anyone can prove them wrong). The beer’s local (from the Wylam Brewery), the free gigs are eclectic and legendary, and there’s lots of friendly faces at the bar.

Which all adds up to a good night, in our book. So keep your eyes peeled – tickets for Tyne Twestival go on sale soon!

A few things you might not know about The Tyne Bar:

• Their fish finger butties are famous.

• They’re the only the official ‘Brewery Tap in the City’ for Wylam Brewery.

• All their gigs are free.

• If you spend over £5 at the bar on Wednesdays you’ll get a free bowl of chilli.

• You can follow them on Twitter @thetynebar, and become a fan on Facebook.

<Tap,Tap,Tap>                                Is this thing on?                            <Tap,Tap,Tap>

Hello?

Right here, we go!

There’s been a flutter of activitiy on @TyneTwestival event recently and in all the excitment , we’ve neglected to update the blog! That’s all set to change thanks to our new little army of fantastic copywriters - all eager to help our ailing blog!

I thought I would kick start things with a bit of run down as to where we are - who we are and what’s going on!

So, first of all (drum roll please), we’re super happy to announce that @Twitchhiker will be heading up the night on the 25 March in aid of @Concern. Paul has been busy writing about his experiences for a his new book coming soon (okay - 2 August), so keep your eyes peeled as it’s going to be a cracker.

It’s important to remember that Paul was one of the VERY FIRST volunteers for @Twestival global  - after him there were about 700 others. It was during this time, that the idea of the @Twitchhiker project struck and he’s not looked back since. Paul will be running the show on the night, asking for donations and on hand to answer any questions you may have about his upcoming book, but mainly asking for your money, loose change - anything that helps us raise cash for a much needed cause.

The lovely ladies at @Sharperecruit will be collecting for charity on the night - you’ll not miss them and they’ll not miss you, so please give generously. Raffle tickets will be on sale and prize details will be announced soon.

Our very own @LoveLi is managing all the entertainment on the night - we’ve got some cracking people lined up. We’ve got a brilliant DJ - the fabulous Mickey Clarke (thanks to @ShaunAllan for the tip), we’ve also got two bands to date - @SevenFables and @CedarWay - but we’ve still got room for more, so if you know of any great bands please ask hem to contact @TyneTwestival, or pass on their contact details to us and we’ll follow them up.

The awesome @thetynebar have a great venue which lends itself well to the event, giving a great balance of networking and the all important live music.

The event starts at 7pm on the 25th which isn’t far off. We’re still looking for raffle prizes, so please drop us a line (@TyneTwestival), if you can help.

More soon, so keep an eye out!

Thanks to Northern Film and Media who have helped make this event happen (yet again!)

Hey everybody!

I hope you are all enjoying the sun, lets kick start spring with some good weather and some GREAT news. Tyne Twestival has a new venue, The Tyne Bar - www.thetyne.com why not pay them a little visit or follow them on Twitter - @thetynebar.

Bring on the 25th March! Not long to go now, check back soon for a fantastic lineup at the first Tyne Twestival of 2010.

Your Tyne Twestival Team.

Sign up for updates from Concern International here.  Find out what’s going on and where Twestival is making the difference with the help of Concern International.

When Concern Internation starts to work somewhere, the first they do is listen - they listen to the needs to those who need help most and find ways to give them indendence.

Concern International (video), needs you to come along to Twestival and donate! Please help us reach our targets and we’ll ensure that you have a bloody good time what you’re at it!

See you on the 25th of March!

Rather than try and squeeze everything into one single blog post, we thought we would start with a quick presentation, and announce the other details for the event as they come in.

We’ve confirmed some awesomely exciting details and are waiting on other confirmations, so it’s all moving rapidly forward at camp Twestival!  Please get in touch if you would like to contribute to the event (time, money, ideas) or if you’d like to just say hi - well that’s cool too!

Take a quick look at our slideshow (thanks to Oxford Twestival for the idea!) - you can take a peep at it here.

Bye for now!

TyneTwestival - 25th March @7pm

The date has been set, the charity chosen, the team are powering through a list of catering companies, sponsors  and activities.  All in all, I’d say that @TyneTwestival is going to be the best one yet!

Before we go any further, I think it’s only fair to explain what Twestival is. It started as an impromptu meet up of Twitter users in support of a charity and, in a very short space of time, Twestival has spawned over 500 events in over 250 global cities. We’ve raised hundreds of thousands for charities who support those in desperate need of hope and aid.

This March marks the first Twestival of 2010 and we’ll be supporting Concern . Cities are being registered and plans are being made - and we need you to help out!

Concern is dedicated to reducing poverty and giving hope to the millions of people who need it most. Their aims are simple and direct, their reach is vast - Nepal, Sudan, Uganda, Afganistan, Cambodia among other countries are top of Concerns agenda.

The most recent disaster in Haiti has stretched Concern to the limits and with your generous support, we can help them make a difference. Below is a video detailing how your donations towards Haiti have been spent.

Water Distribution in Haiti

This years Twestival will be hosted by our keen and generous sponsors Northern Film and Media.

It will start at 7pm on the 25th of March and will feature some new innovations from local companies, comedians, an awesome MC, food, drink and one of the best DJ’s the North East has to offer!

Tickets will be going on sale soon - it’ll be a nominal amount which will go towards Concern.

We’re always looking for help and sponsors. We’ll be updating the site with requests in the coming days and hope that you’ll be able to reach out and help make @TyneTwestival your event!

@TyneTwestival
tynetwestival [at] googlemail.com
07731750706

Remember - 25th March @ 7pm