The Mid-Northumberland Chorus, a community choir based in Morpeth, will be holding their annual Christmas concert for the town on Saturday the 3rd December, 2011. This year's programme, which is scheduled to start at 7:30pm, will be held at the St. George's United Reformed Church on Bridge Street. Conducting the 70-strong ensemble on the night will be newly appointed Conductor of the Chorus, Paul Toward, accompanied by the organist, Peter Waugh. An additional concert will be held at Seaham Hall Hotel, County Durham onThursday the 15th December, starting at 12 noon.

The Morpeth performance will include extracts from and J. S. Bach's cantata 'Sleepers Wake,' along with a miscellany of Christmas carols. Fresh mince pies and a glass of wine will be available for all those in attendance and tickets are priced at £6 for adults, with a concession of £3 for those aged eighteen years and under. To book, or for further information, contact Chris on 01670 790268, or Gillian on 01670 515870.

The Mid-Northumberland Chorus, originally established in 1981, perform frequently in many of the region's churches and cathedrals. They aim to present a choral version of the 'Pirates of Penzance' in the spring of 2012, along with concerts towards the end of April in Ashington, Morpeth and Norham-on-Tweed.

We have opened a coffee shop in the Hirst park, we sell Teas and Coffees, soft drinks and sweets . So if you are visiting the park why not sit and enjoy a cuppa. Our vountees will be pleased to meet you and have a chat.

We can serve a smile and a cuppa, but sorry we can not serve the sun shine.

Bad Apples North East are a community interest company based in Ashington offering music projects. On Sunday 31st of July we are having an "It's a Knockout" competition and family fun day at the Hirst Welfare Centre from 11am-3pm.

The teams competing are all raising sponsor money to enable Bad Apples North East to work with more young people in the area and offer more workshops.

Staff from Barclays Ashington, Revolution Bar Sunderland and a team of dancers are all competing against other local companies and our three Bad Apples teams made up of supporters and young people stepping up to the challenge.

The kettle will be boiled and the cake stall ready at 9.00 until 12 noon. All are welcome!!!

The scheme, branded as 'Try a Tri' has been established by England Triathlon for men and women of all ages and backgrounds. In Northumberland, the programme has been organised by Blyth Valley Arts & Leisure in partnership with Tri Northumberland and England Triathlon.

Julie Carr has just finished a speech and language therapy degree at Newcastle University and is now involved in the Royal College of Speech and Language Therapist's Giving Voice campaign, to raise awareness of the profession.

While at the street fair on Sunday June 26 and Sunday July 17, she will also be raising money for the North East Trust for Aphasia, which supports people with communication difficulties following a stroke.

The festival will be raising funds for Teenage Cancer Trust, in particular the Teenage Unit at Newcastle-upon-Tyne's RVI.

With three stages, and over fifty acts playing over three days, it will be a celebration of both emerging North East talent, and also a showcase of touring bands from up and down the country. The music will range from the over-the-top antics of Manchester's glam/punk outfit, 'The Bad Taste Barbies,' and Scotland's top Judas Priest tribute act, 'Junior Priest,' on the Friday night, to Saturday's Rock versus Reggae day, headlined by Edinburgh's 'BombSkare' - twenty bands of both genres will play over the course of the day. Sunday will feature a string of indie bands, many of whom - 'Vinyl Jacket,' 'The Watchers,' and local lads, 'Grandfather Birds' - having recently been featured on national radio. In contrast, the weekend will also bring its fair share of acoustic and folk acts to the stages, including Alnwick's 'We Steal Flyers,' and a number of guest solo spots.

Stalls spaces are still available for the event - a donation to Teenage Cancer Trust is required - and can be booked by contacting Tony Eastlake of Guerilla Promotions on 07803026503.

Ticket prices range from £5 for the Friday evening, to £20 for the full weekend. However, there are currently a limited number of 'early-bird' tickets available at the discounted price of £17.50 from http://www.wegottickets.com/

For further information and updates, you can join the Facebook event page at https://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=195517710468683

Residents are reminded that the annual Ashington Town Assembly, hosted by Ashington Town Council, is taking place on Monday May 23 at 7pm in the Bothal Suite at Ashington Leisure Centre.

As well as offering local residents the opportunity to raise and discuss any issues relevant to Ashington, there will also be short guest presentations on the Ashington Community Woods Project, and the important local work of the Credit Union for South East Northumberland and the Wansbeck Centre for Voluntary Service.

All local residents are warmly invited to attend; further details are available from the Town Council clerk, Mike Slaughter (Tel: 843474).

The newly-formed 'Friends of Hirst Park' group is combining its formal launch with an Easter school holidays activities event on Wednesday April 20th.

Councillor John McCormack the Mayor of Ashington, will be opening the event at 11am in Hirst Park.

The Northumberland Play Team has been called in to help organise an event along the lines of on 'Alice in Northumberland' day when there will be an Easter Egg hunt around the Park, with loads more activities for youngsters to enjoy.

All the proceeds made on the day will go toward supporting 'Friends of Hirst Park' which has been set up to give local people of all ages the chance to become involved in running the Park and developing activities there.

Next Wednesday's event is open for anyone to attend and will run from 11am until 3pm.

Hair, the son of a Tanner, born in Scotswood, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, grew up along the industrialised banks of the River Tyne. Here, as a young man, he first began to learn about painting and drawing whilst working for a local engraver and lithographer. By the age of eighteen he had developed a fascination for the industrial landscape that surrounded him and had already began touring the North East coalfields, sketching scenes above and below the ground, vividly portraying the conditions of working life at that time in the region.

Liz Ritson, Woodhorn's Events and Exhibitions Officer, said, "The Collection will be of interest to so many people. It is not just an amazing documentation of the region's industrial heritage, the individual images evoke the conditions of the people who lived and worked in the mining communities."

"Aside from the industrial aspect to the paintings, visitors will also appreciate the skill of Hair as an artist," explained Liz. "There's a delicacy to the work that you might not expect with the subject matter. You won't have to be interested in the region's history to enjoy that."

The collection is currently on loan from Newcastle University's Hatton Gallery, and will remain on display until 5pm June 12th.

Visitors to the Woodhorn Museum and Archives Centre near Ashington, Northumberland, are currently enjoying the colourful Art History of British Surfing exhibition.

Now, in conjunction with the touring display, staff have organised a Life's a Beach programme of activities to keep youngsters and their parents amused.

Friends of Ashington Community Woodland are going to go out into the woods on Saturday July 17 to pick up rubbish, starting at 10am.

They are hoping as many volunteers as possible will join them.

Meet at the railway crossing on Lintonville Terrace next to the police station. For information contact Peter Downes on 01670 514876.