Get there early: And this is why South Tyneside was the place to be in the 1960s at Christmas

Clubs had some sensational acts to enjoy and here’s a reminder of some of the stars who came to the borough.

Get there early for the 1960s Cellar Club

The Cellar Club was doing a roaring trade thanks to live acts such as The Crazy World of Arthur Brown in 1967.

Admission was ten shillings for a one night performance which was billed as ‘from London. Come early’.

Other names to appear included Georgia Quintet, Lusika State, The Urge and The Sect.

The legendary Cellar Club in Thomas Street, South Shields, had already seen appearances by Jimi Hendrix and Eric Clapton and The Cream.

La Strada for a festive night out

After all that dancing, you would probably need some sustenance. The Bengal and Anglo Asian restaurants in Ocean Road were doing three-course Christmas lunches for 12 and 6 for curry, and 16 and 6 for turkey.

They were both open from 12pm until midnight every day through the Christmas period.

In 1969, La Strada was the place to be for a festive night out and it had stars on stage such as Maureen and Michael, and the Mat Harrison Trio - but there was no admission after 10.30pm.

Three LPs in one set from Saville Bros

If you preferred to stop in and listen to the hits on your record player, Saville Bros in Keppel Street stocked all the latest sounds.

For 37 and 6, you could get disc gift sets from The Byrds, Tom Jones, The Beatles, Rolling Stones or In The Court of King Crimson.

Another option was the Polydor set where you would get three LPs in one set for 59 and 6. The options included The Wonderland of Bert Kaempfert, Crazy Otto Rides Again, and Hammond Spectacular.

In 1964, the big screen line-up was definitely worth a look. The Regent was showing The Girl Hunters starring the actual author of the book Micky Spillane, playing private detective Mike Hammer.

Share your own memories of a 1960s South Tyneside Christmas by emailing [email protected]