Actor Tim Healy is to unveil a plaque dedicated to North Shields-born playwright Tom Hadaway.
Prominent playwright and screenwriter Tom Hadaway was born at 6 Howdon Road on 18 March 1923.
North Tyneside Council is staging a Blue Plaque unveiling event at his birthplace on what would have been his 95th birthday.
Tom Hadaway was well known nationally for the television play God Bless Thee Jackie Maddison in 1974 and he also wrote for the first series of When the Boat Comes In in 1976. He died on 3 March 2005.
The event will take place on Sunday 18 March at 11am at 6 Howdon Road in North Shields. It will be followed by a celebratory event at the Old Low Light Heritage Centre for invited guests, which will include a performance of Tom Hadaway’s play The Filleting Machine by local company Blowin’ a Hooley Theatre.
Elected Mayor Norma Redfearn CBE will be welcoming guests to the event before Tim Healy, star of Benidorm and Auf Weidersehen Pet, officially unveils the plaque. Members of the Hadaway family will also be in attendance.
Mayor Redfearn said: “We are very proud here in North Tyneside of Tom Hadaway and this is a fitting way to recognise all that he achieved.
“I am really looking forward to welcoming Tim Healy and members of the Hadaway family to the unveiling event, which I’m sure will prove to be a fantastic tribute to Tom.
“We are also delighted to be working in partnership with the Old Low Light to stage the event on the Fish Quay.”
David Young, a Trustee at the Old Low Light, said: “We are honoured to be invited to hold the event at the oldest inhabited building on the Fish Quay.
“The Fish Quay has been at the heart of North Shields life for over 900 years and the Old Low Light as a charity has a principal aim to celebrate the culture and heritage of the Fish Quay and North Shields - a story that could not be told without the inclusion of Tom Hadaway, a central character, and who we have featured in many of our previous exhibitions and events. We look forward to welcoming guests to this important commemorative event.”
Karbon Homes, which owns the property at 6 Howdon Road, has granted permission for the Blue Plaque to be installed.
Jo Ray, Executive Director of Customer Services, said: “Tom touched the hearts of many people not just here in the North East but right across the country.
“When North Tyneside Council approached us, we thought it was a fitting tribute to be able to commemorate Tom’s life by unveiling a plaque at his birth place so we were more than happy to give permission for the plaque to be installed.”
The Blue Plaque dedicated to Tom Hadaway reads as follows:
TOM HADAWAY
Playwright
Tom Hadaway, playwright and screenwriter, was born in this house on 18th March 1923. Tom first made an impact on the national scene with the television play, God Bless Thee Jackie Maddison (1974) and wrote for the first series of When The Boat Comes In (1976). Tom’s plays tell the story of the North East of England, in particular the fishing industry where he worked for most of his life. Tom’s gift was to find music in the speech of the ‘common folk’ of North Shields, who were the inspiration for his work. He died on the 3rd March 2005.