This is Fred Cowell, photo by Charles Bell. This is from the book "Tyne View" by Michael Chaplin. This is a lovely book about a group of four people who go for a walk from South Shields to Wylam along the south bank of the Tyne, cross the river and then walk back to Tynemouth. The book was sponsored by the Port of Tyne and Michael is their part time writer in residence. The four walkers are a writer, a photographer, an artist and a poet and each add different elements to the book. The walk takes ten days and along the way they observe the scenery, add a bit of historical context and bump into some "ordinary people" each of whom have a little tale to tell about the river and their life. One of those people is Fred and they visit his workshop where he is restoring the GEORGE EMILY. However one far from ordinary person he meets is our very own Tynebuoy who they find lurking on the riverbank and he has a tale or two to tell about his time in the yards. By pure coincidence, and interest for me, another person is a bird watcher and his photo is a similar full page portrait. I looked at it and thought "I'm sure I know that person", he owns my local fish and chip shop and sure enough it is him. There are some inaccuracies in the book but they don't detract in any way from its overall appeal. For those looking for a detailed River Tyne history book, this is not for them. But those looking for an interesting yarn, I recommend it. ISBN 978-0-9566551-6-5
