Interesting Facts About Blyth

Blyth wears its history quietly. Walk along South Beach or through the town centre and you would not immediately guess that this Northumberland port shipped more coal than anywhere in Europe, launched the country's offshore wind industry, and produced one of the greatest cup runs in English football. For a town of around 37,000 people, Blyth packs in a remarkable number of firsts, oddities and proud moments. Here is a roundup of the facts that make it worth boasting about.

Blyth built the UK's first offshore wind farm

Long before offshore wind became a national industry, it began off the coast of Blyth. In December 2000, two 2MW Vestas turbines were commissioned in the shallow water near the harbour, becoming the very first offshore wind farm in the United Kingdom. At the time they were the largest turbines ever erected offshore anywhere in the world, and between them they generated enough power for roughly 2,000 homes. The pair stood for nearly two decades before being decommissioned in 2019, but their legacy is enormous: they proved the concept that has since transformed the North Sea.

Best for: Best for a genuine claim to national fame: Blyth is the birthplace of British offshore wind.

It is still a renewable-energy research hub

The wind farm was no fluke. In 2002 the National Renewable Energy Centre, known for years as Narec, was established in Blyth to research and test offshore wind, wave and tidal technology. In 2014 it merged with the Offshore Renewable Energy (ORE) Catapult, and today the town hosts some of the most comprehensive open-access turbine testing facilities in the world. Design teams from across the globe come to Blyth to validate their turbines and blades, which means this old coal port is quietly helping build the clean-energy future.

Blyth Spartans and the FA Cup run of 1977-78

Ask any football fan of a certain age about Blyth and they will mention the winter of 1977-78. That season Blyth Spartans, then a non-league side playing at Croft Park, went on a giant-killing FA Cup run that gripped the country. They beat Chesterfield, non-league Enfield and then Second Division Stoke City before reaching the fifth round, becoming the first non-league club in 29 years to get that far. Their tie with Third Division Wrexham finished 1-1, and the replay was moved to Newcastle United's St James' Park, where a crowd of over 42,000 watched Blyth finally go out 2-1. It remains one of the finest non-league cup runs ever seen.

Best for: Best for local legend: the town that very nearly reached an FA Cup quarter-final as a non-league side.

Blyth Battery guarded the coast in both World Wars

Down on the dunes at South Beach sits Blyth Battery, a coastal-defence gun battery built in 1916 after the German bombardment of Hartlepool. Its guns were meant to prevent enemy landings and protect the harbour, and it was reactivated and re-armed in 1940 for the Second World War. It is now regarded as the most intact and accessible coastal-defence battery left on the whole North East and Yorkshire coastline. Today it is a free volunteer-run museum, with original magazines, observation posts and searchlight buildings, plus a tea room and regular living-history events.

An inland lighthouse and the harbour lights

Blyth's High Light is one of the town's oddest sights: a lighthouse that now stands around 100 metres inland, hemmed in by houses. It was not always so. When Sir Matthew White Ridley had it built in 1788 it stood close to the shore, but over the years so many taller buildings went up around it that the tower had to be raised twice, once in the 1880s and again in 1900, just so its light could still be seen out to sea. It guided ships until 1985 and is now a Grade II listed landmark. Down at the harbour mouth, the more conventional pier lights still mark the entrance to the port.

Best for: Best for an oddity you can walk to: a working lighthouse marooned among the terraces.

One of Europe's great coal ports

For well over a century Blyth lived and breathed coal. The first coal staithe with an elevated loading point was built here in 1788, and by the 1930s the port was shipping around 5.5 million tonnes a year. In 1961 Blyth was the busiest port in England, exporting over six million tonnes of coal and, for a brief spell in the middle of the twentieth century, moving more coal than any other port in Europe. The staithes are long gone, but the harbour and the modern port remain the beating heart of the town's economy.

A secret submarine base

Fewer people know that Blyth was home to a Royal Navy submarine base during the First World War. Known as HMS Titania after its depot ship, the base operated in 1917 and 1918 and was said to have gathered more distinguished submarine commanders at one time than any other base in the country. Protecting that depot ship was, in fact, one of the reasons Blyth Battery was completed. A walk along the modern quayside, past the Commissioners Quay Inn, gives little hint of the wartime flotilla that once sheltered here.

Beaches, parks and a proud seaside town

Beyond the history books, Blyth is simply a fine place to spend a day. The South Beach area draws walkers and families to a long sandy shore, while Ridley Park, a beautifully kept Victorian park just five minutes from the town centre, offers formal gardens, play areas and summer splash play. Add the harbour views, the seafront and the friendly independent shops, and it is easy to see why Blyth people are so fond of their town.

Frequently asked questions

Where was the UK's first offshore wind farm? It was off the coast of Blyth in Northumberland. Two turbines were commissioned near the harbour in December 2000, and the town went on to become a national centre for renewable-energy research at the ORE Catapult's National Renewable Energy Centre.

Can you visit Blyth Battery? Yes. Blyth Battery on South Beach is a free, volunteer-run museum, usually open at weekends from spring to early autumn, with guided tours, original buildings and a tea room. Donations are welcome.

Why is there a lighthouse in the middle of Blyth? The High Light was built near the shore in 1788, but as taller buildings rose around it the tower had to be heightened twice so its light could still reach the sea. The town grew around it, leaving it stranded around 100 metres inland.

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