Middlesbrough

Middlesbrough (i/ˈmɪdəlzbrə/ mid-əlz-brə) is a large industrial town situated on the south bank of the River Tees in north-east England, that sits within the ceremonial county of North Yorkshire. The local council, a unitary authority, is Middlesbrough Borough Council. The town is often considered to extend beyond the council boundary into the neighbouring borough of Redcar & Cleveland. According to the office for national statistics,[2] the Middlesbrough built-up area sub-division had a population of 174,700, which itself is part of the larger built-up area of Teesside and had an overall population of 376,333 at the 2011 census.[2]

Middlesbrough was in North Riding of the county of York (1837–89), an administrative county was created with a county council in 1889 under the Local Government Act 1888, In 1968 it became the centre of the County Borough of Teesside, which was then absorbed by the non-metropolitan county of Cleveland in 1974. In 1996, Cleveland was abolished, and Middlesbrough became a unitary authority, within the ceremonial county of North Yorkshire.

"Erimus" ("We shall be"), in Latin, was chosen as Middlesbrough's motto in 1830, to signify the town's will to grow. It is used in the names of commercial ventures and other organisations in the town, including social clubs. The town's coat of arms show an azure lion beneath 2 ships to represent the port of Middlesbrough. The design is based on that of the Brus family who owned the site on which Middlesbrough is built.

Contents
[hide]
 * 1 History
 * 1.1 Early history
 * 1.2 Development
 * 1.3 Industrialisation
 * 2 Economy
 * 2.1 Second World War
 * 2.2 Green Howards
 * 3 Governance
 * 3.1 Politics
 * 3.1.1 Local Government
 * 3.1.1.1 Mayor
 * 4 Geography
 * 4.1 Climate
 * 4.2 Transport
 * 4.3 Landmarks
 * 5 Culture and leisure
 * 5.1 Sport
 * 6 Education
 * 6.1 Secondary schools
 * 7 Religion
 * 7.1 Christianity
 * 7.2 Islam
 * 7.3 Sikhism
 * 7.4 Hinduism
 * 8 Television and filmography
 * 9 Notable people
 * 10 Image gallery
 * 11 Twin towns
 * 12 See also
 * 13 References
 * 14 External links

Early history[edit]
In 686, a monastic cell was consecrated by St. Cuthbert at the request of St. Hilda, Abbess of Whitby and in 1119 Robert Bruce, 1st Lord of Cleveland and Annandale, granted and confirmed the church of St. Hilda of Middleburg to Whitby.[3] Up until its closure on the Dissolution of the Monasteries by Henry VIII in 1537,[4] the church was maintained by 12 Benedictine monks, many of whom became vicars, or rectors, of various places in Cleveland. The importance of the early church at "Middleburg", later known as Middlesbrough Priory, is indicated by the fact that, in 1452, it possessed four altars.[citation needed]

After the Angles, the area became home to Viking settlers. Names of Viking origin (with the suffix by) are abundant in the area – for example, Ormesby, Stainsby,Maltby and Tollesby were once separate villages that belonged to Vikings called Orm, Steinn, Malti and Toll, but now form suburbs of Middlesbrough. The name Mydilsburgh is the earliest recorded form of Middlesbrough's name and dates to Anglo-Saxon times (400–1000 AD), while many of the aforementioned villages appear in the Domesday Book of 1086.

Other links persist in the area, often through school or road names, to now-outgrown or abandoned local settlements, such as the medieval settlement of Stainsby, deserted by 1757, which amounts to little more today than a series of grassy mounds near the A19 road.[5]

Development[edit]
Old Town Hall

In 1801, Middlesbrough was a small farm with a population of just 25. During the latter half of the 19th century, however, it experienced rapid growth.

The Stockton and Darlington Railway (S&DR) had been developed to transport coal from Witton Park Colliery and Shildon in County Durham, to the River Tees in the east. It had always been assumed by the investors that Stockton as the then lowest bridging point on the River Tees would be suitable to take the largest ships at the required volume. However, as the trade developed, and with competition from the Clarence Railway which had established a new port on the north side of the river at Port Clarence, a better solution was required on the south side of the river.

In 1828 the influential Quaker banker, coal mine owner and S&DR shareholder Joseph Pease sailed up the River Tees to find a suitable new site down river of Stockton on which to place new coal staithes. As a result, in 1829 he and a group of Quaker businessmen bought the Middlesbrough farmstead and associated estate, some 527 acres (213 ha) of land, and established the Middlesbrough Estate Company. Through the company, the investors set about the development of a new coal port on the banks of the Tees nearby, and a suitable town on the site of the farm (the new town of Middlesbrough) to supply the port with labour. By 1830 the S&DR had been extended to Middlesbrough and expansion of the town and port was assured. The small farmstead became the site of such streets as North Street, South Street, West Street, East Street, Commercial Street, Stockton Street and Cleveland Street, laid out in a grid-iron pattern around a market square. The town of Middlesbrough was born.[6]

The port was linked to the S&DR on 27 December 1830 when the line was extended to a station at Newport,[7] almost directly north of the current Middlesbrough railway station. The station and associated six-coal staithe dock facility were named "Port Darlington" by the S&DR.[8] So successful was the port, a year after opening the population had reached 2,350.[8]

However, with the port overwhelmed by the volume of imports and exports, in 1839 work started on Middlesbrough Dock. Laid out by Sir William Cubitt, the whole infrastructure was built by resident civil engineerGeorge Turnbull.[8] After three years and an expenditure of £122,000 (equivalent to £9.65 million at 2011 prices),[8] first water was let in on 19 March 1842, and the formal opening took place on 12 May 1842. On completion, the docks were bought by the S&DR.[8]

Industrialisation[edit]
Further information: Bolckow Vaughan and Dorman Long

A wall celebrating the name Ironopolis

Ironstone was discovered in the Eston Hills in 1850. In 1841, Henry Bolckow, who had come to England in 1827, formed a partnership with John Vaughan, originally ofWorcester, and started an iron foundry and rolling mill at Vulcan Street in the town. It was Vaughan who realised the economic potential of local ironstone deposits. Pig ironproduction rose tenfold between 1851 and 1856.

The importance of the area to the developing iron and steel trade gave it the nickname Ironopolis.[9][10]

On 21 January 1853, Middlesbrough received its Royal Charter of Incorporation,[11] giving the town the right to have a mayor, aldermen and councillors. Henry Bolckow became mayor, in 1853.

On 15 August 1867, a Reform Bill was passed, making Middlesbrough a new parliamentary borough, Bolckow was elected member for Middlesbrough the following year.

The population of Middlesbrough, as county borough, peaked at almost 165,000 in the late 1960s but has been in decline since the early 1980s. The 2010 population was 142,400.

For many years in the 19th century, Teesside set the world price for iron and steel.[citation needed] The steel components of the Sydney Harbour Bridge (1932) were engineered and fabricated by Dorman Long of Middlesbrough. The company was also responsible for the New Tyne Bridge in Newcastle.[12]

Several large shipyards also lined the Tees, including the Sir Raylton Dixon & Company, which produced hundreds of steam freighters including the infamous SS Mont-Blanc, the steamship which caused the 1917Halifax Explosion in Canada.

Economy[edit]
Today business in Middlesbrough is still dominated by the nearby chemical industry which until 1995 in this locality was largely owned by Imperial Chemical Industries (ICI). The fragmentation of that company led to many smaller manufacturing units being owned and operated by a number of multinational organisations. The last part of ICI itself completely left the area in 2006 and the remaining companies are now members of the Northeast of England Process Industry Cluster (NEPIC).

The port of Teesport, owned by PD Ports, is also vital to the economy of Middlesbrough and the port owners have their offices in the town. Teesport is located 5.6 miles (9 km) from the North Sea and 3.1 miles (5 km) east of Middlesbrough, on the River Tees. Teesport is currently the third largest port in the United Kingdom, and amongst the tenth biggest in Western Europe, handling over 56 million tonnes of domestic and international cargo per year. The vast majority of these products are still related to the steel and chemical industries made by companies that are members of NEPIC. NEPIC is an industry led economic cluster body that promotes the development and growth of the chemistry based process industries around the Tees Valley and the wider region of Northeast England.

Middlesbrough also remains a stronghold for engineering based manufacturing and engineering contract service businesses. It also has a growing reputation for developing digital businesses particularly in the field of digital animation as a result of spin-out activity in this new industry from the Middlesbrough based Teesside University.

Middlesbrough is served by its town centre which consists of four shopping centres, the largest of which is the Cleveland centre.The pedestrianised section of Linthorpe road includes House of Fraser and Debenhams. The town centre has a variety of stores and some better ones for a town of its size.

Second World War[edit]
Main article: Middlesbrough during World War II

Middlesbrough was the first major British town and industrial target to be bombed during the Second World War. The steel making capacity and railways for carrying steel products were obvious targets. TheLuftwaffe first bombed the town on 25 May 1940, when a lone bomber dropped 13 bombs between South Bank Road and the South Steel plant.[13] More bombing occurred throughout the course of the war, with therailway station put out of action for two weeks in 1942.[14]

By the end of the war over 200 buildings had been destroyed within the Middlesbrough area. Areas of early and mid-Victorian housing were demolished and much of central Middlesbrough was redeveloped. Heavy industry was relocated to areas of land better suited to the needs of modern technology. Middlesbrough itself began to take on a completely different look.[15]

Green Howards[edit]
Main article: The Green Howards

The Green Howards was a British Army infantry regiment very strongly associated with Middlesbrough and the area south of the River Tees. Originally formed at Dunster Castle, Somerset in 1688 to serve King William of Orange, later King William III, this famous regiment became affiliated to the North Riding of Yorkshire in 1782. As Middlesbrough grew, its population of men came to be a group most targeted by the recruiters. The Green Howards were part of the King's Division. On 6 June 2006, this famous regiment was merged into the new Yorkshire Regiment and are now known as 2 Yorks – The 2nd Battalion The Yorkshire Regiment (Green Howards). There is also a Territorial Army (TA) company at Stockton Road in Middlesbrough, part of 4 Yorks which is wholly reserve.

Governance[edit]
Middlesbrough was incorporated as a municipal borough in 1853. It extended its boundaries in 1866 and 1887, and became a county borough under the Local Government Act 1888. A Middlesbrough Rural District was formed in 1894, covering a rural area to the south of the town. It was abolished in 1932, partly going to the county borough; but mostly going to the Stokesley Rural District.[17]

In 1968 Middlesbrough became part of the County Borough of Teesside, and in 1974 it became part of the non-metropolitan county of Cleveland until the county's abolition in 1996, when Middlesbrough became a unitary authority. The town now forms part of North Yorkshire for ceremonial purposes only.

Politics[edit]
Currently the Middlesbrough constituency is represented by Andy McDonald for Labour in the House of Commons. He was elected in a by-election held on 29 November 2012 following the death of previous Member of Parliament Sir Stuart Bell, who was the MP since 1983. Middlesbrough has been a traditionally safe Labour seat. The first Conservative MP for Middlesbrough was Sir Samuel Alexander Sadler, elected in 1900.

Mayor[edit]
In 2002, Middlesbrough voted to have a directly elected mayor as head of the council. The current mayor is Ray Mallon (independent), formerly a senior officer in Cleveland Police. Mallon has served terms beginning in 2002, 2007 and 2011. Before having an elected mayor the council had a ceremonial mayor. The functions of this office have been transferred to the office of "Chair of Middlesbrough Council".

The first Mayor of Middlesbrough was the German-born Henry Bolckow in 1853.[18][19] During the 20th century, encompassing introduction of universal suffrage in 1918 and changes in local government in the United Kingdom, the role of mayor changed. Unlike some other cities with a "City Mayor" and "Ceremonial Mayor", the traditional civic and ceremonial functions of the Mayor, including mayoral chains and robes, are now vested with the role now called 'Chair of Middlesbrough Council'. The Chair is still chosen by the Council from amongst the elected Councillors. For the year 2011–2012 the Chair is Councillor Stephen Bloundele.[20]

Geography[edit]
Map of the Middlesbrough / Stockton-on-Tees area

The following list are the different wards, districts and suburbs of Middlesbrough.
 * Acklam
 * Ayresome
 * Beckfield
 * Beechwood
 * Berwick Hills
 * Brookfield
 * Central Middlesbrough
 * Clairville
 * Coulby Newham
 * Easterside
 * Gresham
 * Brambles Farm
 * Grove Hill
 * Hemlington
 * Kader
 * Ladgate
 * Linthorpe
 * Marton-in-Cleveland
 * Marton Grove
 * Marton West
 * Middlehaven
 * North Ormesby
 * Nunthorpe
 * Ormesby
 * Pallister
 * Park End
 * Priestfields
 * Saltersgill
 * St. Hilda's
 * Stainton-in-Cleveland
 * Thorntree
 * Netherfields
 * Tollesby
 * Town Farm
 * West Lane
 * Whinney Banks

Climate[edit]
Middlesbrough has an oceanic climate typical for the United Kingdom. Being sheltered by both the Lake District and Pennines to the west, Middlesbrough is in one of the relatively drier parts of the country, receiving on average 574 millimetres (22.6 inches) of rain a year. Temperatures range from mild summer highs in July and August typically around 20 °C (68 °F) to winter lows in December and January falling to around 0 °C (32 °F).[21]

Transport[edit]
Middlesbrough is served well by public transport notably by the Arriva North East and Stagecoach. National Express and Megabus operate long distance coach travel from the bus station.

Train services are operated by Northern Rail and First Transpennine Express, the latter of which provides direct rail services to cities such as Leeds, York, Liverpool and Manchester, departing from Middlesbrough railway station.

In the past Middlesbrough has been served by the Middlesbrough, Stockton and Thornaby Electric Tramways Company, Imperial Tramways Company, Middlesbrough Corporation Tramways, Tees-side Railless Traction Board and Teesside Municipal Transport.

Landmarks[edit]
Acklam Hall

Located in the suburb and former village of Acklam, Middlesbrough's oldest domestic building is Acklam Hall of 1678. Built by Sir William Hustler, it is also Middlesbrough's sole Grade I listed building.[23][24] The Restoration mansion, accessible through an avenue of trees off Acklam Road, has seen progressive updates through the centuries, making a captivating document of varying trends in English architecture.

Transporter Bridge, built in 1911

Via a 1907 Act of Parliament, Sir William Arrol & Co. of Glasgow built the Transporter Bridge (1911) which spans the River Tees between Middlesbrough and Port Clarence. At 850 feet (260 m) long and 225 feet (69 m) high, is one of the largest of its type in the world, and one of only two left in working order in Britain (the other being in Newport). The bridge remains in daily use. It is, a Grade II* listed building.

Another landmark, the Tees Newport Bridge, a vertical lift bridge, opened further along the river in 1934. Newport bridge still stands and is passable by traffic, but it can no longer lift the centre section.

The urban centre of Middlesbrough remains home to a variety of architecture ranging from the Middlesbrough Institute of Modern Art, opened in January 2007 to replace a number of former outlying galleries; and Centre North East, formerly Corporation House, which opened in 1971. Many believe that there is a beauty to be found in the surrounding landscape of industry along the River Tees from Billingham to Wilton. The terraced Victorian streets surrounding the town centre are characterful elements of Middlesbrough's social and historical identity, and the vast streets surrounding Parliament Road and Abingdon Road a reminder of the area's wealth and rapid growth during industrialisation.

Middlesbrough Town Hall

Middlesbrough Town Hall, designed by George Gordon Hoskins and built between 1883 and 1887 is a Grade II listed building, and a very imposing structure. Of comparable grandeur, is the Empire Palace of Varieties, of 1897, the finest surviving theatre edifice designed by Ernest Runtz in the UK. The first artist to star there in its guise as a music hall was Lillie Langtry. Later it became an early nightclub (1950s), then a bingo hall and is now once again a nightclub. Further afield, in Linthorpe, is theMiddlesbrough Theatre opened by Sir John Gielgud in 1957; it was one of the first new theatres built in England after theSecond World War.

Middlesbrough Central (Public) Library

The town includes England's only public sculpture by Claes Oldenburg,[citation needed] the "Bottle O' Notes" of 1993, which relates to Captain James Cook. Based alongside it today in the town's Central Gardens is the Middlesbrough Institute of Modern Art (MIMA). Refurbished in 2006, is the Carnegie library, dating from 1912. The Dorman Long office on Zetland Road, constructed between 1881 and 1891, is the only commercial building ever designed by Philip Webb, the architect who worked for Sir Isaac Lowthian Bell.

Temenos sculpture at Middlehaven.

Away from the town centre, at Middlehaven stands the Temenos sculpture, designed by sculptor Anish Kapoor and designerCecil Balmond. The steel structure, consisting of a pole, a circular ring and an oval ring, stands approximately 110 m long and 50 m high and is held together by steel wire. It was unveiled in 2010 at a cost of £2.7 million.

Culture and leisure[edit]
Dorman Museum

The Middlesbrough Institute of Modern Art opened its doors in January 2007. It holds the second largest collection of Picassos in the United Kingdom.[citation needed] It also holds works by Andy Warhol, Henri Matisse and Damien Hirst among others. Its considerable arts and crafts collections span from 1900 to the present day.

Middlesbrough also has a healthy musical heritage. A number of bands hail from the area, including Chris Rea, Journey South andCollectors Club.

Middlesbrough Institute of Modern Art (mima)

Middlesbrough has two major recreational park spaces in Albert Park and Stewart Park, Marton. Albert Park was donated to the town by Henry Bolckow in 1866. It was formally opened by Prince Arthur on 11 August 1868, and comprises a 30 hectares (74 acres) site. The park underwent a considerable period of restoration from 2001 to 2004, during which a number of the park's landmarks, saw either restoration or revival. Stewart Park was donated to the people of Middlesbrough in 1928 by Councillor Thomas Dorman Stewart and encompasses Victorian stable buildings, lakes and animal pens. During 2011 and 2012, the park underwent major refurbishment. Alongside these two parks are two of the town's cultural attractions, the century-old Dorman Memorial Museum and the Captain Cook Birthplace Museum.

Newham Grange Leisure farm in Coulby Newham, one of the most southerly districts of the town, has operated continuously in this spot since the 17th century, becoming a leisure farm with the first residential development of the suburb in the 1970s. It is now a burgeoning tourist attraction: the chance to view its cattle, pigs, sheep and other farm animals is complemented by exhibitions of the farming history of the area.

Middlesbrough is famous for the Parmo, a version of scallopini Parmigiana or schnitzel consisting of deep-fried breaded chicken or pork cutlet, topped with thick béchamel sauce and grilled cheese. It is served with chips, salad & garlic sauce, and popular with people late at night who have been out on the town.[citation needed]

In the Middlehaven ward, is the Transporter Bridge Visitor Centre, opened in 2000 and offering its own exhibitions charting the stirring past of the surrounding industrial powerhouse, as well as that of the singular structure it commemorates.

Sport[edit]
Riverside Stadium, 2010

Middlesbrough is home to the Championship football team, Middlesbrough F.C., owned by local haulage entrepreneur Steve Gibson. The club is based at the Riverside Stadium on the banks of the River Tees, where they have played since moving from Ayresome Park, their home for 92 years until 1995. Founder members of the Premier League in 1992, Middlesbrough won the Football League Cup in 2004,[25] and were beaten finalists in the 2005-06 UEFA Cup.[26] In 1905 they made history with Britain's first £1,000 transfer when they signed Alf Common from local rivals Sunderland.[27] Another league club, Middlesbrough Ironopolis F.C., was briefly based in the town in the late 19th century, but folded within a few years.

Speedway racing was staged at Cleveland Park Stadium from the pioneer days of 1928 until the 1990s. The post-war team, known as The Middlesbrough Bears, and for a time, The Teessiders, the Teesside Tigers and the Middlesbrough Tigers operated at all levels. The track operated for amateur speedway in the 1950s before re-opening in the Provincial League of 1961. The track closed for a spell later in the 1960s but returned in as members of the Second Division as The Teessiders.

Middlesbrough is also represented nationally in Futsal. Middlesbrough Futsal Club play in the FA Futsal League North, the national championship and their home games are played in Thornaby at Thornaby Pavilion.

Athletics is a major sport in Middlesbrough with two local clubs serving Middlesbrough and the surrounding Teesside area. Middlesbrough and Cleveland Harriers and Middlesbrough AC (Mandale). Athletes used to regularly used to train at Clairville Stadium (1963-2014) and now train at the newly opened Middlesbrough Sports Village on Marton Road. Notable athletes to train at both facilities are World Indoor Sprint Champion Richard Kilty, British Indoor Long Jump record holder Chris Tomlinson and current British Internationals Jonathon Taylor, Jack Crosby, Rabah Yousif and Amy Carr.

Middlesbrough hosts several road races through the year. In September, the annual Middlesbrough Tees Pride 10k road race[28] is held on a one lap circuit round the southern part of the town. First held in 2005, the race now attracts several thousand competitors, from the serious club athlete to those in fancy dress raising money for local charities.

Education[edit]
See also: List of schools in Middlesbrough

Middlesbrough Tower, Teesside University

Middlesbrough became a university town in 1992, after a concerted campaign[by whom?] for a distinct "Teesside University" which had run since the 1960s. Before its establishment, extramural classes had been provided by the University of Leeds Adult Education Centre on Harrow Road, from 1958 to 2001.[29] Teesside University has more than 20,000 students. It dates back to 1930 as Constantine Technical College. Current departments of the university include Teesside University Business School and Schools of Arts and Media, Computing, Health and Social Care, Science & Engineering and Social Sciences & Law. The university teaches computer animation and games design and co-hosts the annual Animex International Festival of Animation. The university also has links with the James Cook University Hospital located south of the town centre.

There are also modern schools, colleges and sixth forms colleges, the largest of which is Middlesbrough College, in Middlehaven, with 16,000 students. Others include Trinity Catholic College in Acklam[30] and Macmillan Academy on Stockton Road. Cleveland College of Art and Design, which opened in 1960, is also based in Middlesbrough and Hartlepool. It is one of only four specialist art and design further education colleges in the United Kingdom.

Secondary schools[edit]
Secondary schools in Middlesbrough include:
 * Acklam Grange Secondary School, also home to the Acorn Sports Centre.
 * Outwood Academy Acklam
 * Trinity Catholic College
 * The King's Academy, in Coulby Newham, was opened in 2003 by Tony Blair and is part of a group of schools built by Peter Vardy (businessman). It has a sixth form, and the total number of students the school has at the moment is 1000.
 * The £17 million Unity City Academy, was one of the first schools to open as part of the government's £5 billion City Academy programme for failing comprehensives.
 * In 2007, Ofsted reported that Macmillan Academy was grade 1, outstanding, in overall effectiveness. Macmillan Academy also has a sixth form. Macmillan's slogan is "Inspiring every student to succeed".[31]
 * Hillsview Academy

Christianity[edit]
Middlesbrough is a deanery of the Archdeaconry of Cleveland, a subdivision of the Church of England Diocese of York in the Province of York. It stretches west from Thirsk, north to Middlesbrough, east to Whitbyand south to Pickering.

Middlesbrough is the seat of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Middlesbrough, which was created on 20 December 1878 from the Diocese of Beverley. Middlesbrough is home to the Mother-Church of the diocese, St. Mary's Cathedral, which is located in the suburb of Coulby Newham and Sacred Heart Church in the centre of the town. The present bishop is the Right Reverend Terence Patrick Drainey, 7th Bishop of Middlesbrough, who was ordained on Friday 25 January 2008.

St. Stephen's, Middlesbrough, near the university campus, is an evangelical congregation, worshipping in the style of the Church of England, but which is in the Evangelical Connexion.[32]

Islam[edit]
The Islamic community is represented in several mosques in Middlesbrough. Muslim sailors visited Middlesbrough from about 1890.[33] and, in 1961, Azzam Din opened the first Halal butcher shop.[33] The firstmosque was a house in Grange Road in 1962.[33] The Al-Madina Jamia Mosque, on Waterloo Road, the Dar ul Islam Central Mosque, on Southfield Road, and the Abu Bakr Mosque & Community Centre,[34] which is on Park Road North, are among the best known mosques in Middlesbrough today.

Sikhism[edit]
The Sikh community established their first Temple, or Gurdwara, in Milton Street, in 1967.[33] After a time in Southfield Road, the centre is now in Lorne Street and was opened in 1990.[33]

Hinduism[edit]
There is a Hindu Cultural Centre in Westbourne Road, North Ormesby, which was opened in 1990.[33]

Tamil Cultural Society was founded April 2013 and is currently operating in Newport Community Centre in Middlesbrough.

Television and filmography[edit]
Middlesbrough has featured in many television programmes, including The Fast Show, Steel River Blues, Spender, Play for Today (The Black Stuff; latterly the drama Boys from the Blackstuff) and Auf Wiedersehen, Pet.

Some of the movie Billy Elliot was filmed on the Middlesbrough Transporter Bridge.

In May 2008 Middlesbrough was chosen as one of the sites in the BBC's Public Space Broadcasting Project. Like other towns participating in the project, Middlesbrough was offered a large 27 m2 (290 sq ft) television screen by the BBC and the London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games. The screen was installed on 11 July 2008 and is located at the western end of Centre Square.

In November 2009, the mima art gallery was used by the presenters of Top Gear as part of a challenge. The challenge was to see if car exhibits would be more popular than normal art.[35]

Notable people[edit]
Captain James Cook, portrait by Nathaniel Dance, c. 1775, National Maritime Museum, Greenwich

Captain James Cook (1728–79) the world-famous explorer, navigator, and map-maker was born in Marton, now a suburb in the south of Middlesbrough.

Stanley Hollis (1912–72), recipient of the only Victoria Cross awarded on D-Day (6 June 1944).[36]

Other famous people from Middlesbrough include: Other eminent sons and daughters of Middlesbrough and its environs include Sir Martin Narey (1955–present), former Director General of the Prison Service and chief executive of Barnardo's, Professor Sir Liam Donaldson,[39] Chief Medical Officer for England, E. W. Hornung, the creator of the gentleman-crook Raffles (who was fluent in three Yorkshire dialects), and Naomi Jacob novelist. Florence Easton, the Wagnerian soprano at the New York Met and Cyril Smith (1909–74), the concert pianist, were also natives. Two immigrant sons – Frank and Edgar Watts – opened the English Hotel in the Cumberland Gap which gave their hometown's name to Middlesboro, Kentucky, in the United States.[42] The famous MP Ellen Wilkinson wrote a novel Clash (1929) which paints a very positive picture of "Shireport" (Middlesbrough). The classic study,At The Works (1907), by Florence Bell (1851–1930), gives a striking picture of the area at the turn of the 20th century. She also edited the letters of her stepdaughter Gertrude Bell (1868–1926), which has been continuously in print since 1927. Pat Barker's debut novel Union Street was set on the thoroughfare of the same name in the town. The Jonny Briggs series of books, written by Joan Eadington (and later to become aBBC Children's TV series of the same name, was also based in the town. David Shayler, the ex-spy, journalist and conspiracy theorist, was born in Middlesbrough.[43]
 * Sports
 * Footballers Brian Clough, Wilf Mannion, Jacky Carr, Don Revie, Alan Peacock, Peter Beagrie, Chris Kamara, Mark Proctor, Stuart Ripley, Gary Gill, Phil Stamp, Tommy Mooney,Keith Houchen, Jonathan Woodgate, Stewart Downing and Matt Jarvis.
 * Middlesbrough Football Club Chairman Steve Gibson
 * Rob Smedley, Head of Vehicle Performance Williams Grand Prix Engineering[37]
 * Rugby union players Rory Underwood and Alan Old
 * Cricketers Liam Plunkett, Geoff Cook, Bill Athey and Chris Old
 * Boxer Paul Truscott
 * Darts players Glenn Moody, Colin Osborne and Glen Durrant
 * Billiards players Mike Russell and Dave Causier.
 * Olympic swimmer Jack Hatfield and Commonwealth Games swimmer Alyson Jones
 * Olympic cyclist Chris Newton
 * Former British long jump record holding athlete Chris Tomlinson
 * Former Premiership referee Jeff Winter
 * Junior World and European Track Cycling Champion David Daniell
 * The Football Association's Director of Communications Adrian Bevington
 * The Paralympic Athlete Jade Jones who competed in the 2012 Paralympics
 * John Baines, an Olympic bobsledder
 * The Arts
 * Models Jade McSorley and Preeti Desai, who was Miss Great Britain 2006
 * Comedians Dave Morris, Bob Mortimer, Roy Chubby Brown and Kevin Connelly
 * Musicians Cyril Smith, Chris Rea, Paul Rodgers, Micky Moody, Alistair Griffin, Vin Garbutt, Chris Corner, Stephen Mark Barchan and Pete Trewavas
 * Actors Wendy Richard, Thelma Barlow, Christopher Quinten, Elizabeth Carling, Mark Benton, Jerry Desmonde, Jamie Parker and Neil Grainger.
 * Writers Ann Jellicoe – playwright and theatre director, novelists Ernest William Hornung, Richard Milward and Wally K Daly, TV and radio scriptwriter
 * Visual artists Fred Appleyard, Robert Nixon, Mackenzie Thorpe, Chris Dooks, William Tillyer and Emily Hesse.
 * Author, educator, historian and lecturer Paul C. Doherty
 * Roman Catholic and Dominican priest, theologian and philosopher, Herbert McCabe[38]
 * Antiques Expert David Harper
 * Anglican priest and writer, Reverend Canon Alan Hughes MBE
 * Other Entertainers
 * Magicians Paul Daniels and Pete Firman
 * TV Presenter Kirsten O'Brien
 * Magician/Comedian John Archer

Ford Madox Ford (1873–1939) was billeted in Eston during the Great War (1914–18) and his great novel sequence Parade's End is partly set in Busby Hall, Little Busby, near Carlton-in-Cleveland.

Adrian "Six Medals" Warburton, air photographer, was played by Alec Guinness in Malta Story.

The great model maker Richard Old (1856–1932) resided for most of his life at 6 Ruby Street.

Image gallery[edit]

 * Teesside Crown Court
 * The CIAC Building at RiversideOne, Middlehaven
 * 40,000 Years of Modern Art, at Middlehaven byBenedict Carpenter
 * The Middlesbrough Institute of Modern Art, circa 2007
 * Panoramic view of Middlesbrough

Twin towns[edit]
Middlesbrough is twinned with:
 * Oberhausen, Germany, since 1974[44]
 * Dunkirk, France[45]