Teesside’s Industrial Landscape is a photographic journey around one of England’s most visually dramatic industrial areas. Iron, steel, chemicals and heavy engineering made Teesside world famous, yet despite this, it remains a relatively unknown area compared to Tyneside, the Black Country and South Yorkshire.

From Bishop Auckland, Darlington, Hartlepool, Sunderland, Thirsk and Whitby the road signs point to Teesside, an area which to this day has something of an identity crisis. As a political unit, Teesside was short lived, existing between 1968 and 1974. Today, it is a geographical expression for the area centred on Billingham, Middlesbrough, Stockton-on-Tees and Thornaby, plus South Bank and possibly Redcar. The proudly independent Hartlepool or should I say Hartlepools, is certainly not a part of ‘Teesside’, despite a similar socio-economic profile. In a nutshell, Teesside is the industrial areas centred on the River Tees. Beyond Bowesfield (Stockton-on-Tees) and towards Yarm and Aislaby the Tees is distinctly gentle and rural as it meanders towards the High Pennines.

A view of the former ICI Works at Billingham viewed from Norton, April 1998. Out of shot is the A19 (Fleet Bridge Road), while in the centre was the site of the ICI coal yard. The houses in the distance are located at New Road, Imperial Road and Mond Crescent – some of the earliest modern estates to be built in Billingham. (Teesside's Industrial Landscape, Amberley Publishing)

As a child I was fascinated by the everchanging industrial landscape of Teesside. Nowhere else it seemed to me had such an overpowering, heavy and oppressive industrial landscape - cooling towers, pipes, chimneys seemingly everywhere. It was a fascinating, strangely beautiful sight, especially the late-night flaring and galaxy of industrial lighting. The landscape was always evolving, chimney stacks would disappear here and new pipelines would appear elsewhere. There were iconic landmarks such as the ICI Nitram tower with its distinctive blue lines and of course the wonderful Transporter.

It was not until I was a teenager in the 1990s that I felt it important to record the local landscape for future reference and generations. Sadly, I missed the heaviest and most prosperous period of Teesside’s industry but nevertheless there was still plenty to photograph at the old ICI works and elsewhere. Thus began the genesis of this publication.

Photographed from a disused spoil heap, Billingham Beck’s confluence with the River Tees is ahead and the former ICI complex behind. A quiet and isolated location with a rather seedy atmosphere, it is not a place to linger. (Teesside's Industrial Landscape, Amberley Publishing)

In the 2000s and beyond I began photographing the areas key industrial sites, landmarks, bridges and buildings. I tried to capture sites from unusual viewpoints or distances. Sometimes I was content to photograph things as ‘they were’, simple record shots so to speak. I also tried to photograph mundane things such as underpasses and sinister looking factories which form a less conscious part of the landscape.

So, Teesside’s Industrial Landscape is a photographic journey which begins just outside the Teesside area at Old Hartlepool, and includes Seaton Carew, Seal Sands, Greatham, Port Clarence, Haverton Hill, Billingham, Norton, Stockton-on-Tees, Thornaby, Middlesbrough, South Bank, Grangetown, Redcar, South Gare and a few other places.  

A close-up showing the conveyer belt at British Steel Redcar Works, June 2020. It is just the place to listen to a Nine Inch Nails album or some other industrial metal record. (Teesside's Industrial Landscape, Amberley Publishing)

I include comprehensive photographic coverage of the key industrial areas around Seal Sands, Billingham, Middlesbrough, South Bank and Wilton. There is valuable coverage of the former British Steel Works at Lackenby and Redcar, plus plenty of views of what was ICI Billingham. Bridges, docks, railways, rivers, aerial views and buildings of significance feature prominently in this book too. Little known or easily overlooked sites are catered for including Stockton’s Union Corn Mill and a fine Art Deco building at Smiths Dock. Several pictures capture scenes which have now vanished completely including the old Roman Catholic Cathedral at Middlesbrough, the Dorman Long works at South Bank, British Steel Redcar, Chilton House, Billingham and even the Castlegate Centre at Stockton-on-Tees.

This book is not all photographs. The captions I hope are factual and informative. There is also a comprehensive historical overview of Teesside’s industry in the introductory pages. The purpose of this book is to provide a historical view of Teesside at a moment in time, that is from the late 1990s through to October 2023. If the book is rewarding and valuable to return to in 2054, then the book will have achieved its objective!

Teesside's Industrial Landscape by Peter Tucker is available for purchase now.