Geordie Haa'd the Bairn, 1890 (oil on canvas)

This painting illustrates a song by the North East entertainer Joe Wilson. It tells the story of Geordie, who is left to look after the baby whilst his wife goes out. The baby's cry makes Geordie appreciate the importance of his wife's work in the house. 'It's startin' te cry agyen, Aw see tuts throo its gum, Maw bonny bit pet, dinner fret - Aw wish yor muther wad cum.' North East miners like Geordie wore shorts because the underground passages were very hot. A 'clippy' mat made of strips of old clothes lies on the floor of the cottage. The picture is a 19th-century copy of a painting by popular North-East artist Ralph Hedley. Hedley's picture showed a Newcastle miner named Snowdon Pyle with his daughter Annie;