'Our Tyne': Iconic Regeneration and the Revitalisation of Identity in NewcastleGateshead

The landscape of the north-east of England, both urban and rural, is perhaps most notable as a deindustrialised landscape. Indeed, the world in which we live is determined as much by what it was as by what it is. Perhaps this is no more evident than in the case of NewcastleGateshead which is often portrayed as an exemplar of the revitalising benefits of culture-led regeneration. The, as yet unproven, success of NewcastleGateshead Quayside is founded upon a massive financial investment in iconic projects. But under what conditions is, if at all, such iconography succeeding? This article addresses the impact of flagship regeneration projects and their role in radically rearticulating the meaning of place and space in a so-called post-industrial world. It is suggested that the success of investment in iconic cultural projects depends above all upon people's sense of belonging in a place and the degree to which culture-led regeneration can engage with that sense of belonging, whilst balancing achievements of the past with ambitions for the future.