Jim Scott Photography

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Jim Scott Photography

Where history leaves its mark. Northumberland, landscapes, people & stories. Field Notes • Travel • Western
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04/11/2026

The road to Bebbanburg.

This is the view that greets you as you turn a tight left-hand bend in what is today known as the B1341, heading east.

Long before it was the road we know today, this was one of the main approaches to one of the most important strongholds in England.

By the 6th and 7th centuries Bamburgh (Bebbanburg) had become a royal centre of the kingdom of Bernicia, later Northumbria. Roads and trackways would have carried people, livestock, supplies and messengers between the fortress and the settlements and estates inland.

Medieval records show Bamburgh surrounded by a much more extensive network of streets and routes than survives today, including a King’s Highway which is highly likely to be the same route.

The exact age of the modern road line is difficult to prove, but the approach itself is certainly far older than most travellers who use it, realise.

And even now, some 1400 years later, Bamburgh Castle still dominates the road ahead.

03/11/2026

The last of the autumn colours and a tiny bit of early morning mist, in my local woods on Friday morning. 🍂

02/11/2026

Dunstanburgh Castle was built by a man preparing for a fight with his king.

Thomas, Earl of Lancaster, began building the castle in 1313. One of England’s richest and most powerful nobles, he had become a leading opponent of Edward II and appears to have intended this remote Northumberland stronghold as somewhere he could retreat if that conflict turned against him.

It did… In 1322, Lancaster and his supporters planned to withdraw to Dunstanburgh, but they never made it. He was intercepted and defeated at Boroughbridge, captured and taken to his own castle at Pontefract, where he was executed.

Ironically, Thomas may only have seen Dunstanburgh once. The castle later became a Lancastrian stronghold during the Wars of the Roses before gradually falling into the ruins that remain above the Northumberland coast today.

Dunstanburgh Castle, sunrise. October 2026.

01/11/2026

A few frames from Friday morning, following the roads around Kielder Water as the forest shows off the last of its autumn colour.

What caught my attention most wasn’t the wider landscape, but the contrasts within it — dark conifers against gold larch trees, a single green tree surrounded by gold and bronze, and roads disappearing through miles of forest.

Northumberland, October 2026.

31/10/2026

5 Northumberland places with a dark history.

Northumberland’s castles, churches and landmarks often look peaceful today. But some witnessed sieges, murder, imprisonment and battles that shaped the region.

Swipe through five of their stories, all detailed in the caption →

In 1644, around 500 Scottish Covenanters defended Morpeth Castle against a Royalist force of roughly 2,700 men.

The garrison held out for around 20 days before the arrival of heavier artillery made its position untenable. The fighting left the castle badly damaged.

In 634, Oswald of Northumbria faced the forces of Cadwallon of Gwynedd near here.

Despite commanding the smaller army, Oswald won a decisive victory. Cadwallon fled and was killed during the subsequent pursuit. Oswald became one of Northumbria’s most important kings and was later venerated as a saint.

In 1315, Mitford’s lord, Sir Gilbert de Middleton, turned rebel.

His men abducted Lewis de Beaumont, the newly appointed Bishop of Durham, along with other prominent travellers, and captives were held at Mitford for ransom. Middleton was eventually captured, taken to London and executed for treason.

Alnwick has witnessed centuries of conflict.

Malcolm III of Scotland was killed during an attack on Alnwick in 1093. Another Scottish king, William the Lion, was captured nearby while besieging the castle in 1174. Centuries later, thousands of Scottish prisoners were held at Alnwick following the Battle of Dunbar.

In 1791, Margaret Crozier was murdered at Raw Pele near Elsdon.

William Winter and two accomplices were convicted and executed in Newcastle the following year. Winter’s body was returned to the area and displayed in chains on a gibbet near the scene of the crime — a deliberately grim warning to others.

The structure standing there today is a later replacement.

Which Northumberland location should be in Part Two?

30/10/2026

A few frames from autumn at Beamish.

Beamish is a pretty unique kind of museum, it isn’t built around objects behind glass... Its streets, homes, workshops, farms and transport are used to recreate everyday life across different periods of North East history.

Vintage buses and trams still run, passing between places representing everything from the 1820s to the 1950s, while costumed staff bring the buildings and stories back to life.

For a photographer, it’s the small moments that make it work — an old bus coming around the bend, someone knitting beside the fire, or a scene of a photographers studio that briefly feels like it belongs to another century.

Beamish Museum, County Durham, October 2026.

29/10/2026

The tail end of the red deer rut in the Scottish Highlands 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿

Each autumn, mature stags compete for access to the hinds — roaring across the glens, displaying their size and, when neither backs down, fighting with their antlers.

I photographed this one in early November as he crossed in front of Buachaille Etive Mòr, with cloud moving across the mountain behind him.

This was the scene that greeted me as I arrived in the hotel car park… I hadn’t even parked the car before this shot presented itself to me.

What a welcome… One of those occasions when the landscape gives you more than you went looking for.

28/10/2026

The rock beneath Lindisfarne Castle is part of the reason it’s there.

The castle stands on Beblowe Crag, an outcrop of hard igneous rock connected to the Whin Sill Complex, formed around 300 million years ago.

The same geology helped shape some of Northumberland’s most familiar landmarks, providing the high, defensible ground beneath Bamburgh and Dunstanburgh castles too.

Lindisfarne Castle itself arrived much later, built as a fort in the 16th century to protect Holy Island’s harbour.

Around 300 million years of geology, with a few centuries of history sitting on top.

27/10/2026

An unexpected bonus on Sunday, was meeting Tom Jenkins

Tom is an incredibly talented Welsh, singer and songwriter who was performing alongside Northcote. His music is rooted in his life, living as a farmer in the coalfields of Wales. As you can imagine, it went down extremely well in the North East.

Cheers Tom, great to meet you… you’re a gent! 🫡

27/10/2026

On Sunday night I had the pleasure of photographing Canadian band Matt Goud at their gig in North Shields.

I’ve listened to Northcote for almost 15 years, so getting the chance to share a few beers and a few laughs with the lads before the show — then watch the set from the side of the stage with a camera in hand — was pretty special.

A cracking night with a great bunch of people. Thanks for having me, lads.

And cheers to David Ashdown for setting it all up. 🍻

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