Berwick Lighthouse gets a face-lift - local businesses pitch in to titivate Northumberland landmark

Watch more of our videos on ShotsTV.com 
and on Freeview 262 or Freely 565
Visit Shots! now
Berwick’s iconic lighthouse is getting a new lick of paint.

Work on the structure, which stands at the end of the pier on the River Tweed estuary, is expected to be finished in early July.

The lighthouse is privately owned by Berwick Harbour Commissioners and funding for the project has been provided by the town’s Preservation Trust.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

But their budget failed to cover the overall costs and so a group of local businesses pooled their resources to bring the job in on target.

Berwick lighthouse is being repainted.Berwick lighthouse is being repainted.
Berwick lighthouse is being repainted.

Berwick (Borders) Scaffolding provided the scaffolding which currently engulfs the 44ft high structure.

Builder Phil Brown is carrying out pointing on the stonework and is also providing security. Vital Signs are providing the signage. And the painting is being carried out by local painter and decorator, Iain A Grieve, whose other business, the Berwick Decorating Centre, is donating the materials.

The lighthouse, which has stood on the site since 1826, is well known to Iain, as he has twice painted it before, first of all in the mid 1990s and again in 2010.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“It’s an unusual job but when the offer came along to do the job for a third time I couldn’t turn down the opportunity,” he said.

Iain Grieve with painters Marco Lambert and Kyle Brodie.Iain Grieve with painters Marco Lambert and Kyle Brodie.
Iain Grieve with painters Marco Lambert and Kyle Brodie.

The lighthouse is constantly bashed by high winter waves off the North Sea, but remarkably the paintwork has stood up well over the intervening years.

“The white paint in particular has stood the test of time,” Iain added. “Some of the red paint, particularly around the base, has eroded away, but overall it was not in too bad a condition.

“This has in effect been a community project as a lot of people have come together to get the work done, which is particularly pleasing in the current situation with the coronavirus pandemic. It’s a way of giving something back to this great town of ours.”

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Painters Marco Lambert and Kyle Brodie said: “It’s an unusual job for us and is fine if the weather is ok, but it can get a bit windy up there. I don’t suppose there are too many people who have stood on top of the lighthouse roof, and on a good day the views are amazing.”

Berwick lighthouse.Berwick lighthouse.
Berwick lighthouse.

A message from the Editor:

Thank you for reading this story on our website. While I have your attention, I also have an important request to make of you.

In order for us to continue to provide high quality and trusted local news on this free-to-read site, I am asking you to also please purchase a copy of our newspaper.

Our journalists are highly trained and our content is independently regulated by IPSO to some of the most rigorous standards in the world. But being your eyes and ears comes at a price. So we need your support more than ever to buy our newspapers during this crisis.

A head for heights is needed by painters working on Berwick lighthouse.A head for heights is needed by painters working on Berwick lighthouse.
A head for heights is needed by painters working on Berwick lighthouse.

With the coronavirus lockdown having a major impact on many of our local valued advertisers - and consequently the advertising that we receive - we are more reliant than ever on you helping us to provide you with news and information by buying a copy of our newspaper.

Thank you

News you can trust since 1854
Follow us
©National World Publishing Ltd. All rights reserved.Cookie SettingsTerms and ConditionsPrivacy notice