The Rewilding of Molly McFlynn

Travel Guide

Northumberland and Newcastle locations

A short tour from Sue Reed:

Town Moor Newcastle –  The Town Moor is an area of common land in Newcastle upon Tyne. It covers an area of around 1,000 acres making it larger than Hyde Park and Hampstead Heath combined. It is also larger than New York’s Central Park. Cows graze, dogs are walked, and once a year it sees the famous Hoppings Fun Fair set up there. It is also the place where, in 1650, fourteen women and one man were hung on accusations of witchcraft.

My novel begins and ends on the Town Moor with Molly firstly leaving town, being driven away by her Mam who says she cannot be trusted to stay in town. It ends with Molly meeting friends on the Town Moor on the anniversary of the hanging of those accused of witchcraft in 1650.

Beltingham –  a small village of yellow sandstone cottages in Northumberland, once home to the Bowes Lyon family, many of whom are buried in the graveyard of the small church. Behind the church is the famous yew tree which is over 900 years old, and was runner-up in the Woodland Trust Tree of the Year Competition in 2020. Molly and her Mam drive through the village of Beltingham to get to her Nan and Grandad’s house – it is also where the vicar lives, who Molly confronts after a local witch hunt has taken place and put her friend in danger.

The Green Bridge –  an iconic landmark in these parts; a green metal bridge that spans the South Tyne River, and can be accessed from near the railway station at Bardon Mill on one side, and the lane that runs to and from Beltingham and Willimoteswick on the other.  It is the scene of much action in The Rewilding of Molly McFlynn, serving as a portal through which Martha travels in time from the seventeenth century to our time. It is also where Molly confronts the lads who are determined to flush out whoever is living homeless in the woods.

Beltingham Nature Reserve –  A beautiful and peaceful spot where footpaths meander through trees and the South Tyne washes its banks. Fishermen stand in waders in the water, catching salmon and brown trout and dog walkers use it as a popular walking spot. It has a small area of calaminarian grassland, influenced by heavy metal pollution in the past, where several interesting species of wildflowers grow.  This is where Martha, living homeless in the woods has her camp. There is a small island across a narrow strip of water where she is hiding.

Willimoteswick  – a hamlet at the end of the lane that runs from Beltingham. Standing on a rise is Willimoteswick Castle Farm, which dates back to the Twelfth Century, a fortified battle dwelling which has a turreted tower that would have served as a defence against the Border Reivers. It is said that Bishop Ridley, who was burnt at the stake was born here. The cottage where Nan and Grandad live is situated in Willimoteswick, on a bend in the road by a little stone bridge, just down the hill from Willimoteswick Castle Farm. Up at the farm, lives farmer David (fictional) and his family, including his son who is causing no end of trouble for the girls in the story. It is David who comes to Molly’s rescue in her moment of peril.