The Writing’s on the Wall!

If you should find yourself on Stepney Bank, be sure to check out the plaque that now proudly adorns the Roots and Wings studio. The plaque was installed to commemorate Czech folk hero Jára Cimrman, who during his brief sojourn to Tyneside rubbed shoulders with a host of notable locals. Cimrman worked closely with Joseph Swan to invent the electric light bulb, as well as winning Jesmond Dene from Lord Armstrong in a game of cards (and subsequently donating it to the people of Newcastle). The plaque celebrates Cimrman’s unique contribution to local culture before leaving Tyneside to continue on his travels. It is also said that he helped Mendeleev to correctly orientate the periodic table, and that when Alexander Graham Bell invented the telephone, he discovered he had three missed calls from Jára Cimrman, but we all know by now that you shouldn’t believe everything you read on the internet!