The bulk of the Meadow Well Estate was built in the 1930s to accommodate low income residents who were displaced by slum clearances in nearby North Shields.
Although the tension had been brewing for decades, the riots themselves were finally triggered by the deaths of two local youths, Dale Robson and Colin Atkins, who were killed fleeing the police at high speed when the stolen car in which they were joyriding crashed.
[3] On 12 September, the riots spread from Meadow Well to the suburbs on the west end of Newcastle upon Tyne, as businesses in Benwell, Scotswood and Elswick were targeted, such as the Dodds Arms pub.
When police arrived on the scene, they were forced back by a crowd of over 300 youths, as stones were thrown at them, and fire engines suffered extensive damage and vandalism.
[5] The riots were condemned by Prime Minister, John Major and Home Secretary Kenneth Baker, while the Chief of Northumbria Police, Sir Stanley Bailey said the perpetrators would be caught and charged.
Other areas affected by rioting were Handsworth in Birmingham, Ely in Cardiff, Kates Hill in Dudley and Blackbird Leys in Oxford.