Situated to the south of the A693, it is home to an award-winning real ale pub, the Beamish Mary Inn (dating from 1897 and originally known as the Red Robin), and lies near the Beamish Mary coal pit.

[3] It could also be a literary play on the word "Utopia", which comes from the Greek: οὐ ("not") and τόπος ("place") and translates as "no-place".

[2] Derwentside Council tried to change the name of the village to Co-operative Villas in 1983; however, they met with strong protests from local residents at the removal of all signs pointing to No Place.

[5] Other unusual place names in the North East include the village of Pity Me (probably a contraction of Pithead Mere, a nearby bog), Bearpark (from Beaurepaire, French for "beautiful retreat" – the name of a nearby Norman manor), Wideopen, Once Brewed and Twice Brewed.

Sharing the village's name is No Place,[6] an independently produced feature film made in the North East of England and shown at the Cannes Film Festival, subsequently leading to limited distribution at the Tyneside Cinema.