FREEDEATH IN ST JAMESS PARK EBOOK Susanna Gregory | 464 pages | 01 Dec 2013 | Little, Brown Book Group | 9780751544336 | English | London, United Kingdom Man arrested on suspicion of murder after body found in London park | UK news | The Guardian With a seating capacity of 52, seats, it is the eighth largest football stadium in England. St James' Park has been the home ground of Newcastle United since and has been used for football since Reluctance to move has led to the distinctive lop-sided appearance of the present-day stadium's asymmetrical stands. Besides club football, St James' Park has also been Death in St Jamess Park for international footballat the Olympics[7] for the rugby league Magic Weekendrugby union World CupPremiership and England Test matches, charity football events, rock concerts, and as a set for Death in St Jamess Park and reality television. The site of St James' Park was originally a patch of sloping grazing land, bordered by Georgian Leazes Terrace, [8] and near the historic Town Moorowned by the Freemen of the city, both factors that later affected development of the ground, with the local council being the landlord of the site. Once the residence of high society in Newcastle, it is now a Grade 1 [9] [10] listed buildingand, recently refurbished, is currently being used as self-catering postgraduate student accommodation by Newcastle University. The first football team to play at St James' Park was Newcastle Rangers in [12] They moved to Death in St Jamess Park ground at Byker inthen returned briefly to St James' Park in before folding that year. Newcastle West End took over the ground in West End were wound up in and effectively merged into their rivals Newcastle East Endwho took over the lease of St James' Park and became Newcastle United later that year. A redeveloped Death in St Jamess Park and further stands followed inbringing the first official capacity to 30, standing. While the stadium is now synonymous with the Black and WhitesNewcastle United actually played in red and white at St James' Park until The second-ever rugby league test match, and first test victory by Great Britain, was played at the ground in against the touring Australian Kangaroos side on 23 January Between andplans were drawn up for a double-tiered stand by notable football architect Archibald Leitch. However, after planning disputes, all that was achieved was a small roof over the Leazes Terrace side Sir John Hall Stand. Floodlights were constructed in the Death in St Jamess Park, with the first match played using them held on 25 February against Celtic. Up until the s planning difficulties continued, culminating in lack of development Death in St Jamess Park the ground being cited as the reason for failure of Newcastle United to secure the right to host a group stage of the upcoming World Cup following political disputes. In the late s further attempts were made to develop the site, and the council proposed a multi-use sports development of St. James' Park. This was rejected as not financially viable. Plans were drawn up by the club for a move to a stadium in Gosforth[4] [5] or even a groundshare with Sunderland A. Inwork started on the East Stand, 50 years after it was last permitted to be developed. Investigations following the Bradford City stadium fire in identified a Death in St Jamess Park to replace the ageing West Stand, which was demolished in Its replacement, the Milburn Stand, was named in honour of Jackie Milburn and opened in Until the early s the ground had achieved only modest expansion under various owners, with plans dogged by disputes and lack of finance due to poor on-field performances. In Death in St Jamess Park businessman Sir John Hallwho had led the Magpie Group consortium in a hostile takeover of the club, was installed as chairman. Sir John used his experience in property development to rapidly gain approval and invested heavily in the stadium [17] with finances gained from success under new manager Kevin Keegan. The Leazes End that Death in St Jamess Park been demolished but not replaced was finally rebuilt, and opened as the Sir John Hall stand for Newcastle's debut season in the Premiership in The Gallowgate End was rebuilt, the Milburn Stand modified, and a new pitch, drainage and floodlights were installed. With all four corners filled in [15] with seating, by the stadium had reached a capacity of 36, As the expanded stadium still received full houses due to continuing success of the team led by the returning Kevin Keeganinplans were submitted by the club to relocate to Leazes Park to the north. The City council initially invited the planning proposal Death in St Jamess Park suggestions that the club might move to a site in Gateshead[19] [20] a 75,seat stadium next to Gateshead International Stadium[21] but it led to political debate [20] and opposition. A pressure group "No Business on the Moor" [18] [19] [20] [22] eventually gathered a 36,petition signature, [18] [19] equal to the then-current stadium capacity. It became clear that the relocation plan would not gain planning permission without a potentially long-running public enquiry. In Sir John Hall stepped down as chairman remaining as a director untilnow life president of the cluband existing shareholder and board director Freddy Shepherd became chairman. Following the withdrawal of Death in St Jamess Park Leazes Park plan, the club proposed expansion of St James' Park to over 52, capacity, through major construction of a second tier over the Milburn Stand, Leazes End and adjoining corner, adding to a structure that was itself just four years old. During development, the Death in St Jamess Park stand and roof was constructed while leaving the existing cantilever roof intact until the last possible moment [24] These developments increased capacity to approximately 52, The redevelopment caused controversy when the club informed 4, season-ticket-holding fans that their seat prices would be increased to corporate rates, with the option of paying these or being moved to seats in the proposed expanded sections. As a gesture of goodwill, the club did not Death in St Jamess Park the fans for legal costs awarded over their insured limit. In the Gallowgate was redeveloped, with a new bar being built beneath the upper tier of the Gallowgate End, named " Shearer's' " after Newcastle player Alan Shearer. During excavation underneath the stand during building work, the builders uncovered the original steps of the old Gallowgate End stand, which had simply been covered up when the stadium was fully renovated in These steps were removed for Shearer's Bar. The completion of the redevelopment of the Gallowgate saw the creation of Shearer's Bar, an expanded club shop, a club museum and a new box office. This expansion would be funded by the city council and linked to the redevelopment of the land behind the stand and over the Metro Station, which had previously been earmarked for the casino project. Expansion of the Gallowgate end involves difficulties due to the proximity of a road, Strawberry Place, and issues surrounding reinforcement of the underground St James Metro station. The redevelopment plans announced under the previous regime were put on hold following the takeover of the club and its plc holding company by owner Mike Ashley. A large advertising sign for Sports Direct appeared on the lip of the roof of the Gallowgate, visible from the pitch. A full review of the club performed by the new management team concluded that stadium expansion was not a priority. The area of seats designated as the family enclosure were expanded, and certain corporate areas saw increased pricing. The first game after Keegan's resignation, a league fixture against Hull on 13 Septemberregistered a crowd of 50, [32] amid protests against Ashley and Dennis Wise. This was followed by an attendance of 44, [33] on 27 September in a league fixture against Blackburn Roverswhich followed a record low attendance of 20, [34] on Wednesday, 24 September in a League Cup fixture, the lowest ever attendance for a competitive first-team match since the promotion to the top flight[35] and a drop of over 4, from previous lows. Although Newcastle's crowds inevitably fell in —10 as a result of their relegation and the fact that Britain was still in recessionDeath in St Jamess Park Magpies still attracted a modern-day record average attendance for a club at this level with their attendance for the season averaging at 43, They also became the first club to attract a league attendance of more than 50, at this level in the modern era, and ended the season promoted as champions of the Football League Championship. The scoreboard was used for the first Death in St Jamess Park on 18 October during a Premier League tie against Leicester City. However the game was delayed one hour, due to damage caused by strong wind to the paneling surrounding the scoreboard. Newcastle United later stated on their website: "Supporter safety was of paramount importance. On 10 NovemberNewcastle United announced that the stadium would officially be renamed Sports Direct Arenaas a temporary measure to "showcase the sponsorship opportunity to interested parties", whilst looking for a sponsor for possible future stadium re-branding. According to the club, the St James' Park title was dropped as not Death in St Jamess Park "commercially attractive". Previously, inthe club had announced plans to sell the naming rights for the stadium. After protests about the possible loss of the name of the stadium, which included the tabling of an early day motion in Parliament, the club clarified the following week that the move would not Death in St Jamess Park the loss of the name St James' Park altogether, citing the example of 'SportsDirect.