Hall’s well that ends well: The history of Ricky Road
A decade on from the demolishment of Richardson Road, we went through our archives to uncover the history and alumni memories of one of Newcastle’s most famous student accommodations.
1 June 2026
Renowned for its quirky seven-sided bedrooms (with no wall big enough to have a bed against!) and for being ‘party central’ on campus for five decades, Richardson ‘Ricky’ Road has a rightful place in the Newcastle University history books.
2026 marks 10 years since the sad day the iconic accommodation was demolished, and so to honour this anniversary we invite you to take a walk down memory lane – past the triangle windows and chimney, avoiding the water fights! – through Ricky Road’s legacy.
1970s: ‘It could be you’
When Richardson Road opened back in 1972, the accommodation cost £4 per week. This was the first self-catered option for students and proved to be popular, so much so that the Students’ Union had to run a lottery to decide who would be lucky enough to secure a room in the brand-new Ricky Road. If you were really lucky you may even have got a bedroom with seven walls - as fondly recalled by many alumni!
Despite term beginning as usual is September, the first cohort of Ricky Road residents weren’t able to move in until November 1972 as the build wasn’t finished on the new accommodation. This led to many students having to find temporary accommodation near the coast or even sleeping on friends’ floors.
The accommodation was split into four – Esther Campbell Court, Goldsborough Court, Lowden Court and Owen Court – with flats sleeping six students, and exclusive accommodation for married couples available on the top floor.
It also came with certain eccentricities recounted by alumni for years to come: from the magnolia painted brick and triangular kitchens, to round pin electricity sockets and fire escape doors connecting flats (and even shower rooms!).
Alumna Val, who graduated from Newcastle University in 1981, recounted:
“One of my flatmates used to prefer the external door as the entrance, rather than the one in the actual stairwell - meaning we would regularly get interrupted in the shower by him hammering on the fire escape door to be let in.”
It wasn’t just the six-bed flats that were uniquely designed – students quickly discovered other quirks about the complex. Alumnus Kevin, who moved into Ricky Road in 1978, told us that he and his housemates “found a way following the pipes under floor into the squash centre and also to other flats - a bit like caving!”
1980s: Lifelong friendships and legendary parties
By the 1980s, Ricky Road had secured itself as the place to be amongst Newcastle students. Not only was it ideally located for Leazes Park and the Town Moor (who doesn’t want cows as neighbours?), the university opened a brand-new Medical School just round the corner in 1984, offering students the chance to lie in for as long as possible before lectures began.
Lifelong friendships were made while queuing for the payphone, in the laundry room or cashing cheques at the tuck shop and solidified over a pint at the Belle Grove, which catered to our student community until it closed in 2008.
Alumna Margaret, who lived in Ricky Road from 1981-82, reminisced:
“I remember graduation day - lying down on the grass by the flats with my flat mates, taking time out from all of the celebrations…”
Richardson Road also quickly became infamous for its wild student parties and water fights. Alumnus Olaf, who lived in Ricky Road at the end of the decade, recounted a ‘legendary’ Hawaii-themed party in spring ’89 which saw 70 guests squeeze into one flat!
1990s: There’s something about Marris
The Richardson Road student village grew in the 1990s with the construction of Marris House, a 21-flat block that opened to students in 1991. Similar to Ricky Road, Marris House offered six-bed flats, but these washbasin bedrooms had the standard four walls rather than seven!
Marris House offered a quieter haven for students who still wanted to have the option for parties on their doorstep. It’s rumoured that at one Ricky Road party in the 90s, Ant and Dec (or were they still PJ and Duncan then?) were in attendance!
Ricky residents in the 90s were looked after by ‘Auntie’ Deana Boulton, the formidable warden, but that didn’t stop some unfortunate freshers burning down their flat in the 1997/8 academic year! Thankfully no-one was hurt, although the smell of the burnt plastic mattress covers will have been quite eye-watering we’re sure.
The 1990s also saw the opening of the Fell Cluster in the Medical School, which quickly became the go-to spot for Ricky residents during essay hand-in season and is still open today. And at the very end of the decade, residents voiced their strong opinions on an Eastenders storyline with posters and placards popping up across the student village. These humorous protests centred on the ‘will he won’t he’ of Matthew Rose’s murder trial, with Owen Court being renamed ‘Steve Owen Court’ in memory of DJ Matthew’s alleged victim!
2000s to now: A brave new world
Throughout the generations, Ricky Road has had a notorious reputation for pranks, and this continued until its final days. One student journalist reported in The Courier in 2014 of freshers breaking the fire safety locks in the showers to write in a fellow student’s bathroom ‘the Chamber of Secrets has been opened’ and discovering a pig’s head on top of the bins.
Ricky residents throughout the decades also made use of the outdoor space between the quirkily shaped blocks of flats. Whether it was snowball fights in winter, or BBQs in the summer – whatever the weather you could guarantee a gathering! Alumna Eve lived in Ricky Road in 2000 and recounted putting “a chair onto the flat roof to catch the rays, but if it was too sunny the tar would melt and your chair legs would sink an inch!”
By the 2000s, the original £4 a week rent had risen to (a still reasonable) £42 for Ricky residents, but it remained the cheapest option for new students arriving to Newcastle until its final days. In the new millennium, local amenities improved from just Londis and the North Terrace pub to include the university’s new sports centre and gym.
Despite being June, it was a dark day on campus when Richardson Road closed in 2016 to make way for the new £75.5 million Park View Student Village. A bit of Ricky still exists in homes across the North East, though, with solid wood furniture and white goods from Richardson Road made available to charities to sell and furnish properties for beneficiaries.
The washing machines weren’t the only things needing rehoming after the demolishment. Ricky Road was also home to a 200-strong colony of rare pipistrelle bats – who now have swanky heated towers in the Park View Student Village to call home!
Park View opened to first year students in September 2018. It comprises six blocks named after local rivers - Alwin, Breamish, Derwent, Irthing, Pont and Rede – and provides 1,279 en-suite bedrooms to our student community. It was constructed using almost 800 pre-fabricated modules, making it the biggest project of its kind in the UK!
Described by The Courier as “the big dog of the Newcastle accommodations”, Park View continues its predecessor’s reputation for being a social place to live but with a heftier price tag, costing £197.40 to £242.55 per week.
Share your memories
Did you live in Ricky Road during your student days? We’d love to hear your recollections!