Description & Facts: Newcastle upon Tyne is a city in the North East of England. It has a population of 250,000 but including the surrounding urban area its population is almost 1 million. Newcastle is a lively and diverse city, known for its nightlife, art, music and sports. Compact, attractive and friendly, it is one of England's core cities and is a centre of culture, architecture and business. Newcastle is a starting point for tours of the Northumberland coast and Hadrian's Wall. The town is also home to the Geordie culture, with a rich heritage of folk music and dance and its own dialect. Newcastle was founded around 2,000 years ago as a Roman fort called Pons Aelius along Hadrian's Wall - a ruin of which still exists at Segedunum (A short walk from Wallsend Metro station.) The city developed into an important port and was at the centre of the Industrial Revolution during the 18th and 19th centuries. As heavy industry declined, Newcastle's fortunes took a dip. The city has now re-invented itself as a cultural centre and Science City, and is possibly one of the trendiest places in the UK.