‘My grandpa invented the black bullet’: Denise Welch takes nostalgic dive into Welch’s Sweets in Whitley Bay

Denise Welch took a trip down memory lane on her podcast Juicy Crack last month by running through her family's very sweet history in Whitley Bay.

The actress is now best known for her roles on shows such as Waterloo Road and as a panellist on Loose Women, but started her life in the North East.

Denise was born in Tynemouth and grew up in Whitley Bay, a town she is outspoken about her love for despite moving on to live elsewhere in the country.

Speaking on her recently launched podcast, the 64-year-old explained the impact the Welch family had on the seaside town thanks to its sweet empire.

Denise said: "There were two sides to the family. My grandpa's brother Tom who had Welch's of Whitley Bay, very famous in the North East. Those were sold in sweety bags like football chews, lollipops on sticks, humbugs and that.

"My grandpa, John William Welch had John W Welch in Whitley Bay on the Burnham Avenue. You'd go in the shop and you'd get the jars of sweets. My grandpa invented the black bullet- it's a rolled dark mint, hard to describe them.

"When I was little, I used to go to the factory on a Saturday morning and the kids used to call me Truly Scrumptious from the Chitty Bang Bang film. The big machine, you can imagine the smell for children - it was a sweetie factory. Dad always used to go and do some account on a Saturday morning and we'd be talking to the girls in the factory and there was this machine that pumped out the black bullet stuff in a long sausage and they literally used to go cut and roll with a knife."

The Geordie still frequently visits the North East, where her late father lived until his recent passing, and posed for a photo outside the old shop in 2012.

Denise has often spoken of her partying memories as a youngster on Tyneside - recalling 'dancing with Quasimodo' at Zone 22 - and added that her connections with Whitley Bay's sweet gods made her number one on the invite list.

She joked: "I was brought up surrounded by sweets and confectionary. I was on the A-list of every party as I'd turn up with a great big bag of mixed toffees."

In 2021 an image of staff working at the factory was shared on Facebook by Newcastle City Guides and brought about a flood of nostalgic comments from social media users.

"My grandma and my mam used to work there my mam used to come home on Friday with a big bag of sweets," one said. Another added: "I remember a van coming round the street in Benton and the man gave all the kids handfuls of sweets, we only had little hands but it was something I'll never forget."

Read more: Denise Welch shares moving phone call with son Matty Healy on Loose Women in honour of late father

Someone else remembered working as a receptionist at the shop, walking past the factory every day, it's "gorgeous smell" and various relatives who were employed by the business.

You can listen to Denise Welch's Juicy Crack podcast here.