Tyne and Wear is a metropolitan county in the North East of England and consists of the estuary areas of the rivers Tyne and Wear.
The county was created by the Local Government Act 1972 and borders the non-metropolitan counties of Durham and Northumberland. It is divided into the metropolitan boroughs of South Tyneside, North Tyneside, Newcastle upon Tyne, Gateshead and the City of Sunderland.
In 1986 the county council was abolished and most of its powers devolved to the metropolitan boroughs. The county itself has not been abolished and still exists as a legal entity and a ceremonial county.
Newcastle upon Tyne, often shortened to Newcastle, is a city in the county of Tyne and Wear in North East England. The city is the 20th most populous in England, and as such, is one of England's core cities.