On the wall of the living room there is a colourful picture of the Tyne Bridge, viewed from cobbled streets below. It is an evocative painting – and a reminder that when you come from Newcastle you never forget your roots.

Alan and Patricia Robson have lived in Yorkshire since 1964 but you know instantly from where they hail.

Their voices still lilt with a gentle Geordie brogue, the conversation peppered with ‘pet’ and sprinkled with ‘honey’.

When they discover I am originally from Middlesbrough, Alan laughs. “Aye, well, that’s near enough, not God’s own country but never mind…”

Leaving aside the obvious, that not even Middlesbrough’s most devoted son would ever describe Teesside as God’s own anything, we chat away as the amiable couple show me around.

Their present home – they’ve been here 11 years and were in East Parade, Heworth for a good while before that – is Millfield Lodge, a real surprise property; a little gem of a period house nestling quietly in among its newer neighbours.

It was built around 1850, originally the lodge cottage guarding the entry to the grand hall which lay along the lane and was home to various military top brass serving in York back in the day.

Today, it retains many of its original period style which, while there is still a cosy cottage feel to the home, give it something of a elegant status of its own.

The house itself has a pretty cream façade behind wrought iron railings and there is a stained glass window in a timber door opening onto the hallway.

From here you step into an stylish sitting room, resplendent with high ceilings, coving and ceiling rose and deep windows to two sides – a bay window to the front and another sash window to the side. A feature fireplace sits at the centre of the room, a highlight under that picture of the Tyne Bridge.

It should be said, at this point, that there is no getting away from the fact that Millfield Lodge sits on a busy road… but there are compensations. You can see a curtain of green in the shape of tall, mature and pleasant trees across the road. (And, as if to illustrate how pleasant, the sun suddenly peeps out from the clouds and smiles on the leaves for a brief but illuminating moment).

“Come on then, I’ll shuffle you around,” Alan says with a smile. It soon becomes clear that he has a wicked sense of humour.

As we go into the main bedroom I remark on how quiet it has become. “Aye,” replies Alan, “that’s because Pat’s stopped talking.”

The bedroom is worth a silent moment. Again, it has been kept true to its period origins; there is another high ceiling, more coving and a pretty ceiling rose.

It’s a big room, too, with a range of fitted furniture and – a modern concession – an en-suite cloakroom. It’s light and airy in here, helped by the fact that as well as a window to the side double doors open out onto a smart garden room, a lovely sun spot which in turn opens onto a paved terrace and looks out over the good-sized garden.

Alan, along with his son-in-law, designed and put the garden into place soon after they arrived. The terrace extends to most of the length of the house and then there is a lawned area, deep planted borders and hedged boundaries. There is a second large area of hard-standing for car parking and a timber shed for tucking away all the stuff you don’t want on view.

(And talking of not being on view, the gardens are neatly enclosed, private and shuttered by double timber gates). What’s more there is another pleasant period touch here, in the shape of a covered verandah which runs down one side of the house.

“You get the sun at the back in the afternoon,” Pat says, “and the trees there are beautiful. That’s a copper beech which is a lovely colour according to the season.”

By now, the kettle’s boiled. As with all North-East folk, Patricia knows when a brew is called for.

She makes our drinks in another of this house’s surprise touches – a modern yet characterful kitchen, set off by sloping roofs and an apex arrangement above the windows which look out over the double drive. It’s nicely done, with a range of wall and base units with a glass display cabinet, work surfaces and a range of integrated units including a ceramic hob with extractor, oven and grill, dishwasher and freezer and washing machine.

Off the kitchen is a dining room (or second bedroom according to your needs). This room is, like all the others, period in style, cottage-cosy in feel, with a feature cast iron fireplace and a deep window to the front.

The internal accommodation is wrapped up by another mod-con, in the shape of a bathroom with big walk-in shower and, joy of joys, an airing cupboard housing the boiler and a large dryer.

It must be difficult, I suggest to be leaving a home with such a lot of character.

“Well,” explains Pat, “we are moving to be nearer the family.” (The couple have two daughters and five grandchildren).

“But we will miss being in such a good spot. It’s really handy for getting into town or the ring road, there are shops nearby and good medical facilities…”

You could almost walk into town, I suggest.

“I do,” says Alan, “when Pat pinches the car…”

And, if you are so inclined you could always nip across the road to the health club for a spot of weight training, I say.

Alan looks at me as if I am mad. He shakes his head. “Middlesbrough,” he says, as if that explains all.

I leave, having enjoyed my visit enormously. They are a lovely couple, Alan and Pat.

And they have a lovely, character-filled home… even if it isn’t on the Tyne.