Pet Shop Boys singer Neil Tennant said on Facebook he was “very sad” to hear the shop was closing.

“As a teenager I used to visit after school and ask to listen to David Bowie in one of their stereo listening booths and then browse through the records and sheet music and wish I could afford a posh guitar,” he said. “It will be much missed.”

Other Tyneside musical stars have previously spoken of their admiration of the store, including Dire Straits’ Mark Knopfler.

He said he would spend hours gazing at the displays dreaming of the day he could have a guitar of his own.

Shop general manager, Alex Cole, said he was deeply saddened by the closure.

“Generations of musicians and music lovers, including my family and myself, bought their first instrument, listened to their first LP, or learned their first song within the iconic arcade store,” he said.

“The city will be a quieter place without it.”