FIVE years ago this week, Durham County Cricket Club made an urgent appeal for funding only months before it was set to host its first Ashes Test.

A spokeswoman for the club said the shock plea for £6m would not "not reflect any immediate threat to the Ashes" and was for the longevity of cricket in Durham.

Durham County Council's cabinet agreed in principle to a £2.8m loan, with leader Simon Henig saying the club provided more than 100 jobs and a very strong community sport programme for young people, as well as being a great asset and putting the North-East on the map.

In return for the money, the council said it wanted more influence over the running of the club.

Also that week, Saltburn’s mystery “yarnbombers” left yet another creation to mark a Royal announcement.

The Queen could be seen perched with her corgi in the town’s Albion Crescent, knitting a babygrow for her next great-grandchild.

The woolly figure was made to celebrate the Duchess of Cambridge expecting her first child with Prince William.

The knitters keep their identity a secret, but created a 50-metre long Olympic-themed creation on Saltburn Pier the previous year.

Elsewhere in the region, the search for a missing grandmother went wrong when police officers were forced to abandon their dingy as it was swept over a weir.

Officers of Northumbria Police Marine Unit abandoned their rigid inflatable boat when its engine failed as they scanned the top of the weir with specialist sonar equipment, in Chester-le-Street, County Durham.

They clung onto the vessel as it was swept over the weir. It became trapped and officers looked on helplessly when it was partially submerged, and their computer was soaked.

PC Chris Dellow, one of the two crew members, said: "The engine cut out while we were scanning the top of the weir. Our IT department is going to have to look at the laptop computer. Thankfully, no one was hurt."

And Newcastle United pulled out all the stops for Dorothy Stobbart when she celebrated her 100th birthday.

Flowers and balloons decked her table in the ground's Magpie Suite and chefs made her a birthday cake.

Mrs Stobbart was joined by family friend Michael Annotta along with her son, John, daughter-in-law, Ruth, and grandson, Jamie, eight.

Her son, John, 56, said: "It was a wonderful day. Everyone went to a great deal of trouble and made sure mum had a really memorable day.

"When she was born, women still didn't have the vote and she has lived through two world wars, the reigns of four monarchs and seen man land on the moon."