THERE was a belated Valentine’s gift for one woman today (Monday, February 24).

Lucky Nicola Passman, 25, was presented with a sparkling diamond ring at the Joseph Pease Monument in Darlington.

The ring, worth more than £1,600, had previously been embedded in a heart of ice and displayed in the Queen Street Shopping Centre.

During Valentine’s weekend, visitors to the centre were invited to guess how long it would take for the ice to melt and release the prize at its centre.

Hundreds of people entered the competition but Middlesbrough woman Ms Passman won by estimating it would take 72 hours, 13 minutes and 22 seconds to melt the heart.

It actually took 72 hours, 15 minutes and three seconds.