THE daughter of a wealthy aristocrat and a Sunderland striker have been fined a total of £300 for speeding past roadworks on the A1(M).

Northallerton Magistrates Court heard the fines for speeding on a 12-mile stretch of the road between Barton and Leeming, where a 50mph average speed check zone is being enforced to protect the workforce, would be partly based on defendants' ability to pay.

The court was told Connor Wickham, 22, had admitted driving a 4x4 on the same stretch of road at an average speed of 60mph on Christmas Eve, days after featuring in the Tyne-Wear derby.

Magistrates were advised as Wickham had not responded to a request for details about his circumstances and had not attended the hearing, it had to be assumed he earned average wages of £400 a week.

After hearing Wickham already had penalty points on his licence, magistrate Keith Barker fined him £200 and added a further three penalty points.

Magistrate John Bacon said as solicitors for Lady Melissa Percy, whose father the Duke of Northumberland owns Alnwick Castle, said she had a monthly allowance of £750, her fine would be limited to £100 and her licence would be endorsed with three penalty points.

The court heard the 28-year-old admitted driving an Audi A3 at an average speed of 63mph on the southbound carriageway near Leeming, in North Yorkshire, on December 23.

In a letter to the court, solicitors Harley and Co said Lady Percy, an occasional tennis coach, had been disqualified from driving last month, for other offences and urged the court not to endorse her licence with further penalty points for when she regains it.

The court was told Lady Percy, of Surrey, drove 20,000 miles a year as the "principle family driver" and the consequences of the incident would hit her and her husband hard.