A man has been left in critical condition after an incident at a County Durham pub earlier this evening (July 8).

Emergency services were called to Blakes Sports Bar and Lounge on Beveridge Road in Newton Aycliffe at around 7.35pm following reports of an 'incident'.

Police, ambulance crews and the air ambulance were seen by bystanders, while the North East Ambulance Service has this evening confirmed that a man has been taken to James Cook Hospital in critical condition.

Read more: Newton Aycliffe incident LIVE: Emergency services at Blakes bar

A NEAS spokesperson said, "We received a call at 19:35 this evening to an incident at Blakes on Beveridge Road in Newton Aycliffe.

"We sent two emergency ambulance crews and the air ambulance and took one male patient to James Cook major trauma centre in a critical condition."

On social media, Blakes Sports Bar put its own statement on confirming that it wouldn't be opening this evening.

The post read: "Due to unforeseen circumstances we won’t be open tonight. Sorry for the inconvenience."

No more details of the incident are known at this stage, and Durham Police haven't yet issued a statement on the incident. 

Durham Police and the Great North Air Ambulance have been contacted for a comment.