OSCAR-WINNING film director Sir Alan Parker is to receive an honorary award from a North-East university this month.

Sir Alan, who has directed classics such as Midnight Express, The Commitments and Fame, will receive an Honorary Doctorate of Arts (HonDArt) during a series of awards ceremonies at the Stadium of Light.

The 61-year-old will be honoured by Sunderland University in the same week Sunderland Football Club vice-chairman, John Fickling, is awarded an Honorary Fellowship.

Sir Alan has been at the pinnacle of his profession for more than 30 years.

He received eight British Academy Award nominations - winning five - for his first film Bugsy Malone, which he wrote and directed in 1975.

Two years later, his controversial film Midnight Express picked up two Oscars. The musical Fame followed in 1979, winning two Oscars and four Golden Globe nominations.

Sir Alan's work has been popular with cinema-goers, as well as with the critics.

During the late 1980s and 1990s he won further plaudits for Angel Heart, The Commitments, Evita and Angela's Ashes.

His last film, The Life of David Gale, which stars Kevin Spacey and Kate Winslet, was released in 2003.

Sir Alan will receive his Honorary Doctorate for his outstanding contribution to public life on Wednesday, July 13.