THE North-East will have its own radio soap opera from today.

Five's A Crowd, on BBC Radio Newcastle, will run for three minutes a day, five times a week.

Written by local authors and performed by local actors it is about a group of neighbours whose street has been condemned and their homes have been compulsorily purchased.

Using their compensation, they club together to buy one house, but living under the same roof is not as easy as they expected.

The writers are not saying where the series is set, but the plot has been chosen for its topicality.

The soap is a pilot scheme under the BBC's Northern Exposure programme. It will initially run for 12 weeks and will be broadcast between noon and 1pm on 95.4 FM and1458 MW.