QUIZ contestant Peter Lee is looking forward to visiting the North-East town that dashed his hopes of becoming a millionaire.

Mr Lee, 66, a retired naval officer from Cardigan, Wales, won £500,000 on ITV's Who Wants To Be A Millionaire in January.

The cricket fan was one question away from the £1m jackpot but was unsure whether Chester-le-Street was the home of Durham County Cricket Club.

As thousands of North-East viewers shouted the answer at their TV screens he decided not to chance losing the £500,000 he had amassed during a gripping contest.

Now he and wife Sue arrive today for a VIP weekend in Chester-le-Street during which they will visit the Riverside Ground for the England versus West Indies one-day international on Saturday.

During the visit they will be shown around the town and surrounding area and enjoy the hospitality of Lumley Castle Hotel, as guests of the cricket club and Chester-le-Street District Council.

Mr Lee said: "We are looking forward to the weekend. We have just been given our itinerary and it looks great. It think we'll know the area pretty well.

"We are going to Peterlee on Monday on the way back. We had a nice letter from the town council saying they would like to see us and we thought we'd include a stop there during the weekend.

"The last time I saw an England match was in 1952, or 1953, at The Oval. Denis Compton was playing and I think we lost. I'm just hoping we get good weather.''

l All 16,000 tickets for the match, part of a three-way limited overs tournament, have been sold. Police are warning of traffic congestion before and after the game.