Wearside stories you may have missed this week

Inside Roker Pier's tunnel. In the photograph, Maureen is leading a small group towards the lighthouse. She is wearing a red jacket, black jeans and grey wellies, while holding a torch. The tunnel shows rusty pipes on the right and peeling paint.

The tunnel, which is narrow in parts, extends the full length of Roker Pier

A woman's visit from America to a Sunderland pier her family built and a Reform UK councillor suspended from the party over allegations he criticised asylum seekers on social media.

Here are five of the stories from Wearside you may have missed this week.

Woman flies from US to visit family pier

Victoria Wake, wearing a blue jacket with white writing saying Columbia and a pink and purple scarf, stands in front of Roker Pier, which was constructed in the 1900s and is made up of pink and white coloured brick. There are clouds in the sky behind her, but the sea is calm.

Victoria Wake, great-granddaughter of Henry Hay Wake, last stepped on to the pier in 1966

A woman has flown from the United States to visit the pier and lighthouse her great-grandfather built.

Victoria Wake, from California, was given special access to the tunnel underneath the 2,000 ft (609m) long Roker Pier in Sunderland.

The structure, which took 18 years to build and was opened in 1903, was created by Henry Hay Wake.

Her visit coincided with public tours resuming at the site after being suspended for nearly two years following "significant structural damage" from Storm Babet in 2023.

  • Read more about it here

'Living in fear a year after riots'

Nusaiba Maisha looks at the camera. She has large round glasses and is wearing a burgundy hijab covering her head and shoulders.BBC/Sharuna Sagar

Nusaiba Maisha was attacked in Sunderland on the day of the riots

Last summer, anti-immigration protests erupted into violence in towns and cities across the country.

A group supporting black and Asian women says many are still living in fear a year on, but their voices have not been adequately heard.

On 2 August last year, Nusaiba Maisha was on her way to work in Sunderland when she was confronted by two masked men in hoodies.

"They asked me if I was a Muslim because I was wearing a hijab," the slightly built 21-year-old from the city says.

When she didn't respond, they attacked her.

  • Read more about her experiences and others here

Car transformed into fire engine for rally

Johnny Smith dressed in a firefighter uniform standing behind his convertible Ford Ka painted with the markings of a fire engine. A real fire engine is parked behind him.CDDFRS

Johnny Smith and wife Julia have set off for their five-day drive across Europe

A fire service worker is embarking on a 1,500 mile (2,400 km) trip across Europe in a £600 car converted to look like a mini fire engine.

Johnny Smith, a fire safety manager at County Durham and Darlington Fire and Rescue Service, is heading to Romania in a convertible Ford Ka for the Two Ball Bangers Rally, which he is entering for charity.

The 57-year-old, who is travelling across France, Germany, Austria and Hungary with wife Julia, said he hoped to win the best dressed car competition.

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Reform councillor suspended

A posed head and shoulders shot of councillor Paul Bean. He has short hair and light brown and grey stubble. He is wearing glasses and a dark suit with a blue shirt and red tie.LDRS

Councillor Paul Bean is also a civil servant who processes asylum claims

A Reform UK councillor has been suspended from the party amid allegations he criticised asylum seekers on social media, thereby breaching impartiality rules.

Campaigners claim the comments attributed to Durham County Council's Paul Bean may have fallen foul of civil service impartiality requirements because of his job processing asylum claims.

In the posts, allegedly written by Bean, it was claimed the vast majority of asylum seekers are "abusing the asylum system".

Bean has been contacted for comment and Reform said he had been suspended on 19 August pending an investigation.

  • Read more about it here

Lauren Laverne to host 2025 Mercury Prize

Lauren Laverne laughing into a BBC Radio 6 Music microphone. She has long, blonde hair and is wearing large black headphones and a red shirt.

Lauren Laverne, from Sunderland, will host the 2025 ceremony in Newcastle

Sunderland's Lauren Laverne will host this year's Mercury Prize.

The BBC Radio 6 Music presenter will host the ceremony in Newcastle on 16 October, marking the first time the event has been held outside of London.

The Mercury Prize is one of the most prestigious industry awards, celebrating the best British and Irish albums of the year and previous winners include Ezra Collective, Little Simz, Arctic Monkeys, Portishead and Pulp.

Alongside the awards show, the Mercury Prize Newcastle Fringe has also been announced with events taking place across the north-east of England.

  • More on this story here

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