Wearside and County Durham stories you might have missed

Angela Sandwith's Ghost Nest was shown at Lumiere in 2023

A coffee van offering mental health support to thousands of men, a light festival ending and a Washington lad who managed Benfica.

It has been a busy week on Wearside and County Durham.

Here are some of the stories you might have missed.

Becoming dad at 18 'felt like world had stopped'

Josh Race-Wiborg said he did not get congratulated when he found out he was going to be a father at the age of 18

A young dad said finding out he was going to be a father at 18 felt like his "world had stopped".

Josh Race-Wiborg, 22, from County Durham, is one of four young dads appearing in a new BBC documentary Joe Swash: Forgotten Dads.

The Sunderland University student said becoming a father to twin daughters at a young age was a frightening prospect, and he recalled how it was "soul-destroying" to not have anyone congratulate him on fatherhood.

"I wasn't in a job I enjoyed, I was still living with my parents. I didn't know what to do," he said. "It was a really scary time."

• Read more about the young dad here

Post riot culture festival 'a breath of fresh air'

Events took place at the Beacon of Light and Sunderland Minster

A festival to celebrate Sunderland's culture in response to riots that took place last year has been a "breath of fresh air", according to organisers.

Unity in the Community was set up in 2024 after violent disorder broke out in the city last August.

The Reverend Canon Clare MacLaren, provost of Sunderland Minster which also helped arrange the festival, said people wanted to "rejoice in all that is good about the city".

Frankie Francis, music officer with one of the event's organisers, Sunderland Music City, said it showed "the true representation of Sunderland".

• Read more about the community festival here

Mental health group coffee van reaches 5,000 men

The van has been touring the region for more than a year

A mental health support group has managed to reach thousands of men with its coffee van.

Space North East, based in Sunderland, has been running sessions since 2022, but decided to hit the road in a bid to help even more people.

The van started touring the region in September 2024 and founder James Fildes said it had managed to reach about 5,000 men.

He said reaching so many people was a "dream come true".

• Read more about the mental health coffee van here

The Wearsider who became a Benfica legend

Jimmy Hagan, pictured in 1948, achieved huge success leading the Lisbon giants in the '70s

His love for the beautiful game may have started on a school pitch in the north-east of England, but Jimmy Hagan found his greatest footballing success in far sunnier climes.

The Washington-born player would go on to become a celebrated and hugely successful manager of Portuguese giants Benfica, leading them to three consecutive titles in the early 1970s.

On Tuesday night, Jose Mourinho brings the latest Benfica side over from Lisbon to face Newcastle United in a Champions League group game at St James' Park, 10 miles from where Hagan grew up.

Having been a youth player with Washington Colliery and Usworth Colliery, Hagan joined Derby County aged 15.

• Read more about Jimmy Hagan's career here

Shock, sadness and hope over light festival demise

The festival is a huge footfall boost for the city, Durham BID has said

The demise of a light festival could mean the end of a city's access to "world-class" art and opportunities for new artists, residents have said.

Organisers announced on Thursday that this year's biennial Lumiere festival in Durham would be the last.

Helen Marriage, artistic director and CEO of public art producers Artichoke, told Radio Newcastle the event was being scrapped because it was no longer "viable".

Lewis Hobson, from Durham, is showing his work for the first time at Lumiere and said the city might now lose "that link to all the expertise in London".

• Read more about reaction to Lumiere being scrapped here