Updates on Monday 4 April 2016
Live updates for the North East have now finished for the day.
We'll be back from 08:00 tomorrow with more news, sport, weather and travel - we hope you can join us then.
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BBC Sport
The Black Cats had 22 shots - their most in a league game this season - but only six on target as they failed to score for the 10th time this campaign.
"I need to go back to church and start praying," Allardyce told BBC Newcastle.
Image source, Getty Images"I can't ever imagine in my long career dominating a game for so long, creating so many chances and not winning it."
The 61-year-old added: "In normal circumstances it would have been two or three-nil - if we had not had the unbelievable Ben Foster in the opposition's goal."
Newcastle fan Peter thinks they would have been better off if they had kept Alan Pardew.
Listen below:
A man and his dog were assaulted by a cyclist near a primary school in Ingleby Barwick, Cleveland Police says.
The man, 56, and his golden retriever were repeatedly punched and kicked after a row with the cyclist near Inglbey Mill Primary School at about 10:15 yesterday.
The attack only ended when passers-by came to the aid of the victim and the attacker rode off on his bike towards Low Lane.
Police are appealing for those who helped or saw the icndient to contact them on 101.
Here's the full details on the story we brought you earlier: Members of an organised crime gang are jailed for their roles in stealing artefacts worth up to £57m from UK museums and an auction house.
Image source, Fitzwilliam MuseumBBC Sport
Director of rugby Dean Richards says Newcastle Falcons lost at Harlequins on Saturday because they showed "too much respect".
Falcons trailed by 15 points at half-time on Saturday and, despite a late comeback, eventually lost 46-25.
"It's what might have been if we hadn't gifted them the tries in the first half," Richards told BBC Newcastle.
"We showed them too much respect. So in the second half we said 'right, we're not prepared to do that' and we scored three tries."
Image source, Getty ImagesThe bus driver who ferries Midlesbrough FC's players to and from matches has been injured in a crash after a game, external.
Callum Tianti was injured following Friday's game at Queens Park Rangers.
After dropping off the squad, he had just returned the coach to Tynedale headquarters in Hexham when he was involved in a head-on collision with a car.
He was taken to the Royal Victoria Infirmary in Newcastle with a broken leg, dislocated ankle and cuts.
Boro captain Grant Leadbitter said: “The lads were shocked to hear the news about Callum. He is very much a part of our team and we wish him a speedy recovery."
Redcar's Labour MP Anna Turley says the decision by Air Products to pull out of renewable energy is "more devastating news for jobs and industry on Teesside."
She said: "My immediate thoughts are with all of the workers and their families affected by this news who will now be very worried about the future.
"There is no doubting that Teesside’s economy is going through a very difficult time, following the loss of our steelworks and many more jobs in other local industries.
"This latest blow risks the loss of yet more skilled jobs at a time when they are needed more than ever.
"We have received the £50m support fund to help former steelworkers retrain, but it is clear that this is totally insufficient for the needs of Teesside’s economy."
BBC Sport
Newcastle United goalkeeper Rob Elliot says he's thinking positively after an injury ruled him out of Euro 2016.
Listen here:
Families in Hartlepool are being urged to check on elderly neighbours and relatives after a 79-year-old woman was found murdered in her home.
Mother-of-three Norma Bell, 79, was found on the ground floor of her home in Westbourne Road yesterday morning. Police were called after reports her house was on fire.
Cleveland Police Det Supt Alastair Simpson said: “Whilst it is too early to say what the motive is or whether the suspect was known to Mrs Bell, I would remind anyone in the local area who may have an elderly or vulnerable relative or neighbour to check on them.
"Similarly, I would also remind people not to allow anyone into their home who is not known to them or who purports to be an official from an organisation without first checking their identification."
Anyone who saw anything suspicious should call Cleveland Police on 101 or contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.
An elderly woman found dead at her fire-hit home in Hartlepool had been killed before the blaze broke out, police say.
Norma Bell, 79, was found on the ground floor of her home in Westbourne Road yesterday morning. She had lived on her own since her husband died in 2010.
Cleveland Police Det Supt Alastair Simpson said: “Our thoughts are with Norma’s family and friends at this incredibly distressing time.
"We now know, following a post-mortem examination held yesterday, that Norma died prior to the fire in her home and we have launched a murder investigation.
"Officers are carrying out a number of lines of inquiry including house to house and CCTV inquiries.
"Neighbourhood officers will provide a high-profile presence in the area and will continue patrols to provide some reassurance to those living in the local community."
The family of an elderly woman found murdered in Hartlepool have paid tribute to a "loving and caring person".
The body of Norma Bell, 79, was found in Westbourne Road after a fire yesterday morning.
Her family said: "To lose her in this manner is heartbreaking. We would urge anybody with information regarding the death of our mother to come forward and speak to police.
"We also ask for privacy at this sad time to allow us to come to terms with this huge loss.”
An elderly woman found dead in her home in Hartlepool after a fire had been murdered, police have confirmed.
Norma Bell, 79, was found in Westbourne Road at about 08:25 yesterday morning after police were called.
Norma had three biological children but had been a foster parent to more than 50 youngsters down the years.
She had lived on Westbourne Road for 27 years and would have celebrated her 80th birthday in May.
Image source, Cleveland PoliceAn organised crime gang which arranged for precious artefacts to be stolen from museums and auction houses across the UK have been jailed.
The plots saw them tunnel into the Oriental Museum in Durham, and break into the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge back in 2012.
Image source, PADetectives say the Chinese artefacts were worth about £18m but could have fetched up to £57m - totals dwarfing the more high-profile Hatton Garden heist in London.
Image source, PAAt Birmingham Crown Court, the following men were jailed:
A further six defendants will be sentenced tomorrow.
Air Products has issued a statement after it announced it is halting work on renewable energy plants in Seal Sands in the Tees Valley.
It says: "In previous public comments, Air Products' management has communicated the challenges with the Tees Valley, UK projects.
"Testing and analysis completed during the company's fiscal second quarter indicated that additional design and operational challenges would require significant time and cost to rectify.
"Consequently, the board of directors has decided that it is no longer in the best interest of the company and its shareholders to continue the Tees Valley projects."
Air Products, which had been building a complex on Teesside, is pulling out of its energy-from-waste business., external
The firm says "it is no longer in the best interest of the company and its shareholders to continue the Tees Valley projects".
Quote MessageAir Products has two plants at Seal Sands, TV1 and the under-construction TV2. Air Products stopped TV1 from producing energy last November after a problem with the gasifier, saying it wanted the engineering and design issues resolved before TV2 was completed.
Quote MessageThe company had told 700 construction workers that the halt would be temporary. As recently as last month, Air Products had denied TV1 was being mothballed, and hoped to have it fully functional by the end of the year. But it now says this 'would require significant time and cost to rectify'."
Steve Mackey, BBC Tees news editor
BBC Sport
On this day back in 2005: Newcastle fined midfielder Lee Bowyer six weeks' wages for his part in a brawl with team-mate Kieron Dyer in a game against Aston Villa.
Here's how we reported it at the time.
Image source, Getty ImagesA South Tyneside off-licence has been banned from selling alcohol after serving children booze.
Sims Corner, in Stanhope Road, West Park, has had its licence suspended for three months following a hearing of South Tyneside Council's Licensing Sub-Committee on Friday.
The sub-committee heard that the South Shields shop sold alcohol to minors on two occasions during test purchase operations.
In the latest incident, which took place in August, a 1.5 litre bottle of wine was sold to a 16-year-old.
Jonathan Agnew
BBC Test Match Special
"Unfortunately for Durham's Ben Stokes, whenever there is a World Twenty20, that final over will be shown. For as long as he is playing T20 cricket, it will be flying around. He will have to get over it.
"He is a very competitive and strong-willed and he is a very talented cricket. He will get over it, but it will take a while.
"Maybe one day when he is retired, he will think he has been involved in something pretty special at Eden Gardens, but it will take a long time to get there."
Newcastle City Council is set to introduce a plan to combat crime after the number of incidents increased by more than a thousand, external.
