NORTH-EAST students are taking to the French airwaves to keep British ex-pats and holidaymakers up to date with the news and weather.

Sunderland University media students will provide an English service on Radio 4, in Lot-et-Garonne, South-West France.

The four-week project is the idea of Masters degree student Geoff Sargieson, who said: "Many English people in France are excluded from the local culture by their failure to get to grips with the French language. The new broadcasts will keep them in touch with home, as well as provide them with a route into the community."

The station serves a population of 200,000, including thousands of British ex-pats in Lot-et-Garonne and parts of the Dordogne.

In the summer, an estimated 300,000 English-speaking second homeowners and holidaymakers visit the area.

Mr Sargieson, who as project manager will oversee the scheme, has spent 35 years in radio on UK stations such as Radio 2 and Radio 4, as well as on regional radio.

He said: "This idea came about when I was on holiday in South-West France some years ago. A director of programmes on the nearby local radio station asked if I would work for a few weeks compiling and broadcasting an English language early morning news bulletin for the station.

"The response from both English and French listeners was gratifying and I wanted to return one day."