Matalan store ready to open: Cut-price clothing store Matalan opens its £1.5m store in Darlington today, bringing with it 100 jobs.

The store is on a site off Neasham Road occupied until recently by Morrisons supermarket. A further 20 temporary jobs will be created in the run-up to Christmas.Full story - Page 6

awards for all: The hottest invitation in showbiz will be open to anyone next year as the Brit Awards make tickets available to the public for the first time. UK's biggest music show and TV event of the year on February 20 will also be broadcast live - in the past it has been recorded for edited transmission.

SECOND BABY: Welsh film star Catherine Zeta Jones is pregnant for the second time. A statement on husband Michael Douglas's official website said: "With the upcoming release of Michael's next film, A Few Good Years, which stars three generations of Douglases, Michael and Catherine felt there was room for some more!"

Shares soar: Investors had a bumper session on the London market yesterday, after the key FTSE 100 Index smashed back through the 4,000 level. Meanwhile, increases in the cost of petrol and clothing helped push up inflation last month, official figures show.

See Business, Page 14

HIJACK foiled: A passenger wielding a gun tried to hijack a Saudi Arabian Airlines jet yesterday, but security forces on board managed to overpower the man, a Saudi citizen. The Airbus 300, bound for Jiddah, returned to Khartoum and all passengers and crew were safe. No motive was given.

LEAD ALERT: A remedy for morning sickness - Calabash chalk, which is sold in ethnic stores and markets - contains dangerously high levels of lead, which can harm an unborn baby, the Food Standards Agency warned yesterday.

cave rescue: A 15-year-old girl was airlifted to hospital with possible back injuries last night after being stuck in a cave shaft following a fall near Llandeilo, Carmarthenshire.

DRINK LINK: Women who drink during pregnancy may pass on an increased risk of breast cancer to their daughters, say US scientists who studied the effects of alcohol on rats.

name mix-up: The deputy leader of Sedgefield Borough Council, Fred Chaplin, is one of seven members being investigated by the Standards Board for England, not Joe Chaplin as stated yesterday. Councillor Joe Chaplin is leader of Ferryhill Town Council and is not connected with the investigation or Sedgefield Borough Council. The Northern Echo apologises for any confusion