THE Princess Royal returns to the North-East on Wednesday to complete an engagement cancelled due to fog on a scheduled visit in October. Weather permitting, the princess will open the Millennium Centre, in Kibblesworth, near Gateshead, following a £1m transformation thanks to National Lottery funding. She is due to arrive at 12.25pm, before unveiling a plaque and opening the centre at 1.10pm.

YOUTHS RELEASED: Two youths have been released on police bail pending further inquiries into two small fires which led to a city centre department store being evacuated. Shoppers were asked to leave Debenham's, in Sunderland's Bridges centre, after smoke alarms activated as a result of two fires in a stairwell. Police said the blaze caused "minor damage".

PUB EXHIBITION: Work of an aspiring artist went on display in a city centre pub last night. About 30 of Paul Muncaster's paintings, drawings and sketches can be viewed in Saints, Back Silver Street, at the rear of Durham Indoor Market, for the next three months.

HOUSE FIRE: Firefighters were called to a blaze in an unoccupied house yesterday afternoon. The first floor of the house, in Redcar Road, South Bank, Middlesbrough, was gutted, while the ground floor suffered severe smoke damage. Crews took 20 minutes to extinguish the blaze.

GOING DUTCH: Geordies journey to Holland in huge numbers, according to a survey of holiday preferences published today. People from Newcastle are almost 300 per cent more likely to travel to Holland than those from other parts of the UK, according to a survey by Internet travel company teletextholidays.co.uk

PERU BOUND: Industrial chaplain Andrew Letby, employed by the Methodist Church to work with staff at Newcastle Airport, the Port of Tyne and Nexus, leaves for South America on Saturday to take part in a 300-mile charity cycle ride across Peru, in aid of the National Asthma Campaign. Anyone wishing to sponsor Mr Letby can contact him on 0191-284 4117.

STUDENTS GALORE: More than 3,000 Year 12 students attended an education convention held at Pavilions of Harrogate by the University and Colleges Admissions Service. The event gave them a chance to talk to course tutors and future employers.

Lorry inquiry: Ian Randall, a lorry operator at Reighton, near Scarborough, has been called to a public inquiry by North Eastern Traffic Commissioner Tom Macartney following a report from the Vehicle Inspectorate which highlighted alleged maintenance shortcomings.

Inquest opens: An inquest has been opened and adjourned into the death of Roderick Guy Neal, 42, whose body was found hanging in his flat, in High Petergate, York