An investigation was under way today after a headless body was discovered on the East Coast Main Line.

Emergency services were called to a stretch of the track just north of Northallerton, North Yorkshire, at about 6am after receiving reports of a body on the line.

When they arrived, they found the decapitated body of a man, lying close to one of Northallerton station's platforms.

A joint inquiry between North Yorkshire Police and British Transport Police has been launched, but the man's identity has not yet been revealed.

An ambulance spokesman said: "We were given the news by Railtrack control. This incident happened just north of the northbound platform. The patient had been decapitated. Obviously he had been hit by a train."