A THOUSAND years of Durham county and diocese was celebrated at a millennium service attended by 300 worshippers yesterday.

Durham's Lord Lieutenant, Sir Paul Nicholson, led a procession of the county's civic, academic and ceremonial figures, who were followed by the clergy, including the Bishop of Durham, the Right Reverend Michael Turnbull.

The Dean of Durham, the Very Reverend John Arnold, introduced the service, reflecting on life in the county.

Among the dignitaries were TV agony aunt Denise Robertson, deputy lieutenant of the county. Mrs Robertson, from Sunderland, was joined by county council leader Don Robson, in giving readings.

Katy Reed, of Bishop Barrington School, Bishop Auckland, and Jo Jo Oldham, of Wolsingham School, read from travel writer Bill Bryson's Notes from a Small Island.

In the book, Bryson writes of Durham: "It's wonderful - a perfect little city."

Representatives of the diocese read from the works of Simeon of Durham, a 12th Century monk widely accepted as writing the first history of the county.