A PHOTOGRAPHER'S bid to win a national competition has been thwarted - by a yawning ferret.

Ex-police officer Bob Nunn, of Stockton, was the first person to get two pictures in the final 12 of the annual Radio Times calendar competition.

But Mr Nunn's photos, of a sheepdog in Upper Teesdale, and a pack of fox hounds from the South Durham Hunt, failed to clinch the top prize.

Instead, a photographer who caught a ferret having a yawn won the competition and the prize of a holiday in India.

The winning photo and the rest of the finalists, including both of Bob's snaps, will be included in the Radio Times calendar, which will be on sale later in the year, with proceeds going to Children in Need.

Mr Nunn, who runs a photography business, said: "I was happy to get as far as I did, but it's a shame I didn't win.

"At least I'll have my pictures on the calendar as a reminder of the competition. Hopefully I'll win next year."

Mr Nunn's pictures beat more than 5,000 entries to be chosen for the 2001 calendar.

They will be used to represent March and November in the calendar, which has sold thousands of copies in previous years.

The 12 finalists were featured in Radio Times, and readers were invited to phone to vote for their favourite image.