Alfie rides his unicycle to school every day

Some pupils get to school by walking, some might get a bus, a lift from a parent, some even ride their bike in.

Not Alfie. He prefers to commute on his unicycle.

The 11-year-old picked up a second-hand unicycle from Facebook after trying a single-wheeler on a whim and deciding he wanted to learn it properly.

Over the course of a weekend, in hour-long sessions, he practiced, fell, practiced again and fell some more until he finally got the knack.

"I would just try and ride from a tree to a dog poo bin, and got further and further, made it to my grandparents' house and then I made it to school," explained Alfie.

Video produced by Alex Challies & Callum Rowe.

6 hours ago

Travel

Cycling

Darlington

A yellow defibrillator which has been kicked off the wall and as hanging by a wire.

Town defibrillator destroyed twice in one month

A charity says it is "disappointed" as one of its defibrillators in Hartlepool is targeted again.

Tees

Gary and Sonia Brown in two photos, on the left is their wedding day 40 years ago, on the right is them now.

Couple mark 40 years with wedding car road trip

Gary and Sonia Brown will travel around Europe in their 1959 Mercedes wedding day car from 1985.

Tees

Dalton, a rescued monkey in a caged enclosure in South Africa, plays with a multicoloured knitted toy.

Care home residents knit toys for rescued monkeys

A group of knitters from Hazelgrove Court Care Home make gifts for cheeky monkeys at a rescue centre.

Tees

Jackie Grealish, a woman in her sixties with blonde hair standing on a football pitch in a white and blue Redcar FC tracksuit top

'They nicknamed me Jackie Grealish'

A 61-year-old footballer dubbed Jackie Grealish says she will play until she "can't play anymore".

Tees

Lewis Cope and Katya Jones dancing on Strictly

Hometown messages for 'super lucky' Strictly star

Strictly Come Dancing star Lewis Cope is partnered with Katya Jones in the latest series.

Tees

Radio presenters take on Children in Need challenge

Presenters Scott and Amy complete their part of the thousand-mile challenge for BBC Children in Need.

Tees

Bella Culley arrives at Luton Airport as her mum pushes two suitcases

Watch: Bella Culley arrives at Luton Airport

The teenager spent nearly six months in prison in Georgia after admitting drug trafficking charges.

Tees

The new badge which is a white circle with a red lion in the centre of it. 'Middlesbrough Football Club' is written in red letters around the circle, with the year 1876. The badge is sitting on what looks like a red sports shirt.

Boro badge 'fit for the Premier League'

Middlesbrough fans give their views on a new badge celebrating a milestone for the club.

Tees

A 19-year-old from Hartlepool says becoming a bus-spotter has improved his life

'Bus-spotting has changed my life'

Brodie, a 19-year-old bus-spotter, says joining the community has brought him confidence and joy.

Tees

Fiona and Peter are walking together. Fiona is wearing a wedding dress and Peter is wearing a light brown suit. Their son is between them, dressed as Spiderman

Woman with terminal illness given dream wedding

Staff at Teesside Hospice plan a wedding in "less than two weeks" for one of their wellbeing patients.

Tees

92-year-old Ray Pratt, sitting smiling in front of his home radio setup.

Radio enthusiast at risk of losing lifelong hobby

Ray Pratt, who uses a wheelchair, spends his time chatting with people all over the world via radio.

Tees

A group of women are dancing in front of trees. They are all wearing headphones.

Woman quits job to run silent disco exercise group

The Silent Steppers began in Hartlepool with less than 10 members and a year later, dozens attend.

Tees

9-week-old Police pup in training, Jaeger, sat proudly on some grass facing the camera

Meet Jaeger, the stray pup being trained to fight crime

The Belgian Malinois pup starts training after being found stray on the streets of Hartlepool.

Tees

Isaac is taking a photo on his phone. He has brown hair and is wearing a white top

Teenage content creator celebrates Teesside

Billingham Snaps is documenting a changing town and sharing Teesside pride on social media.

Tees

Dot, wearing a blue shirt, is sitting in her garden. She is giving a dog a treat

Volunteer knits hundreds of blankets for guide dogs

Dot Robinson, who lives in Yarm, has helped raise more than 20 guide dogs over the past 10 years.

Tees

Elliot Gordon, the 18-year-old autistic litter picker who is cleaning the streets of his neighbourhood every single day

The litter picker who earned a shock 'thank you'

Elliot Gordon, who is mostly non-verbal and has autism, is rewarded by a grateful community.

Tees

A group of children are outside on grass, some are holding sticks

Exploring nature 'like Minecraft in real life'

Children at Grangetown Primary School are being taught how to connect with nature.

Tees

A man in a balaclava is sitting in a bar, with men drinking pints behind him.

Masked band step in to save social club

Teesside's Perfect Chicken, which has members from Lazenby, says the village club is struggling.

Tees

Merya Molnar smiling in front of a market stall.

Traditional market searching for young traders

A market which has been running for 700 years is giving young traders a chance to sell their wares.

Tees

A group of children all in red shirts are singing as a group. Three adults are with them, one is holding a drum.

Keeping sea shanties alive through a kids' choir

Social media hype and a local shanty group are teaching a new generation coastal folk music.

Tees