'Smoggie means to be loud and proud'

The pink carpet has been rolled out in Middlesbrough for the premiere of new BBC Three comedy Smoggie Queens.

Centred around a gang of friends who are fiercely proud of their North East town and small pocket of the LGBTQ+ community, it is written by Middlesbrough native, Phil Dunning.

At a screening at Middlesbrough Town Hall, he said the area was often overlooked and he wanted to celebrate everything great about Boro.

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28 November 2024

Drag queen

Middlesbrough

Yaw Botwe and Khialah Wison standing talking on a street in Stockton

'It's so hard to actually get a job'

A scheme to tackle long-term unemployment is being piloted in one of Teesside's most deprived areas.

Tees

Alfie wearing a black blazer over a white shirt with red striped tie. Picture in picture shows him riding a unicycle.

Alfie rides his unicycle to school every day

"I make it look easy and I kind of feel like it's easy, but I know it's really not."

Tees

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

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.

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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".

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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The top of a bronze statue of a cat. The beach can be seen behind it.

Crowds gather for cat statue unveiling

More than £4,000 is raised for a bronze statue on Saltburn pier, where Hendrix was a familiar face.

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Gary Fox in a black tracksuit throwing a punch towards the screen. He is bald and is stood in a field.

Bare-knuckle boxing: From car park scraps to championship titles

Gary Fox used to be involved in illegal street fights but now makes a living as a professional fighter.

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Spennymoor Town v Aldershot Town commentary

Spennymoor Town faces Aldershot Town at Wembley for the FA Trophy final at 16:15 BST.

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A man in a suit and bowtie is singing in to a microphone.

Crooner, 14, prefers Frank Sinatra to rap music

George Robinson's performances have had millions of views on social media.

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