Sunday Sun

Cover Star

WHILE I have yet to drive the DS3 - Citroen's answer to the Mini - I have just tried the excellent C3 hatch on which it's based and would love to own one. There is a wide range of petrol and diesel engines, but the petrol models are so economical that you would have to cover a huge mileage for the diesels to make sense from a cash point of view.

Review ; Ford Focus Rs500 Pounds 34,000

FORD'S present Focus will go out with a bang courtesy of a barnstorming uprated version of the RS called the RS500. A new Focus will be launched next year as Ford's world car but, before it appears, engine specialists Mountune has breathed some magic on the RS to give the Volvo 2.5 five-cylinder turbo engine an extra 45bhp and even more mid-range punch.

Safety First

IT is a pleasant feeling that as the end of another football season draws near we are not left biting our nails over the fortunes of our so-called "big three". Newcastle need secure only one point from their visit to Plymouth tomorrow night to become Champions.

See Your Vote Wins the Day

THE election polls show that the gap between the three main parties is narrowing all the time. They all need our votes badly, so for once the people are in the driving seat. When a parliamentary candidate comes knocking at your door or approaches you in the supermarket, take the opportunity to ask them if they are in favour of St George's Day becoming a bank holiday.

Let's Take the Temptation From Shelves

A SUNDAY SUN probe led to a police raid on a North shop where the newly-banned drug dubbed miaow miaow appeared to be being sold over the counter. The mind-bending powder was outlawed only last week, but it is still being sold for as little as pounds 2 a fix. The drug, mephedrone, was made illegal at midnight on Thursday after being linked to 26 deaths across the UK.

Time to Freeze Fat Cat Pay? ; As One Police Chief Admits Bumper: Salary Rises Are 'Untenable' Is It . .: One of the Country's Top Civil Servants This Week Claimed He Was Being Paid Too Much, and Branded Public Sector Chiefs' Bumper Salaries 'Untenable'. Rob Pattinson and Sarah Scott Take a Closer Look at the Pay Packets Being Collected by Public Service Bosses in the North.

IT'S been a tough recession for top earners. As working class parents have lost jobs and fought to make ends meet during the downturn, business bosses have felt the wrath of society's anger.

Cctv Shows Rapist in Search of Victim

CHILLING CCTV footage shows a man cruising the streets looking for a victim to rape. Sex-predator Dean Bell is now serving six years behind bars for the rape of a teenage student who mistook him for a taxi driver after a night out.

A Big Test . . No Debate

WHATEVER your political leaning, there is no doubt that Thursday's leadership debate required a massive amount of skill and concentration from all three leadership candidates. Gerry Foley, my esteemed colleague and ITV Tyne Tees and Border political correspondent, took part in dress rehearsals prior to Thursday night's 90-minute debate from Manchester. Assuming the part of Gordon Brown, he tells me it was both a crowded and lonely experience.

Feathered Fugitive

HAS anyone lost a pet canar y? Big Al and I were quite surprised to find this little chap making himself right at home in our garden. Canaries originate from the coast of Africa, so he's either taken a wrong turn or someone's lost him.

Whinge of the Weekthe

Did You Hear About?

Toe Ugly to Love ; Not Sold On Feet Body to Others but I

HAVE you taken a good look at your feet recently? I've been scrutinising mine very closely to see how they shape up compared to Sarah Brown's. The Prime Minister's wife was not amused after her left foot got the critics snapping during a visit to a Hindu Temple. "Bit of a shame to see my toes getting so much attention," Tweeted Mrs Brown who seems permanently glued to her husband's side. I actually felt quite sorry for her because who on earth does gaze at their feet and marvel at their beaut...

Banks Can Be a Safer Bet

A HORSE trainer has spoken of his terror at an armed raid on his house. Howard Johnson, of Crook, County Durham, was forced to hand over more than pounds 100,000.

Celebrate Our Great North

IT'S easy, in a column like this, to write about the bad things in life but, today, let's look at the good things. The North East is often wrongly written off because all the old industries are no longer here.

Students' Designs On Contest Success

FOUR aspiring hair stylists will represent the North East in the hope of being crowned Britain's top college hairdresser. The students, from Newcastle College, were chosen from around 300 trainees for the regional heats of the Wella Professional Xposure Awards, which will take place on April 21 in Glasgow.

Win a Break Worth Pounds 1,100

L ASTCHANCETO WIN! YOUR Sunday Sun is giving you the chance to win a holiday in the five-star Northumberland holiday park, Golden Sands at Cresswell.

North Director's Night at the Opera

MAVERICK filmmaker Mike Figgis is returning to his theatrical roots after being signed up as a director for the English National Opera. The top director, who was born in Carlisle, Cumbria, and raised in Newcastle, is best known as the man behind Stormy Monday and Leaving Las Vegas.

Acting Too Late

TALKING of banks, I see the Financial Services Authority - the body that regulates the financial market - has finally bared its teeth. It has fined former deputy chief executive David Baker pounds 504,000 for manipulating mortgage arrears figures.

Safety Catch ; Confusion Over Gas Certificate

A ROW has broken out over charges by IKEA for a gas safety certificate. On their website the company appeared to charge pounds 135 for the piece of paper accredited by gas watchdogs to ensure kitchen appliances were safe.

Sunday Sun Reader Travel