Hundreds brave North Sea for Boxing Day

Thousands of people braved the cold North Sea for traditional Boxing Day dips across the North East.

One of the biggest was at Seaham in Sunderland where about 1,000 hardy souls took to the water.

Organisers Sunderland Lions Club urged dippers to don fancy dress and blow the Christmas cobwebs away by raising money for charity.

There were similar scenes in Redcar in Teesside and Longsands in Tynemouth, where the sun came out briefly.

Meanwhile in West Kirby, Wirral, Merseyside about 200 bathers braved the elements and jumped in Marine Lake for the annual Boxing Day dip.