91Èȱ¬

I don't mind admitting that I start to well up on some of the stories we cover on Inside Out.

Our next programme (Monday, 31 October 2011, 19:30 GMT) got to me even before the final edit, simply because it shows the work of .

Baby Ashton is just six-weeks-old as he is taken into the operating theatre.

It's hard not to feel for the parents who entrust the lives of their newborns to the surgeons. As we discover in the show we should not just admire the skills of the doctors but we should understand the immense pressure they are under.

We expect them to be the dynamic life saving super-hero who is phased by nothing.

As consultant cardiac surgeon Leslie Hamilton admits for the first time on television: "It got to the stage where I couldn't do it anymore."

His skill was never in question, it was a matter of confidence. With only two surgeons trying to keep a children's heart unit running, it meant never really being off duty.

Unusual cases didn't come through often enough for the surgeons to practice particular skills so they became second nature.

"You don't get into the comfortable phase of doing the same operation regularly. Children respond differently, unpredictably"

Mr Hamilton now only operates on adults, but was part of so they can be bigger, with more surgeons.

Under one of four options Newcastle's Freeman could close, but even the consultants under threat of losing their own unit on Tyneside say it's best for the service as a whole.

It's a very real stress that these doctors have been under, never mind the sheer concentration needed to operate on a heart the size of a walnut.

Of course we mustn't forget the parents. Can you imagine how Ashton's dad feels as he hands him over to the theatre nurse?

In tonight's film it's difficult not to feel the same sense of fear as Ashton is taken into the operating room.

Yes the surgeons are heroes, but they aren't super-human.

I was the first person in my family to go to university. Brainbox I was not - I just happened to be good at one particular subject (German - I lived there as a kid and picked it up without even trying).

The one thing I didn't have to worry about back then was student fees. Higher education was free back in 1979 (you can do your own maths on how old I am now). It never even occurred to me or my fellow students that we should be paying towards our degrees.

That is a freedom that today's students - and their parents - must look on with envy.

According to official government statistics there appears to be a real problem with getting northern students to go on to get a degree. Over the past 11 years there has been a 44% increase in the number of children in England going to university. Compare that with a 4% fall in the Blyth and Bedlington area.

That's why we sent actor back to school in Northumberland to find out why.

We also conducted a survey to see if the prospect of up to £9,000 a year fees and running up a debt for the future would put people off. You can read the details on our news pages.

And as you'll see in the show (91Èȱ¬1 19:30 BST Monday, 24 October 2011), financial guru has a few tips on how to make it easier to cope with. We've a sneak preview below.

What do you think about student fees and whether they are putting you or your youngsters off going to university. Why not add your comment to the blog?

We're back with a brand new series tonight (Monday, October 17 2011, 19:30 BST 91Èȱ¬1) and we'll be introducing you to a set of job hunters who are seeking work in these tough times.

We'll be following them over the coming months to see what life without work is really like and just how they are trying to land a new job.

Letricia from Thornaby has just 66p in her bank account and her cupboards are almost bare. As the 51-year-old unemployed barmaid says:

"I don't want a handout, I just want someone to give me a job"

We have already had some good news from two of our job seekers.

But the job hunting still continues for the rest of our group. Sharon who has an 8-year-old daughter is "sick of having no money". The 28-year-old waitress from Ashington hasn't worked since the birth of her daughter.

Stephen from Gateshead and Kath from Stockton are worried that at 52 and 53, their age is counting against them.

Kath had an autistic son who developed terminal cancer. Caring for him was a full time job in itself. She finds it strange that now as an older jobseeker with no ties employers don't seem interested at what is for her the best time in her life to be working.

At the other end of scale 20-year-old Chris from Middlesbrough is hoping to turn his life around. He got into bother and ended up homeless. With the help of and he's trying to make a new start and has just got a flat of his own.

We all wish them the best of luck!

If you have any stories of your own or advice on how to get work then just add them as a comment to this blog.

Also on tonight's show we look at the experiences of people who invested in overseas properties on the advice of a Teesside businessman.

Also returns to Middlesbrough for a loving look at the Transporter Bridge that celebrates its 100th birthday today.

A bit like the buses.... you wait for ages and then two come along at once!

The brand new series of Inside Out starts on Monday 17 October 2011 19:30 BST (more on this in my next blog), but the evening before we are bringing you a bonus documentary marking 25 years of the .

has taken me into his confidence to reveal exactly how he managed to convince reluctant councils, big-wig retailers and financiers to join an adventure that gave the North East the lead in Britain's shopping revolution.

It turns out Sir John even nicked the concept lock, stock and barrel from our North American cousins.

As you can see in this preview of the show, the entrepreneur and his wife weren't averse to some sneaky industrial espionage.

What's incredible is how much of the Metro Centre really is identical to the Woodbine Center - its Canadian forerunner - right down to the colour scheme, fixtures and fittings.

Kick back and relax this Sunday evening and rummage around 25 years of archive and revelation about the shopping centre that put us on the map.

Metro Man: An Inside Out Special is broadcast on Sunday, 16 October at 22:40 BST on 91Èȱ¬ One North East & Cumbria and nationwide on 91Èȱ¬ iPlayer.

As BOGOF (buy one - get one free) offers go, it's a real bargain!

With a week to go before our new series begins I'm gearing up to add some behind-the-scenes stuff about Inside Out. People often ask how we make the show, how long it takes to film the reports and investigations - even where we get our stories from.

I was out last Friday (7 October 2011) filming the links for the first show. As will become clear when the programme goes out we were using the as a backdrop. Luck was with me as we had crystal blue skies. It looked great.

But if you fancy seeing first hand what goes on at the "Pink Palace" and want something different for a trip out for your club or society then why not come to the 91Èȱ¬ in Newcastle?

You can now book yourselves onto a 91Èȱ¬ Tour which gives you the chance to try your hand at a weather forecast, as well as tour the studios and meet some of the presenters.

As it happens we made a short film for the Tour which you can see below in which I was tasked to dig out some of the best bits over recent years. It was only when I put them all together that I realised just how impressive our back-catalogue is!

Anyway make sure you have Monday, 17 October 2011 marked in your diary. We return with a brand new series - every Monday at 7.30pm. I can't wait!