Newcastle Chronicle and Journal Ltd has agreed to pay substantial undisclosed libel damages to actor Jimmy Nail for comments made by a columnist in the Sunday Sun in May.

Gossip columnist Karen Wight also agreed to pay damages after she made allegations about his behaviour while filming the recent award-winning Auf Wiedersehen Pet television series.

She made the comments claiming information was passed on first-hand by listeners of her radio programme on North-East station Galaxy Radio.

Counsel for the newspaper and columnist apologised in the High Court through a statement which apologised for any distress caused to Jimmy Nail, and accepted the comments should never have been published.

The statement said: "The publication of the allegations had caused grave damage to his personal and professional reputation and he had suffered considerable embarrassment and distress."

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