IF this is to be a bumper year for British tourism, thanks to the pound’s woes and a general tightening of belts, it is right that the county of Durham sorts out what it is called. Durham, Durham County, County Durham have been used to describe the area between the Tees and the Tyne and the jewel in the middle, Durham City.

As the only English county to use the word county as a prefix, it was different but unfortunately the same as many counties in Ireland. We suspect many overseas visitors might have thought Durham was in Ireland, which may have been a good thing in a way but is, essentially, confusing.

We hope there will also be a review of the moniker “Land of the Prince Bishops” which has been a subsidiary description of the county for sometime now, cropping up on road signs, stationery and all sorts of other places too.

It is an accurate description, but for those not familiar with the county and, we suspect, many who live there, it means very little.

Durham is a great name. It sounds good. It looks good. It can proudly stand on its own.