A quick geography/history/sociology lesson, Durham is the county city of County Durham (the only county in England that retains county in its title). It is part of the ancient Northumbria but is not part of Northumberland. It is, of course, the home of the railways, the Stockton and Darlington being the first passenger railway in the world (opened in 1825). Long before that it was the land of the prince bishops where the church ruled this part of the country. We are fortunate to have some of the greatest scenery in Britain ranging from the high fells in Teesdale and Weardale to some stunning beaches and coastal areas.
Weather wise I think Borrowdale in the Lake District is the wettest place in Britain and Manchester the wettest city.
We also have at Shildon the brilliant museum Locomotion, The NRM of the North. Finally we are not Geordies as many people assume, in east Durham where I live and hail from, we are in truth pit yackers so named as our main industry was coal mining up until Maggie Thatcher thought it would be a good idea to decimate the region. There are some great prototypes for model railways in the area too.
Anyone visiting the area can drop me a PM & I will do my best to sort a guided tour at Locomotion as I volunteer there.
Oh and by the way Mr Whitaker, it's a city not a town.......