Paul Gascoigne has been given an eight-week suspended sentence for being caught driving while four times over the alcohol limit. The 43-year-old, who pled guilty to the charge, had been picked up by police while driving erratically in the Tyneside suburb of Jesmond on a Friday afternoon in October.

His breathalyser test showed 142mg of alcohol per 100ml against a legal limit of 35mg.

The former England star was initially warned in court that he could face up to 12 weeks in prison, but was shown leniency by Newcastle magistrates as his eight-week sentence was suspended for a year.

Gascoigne has also been banned from driving for three years and given an alcohol treatment order.

Next week he will face a drink-drive charge at Northallerton Magistrates Court relating to a separate offence, which he denies.