A VAN left by its owner outside the Octagon Theatre threatened the town's Remembrance Day service when it sparked a security alert yesterday.

Police cordoned off the area around the white Mercedes van parked behind the theatre at 6am.

Chief Inspector Alan Green said: "We took all the necessary precautions because the van had a parking ticket from 3pm the day before. We had to treat it as a genuine threat.

"It took us more than an hour to ascertain it was on hire to the theatre. The alert was called off and the service went ahead as planned."