03.02am It's official. Dehenna Davison has become the first Conservative MP for Bishop Auckland in the seat's history. She won 24,06 votes; Helen Goodman (Labour) won 16,105; Nick Brown (Brexit Party) 2,500 Ray Georgeson (LibDems) 2,133
02.15am Labour's Helen Goodman agreed to speak to the Mercury ahead of the result. She said: "It is quite clear that the Tories have won in Bishop Auckland. which is very disappointing for me. We lost the seat in 1931 but won it back in 1935 and people should remember that.
"It has been clear now that Bishop Auckland is a marginal seat and the road to No10 goes through it."
02.00am Votes being counted
01.53am Labour's Helen Goodman has said she will speak to the Mercury after the results are called.
01.50am Conservative candidate Dehenna Davison has just told the Mercury Labour's Helen Goodman "came over and conceded". She added: "It feels really overwhelming but the positivity I have had on the campaign has been amazing."
01.25am Turnout for the election is 65.92% with 44, 936 votes going forward to be counted, Durham County Council's chief executive Terry Collins. County Cllr Richard Bell is predicting a win for the Conservatives of more than 2,000 votes.Previously Helen Goodman (Labour) held the seat in 2017 with a 502 majority.
00.36am Brexit Party's Nick Brown is in the building, looking relaxed, watching updates on TV
00.22am There are six boxes where the counted votes are stored. We can see from these boxes it's going to be close. The Conservatives appear to have a lead on Labour and Brexit Party and LibDems are neck and neck.
23.41pm The first seat to declare was Newcastle Central and it was a Labour hold for Chi Onwurah. However there's been an upset at Blyth Valley, which has turned blue for Conservatives.
23.38pm Teesdale boxes have started to arrive. These ones are from Barnard Castle.
22.23pm Still no sign of the Brexit Party candidate, Nick Brown, or Liberal Democrat's Ray Georgeson.
23.15pm It's too early to predict what's going to happen, but it looks like an early lead for the Conservatives. The county council's press officer informs us Helen Goodman is not doing interviews at the moment.
22.44pm It's early doors, but we'll be keeping an eye on these boxes where the counted votes are placed according to the parties. It gives us a good indication of how the count is going and which party is leading. The boxes are coded according to party colours.
22.39pm Dehenna Davison has arrived in the building, pictured here with Cllrs Richard Bell and Ted Henderson
22.36pm Teesdale Conservative Party Chairman and County Councillor Ted Henderson has arrived. He said: "I think the exit polls are very positive and I'm pleased that we picked the person we did. I knew that she would fight for the seat."
22.18pm First of the candidates to arrive. Helen Goodman is in the building and she's smiling. In the photo she's with Phil Hunt and Neil Foster
22.13pm Exit polls are predicting Conservative Party to have 368 seats; Labour Party 191; SNP 55 and LibDems on 13
10.05pm And the count begins - first ballot box has arrived from Spennymoor Town Hall.
10.00pm The polls have closed. Candidates should be arriving shortly. There are more camera crews than you can shake a stick at, including one from Norway - they're apparently interested in fishing rights.
9.29pm Counters are arriving and slowly filling the hall. So far there is no sign of any of the four candidates. Terry Collins, chief executive of Durham County Council, has just entered the building. Terry Collins seen chatting to press officer Rebecca Turner, who has kindly provided us with a fine array of sweets and beverages (non alcoholic).
8.45pm Just arrived. Martin and Nicky with you until the bitter end, which we expect will be sometime after 3am. The counting hall is set up and we're waiting for the counters and the ballot boxes to arrive. The first ballot boxes are expected at 10.10pm and the Teesdale boxes about an hour later at 11.10pm
1.06pm: We'll be posting updates here and on Facebook and twitter throughout the evening
12.34pm: Our reporters Martin Paul and Nicky Carter will be reporting live from the count for the Bishop Auckland seat from 9pm tonight.
7am: Polling stations open
