Colchester, Chelmsford, and Southend all learned today (Monday) they had failed in their bid for city status.

Never hot favourites, the three Essex towns - and nearby Ipswich - were hanging on to the hope they would be one of the three "millennium cities" made by the Queen.

All were among the 39 towns across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland which were in the running for the title.

The three successful applicants were Brighton and Hove, Inverness and Wolverhampton, it was announced today (Monday).

The road to name Britain's Millennium cities has been a rocky one, with a leaked Government document in March this year apparently dismissing some of the applications - including Colchester's.

There is bound to be disappointment for many, and though Colchester MP Bob Russell thought Colchester should be a hot contender for the title, he believes all 39 applicants deserve to be honoured.

"Any town which meet the criteria for city status should get it. Why should town A be deemed above town B?" he asked.

Mr Russell added: "Colchester's bid to be a city is unchangeable. In our submission we stated Colchester was a city in Roman times and it is an accident of history that the term city ceased to be used."

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