A CABBIE was conned by a passenger who paid him with a £20 note from the "Bank of Doctor Who".

The taxi driver, who does not want to be named, fell victim to the scam when he picked up a fare from Darlington Market Place to Newton Aycliffe, via Shildon.

Arriving in Shildon, the passenger told him he needed to go into a nearby house to collect a suitcase.

By way of security, he left a wallet on the vehicle's dashboard containing a visible, but folded, realistic looking £20 note.

The driver was suspicious when the man failed to return after five minutes.

He looked in the wallet, unfolded the note and discovered it was a fake.

Instead of a picture of the Queen, there was a picture of one of Doctor Who's foes, the Cybermen.

Across the top was written Bank of Doctor Who, instead of the usual Bank of England.

The wallet contained nothing else of value.

The driver said: "I normally ask for the money up front.

"It was a good con, but if I see him again, I will make him eat the wallet."

A police spokesman said: "If anyone has concerns about forged notes, we would ask them to call us."

6:03am Friday 16th March 2007

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