Winchester has been named by tourists as the fifth favourite city in the country.

The historic former capital of England was hailed in a survey by readers of the Guardian and Observer.

Winchester had an approval rating of 80 per cent, putting it just behind Edinburgh on 85, Glasgow, 84, Newcastle, 83 and Belfast, 81.

It was ahead of its rivals, York, Bath, Brighton, Salisbury, Durham, Cardiff, Norwich, Manchester, Chester and Hull.

The good news comes as the city council considers dropping King Alfred as its main tourism logo in favour of a fresher approach.

A public consultation exercise was launched last week to gauge views on the logo issue.