A dad's viral campaign to get One Direction bring a smile to his grieving daughter's face has been a huge success, and the group has now reached out to the little girl.

After Rick Yallop, 42, of Mile Cross, lost his wife Bella in September, he launched a Facebook campaign to try and reach their daughter Emily's favourite band, One Direction.

His plea was shared thousands of times on social media and featured in the Evening News.

And last night, five-year-old Emily's favourite member of the band Zayn Malik sent the family a video inviting her to come and meet the group.

Mr Yallop said: 'I can't put it into words. I'm so excited for Emily, she so deserves it.'

• See the full story in tomorrow's Evening News.