GOOD news travels fast and a quick telephone call from Spain enabled GCSE student Peter Bowden to celebrate excellent results.

St Monica's RC High School pupil Peter (16) was on holiday with his family when the exam results were published.

So with a bit of persuasion from his parents, Peter contacted the school in Bury Old Road to learn he had achieved 10A*.

Peter also gained an A* in law last year, after taking the exam a year early, so his total GCSEs is 11A*.

Peter, of Daneshill, Prestwich, said: "It was a surprise. I expected to do well, but not that well. I did revise but I still had time to do other things as well, like being in the school debating team."

Mum Myra added: "I remember asking Peter to revise a couple of times but he assured me he knew what he was doing!"

Peter now intends to take his A-Levels at Holy Cross in Bury, in law, politics, government, business studies, English literature and maths.

A bout of the mumps could not stop Whitefield teenager Hannah Greene from gaining top marks in her exams.

Hannah (16), of Roseland Drive, was one of only two pupils at St Gabriel's RC High School in Bury to gain nine A*s, despite suffering mumps during her final weeks of revision.

She said: "I was so disappointed to get mumps. It definitely made it harder work but you just have to get on with things and hope for the best. I was completely surprised and extremely happy when I opened the results."

Hannah now plans to study French, Spanish, pyschology and English literature at Holy Cross College.