QSince I had central heating put in I receive cash instead of concessionary coal. This averages out at £3.42 a week. What difference should it be making to my weekly rent and council tax benefits? AYour rent should have increased by £2.22 (65 per cent
IF Newcastle skipper Alan Shearer has any say in the matter, French new boy Laurent Robert will soon be flat on his derriere, desperately trying to catch his breath. The winger was the inspiration for United's derby demolition of troubled Middlesbrough
The funerals of the North-East mother and her two children - bludgeoned to death by her police officer husband - took place yesterday. The bodies of Jill Bluestone and brothers Henry, aged three, and 18-month-old Chandler, were taken in a funeral procession
NOLBERTO SOLANO handed Newcastle United boss Bobby Robson an eve-of-derby boost by pledging his loyalty to the club. Peruvian Solano is eager to line up against Middlesbrough at the Riverside Stadium this afternoon after kicking his international career
DIPLOMATIC pressure is mounting on the Greek government amidst fears that a kidney of a North-East man who died on holiday was sold on the organ blackmarket. The parents of Chris Rochester, 24, who died after falling from an apartment balcony on the holiday
DURHAM will need to do a much better job of curbing Graeme Hick tomorrow than they did during his 200 not out at the Riverside yesterday. A combination of Hick and bad light left the final championship match heading for stalemate, but it will be all or
UNDERWATER explosives experts are being called in, amid fears that a wrecked ammunitions ship may be breaking up, releasing its lethal cargo off the North-East coast. A plea for help is being sent to the head of the Ministry of Defence's underwater survey
POLICE have launched a murder hunt after a teenager died following an apparently unprovoked attack at the weekend - hours after he had attended an uncle's wedding. A police spokesman said Paul Smith, 18, was punched and the face and knocked to the ground
KNOWN as the 'squire of all England,' George Osbaldeston was unruffled when he was accidentally shot in the eye on a hunting trip by one of his companions. "I knew you would hit something eventually," he remarked. A noted gambler, his last wager, when
HAYDOCK and Leopardstown are the two top-class venues for a brace of scintillating Group 1 races this afternoon. First port of call is Haydock where Pipalong (3.00) tries for back-to-back success in the six furlong £150,000 Stanley Leisure Sprint. Pipalong
TEN years ago this weekend rioting erupted on a rundown Tyneside estate when hundreds of youths went on the rampage. Things could not have looked bleaker for Meadowell in North Shields, where crime-hit residents had all but given up contacting the police
EVERY time I read the racing papers I can't help wondering how much money these tipping lines draw out of punters. It's time a lot of these so-called professionals were stopped from selling so-called information to unsuspecting punters. I read a leaflet
NORTH-EAST staff at a supermarket chain received an early Christmas boost when bosses told them they would be getting a three-day break. Morrisons, which has shops throughout the region, has confirmed that all of its stores will be closed on Christmas
THE persistent attempts by refugees to make it across the Channel threaten to add to the burden of an asylum application procedure already under severe strain. And now the legality of a detention centre opened with the intention of reducing the backlog
DISABILITY access campaigners have warned that plans to control obstructions on Darlingtons highways should be properly policed. Gordon Pybus, chairman of the town's accessible transport group, said the consultation document Pavements for People will
Things are beginning to quieten down in the garden, but you cannot relax completely, especially with maintenance. Fresh weed seeds are still germinating and the lawn requires regular cutting, but most of the additional tasks like planting and staking
MORE than 50 people were hurt - seven of them seriously - when a coach and a lorry collided on a busy road yesterday. Witnesses described the HGV as ''smashed in two'' by the impact, while the coach was forced across a central reservation and into a field
WHEN a very irate Frenchman in a silly hat started shouting at us in Marne la Vallee train station, I knew we were in trouble. Not only was he angry with us - he also had our train tickets back to Blighty. Trying not to stare at his hat, which was now
SIX months after leaving, Stuart Elliott returns to Feethams today as his Carlisle teammates look for their first win of the season against in-form Darlington. Although his time at Feethams came to a premature end in March this year, the tenacious midfielder
Peter Reid revealed last night that Scottish international Don Hutchison, who joined West Ham United in a £5.25m deal last week, slapped in a written transfer request despite being promised a contract review on Wearside. Hutchison, who is sure of a hot
UPBEAT Chris Turner believes the real Hartlepool United will stand up this afternoon. After almost a fortnight without a game, focused Pool go to Scunthorpe aiming to shake off their early season failings. Pool lost back to back games with Darlington
FORMER cabinet minister Peter Mandelson is making a return to the political limelight. The Hartlepool MP will be named this week as chairman of one of the country's most high-powered policy think tanks. However, the former Northern Ireland Secretary claims
EWAN McGregor is angry. Not with reviews for his new movie musical extravaganza Moulin Rouge! Not with early coverage of the film when he was caught in the crossfire of on-screen leading lady Nicole Kidman's split from husband Tom Cruise with gossip hinting
DALES farmers watched helplessly last night as the foot-and-mouth menace advanced relentlessly from the west. An outbreak of the disease was confirmed at Palliard, on the A66 near the Cumbria/County Durham border yesterday - only a few miles from Teesdale
Investors will be hoping for good news amid another wave of blue-chip results next week with updates from the recruitment, retail and engineering sectors likely to prove the main interest in the City. Outsourcing and distribution group Hays will provide
FARMERS fearing a fresh outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease have expressed disquiet that a funfair is being staged on their doorstep. The fair, which started last night and goes on over the weekend, is only a few hundred yards from one of the new disinfectant
SLOW starts to a season are becoming the norm for Hartlepool United. Five games gone, four points in the bag and the Division Three table doesn't make good reading. Last year, after five games Chris Turner's side had five points, in 1999 it was four -
THE community's response to Darlington's Britain in Bloom bid has received praise from leading figures in the town. Darlington Town Centre Forum heard how working together and individually businesses had combined to make the town a floral feast for residents
Pub chain JD Wetherspoon is targeting the North-East as part of an expansion plan that will bring scores of jobs. The group already has pubs throughout the region, including Darlington, Middlesbrough, Hartlepool, Stockton and Redcar. Now bosses are looking
THE spotlight will be on the full backs when Newcastle Falcons visit Sale today. David Walder will be opposed by Jason Robinson, who starred on the wing for the British Lions but is preferred at No 15 by Sale. Walder, the match-winner in last season's
DIE-HARD fans are being given the chance to buy their very own piece of North-East footballing history. Two 15-carat gold FA Cup winners' medals, which belonged to one of the region's top Victorian soccer stars, are going on sale. The medals were presented
REVIEWS: Title: Extreme G-3 (XG3) Format: PS2 CD-ROM. Publisher: Acclaim. Price: £39.99. WIPEOUT was one of the half dozen or so games that made the PlayStation. Futuristic racers were nothing new, the 3DO had plenty, but Wipeout simply wiped the floor
Successful teams always seem to have the uncanny knack of taking points when the opposition have done enough to earn all three. On Saturday, Darlington had to rely on injury-time goals in each half to secure a point which they scarcely looked like earning
SUNDERLAND rode their luck to maintain their 100 percent home record - thanks to veteran striker Niall Quinn. But manager Peter Reid knows that the lack-lustre form his team has shown so far this season will not unlock the door into a European utopia.
TEENAGE star-of-the-saddle Sam Hitchcott has a further opportunity to shine aboard Golden Chance (3.30) in the Hambleton Cup at Thirsk. Hitchcott has been enjoying the majority of his success for guv'nor Mick Easterby, who has never been afraid to put
An "obsessive" egg collector has been jailed after he was caught with rare specimens just four weeks after he was fined for same offence. Barry Sheavills, 41, was jailed for four months for having four goosander eggs and three goshawk eggs. His sentence
GARETH SOUTHGATE yesterday spoke of the culture shock which he believes will ultimately produce a winning formula at Middlesbrough. The England centre-back, who joined Steve McClaren's Riverside revolution when he moved from Aston Villa in a £6.5m summer
ECSTASY turned to deep frustration for Durham on the final afternoon of their championship programme on Saturday. They looked certain to complete the double over Worcestershire and finish the season with a second successive win when they had the visitors
WAAAAAAAAGH! I've walked into a bit of scene. Hannah is crying her little eyes out. She's a bit unsure of the strange man with the camera swung round his neck, while the three boys peer mischievously over their boiled eggs at their new visitor. The quads
A CHILLING insight into the mind of the killer of three-year-old Rosie Palmer has been laid bare in letters obtained by The Northern Echo. Murderer Shaun Armstrong was jailed for life at Leeds Crown Court in 1995 after he confessed to killing Rosie at
TWO-year-old Hannah Maxwell-Jones is preparing for a journey which will change her life forever - thanks to the generosity of people throughout the region. In two weeks time the severely deformed youngster from Teesside will undergo pioneering surgery
The Internet needs to be faster, cheaper and more relevant to the needs of businesses in the region, a survey has discovered. A thousand firms were interviewed for regional development agency Yorkshire Forward and their responses show that the main concern
SUNDERLAND manager Peter Reid last night saluted the bravery of his star goalkeeper, Thomas Sorensen, who will play in this afternoon's home game against Blackburn Rovers only a week after breaking his nose on international duty for Denmark. The 25-year-old
STEVE McCLAREN last night indicated he would be the first to admit if his coaching role with England was damaging Middlesbrough's Premiership prospects. The Boro boss, who leads his side into the derby with Newcastle United at the Riverside Stadium this
THE Government's policy on asylum seekers was in disarray last night after a landmark High Court human rights ruling. Home Secretary David Blunkett reacted with dismay to the "deeply disturbing" court decision which could result in the release of hundreds
Tony Blair showed off his musical talents yesterday when he took part in an impromptu blues session with a school band. The Prime Minister strummed a Fender Telecaster guitar as he joined musicians from Dyke House School in Hartlepool. The 12-bar blues
DESPITE the embarrassment of losing Tony Blair's custom to rival Ryanair, thousands more passengers are still flocking to no-frills airline easyJet. During August, Luton-based easyJet carried 698,350 passengers, a 19.1 per cent jump on the same month
Letters from The Northern Echo MINERS I AGREE with Alf Pyle when he says that the NUM was once the greatest trade union this country ever had (HAS, Sept 3). Alf obviously refers to the time when we were led by Joe Gormley. Joe was an honest, astute man
VILLAGERS are hoping state-of-the-art defences will protect them from floods which devastated homes three times last year. Completion of a £261,000 flood defence scheme providing 274 metres of flood walling, floodgates, collapsible bridge parapets and
