Burglars got away with an unknown amount of cash after breaking in to Bishop Auckland College in the early hours of this morning. Police arrived at the college in Woodhouse Lane, Bishop Auckland, to find an ATM inside the building had been raided. A
Andrew Pattison is currently putting a quoits team together to play for the Middle House in the 2011 Zetland Quoits League. Apart from last year - pub closing etc - the Middle House has played in the Zetland League for fourteen years. In recent years
ICELANDER Armann Bjornsson starts for Hartlepool United, as they face Dagenham and Redbridge at Victoria Park.James Brown is also back in the starting line up, with Joe Gamble and Ritchie Humphreys on the bench. Bjornsson is at centre-half in the absence
New striker Nathan Modest makes his Darlington debut as one of three changes in today's FA Trophy tie with Bath City. The player, who arrived on loan from Sheffield Wednesday yesterday, comes into the side ahead of Tommy Wright who is not even
Middlesbrough make several changes from last week's FA Cup exit at the hands of Burton. David Wheater, Jason Steele, Barry Robson return to the Boro side for the club's visit to Bristol City, as does Andrew Taylor for his first start since being loaned
CHAS Hodges, of Chas & Dave fame, shares his gardening knowledge in this new book aimed at the novice gardener, which is full of funny stories and anecdotes interspersed with the author’s tips for growing your own. Chas’s pearls of wisdom
USING everyday examples of just about everything – from petrol to coffee to funerals to drugs – Porter’s illuminating book lifts the veil of consumer pricing and reveals some shrewd and uncomfortable truths. According to Porter, the implications
THE ‘‘official landmarks’’ of a fulfilled existence as a woman in these strongly feminist times are a love, a home, a job and a child, notes the intensely focused Jane Shilling. The theme of this book is that it isn’t only journalists like her who
WHEN Baltimore pathologist Lucy Trask examines the body of a mutilated man found in a local park it yields up its normal clues but also a message full of personal menace. A second mutilated corpse only heightens her fears of further horrors to
THE kidnapping of Aberdeen’s own mother-daughter singing sensation, already TV celebrities, puts DS Logan in the professional and public spotlight. As the investigation quickly runs out of steam, Macrae has to go to even more extreme lengths
A rush a push and the world is Antony’s. Steve Pratt hears how Antony Hansen dashed to grasp the break that brought him to the West End. IT was the day that changed Antony Hansen’s life. He was a 17-year-old student who sang in school productions
BEING labelled as “the next Stieg Larsson” doesn’t seem to have had any negative effect on Nesbo and The Leopard once again proves his undoubted talents for crime fiction with a Scandinavian setting. Using the weather to best effect, he twists
THIS is the debut novel of Russ Litten, better known for his scriptwriting skills on TV, radio and cinema (including Guy Ritchie’s Sherlock Holmes). It’s a cracker too. Set in the author’s home town of Hull, it covers three days in October 2007
A motorist was taken to hospital after his car hit a lamppost this morning. The County Durham and Darlington Fire and Rescue Service was called to Pit House Lane, near the Three Horse Shoes pub, in Leamside, near Durham City, just after 8am. One vehicle
"YOU buried my son under a knicker factory,” said Mrs Fishwick after hearing John Stape’s confession in Coronation Street. He’d also admitted to helping two other people to an early grave. He then let the unfortunate Mrs Fishwick die, denying
HERE in Soapland we all like a drink, whether it’s a Babycham with a little umbrella in it or a glass of Merlot. But some are better than others at holding their drink. Take Peter Barlow. He’s on the wagon, off the booze, a recovering alcoholic
As one of last year's most talked about shows returns for a second series, Glee star Cory Monteith tells Steve Pratt about going from zero to musical theatre hero. NOT being a singer but auditioning for a singing and dancing role led to Cory Monteith
Oscar-winning actress Hilary Swank is back in awards territory with her latest film Conviction. Steve Pratt discovers the truth behind yet another gritty role. ACTOR Sam Rockwell describes double Oscar-winner Hilary Swank as a “special woman” –
In his new movie, Harrison Ford plays an embittered, grumpy, humourless TV anchor. But Steve Pratt discovers that in real life the Hollywood star has a flair for comedy and a dry sense of humour. "I LAUGH a lot, largely at inappropriate junctures
The Central – known as The Coffin for many years – is enjoying a new lease of life. ARISKY undertaking even for the entrepreneurial (and engaging) Mr Tony Brookes, the pub known on Tyneside as The Coffin has had a new lease of life. If not quite
FRONT page, back page, leader page – “it just goes to show you’re never too old” – Phill Nixon all but took over the paper four years ago today. He was a darts player, the man they dubbed the Ferryhill Flyer, and the night previously he’d taken
THE United Nation’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) claims that man-made carbon emissions will drastically increase earth’s temperature, yet its initial report found that this effect was negligible. The IPCC would have been disbanded
Moving out has proved a step in the right direction for West Auckland’s former Methodists. THEY were not as other men, or at least as other Methodists. “We were fairly different from most other churches in the circuit,” admits Adrian Hancock.
IN the summer I decided to visit the Darlington railway museum at the old North Road station with my wife. My wife is severely disabled and, unlike me, she has no interest in trains She decided that she would like to use the toilet and have a
HOWARD JOHNSON, the racehorse trainer, may be flogging a dead horse in his desire to take a lie detector test on The Jeremy Kyle Show (Echo, Jan 14). To qualify for an appearance he would need to have numerous body piercings and to be festooned
MPS taking on well-paid outside jobs as a side-line debunks the claim that our politicians are overstretched. The truth is that they are a pampered nest-feathering lot and very likely to be much better off than the people they are supposed
IN less than four months the Scottish Parliament and Welsh Assembly will be holding elections. The Scottish Greens, the SNP, the Greens and Plaid Cymru, all believe in a free university education and no tuition fees. Glasgow and Edinburgh are
WE have had exceptionally cold weather this winter. I feel sorry for people who end up in casualty or a fracture clinic. My wife and I have sent away for some straps to put over the soles of our shoes to prevent us from slipping. Unfortunately
ALAN BLEASDALE’S drama about the sinking of the Laconia in 1942 was TV at its best. After the war I knew an ex-Uboat engineer and he said sailors had respect for each other. Captain Werner Hartenstein showed real humanity in rescuing the survivors
ON Thursday, the trio of creme brulees disappeared with astonishing speed even though all the ladies of Leyburn Probus had moments earlier declared themselves too stuffed to eat another wafer. They settled back for a well-earned snooze in the
As the awards season gets into full swing, Steve Pratt sifts through the potential winners and losers – and concludes that Colin Firth will be crowned king of the movies. COLIN FIRTH is a star – that’s official. Being awarded the Walk of Fame
TWO North-East athletics events will be combined with a Start Fitness Harrier League fixture as officials try to re-organise the programme hit by the bad weather. The League’s third fixture at Blaydon was called off before the next meeting
ASIAN Football Confederation president Mohammed Bin Hammam has ruled out holding the 2022 FIFA World Cup in winter, as well as dismissing the notion of it being shared among other Gulf nations. FIFA boss Sepp Blatter last week said he ‘‘expected
HARRY Redknapp has denied the media circus surrounding David Beckham’s presence at Tottenham has affected his team’s preparations for their crunch match against Manchester United. Redknapp’s claim that Spurs are serious title contenders will
CAPTAIN Paul Collingwood blamed England’s batsmen as their record run of Twenty20 victories was ended by a fourrun defeat against Australia in Melbourne. The tourists narrowly failed to chase down Australia’s 147 for seven after a mid-innings
Charl Schwartzel delivered a magical 10-underpar round of 61 on a rainaffected day two of the Joburg Open to storm into a share of the lead at the halfway stage. The defending champion kept all errors off the card as he notched 10 birdies to
MARK Allen overcame tournament favourite Neil Robertson 6- 4 to seal a semi-final place at the Ladbrokes Mobile Masters. The match was a curious mixture of classy break-building and scrappy spells, Allen making five half-centuries to his opponent
Police are hunting burglars who broke into a home in the village of Stapleton, near Darlington. The break-in at the detached Jolby Lane bungalow happened some time between 8am and 4.45pm on Friday. The haul included jewellery, PS3 and PS2 game consoles
DARLINGTON Mowden Park go into today’s home game against Chester knowing that victory would lift them into the National Three North promotion frame. They trail second-placed Chester by ten points with a game in hand, so a fourth home defeat
NICKY HENDERSON believes the soft ground at Kempton today could dent Binocular’s greatest asset in the william hill.com Christmas Hurdle. Henderson has long since praised the champion hurdler’s jumping prowess and believes he whole well-being
IT really is Super Saturday this afternoon at Kempton Park, with the William Hill King George taking centre stage on a cracking eight-race card. Kauto Star bids to make history in the feature event at 3pm. If he does pass the post in front
MISTAKING a rail at the start of the opening race at Huntingdon had dire consequences for eight riders as they picked up suspensions of around a fortnight each. Most of the field headed on an incorrect path to the right of a short strip of fencing
During his three-and-a-half-years on Wearside, Kieran Richardson has experienced the highs and the lows of a Tyne-Wear derby. Chief football writer Paul Fraser reveals how one derby moment has been the highlight of his career so far. THERE was a quarter
The NYSD regular pens his Diary Fro mDown Under for The Northern Echo IT WAS good to get back into club action last weekend, although it was rather strange that not a single one of my Aussie teammates mentioned the Ashes. But there again
IT has been an extremely long, drawn out process, but now that the National Football Centre has finally been given the go-ahead it is worth flagging up the role Wearside has played. That may seem a strange thing to say for a complex that will
A 21ST birthday is usually a day of wild celebrations. For Greg Taylor, it will be spent sitting in the stands watching the FA Trophy clash with Bath City. Taylor is cup-tied after playing for Kettering Town in their defeat to Chasetown in
JAMES Brown may be back in action for Hartlepool United, but he needs to be nurtured and looked after carefully. After suffering the trauma of two cruciate ligament injuries in recent seasons, the striker was out of action for three months of
DENIS Behan could be set for a return to Ireland. The Hartlepool United striker won’t be involved in today’s game with Dagenham and Redbridge at Victoria Park as he is nursing a hamstring strain. But, once recovered, he could be heading back
DARLINGTON have signed Sheffield Wednesday striker Nathan Modest for the rest of the season. The 19-year-old joins the Quakers on a long-term loan and will go straight into Mark Cooper’s squad to face Bath City in the FA Trophy second round
We asked The Legends: Do you have any stand out memories of the Tyne-Wear derby? MALCOLM MACDONALD: “NEWCASTLE and Sunderland were always in different divisions when I was playing so the only time I played against them was in testimonials. It
A YEAR ago last Thursday, Barry Robson became the first of five Scottish-based players to sign for Gordon Strachan’s Middlesbrough during the January transfer window. It was an influx that was supposed to herald the start of better times on
NEWCASTLE will hold further talks with Cardiff City next week in the hope of completing a deal for striker Jay Bothroyd. Magpies officials have opened negotiations with their counterparts at the Cardiff City Stadium and representatives of Bothroyd
WITH the memory of the St James’ Park crushing still in his mind, Steve Bruce last night insisted he will know whether his Sunderland players are up for the 143rd Wear-Tyne derby within the first ten minutes of it starting tomorrow. Bruce
TONY Mowbray has admitted that Middlesbrough’s position close to the foot of the Championship table is preventing him from giving Kris Boyd an extended run in the side. Boyd made his first start since mid-November as Boro crashed out of the FA
ALAN Pardew claims the absence of Andy Carroll and Cheik Tiote means Sunderland will start tomorrow’s Wear-Tyne derby as firm favourites. Newcastle travel to the Stadium of Light looking to achieve a first derby double since the 2005-06 season
AN MP has called for a Parliamentary debate about the rising cost of heating oil. Tory MP Julian Smith, who represents Skipton and Ripon, in North Yorkshire, raised the matter after he was contacted by some of his constituents. Mr Smith, speaking
AN old-fashioned football is being sold to raise money for the Sir Bobby Robson Foundation. The vintage ball, created by The Old Fashioned Football Shirt Company, is similar to the type Sir Bobby would have used as a player. It includes a
A LONG-STANDING feud boiled over when a former women’s football coach bumped into one of her lesbian ex-players on a night out, a court heard. Durham Crown Court heard there were hostile relations between Pauline Godward and Lyn Stanley as
The FTSE 100 Index fell 21.8 points to 6002.1, or 0.4 per cent, after China moved to fight inflation by raising the reserve requirements for the country’s biggest lenders. This caused metal prices to fall, and with them the market value of miners
A NEW service for people with heart failure is helping to reduce hospital readmission rates and save lives. Such patients can often find themselves in and out of hospital, but the heart failure service at The James Cook University Hospital, in
BLUE chip financial services firm KPMG has entered into a partnership with a North- East university to boost the number of school leavers entering accountancy. The firm is working with Durham University and ICAEW (Institute of Chartered Accountants
A TRAVEL entrepreneur is launching an online agency in Darlington bringing up to 100 jobs to the region. John McLean, founder of the Late Escapes Group, which he sold to Airtours in the Nineties, is introducing MyWayTravel.com to the sector
THE owners of dozens of unregistered horses have taken advantage of a chipping clinic. Police in Bishop Auckland, motivated by a sharp rise in the number of illegallytethered or stray horses, organised the event, with support from the county
A WOMAN lured her exboyfriend to a quiet country lane in the early hours of the morning where two friends were waiting to beat him up, a court was told yesterday. The victim suffered a suspected fractured nose and cheekbone and was left bloodied
A MILLIONAIRE businessman from the region has been appointed to a key post that will thrust him into attempts to secure a Middle East peace deal. David Abrahams – the property developer behind plans for the £1bn Durham Green Business Park –
THE Oldham and Saddleworth by-election comes too early into the coalition Government’s programme for us to read too much into the result. But, strangely, it could be argued that all three main parties can draw some strength from the figures.
THE Tory high command last night denied giving the Lib Dems an easy ride in the Oldham East and Saddleworth by-election in an attempt to avert a catastrophic collapse in support for their coalition partners. David Cameron said he was proud
ONE of the last of the crew who assisted Donald Campbell on his world speed record attempts in his craft Bluebird has died. Paul Evans, who passed away on Tuesday in Darlington, was the radio operator on Campbell’s fateful bid to break the 300mph
AN amateur football star is to captain the Great Britain team at the Special Olympics for a second time. Andy Hetherington, who at a towering 6ft 9in is two inches taller than England striker Peter Crouch, will lead the British team at the 2011
THE Prime Minister yesterday denied the North-East was getting a raw deal from the spending cuts. Instead of cutting services, councils should first slash back-office costs and reduce the wages of senior officers, David Cameron said. Mr Cameron
AN artist’s impression of a new national memorial to pay tribute to the fallen soldiers of a regiment was unveiled last night. Details of the life-sized bronze statue of a Durham Light Infantry (DLI) bugler dressed in the combat uniform of
AN 11-year-old who saved his younger brother’s life when he choked on chewing gum has received an award. Christian Spencer, from Coundon Grange, County Durham, has become one of only ten recipients of Durham County Council’s Junior Citizen Medals
A CATHOLIC priest who claimed his celibacy compelled him to view child pornography was yesterday jailed for eight months. Father John Shannon, 58, downloaded 740 indecent photographs of children as young as nine last year while a lecturer at
With luxury seafront cottages in Sandsend attracting visitors from all over the world, Ruth Addicott talks to one owner about how these holiday homes have been transformed. WAKING up to spectacular sea views and breakfast on the terrace sounds
A POLICE federation chief says this year could be the “start of a great decade” for criminals as funding cuts begin to bite. Sergeant Mark Botham, chairman of the Police Federation Joint Branch Board, in North Yorkshire, warned of an increase
