Africa Express Middlesbrough Town Hall IT'S not every night you see a host of multi-million-selling artists on your front doorstep. But one unforgettable night in Middlesbrough saw that happen. The Africa Express – a 1970s locomotive with
PART of a North-East high street was cordoned off this evening, following reports smoke pouring from a manhole cover. Smoke was seen coming from a manhole cover in Stockton High Street, close to the Royal Oak pub, shortly before 7pm. Police
West Auckland went top of the EBAC Northern League by a point when they beat Consett 2-0 at Darlington Road last night. West found it difficult to break down the Consett defence, although Chris Carr hit the bar and John Campbell hit the post,
A CYCLIST has been taken to hospital with head injuries after falling from his bike during an evening ride. Emergency services were called to woods around Guisborough earlier this evening, following reports that a man had come off his bike.
EMERGENCY services were called to a single-vehicle rush-hour collision which left 25 hay bales strewn across a busy road. The incident, involving a tractor pulling a trailer, happened at about 5pm, close to Strikes garden centre, in Stokesley,
THE economic forces behind plans to merge two neighbouring golf courses in Darlington are clear for all to see. Stressholme is a municipal course owned by Darlington Borough Council, which is facing huge budget cuts. Blackwell is one
A JUDGE lambasted drunken yobbery as he sentenced a man for breaking the jaw of a serving soldier. Recorder Tony Hawks said Jacob Fox and his co-defendant Carl Osborne were guilty of "feckless and disgraceful" behaviour in their attack on Ryan
TRIBUTES have been paid to a longserving family doctor, who died after a short illness. Dr Colin Broadbent, who had worked as a doctor in Darlington for more than 40 years, died peacefully at his home last week, aged 77. Originally from Leeds
A SEARCH is underway for two teenage cousins who were last seen going to bed on Sunday night. The boys, Kieran Miller, 15, and Thomas Miller, 14, live at the latter’s home on Lockyer Close in Newton Aycliffe , County Durham. They were last
A VICTORIAN school turned community centre will host its third annual art show and sale next weekend. Since being converted from a primary school into a community centre three years ago, the St Cuthbert’s Centre, in Crook , has played host to numerous
PARENTS of severely disabled children have been given cherished memories of their sons and daughters holding the Olympic torch thanks to a charity’s determination to ensure no one is left out. The Weardale Whippets organised their own relay through
CAMPAIGNERS are celebrating after work was carried out to make the site of a disused mine safer for the public. Concerns were raised that children, who were trespassing on private land at an old shale heap, were at risk of being injured in landslips
A COUPLE have celebrated their diamond wedding anniversary in style, surrounded by all their family. Alistair and Mabel Wales, who met when they were 17 and have been together for 64 years, spent their anniversary enjoying afternoon tea at the
A PET shop owner has been left devastated following the theft of his son's tortoise. Thieves took computer equipment and Herbie the Horsefield tortoise when they broke into the Beechwood Pets and Grooming shop in The Gardens, Middlesbrough, at
THE Insurance Institute of Middlesbrough is holding a centenary quiz night at Middlesbrough and District Motor Club, Coulby Manor, Coulby Newham, Middlesbrough, on Thursday at 7.15pm. Admission is £5, plus one unwanted CD album. Teams are restricted
East Durham College has welcomed the first cohort of students to a newly-launched enterprise academy. The Peterlee-based college boasts the only approved Peter Jones Enterprise Academy in County Durham and yesterday opened its doors to the next
COMPETITORS in a family scarecrow festival have spoken of their disappointment after thieves made off with several exhibits, including characters from science fiction saga Star Wars. Scarecrows representing Yoda and Darth Maul were taken overnight
A TEAM of volunteers have taken up tools to stop the progress of a destructive plant at an east Durham beauty spot. Workers from law firm DWF and residential landlord Grainger plc carried out the project at Castle Eden Dene Nature Reserve, Peterlee
From pot boy to TV chef and national star, Kenny Atkinson’s story is a classic rags to riches tale. Chris Webber talks to the ordinary geordie lad who grew up on fish fingers and is now lauded as a culinary genius KENNY ATKINSON only really knows
A CHRISTIAN action group will hold an open day to promote its various projects this weekend. Durham Christian Partnership (DCP), which is involved in a range of initiatives including Street Lights, the Durham Foodbank, the Cathedral Listeners,
A service celebrates the 80th birthday of a former rap granny and the wonderful world of entertainment Daddy wouldn’t buy me a bow-wow Daddy wouldn’t buy me a bow-wow; I have a little cat And I’m very fond of that, But I’d rather have
SHE’S gone from Brookside babe to character actress – and Jennifer Ellison couldn’t be more pleased. Once she graced the covers and pages of men’s magazines in glamour poses, now she is singing and dancing on stage in the touring production of Legally
ANNA MAXWELL MARTIN has won two Baftas (for Bleak House and Poppy Shakespeare), and has also appeared in North And South, White Girl, The Night Watch and South Riding. Now she’s adding Accused to her already impressive CV. She was, as you’d
AN Army officer held his head in his hands and shouted 'Stop, stop, stop' when he realised US Apache helicopters were attacking a British base and not an enemy compound, an inquest heard today. Lance Corporal Christopher Roney, 23, from Sunderland
Police in Hartlepool are appealing for information as to the whereabouts of a 23-year-old man who was last seen on Friday 24th August. Brendan Oliver was last seen at his home address on Tankerville Street in Hartlepool at around 1pm. He was reported
SEVEN vans have been broken into over two days in an area of the Yorkshire Dales. The spate of thefts in the Leyburn and Bedale area have prompted police to urge residents to be extra vigilant. Towards the end of last week seven vans were broken
In seven months, new GP-led groups will take control of most NHS spending. Health and Education Editor Barry Nelson talks to two key players in the region about the changes AS well as working for an organisation with one of the longest names in
DAVID CAMERON is poised to announce his first major reshuffle. But new ideas and a new direction are more important than new faces about to be brought in to his Government. No one should be under the illusion that the age of austerity is over.
I WONDER what it is that fascinates so many people about Tom Stoppard’s TV dramatisation of Ford Madox Ford’s Parade’s End, appearing these Friday nights on BBC2? I must come clean from the start and admit that I read 30 years ago all Ford’s novels
THE London Paralympics are an enormous success. I thought nothing would top the feel good factor of the Olympics but the fantastic achievements of our Paralympians, led by swimmer Ellie Simmonds and wheelchair racer Hannah Cockroft, have done
TO complain about the BBC after its magnificent coverage of the Olympic Games may not be the fashionable thing. However, during the competition it seemed unable to decide how to spell the word medalist. Sometimes it had it with a double “l” while
WITH reference to Hugh Pender’s letter (HAS, Aug 21) in which he lambasts this country for holding the Olympics while children starve in Africa, I would like to point out that Africa has 69 per cent of the world’s arable land, plus no frost to destroy
AFTER a period of time, I have returned to do light exercise for the Over-50s at the Dolphin Centre, in Darlington. It was so nice to receive such a warm welcome from my lady friends and I was glad to see them all. I have made so many friends
Marks and Spencer is moving out of Bishop Auckland town centre (Echo, Aug 30). Shame on Rob Yorke, the county councillor for West Auckland, who must ultimately bear the responsibility if our town centre dies the death that has befallen so many
A CINEMA run by a newly formed community group, has received an £8,000 cash injection. Hambleton District Council handed over ownership of Hambleton Forum to a company formed by local residents, The Forum (Northallerton ) Ltd on August 1. They were
THE belated apology from the German company Chemie Grunenthal (CG) for the enduring pain and suffering caused by marketing the drug thalidomide 50 years ago, is welcome as far as it goes (Echo, Sept 3). The story is well known. This product,
I REMEMBER quite clearly the days in 1939 when the war against Germany started. I was 11 and we had a radio we called a wireless in our main room. When there were going to be speeches by the Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain everything stopped
A SCHOOLBOY who underwent pioneering surgery just three weeks ago is now walking ‘non-stop’ without aid indoors, his mother has said. Five-year-old Thomas Brennan, whose spastic diplegic cerebral palsy left him in constant pain and often unable
GOOD or bad, decent or indifferent, Sam Collins is more than happy to watch Hartlepool United’s performances again. Pools’ skipper might not always enjoy the viewing, but the fact that a player can learn from his mistakes and displays is all
THE EuroPro Tour will return to Hunley Hall Golf Club for a second year in a row next week and tournament organisers are predicting a few stars of golfing's future will be gracing their greens. After the visit to Northumberland's Longhirst Hall a fortnight
SUNDERLAND winger James McClean looks set to finally make his competitive bow in a Republic of Ireland shirt this week – even if it means a more central role. Despite becoming a permanent fixture out on the left for the Black Cats over the last
JOHN ROBERTSON is adamant his dream of making Paralympic history is still very much alive despite suffering a significant setback at Weymouth yesterday. Robertson, and three-person keelboat Sonar crewmates Hannah Stodel and Steve Thomas, are bidding
TERRY Bywater believes Great Britain have their found their rhythm when it matters most after a third straight Paralympic wheelchair basketball victory. After a narrow defeat to Germany and heavy loss to Canada, Bywater admitted he and his team-mates
JADE Jones’ sixth place in the 400m heats went relatively unnoticed at London 2012 yesterday, but it’s a date worth remembering according to those in the know. Great Britain’s golden boy David Weir is convinced it’s a matter of when, not if, 16
ELLIE Simmonds last night welcomed Prime Minister David Cameron to her ‘house’ as she further cemented her place as one of the faces of London 2012 with her second victory of the Games, this time in the SM6 200 metres individual medley. Cameron
OSCAR Pistorius’ concerns over the length of rivals’ prosthetic blades could result in the International Paralympic Committee amending their rules. South African Pistorius publicly questioned regulations governing blades immediately after being
PLANS have just been announced to merge Darlington’s municipal golf course with a neighbouring club in an attempt to save Darlington Borough Council up to £83,000 a year. Staff from both Stressholme Golf Club and Blackwell Grange Golf Club emerged
NEWCASTLE United striker Demba Ba has been banned from driving after he was caught speeding twice. A magistrate also criticised the Premier League footballer for failing to come to court three times over the case. Ba was given
POLICE are appealing for help tracing two men after a house window was smashed. A large beer bottle was hurled at a car parked on the drive of a house on the Middridge Road Estate, in Langley Park . The bottle bounced off the car and hit the
SUNDERLAND winger James McClean looks set to finally make his competitive bow in a Republic of Ireland shirt this week - even if it means a more central role. Despite becoming a permanent fixture out on the left for the Black Cats over the last
The 120-year-old Bowes Museum was the setting for horses, helicopters and sports cars yesterday as a glitzy wedding with a difference rolled into town. Duncan Leatherdale was among the onlookers FOR all that they were getting married yesterday
THE Marathon of the North is to be repeated next year after the first race in May was hailed a success. Former middle distance star and now athletics broadcaster Steve Cram has joined forces with Sunderland City Council to run the event again on
A ROBOTIC lawnmower dubbed Clever Trevor grassed up hapless thieves who decided to pinch him from a hotel’s neatly trimmed lawns. However, they were soon cut down to size by Trevor’s artificial intelligence – which alerted the law to where he was
LOWER local pay for North-East nurses, teachers and civil servants would create more than 20,000 jobs in the region, a controversial report to ministers claims today. George Osborne is urged to plough ahead with the policy – which would abolish
Yorkshire are hoping to tie up the permanent signing of Sussex wicketkeeper Andrew Hodd after an impressive couple of performances in the County Championship. The White Rose hierarchy are also exploring the possibility of taking him to South Africa
A COUPLE have nearly completed their charity challenge of tackling 12 gruelling events over 12 months to raise £12,000. Ty and Terri Hankinson, from Darlington, came up with the idea after taking part in a sponsored run last year in aid of The
HERITAGE lovers can see some of the region’s hidden history for nothing this week. Venues all over the North- East and North Yorkshire will open their doors from Thursday to Sunday during the national Heritage Open Days scheme. Many of the
VISITORS are being lured away from the Tees Valley to neighbouring destinations which have the infrastructure in place to attract funding and run promotional campaigns, it is claimed. Critics have pointed out that while tourism agencies elsewhere
AN equine author and her husband have been found guilty of causing unnecessary suffering to four of their 11 horses. Lesley Skipper, 61, and her husband, Brian, 56, each denied four counts of causing unnecessary suffering to their horses and two
GEORGE FRIEND is not about to take his place for granted in Middlesbrough's first team following Joe Bennett 's move to the Premier League. Bennett's switch to Aston Villa last week has banked an initial £3m in Boro's bank balance and provided
AS Alan Pardew gears up to serve a two-match touchline ban, full-back Davide Santon has moved to soften the blow by claiming Newcastle United can overcome a slow start to the season by pushing for a top four finish this season. Less than 24 hours
POLICE are investigating two fatal road accidents on Sunday – one which claimed the life of a motorcyclist, the other a pensioner on a mobility scooter. The biker, who died after colliding with two vehicles in Ferryhill, County Durham, was last
A NORTH-EAST soldier died in Afghanistan after being hit by fire from a US Apache helicopter which had wrongly identified his base as a Taliban compound, an inquest heard yesterday. Lance Corporal Christopher Roney, 23, of 3rd Battalion The Rifles
TERRY Bywater believes Great Britain have their found their rhythm when it matters most after a third straight Paralympic wheelchair basketball victory. After a narrow defeat to Germany and heavy loss to Canada, Bywater admitted he and his team-mates
