WITH 2015 fast approaching, The Northern Echo takes a look back at some of the biggest stories in Darlington in 2014, along with some of the quirkier characters who made the news.

JANUARY

THE new year had barely started when Ernie the Labrador puppy made the headlines after vomiting up a large pair of Bridget Jones-style pants, much to the astonishment of the vets treating him at the Dogs Trust centre, in Sadberge.

Found as a stray, six-month-old Ernie was nursed back to health and was quickly found a new home.

There was good news for Holy Trinity Church, a Darlington landmark, in Woodland Road, after the 175-year-old building was awarded a £250,000 Heritage Lottery grant for vital repairs to the roof.

Plans for repairs and refurbishment of the building were revealed later in the year, with Anglican Church bosses hoping to make Holy Trinity a real hub for the community.

In business news, Darlington’s status at the heart of the subsea industry was confirmed when work began on a new 40,000sq ft factory and office for Subsea Innovation Limited, which works in the gas, oil and energy industries.

FEBRUARY

The new Bishop of Durham, Paul Butler, was welcomed in historic style to the county as he strode across the River Tees from Croft to Hurworth in a ceremony evoking the legend of the Sockburn Worm.

Hundreds gathered on the bridge to witness the ceremony, as the Bishop likened the slaying of the dragon to the need to slay the fight against poverty in the North East.

Top Gear star and self-confessed steam locomotive enthusiast James May made a visit to Darlington to help make the first component of the Prince of Wales, the new multi-million pound project underway at the Darlington Locomotive Works.

Since Mr May manufactured the first piece – a smoke box dart – in February the project has gone from strength to strength.

MARCH

Darlington couple Ian Bell and Ian Johnstone took their place in history by tying the knot on the first day that same-sex marriage became legal in the UK.

The pair, who had been together for ten years before exchanging vows, married at Darlington register office in front of friends, family and MP Jenny Chapman.

The town’s unsung heroes were recognised at the Best of Darlington Awards, with boxing coach Lol Degnan named Citizen of the Year for his lifetime of dedication to sport and young people.

Danny Stevens, 19, a volunteer and fundraiser for St Teresa’s Hospice, won the young citizen of the year award.

APRIL

When Firthmoor community centre chairman Kevin Nicholson received his British Empire Medal for services to his local area, he thought the day would be special enough.

But, when his grandmother, Patricia Cooper, who has suffered with agoraphobia for more than 47 years, plucked up the courage to leave her home and come along to the ceremony he couldn’t believe his eyes.

“In amongst all the formalities I was like, Nanna what are you doing here?,” he said.

Pioneering medical research came one step closer in April, with a groundbreaking ceremony marking the start of construction work on the National Biologics Manufacturing Centre a £38m initiative that will research and develop potentially life-saving cures and vaccines.

Work continues on the centre, which is due to open next year.

MAY

Food fans flocked to Darlington for the town’s first food festival, held across three days and featuring producers, chefs and entertainers from across the region.

The event was hailed a success by organisers Distinct Darlington and is set to return from May 8 to 10 next year, with a food market more than double the size.

The landslip on the A67 near Carlbury has caused months of misery to motorists and residents.

But a £2.4m grant from the government from repairs meant work could begin to prop up the commuter route above the River Tees, using a complex pinning system.

Work is on track to finish in spring.

JUNE

Theatre Hullabaloo is one of only four children’s theatre companies outside of London, and the only one in the north of England, so news of a £1.5m grant from the Arts Council to build a specialist children’s theatre was greeted with joy.

The money will be used to create a bespoke children’s theatre to the rear of Darlington Civic Theatre, bringing specialist international and national productions to the town.

Railway heritage enthusiasts were relieved when Darlington Borough Council announced a reprieve for the closure-threatened Head of Steam Railway Museum.

Ambitious plans to apply for World Heritage Status are being explored and consultation is underway to come up with a strategy to make the museum more sustainable and enticing to visitors ahead of the 200th anniversary of the Stockton and Darlington Railway.