Archive

  • Students helped

    PRIOR Pursglove College is sending old computers to help orphans in South Africa. A consignment of 150 machines is being sent to the Qwa Qwa area, where one computer is shared between 1,000 students in a region blighted by Aids, HIV, TB and other diseases

  • Sarah is top of the sops

    YOUNG sopranos battled it out for the honour of performing for hundreds of people on the North-East's own Last Night of the Proms. But it was 13-year-old Sarah Kelly who beat off competition from six other young finalists to clinch Music for Darlington's

  • Wembley fiasco drags on

    NOW that the Home Secretary's involved, will the new national stadium become the house that Jack built, or will it be a house of Straw? One of the few sensible suggestions to emerge from the Wembley pig's ear is that Mr Straw might seek advice from Sunderland

  • Darlington - Tape to be played in hoaxer hunt

    FIREFIGHTERS are hoping members of the public will help them catch a young hoaxer who is putting lives at risk in Darlington. Over the last couple of weeks, County Durham and Darlington Fire Brigade have received a number of calls from the hoaxer. On

  • Bobby meets his match

    NEWCASTLE United manager Bobby Robson came across a footballing adversary from his youth yesterday. The former England boss rekindled memories of his younger days in the County Durham pit village of Langley Park, while opening of a new Aged Mineworkers

  • Bloom hopefuls get a few tips from the top

    A RUN-DOWN area is appealing to its smarter neighbour for tips on how to impress the judges in a gardening contest. For only the second year, members of the Future Regeneration of Grangetown (Frog) group plans to enter the Britain in Bloom competition

  • Project moves to bigger premises

    DOORWAYS, the Saltburn churches' project for young people, along with its drop-in centre, has moved to bigger premises at 15 Milton Street. It is open to young people aged 11-25, Mondays to Thursdays, 11am-2pm, when they can use a range of facilities

  • The bungling army that had 2,500 townspeople on the run

    THE Chester Volunteers would get so drunk they'd have their weapons confiscated for the night. And unlike their TV counterparts, this volunteer force were armed to the teeth. Instead of .22 rifles and pitchforks, they had field cannons, an entire magazine

  • Letters: You didn't use it, so you will lose it

    Sir, - I am sorry to read that the Gold Cup at Nether Silton looks as if it will close and be turned into a private house (D&S report, April 27)but I accept that the landlord can't be expected to continue to run a business at a loss, as seems to have

  • Just the job for young painter

    A NEW seasonal custodian at 12th century Byland abbey is so captivated by her surroundings, she is to capture them on canvass and mount an exhibition. York university graduate, Ms Eleri Lynn, aged 23, has just taken up a summer assignment welcoming visitors

  • Durham - Curtain up on city's Gala hall

    THE centrepiece of Durham's £30m Millennium City development is to open its doors in December. The £14m high-tech theatre and conference hall has been named Gala and will premiere new plays by top writers Alan Ayckbourn and Keith Waterhouse next year.

  • Paedophile tried to befriend local children

    A PAEDOPHILE attempted to befriend children by buying them sweets and drinks, police have revealed. Graeme McLeod, 48, from Guisborough, walked free from the Old Bailey on Thursday. He admitted offences of possession and distribution of child pornography

  • A dad in his prime

    SORRY to name-drop but I was with Tony Blair - that other under-pressure father-of-four - the other day. The Prime Minister came in to The Northern Echo offices to discuss the big issues of the moment: foot-and-mouth, unemployment, education, health,

  • Woman on the trail of distinguished kinsmen

    SUSAN Gardner cannot boast that she can "trace my ancestry back to a proto-plasmal primordial atomic globule". Well, she couldn't, could she, living in real-life Barnard Castle and not in some Mikado's fantasyland? But she's working on it. While the dictionary

  • North Yorkshire - Co-op makes big profit

    ONE of the region's biggest employers has announced record sales figures and a big rise in profits. North-Eastern and Cumbrian Co-op, which employs about 13,000 people, increased its turnover by just over £13m last year to £533.9m. Trading profits before

  • Thirsk celebrates as it wins regeneration cash

    THIRSK is among three towns in North Yorkshire to receive £1m worth of funding under the government's £100m market town regeneration programme. Thirsk was selected, along with Pateley Bridge and Whitby, by Yorkshire Forward and the Countryside Agency

  • Seventh refusal for housing applicant

    A PROPOSAL to build a house and garage in a conservation area has been refused for the seventh time in 29 years. Six previous applications for residential developments in Hermitage Place, Norton, Stockton, were refused, but the same applicant put another

  • Darlington 21st Allstars

    After a couple of recent disappointments, the Under-16s came back to form in their last scheduled league games of the season, beating South Bank Juniors at home 5-1 and gaining promotion into the bargain for the second season in a row. As a result, they

  • £1.5m bid for health centre extension

    HEALTH officials hope to ease overcrowding at a Washington health centre with plans for a £1.5m extension. The extra space will be created at the Victoria Road Health Centre, Concord, if their bid wins planning permission and funding. The Sunderland West

  • Spennymoor Sunday League

    NEWTON Aycliffe snatched the First Division Cup from Croxdale with a 3-0 win at Spennymoor United's Brewery Field. In difficult, rain-swept conditions, both teams struggled to play any flowing football and few chances were created in the first-half. Aycliffe

  • Darlington - Learning cash is up for grabs

    A £30,000 'treasure chest' is being made available to community and voluntary groups. Organised and administered by Darlington Borough Council, the new Community Learning Chest is offering groups in the borough a chance to claim up to £1,000 towards education

  • Partners in time unveil new clock

    A TIMELY reminder of the new millennium was presented to the mayor of Redcar and Cleveland this week. The 4.5m-high electric clock, on a plinth at the eastern end of Redcar's pedestrianised High Street, has been provided by the town's rotary club in partnership

  • Van driver dies in crash with lorry

    A DRIVER died after a head-on crash with a lorry, in County Durham, yesterday. Raymond Stones, 49, of Ushaw Moor, Durham City, was travelling on the A167, in Aycliffe Village, when his van collided with the lorry near a disused petrol filling station,

  • BT call centre closure plan -insane' claims trade union

    PLANS by BT to close a Darlington call centre, with the loss of more than 100 jobs, were condemned as "insane" last night. The trade union that represents workers affected by the closure of the telephone exchange says they have been left surprised and

  • Consett & Stanley - Sheila's a woman driven by her art

    IN A cramped, cold and cluttered caravan in a remote Durham wood 72-year-old Sheila Mackie shuffles about, surrounded by paints, bits of old wood, mouldy books and mounds of cigarette butts. It is from this mess that Sheila creates magic, in this unlikely

  • North Yorkshire - Police target illegal stock movement

    ACTION to prevent the illegal movement of livestock during the foot-and-mouth crisis is to be stepped up. The trading standards team in North Yorkshire is joining forces with the police to mounting a county-wide joint patrol dedicated to checking vehicles

  • Armstrongs prove too strong

    Karl and Kelvin Armstrong completed a remarkable double when each secured national boxing titles when fighting on the same bill at the weekend. And what makes their achievement even more outstanding is the fact it was their maiden voyage in a national

  • Work finished on time - despite weather

    TRANSCO has completed a £5m pipe-laying scheme which unearthed hidden relics of the area's history. The gas pipeline company has finished the two-year project which involved laying just over 14km of 300mm steel pipe from Kirkleatham to Brotton. Network

  • Big day beckons for Carmel boys

    CARMEL College, Darlington's Under 12s rugby team make a dream appearance at Twickenham tomorrow. As winners of the County Durham 12-a-side tournament they will represent the county in the Daily Telegraph/Zurich National Rugby Festival, taking place before

  • Cricket News

    Foster's North East Premier League Division Two - Chester-le-Street emulated the senior side in defeating Tynemouth by three wickets when David Hawke and newcomer Graham Race both scored 48 in a total of 149-7. Russell Perry claimed 3-29 and Iain Purdy

  • Perhaps we are best rid of the cuckoo

    FOR most of us, an indication of the presence of a cuckoo is that unmistakeable call which echoes the name of this distinctive summer visitor. For many superstitious country folk, even in fairly recent times, the sound of the cuckoo's first call of the

  • Football team hits top form in league

    We are members of the Eldon Lane football team, and we play in the minor league C of the Bishop Auckland Schools Football Association. This year we have won every match we have played. Our manager is called Mr Lockey, and he is also our referee. We use

  • Gymnastics skills on display

    WE were part of our school's gymnastics team. We went to a gymnastics festival that was at King James I Comprehensive School, Bishop Auckland. Mr Lockey trained us for several weeks and then Mrs Oswald took us to the festival, because Mr Lockey had a

  • Village set for change

    THE 'forgotten' village of Carlin How is standing up for itself in an attempt to get regeneration cash. Following the success of Neighbourhood Watch and the Millennium Committee, a residents' association has been set up in the former mining village of

  • Dream job in sight for young horse lover

    A CHEQUE from the Prince's Trust has meant a dream could come true for young Joanne Buck of Middleham. All the 15-year-old has wanted to do since the age of seven is to work with horses. She would like to be a jockey and then a horse trainer herself.

  • Swimming News

    Newcastle's chief swimming coach, Dawn Peart, has been awarded a Winston Churchill Scholarship for which she receives a £7,000 grant, writes ERIC WILKINSON. She is using it to improve her knowledge by visiting Australia, one of the world's successful

  • Hospital prepares to begin a new era

    GENERATIONS-OLD hospital wards at Scarborough General are set to be replaced in a major redevelopment. Known as Nightingale wards, after Florence Nightingale, rooms which have long avenues of beds will be replaced with smaller wards, each with a handful

  • Boxing News

    The late withdrawal of the top-of-the-bill fight featuring Stuart McCrone couldn't detract from a good night of boxing at Spennymoor Leisure Centre last week which featured a satisfying win for Gary Reay. Spennymoor Boxing Academy's first show of the

  • Closures ruled out in health overhaul

    RESIDENTS have a fortnight to have their say on one of the biggest overhauls of the health service in Yorkshire area for decades. The Government is keen to encourage health professionals to break through the "paper walls" which dictate procedures in hospitals

  • Quakers' season ends with a whimper

    QUAKERS go into their last game of a miserable season tomorrow on the back of a run of five straight defeats. And the vast majority of Feethams fans hope the home clash with promotion-chasing Blackpool will be hapless manager Gary Bennett's last match

  • Darlington and District League

    \AT the league management committee meeting on Monday, DSRM SC were dismissed from the league as they were unable to give an assurance that they could complete their remaining fixtures having failed to field a team on two occasions in the previous 14

  • The old mills by the stream

    RIPON's water mills, which were once a sign of a thriving economy, have been virtually erased from the landscape on which they were such a prominent feature. In the heyday of water power, the city was served by five mills - but their prior existence is

  • Disease may cut wool crop by 15pc

    THE normal 46m kg wool clip could be down by 15pc this year because of foot-and-mouth disease. The large number of culled sheep, together with the fact that wool cannot be collected from infected areas, will lead to the cut in production. The new wool

  • Castle backdrop celebrates success of top artist Eric

    OVER two decades in the art world, renowned painter Eric Thompson has exhibited his work across the country and gained a reputation as an outstanding talent. But to celebrate his 21st anniversary of professional success, Eric has returned home to stage

  • Workers 'penniless'

    THE Government is to be urged to provide financial help after it was revealed that some shipyard workers have been left penniless. The discovery came at a meeting held last Friday at Redcar and Cleveland Town Hall to launch the Save Our Shipyards campaign

  • Quakers aim to end miserable campaign on a high note

    Darlington badly need a win to lift the end-of-season gloom at home to play-off-chasing Blackpool today. After virtually clinching safety with the win over Cardiff on Easter Saturday, Quakers have lost five in a row - two of them against sides in the

  • Inventors could cash in on their hot seat

    TWO inventors could be sitting on a fortune after inventing a heated cushion which could appeal to hardy sports fans. Michael Addison and Graeme Cruickshank, who work in the research and development unit at Procter and Gamble in Newcastle, came up with

  • Council gets new base

    A 25-YEAR multi million pound partnership scheme to bring new council offices to Teesside has been announced. Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council has joined forces with the Norwich Union Public Private Partnership Fund to sign a £9.5m deal that includes

  • Quinn issues a timely reminder to boss Reid

    REPUBLIC of Ireland international Niall Quinn last night issued a heartfelt plea to manager Peter Reid on the eve of Sunderland's last home game on the season against Charlton this afternoon: "Good luck in the transfer market - but don't cast me aside

  • Lights, camera and head for the location

    A BLOCKBUSTER film may be a good way of packing people into the cinema but breathtaking backdrops and stunning scenery can also help boost tourism. Holidaymakers are expected to flock to the Greek island of Cephallonia, the setting for the film Captain

  • Police inspector answers charge

    A CLEVELAND Police inspector appeared on a charge in the Crown Court yesterday after an investigation into his work nine years ago. Neil O'Byrne, 41, an inspector at Middlesbrough, was charged with misconduct in a public office as an officer of Cleveland

  • A great sense of belonging

    THOSE who erroneously believe that these little essays are prone to a certain verbosity, should read the account of the opening on Friday, May 19, 1876, of Christ Church, Great Ayton. The Northern Echo had just four pages in those days, and most of that

  • Empty words emitted by US anger parish council

    WHEN a parish council sent a strongly-worded protest to US President George Bush about opting out of the Kyoto agreement on climate change, they were amazed by the reply. The response to Pateley Bridge Town Council, near Harrogate, North Yorkshire, was

  • Row over pensioner meeting 'bust-up'

    ORGANISERS of a pensioners' rally have reacted angrily to claims in a national newspaper that there was a public bust-up between prominent speakers. An article in the Daily Telegraph claimed Tory MP Alan Duncan left the east Cleveland pensioners' rally

  • Who is going to foot bill for making rail bridges safer?

    COUNCILS could end up paying for safety measures at rail bridges across the region. The Northern Echo reported earlier this week how villagers are demanding that crash barriers be provided at Dalton Bridge, near Darlington. Their concerns arose after

  • Applause for union leader

    CORUS shareholders have applauded a union leader who told executives at the company's annual meeting that its workers deserved better treatment than being sacked. Eddie Lynch, deputy general secretary of the Iron and Steel Trades Confederation, told shareholders

  • New trophy is pro's parting gift to juniors

    RALPH Givens ended 24 years as professional at Blackwell Grange Golf Club with a gift to the junior golf section he has nurtured over the years. Ralph, who moves across the road to take up his new post as senior professional at Stressholme Golf Centre

  • Blackmail woman's inquest delay

    An inquest into the death of a former beauty queen convicted of blackmailing an ex-international soccer star could be delayed by two years. Carolyn Pick, 36, from Washington, Wearside, was found dead in the bathroom of St Luke's psychiatric hospital,

  • Hard work begins

    THE good news being celebrated in Thirsk, Guisborough, Barnard Castle, Middleton-in-Teesdale, Crook and Stanhope is something everybody should share in. The announcement of the second wave of towns to benefit from the market towns initiative is further

  • Joy for officials as crowds return to heritage site

    visitors are flocking back to a reopened World Heritage Site in North Yorkshire, after it was shut down for two months, because of the crisis. Fountains Abbey, near Ripon, is one of the country's most popular National Trust visitor attractions. Just a

  • Main player in move to regenerate for future

    ONE of the main players in achieving the regeneration schemes will be a new urban regeneration company. The concept is the brainchild of the Government and regional development agency One NorthEast, which put forward the Tees Valley as an ideal candidate

  • Mrs Bell's blue goes Stateside

    WINGING their way across the Atlantic soon will be eight special cheeses from North Yorkshire. A first-ever export order of Mrs Bell' s blue, the prize-winning ewes' milk cheese made by Shepherd's Purse, near Thirsk, is on its way to Boston, Massachusetts

  • North East Christian Fellowship League

    CITY Church Sunderland are three points away from the championship after disposing of Ryton Churches 4-1 and relegating them at the same time. Noel Harrison and Ryan Pender gave City Church a 2-0 half-time lead with Harrison completing his hat-trick in

  • Fed-up residents in plea for outdoor drinks ban on streets

    TEESSIDE'S largest alcohol-free zone could be introduced following pressure from fed-up residents. A petition is being drafted, calling for outdoor drinking to be banned from the area south of Middlesbrough's Ladgate and Low Lanes, including Stainton,

  • The Northern Echo Darlington Sunday Invitation League

    Sunday morning's bad weather placed on hold Nestfield Club's chances of completing a Second Division league and cup double this week, their game against Hoppers Transport in the Darlington Motor Factors Second Division Cup final was called off due to

  • Handout to help towns

    MILLIONS of pounds are to be pumped into regeneration projects in market towns - including Guisborough - as the region takes a major share of a £100m national handout. Each of the towns is to receive up to £1m, and will now carry out a 'health check'

  • Letters: At least give us the chance to bid

    Sir, - Your report (D&S, April 25) regarding the award of building work for the Thirsk Town Hall annexe, shows a stark division of attitude amongst councillors. Whereas Coun Adamson and Hubbard clearly want local firms to at least be offered the work

  • Where the ministry went wrong

    THE National Beef Association wants the government to show more discrimination in its choice of scientific advisers when it is next faced with an animal disease crisis, writes Mikes Bridgen. It claims Downing Street was seduced by a misguided model forecast

  • Group holds annual meeting

    REDCAR and Cleveland Disability Access Forum is holding its annual meeting today at 2pm at Redcar Library, Coatham Road. The organisation is open to all residents of Redcar and Cleveland, especially disabled people and their carers. For further details

  • Welfare scheme was 'shambles from start'

    THE Tenant Farmers' Association has expressed "extreme concern" about the cuts MAFF has imposed on compensation payments to farmers under the livestock welfare disposal scheme. And Mr Derek Foster, MP for Bishop Auckland, has also written to Agriculture

  • Hidden steroids warning over herbal creams

    STEROID campaigners have warned of hidden dangers lurking in some herbal remedies. The move comes after tests carried out for Which? magazine found creams sold in some Chinese remedy shops were laced with potentially dangerous steroids. Two out of five

  • Carcasses disposal riddle for officials

    officials were last night forced to admit that hundreds of animals buried in the wrong place will have to stay there because there is no safe way to dispose of them. Earlier this week, a Ministry of Agriculture (Maff) spokesman said the carcasses had

  • Millions to be poured in as steel jobs axed

    THE Government yesterday announced a multi-million pound sweetener for the North-East as Corus finally confirmed the news that 1,100 jobs are to go in the region's steel industry. The steel giant has now formally rejected proposals put together by the

  • Town revs up for summer fun

    A GIANT Scalextric circuit is to be erected in Darlington town centre as part of a summer entertainment programme. The event, on the May 28 Bank Holiday, will involve a mini replica of a Grand Prix circuit being installed in High Row. Measuring 19ft by

  • Angling News

    Congratulations go to North-East Winter League champions Newman Scott after qualifying for the prestigious national finals, writes JEFF HERBERT. The Middlesbrough based squad for once enjoyed home advantage as the Angling Times Northern semi-final came

  • Safer route for children with introduction of road crossing

    YOUNGSTERS have given their seal of approval to a new pedestrian crossing on a busy Hartlepool road. The crossing has been built in Seaton Lane, outside Golden Flatts Primary School, as part of a package of measures to help make life easier and safer

  • Army marches in to aid school

    A NORTH Yorkshire school has called in the Army to help put an end to a long-standing problem. The children at Wavell Infants at Catterick Garrison have always had an uninspiring view out of the windows which overlook a central quad. The stone-flagged

  • Don't let those usual suspects dominate

    I JUST want to ask you three questions: Do you have a passion to improve the life of the region? Can you spare two days a month? Would like £7,203 per annum for three years? If the answer to all three is yes (and Spectator envisages a chorus of Yosser-like

  • High-rise homes revamp success

    A JOINT £620,000 improvement project has proved so successful that it is being repeated elsewhere. Middlesbrough Borough Council teamed up with Llewellyn Stonecare to renovate high-rise homes in Glastonbury House, east Middlesbrough. The scheme received

  • Wear Valley - Drug dealer is sent to prison

    A THREE-YEAR prison sentence handed down to a 22-year-old Bishop Auckland man this week rounds off one of the biggest police drugs crackdowns ever mounted in the town. Trainee scaffolder Andrew Dono-hue was the last of a network of dealers arrested at

  • Students sculpt themselves a role in flower show bid

    ART students have been playing a major role in their town's display for this year's Chelsea Flower Show. Darlington Borough Council is exhibiting at the event, and students at Queen Elizabeth Sixth Form College have been helping. This year's theme for

  • Crook and District League

    Crook and District League - A goal from Mark Roe midway through the first-half gave Billy Row a 1-0 lead over Wearhead in the Albert Vickers Cup semi-final. Further Billy Row pressure saw Jason Bridgewater add a second in the 60th minute. Wearhead pulled

  • Chance to play tennis

    PLAY Tennis 2001, sponsored by the Lawn Tennis Association, is coming to Saltburn Tennis Club, on Marske Mill Lane, this weekend. Anyone who would like to try the sport should go along tomorrow or Sunday for a free taster session. Equipment can be provided

  • Wearsie League

    At 67, Annfield Plain secretary Marshall Lawson thought he had seen everything in local football but even he witnessed something new in Monday night's game with Nissan. One of the Nissan players was injured and went to the touchline for treatment at which

  • Hathaway and Cope Stokesley League

    Hathaway and Cope Stokesley League - Redcar Coke Ovens applied the early pressure with good link-up play between the midfield and attack. Star striker Anthony Greggory twice found himself behind the Onyx defence to have shots on goal. The link-up play

  • Ice Hockey News

    Junior round-up - Whitley Bay Arrows had a successful weekend with two wins in the English Bantam (Under-12) North promotion/relegation play-offs to head the group with a 100 percent record from three outings. On Saturday, Whitley had a 3-1 victory at

  • Dales restrictions could be in place until September

    RICHMONDSHIRE could be among the last areas to see foot-and-mouth restrictions lifted, an official at the centre of handling the crisis has said. Mr Robin Mair, a North Yorkshire County Council trading standards officer, predicted new cases would continue

  • Tourism drive promotes motoring theme

    TOURISM chiefs are gearing up to offer overseas tourists holidays with real drive. They are behind a bid to attract German and Dutch classic car and motoring enthusiasts to the Tees Valley for holidays with a motoring theme. Journalists from both countries

  • The Albany Northern League

    Washington were promoted to the First Division for the first time in their history without kicking a ball in midweek. Esh Winning, the only team who could catch them, were held 1-1 at Northallerton, handing a promotion place to Washington, who joined

  • Man jailed in fake discs

    CONSUMER chiefs have warned they will continue to crack down on people who make counterfeit compact discs. The warnings follow a prosecution by Durham County Council's consumer services, in which a man was jailed for eight months. A raid by trading standards

  • Athletics News

    Crook and Distict AC - INSTEAD of going to an individual athlete, the performance of the year award for the Crook and District Sports and Athletic Club went to the club's veteran team which won the Durham Dales Challenge series of races. The awards were

  • Aussie tribute band to rock Customs House

    THE music of rock legends Pink Floyd will be performed live in the region next month by one of the world's premiere tribute bands. The Australian Pink Floyd visit the Customs House in South Shields on Sunday night, June 10. With accurate renditions of

  • Petch junior all set to follow the family route to success

    MENTION the name of Steve Petch in rallying circles and most people will point you to the long-established motor dealer from Scorton who, among a string of other successes, claimed the 2000 Mintex National Rally Championship in his Ford Escort World Rally

  • Would ewe believe it? a fair with sheep made of cardboard

    A SHEEP fair, which has become a tradition in a dales town, is to go ahead this year, despite the crisis. However, there will be a difference. The pens will go up in the market place, in Masham, North Yorkshire, in September, and it is hoped that people

  • Consett & Stanley - Crime figures fall for sixth time

    CRIME figures in County Durham are down for the sixth time in seven years. Statistics for the year from April 2000 to the end of March this year show recorded crime fell by more than eight per cent but police chiefs insist there will be no let-up in the

  • Quay's bid to enter the hall of footballing fame

    FIRSTLY today, let us clear up a common North-East misconception: Willington Quay and Bill Quay are not related, unless distantly by morganatic marriage, nor is Willington Quay simply Bill to its friends. Bill Quay is on the south Bank of the Tyne, nudging

  • Quay's bid to enter the hall of footballing fame

    FIRSTLY today, let us clear up a common North-East misconception: Willington Quay and Bill Quay are not related, unless distantly by morganatic marriage, nor is Willington Quay simply Bill to its friends. Bill Quay is on the south Bank of the Tyne, nudging

  • Great Yorks plans fresh rural festival

    A NEW countryside festival is being launched at the Great Yorkshire showground in Harrogate during the first weekend in June. It will bring together a county fair, an art exhibition, a children's craft workshop, a food exhibition and an equestrian-themed

  • New Thirsk race one to remember

    A THIRSK stalwart has donated a trophy for a race at tomorrow's Thirsk meeting in memory of his wife. Mr Harry Whitton, aged 82, who was a businessman in the town for more than 30 years, as well as a councillor, chairman of the chamber of trade and trustee

  • New life for old farm buildings

    REDUNDANT farm buildings in the Yorkshire dales are to be brought back to useful life thanks to a £150,000 funding package from English Heritage. A joint scheme between the Yorkshire Dales national park authority, Yorkshire Forward, MAFF and the Countryside

  • The Ten Greatest TV Questions

    CHANNEL 4 devotes great chunks of peaktime viewing on two consecutive nights this weekend to unveiling The 100 Greatest TV Characters. It adds up to nearly five hours of old clips and talking heads in the latest in a TV genre that could go on forever.

  • Organisers of festival to defy virus

    THE epidemic has failed to stop a weekend of dancing and music in a market town. The Teesdale Thrash, run by Black Sheep Morris, might bring some relief to the community around Barnard Castle, County Durham, which has been affected by the spread of the

  • Pony dates

    Bedale & West of Yore PC. - All mounted activities cancelled until further notice. Cleveland Hunt PC. - May 8: Junior dismounted rally at The Mill. To book telephone Mrs Chapman, 01642 590971. May 15: Senior dismounted rally. Telephone Mrs Hockney

  • North Yorkshire - Cash allows dispute scheme to be extended

    A COMMUNITY mediation service is to continue for a second year after securing extra funding, it was announced last week. The Hambleton Community Safety Partnership joined forces with Teesside-based UNITE a year ago - the first time the group had moved

  • Composer stakes his claim as new Verdi

    A YOUNG British composer will be staking his claim to be the next Verdi when he travels to Italy later this month. Will Todd, who was born and brought up in Durham City, is one of three finalists in the International Giuseppe Verdi Competition for the

  • Redcar WMC reach final

    REDCAR WMC has reached the final of the Tetley Carlsberg All-England competition to be played at Anfield on Sunday, May 13. They beat Exmouth 6-5 on penalties in the semi-final at Fulham, after drawing 2-2. Man of the match David Tait converted the decisive

  • Prison service honoured

    A FORMER prison officer and town mayor has been awarded a long-service medal for his 25-year career at a young offenders' institution. Terry Nunn received the Imperial Service Medal at a ceremony in the prison chapel at Deerbolt Young Offenders' Institution

  • Duke to visit festival's medieval market day

    THE organisers of the Bedale 750 celebrations have scored a major coup with confirmation that the Duke of York is to be guest of honour at a medieval market on Tuesday, May 29. The duke will spend about an hour in the afternoon visiting market attractions

  • Letters: Rear and sell our meat locally

    Sir, - Six weeks ago, at the Green Party's conference, we unanimously supported emergency motions to adopt a vaccination policy in response to the foot-and-mouth outbreak. Many other groups and individual small farmers now take the same view. But still

  • Racing Week by Jo Scott

    AS the jumps season closes Norman Mason nearly pulled off another coup, running Yorkshireman Robert Ogden to the wire to become the leading National Hunt owner. Although the Brancepeth permit holder had good wins at Perth's three-day meeting, Ogden was

  • Honour for Under-9s

    YOUNGSTERS from the Cleveland Juniors Under-9s football team have been presented with trophies by footballing legend Sir Geoff Hurst. The team and their families had a massive fund-raising drive which raised approximately £900 to fund a trip to Bournemouth

  • Looking Back

    From this newspaper 100 years ago... On Saturday there was a football match at Bolton, in which five Scotsmen, two Welshmen, an Irishman, a Cheshire man and a Lincoln man, played against five Yorkshiremen and six men from Middlesex, Cheshire, Derbyshire

  • Durham - James back after secret Burma trip

    HUMAN rights activist James Mawdsley has ret-urned from a secret visit to Burma, just six months after vowing never to go back. The 28-year-old democracy campaigner spent the last three weeks visiting political prisoner friends across the border with

  • Mass grave anger prompts call for council tax rebates

    A BID has been made for council tax reductions for residents living near a mass foot-and-mouth burial site. Tow Law Town Council is writing to MP Hilary Armstrong asking her to seek a bills reduction on her constituents' behalf. Councillor Ron Grogan,

  • Durham lose out on the Riverside graveyard

    THE bowlers were found wanting on a run-laden Riverside pitch yesterday as Durham's bid for a third successive Benson & Hedges Cup win hit the buffers. After making 252 for three in their 50 overs, they lost by five wickets to unbeaten Nottinghamshire

  • Two firms on shortlist for town centre site

    TWO leading national shop chains are bidding to become the new tenants of shop premises in Darlington. After more than 150 years on High Row, Dressers closed last month after it and a sister store in Northallerton, North Yorkshire, were sold to developer

  • Magpies' boss in no mood to rush Shearer

    NEWCASTLE United are prepared to wait indefinitely for Alan Shearer to re-emerge from his latest injury nightmare. The Magpies' skipper this week underwent his second operation in little more than four months in a make-or-break bid to cure a tendinitis

  • Emergency move to soften blow

    EMERGENCY measures to offset the disastrous economic impact of 700 job losses in a coastal town were drawn up last night. Trade Secretary Stephen Byers pledged that the Government would work with local authorities to soften the blow of TransBus International's

  • £200m Danish link-up takes off for airport

    MANAGERS at the North-East's largest airport were yesterday celebrating what they described as the beginning of a new era with the announcement of a £200m partnership deal with their counterparts in Copenhagen. The seven local authorities with shares

  • Strike deal for Carbone, Windass tells Boro boss

    BRADFORD old boy Dean Windass last night threw his weight behind Middlesbrough's projected swoop for former teammate Benito Carbone. Boro today set out to stop Carbone from blocking their relegation escape route - before offering him a Premiership future

  • Pair punished for fictional match

    Crook Town and Esh Winning junior soccer teams have been thrown out of the Auckland and District Ebac Youth League cup for falsely claiming they had played two games on one night when in fact they played only one. As a result, West Auckland have been

  • Turner pays tribute to his -magnificent players'

    SATISFIED Hartlepool United boss Chris Turner last night reflected on another year of improvement at Victoria Park - and paid tribute to his players. Pool go into their final League game of the season against Cardiff this afternoon with a place in the

  • Local talent to the fore as juniors shine at Stainsby Grange

    TOP junior riders produced some outstanding performances at a premier show hosted by Stainsby Grange, Thornaby recently. The three days of excellent competition over Walter Taylor's superb courses, built with the assistance of Brian Chandler, were watched

  • Fuel price campaigners plan more days of protest

    FUEL campaigners are planning a series of protests across the country's roads in the run up to the General Election. Protestors, angry at the Government's "crippling" high taxes on fuel, are staging a series of go-slow convoys every day from Monday until

  • Chester le Street - County show falls victim to disease

    DURHAM County Show has been cancelled because of fears about foot-and-mouth disease. It was due to take place over the weekend of July 14 and 15 at the Northern Area Playing Fields in Washington. The organisers, Durham County Agricultural Society, had

  • The UniBond League

    Bishop Auckland manager Tony Lee believes his side were very unlucky to lose the UniBond League Cup final at Lancaster on Tuesday night. Bishops lost 4-3 in a penalty shootout, after leading 3-1 at one stage thanks to keeper Steve Jones stopping three

  • Albert Hall link with Last Night of the Proms

    THE first ever BBC Proms in the Park in the North-East will be performed live from Gateshead's new Baltic Square arts centre later this year. The event, which attracts more than a hundred million viewers worldwide, will take place on September 15 as one

  • Extra powers in force

    INCREASED powers to protect birds from egg collectors are now in force. For the first time, the police will have the right to arrest people if it is suspected that they have committed certain offences against rare birds, including disturbing the nest

  • Bird nest raider is fined £1,000

    A nest raider was found with hundreds of eggs stolen from some of the UK's rarest wild birds, a court heard yesterday. Barry Sheavills, 41, admitted having over 1,200 protected birds eggs, including those of the barn owl and peregrine falcon. South East

  • Inquiry over garage blaze

    POLICE have launched an arson investigation after fire destroyed a garage. Fifty firefighters were called to the blaze at Fastfit Tyres in Langley Park, on the outskirts of Durham City, on Wednesday night. The building was destroyed, along with four cars

  • Economic bodyblow could have silver lining - expert

    DESPITE the immediate gloom surrounding the loss of 1,100 steel jobs, the long-term future of the North-East economy will be more secure as a result, a leading economist predicted last night. The decision by Corus to shed jobs on Teesside is being viewed

  • Chester le Street - Madge's map may unlock wartime secret

    THREE faint streaks on a grainy map of the North-East could be the most damning evidence yet that Britain's Royal Family welcomed Hitler's henchman Rudolph Hess with open arms. Startling evidence that the Durham-based Royal Observer Corps stood by and

  • Snooker News

    Worthington CIU Team KO Final - Newhouse B landed the Team Knock Out Cup after they beat Willington in a tense final played at Tow Law. The Newhouse team had 15 point start of the team that had just won the Second Division Championship, losing only one

  • Nurse 'may have hastened deaths'

    A MEDICAL expert has told an inquest how a nurse may have quickened her patients' deaths. Dr Gilbert Park said there was evidence to suggest drugs given by Sister Kathleen Atkinson had hastened the death of two critically ill pensioners. An inquest heard

  • Soldier stole underwear from barracks

    A NORTH-EAST soldier with a fetish for stealing women's underwear from the wives of Army colleagues was punished by magistrates yesterday. Private William Marriott hoarded women's lingerie in a secret stash at his Army quarters. The 27-year-old also stole

  • Wearside target Andre in no mood to cross Channel

    SUNDERLAND strike target Pierre-Yves Andre has revealed why he snubbed the Wearsiders - because he didn't want to quit France. Andre, also on Middlesbrough and Rangers' wanted list, signed for French league leaders Nantes from Bastia this week in a bargain

  • oh brother, holes-in-one cost us a wedge

    TWO brothers have beaten million-to-one odds to score a hole-in-one on the same round, the same day and the same hole. The feat happened when brothers Eric and John Wilkinson played a round of golf at their local club. They proved they were the kings

  • Rising town rates blamed for shop closure decision

    RISING rates and other overheads were blamed for the sudden closure of the Spar shop in Richmond market place yesterday. The ten staff learned two weeks ago that they would be redundant when business ceased this week but most have managed to find new

  • Bedale disappointed but will bid again

    THERE was disappointment this week that Bedale failed to win up to £1m in government money to help revive its economic fortunes as the town prepares to celebrate its 750-year-old market charter. Mr Mick Jewitt, head of planning policy and economic development

  • Harrogate and District League

    A team which has taken six years to claw its way to the top flight in League lost their first match in Division One with the final game on court. The Academy went down 5-4 to fellow championship rivals Harlow in a knife-edge finish. The Academy's long-awaited

  • Dating agency asked for cash back

    WIDOW Rita Lister is demanding her money back after the sorry suitors sent to her by a dating agency fell well short of her expectations. Ms Lister, 48, told Ice Breakers that she wanted a tall, attractive, non-smoker with a good head of hair. She paid

  • Will crime pay for Spiderboy?

    I REALLY want to believe that the infamous young North-East criminal Tommy Laws, named Spiderboy after numerous escapes from justice, is a reformed character. For Tommy's sake, and his family's, but most of all for the sake of his victims and those people

  • Unbeaten Deepdale take Royal record

    THE Royal lost their unbeaten record against Deepdale who are now the only side not to suffer defeat. With a number of key players missing, including their keeper, Royal went down 3-1. Deepdale led at the break through Trenton Hewitt who latched onto

  • Allow bull movement now to avert calf crisis

    AS MANY suckler cows as possible must be mated soon to avoid a severely reduced calf crop next spring, the National Beef Association has warned. It wants MAFF to allow immediate movement of bulls under licence so that future home-killed beef supplies

  • Not quite cricket but Ingleby players' aim is true

    THERE was no chance that rain would stop play when Ingleby Greenhow took on Middleton Tyas in the first round of this year's Wadworth National Village Cricket Competition on Sunday. Accuracy was all-important, timing and footwork less so, as the two teams