A LANDLORD who has lost £43,000 of business because of the foot-and-mouth crisis, has asked the Government to accommodate some of its visiting vets in his village pub. Frank Phillips, owner of the White Swan in Danby Wiske, near Northallerton, North Yorkshire
A RUN-DOWN former mining village is to receive a £25,000 facelift. Ushaw Moor, near Durham City, will benefit from traffic-calming measures including safer pedestrian crossings, new street lighting, furniture and a new village green. The £25,000 grant
Letters from The Northern Echo MICHELANGELO I WISH to compliment Beresford Bowes on his excellent wood carving of Michelangelo's Mourning Woman sketch (Echo, Aug 16). I was interested in the artist's comments that Michelangelo was noted for his portrayal
FARMERS who have received foot-and-mouth compensation pay-outs are being warned to watch out for questionable investment offers. The Country Land and Business Association (CLA) is urging its members in the North-East and North Yorkshire to be cautious
A TEENAGE cricket enthusiast stricken with the debilitating illness ME has found a way to keep active in his favourite sport. John Holland was a promising junior cricketer with both the Durham City and Chester-le-Street clubs before diagnosis of the disease
A COASTAL beauty spot has been hit by fly-tippers and vandals, causing about £10,000 worth of damage. Information boards have been destroyed, a limestone wall dismantled and more than 50 bags of household rubbish tipped at Denemouth, near Blackhall, in
THE new foot-and-mouth outbreak in the North-East was threatening to spiral out of control last night as the number of cases rose to six. Over the weekend, draconian controls came into force across a 400 square mile area around the infected farms. And
Mountaineer Alan Hinkes is to tackle one of the world's highest peaks - wearing a snorkel and flippers. He will attempt to scale Mauna Loa, on the island of Hawaii, but his adventure is starting underwater. Measured from its base on the sea bed, the peak
THE world's fastest bird, which was thought to have been wiped out in the North-East, is making a comeback. Peregrine falcons came perilously close to extinction in the 1960s, when the pesticide DDT devastated bird of prey populations throughout the country
STAFF at a major employer in the region have been enjoying the sweet taste of success. Orange, which employs more than 6,000 people in the North-East, has been named the top mobile phone company in terms of customer numbers. Figures released by all mobile
POLICE investigating alleged chemical warfare experiments on servicemen have ordered their own medical tests. However, any case brought might never come to court because the scientists involved in the original research are dying off. An inquiry was launched
THIS is the face of a teenage attacker (right) who indecently assaulted a 77-year-old woman in an attack that has horrified a community. The grandmother had been walking her dogs at 11pm on Bishop Auckland's Woodhouse Close estate when she became aware
AN investigation has been launched after a prisoner slashed his throat as he was driven to jail. Ian Dale made his suicide bid after being given a five-month sentence for breaching a probation order. As he was driven in a Group Four security van from
THE ninth World Canoe Marathon Championships are due to start with a bang at the Tees Barrage on Friday. In an opening ceremony involving underwater explosions, pyrotechnic effects and a fire-breathing dragon, street arts company Bravura will act out
POLICE are facing a compensation claim after a dog guarding Prime Minister Tony Blair savaged sheep belonging to a local farmer. The attack happened as police officers patrolled land close to the Prime Minister's home, Myrobella, at Trimdon Colliery,
THE seaside came to the town centre during the weekend, with tons of sand brought in to create a temporary beach 20 miles inland. Deckchairs, sandcastles and ice cream sellers completed the seaside look, as hundreds of people enjoyed the Bank Holiday
SHOPPERS and supermarket staff joined forces yesterday to raise money for charity. The fun day at Hurworth Community Centre was organised by staff from the Iceland store in Yarm Road, Darlington. Before yesterday's event, about £13,000 had been raised
A TEAM of thieves is being hunted after a series of distraction burglaries. Several thousand pounds worth of cash and property were stolen during the raids in the Derwentside area during a single afternoon. The six-strong group had two children with them
A GROUP of young people are on the heritage trail, searching out and sampling a city's historic places of interest. The teenagers have spent a week of their six-week summer holidays to take part in the Saint, Sword and Mitre project. The scheme has involved
SCHOOLBOY Robbie McDougal is about to be beamed into millions of homes - singing a solo on TV's Songs of Praise. The 12-year-old, from Northallerton, North Yorkshire, is head chorister of Grimsby Parish Church, the only one in the country to have its
AN 83-bedroom hotel has been given planning permission in the hope it will revitalise a dilapidated area of land. Building work will start soon on a three-storey Sleep Inn hotel and restaurant at Newton Park Services, near the Newton Aycliffe A1M motorway
COACH-BUILDERS Plaxton, which was saved after facing closure in May, has received a lifeline £5m order in the week it restarted. The Scarborough company, now known as New Plaxton and owned by Transbus, has had to shed 500 of its 700 workforce to survive
A housing development, partly funded by a Government grant has opened in Darlington. The Nomad Housing Group, from Tyneside, has completed its first development in Darlington in Victoria Road, near the railway station. The six flats and seven houses are
RESIDENTS of Skinningrove, east Cleveland, held a celebration day yesterday, to mark a new beginning, having suffered two floods last year. Included in the celebrations was the rededication of the chapel after extensive restoration, and the reopening
ACCORDING to Terry Venables it's still early days in the Premiership. But, unlike Steve McClaren, El Tel is now in a situation where three games without a point and without a goal mean, for him, a five- minute discussion with Ally McCoist and Des Lynam
DESPITE our repeated calls for a radical overhaul of the National Health Service, we have accepted the Government's insistence that it cannot happen overnight. Decades of chronic NHS under-funding have left the Blair administration with possibly its toughest
A MEMBER of a family-run butchery business has decided to hang up her apron after 26 years. However, although Margaret Guthrie, 60, has decided the time is right to retire as manageress of Dicksons' pork butchers in South Shields, she could not bear the
A COUPLE of Scout leaders were anything but prepared when they were given a surprise start to married life at the weekend. Sarah Peart and William Tennant were greeted after their marriage service at St Cuthbert's Church, Darlington, by a guard of honour
VISITORS to Preston Park, Eaglescliffe, were given an action-packed weekend at Stockton's annual summer carnival. Attractions at the event included an amazing stunt bike show, and circus and theatre performances. Sarah Graham, 12, and her mother Jan,
IMPRESSIVE Darlington continued their good start to the season with a great win over high-flying Bristol Rovers at Feethams. The Quakers, who have now taken nine out of a possible 12 points, grabbed the only goal of the game against a Rovers side that
A TEENAGER is recovering after being shot in the stomach by an air rifle. Wayne Browne, 15, had been playing with friends near a farm in Jarrow, South Tyneside, when the incident happened. The teenager collapsed after the pellet pierced his stomach muscles
THE derby football match between Hartlepool and Darlington passed off without major incidents, with police only making 11 arrests. More than 100 extra officers had been drafted in to prevent trouble flaring between rival fans. The extra presence was felt
LOSING weight after the cataclysmic effects of pregnancy is an ordeal for celebrity mums and ordinary housewives alike. Stretch marks, drooping breasts and floppy stomach muscles, it all seems to go wrong after your little bundle of joy is brought forth
SUNDERLAND manager Peter Reid admitted last night that Newcastle were unlucky not to have won a hard-fought derby match in which the Wearsiders were second best. The straight-talking Wearside boss said he smiled only twice - when England striker Kevin
A STEEP increase in hospital car parking fees for visitors has provoked opposition from a health group. From next month, South Tees Hospitals NHS Trust will implement a 50 per cent rise throughout its car parks. The pay and display rate for 24 hours will
WHAT a year this is turning out to be for Darlington striker Danny Mellanby. First, during the summer, he was offered the chance of professional football with his favourite club - and then he goes and hits the winner against arch-rivals Hartlepool United
AN application to create a home for vulnerable young men has been thrown out after objections from more than 4,000 residents. Turnaround Homes, which runs a similar facility at Leybourne Terrace in Stockton, applied for permission to accommodate 16 men
THE Coastguard has issued a warning on the perils of the North-East coast, just weeks after revealing the Tyne-Tees station is to close. The Marine and Coastguard Agency (MCA) urged seaside visitors to follow a safety code to reduce the number of deaths
ALAN SHEARER shook off the rust of five months' inactivity on the day his Newcastle side denied bitter rivals Sunderland an historic derby treble at St. James' Park. With 2-1 victories here in the last two seasons, the Black Cats were purring at the prospect
NEWCASTLE skipper Alan Shearer has vowed to recapture his old form after emerging from the "most frustrating'' period of his career. Shearer made his first appearance for five months when he came on as a 75th-minute substiute in yesterday's Tyne-Wear
A NEW Home Office report shows that a large number of prison inmates in the region are getting drugs. More than 220 inmates at Durham Prison, Low Newton and Holme House, Stockton, were caught out in random drug tests. At Durham, 15.5 per cent of the prisoners
ANGRY HARTLEPOOL United boss Chris Turner is ready to get ruthless. After seeing his side fall to a 2-1 defeat at home to arch-rivals Darlington at Victoria Park, Turner takes his side to Leyton Orient this afternoon determined there will be no derby
RESIDENTS turned out in force to pay tribute to a teenager who died after he suffered a heart attack when playing football with friends. Just hours before his death, Anthony Wilkinson, 15, had received news of an operation on his leaky heart valve. Anthony
A TRIBUTE to the Royal Navy's submariners has been created at Spennymoor's Jubilee Park. Spennymoor Town Council groundsmen Ralph Curry and Stephen Hymer have been working hard over the last few weeks creating a flowerbed to mark 100 years of the submarine
A LACK of cemetery space in Barnard Castle could mean family members will be unable to be buried together, say council officials. As part of the consultation over the Teesdale District Local Plan, the planning inspector has considered all recommendations
THOUSANDS of pop fans turned out to see their heroes take to the stage in a huge open-air concert yesterday. Some of pop's most polished acts, including Steps, A1, the Honeyz, Samantha Mumba and Blue, kept the youngsters happy at the Feel the Noise Live
A COMMUNITY bus is being turned in to a library to encourage young people in Darlington to read more. Darlington's Blitz Bus was donated by the police to the borough council's Community Education Service last year, to help provide services to youngsters
A BANK HOLIDAY show that attracted massive support in the 1940s was revived at the weekend. The Shildon Show was once one of the biggest and most popular annual events in the former railway town. However, the tradition died in the 1940s, when the park
A MOTORCYCLIST escaped death after his bike careered out of control on a dual carriageway and caused a five-car pile-up. Nine people were taken to hospital after the accident, on the north-bound carriageway of the A19 flyover, Middlesbrough, on Friday
THE Wild West was brought to life in Darlington at the weekend when a group of cowboys rode into town. The members of the Lone Star re-enactment group held an open day and workshop at Croft, near Darlington, on Saturday to raise money for Darlington Memorial
JIMMY Daley's future with Durham is safe as far as Martyn Moxon is concerned and the coach also praised Stephen Harmison after Durham recorded their first championship win in ten meetings with Sussex. It needed only 12.2 overs on Saturday morning for
Despite a much-improved performance compared with both the Darlington game and their last visit to Brisbane Road on Easter Monday, Hartlepool were again unable to pick up any points. 'Keeper Anthony Williams had to be alert as early as the second minute
SUDDENLY, shockingly, the scourge of foot-and-mouth disease is back on the doorstep of Upper Weardale. This time it lies only four miles away - "over the tops" in the Northumberland villages of Ninebanks and Catton. And, as the fresh outbreak spreads,
AN ARMY of volunteers has banded together to bring a piece of the countryside into the heart of urban Derwentside. Bridge Hill Residents' Association, in Consett, has been working to transform an area of wasteland into a haven for wildlife by planting
I am intrigued by the ancient markings in the hills of the Milfield Plain, in Northumberland. I understand that there was a palace in the area belonging to King Arthur. Can you give any information on its site? - Bill Hutchinson, Chester-le-Street. THE
A COMPUTER system designed by a local expert to reduce police paperwork will be showcased at an international event. Cleveland Police computer expert Tom Keegan, who heads the force's technical support unit, spent two years fine-tuning the software. It
AN investigation will continue today into how a man fell 70ft to his death from the window of a town centre flat. The 31-year-old died instantly after plunging from a third-floor flat at the top of the former Talbot Hotel, Queen Street, Scarborough, North
A GROUP of 15 youngsters from a North-East school made their debuts at the Edinburgh Festival yesterday. The pupils, from the Hermitage School, Chester-le-Street, County Durham, joined up with professional group Theatre Cap-a-Pie to take their docu-drama
Q: I am intrigued by the ancient markings in the hills of the Milfield Plain, in Northumberland. I understand that there was a palace in the area belonging to King Arthur. Can you give any information on its site? - Bill Hutchinson, Chester-le-Street.
