THREE retailers were broken into over two nights in Darlington. Two cafes and a furniture shop in Northgate and High Northgate were burgled during Tuesday and Wednesday night. The Anty Richards Caf, in Northgate, was raided between 4pm on Tuesday and
A MAN drove at twice the speed limit and down the wrong way of a road while being chased by the police because he thought he was banned from driving, a court heard yesterday. But Carl Price, 31, was not in fact banned, Teesside Crown Court heard. Price
A £300,000 extension to a North Yorkshire school will be opened officially next week. The extension to the community primary school at Norton, near Malton, incorporates four new classrooms in the original school style. The school has 540 pupils and the
A TEENAGER from the region is preparing for the performance of her life on live television tonight. Zoe Birkett, from Welbeck Avenue, Darlington, has made it to the last 50 in the Pop Idol national search for a star. Zoe was chosen from more than 100,000
Q Is my income less than the Government's minimum level? My wife and I have state pension of £48.61 and £43.61 plus an employer's pension of £245 a month and a war pension of £23.75 a week. We pay full council tax of £820 a year. A Minimum Income Guarantee
A GROUP of children from the region are travelling to London on Monday to give their opinion on the future of education. Youngsters from Hummersknot School and Language College, in Darlington, will attend a National Children's Consultation Day organised
WORD of mouth could well save hundreds of people in the region from serious illness, according to dentists. Mouth Cancer Awareness Week will run from November 11 to November 17, and people in the region are being encouraged to contact their doctor if
HEALTH-conscious companies from County Durham were honoured yesterday. Seven companies received bronze Health at Work awards at the Durham Light Infantry Museum, in Durham City. It was the first part of a new NHS-led health awareness scheme designed to
A CANARY breeder and show judge accused of arson was yesterday allowed to return to look after his prize birds. Ronald Sillitoe, 40, who was allowed bail provided he did not enter Whitby, North Yorkshire or interfere with witnesses, will have to inform
A BABYSITTER accused of raping a 13-year-old girl told a court yesterday he would have been incapable of carrying out the attack due to drink and drugs. Gary Gray, 30, is accused of indecently assaulting and then raping the teenager after she went to
A DISGRACED anaesthetist is to remain struck-off after a series of disastrous blunders. Brian Hendley, 50, assured the General Medical Council's professional conduct committee in London he would never apply for jobs in the field of anaesthetics. He was
SUNDERLAND manager Peter Reid has warned his players to be on the alert at Leicester today against controversial striker Ade Akinbiyi - even though the much-travelled Nigerian international has not scored this season. The 27-year-old 6ft 1in centre-forward
TWENTY TWO down - and how many more to go? Andy Ritchie's departure from Oldham in midweek - followed last night by Steve Bruce's decision to quit at Crystal Palace - means almost 20 per cent of football managers who started this season with the usual
THE Safer Stockton Partnership has been overwhelmed by the response to its recent public consultation exercise. Residents were asked to voice their concerns about crime and disorder issues which affect their lives and communities. More than 2,500 responses
A TEENAGER from the region is preparing for the performance of her life on live television tonight. Zoe Birkett, from Welbeck Avenue, Darlington, has made it to the last 50 in the Pop Idol national search for a star. Zoe was chosen from more than 100,000
FRENCHMAN Olivier Bernard is standing by to receive a belated birthday gift when Newcastle United tackle Premiership leaders Aston Villa at St. James' Park this afternoon. United were involved in a four-month legal battle with Lyon to land Bernard on
The tour of Anne Hathaway's cottage was more authentic than most visitors enjoy on a trip to Shakespeare's birthplace of Stratford-upon-Avon. A power cut had robbed the thatched farmhouse of electricity, leaving the place in semi-darkness, illuminated
A LAST minute U-turn by planners failed to win support from councillors when they voted to allow a house to be built in a North Yorkshire village. Earlier, planning officers had recommended Ripon area planning committee of Harrogate Borough Council to
LIBRARY users across Stockton can get access to the Internet and it will not cost them a penny. Stockton Borough Council's library service has traditionally offered free Internet access for the first half hour since its Open Technology Centre opened in
TALES of a famous South African battle will be told by one of the world's leading authorities when he visits the region next week. The Battle of Rorke's Drift in January 1879, after which 11 Victorian Crosses were awarded, will be recounted by author
INSURANCE firm Prudential is axing 2,100 jobs as part of its latest round of restructuring. The job cuts, which include 1,000 compulsory redundancies, will be completed by 2003 and follow 2,000 redundancies earlier this year from the Prudential's door-to-door
SPENNYMOOR manager Peter Quigley yesterday branded a £200 fine from the FA as "extremely harsh". Moors were found guilty by an FA tribunal for illegally approaching Marske United players Simon Kasonali and Mark Taylor during the summer, and also told
A MAN was jailed yesterday after beating his mother's former boyfriend with a bar. Alfred Johnson, 25, also produced a flick knife and threatened Mark Cooper with a piece of wood, Teesside Crown Court heard. Paul Newcombe, prosecuting, said Johnson had
DURHAM City manager Brian Honour admits that he is facing another rebuilding job after his side's latest setback. City were stunned by Second Division club Horden in the Durham Challenge Cup in midweek, and Honour admits that his patience has run out
A NATIONAL Lottery ticket machine has been installed in Osmotherley as a community need. Its arrival will now save locals a 14-mile round trip to Northallerton to find a Lottery terminal. Last week, Camelot, which runs the game, installed a ticket machine
ONE of the country's most famous football clubs is holding a series of crisis talks over fears that its dream of building a £1.3m ground could collapse. The board of ten-time FA Amateur Cup winners Bishop Auckland told MP Derek Foster this week that its
TEENAGE Argentinian prodigy Carlos Marinelli grabbed his first Boro goals to upstage Fabrizio Ravanelli as Steve McClaren's men ran riot against the Rams with an astonishing five-goal second-half blast. On the day Italian hitman Ravanelli made his return
DRUG traffickers across the North-East are on notice - come to Teesside and you will be locked up. The warning comes from a senior Middlesbrough detective after a six-month investigation revealed a regionwide trade in heroin. More than 60 officers were
THE Northumbria Deaf Mission, known until 1982 as the Mission to the Deaf and Dumb, celebrated its 125th anniversary with a service in Stockton parish church last Sunday. Outside, the High Street was decorated for Christmas, though it's not until next
A PENSIONER has returned from the adventure of a lifetime in one of the wildest and most dangerous parts of the world. Elizabeth Mann, of Milbank Court, Darlington, flew to Borneo as part of the British Heart Foundation (BHF) World Challenge O1, to raise
A COUNCIL has been accused of playing politics with people's health in a new twist to the debate over a motor racing circuit. A number of people living near the track at Croft, near Darlington, are claiming that their medical conditions are related to
A FAMILY of farmers is working with the Government to renovate old buildings and attract more wildlife to the area. The Vickers family, of Newton Grange Farm, Sadberge, near Darlington, are members of the Countryside Stewardship Scheme (CSS), which is
A theatre hailed as the British Moulin Rouge of its day, celebrates a centenary of success next month after it was almost destroyed by a massive fire. Yesterday, Newcastle's beautiful Theatre Royal opened its cellars as part of a tour for the first time
VILLAGERS who have to travel to the nearest town for healthcare were celebrating yesterday after a health centre was opened on their doorsteps. The Greatham and Fens Health and Information Centre, is the first of its kind for Greatham. The Hartlepool
An amateur operatic group is appealing for a talented musician to help with its rehearsals for a forthcoming show. Spennymoor Amateur Operatic Society needs the support of a pianist for rehearsals as the cast prepares for a production of the hit musical
A MAN accused of murdering his teenage bride as she slept broke down in tears at his trial yesterday. Stephen Butters, 41, sobbed as he read out to Teesside Crown Court a suicide note he had written to his wife of four days. He is accused of murdering
A BLOCK of flats overlooking Richmond's historic Temple Grounds could be given the go-ahead after architects reworked the design. Conservation groups, including English Heritage, had resisted the original plans for six flats next to the former convent
MORE than 100 postcard-size images of remote churches are going display in a new exhibition this weekend. Church Outing, which opens at the Durham Light Infantry Museum and Durham Art Gallery today, features work by five artists. They have used paint,
CHRISTMAS is looming as a North-East city centre gears up to lure seasonal shoppers in the run-up to the festive period. Sunderland was among the swift starters in the region's Christmas shopping stakes, launching its festive celebration plans on Thursday
A SUPERMARKET is looking for a very old resident to help celebrate the opening of its youngest store. Asda in Peterlee is trying to trace anyone who was born on November 12 one hundred years ago. The day marks the opening of its new multi- million pound
ANGRY Middlesbrough chief executive Keith Lamb has labelled the FA's disciplinary system "a shambles" following the fiasco over Paul Ince's abortive appeal against his sending-off in the derby clash with Sunderland. Boro are calling for a radical rethink
A THIEF drove off with a van while the owner desperately clung on to the door, police said yesterday. The thief pushed the driver out of the way as he stood next to the white Ford Transit van in Oakdene Road, Fishburn, at 10.15am on Thursday. He drove
POLICE and council officers have set up 24-hour patrols to clamp down on people dropping litter. Officers from County Durham police have teamed up with Sedgefield Borough Council to stamp out littering around schools in Shildon and Newton Aycliffe. The
A STRIKING new landmark celebrating part of the heritage of Stockton will soon take pride of place in the town centre. A sculpture of a match, marking the innovation of John Walker a former Stockton chemist who invented the friction match, will form the
AN appeal has gone out to exercise fans - they are needed urgently for a Children in Need fundraiser. They will join a band of 27 men and women currently cycling, swimming, stepping and rowing for the charity. The 2001 Buddies, being staged in Bedale
THIS year's renewal of the £50,000 Charlie Hall Chase at Wetherby is a vintage affair likely to build up into a real thriller over the final four challenging fences. Confirmed trailblazer Beau is bound to go hell-for-leather right from the outset, tactics
FOOT-and-mouth threatens to leave Father Christmas stranded without transport this year. Disease restrictions mean Comet, Cupid, Dancer, Prancer, Donner, Blitzen, Dasher and Vixen have been barred from trotting through the streets of Teesside - leaving
VITAL voluntary services, established in North Yorkshire with money from the National Lottery, could be in jeopardy if other sources of funding are not identified by summer next year. Up to a third of Richmondshire Citizen's Advice Bureau's (CAB's) caseload
IT all started so well and yet somehow, all the time, you knew it had to end in tears. As Fabrizio Ravanelli makes his long-awaited return to the Riverside Stadium this afternoon, it seems fitting that the Derby County striker once again finds himself
YOUNGSTERS who enjoy stories can hear them straight from the lips of the people who write them. Children's authors Vivien French, Steve Weatherall - the writer of Baby Goz books - picture book author Lisa Kopper and non-fiction author Richard Platt are
PATRICK Anson picked a frightful moment to pop the question to girlfriend Nicola Bagley. The 26-year-old got down on one knee and proposed marriage amid the scary exhibits of the London Dungeon visitor attraction. Moments before she gasped "yes", Nicola
A FORMER Royal Engineer is hoping The Northern Echo can reunite him with his old Army pal. Alec Winter, of Willington, County Durham, has not seen Michael (Mick) Holloway for more than 40 years, since the pair were driver recovery mechanics in the Royal
RICHMOND'S MP will be taking a 300-name petition to the House of Commons, which is under pressure to tackle the negative impact of international trade rules. A World Trade Organisation meeting is planned for later this month, and Church leaders across
TEENAGER Andrew Simpson dreams of forging a career as a special effects wizard in the film industry - and he's certainly going the right way about it. For he has transformed his back garden into a Jurassic Park fun ride, a project that has taken him two
TEACHERS, pupils and governors at a Gateshead school are celebrating a glowing report from a Government watchdog. Dunston Hill Community Primary School was praised by the Office for Standards in Education (Ofsted), following a three-day inspection in
WHILE the national spotlight falls on the inconsistency of referees, Chris Turner is turning the spotlight on his side's inability to produce the goods on a regular basis. The Hartlepool boss has yet to see his side enjoy back-to-back triumphs this season
AN army of volunteers has proved so successful at helping people in rural County Durham get to grips with information technology that the scheme is being extended. The Pathfinders Project has been running in Derwentside, Teesdale and Wear Valley involving
A TEACHERS' organisation has vowed that smacking will not return to the North-East - whatever the outcome of a High Court battle. Yesterday, a group of Christian headteachers, teachers and parents launched their fight to have the right to smack pupils
THOUSANDS of extra patients are benefiting from the drive to beat heart disease, it was revealed last night. News of the progress in the campaign against Britain's biggest killer came as Health Secretary Alan Milburn opened the North-East's first community
Tommy Taylor's new job begins in earnest at Halifax Town today. The Darlington manager has been in charge at Feethams for a week and today faces his first League game as Quakers search for their first three-point haul in six weeks - the last win being
HOSPITAL SERVICES CONGRATULATIONS to all involved with both conception and implementation of all factors with bringing to fruition the birth of the new Bishop Auckland General Hospital. It has been a facility long fought for by the electorate and political
INVESTORS will have their hands full next week with trading updates from some of the market's biggest stocks. Results from the likes of British Airways, Marks and Spencer and British Telecom will provide a further indication of when the UK economy may
A COUNTY Durham school and a garden centre are this weekend counting the cost of suspected arson attacks. A caretaker was taken to hospital suffering from smoke inhalation after finding a fire at Sacriston Junior School, Witton Road, Sacriston, near Chester-le-Street
A TRADITIONAL Christmas fair, run for years in a small village, is being replaced by a Bavarian market in a bid to boost donations. The market run by St Bartholomew's Church, in Croxdale, and St David's Church, in Tudhoe, will take place next Saturday
A DOG weighing ten stone was rescued by a dog warden after being found walking the streets. The Newfoundland Landfeer was found near Burtree Lane, in Darlington, on Tuesday morning when he jumped up at a resident, knocking her to the ground. A neighbour
EAST Durham couples celebrating their golden wedding next year are to have the chance of marking their milestone in illustrious company. Residents reaching their 50th anniversary are being invited to meet the Queen and Duke of Edinburgh when they visit
MOTHER Ann Ball has been named as the latest winner of The Northern Echo's successful CommuniGate competition. Ann's baby massage website has won the Pick of the Month prize under our CommuniGate project, which has already helped dozens of voluntary groups
DARLINGTON Mowden Park scrum half Richard Woollam has mixed feelings about the BBC scrapping plans to base Grandstand at Kingston Park today. As Newcastle Falcons' communications manager he faced a clash between Mowden's big cup tie at home to Manchester
A last minute equaliser denied Darlington their first win since September when they drew 2-2 at Halifax on Saturday. Quakers thought they had done enough to take home all three points but succumbed to an Ian Fitzpatrick goal late in the second half. The
PRODUCER David Heyman had no idea what he was getting himself into when he began looking around for a children's story to turn into a family movie, on his return to London from a spell working in Hollywood three years ago. During the search, his assistant
NIALL HANNITY'S decision to follow the smart two-mile chaser Major Sponsor (2.35) over from Ireland to join George Moore's Middleham stable could result in by far his biggest pay day in this afternoon's £30,000 United Construction Chase at Ascot. Major
MEN are being asked if they are man enough to experience just a little of the pain women go through in the name of beauty. Beauty therapy students want some of the region's macho men prepared to have their chest, back and legs waxed for Children in Need
SPONSORS have helped to make a wine and cheese evening in aid of the Mayor of Redcar and Cleveland's charities a big success. The event, at Eston Town Hall, was in aid of the civic charity fund organised by the mayor, Vilma Collins. Peter Martin, brother
SUNDERLAND crashed to their third defeat in four Premiership games as £5m striker Ade Akinbiyi scored his first goal of the season to give Leicester their first win of the campaign at Filbert Street. The Wearsiders, who stuck to their five-man defence
ANYONE meeting five-year-old Alex Brown for the first time would never believe the youngster was recovering from major heart surgery. Like any other little boy of his age, Alex, of Hall Lane Estate, Willington, County Durham, is running around and playing
THREE heroes have been saluted by a North-East police chief. Taxi driver Saghir Ahmed rescued a woman who had already slashed her wrists and was about to jump off Yarm Bridge, into the River Tees. John Gray, of Middlesbrough, disarmed a man who had already
A CHARITY has been awarded a £1,000 computer thanks to its involvement in The Northern Echo's CommuniGate scheme. Darlington Mind set up its CommuniGate site in May and has since had hits from people interested in finding out more about coping with mental
SPORTS clubs are being invited to get themselves into a directory. Hartlepool Borough Council's sports development team wants to produce its own directory of all sports clubs in the Hartlepool area. Susanne Clark, of the Sports Development Team, said:
A problem-solving police team is to be piloted in Grangetown in the New Year. The Neighbourhood Task Group will consist of a sergeant and four officers, whose job will be to provide a positive police presence on the streets of the town for six months,
THE Breeders Cup last week was a fantastic event - and it really emphasised the differences between racing in this country and in America. What really struck me was the speed with which the horses are put into the stalls. The stalls are bigger over there
IT WAS up, up and away for the pupils at Thornaby Village Primary School yesterday, when they released more than 200 helium-filled balloons. The sponsored charity event was organised by Stockton PC Barry Dixon to raise money for The Children's Trust and
Title: Thunderhawk: Operation Phoenix. Format: CD-ROM. Platform: PS2. Price: £39.99. GAMERS of a certain age will remember their first glimpse of Thunderhawk. Back in the days when a game that came on a compact disc was still a novelty, the original Thunderhawk
A brace from Craig Bellamy and a fantastic Alan Shearer volley blew away league leader Aston Villa at St James' Park on Saturday. The win puts Bobby Robson's men into third spot - just a point behind the leaders - and Newcastle were better in every department
A BAN on villagers helping build their bonfire has been lifted by council officials. Traditionally, the people of Heighington throw any wood or garden rubbish on to the town's bonfire in preparation for the November 5 celebrations. But this year, councillors
PUPILS are being given the chance to be "Time Trackers" at Darlington's Railway Museum. For the week, the museum's living history sessions will give pupils from the town, who are studying Victorian Britain at school, a chance to see what life was like
APPRENTICE roofer Matt-hew Dolphin's opportunist theft of a bus driver's cash bag, and drunken antics in a hospital casualty department, came following his release from prison, when he discovered his girlfriend was pregnant by another man, a court heard
BRIGHT sparks from London Electricity have brought a brushstroke of good fortune to a Sunderland charity. Staff from the company's metering department, at London Electricity's Doxford Park base, gave a facelift to premises used by Wearside Disablement
NOW is the time to make a final clearance of tomato, pepper and cucumber plants from the greenhouse. It is always tempting to hang on to the plants until the very end, but now any lingering fruits are unlikely to ripen properly and most will not be palatable
AN appeal has been made for volunteers to help at the Cancer Research Fund shop in Darlington. As well as needing people to sell donations, the shop is looking for people to sort out stock. Manager Valerie Trotter said: "We would love to hear from people
A book of photographs showing Consett through the decades has been launched. The book has been produced by the Derwentdale History Society and has more than 200 photographs. Titled A Nostalgic Look At Consett, it is the fourth book in a series produced
A GOOD Samaritan who found £70 left at a cash machine and handed it in to the building society believes not enough has been done to find its owner. Kelvin Powell, from Crook, was using the cash point at the Nationwide Building Society in Darlington, in
THE region's fireworks festivities officially got under way last night, with thousands of people drawn to a dazzling half-hour display which lit up the skies over one North-East town. The Bishop Auckland event, held at the town's rugby club and organised
ELEVENTH hour talks aimed at averting strike action by hundreds of bus drivers failed last night - plunging many North-East services into chaos. Stagecoach has drafted in non-union drivers and managers, but the company admits this will not be enough.
DEATH and how the British do it was the subject of academic discussion in the ancient wooded halls of the North-East's oldest library yesterday. Academics from Durham University mused on the ceremonies surrounding death as they received the archives of
FARMERS across the region were holding their breath last night amid fears that foot-and-mouth may have struck again. Hopes that livestock restrictions would be lifted this weekend have turned to despondency while test results are awaited on a suspect
Cummins last night became the latest victim of the economic downturn when it was forced to cut nearly 100 jobs. And the engineering company, which is one of the biggest employers in the North-East, warned it could give no guarantees on further job losses
IT is unrealistic to expect reforms to the National Health Service to happen overnight. Long-term problems built up over generations will not disappear in the short term. Inevitably, it will take time before the full benefits of extra resources and investment
THREE communities in the North-East have won a share of £46m to set up innovative bus schemes. The Government cash was awarded as part of the first Urban Bus Challenge, that aims to tackle urban deprivation and social exclusion by providing more direct
AMERICAN actress Shawnee Smith will bring her hard rock band Fydolla Ho to the North-East this month. The star has appeared in films including Armageddon and Who's Harry Crumb, having started out playing an orphan in the 1982 John Houston film, Annie.
A MAN has been remanded in custody for a further seven days over allegations of sending threatening mail. Ian Julian Walker, 45, of Sherwood Road, Thornaby, Teesside, did not speak but nodded when the clerk at Teesside Magistrates Court, Middlesbrough
CAMPAIGNERS have claimed a victory in their fight to keep a residential care home for elderly people in their district. The action group fighting to save Durham County Council's Lowland House Residential Care Home for the Elderly, in Brandon, near Durham
SEVEN health-conscious organisations were honoured yesterday, when they received bronze Health at Work awards at the Durham Light Infantry Museum, in Durham City. It was the first part of a NHS-led health awareness scheme. The Confederation of British
WORK to improve County Durham's roughest stretch of road starts on Monday and drivers can expect delays over the next few months. Durham County Council highways chiefs consider the A689 between Stanhope and Eastgate, in Weardale, to have the worst surface
COMMUNITY fairy godmother Anne Westgarth, who has raised more than £700,000 to revitalise a village hall, has now turned her hand to training volunteers. The woman who saved Delves Lane Village Hall, at Delves Lane, near Consett, has teamed up with Durham
HARTLEPOOL United are bottom of the league again after they went down 1-0 at Plymouth. A single goal sunk Pool at Home Park. Paul Worrell sent in a cross and the unmarked David Friio tapped home from close range to ensure Pool's sixth away defeat of the
A THEATRE is on the look- out for performers to take the roles of Prince Charming and Dandini in this year's production of Cinderella. These pantomime roles, traditionally played by females with a penchant for thigh slapping, are the last to be cast in
