IN the latest episode in the Dome fiasco, we see Charlie (Lord) Falconer declaring that giving this monstrosity away to a firm of property developers is the "best value for money outcome". New Labour thinking at its best. Has anyone spotted the true net
HOME improvements business Pennine is investing £124,000 in the latest manufacturing technology. The Newcastle firm, celebrating 25 years in business, is benefiting from a high-tech cutting table, glass wash and spacer bar saw, which will increase production
Ushaw Moor, who have made their best start in years, aim to keep the pressure on the leading pack by defeating neighbours Esh Winning this afternoon. Professional Sanjay Raul tops the league batting averages at more than 100 and is also third in the bowling
Yorkshire have a great chance to stop the rot when their Phoenix side bid to round-up Nottinghamshire Outlaws at Trent Bridge tomorrow in the Norwich Union League. Although Yorkshire lost their unbeaten tag in the competition on Tuesday, when they were
THE scrawny pair may have been weighed down by their sopping wet hair shirts and bulging backpacks, but their humour got them through those first route marches. Similar in outlook and upbringing, Peter Heppenstall, from Hartlepool, and Scott Martin, from
ONE of the most frequently asked questions at this time of year is "how do I stop my outdoor pots from drying out?" There are many angles from which you can tackle this problem. Before you even put plant and pot together, try to choose something which
ARMED police officers sealed off a town centre street in a swoop on a suspected drugs network. Seven people were arrested as about 40 police officers raided addresses in Middlesbrough yesterday. Officers sealed off Union Street and also went to Regent
BANDARI is fancied to give Mark Johnston his inaugural success in what still remains arguably the world's greatest flat race, the £1,200,000 Group 1 Vodafone Derby at Epsom this afternoon. The Derby has been the subject of some ferocious criticism over
THE region's second hospital to be built as part of the controversial private finance initiative (PFI) is finally opening, two months behind schedule. It had been hoped that the new £67m Bishop Auckland General Hospital would open in April. But a serious
BRITAIN's services sector continued to rebound in May with growth at its fastest rate for 15 months. A survey by the Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply (CIPS) showed the sector continued to recover from its October low, when it was hit by a
AFTER 57 long and painful years without so much as a sniff of success in the Epsom Derby, a northern stable could finally be about to end the drought. Not since Dante's historic victory in the 1945 substitute Derby, run at Newmarket as a consequence of
Actors come and go and the same plots go round and round. It's another typical day in Ramsay Street. But the much-maligned Aussie soap is about to reach its 4,000th episode on British TV screens. Neighbours is the soap that was dead but wouldn't lie down
FAMILY, friends and colleagues of murdered part-time policeman Glenn Goodman yesterday gathered in his memory - ten years to the day after he was shot by an IRA killer. Mr Goodman, a special constable, was mown down in a hail of bullets by terrorist Paul
It was supposed to be all about David Beckham - a night for settling scores four years on from his personal nadir. But with every towering header and crucial interception, Rio Ferdinand did more to upstage his goalscoring captain. Sven-Goran Eriksson
WHAT a difference a week makes... what a difference four years make. Last week, the nation was depressed by England's ultimate ineptitude against Sweden in the opening game of the World Cup. Yesterday, in a contrast that could hardly have been starker
THIEVES vandalised an office at a hospital before fleeing with the contents of a charity box. The incident, in the diabetic liaison nurses' office at Darlington Memorial Hospital, is believed to have happened between 5pm and 6.45pm on Wednesday. Cash
A MIDDLE-AGED woman with a polite voice stood up and screamed: "Come on boys, Give 'em hell." Draped in the flag of St George, dozens of staff at the Orange call centre in Darlington transformed the canteen into a mini version of Wembley. And the transformation
PEOPLE wanting to withdraw money from cash machines are being urged to feel their way first. The police warning comes after two people lost their savings when ATM dispensers were "spiked" by crooks. Cleveland Police fear a gang is targeting Teesside with
A NORTH-EAST man missed out on the chance to watch England's opening game in the World Cup with Sir Geoff Hurst - because he had to work. Instead, Alan Reed, business manager at the SG Petch car dealership, in Darlington, travelled to Northampton on the
RAIL passengers put up with another day of disruption yesterday as Arriva conductors staged another 24-hour strike. Many services across the region were cancelled as conductors refused to work for the 13th time, in the long-running dispute. Arriva bosses
Murton have the opportunity to extend their lead at the top of the table with 40 points up for grabs from the double programme. The signing as professional of Calvin Stephenson from Crook Town was an inspired move and Murton, still unbeaten after seven
IF you're going to have a bad hair day, it's best to try to make it count for something. That's exactly what youngsters at Sowerby Primary School, near Thirsk, managed to do when they turned up with hairstyles that would normally have got them sent home
A FREELANCE writer who dedicated his life to farming has been remembered at a memorial service Frederick Willis, 85, was a successful and innovative farmer and farm advisor, and prolific freelance writer. He was born in West Hartlepool and after an education
ACCOUNTANCY and professional advisory group Vantis has acquired Gregory Mitford and Snowball. Vantis, which floated on the Alternative Investment Market last month, is expected to pay £375,000 for the Coniscliffe Road, Darlington, accountancy firm and
It is a fight between the two greatest heavyweight boxers of the last 15 years. It is a fight that the whole world wants to see, and would be gripped by, were it not for the distraction of events unfolding in the Far East. It is a fight that represents
OFFSHORE fabrication firm AMEC has won a multi-million pound contract for an oil and gas platform for the Clair field in the North Sea. The Wallsend company has won a £50m deal to build the topside for the 540ft high platform, to be based off the Shetland
THE lethal potential of the road dubbed one of the most dangerous in Britain was thrown back in the spotlight yesterday after another horrific crash. In the past decade, the trans-Pennine stretch of the A66 has claimed about 70 lives and caused countless
FEARS are increasing for two men from the region being held in Indian prisons as tensions mount over a possible nuclear war. As India and Pakistan gear up for conflict over the disputed Kashmir territory, and Britons are advised to leave, Ian Stillman
CALLED "No Peace for the Wicked", there is an episode of Porridge in which Fletch - Ronnie Barker - tries everything he knows one Saturday afternoon for a bit of penal solitude. Endless interruptions are climaxed by a commotion at his cell door. When
A MUSEUM is planning a day of events to mark the 60th anniversary of the battle which earned a soldier the Victoria Cross. The Durham Light Infantry (DLI) Museum has invited members of Private Adam Wakenshaw's family to help commemorate the action on
The Darlington Supporters' Trust holds its first annual general meeting today when they will look ahead to what promises to be a season of change at the club. A year after the initiative was first suggested a committee of seven was elected by the membership
A PARROT breeder fighting to get more than 140 birds - some of them on the endangered species list - back into his aviary has been given more time to produce evidence. Harry Sissen spent three days locked in battle with Customs and Excise at a civil hearing
ENGLAND'S success against Argentina in the World Cup yesterday sparked an impromptu football match in Darlington. Dozens of fans set up a makeshift pitch in the town's Market Square and revellers from nearby pubs piled out to watch the kickabout. Although
A GARDEN feature with a difference is available for North-Easterners - if they have £6,000 to spare. A privet hedge sculpture of the Angel of the North, 18ft by 15ft in size and weighing three-quarters of a ton, has been delivered to a Dobbie's Garden
TWO North-East recruits for ITV's celebration of 1950s National Service are already earning battle honours with TV audiences. In the show Lads' Army, Middlesbrough's Michael Honzik has amazed millions by turning up for duty with a teddy bear, and Newcastle's
WINNERS of The Northern Echo's rock and pop competition will take their first steps to stardom by appearing on Alpha Radio. DJ Ricky Durkin, who hosted the gig on Thursday, was so impressed with the calibre of the performers that he would like the top
Films of comic book heroes were dead until along came a Spider-Man who didn't frighten audiences away. Film writer Steve Pratt discovers the webbed wonder's secret. Is it a bird? Is it a plane? No - and it's not Superman either. The caped crusader has
IF they realised the irony that England's moment of glory had brought their Japanese-built and French-owned factory to a standstill, the staff at Nissan were too busy worrying to mention it. About 300 nervous factory workers packed into the staff canteen
YOUNGSTERS have been discovering that they have the power - with the help of Olympic high jumper Geoff Parsons. The athlete spent a day at Le Cateau School, Catterick Garrison, helping the pupils explore all sorts of power. The npower Power Day was won
Japan have moved to the top of Group H after they beat Russia 1-0 in Yokohama. The co-hosts leapfrogged their opponants thanks to Junichi Inamoto's goal in the 51st minute. The Arsenal midfielder turned in Atsushi Yanagisawa's cross from close range.
A LEADING academic has urged health professionals to champion the cause of anti-smoking drug Zyban. While it is prescribed to hundreds of thousands of Britons, unjustified doubts about its safety are still putting some people off, said Professor Linda
THIS year's Great Yorkshire Show is to due to be visited by the Duke of York. Prince Andrew will visit the region's leading agricultural event on Wednesday, July 10, and will spend about three hours looking around, meeting exhibitors, visitors, and organisers
Saltburn should push Guisborough all the way for the championship but this week official Simon Walker insisted that captain Umer Rashid and his players were taking nothing for granted. "We have made a good start but there is an awful long way to go,"
DETECTIVES investigating a stabbing near a town centre police station have arrested a 25-year-old man. The attack in a Stockton churchyard in the early hours of Thursday, left a 31-year-old man with a punctured lung. The victim managed to walk the few
CONSTRUCTION group Metnor is to start work on a multi-million pound stadium for the Newcastle Falcons rugby team. The £12m contract involves the construction at the Kingston Park of a 3,800-seater stand, on three levels and a terraced stand and bar capable
KEVIN Curran, regional secretary of the GMB union has stood down from the board of One NorthEast, due to the demands of his union work. Mr Curran has been a board member since the organisation was set up in 1999. Mr Curran cited the demands of work with
FOUR years ago he was vilified after his infamous sending-off against Argentina in St Ettiene earned the wrath of the nation. Last night, he was the toast of the country after his goal gave England their first World Cup victory over their arch rivals
POLICE have renewed their appeal for the drivers and occupants of two cars, who may have witnessed a fatal car smash in which a teenager died, to come forward. A Peugeot 309 collided with a marked police BMW patrol car on the A689 Coundon bypass, near
