A FOOTBALL tournament in memory of a player who was murdered has raised £700. The event commemorated Newcastle United hopeful Gary Walton, who was killed in his home village of Coundon, near Bishop Auckland, County Durham. He died after a pub attack in
A BABY girl kept her mother waiting nine days before arriving in the world on New Year's Day - guaranteeing that every birthday to come will be a huge party. Billie Jane Foster, who was born at Bishop Auckland General Hospital, County Durham, at 1.55am
Tom Brown's Schooldays (ITV1); Scream! If You Want To Get Off (ITV1); Down To Earth (BBC1); The Murder Room (BBC1); Agatha Christie's Marple (ITV1): PUPILS at Rugby School get a full education - drinking, smoking, gambling, hunting and shooting are all
A BABY girl kept her mother waiting nine days before arriving in the world on New Year's Day - guaranteeing that every birthday to come will be a huge party. Billie Jane Foster, who was born at Bishop Auckland General Hospital, County Durham, at 1.55am
GRAEME SOUNESS faces a nervous 24 hours amid fears that striker Craig Bellamy could be sidelined for months rather than weeks of Newcastle United's start to the New Year. The fiery Welshman hobbled out of Saturday's 2-1 win over Birmingham with yet another
WHATEVER Mick McCarthy achieves with Sunderland, Preston North End's Deepdale Stadium will always hold fond memories for the Black Cats' boss. It was there on August 23, 2003 that McCarthy guided the Wearsiders to their first league win under his management
A TEENAGE football manager is preparing for the biggest game of his life - as he takes the helm at a professional club. David Bogg is hoping to extend his success with his school team and help steer Darlington to a win today against Macclesfield Town.
MOST children would dread the thought of spending their holidays at school - particularly under the watchful eye of the headmistress. But for author Ana Fischel and her sister and two brothers, their visits to Raventhorpe Preparatory in Darlington, where
TONY Sweeney doesn't mind if anyone wants to call Hartlepool United boring. Saturday's goalless draw at Barnsley followed a similar result at Bristol City last week. But, after going four months without a point on the road, the home-grown midfielder isn't
A RETIRING pub landlord has brewed up a last batch of beer before he calls time on his career. Paul Conroy is leaving the Grey Horse pub in Consett, County Durham, after 15 years. The business, in Sherburn Terrace, which he runs with his wife, Rosaleen
A NORTH-EAST cancer support group has raised almost £500 from the sale of Christmas cards and shopping trolley tokens. The Darlington Lung Cancer Support Group has been selling cards designed by children aged three to 15, all of whom are related to a
WHILE 2004 might have been the most successful year in Middlesbrough's 128-year history, 2005 started with a salutary reminder of just how far the club have to go before they can realistically claim to be part of the European elite. Better sides than
A SCANDINAVIAN home furnishings company is in talks to take on Marks & Spencer's doomed flagship Lifestore. Danish chain Ilva is in negotiations with M&S, with a view to buying its 70,000sq ft store, near the Gateshead MetroCentre. M&S heralded
CHICKEN tikka masala, madras and rogan josh are as much a part of a North-East town's cuisine as fish and chips, an expert said last night. Former restaurant owner Khadim Hussain has spent the past three years researching the history of the curry house
Brandon manager Vince Kirkup wants to pull away from the clubs at the bottom of the table, starting with this morning's clash against Peterlee. Brandon are five points above the bottom three after a run of just two defeats in 11 games, and Kirkup said
A MULTI-MILLION pound town centre improvement scheme should be extended to include a private shopping precinct, according to a councillor. Liberal Democrat Councillor Ben Ord has called on Sedgefield Borough Council to extend its Spennymoor street works
REVELLERS were plunged into darkness after a power cut struck a popular Darlington music venue shortly after midnight on New Year's morning. When a main fuse blew at The Forum in Borough Road at 12.15am, partygoers thought their night was over. Rock band
A TALENTED sporting trio has landed trials for the international basketball squad. Kyle Smith, Luke Williams and Richard Summerbell are all bidding for a place in the England basketball team after being spotted by scouts at a national tournament. The
AN innovative scheme that will bring more crime-busting security cameras to parts of Darlington will be completed in the New Year. A new service provided for its neighbouring authority is bringing in revenue, which will be invested in more cameras and
SOME homes in Bishop Auckland lost power for almost eight hours on New Year's Eve after a problem with underground electricity supply. Northern Electric (NEDL) sent engineers to the scene after power cut off at about 3pm. The site had to be excavated
CRIME-BUSTING security cameras in Wear Valley are to be monitored by operators from a neighbouring authority as part of an innovative scheme. Operators at Darlington Borough Council are to monitor the seven closed-circuit television cameras (CCTV) watching
A netball team is feeling champion after winning a borough-wide competition. The Cumby, of Heighington, has clinched the Ferryhill Leisure Centre Winter Netball League title. Six teams competed in the nine-week league and The Cumby were the runaway league
A STUDY to help reduce traffic congestion in Darlington is to begin this month as part of the council's Town on the Move initiative. Traffic consultants will be reviewing the road network in the town and discussing ways of improving it with the council's
FRIENDS and family of North-East footballer Paul Gascoigne yesterday played down fears for his health. Former Newcastle United player Gascoigne, 37, was reportedly admitted to hospital suffering from pneumonia and a collapsed lung. He was reportedly taken
A "SHY" mother is celebrating after landing a new role working on a multi-million pound education contract. Lynn Coffey, 31, is the senior administration officer for E-Learning North-East. The company, based at Sunderland University's St Peter's campus
RESIDENTS have received an unexpected gift after a council promised to spend hundreds of thousands of pounds upgrading their homes. Derwentside District Council is to carry out structural repairs to 79 houses in Dunelm Walk and Dunelm Way, Leadgate, near
A GROUP aiming to highlight the importance of fathers as role models is hoping to build on its success. Dads Aloud was set up in Chester-le-Street in 2003, to offer fathers the chance to spend time with their youngsters in a range of activities, such
A LONG-AWAITED scheme to help in the fight against flooding in Northallerton is finally getting under way. Yorkshire Water has confirmed a start date for a sewer scheme which should help reduce the risk of flooding on the busy roads around County Hall
DYNAMIC is an often over-used word in football parlance but there was more than a ring of truth to Lee Bowyer's phraseology when he described Newcastle United's midfield as such. With Kieron Dyer, Jermaine Jenas and Bowyer all forming the central piece
A CHARITY facing closure only months ago is ready to expand after winning more than £100,000 in grants. Supporting Parents Network (Span), based in Stanley, is to take on two new workers, thanks to the cash. Development worker Tom Clark said: "When bids
EXTRA taxis are to be laid on to cope with new demand from revellers. Chester-le-Street District Council is looking at creating a new rank in Front Street to cater for drinkers at the new Chicago Rock Caf. The £1m, 650-capacity venue opened in Front Street
A FOOTBALL tournament in memory of a player who was murdered has raised £700. The event commemorated Newcastle United hopeful Gary Walton, who was killed in his home village of Coundon, near Bishop Auckland, County Durham. He died after a pub attack in
A WARD councillor could have her objection to the siting of a BMX track overruled. Independent Middlesbrough councillor Joan McTigue gained the support of five colleagues to have a decision to create a BMX track in the town's Beechwood ward reviewed in
A CAMPAIGN has been launched to attract some of the world's most spectacular tall ships to Teesside. Nineteen thousand people converged on Middlesbrough's waterfront to see a replica of explorer Captain James Cook's ship, the Endeavour, visit the town
A NIGERIAN man is pleading with vandals to leave him and his family alone. In the few days Neil and Kerry Asipa and their six children have lived on a council estate in Middlesbrough, yobs in their early to mid-teens have launched three attacks on the
A SEARCH has been launched to find someone with the potential to go up in the world. For Middlesbrough Council, which is orchestrating the search, it is a matter of finding someone of the right blood. The council is looking for a descendant of one of
HILTON the hedgehog is finding it difficult to hibernate this year. The prickly insomniac from Hedgehog Rescue Topcliffe, near Thirsk, has other things on his mind after recently being pulled from a pond suffering from hypothermia. Rescue centre manager
A hospital has entered the new year celebrating a greater degree of independence. Harrogate District Hospital has finally gained foundation status as part of the third wave of such trusts to be created. It means the hospital will be able to borrow and
A FORMER nurse could become the next JK Rowling as her writing career takes off. Vicky Chatten, from Middlesbrough, wrote her first novel, The Bonding, while her son was in hospital - never thinking it would make it to the book shelves. However, The Bonding
A VILLAGE is fighting back after its reputation was blackened by a rise in anti-social behaviour. Early last year, West Cornforth, in County Durham, hit the headlines with the petrol bombing of a police car, underage drinking and nuisance neighbours.
A SUCCESSFUL national short story competition is launched again today to give undiscovered writers a voice. The Short Story Competition is organised by Darlington company Inscribe Media Limited, backed by The Northern Echo, communication company Orange
A FEW days ago, I had a very memorable conversation with a friend's sister who had come over from Germany for Christmas, about toilets. She moved out there with her husband over a decade ago and was well accustomed to the Teutonic way of life but found
FROST foiled Wetherby's first attempt to run the Castleford Chase just after Christmas, but undeterred the racecourse management have enterprisingly slotted the valuable two-mile event in the middle of this afternoon's fixture. Eight go to post for the
A TENTH of rail passengers last year travelled for less money than they would have done a decade ago according to train operator GNER. The company, which operates Darlington station, said a tenth of its passengers travelled on cheaper fares in real terms
The New Year's Day fixture list provided the Riverside faithful an opportunity to see if Stewart Downing really does have a claim to Ryan Giggs' 'king of the wing' throne. Giggs is unquestionably the greatest left winger ever to grace the Premiership,
IT has been many years since businessman Paul Blanchard dreamed of pop superstardom - but he's never forgotten his friends. In the early 1960s he was the lead guitarist with the pop group the Cheavours, which enjoyed considerable success in the York area
A MAN is due to appear in court today following a six-hour armed siege. Police were called to a domestic incident at a house in Dixon Street, Blackhill, near Consett, County Durham, shortly after 4.30am on New Year's Day. Officers were confronted by a
Tom Brown's Schooldays (ITV1) Scream! If You Want To Get Off (ITV1) Down To Earth (BBC1) The Murder Room (BBC1) Agatha Christie's Marple (ITV1) PUPILS at Rugby School get a full education - drinking, smoking, gambling, hunting and shooting are all on
FORGOTTEN man Sean Thornton aims to put a year to forget behind him and prove his worth to manager Mick McCarthy. Thornton made his first appearance for three months on New Year's Day at Preston, with a second half virtuoso performance that almost helped
DOGS and their owners made a splash for an animal sanctuary appeal, boosted by record crowds. About 25 people - and ten dogs - went for a New Year's Day dip in the North Sea at Saltburn, east Cleveland, to raise money for the Saltburn Animal Rescue Association
WATCHING a goalless draw amid Arctic conditions, surely there's a better way to ring in the new year? But you won't find anyone at Hartlepool United grumbling, because there is every sign their travelling troubles are being put to bed. Following eight
OUR region can be proud of the fact that the rate of organ donation is higher than anywhere else in the country. It shows an understanding of the issues surrounding transplant operations. There is, however, an urgent need to increase the number of potential
A TERRORIST was reported last night to have confessed to murdering a North-East couple in a war-ravaged African state. Teachers Dick and Enid Eyeington were shot through the window of their flat, close to a school in Somaliland they were trying to rebuild
FORMER workers at a North-East cement works have watched in horror as images of the tsunami disaster unfold. A number of staff from Lafarge Cement's Eastgate works, in County Durham, were sent to Indonesia to help expand the company's Asian operations
Author Ana Fischel is set to gain worldwide recognition for her debut children's book, part of her Zartarbia Tales series. She tells Women's Editor Lindsay Jennings why a Darlington school and its inimitable headmistress ended up with starring roles in
A TEN-YEAR-OLD girl hailed a hero after nursing victims of the Indian Ocean tsunami has returned home to a huge welcome. Cherise Watson became a national hero when The Northern Echo told how she had bandaged battered and bleeding survivors after the huge
FILM fans are flocking to a new club for alternative cinema. Clayport Film Club was set up in Clayport Library, in Durham, in March last year by Durham County Council workers Geoff Pratt and John Coburn. The not-for-profit society aims to offer the best
Last year Mel Gibson and Michael Moore were the surprise cinematic hits, but who will be putting bums on movie house seats this year? Steve Pratt sizes up the contenders. SUPERMAN will fly again as Batman gets back behind the wheel of his shiny new Batmobile
Road safety campaigners are to make a renewed attempt in the coming months to introduce a new law of death by careless driving. The move follows several high profile North-East cases in which drivers involved in crashes walked free from court with a fine
PANELS detailing the plight of one of the region's most endangered creatures will be set up at one of the animals' last breeding grounds in the North-East. The Durham Wildlife Trust scheme is the latest stage in the Coals to Voles project, which aims
A CITY centre has been declared out of bounds to under 16-year-olds in the evenings in an attempt to crack down on anti-social behaviour. The curfew, in Ripon, has been introduced by North Yorkshire Police with the backing of Harrogate Borough Council
THE ambulance service in the region has reported a record number of calls over the New Year period. Police forces made hundreds of arrests, mostly for violence and public order offences, on a busy night for the emergency services. From noon until midnight
CHURCHGOERS across the North-East and North Yorkshire were united in grief yesterday as ceremonies across the region remembered the victims of the tsunami disaster. In only a week, congregations have raised thousands of pounds for communities devastated
A SHAKE-UP of services by a health group could see three of its four local surgeries replaced with one centre. Auckland Medical Group hopes to centralise its services by moving to a purpose-built base in Bishop Auckland. The move, which is the group's
THEY are usually known for their love of designer clothes. But three Darlington Football Club players - Matt Clarke, Adrian Webster and Adolfo Gregorio - and fan Chris Penman, were really given the fashion treatment when they each received a make-over
A SHAKE-UP of services by a health group could see three of its four local surgeries replaced with one modern medical centre. Auckland Medical Group hopes to centralise its services by moving to a purpose-built base in Bishop Auckland. The move, which
SOME homes in Bishop Auckland lost power for almost eight hours on New Year's Eve after a problem with underground electricity supply. Northern Electric (NEDL) sent engineers to the scene after power cut off at about 3pm. The site had to be excavated
A TALENTED sporting trio has landed trials for the international basketball squad. Kyle Smith, Luke Williams and Richard Summerbell are all bidding for a place in the England basketball team after being spotted by scouts at a national tournament. The
A BUILDING company has said that Paul Gascoigne's best friend, Jimmy "Five Bellies" Gardner, owes them thousands of pounds. But the former Newcastle United player's sidekick has denied all knowledge of the bankruptcy proceedings against him. Court papers
A netball team is feeling champion after winning a borough-wide competition. The Cumby, of Heighington, has clinched the Ferryhill Leisure Centre Winter Netball League title. Six teams competed in the nine-week league and The Cumby were the runaway league
UP TO 130 council support and administrative staff are to lose their jobs. Newcastle City Council is shedding the posts to keep this year's council tax rise low, by cutting through red tape. But the move has angered workers' union Unison, which is to
A DRIVER died in the early hours of New Year's Day after his car left the road and crashed into a fence. The accident happened at 1.10am in Green Lane, Ashington, Northumberland, near its junction with Chillingham Crescent. Police said the car, a red
CAR parking charges could be introduced in two town centres in a move to attract more shoppers. Derwentside District Council is considering introducing fees for some car parks in Stanley and Consett, plus parts of the village of Lanchester. The authority
AN action plan which aims to give North Yorkshire's rural economy a boost is to go before the county council's executive next week. The plan, called The New Rural Economy in North Yorkshire, is the result of a study - jointly funded by Yorkshire Forward
A WRITERS' group is celebrating a decade of putting pen to paper since it was launched as a library-run community course. The tenth anniversary of The Write Stuff, a local writers' collective which meets weekly in Seaham, County Durham, was marked with
THE official opening of the region's flagship music centre has been called off because of funding problems, it emerged yesterday. High-wire artist Philippe Petit was due to walk across the River Tyne to mark the launch of the Sage Gateshead, in June.
PERHAPS Scunthorpe United should have read the label before taking on Darlington on New Year's Day. If Brian Laws and his players had, it would have read: "Handle with care and caution." But as the January sales start in earnest, Darlington sold Scunthorpe
ALCOHOL could soon be banned from the streets of a village blighted by anti-social behaviour. Durham Constabulary has applied to Derwentside District Council for an order to prohibit the consumption of alcohol in public in Dipton, near Stanley. If the
ROAD safety campaigners are to make a renewed attempt in the coming months to introduce a new law of death by careless driving. The move follows several high profile North-East cases in which drivers involved in crashes walked free from court with a fine
A TEN-YEAR-OLD girl and her teenage cousin - who were hailed as heroes after nursing victims of the Indian Ocean tsunami - have returned home to a huge welcome. Cherise Watson became a national hero when The Northern Echo told how she had bandaged battered
JONNY Wilkinson is back. The drama could not have been scripted better as in his first full game since his latest injury, England's World Cup hero scored the winning try for Newcastle with a minute of injury time left. Receiving the ball from a ruck near
DARLINGTON manager David Hodgson will count the cost of the impressive New Year's Day win at Scunthorpe United this morning. Quakers play Macclesfield Town at the Williamson Motors Stadium, with several injury worries to contend with. Hodgson fears he
ONE of the world's most celebrated fighters is carving out a new career as a film star after battling back from a debilitating illness. North-East hardman Ian "The Machine" Freeman is taking a principal role in an independent film about the murky world
PLANS to build a log cabin on the edge of an east Cleveland village have attracted mixed reactions. Loftus Town Council said the proposal for the single holiday-let home at Liverton could set a precedent for larger holiday cabin lets and the conversion
A FAN is determined to pursue a campaign to bring greyhound racing back to Teesside, despite meeting rebuffs and apathy. Ken Alderson, who was chairman of the owners' association when Middlesbrough's dog track closed nine years ago, said: "I will not
BIDS to build 156 low-cost homes in North Yorkshire are being backed by North Yorkshire County Council. Funding of £12.3m will include £3.3m from the county authority and £3.2m from the Housing Corporation. North Yorkshire County Council chief executive
IT has been many years since businessman Paul Blanchard dreamed of pop superstardom - but he's never forgotten his friends. In the early 1960s he was the lead guitarist with the pop group the Cheavours, which enjoyed considerable success in the York area
A FORMER businessman has received a further setback in his bid to end a 21-year-old legal nightmare. Ted Winter, who ran the Queen's Hotel, in Stockton, faces accumulated tax arrears of more than £250,000 arising from a fire that burnt down the hotel
ONE of the world's largest private collections of lace is to go on display for the first time at one of the region's museums. Although the exhibition, at the Bowes Museum, in Barnard Castle, County Durham, is not due to open for another 18 months, work
A BATTLING youngster will celebrate five years free from leukaemia next week. Hailey Lamb, 11, who was born with Down's syndrome, is being honoured for her courage with a Cancer Research UK Little Star award. By her seventh birthday, Hailey, from Seaham
HUNDREDS of people across the region remain in dire need of life-saving organ transplants despite the number of operations running at record levels. Figures obtained by The Northern Echo show that 291 patients in the North-East and North Yorkshire are
Alun Armstrong was the match-winner after grabbing the only goal at Scunthorpe, but team-mate Adolfo Gregorio played a huge part in Quakers' fifth away win this season. His run towards goal in the 38th minute drew Andy Butler's foul that led to the Iron
TWO North-East men are planning an African expedition in aid of a national leukaemia charity. GP Peter Jones and leisure and planning consultant Geoff Hughes, of Sedgefield, County Durham, hope to travel to Africa in March to scale Mount Kilimanjaro in
A ferocious pheasant held a reign of terror over a country lane. Sharon Griffiths tells how she fell victim to it. WARNING: this is a violent tale of country life... of unprovoked attacks... where gang leaders guard their territory... where assailants
FRANCK QUEUDRUE refused to blame Middlesbrough's lacklustre performance at the weekend on fatigue. Manchester United's visit to the Riverside on Saturday was Boro's third in seven days and they could be forgiven for blaming the heavy festive schedule
Last year Mel Gibson and Michael Moore were the surprise cinematic hits, but who will be putting bums on movie house seats this year? Steve Pratt sizes up the contenders. SUPERMAN will fly again as Batman gets back behind the wheel of his shiny new Batmobile
FORMER Junior Great North Run winner Nathan Shrubb took full advantage of an absence of top local seniors to retain his title in the annual Morpeth 11K road race. The 18-year-old Tynesider's knowledge of the undulating course on the outskirts of the Northumberland
Bishop Auckland manager Brian Honour last night blasted departing midfielder Chris Moore who has stunned Bishops by dropping into the Northern League. Ahead of today's six-pointer against Frickley, Moore has shocked Bishops by agreeing to sign for Whitley
JONNY Wilkinson is back. The drama could not have been scripted better as in his first full game since his latest injury, England's World Cup hero scored the winning try for Newcastle with a minute of injury time left. Receiving the ball from a ruck near
FROST foiled Wetherby's first attempt to run the Castleford Chase just after Christmas, but undeterred the racecourse management have enterprisingly slotted the valuable two-mile event in the middle of this afternoon's fixture. Eight go to post for the
MARGINALISED young people are producing their own music CDs and videos under a new project. Rock musician Simon Bailey, 43, from Consett, is working with disaffected youngsters, teaching them how to express themselves. A musician for more than 30 years
A FORMER SAS soldier who became a journalist with The Northern Echo has died suddenly. Bill Anderson, who died two days before his 74th birthday, lived a colourful life in which he was also a film-maker and children's writer. He died at the home he shared
A SCANDINAVIAN home furnishings company is in talks to take on Marks & Spencer's doomed flagship Lifestore. Danish chain Ilva is in negotiations with M&S, with a view to buying its 70,000sq ft store, near the Gateshead MetroCentre. M&S heralded
A SEARCH has been launched for a group of people who were the epitome of healthy schoolchildren almost half-a-century ago. And with the couch-potato lives of many modern youngsters increasingly in the news, they could have a valid message for today's
WEARDALE RAILWAY: I REFER to your front page lead (Echo, Dec 24) about the Weardale Railway and must correct your comment. I am not aware of any local Weardale councillor who supports the vast amounts of public money being invested in the railway. I speak
