GUY Wilks believes Suzuki's new Swift Super 1600 has what it takes to maintain his assault on the Junior World Rally Championship leaderboard. The all-new Swift, which is scheduled to make its world debut on the Rally Finland in August, completed more
POLAR explorer Conrad Dickinson will take time out from training for his North Pole expedition to speak at an awards ceremony. The 49-year-old from Hexham, Northumberland has recently announced plans to become the first Briton to complete the polar trilogy
THE number of North-East firms expecting to take on extra staff in the next three months has plummeted, according to a study. The net employment outlook for the region over the next three months fell to ten per cent, compared to 27 per cent for the last
A FAST-growing IT specialist has won a six-figure contract with the US military. Advantex Network Solutions, based in Sunderland, has clinched a deal to supply and install dozens of new high-security wireless networks at every US military base in Europe
THE frustration of those who loved Jimmy Mulligan is very easy to understand. Mr Mulligan, 73, died after he was hit by a defective car being driven dangerously as he waited at a bus stop in Gateshead. The car was being driven by either Christopher Eade
Jon Lewis' devastating rout of Australia in the NatWest Twenty20 international in Southampton yesterday was largely thanks to one of their outcasts. Two years ago the 29-year-old rarely got a one-day outing for Gloucestershire due to the presence of Ian
SHAMARDAL took another significant step towards superstar status with a pulsating all-the-way win on day one of Royal Ascot at York in the Group 1 St James's Palace Stakes. Even a rather murky and cool afternoon couldn't take the shine off Shamardal's
A LITTLE dog who was rescued from a house where 271 animals were being kept in horrendous conditions is enjoying a second lease of life with new owners. Four-year-old shitsu Cheng has recovered fully after RSPCA inspectors discovered him in an emaciated
MIDDLESBROUGH are hoping to complete their second signing of the summer later this week after agreeing a fee for full-back Emanuel Pogatetz. Boro officials have spent the last week locked in discussions with their counterparts at German side Bayer Leverkusen
The Lions were bracing themselves for another potential injury blow - losing England World Cup winner Lewis Moody for the first Test against New Zealand. Leicester flanker Moody has remained at the squad's Christchurch base to await further scrutiny on
A VILLAGE threatened with the closure of a top-performing secondary school last night put on a united front to issue a warning to council bosses. Scores of people turned up at a parish council meeting to insist they will fight tooth and nail against Darlington
STAND by your beds for a breathtaking performance from Proclamation (2.30) in the opening Jersey Stakes on day two of Royal Ascot at York. The Group 2 cracker has attracted a superb line-up, but to my way of thinking Jeremy Noseda's colt is potentially
STAND by your beds for a breathtaking performance from Proclamation (2.30) in the opening Jersey Stakes on day two of Royal Ascot at York. The Group 2 cracker has attracted a superb line-up, but to my way of thinking Jeremy Noseda's colt is potentially
OUIJA BOARD (3.45) can confirm her status as Europe's top filly by landing this afternoon's Royal Ascot at York feature, the Prince of Wales' Stakes, writes Colin Woods The high-class performer put trainer Ed Dunlop on the map with victories in the 2004
LAURENT Robert last night warned Newcastle boss Graeme Souness his best was still to come after he finally called time on his troubled St James' Park career. Robert signed a three-year deal at Fratton Park yesterday evening following hours of intensive
A REHABILITATION centre for older people is to be built in Darlington. The £1.2m centre is part of a drive to invest in services as Darlington tries to meet the challenges of an ageing population. The rehabilitation centre will be built in Hundens Lane
TO TIPSTERS of yesteryear, the distance a horse travelled to the racecourse was thought to be directly linked to the distance it would put between itself and its nearest rival. You wouldn't send a horse from Taunton to Perth, so the thinking went, if
GUY Wilks believes Suzuki's new Swift Super 1600 has what it takes to maintain his assault on the Junior World Rally Championship leaderboard. The all-new Swift, which is scheduled to make its world debut on the Rally Finland in August, completed more
Former Newcastle United player Tommy Walker, who starred in the club's golden era of the 1950s, has died. He was 81 and passed away on Monday night at a nursing home in Manchester after a short illness, a Newcastle United spokesman said. Mr Walker is
KELVIN Davis last night outlined his determination to wrestle the number one shirt from his Sunderland rivals after completing a £1.25m move to the Stadium of Light. The 28-year-old shot-stopper finally put pen to paper on a four-year deal yesterday to
A 21-YEAR-OLD man who claimed his friend was driving the car which hit a North-East pensioner as he waited at a bus stop was yesterday cleared of causing death by dangerous driving. The son of 73-year-old victim James Mulligan said afterwards that he
The crew behind the North Atlantic rowing attempt have been reflecting on their toughest day yet. Nigel Morris and George Rock, of Ingleby Barwick, near Stockton, along with fellow crew members Steve Dawson and Rob Munslow, are drying out after hitting
AS Royal Ascot came to the White Rose county of Yorkshire yesterday, the question was whether the Queen might have been having a little joke. The Queen, resplendent in pink, was wearing a Red Rose of Lancaster broach on the first day of the meeting at
A 21-YEAR-OLD man who claimed his friend was driving the car which hit a North-East pensioner as he waited at a bus stop was yesterday cleared of causing death by dangerous driving. The son of 73-year-old victim James Mulligan said afterwards that he
A MAN and his wife in a Teesdale village have been the victims of repeated vandalism. Police are appealing for information after vandals damaged one of their cars, which was parked at The Green, in Whorlton, near Barnard Castle. The vandals scratched
COLBURN MOVE: Recent reports about the financial chaos of Richmondshire District Council clearly show where the responsibility lies. I know that the Leader of the Council, Councillor John Blackie, and his Conservative Group have acted properly and honourably
PARISH councillors are counting on the discovery of lost deeds to help to resolve a land row and secure a play area for village children. But after receiving a copy of the deeds, Dene Valley Parish Council at Bishop Auckland faces a race against time
AN armed robber on a mountain bike who targeted youngsters was jailed today. Raymond Coglan threatened to stab several teenagers to force them to hand over their money and mobile phones. He blamed drink for his downfall, and on Saturday he will spend
OWNERS of hot food take-away shops considering applying for a new late licence are being told they must show how they will deal with the problem of litter. Under the Licensing Act 2003, all businesses who need a licence to open after 11pm must apply for
A DARLINGTON man is having to dig deep into his pockets, after a romantic gesture ended up costing more than he expected. Stacey Ashton, of Pateley Moor Crescent, wanted to buy his girlfriend a bunch of flowers and decided the best way to get them was
A 14-YEAR-OLD girl who has been missing from her home for five days has been urged to contact her family. Cindy Marie Shield, from the Haughton Road area of Darlington, has been described as "vulnerable". She was last seen walking away from Eastbourne
A MAN accused of rape threatened to distribute photographs of his victim naked, in her home town unless she continued to submit to sex with him, a court was told yesterday. John Gibson had already left lewd pictures of the woman on her car and outside
A NORTH-EAST businessman whose life "disintegrated" because of his addiction to child pornography today had his jail term for downloading images from the internet, more than halved. Terence Anthony Hardy, 57, was jailed for two years at Teesside Crown
Two Middlesbrough men convicted of killing market trader Kalvant Singh almost four years ago have launched an appeal to have their murder convictions quashed. Thomas Petch, 26, of no fixed abode, and George Romero Coleman, 45, of Thornton Street, North
AN inquest heard a North-East man died following a sustained, violent attack. Keith Philpott was found gagged and bound with horrific head, facial and abdominal injuries at his home in Axbridge Court, High Grange, Billingham, in March. The 36-year-old
tributes have been paid to the man who was a driving force behind the North-East producing one of the country's most successful journalism schools. Ted Hill, of Clare Avenue, Darlington, died last Wednesday, aged 83. He was renowned in the media industry
He may have been aquitted on all charges, but have the revelations about Michael Jackson's private life consigned his career to history? Nick Morrison looks at the future of pop's biggest superstar SOME of the most startling evidence to have emerged during
A LEADING voice for business in the region yesterday unveiled the first female leader in its 185-year history. Maggie Pavlou became the North East Chamber of Commerce's (NECC) first woman president at a ceremony held in Ramside Hall Hotel, Durham. The
THE North Sea oil industry suffered one of the biggest falls in production of all oil-producing nations during 2004, it emerged yesterday. Figures published by global oil firm BP showed a dip of ten per cent, equating to 228,000 fewer barrels being pumped
A TEENAGER who lost his finger in a freak accident has had the injured digit sewn into his groin to help it grow back. Ben Lee's middle right-hand finger was torn off when his ring got caught as he tried to scale a 10ft fence last Thursday. He was taken
RENEWABLE energy projects in the Tees Valley are in pole position to benefit from a new £40m Government grant scheme. Energy Minister Malcolm Wicks yesterday unveiled a £25m funding package to tackle greenhouse gas emissions by capturing carbon dioxide
A MAN who carried out a fraction of a 240-hour community punishment order was today locked up by a judge who told him: "You've been swinging the lead." Paul Arnett did only seven-and-a-half hours unpaid work for the community after he was sentenced more
The adventures of the Famous Five, soon to be made into a cartoon series, will seem very alien to today's over-supervised youngsters IF the Famous Five were alive today, they'd probably be in care. And their parents would definitely be in the slammer
One Life: Adoption Hell (BBC1) The Office: An American Workplace (BBC3) ADOPTION Hell is one of those jaw-dropping documentaries that make you wonder what possessed the participants to take part. Their lives are traumatic enough already without parading
THE clash of Queensland teammates Ashley Noffke and Martin Love could play a central role in Durham's four-day match starting at Northampton today. Only Dean Jones has a better first-class batting average for Durham than Love, who made 2,718 runs at 57.82
COUNCIL officials have confirmed that only the site on which Hurworth School's buildings presently stand could be used for housing. Rumours have persisted that the school site and surrounding land could be sold to developers, should the school be closed
AN auxiliary nurse spent her final moments biting her wrists in a desperate attempt to stay awake as she froze to death on snow-covered playing fields only yards from her home. A coroner's inquest into the death of Shelley Whitfield heard yesterday how
A PROMS in the park-style event will be staged in the grounds of a Roman Catholic seminary to help ease suffering in developing countries. While Bob Geldof's Live 8 concerts are grabbing most of the attention, Saturday's Midsummer Proms, Make Poverty
BRAZILIAN ballet dancer Daniel de Andrade's reason for settling in Cleveland was a domestic one. "Family is important. Mine is in Brazil. My children would be orphaned if we were abroad. If we live in Middlesbrough, where my wife comes from, we have the
AS Royal Ascot came to the White Rose county of Yorkshire yesterday, the question was whether the Queen might have been having a little joke. The Queen, resplendent in pink, was wearing a Red Rose of Lancaster brooch on the first day of the meeting at
COUNCIL leaders have pledged their support to a packaging company whose North-East plant was burned to the ground this week. It is hoped that Northern Packaging Distributors Limited will recover from the huge blaze and its 40 employees can be back at
A knee injury prevented Daniel de Andrade from taking major roles, but his passion for dance remains undimmed, he tells Steve Pratt BRAZILIAN ballet dancer Daniel de Andrade's reason for settling in Cleveland was a domestic one. "Family is important.
A CARE home worker accused of scalding a disabled resident has been cleared by a jury of inflicting grievous bodily harm on the man. Mathew Smith, 24, wept as he left the dock following the ordeal of a three-day trial at Teesside Crown Court. Mr Smith
The adventures of the Famous Five, soon to be made into a cartoon series, will seem very alien to today's over-supervised youngsters IF the Famous Five were alive today, they'd probably be in care. And their parents would definitely be in the slammer
PEOPLE with mental health problems and their carers are being offered a chance to influence future services at an event next week. The two-hour meeting at the 2D Business Centre, in Crook, next Wednesday, from 10am is for adults in the Wear Valley and
The great and the good descended on York yesterday for the start of the biggest sporting festival ever held in the North - Royal Ascot. Mark Foster joined them 'You mean there's racing as well?" exclaimed Anne Lawton from under her bright and wide-brimmed
A NEW community centre is aiming to create the right atmosphere for youngsters and parents in Bishop Auckland. Taylor Road Community Centre, in the Henknowle area, has become the third SureStart Centre in the town, and will provide help and services to
PUBS in a Teesdale village are to shut during an annual carnival day to prevent a repeat of violence which marred last year's event. The three pubs in Staindrop will close from 4pm during the carnival on Saturday, July 9. The three publicans have taken
One Life: Adoption Hell (BBC1) The Office: An American Workplace (BBC3) - Adoption Hell is one of those jaw-dropping documentaries that make you wonder what possessed the participants to take part. Their lives are traumatic enough already without parading
FASHION students from the region are hoping to buttonhole the honours in a national design competition. Last year, Darlington College of Technology surprised the fashion world when student Emily Carter-Gibson won the final of the UK Skillsfast competition
TWO teenagers injured in a car crash that killed their friend are still seriously ill in hospital. The two 19-year-olds were taken to hospital on Sunday night after the crash on the A177 Durham Road, in which their friend, barman Craig Large, died. One
As Royal Ascot moves north for the first time in its history, Peter Archer takes a look at the customs behind this highlight of the English social scene The Queen is on unfamiliar turf this week as Royal Ascot is held at York racecourse. It is the first
THE sister of a man who has been missing from his North-East home for more than three years said last night that she has still not given up hope that he is still alive. Ex-miner Edward Donnelly has not been seen since March 2002 and today police will
