Archive

  • Chancellor's son has cystic fibrosis

    GORDON Brown has tonight revealed that his four-month-old son James Fraser has been diagnosed with cystic fibrosis. The Chancellor and his wife Sarah were told their youngest son might have the condition shortly after his birth in July. A spokesman

  • What is cystic fibrosis?

    The Chancellor Gordon Brown and his wife are coming to terms with the fact their youngest son has cystic fibrosis. Cystic fibrosis is a hereditary disease that affects the entire body, causing progressive disability and early death. The life expectancy

  • Bears 'Rider of the Year' signs

    21-year-old Daniel Giffard has agreed terms with Redcar Bears club owner Chris Van Straaten for the 2007 season. Daniel was voted 'Rider of the Year' by fans at the South Tees Motorsport Park after showing great improvement across the season from one

  • November 29, 2006

    Solutions ACROSS 7 Patella. PAT+ELLA 8 Compre. C+O+MP+ERE 10 At last. ATLAS+T 11 Asperity. A+S+PER+IT+Y 12 Pole. PO(L)E 13 Dissenting. (anag.) 14 Odds and ends. ODD+SAND+ENDS 19 Wilderness. (anag.) 22 Step. STEP (pets rev.)

  • November 29, 2006

    Cryptic Clues ACROSS 7 Kneecap Irishman in front of girl (7) 8 Host caught with old politician before (7) 10 Finally a geography book on Thailand (2,4) 11 A dollar for each object with variable roughness (8) 12 European writer outside library

  • Yali Cabernet Sauvignon 2004 from Chile

    A typical cabernet from Chile this week - intense and deep ruby-red colour with aromas of ripe fruits and vanilla due to ageing in American oak casks. This is a full flavoured, elegant, reserve wine with blackcurrant and plum flavours - an easy-drinking

  • Un-Luque

    NEWCASTLE United striker Albert Luque, 28, saw his £80,000 Porsche Cayenne wrecked by a tipper truck as he stopped at the roadside to examine a tyre. Witness Angela Wormald, 23, said: "The driver of the lorry and the 4x4 were walking towards each other

  • Children's Christmas choice

    YOUNGEST READERS FINDING a really special book that works for babies and toddlers isn't easy, but Star Baby by Ian Whybrow, illustrated by Jason Cockroft (Orchard, £5.99) certainly fits the bill. Its theme is babies, both human and animal - lamb,

  • The Codex by Douglas Preston (Pan, £6.99)

    THE writing partnership of Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child has been a well-kept secret to British readers ever since their best known novel, Relic, went out of print several years ago. Fans who enjoyed that book and its sequel had to rely on personal

  • Anzio by Lloyd Clark (Headline Review, £20)

    THE Allied landings at Anzio on the west coast of Italy in January 1944 were a bold attempt to outflank the German Gustav Line, shorten the length of the war and give a seal of approval to what the Americans regarded as the Mediterranean side. Churchill's

  • Dreamspace artist arrested

    THE ARTIST who designed the Dreamspace artwork has been arrested this morning by detectives investigating the tragedy. Two women died in July when the giant inflatable structure broke free from its moorings in Riverside Park, Chester-le-Street, tipping

  • Urinary blockage

    QUESTION My cat, Max is a male, one year and eight months old. About a week ago, Max developed a urinary blockage, my vet said to bring him to the clinic that very night ... he is thank god, very good and very dedicated. There was a great deal of blood

  • How to stop a cat from missing the tray

    QUESTION I have two cats, one male Persian and one female with short black hair that I adopted when she was pregnant. They both get on great together and both use the litter trays provided usually without problems. The only problem I have is that

  • Find out more about benefits

    A WINTER one-stop shop will run in Newton Aycliffe next month to offer people advice about benefits, home energy grants and fire safety. Two drop-in sessions will be held in a shop unit in the town centre next Tuesday and again on December 19, from 9am

  • Pensioner thwarts attempted burglary

    A QUICK-thinking pensioner foiled an attempted distraction burglary when a conman tried to trick his way into her home. The man tried to convince the 76-year-old woman that he had spotted two youths running away after stealing cash from her home in Stockton

  • Police chief hails new headquarters

    A POLICE chief says his newly-completed station is the face of the future. Redcar district commander Superintendent Ian Richards said: "We have facilities here that in the past we could only dream about. This building allows us to bring virtually everybody

  • Brave student inspires colleagues

    A STUDENT who inspired her classmates to raise cash for research into a life-threatening condition has handed over £4,000 to charity. Sheryl Stephenson, a student at Durham Gilesgate College, was one of 50 students from the school who took part in

  • 140 miles on bikes to raise charity funds

    FOUR cyclists have proved they will go the distance for charity. Mark Watson, Andy Malone, Darryl Horner and John Allison have cycled more than 140 miles from coast to coast, raising more than £1,000 for the Daisy Chain charity that aims to open a respite

  • Respected councillor was a true gentleman

    TRIBUTES have been paid to a popular town councillor whose funeral was held yesterday. Ferryhill town councillor Joe Chaplin, who represented the Broom ward, died at home last week. He was 83. He joined the council in 1991, served as chairman in 1995

  • Experts make their mark

    Craftsmen have added a traditional Yorkshire touch to a newly-opened auction mart. The experts have built a dry stone wall at the Thirsk auction mart, at the rural business centre, in Blakey Lane, close to the A19. In total, 65 metres of stone wall was

  • Lantern parade tribute to miners

    A FOREST will be lit up with a lantern parade this weekend to recall the area's rich mining heritage. Children from Chopwell Primary School will take part in the dusk parade through Chopwell Woods on Saturday, carrying lanterns depicting miners' helmets

  • Design win for castle visitor centre

    A NEW building on a historical site has been named a winner in competition praising good design. The Helmsley Castle Visitor Centre was a winner in the Ryedale District Council Good Design and Construction Awards 2006. The awards recognise the efforts

  • Spotlight on Little Red Riding Hood

    YOUNGSTERS will be able to see a modern version of the classic fairytale Little Red Riding Hood performed by puppets this week. Little Red . . . You Know Who! is being staged by Freehand Theatre, one of the UK's leading touring puppet theatre companies

  • Apprentices win plumbing awards

    TWO apprentices from a Darlington plumbing firm have beaten their colleagues from across the region to receive trade awards. Stuart Cameron, 18, and Brian Middleton, 23, of Darfield Heating Services, Lingfield Way, Darlington, beat more than 650 trainees

  • Couple grew cannabis at home

    A COUPLE were warned that all sentencing outcomes remain possible after tarnishing their good character when they admitted drugs offences. Graham and Margaret Theresea Oselton grew cannabis at their

  • Man admits having sex but denies rape

    A teenager was raped after going back to the home of a man she met in a pub, a court was told. The 16-year-old claimed she was powerless to stop Kevin Chapman, 27, having sex with her in his front room. Mr Chapman is said to have struck when two other

  • Public meeting is called over Tarmac proposals for quarry

    A PUBLIC meeting has been called over proposals for a new quarry. Residents in Kirkby Fleetham, near Northallerton, say the quarry, proposed by Tarmac, would cause dust to blow through the village and affect property prices. But Tarmac says any materials

  • Clean-up operation targets anti-social communities

    A MASS clean-up campaign is heading for the Bedale area. The fourth Operation Enable, which brings together a host of agencies to tackle environmental crime, will run in Bedale, Aiskew and Leeming Bar from December 6 to 8. Led by the Hambleton Community

  • Football fan banned from Riverside after racial abuse

    A MIDDLESBROUGH football fan has received a three-year banning order after he admitted racially abusing one of his team's players. David Harton, 23, pleaded guilty to using racially aggravated threatening words and behaviour when he appeared before Teesside

  • Taste of bollywood at rural primary school

    SCHOOLCHILDREN from two primary schools were taught Indian dancing yesterday. About 56 pupils from Osmotherley Primary School and Swainby and Potto Primary School took part in the class. Three dancers from the Anna Purna Dance School showed the children

  • Fight to save health centre

    A CAMPAIGN to save a health and social centre has won the support of leading political figures. Managers of the Pioneering Care Centre, in Newton Aycliffe, fear it will close if Durham County Council withdraws most of its financial support. Th council

  • Action urged to protect beauty spots

    Urgent measures must be taken to protect County Dur-ham's rural beauty spots, an MP has warned. Helen Goodman, MP for Bishop Auckland, said rare plants and wildlife are being threatened by climate change and action must be taken to stop it. Speaking in

  • Fighting to save health centre

    A CAMPAIGN to save a health and social centre has won the support of leading political figures. Managers of the Pioneering Care Centre, in Newton Aycliffe, fear it will close if Durham County Council withdraws most of its financial support. Th council

  • Man, 21, stole flowers as gift for sick mum

    A MAN who stole two bunches of flowers to give to his ill mother pleaded guilty to theft at Darlington Magistrates' Court yesterday. Wayne Lawrence Davies, 21, of Aldbrough Walk, Darlington, was riding his bike with a friend when he passed the One Stop

  • School celebrates pupils' exam achievements

    TWO stargazers who gained exam success two years early were among hundreds of students honoured for their achievements. Travis Bacon and Adam Laidlaw, both 14, received special awards at Longfield School's annual presentation evening for their success

  • Singing finals see Hayley in fine voice

    A TEENAGER has come second in a national singing competition. Hayley McKay, 15, won the under-15 regional heat of the Festival 4 Stars competition, which was held in Newcastle earlier this year. Her success meant she qualified for the national final,

  • And what you've never had . . .

    Over the last few weeks, the correspondence column of The Daily Telegraph has literally overflowed. Extra space has been allocated to cope with a torrent of letters in the wake of the TV programme, How Do You Solve A Problem Like Maria?. Of course, the

  • November 29, 2006

    HOSPITAL TV MY brother-in-law recently passed away in hospital in Durham after a long-term battle with cancer. His only ever love, apart from his family, was football, so I made sure that he had television available for all the six weeks that he was in

  • Police stopped at airport after award causes security alert

    A POLICE delegation were told they could not take a national award they had travelled to London to collect on a plane because it was classed as a security risk. Durham Police received the award for a groundbreaking project that has taken 2,500 uninsured

  • Teenager tells court of depot fireball injuries

    A TEENAGER has told how he became a human fireball after an accident at a coach company. Scott Sergeant told The Northern Echo that he still suffers flashbacks from the events on September 11, 2004, which left the youngster, then aged only 15, scarred

  • Politics in the financial mire

    THE cash-for-honours inquiry is due to come to a head in January, when Metropolitan Police Assistant Commissioner John Yates hopes to present his findings to the Crown Prosecution Service. Whatever the outcome of that investigation, it cannot be healthy

  • Harrowing tale of real life disaster

    Tsunami: The Aftermath (BBC2) As the title suggests, this two-part film dealing with the giant wave that struck South-East Asia on Boxing Day two years ago is more concerned with what happened afterwards than the actual tsunami itself. This is a project

  • Delight at garage battle outcome

    AN elderly resident last night spoke of his delight after a recommendation that he receive compensation over a three-year battle with a garage owner. Richard Jackson, 79, says his life has been made a misery by a car wash and jet wash at the rear of his

  • Asbestos widow to get full payout

    THE widow of a man who died from asbestos exposure is celebrating news she will receive a full compensation claim before Christmas. Heartbroken Betty Cater, 63, lost her husband, Ron, in 2004 and last night became one of the first in the country to be

  • Boro future bleak for Mendieta

    GARETH Southgate has offered his clearest hint yet that Gaizka Mendieta has no future at Middlesbrough. Under Southgate's regime, Mendieta has made only three Premier League starts and he has been substituted on each occasion. The 32-year-old was an unused

  • The 12 per cent proof of the pudding

    STRONG stuff, Graham Bell in Northallerton reports a dry run on barley wine. "How am I going to make all my Delia Smith's Christmas puddings without it?" he inquires. Barley wine is said to have been around since the 18th century, when England was usually

  • Police in hunt for suspected attacker

    POLICE are appealing for help tracing a man suspected of assaulting a bus passenger after taunting his victim and girlfriend. The couple got on the Number 43 service at Durham Bus Station at about 9.45pm on Sunday, August 27, to travel to Esh Winning.

  • Samurai can cut down rivals for first victory

    GREY SAMURAI (12.45) rates a rock-solid each-way bet on a hugely competitive seven-race card at Catterick today. The Skeeby Selling Handicap Hurdle isn't the most glamorous contest in the world, but beggars can't be choosers and even though Grey Samurai

  • Leanne in clear as CPS drop case

    A YOUNG mother who stood up to alleged drug dealers has had charges of assault against her dropped. Leanne Robertson, 22, had been due make a second appearance before Teesside magistrates yesterday. But the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) decided to

  • Miller's eight-week ban shocks Darlington

    DARLINGTON have suffered a shock with the eight-week suspension of prop Dan Miller following his dismissal for stamping in the EDF Energy Cup win at Altrincham Kersal two weeks ago. The club felt his sending-off was harsh and hoped it would be deemed

  • PC admits being part of 'hole in wall gang'

    A POLICE officer has admitted being part of a gang who conspired to raid cash machines. Northumbria officer Jason Singh, 24, who was based at South Shields, in South Tyneside, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to steal along with six other men. The gang targeted

  • Smith's 30-yard strike blasts Quakers into semi-final

    Darlington 1 Mansfield Town 0 DARLINGTON made it six wins out of six and booked their place in the Northern section of the Johnstone's Paint Trophy semi-final through a 1-0 win over League Two rivals Mansfield Town. Substitute Martin Smith's 75th minute

  • Armed intruder steals car and cash

    A MASKED intruder robbed a 68-year-old businessman at knifepoint in his own home last week, police revealed yesterday. The robber raided a house in Shildon, County Durham, and threatened the owner before making off with his £14,000 car and cash. The

  • Let's keep it tight, urges Taylor

    STEVEN Taylor has urged his fellow defenders to continue their improvement in Frankfurt tomorrow night, and claimed it is time for Newcastle's reputation for defensive disaster to be put to bed. The Magpies travel to Germany this morning safe in the knowledge

  • Link to animal deaths is denied

    A MAN at the centre of an RSPCA animal cruelty investigation broke his silence last night to declare his innocence. Alan Magraw told The Northern Echo that although he had, in the past, rented sheds where 264 dead and decaying mice, guinea pigs and rabbits

  • 80mph legless man used sticks to drive

    POLICE who stopped a car after an 80mph chase were amazed to discover the driver had no legs. Double amputee Robert Bate used broom handles strapped to his wrists with duct tape to power his K-reg Vauxhall Astra away from police. Steering with one hand

  • Car parking fines may be cancelled

    TWO North-East councils could cancel thousands of unpaid parking tickets as a result of a court ruling, The Northern Echo has learnt. Stockton Borough Council is taking legal advice over whether parking charge notices it issued during the course of a

  • Walking the tightrope of school trips

    I REMEMBER the bad old days of school trips. When I first started teaching, I helped out on a geography trip to the south of France. The teacher in charge believed in letting the students have quite a lot of freedom. This included giving them tokens to

  • Former Magpies' chief builds future at Esh

    FORMER chief executive of Newcastle United Freddie Fletcher is to join the main board of the Esh Group to help it achieve its plans to double turnover to £200m. Mr Fletcher, who led the football club's commercial recovery in the 1990s until his retirement

  • What's happening to us? Why are we so angry?

    What's happening to us? Why are we so angry? A couple of high profile cases recently have seen men killed in arguments over parking places or accusations of queue jumping or noisy neighbours. What should have been no more than an exchange of words ended

  • Missed chances leave classy Cats hanging on

    QPR 1 Sunderland 2 LAST weekend, Roy Keane was prevented from seeing the latest James Bond film when his family vetoed his preferred choice of movie.Last night, as his players cruised to a convincing 2-1 win over Queens Park Rangers, the Black Cats boss

  • GNER wins temporary reprieve to run East Coast train services

    GNER could finally be facing the end of the line when it comes to its East Coast Mainline franchise, it was claimed last night.Reports suggested the rail operator would be granted a temporary reprieve by the Department for Transport (DfT) and allowed