PLANS for Middlesbrough to parade the Uefa Cup through the town next week -should the Teessiders win the competition - have been scheduled for the same day that North-East rivals Newcastle salute one of their greatest ever players. If Steve McClaren marks
AT the end of a season that has seen Middlesbrough's youngsters come of age, Ray Parlour has identified David Wheater as the club's latest "star in the making". Wheater, who spent a month of this season on loan at Doncaster, made his third senior Boro
YOUNG actors played out an all- too-familiar scene yesterday as part of a hard-hitting water safety campaign. The group were at Cod Beck Reservoir, near Osmotherley, North Yorkshire, for the filming of a fictional emergency in which one of them, egged
Q I have been receiving Incapacity Benefit for the past ten years. This is now £152.90 a fortnight and I also have a works pension of £626.38 a month. My wife is 55 and has not worked since she was 37. Is there anything I can claim for her? A People who
MARTIN O'Neill's prospects of being offered the Middlesbrough job suffered a blow last night when Steve Gibson insisted he would not allow a wholesale dismantling of the club's backroom structure. The Boro chairman, who is in the process of formulating
A MANAGER at a Teesside call centre has receive a top honour at an industry awards ceremony. Andy Petford, 39, who is training officer at Wilton-based OC5, won the Call Centre Support Manager of the Year award at the Call Centre Management Association
WAYNE Rooney may be injured, but a supermarket is hoping to discover a new set of youngsters to represent their country this summer. Asda, in Bishop Auckland, will hold trials to find four hopefuls to join the retailer's English junior team for the Asda
DOZENS of young Teesside book lovers have qualified as student librarians. The 143 volunteer librarians, from 19 secondary schools, successfully completed a training course and received their certificates during a ceremony this week. Award-winning author
POLICE are appealing for witnesses after an apparent theft from a council site. On Thursday, at about 7.40am, a quantity of road signs and a skip were taken from the Durham County Council depot at Barford corner, on the A68, near Barnard Castle. A dull
Following yesterday's Cabinet reshuffle, one of the North-East's political heavyweights, Hilary Armstrong, retained a high-profile role at the heart of New Labour. Bessie Robinson looks at her rise to power and her new role as Minister for Social Exclusion
A THEATRE group has announced details of its tenth anniversary season. North Country Theatre was established at a meeting in Richmond in 1996. Ten years later, the company has given more than 800 performances and travelled more than 100,000 miles. To
COUNCIL officials are stepping up a drive to ensure local residents are not missing out on benefits. Staff from Hartlepool Borough Council will be at the town's Middleton Grange shopping centre on Thursday, from 9am to 4pm, to advise people of their entitlements
IT was third time lucky for a girl's football team who were beaten in the finals for a coveted cup for two years on the trot. Shotton Hall Junior School's all-female team finally lifted the Durham Primary Girls Football Festival trophy. In the finals
A SECONDARY school has received a glowing report from Government inspectors. St Francis Xavier School, in Richmond, was described by Ofsted chiefs as a good school with outstanding features. Inspectors said after visiting the school at the end of March
MORE than £4,000 worth of foreign currency has been stolen from commercial premises on Teesside. The cash was removed from the company safe in Skippers Lane Industrial Estate, Middlesbrough, some time over the bank holiday weekend. Australian, American
A TRAILER dealer has praised firefighters for saving him from financial ruin by containing a potentially disastrous blaze in his compound. Guy Auchterlonie, the proprietor of Hobson Trailers, said he had suffered damages amounting to more than £10,000
A CRAFTSMAN is hoping a £500 grant will help him to expand his business. Tim Rook, 30, makes contemporary mirrors and hand-carved furniture from his base at the Dales Centre, in Reeth. He has been awarded the money by Richmondshire District Council to
A COUNCIL may have to agree to a development it does not want because there is no legal reason to refuse it. At a meeting this week, members of Hambleton District Council's planning committee refused to approve plans for 14 new houses in Quaker Lane,
A TEESSIDE MP is urging local people to consider fostering during this year's Foster Care Fortnight, which starts on Monday. The North-East has a shortage of 1,300 foster carers, and Stockton South MP Dari Taylor has joined the awareness-raising campaign
A UNIVERSITY lecturer and one of his former students have been shortlisted for a prize at the radio industry's leading awards. Sunderland University radio lecturer Andy Cartwright and former student Kevin Cadwallender have been nominated for a Sony award
JUST as the old man was in London, holding his first press conference as England football manager, there were some boys in Steve McClaren's garden kicking a ball about. As his voice came over the car radio on Thursday afternoon, their voices echoed around
SEAMSTRESS Rachel Sleeman has caught the walking bug after tramping 22 miles in a sponsored trek - without any training. "I'm into fitness, going to the gym at Saltburn Leisure Centre four times a week, but I'd never walked more than a few miles at a
POLICE are appealing for information after a driver left the scene of a car crash in Darlington. A man was taken to Darlington Memorial Hospital following the incident, in Hollyhurst Road on Thursday, at about 11.30pm. The collision took place at the
PUPILS honed their interview skills yesterday when they were visited by prominent Darlington employers. Hurworth School Maths and Computing College held mock interviews for year ten students to help students prepare for the real thing. All the students
A FATHER and son are being recognised for their achievements at a Darlington martial arts club. Terry, 47, and Joshua Doyle, ten, have regularly attended Moore's Ultimate Combat at the Firthmoor Community Centre. The pair have been given a shield for
PUPILS from rival schools have joined forces to raise money for a good cause. A cast of 40 young people from Teesdale Comprehensive and Barnard Castle School took to the stage for a three-hour charity concert. The concert, billed The Power of Sound -
CONCERNED residents have formed an action group to fight plans to move a supermarket petrol station near to a Darlington school. They fear that the proposal to move the petrol station at Asda, in Whinbush Way, to the other side of the store's car park
A WORKER at a Teesside car dealership has won an all- expenses-paid trip to see the Uefa Champions League Final between Arsenal and Barcelona later this month. Paul Barker, assistant service manager at Jennings Ford, in Yarm Road, Stockton, bagged the
A NEW law banning off-road vehicles from the region's footpaths and bridleways has been applauded by conservationists. Legislation closing a legal loophole that allowed vehicles to use byways because they were once used by horse and carts came into force
A NORTH-EAST school is hosting a major national exhibition on its first trip outside of London. Making It Yours: Ceramics, which has opened at Greenfield School Community and Arts College, in Newton Aycliffe, County Durham, will act as the catalyst for
A CHIEF constable last night promised an inquiry after an innocent man was left with extensive injuries following a beating by police officers. Stephen Whenary was so badly injured by police officers who burst into a bathroom that he needed 13 weeks off
THE Attorney General has declined to allow the courts the chance to jail a paedophile who abused a seven-year-old girl. Lord Goldsmith QC, the Government's most senior lawyer, has concluded his investigation into the case of Anthony Lindus. The 27-year-old
A HEALTH trust has applied to have a family doctor blacklisted from working with the NHS nationwide after he was jailed for child pornography. Dr Riccardo Benci, a GP with Sedgefield Primary Care Trust (PCT), in County Durham, was sentenced to 15 months
DURHAM'S C & G Trophy match at home to Warwickshire tomorrow has come just too early for Steve Harmison but he could make his comeback in the championship game against Middlesex, starting at Riverside on Wednesday. Durham are reporting the paceman's
A FOOTBALL club has swapped Spennymoor United for Seville and Bishop Auckland for Basle after a fairytale qualification for the Uefa Cup. Four years ago, Gretna FC, from the Scottish Borders, finished seventh in the UniBond League First Division before
West Ham fan Ray Winstone portrays the ugly side of the beautiful game - and that's not just in use of the f-word - in his latest TV drama as a Premiership football manager. He talks to Steve Pratt about locker room language and baring his not-so-hairy
DEFIANT David Hodgson last night insisted he will not walk out on Darlington at the end of the season after revealing his driving ambition to achieve his promotion dream with Quakers. Since returning to the club two-and-a-half years ago, Hodgson has been
AMADEUS WOLF (3.15) possesses the perfect blend of speed and stamina to land a first-ever Classic for North Yorkshire's new kid on the block, Kevin Ryan. Five years ago Ryan was scratching around with a bunch of horses little better than selling platers
MARTIN O'Neill's prospects of being offered the Middlesbrough job suffered a blow last night when Steve Gibson insisted he would not allow a wholesale dismantling of the club's backroom structure. The Boro chairman, who is in the process of formulating
FANCY a weekend away in a bustling, exciting world city with plenty to see and do, which is only a few hours away from the North-East by train? If you are thinking about London, think again. The destination I have in mind is Scotland's handsome capital
REWRITE NEEDED RECENTLY, I received a Labour campaign letter listing what were described as achievements. They claimed crime was reducing, yet Home Office figures state that drug offences have rocketed by 21 per cent; violent crime by one per cent; sex
CLEVELAND Police may face legal action after Stephen Whenary was badly beaten by officers who burst into his bathroom. The pictures of his injuries reveal the extent of the violent confrontation that took place when police responded to reports of an argument
MORE than 80 jobs have been secured and another 15 created after a vehicle parts manufacturer on the verge of closure ploughed more than £1.5m of investment into its factory. Labone Castleside, in Consett, County Durham, has invested in new machinery
Pakistani pace ace Rana Naved-ul-Hassan destroyed Yorkshire's batting by taking seven for 62 on the third day of the Championship match at Headingley yesterday. The former Pudsey Congs fast bowler's dynamic display sent Yorkshire tumbling to 221 all out
A HEALTH trust has applied to have a family doctor blacklisted from working with the NHS nationwide after he was jailed for child pornography. Dr Riccardo Benci, a GP with Sedgefield Primary Care Trust (PCT), in County Durham, was sentenced to 15 months
A PAEDOPHILE who fled to the Republic of Ireland only to be tracked down and extradited back to the UK has been jailed. Michael Rowley, 43, was on the run for almost three years until he was arrested again in February. Teesside Crown Court heard yesterday
GLENN Roeder has finally admitted that chairman Freddy Shepherd has asked him to become the next manager of Newcastle United - and he hopes to have retiring skipper Alan Shearer by his side. Although there is still some confusion as to whether he will
WHEN the famous North Bank clock strikes ten to five tomorrow afternoon, Highbury may or may not have the perfect send-off. The destination of the Premiership title has already been decided. The glittering prize will sit proudly at Stamford Bridge again
THIRSK'S Hunt Cup could go Rio Riva's way provided he's not badly hindered by a dreadful draw, writes Colin Woods. Emerging from stall 15 means Rio Riva (4.50) is stranded out in the car park, just three berths away from the so-called "coffin box" for
The fresh ideas Steve McClaren ha shown on the training field for over a decade have ended with him being named as the next England manager. Chief Football Writer Paul Fraser talked to a player who has experienced those techniques, Marco Gabbiadini. WHEN
Darlington RA are awaiting fitness checks on a quartet of players for this afternoon's Darlington Building Society NYSD Premier League Premier Division game at Bishop Auckland. Professional Ashar Zaidi, Graeme Hird, Colin Cartwright and Stephen Marr are
KEVIN Ball takes charge of Sunderland for what is likely to be the last time tomorrow - with the caretaker boss insisting he has a future at the Stadium of Light. The Black Cats' temporary manager, still celebrating the first home Premiership win of the
THIRSK. - Thurs. Forward: 1,486 head of stock comprising 529 finished cattle inc 178 young bulls, 1,789 finished sheep inc 263 spring lambs and 260 cull ewes, 168 finished pigs inc 47 sows and boars. Cattle: steers med to 137.5p, av 115.5p, heavy to 138.5p
THE NSPCC will hold its Bluebell Walk through Houghall Woods, on the outskirts of Durham, on Sunday, May 14, starting at 3pm in the car park at Houghall College. Tickets cost £4 for adults and £2.50 for children. For details call Carol Jackson 0191-383
A SEAHAM councillor has been inaugurated as the chairman of Easington District Council. Councillor Charles Walker received the chains of office from the retiring chairman, Councillor Joyce Maitland, at the authority's annual meeting on Thursday. A parish
CHARMING and articulate, Robert Rennison has a fund of memories to recall, which is not surprising as he reached his 101st birthday yesterday. He laughed and chatted with family and friends as they popped in to Highfield House nursing home, in Haswell
CLEVELAND Police may face legal action after Stephen Whenary was badly beaten by officers who burst into his bathroom. The pictures of his injuries reveal the extent of the violent confrontation that took place when police responded to reports of an argument
TWO more councillors have left the Coalition group at Richmondshire District Council. Councillors Jim Fryer and Peter Wood will re-launch the Richmondshire Association of Independent Councillors (RAIC) as a political party. The defection is a fresh blow
A VOLUNTEER agency has celebrated its fifth birthday with a drive to become more self- sufficient. The 2D group, which provides support for volunteers in Teesdale and Wear Valley, has unveiled a revamped conference room and a website to help local not-for-profit
FOOTBALL fans can win the shirt worn by Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink during Middlesbrough's momentous fightback against Basle in the Uefa Cup quarter final. Saltburn Football and Cricket Club, in east Cleveland, is raffling the white shirt the Dutch striker
AN environmentally-friendly no-smoking coffee shop opened in Darlington yesterday. Coffee Bamber, in the ground floor of the Cornmill Centre, sells fair trade teas and coffees and sandwiches in biodegradable packaging. Although it joins a string of other
A REVIEW of the syllabus for religious education in Darlington could be given the go-ahead on Monday. The current syllabus was adopted in 2003 and was to be reviewed in 2008. However, the Standing Advisory Council on Religious Education will meet at the
PEOPLE can help fight skin disease by taking part in a charity walk. More than 250 people have signed up for the Newcastle Walk for Skin, around Beamish Open Air Museum, near Stanley, County Durham, on Sunday, May 21. The walk has been organised by the
A DARLINGTON school has backed efforts to tackle a spate of attacks on farm livestock in the Darlington area. The incidents occurred during the Easter school holidays on farmland stretching from Barmpton, near Whinfield, to Brafferton village. The incidents
A PIECE of North Yorkshire's industrial heritage was buried under concrete in a council blunder. North Yorkshire County Council employees working on a new footpath in Norby Front Street, Thirsk, covered the top of the old mill race with concrete. The
The tiny community of Stanwick is determined to keep its beautiful - but now too large - church as a holy place. THOUGH the great fire of York Minster was getting on 50 miles from the hamlet of Stanwick St John, they felt the heat there, an' all. Just
WOULD-BE benefit cheats have been warned that they are being watched. Hartlepool Borough Council is on the offensive against fraudulent claimants and says that the results are improving. Figures show that in 2005-6, six people were prosecuted, another
WARTIME sweethearts who met over a game of tennis are celebrating their diamond wedding anniversary. Bill Hoskinson, 89, and his wife, Rene, 83, who live in St Edmund's Close, High Conniscliffe, met at the Yorkshire Lawn Tennis Club, in Scarborough, where
A THIRD man accused of setting fire to a boy's home told jurors yesterday he was at the scene when the fatal blaze took hold. But Trevor Gordon said it was Neil English and Terry Majinusz who were standing at Dean Pike's front door as it went up in flames
A VILLAGE community association will celebrate its 20th anniversary with an exhibition charting its history. Woodham Village Community Association will mark two decades of the group and community centre with a celebration event today. The centre, on St
A BUS driver was left terrified after being kicked and punched by a teenager in a "totally unprovoked attack", a court heard yesterday. Stagecoach driver Gordon Alexander was set upon by a gang of youths when he stopped his bus at the Firthmoor terminus
AN Indian restaurant that reached the final three in last year's Flavours of Hambleton Awards is holding a charity evening to benefit a local hospital. Tomorrow, Aroma Indian Restaurant, in Zetland Street, Northallerton, will be preparing a set three-course
RESIDENTS of Middlesbrough and Eston can now receive emergency eye care in the community in an innovative scheme. Middlesbrough Primary Care Trust (PCT) has been working in partnership with the eye department at James Cook University Hospital to develop
POLICE have appealed for information after two masked robbers fled with a quantity of cash from a north Durham bookmakers a fortnight ago. A police spokesman said the pair struck at William Hill's in Park Road, South Moor, between 9pm and 9.15pm on Friday
A COUPLE have celebrated 40 years of marriage by travelling to Graceland. Kevin and Moira Mason, of Vicarage Road, Catterick Garrison, renewed their wedding vows in the chapel at the former home of Elvis Presley, in Memphis. Mrs Mason, 58, a customer
VOTERS in Hartlepool bucked the national trend by giving Labour two extra seats on the council. Despite a poor national showing in Thursday's local elections, the town was able to provide some joy for Tony Blair. The party was even able to take the Burn
NORTH Yorkshire county councillor David Lloyd-Williams, who has played a prominent role in overseeing elections in Eastern bloc countries in recent years, has been appointed a full member of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities in Europe. Coun
A FRIENDLY Australian parrot, like one that appears regularly on TV show Neighbours, is baffling residents after it turned up in a churchyard. When Jennifer Pakiam said "Hello", the parrot replied instantly with the same word after she saw it outside
THREE teenagers were rushed to hospital after the car they were travelling in left the road and rolled over several times in east Cleveland. The 18-year-old driver lost control of the black Fiat Seicento, which left the B1366 Liverton Road near the junction
A TWO-TONNE T Rex rumbled into the North-East yesterday. The model is the star of an exhibition at the Centre for Life, Newcastle, and needed a crane lift it into place. Arriving from Paris for its only UK stop on its tour of world science centres the
A PIONEERING clinic for hyperactive children is to carry out a major experiment involving a North-East school. If it succeeds, it could provide hope for thousands of children who are put on controversial amphatemine-based drugs, such as Ritalin. Dr Dave
MORE than 80 jobs have been secured and another 15 created after a vehicle parts manufacturer on the verge of closure ploughed more than £1.5m of investment into its factory. Labone Castleside, in Consett, County Durham, has invested in new machinery
A FUNERAL cortege paused outside Darlington's Covered Market yesterday to pay tribute to butcher Don Manson, who worked there for 58 years. Mr Manson died last week, aged 79, having only retired from C Harrison's stall in January. "His customers can't
A RURAL advice service helping 3,000 people a year to cope with debts has solved its own financial problems. The £19,720 grant from Teesdale District Council will allow the Citizens' Advice Bureau in Galgate, Barnard Castle, to remain open for two days
PUPILS were shown some exotic moves when a company of Indian dancers visited their school. Greenfield School Community and Arts College, in Newton Aycliffe, hosted a performance by the Annapurna Indian Dance Company. After watching the performance of
A SELF-HELP organisation which has brought a £1m investment to an east Durham village, is now facing an uncertain future. New Thornley Partnership, which has successfully attracted the substantial funding to help the renaissance of the former mining community
A CHIEF constable last night promised an inquiry after an innocent man was left with extensive injuries following a beating by police officers. Stephen Whenary was so badly injured by police officers who burst into a bathroom that he needed 13 weeks off
KEVIN Ball takes charge of Sunderland for what is likely to be the last time tomorrow - with the caretaker boss insisting he has a future at the Stadium of Light. The Black Cats' temporary manager, still celebrating the first home Premiership win of the
A GP referral scheme is introducing a ten-week course to help people with back problems. The activity sessions, run by Hartlepool Exercise for Life, involve various exercises within a circuit using stability balls and other equipment. The course will
And the winner isn't... Davina McCall. She's one person guaranteed to go home empty-handed from The British Academy Television Awards this weekend. As the host of the ceremony at London's Grosvenor House, McCall will be back in the spotlight following
LABOUR MPs last night called on Tony Blair to set a firm date for leaving No 10 in the wake of the party's local election drubbing and the dramatic sacking of Home Secretary Charles Clarke. Backbenchers queued up to insist only a timetable for handing
THE Attorney General has declined to allow the courts the chance to jail a paedophile who abused a seven-year-old girl. Lord Goldsmith QC, the Government's most senior lawyer, has concluded his investigation into the case of Anthony Lindus. The 27-year-old
DURHAM City No 8 Darren McKinnon is to captain the Durham side in the County Championship Shield, which kicks off today against Cheshire at Gateshead Fell. The former England colt, who has also played for West Hartlepool and Darlington Mowden Park, will
THE board of ice cream maker Richmond Foods yesterday agreed to a £182m takeover by a unit of US investment firm Oaktree Capital. North Yorkshire-based Richmond, which is best known for its Nestle-branded products, said that Oaktree intended to combine
IN the wake of one of the worst local election results in Labour's history, Tony Blair couldn't sit on his hands and do nothing. Charles Clarke was an easy target. He clearly had to go and his grumpy assertion that the Prime Minister was wrong to sack
ORGANISATIONS that support stressed farmers are to receive an extra £100,000 funding. Lord Bach, Minister for Food and Farming, said many farmers were facing severe cash flow problems because of the single farm payment fiasco. "In order to help people
GLENN Roeder has finally admitted that chairman Freddy Shepherd has asked him to become the next manager of Newcastle United - and he hopes to have retiring skipper Alan Shearer by his side. Although there is still some confusion as to whether he will
A MINISTER last night raised hopes that church pipe organs will not be subject to European laws stopping the dumping of hazardous electronic waste. Organ builders across the continent, including Harrison and Harrison, in Durham City, fear the EU's Restriction
WHEN it comes to taking their season to the very end, Hartlepool United have been there before. Those four occasions may have been in different circumstances - Pool were chasing the play-offs instead of survival - but the pressure is all the same. It
BRITISH Athletics League newcomers Gateshead Harriers will find their competition resources stretched to the limit when they make their National League 3 debut at Rugby today. The flourishing Tyneside club, which won promotion last season to become the
THE board of ice cream maker Richmond Foods yesterday agreed to a £182m takeover by a unit of US investment firm Oaktree Capital. North Yorkshire-based Richmond, which is best known for its Nestle-branded products, said that Oaktree intended to combine
AN EMOTIONAL Julio Arca last night admitted his future on Wearside is 'out of his hands'. Only last week the Argentinian hinted he may leave the Stadium of Light after a six-year love affair with the club. And after the Black Cats secured their first
A GIRL of six tortured by bullies tried to kill herself by lying in a road and waiting to be run over. The youngster's mother told of her horror when she found the girl lying in the road outside their home. The girl says she endured months of beatings
