Norman Dinsdale was one of those characters who’d seen and done it all. If you’d been to Tenerife, he’d been to Eleven rife ! He would sit in the snooker room at Cockfield club and watch the lads playing snooker, but never played himself. Duncan Sams
The story for tomorrow's Headline Game on TFM radio is about an American heiress who has offered £200,000 to an Italian reality TV star if he is prepared to father her child. Claudio Paselli is thinking over the offer but seems likely to accept. Headline
ENGLAND have confirmed they are flying out to Abu Dhabi tomorrow and will resume their tour of India following days of talks with security advisors. The England and Wales Cricket Board emerged today from two days of talks with security experts and government
NORTH-EAST driver Harry Vaulkhard will spearhead the challenge of a new team in next season's British Touring Car Championship. Tempus Sport Ltd will field two Chevrolet Lacettis in the HiQ MSA sponsored championship as the highlight of an
THE West Indies have been confirmed as the Test opponents for England at Chester-le-Street next year. They will be at Riverside between May 14 to 18 and will tour as a replacement for Zimbabwe. Political objections to Zimbabwe's tour forced their withdrawal
NEWCASTLE Falcons insist it is business as usual despite yesterdays confirmation that Northumbria University have purchased the club's Kingston Park ground from Northern Rock. Northumbria have purchased a 23-acre site that includes the rugby stadium,
Up to six inches of snow is expected to fall in parts of the region later tonight and motorists have been warned to expect hazardous driving conditions. Snow showers and blizzards are expected to blow across the region in the early hours of Thursday
SUNDERLAND have confirmed the appointment of Steve Walton as Chief Executive. He will officially commence his duties at the Club on 1st March, 2009. Walton is currently Corporate Director for Barclays Bank in the North-East and has over 30 years experience
A GRITTER slid off the road and down a four foot high bank as it fought against the freezing weather affecting the region. The Durham County Council gritter was tackling a minor road near to Sedgefield when the accident took place. Battling
POLICE are appealing for help after two burglaries in the same village. Both raids took place in Welbury, near Northallerton, and the first happened during the week leading up to November 18. Burglars broke in to an unoccupied property by smashing a
A WOMAN suffered minor injuries when her car rolled onto its side near Hedleyhope Fell nature reserve this morning. The 39-year-old, from Tow Law, was freed from her Silver Astra by emergency services after the vehicle skidded off the road at Tow Law
CIVILIANS are to patrol their villages to help police in the fight against crime. Neighbourhood Watch volunteers are to take part in evening observation patrols in villages near Easingwold as part of a new initiative, Operation Eyeball.
I've just received a letter from Ted Wood, the Local Hero of 2008. Ted, who has devoted his life to Durham University Rugby Club, was named the overall winner at last week's Local Heroes Awards. Ted wrote to say thank you and said: "I felt truly privileged
SANTA Claus is to appear in the North York Moors National Park as part of a festive fun day. The North York Moors National Park Authority is hosting a Christmas Craft Fair at its Sutton Bank visitor centre. Children will be able to meet Santa Claus
TEESSIDE university's student of the year has dedicated his prestigious accolade to his father who died just after his final exam. Said Nasser Al-Burtamani had never been outside Oman in the Middle East when he travelled to Middlesbrough three years
AWARDS have been given to people who have made an outstanding contribution to part of north Durham. It is the last time Derwentside District Council will be able to honour citizens as the authority is being abolished next year. A total of 14 people
A FORMER North-East councillor who has been stranded in Thailand has been reduced to begging for money in the street so he can eat. Bill Proud, 59, had been due to head back home a week ago but anti-government protesters shut down the two main
Work to rebuild the Bluebird boat in which speed ace Donald Campbell was killed was given official blessing by his daughter today. Gina Campbell fixed the first rivet in the craft, which was recovered from the bottom of Coniston Water in 2001
ROGUE traders are on the run in North Yorkshire as the fight against doorstep crime passes a major milestone. The trading standards department has just set up its latest "No Cold Calling Zone" - the 200th in the county since the scheme was launched three
A NEW £43,000 website has been launched by North Yorkshire Police to help get its message across to the public. The force hopes to explain its work in more detail to the local communities it serves. This website will have a page for
RESIDENTS in Lingdale and Guisborough are being urged to be vigilant after being misled into believing that they are putting out clothing for collection from charities. Instead, it seems that the clothing is being collected by profit making organisations
Wonders will never cease - I managed a point on the Headline Game on TFM radio this morning. The story was about a chap called Andy Nelson who has launched a successful go-kart business after being made redundant from Electrolux in Spennymoor. During
A DETECTIVE who gave top-secret police information to a feared mob boss has been jailed for five years. Because Detective Constable John Jones was the "eyes and ears" of Allan Foster, 32, the mobster knew he was untouchable by the law.
POLICE officers and staff in the region have been rewarded for their service. Chief Superintendent Ian Spittal, of North Yorkshire Police, held an area commander’s ceremony, at the Guildhall, in York, yesterday. The awards were presented to police officers
RESIDENTS and businesses are being urged to enter the festive spirit and light up their town. Ferryhill Town Council and Ferryhill 2000 Committee wants entrants to its annual Christmas lights competition. There will be two categories- residential and
PUPILS in Coundon experienced continental culture when ten overseas teachers visited their school. Six representatives from Turkish schools, and four from Denmark, arrived at St Joseph’s RC Primary School earlier this week as part of the Building Bridges
THE Forestry Commission has stepped in to replace a Christmas tree dubbed the worst in Britain. The sorry-looking tree in Peterlee, County Durham, will be replaced by a handsome specimen grown in the heart Hamsterley Forest, near Bishop Auckland
A CULT leader who took his sex slaves for walks on a lead in a North-East town has been jailed for three years for forcing a lover to sleep with other men. Lee Thompson had such a dominating influence over the woman that she did whatever he
THE North-East rugby community came together yesterday to pay tribute to the inspirational Ali Johnson, who died on Monday following a stroke. Johnson, a farmer from Coanwood, near Haltwhistle, was paralysed when he broke his neck while representing
MICHAEL Hunter is eyeing a tilt at a European title as he prepares to make his boxing comeback on Friday. Hartlepool’s Hunter, a former British, European and Commonwealth champion, will end a self-imposed sevenmonth exile when he takes on Frenchman
PETE Sampras believes Andy Murray has what it takes to win a grand slam singles title and reckons he is ‘‘only one notch below’’ world top two Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer. Murray, 21, enjoyed a prolific season, reaching No 4 in the world and
LIVERPOOL boss Rafael Benitez insists misfiring striker Robbie Keane will overcome his current crisis in form. The £20m summer signing was substituted for the 15th time this season as Liverpool were held 0-0 at home by West Ham on Monday night
HOWARD Johnson and Denis O’Regan can do no wrong at present and another winner looks assured in the Catterickbridge. co.uk Juvenile Hurdle with Nine Stories. That’s assuming the track survives a 7.45am inspection. Clerk of the course Fiona Needham
CHAMPION Chase hero Master Minded is the 4-6 favourite to make a winning reappearance in the Seasons Holidays Tingle Creek Chase at Sandown on Saturday following confirmation that Tony McCoy will be in the saddle. The champion jockey will get
ELITE rugby director Rob Andrew yesterday backed Martin Johnson and his under-fire coaching staff to revive England’s fortunes. But he warned it would be a ‘‘longterm process’’. Johnson’s first series in charge ended with a hat-trick of heavy
OLYMPIC gold medalist James DeGale yesterday led a barrage of criticism aimed at amateur boxing chiefs after agreeing a £1.5m deal with Frank Warren. DeGale joined Sports Network alongside Olympic team-mates Frankie Gavin and Billy Joe Saunders
ALREADY short on numbers, Danny Wilson’s Hartlepool United squad was further depleted yesterday. Goalkeeper Arran Lee-Barrett was handed a three-game suspension after swinging an elbow in the direction of Fleetwood Town’s Lee Hunt during Saturday
MIDDLESBROUGH boss Gareth Southgate is hoping to infuriate former international team-mate Tony Adams by snatching Arsenal full-back Armand Traore from under Portsmouth noses during the January transfer window. Traore has spent the first half
Stoke City 0 Derby County 1 DERBY, relegated in shame from the Premier League last season, are on the brink of a Wembley final after edging past Stoke in the Carling Cup fifth round. An injury-time penalty from Nathan Ellington sent Paul Jewell
ENGLAND will play their two-Test series in India after agreeing to fly into Abu Dhabi tomorrow to begin preparations. Reports in the United Arab Emirates claim England will train and play a warm-up game at the Abu Dhabi Cricket Club. The team
TOTTENHAM boss Harry Redknapp will face brotherin- law Frank Lampard Snr for the first time in his career when the Carling Cup holders continue their defence at Watford’s Vicarage Road tonight. The pair barely trained on opposite teams when they
SHAY Given has laughed off the latest bout of speculation linking him with a January move to Tottenham, and insisted he remains committed to helping Newcastle climb the Premier League table. With Heurelho Gomes having dropped a series of costly
Burnley 2 Arsenal 0 KEVIN McDonald steered Burnley into the semi-finals of a major competition for the first time in 25 years with a superb brace at Turf Moor. The Championship team booked their place in the last four of the Carling Cup after
REAL MADRID’S pursuit of Klaas Jan Huntelaar ended in success last night when they agreed a fee with Ajax for the Holland striker that could rise to £23m. Both the Amsterdammers and the Spanish champions announced a deal had been struck to allow
BLACKBURN boss Paul Ince has savaged the critics he feels are trying to tear the club apart. Just a few months into his tenure at Ewood Park, Ince is under fire after a wretched run of nine Premier League games without a win, with Rovers one
DARLINGTON manager Dave Penney has challenged his wide men to deliver more often – starting on Saturday against Rochdale. First-choice wingers, Franz Burgmeier and Rob Purdie, have provided the squad’s most assists with seven and three respectively
NIALL Quinn has opted not to hold crisis talks with Roy Keane, despite the Sunderland manager’s frank admission that he was questioning his position in the wake of last weekend’s humiliating home defeat to Bolton. But with leading shareholder
TWENTY-FIVE years on and Willy Russell’s Blood Brothers is still capable of attracting full houses with a show that’s as vibrant and passionate as ever. I was impressed by how well this musical has worn and how, unlike some that have been doing
Steam job Beehive (E4, 10.30pm); Dangerous Jobs For Boys (five, 9pm) IT’S the stuff of nightmares for BBC Radio 2 executives. Not one, not two, not even three, but four Russell Brands. They prove one of the few bright notes in Beehive, a new
Going halfway to somewhere, Chris Lloyd stumbles upon a bare knuckle, prize-fighting, Derby-winning MP who was rescued from a debtors’ prison to sink some of Durham’s largest collieries. THORNLEY feels like it is in the middle of nowhere, but
Some of the guests at Middlesbrough FC fanzine’s 20th birthday bash may have found the supper hard to stomach. BARELY nine months after savouring the dubious delights of tripe, we return to that distinctly acquired taste – and to a tripe supper
I REFER to your story, “Lesbian soldier wins £190,000 Army payout” (Echo, Nov 27). I understand that the sexual harassment that Lance Bombardier Kerry Fletcher was subjected to came from one soldier. I believe this could have easily been resolved
THE value of membership of the European Union is being recognised by member states. Sometimes this is through informal ideas on the banking situation that would not have taken place without membership. The British call for recapitalisation of
BECAUSE she’s worth it… An NHS nurse consultant has reportedly earned more than £100,000 a year by doubling her basic £50,000 salary with masses of overtime to cut waiting lists. Fantastic. Give her the money gladly. £100,000 is also
THE robustness of democracy is constantly under challenge as terrorism provides a chilling reminder of its ferocity and there is no doubting the complex nature of a significant global problem. In this respect, your Comment column (Echo, Nov 29
WORDS of wisdom from one so young (16-year-old Adam Porter, HAS, Dec 1) in support of our monarchy. Our monarchy is a massive asset to our country. It is admired and respected by the majority of us and indeed throughout most of the world. The
Plans to remove the last acute services from Bishop Auckland General Hospital and give it a new role have divided opinion. Health Editor Barry Nelson talks to those in favour of the proposals and those against. WHEN Clive Auld moved to Bishop Auckland
THE Bank of England Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meets today and a further cut in interest rates is almost certain. But how big the cut will be is far from clear. The MPC is walking a dangerous tightrope. Spending is drying up and more businesses
ONCE again Muslim terrorists bring havoc to the world, this time in India. No doubt, liberal British loonies will say that we must understand why these people murder innocent civilians and that we must grasp their way of life. No thanks. It disturbed
MY father died of cancer. By the time it was diagnosed it was too late to cure him. I blame our GP, who insisted for a long time that my father had a stomach ulcer. However, the surgeons operated and removed a lot of the tumour. After a short respite
FOR what looked like a landmark judgement – and was certainly one to welcome – it received surprisingly little prominence. All seven of the gang that carried out the execution of the Hell’s Angel Gerry Tobin as he rode along the M40 were convicted
A MOTORIST escaped serious injury when his car skidded off the road and ended up on its roof as freezing weather hit the region. The accident happened on the A168 in North Yorkshire, early yesterday morning as ice and snow gripped the roads.
A RETIRED fitter diagnosed with the fatal asbestos-related disease mesothelioma has been awarded a six-figure compensation settlement from his former employer. Maurice Gardner, 75, was employed at the BRB Residuary Limited workshops, in North
TESCO revealed its weakest UK sales performance since the last recession yesterday after a supermarket price war halved growth in the last quarter. Britain’s biggest grocer posted a two per cent increase in UK like-for-like sales, excluding petrol
POLICE are searching for an office worker who was reported missing on Monday. June Peet, 36, who shares a house with three others in Darlington, was last seen by her housemates on Wednesday, November 26. Her family, who live in Cumbria, have
A PENSIONER whose family has been blighted by cancer has undertaken a gruelling challenge to raise money for research into the disease. Jimmy Barrett, 65, completed a triathlon at Glenholme Leisure Centre, in Crook, County Durham, yesterday
HARD-UP households in the region will be among the first in the country to benefit from the Government’s plan to save 6,000 mortgages. A month before the £200m mortgage rescue package is made available nationwide, authorities in Darlington,
A GEORGIAN manor house near Darlington, which opened its doors to businesses last year, has marked its first anniversary by revealing that bookings from corporate and private clients are way ahead of expectations. James Allison opened his family
PUB equipment company Brulines is eyeing new acquisitions after declaring that the credit crunch is helping the business grow. The Stockton-based firm, which yesterday revealed profits for the half-year to September 26 had risen 7.5 per cent
THE North-East requires another substantial cut in interest rates, according to The Northern Echo’s Shadow Monetary Policy Committee, which met in Durham yesterday. But opinion fluctuated widely. One member felt that with prices falling, the
Former Electrolux worker uses redundancy to drive own business A FORMER Electrolux worker has used his redundancy to start a business developing the next generation of Lewis Hamiltons. After losing his job at the plant in Spennymoor, County Durham
A NORTH-EAST council has admitted taking inadequate action to avoid repetition of serious abuse cases like that of Baby P. Middlesbrough Council has been named as one of 28 councils where internal inquiries into serious injuries or child deaths
A PHOTO-PROCESSING chain with more than 15 branches across the region has gone into administration, it was announced yesterday. Klick Photopoint owner, the Bowie Castlebank Group, is to shed 817 jobs. The Glasgowbased company also owns photo
A CORRUPT policeman who provided confidential information to a gangland killer is today facing jail. Detective Constable John Jones was offered cocaine and prostitutes to help career criminal Allan Foster stay one step ahead of the law.
THE family of a popular amateur footballer will never know why he chose to take his life, an inquest heard yesterday. John Jackson, a goalkeeper with Billingham Synthonia, died after he fell from Leven Viaduct, in Yarm, near Stockton, at about
TWELVE years ago, Pauline Robson was homeless and penniless after a divorce. Then her father died, followed by her aunt less than a year later, while Ms Robson, 57, also discovered she had cataracts. Despite all that, she has started
CONTROVERSIAL plans to force lone parents to prepare for work when their child is still in nappies will form the centrepiece of today’s Queen’s Speech. The move will trigger a confrontation with Labour MPs and child poverty groups, who have already
THE mother of a two-year-old boy alleged to have been murdered by his babysitter was yesterday accused of being responsible for causing his fatal head injuries. Clare Fisher tearfully denied the suggestions by defence barrister Andrew Thomas
A SCHOOL is taking a fresh look at the traditional nativity story. Youngsters from The Chorister School, in Durham, are performing a play called Mary’s Knitting, which begins with Mary knitting a blanket while excitedly awaiting the birth of
FROZEN windscreen wipers led to the death of a pensioner who was knocked down by a driver who could not see through his dirty window, a court heard yesterday. Audrey Whaley died two days before Christmas last year while walking to her local newsagent
CHILDREN dressed as kings and angels will help Santa Claus bring a bit of festive cheer to Shildon on Friday. Father Christmas will lead the fancy dress procession from Netto car park at 4.30pm on Friday (dec 5) to the town square for the official switching
