A murder trial which has seen two 15-year-olds are accused of beating a homeless man to death has been adjourned until Monday. The pair are accused of murdering homeless George Akers as he lay beneath a tree in St Cuthbert's Church, Darlington, where
The Arctic conditions which have descended on Britain have caused chaos and hardship for millions of people. But a campaign being supported by The Northern Echo tomorrow aims to help those who are least able to cope with the extreme weather
NILE Ranger has expressed his delight at signing a new five-and-a-half year deal with Newcastle United, and is confident his best days on Tyneside are still to come. Ranger, who joined the Magpies from Southampton's youth team in the summer
HAVING successfully tied Mike Williamson and Nile Ranger to new long-term deals, Newcastle officials are preparing to start contract negotiations with Joey Barton and Jose Enrique. As expected, Williamson and Ranger both penned new five-and-a-half
A CHARITY has given advice to older people and those who look after them about how to keep safe this winter. Age UK is promoting its 'Spread the Warmth' campaign and has included a number of potentially lifesaving tips in its Winter Wrapped
PARK staff at a country hotel say they have tried their best to stop deer falling through the ice on a frozen lake but have run out of options. Workers at Whitworth Hall Hotel near Spennymmoor, County Durham, managed to save a few of the deer that have
POLICE are appealing for witnesses after teenagers assaulted two drivers and damaged three cars having ambushed motorists with snowballs. Drivers on St Andrew’s Lane in Spennymoor were attacked by a gang of about 20 teens after 5pm on Tuesday
RESIDENTS of a village named as the coldest in England said they are getting through the cold snap with a good community spirit. As temperatures plummeted across the UK last night, thermometers at the weather station at Topcliffe, near Thirsk, North
Catterick Young Farmers held their second fashion show on Friday 26th November at Catterick Bridge Hotel. Despite poor weather, the evening was sold out. The Young Farmers modelled casual country wear from Millbry Hill (Brompton on Swale) and
MPs are set to vote on a bill which could mean an end to seemingly endless dark winter evenings. If it gets the go-ahead later today the Government would have to launch an inquiry into the benefits of moving clocks forward by an hour throughout
NEWCASTLE UNITED have announced that Mike Williamson and Nile Ranger have committed themselves to new five-and-a-half year deals.Williamson has been a prominent figure at the heart of Newcastle's defence in the Premier League this season and manager Chris
Amy Laughinghouse follows the Scotch whisky trail on a lively tour of Scotland. WHEN Albannach whisky bar in Trafalgar Square introduced a 50-year-old Balvenie for £760 a dram, jaws dropped-and trembling lips sipped. Of course, it’s practically
Abstract painter Julia Burns turned the financial crisis to her advantage by creating unique works of art at affordable prices. Ruth Campbell finds the artist’s personality writ large on the walls of her home. WHEN artist Julia Burns, whose abstract
A MAN has died after being hit by a 4x4 when he stopped to help a car which had slid off the road in icy conditions. The crash happened just before 7pm last night on the A6108 at Bellerby Bank, between Richmond and Leyburn, North Yorkshire.
All FA Vase ties involving STL Northern League clubs have been postponed this weekend. Ashington, Billingham Synthonia, Spennymoor, Shildon, Dunston and Whitley Bay were all due in action on Saturday, with Norton playing on Sunday. However, all games
A MAN who died behind the wheel of his van has been named. Kenneth Reece Hall, from the Park End area of Middlesbrough, collided with a stone wall at a church in Guisborough on Thursday morning. Police officers were called to the scene in Bow Street
TWO men have been jailed following a robbery that ended in murder. Brothers Ryan and Anthony Ferguson broke into the house of 46-year-old father Keith Redpath on Tower Street West, Hendon, Sunderland, on January 16. Mr Redpath was fatally stabbed
KEN WYLIE researching a family who lived in Skinningrove during the late 19th century. They are the Gilbert family whose address in the 1891 census was 12 Carlin How, Skinningrove, Kilton, North Yorkshire. The family were Richard Gilbert, 42, an iron
Tudhoe House, a beautiful Georgian manor house in the village of Tudhoe, County Durham, is looking for a new owner. Ruth Addicott finds out what it has to offer. PERCHED right on the edge of the village green, Tudhoe House is one of the most sought-after
So ladies he’s going to be off to Russia in 2018. Prepare now if you don’t want to become a football marriage casualty. What better way to spend your winter evenings for the next seven years than poring over holiday brochures and guidebooks as you plan
BATHING services for people in Darlington could end as part of a shake up of elderly care across the town. However, it is hoped the service may continue in a different form as part of care packages for elderly people in the town. A report which is being
IT could drop to below minus 12C in Darlington tonight, in this the coldest spell for years. The sky is thick and laden with the white stuff ready to fall, as snowflakes or hailstones, like it has done for the last few days. More than a foot of
Would breastfeeding babies in the office help working mums, or just add to their stress level? BREASTFEEDING facilities for working mothers. Sounds brilliant, doesn’t it? Very go ahead and family friendly. Wrong. In fact, wrong on so many counts
FORMER Chumbawamba founder member and guitarist Boff Whalley has been up since 6.30am doing his homework when I ring. His daughter’s schoolwork, in fact, although with a new baby boy in the house, sleeping patterns can be erratic. Whalley is
Michael McIntyre: Hello Wembley (BBC1, 9pm); Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (Five, 10pm); John Sergeant On Tracks of Empire (BBC2, 9pm); Arena: Dave Brubeck: In His Own Sweet Way (BBC4, 9pm). SOME consider Michael McIntyre “the breakout
CAN I congratulate Ian Swales, Liberal Democrat MP for Redcar, on his brave decision to announce he plans to vote against the Government’s controversial proposed increases in university tuition fees. Mr Swales’ decision is consistent with the
OVER Christmas, Sky Television presents a new National Geographic programme called “Jesus, The Missing Years” on channels 543 and 526 HD at 8pm, on Monday, December 27. I would recommend Christians (and others) have a change from a diet of Sky
THE decision by the Government to cut School Sport Partnership funding in every town and city in England is an incredible backward step. As Dr David Haslam from the National Obesity Forum confirms “there is a huge rise in obesity in the UK and
IT was before dawn when I set off for work on Monday. I crawled along through a snowy landscape. Then, just as it was getting light there was a flash of lightning, a peal of thunder and another blizzard began. I thought to myself that the whole
School closures for the North-East and North Yorkshire. Check back for regular updates. MIDDLESBROUGH CLOSED Primary Schools Abingdon Primary School Acklam Whin Primary School Ayresome Primary School Berwick Hills Primary School
IT IS no surprise to learn that King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia tried to persuade the US to attack Iran. Hostility between Iran’s Shia fundamentalist regime and the oppressive Sunni Muslim monarchy of Saudi Arabia is both sectarian and ideological
NEWLY released figures show a “truly shocking” trade deficit in goods and services between Britain and the EU. A huge trade deficit with the EU of more than £260bn between 2000 and last year has been confirmed by the Office of National Statistics
WHEN the Labour Party was in Government, it allowed the destruction of manufacturing jobs in the Spennymoor area. A sound UK economy requires a strong private sector, creating wealth, as well as sensible funding for the public sector. The Labour
COMMUNITIES throughout the North-East now have a great opportunity to influence BT’s £2.5bn plans to roll out super-fast fibre broadband across the UK. The Race to Infinity allows people to show local demand for the technology by voting at bt.com
I WAS very sad to see the Ark Royal depart from North Shields for the last time. She has served us well over the years. Of the Royal Navy’s fleet of warships the aircraft carriers are perhaps the most impressive. With a displacement of about
WHEN England’s footballers came home empty-handed from the World Cup in South Africa in the summer, it was a case of getting what they deserved. When England’s 2018 World Cup bid team arrive home empty-handed from Zurich, it will be quite the
DAVID Barron‘s policy of spacing out Elijah Pepper‘ s races can be rewarded again with a third consecutive victory at Wolverhampton. The five-year-old got in the winning groove at Dunstall Park in mid-October and struck again a month ago. He has
Bravo Two Zero soldier Chris Ryan is on a new mission: to get youngsters reading books. The former SAS soldier from the North-East tells Steve Pratt that talking to schoolchildren about the Army doesn’t make him a recruiting officer. THE start
AS was starting to become widely expected, Australia have decided to cut Mitchell Johnson loose ahead of the second Test. The wayward quick had a shocker of a time in Brisbane, dropping a catch, taking no wickets and walking for a duck, and his
HOWARD Johnson remains hopeful Tidal Bay can emerge a realistic Gold Cup contender when he heads to Cheltenham for next month’s Cotswold Chase. The nine-year-old was a brilliant winner of the Arkle Trophy at the 2008 Festival, but his form
Excellent letter in today's paper from Philip Nathan, Chairman of the Northern Durham Liberal Democrats. Mr Nathan congratulates Ian Swales, Lib Dem MP for Redcar, for vowing to vote against the coalition's increases in university fees. The letter sums
ENGLAND remain wary of their Ashes opponents in the second Test, even though Australia appear to have blinked first by dropping Mitchell Johnson. Andrew Strauss, who had some minor ‘firefighting’ to do after Kevin Pietersen’s latest foray on
ENGLAND hardened their position on selecting overseas- based players by declaring they will only be chosen after the 2011 World Cup in “exceptional circumstances”. The Rugby Football Union’s chief executive John Steele has written to all England
DEFLATION? Yes. Disappointment ? Undoubtedly. Disbelief? When it comes to FIFA, it’s best not to regard anything as too much of a surprise. The World Cup will not be coming to England in 2018, and the recriminations into what went wrong are
JOEY Barton will return to Newcastle United’s starting line-up on Sunday, with Chris Hughton tipping the controversial midfielder for an England call-up. Barton has completed a three-match suspension following an off-the-ball incident with
THE head of the United States World Cup bid team admitted defeat to Qatar in the race to host the tournament in 2022 was “very difficult to take”. The US, who hosted the World Cup in 1994, lost out to Qatar in yesterday’s vote, with bids from
THE recriminations over England’s humiliating defeat in their attempt to win the 2018 World Cup began last night after the bid was eliminated in the first round with just two votes. Russia won the vote by FIFA’s 22-man executive committee in
GRAHAM Taylor believes a perception of England as “arrogant” and “know-alls” ended their hopes of winning the 2018 World Cup but thinks their dismal showing in the voting could prompt investigations into the running of FIFA. The Former England
THE RUSSIA BID STRENGTHS A new territory for the World Cup – something which appeals strongly to FIFA president Sepp Blatter. Carried out an impressive campaign with lobbyists with excellent FIFA connections. Prime Minister Vladimir Putin’s
QATAR’S Emir Sheikh Mohammad bin Hamad Al-Thani believes FIFA’s decision to award the nation the hosting rights for the 2022 World Cup marks a “milestone” for the sport in the Middle East. Bids from the United States and Australia had been fancied
RUSSIAN president Dmitry Medvedev welcomed the news that the 2018 World Cup is coming to his country but immediately turned his focus to delivering the event. The Russian bid saw off competition from England, Spain/Portugal and Holland/ Belgium
BECOMING an established member of the Premier League is getting harder but Kieran Richardson feels Sunderland’s young squad has all the ingredients to force themselves on Europe. Sunderland boast the youngest squad in the topflight and have
TONY Mowbray has ruled out any prospect of highly-rated goalkeeper Jason Steele leaving Middlesbrough during the January transfer window. Steele has caught the eye of Premier League scouts since breaking into the first team at the start of
What is it like to watch a football game in Russia? Assistant Editor Scott Wilson watched England lose in Moscow’s Luzhniki Stadium, one of the 2018 World Cup venues, in 2007 and describes his experiences in the Russian capital. THE noise was like
DAVID Beckham summed up England’s hurt at their dismal defeat in the contest to host the 2018 World Cup saying: ‘‘It’s crushing.’’ England were knocked out in the first round after picking up just two of the 22 FIFA executive committee votes while
A FAMILY has spoken of its shock after a drug addict lied to court officials about her mother having terminal cancer in an attempt to avoid being sent to prison. Friends and family of Barbara Garvey learnt she was dying from a report of the
INSURANCE company Ageas has started recruiting 250 North-East workers for its partnership with Tesco. The firm is looking for insurance claims managers, team leaders and negotiators for Tesco Underwriting, a general insurance partnership between
A JURY has been told that the case against a man accused of a string of violent sex offences spanning more than a decade is flawed. Shaun Shotton’s barrister yesterday claimed that the evidence was littered with “conflicting nonsense”. Mr Shotton
A WOMAN is in a critical condition in hospital after a house fire. Crews were called to the house in Dunster Close, Branksome, Darlington, shortly before 4pm on Wednesday, when fire is thought to have broken out in a first-floor room while the
STUDENTS in the North-East are to be encouraged to look at careers in the region’s oil and gas industry. The Opito Petrochallenge, which simulates work in the industry, will see school pupils and college students pit their wits against each
A FINANCIAL advisor is reporting a dramatic increase in calls from NHS staff concerned that public sector cutbacks will hit their pensions. Carterbar, which is based on the Belasis Business Park, in Billingham, Teesside, says that NHS staff fear
A NORTH-EAST-based company has been awarded a contract worth more than £2.5m to install CCTV systems on trains. Gateshead-based Petards has won the contract with Transys Projects Ltd for locomotives and passenger vehicles, operated by Southeastern
MIDDLESBROUGH FC shirt sponsor Ramsdens is one of two Teesside businesses named in a national league table of the country’s fastestgrowing firms. The UK’s largest independent pawnbroker sits at number 26 in the Sunday Times Virgin Fast Track
JOB prospects in rural areas are expected to be boosted by a drive for more tourists to visit County Durham’s market towns. Four destination development plans for Barnard Castle, Bishop Auckland, Stanhope and Chester-le-Street will be unveiled
A MOTHER of four with a flair for business and beauty is gearing up for her first venture after winning premises for a year rent-free. Paula Wallace will launch Star Beauty tomorrow at In- Shops, in Bishop Auckland, with a day of demonstrations
GOVERNMENT ministers have held a series of meetings with steel company Sahaviriya Steel Industries (SSI), as part of efforts to secure a deal for the mothballed Teesside Cast Products (TCP) plant, it has emerged. Business Minister Mark Prisk
A SELFLESS community champion has been named a town’s Citizen of the Year. Despite a lengthy battle against cancer, Brian Robinson has continued to work tirelessly to improve the lives of others in Middlesbrough. He spent most of his working life
A PIZZA shop worker accused of having underage sex with a besotted schoolgirl has admitted being flattered by her attention. Curtis Warren said he was happy to receive text messages from the youngster, but insisted he never returned her compliments
THE jury in the trial of two teenagers charged with the churchyard murder of a homeless man will retire this morning to consider their verdicts. The boys, both aged 15, are jointly accused of the murder of George Akers as he lay beneath a tree
MORE than 400 soldiers have been recognised for their work in Afghanistan. Members of the Royal Dragoon Guards, based at Catterick Garrison, North Yorkshire, recently returned to the UK after a six-month tour in Helmand province. The Guards
A MAN had the remote control taken from him after being stabbed through the heart for his big screen TV, a court heard. Ryan Ferguson, 18, and his brother, Anthony Ferguson, 35, kicked their way into Keith Redpath’s home to steal the plasma
A PAIR of energetic police officers put on their yomping boots and went back to their roots to raise money for charity. Inspector Tony Green and PC Anthony Harrison, both former Royal Marines, travelled to Plymouth to enter a half-marathon in
A DISABLED woman’s 55th birthday celebrations ended in tragedy when her electric wheelchair collided with a car as she drove home along an unlit road. Pamela Shields, of Park House Gardens, Sherburn Village, County Durham, had twice the legal
A FIVE-YEAR-OLD girl who has borne her treatment for leukaemia with a smile, despite being confined to a wheelchair, has been rewarded for her courage. Lucie Russell was one of 21 young people from across the region presented with a Brave Heart
HARD-PRESSED ambulance bosses have appealed to the public not to make frivolous 999 calls – after one caller rang to ask for help to find his missing tobacco. The North East Ambulance Service (NEAS) is dealing with a large volume of calls at
A BIG fall in allowances claimed by the region’s MPs – to £153,538 over four months – shows they are being “careful” now, the expenses chief said last night. The total, which works out at an average of £6,676 for each MP, follows a crackdown
The failed bid left the region wondering what could have been. Joe Willis watched the announcement at St James’ Park, in Newcastle, while Stuart Arnold gauged the mood at the Stadium of Light, in Sunderland. THE region feared the worst well before
DEDICATED doctors, matrons and nurses have been sleeping on the wards to beat the Arctic conditions. After being stranded miles from home on Wednesday, staff at the University Hospital of North Durham, in Durham City, slept over to make sure patients
POLICE have provided a lifeline to dozens of pensioners trapped in their homes by the snow. About 12 officers went into action on the Chester Moor Estate, in Stanley, County Durham, yesterday, with spades to clear footpaths, and food parcels
IT was not only the prestige and excitement of hosting the planet’s biggest sporting event that went East yesterday afternoon. Had England, rather than Russia, been chosen to host the World Cup in 2018, then the country could have expected
THE inquest into England’s failed bid to host the 2018 World Cup began in earnest last night. Russia was handed the tournament after England fell at the first hurdle in Zurich, despite the presence of the so-called Three Lions – David Beckham
