A TEENAGER who lured a schoolgirl to his den for sex was yesterday caged by a judge who lifted restrictions of naming him. Dwayne Ryan can now be identified as the "cunning and persistent" brute who attacked the 15-year-old in Hartlepool last summer.
AN elderly woman has been airlifted to hospital with serious injuries after the car she was a passenger in crashed into a wall. The crash involved a black Vauxhall Corsa and happened at about 3.10pm on St Matthew's Close, in Leyburn, North
A PUBLIC library in the North-East has been refurbished with a £2.5m revamp. The new look Gateshead Central Library, now with one of the country’s largest children’s library and a host of other new facilities, was unveiled by Mayor of Gateshead Councillor
A HOSPITAL cancer unit has received a financial boost from Tata Steel. The company, which owns Corus, has donated £4,000 to the Holistic Cancer Care Centre in James Cook University Hospital. The centre delivers a range of complementary therapies such
CREATIVE students have seen their vision transformed into a stunning steel sculpture to mark the opening of a new store. The A level Fine Art students at Prior Pursglove College unveiled the work outside the new LIDL supermarket in Guisborough. The
A FILM-MAKER is appealing for audience extras as he attempts to capture the joy of watching a movie. Cleveland College of Art and Design student John Noble is hoping to attract people to the Regent Cinema, Redcar, made famous in the war-time blockbuster
SPECIAL events have helped boost visitor numbers at a Darlington museum. More than 30,000 people passed through the doors at the Head of Steam Railway Museum on North Road in 2010. Of those, more than 14,000 came to special events designed to increase
DEVELOPERS behind a big new estate that residents fear will dwarf their village have been given more time to complete highway improvements. One of the last acts of Chester-le-Street District Council before its demise almost two years ago was to approve
THE family of a teenager who completed a sponsored swim in aid of an Armed Forces charity have thanked the leisure centre that helped her to complete the challenge. Rebekah Johnson, 15, from Richmond, swam 100 lengths of Catterick Leisure Centre in
MOTORISTS enduring rush-hour delays caused by temporary traffic lights will face further headaches from next week when part of a key road is closed. Essential repairs to the A684 through Morton-on-Swale and Ainderby Steeple, between Northallerton and
TWO leisure organisations have announced plans to merge to allow more chance of making it through the recession. The trustees of Colburn Community Partnership are in discussions with the Richmondshire Leisure Trust over plans to merge the two to create
A MAN missing for a fortnight may have had a near miss with a taxi as he stumbled into a road a week ago, police say. Darren Waller has not been seen by family or friends since about 5.30pm on Sunday, January 9. Kathleen Waller has now followed her
ATTEMPTS to smuggle more than a quarter of a million illicit cigarettes have been foiled in less than a week at the North-East’s biggest airport. UK Border Agency officers made the seizures from passengers returning on four flights from the Canary Isles
AN unlawful use of force contributed to the decision by Adam Rickwood, 14, the youngest person to die in custody in recent times, to take his own life at Hassockfield Secure Training Centre in County Durham, an inquest jury concluded today.
TERRY and DOROTHY CLARKE is searching for two friends who now live in North Yorkshire. They were Jack and Gwen Wright. They first met when the Clarkes bought the Wrights home in Cookridge, Leeds, in 1958. The two wives were good friends, while the two
TRADERS are invited to have their say on plans which could mean better public space, marketing, street cleaning, security and signage for Durham city centre. City leaders hoping to establish a Business Improvement District (BID) for the area will hold
MORE than 750 protected newts have been moved to make way for new houses. The great crested newts, which are legally protected in Britain, were moved from the former Durham County Council depot site in Framwellgate Moor, Durham, to allow for Miller Homes
Warrington Put Burnley On 2 Losses as Heat Keep 1st Place National League Basketball in association with TADEA; Sustainable Energy Solutions & Heaven Scent; Yankee Candles Middlesbrough The big talking point of the last week was the big game between
Comedian Russell Howard kicks off his UK arena tour in February. He discusses the art of stand-up, the success of his Good News series and a possible return to Mock The Week. He was born in Bristol in 1980, has appeared on Mock The Week, 8 Out
With the Royal Shakespeare Company season called off for 2011, the arrival of Propeller in Newcastle is timely. Viv Hardwick talks to director Edward Hall about his all-male cast. IN the best traditions of an allmale activity which avoids all mentions
Featuring the voices of Mandy Moore, Zachary Levi, Donna Murphy, Ron Perlman, MC Gainey, Jeffrey Tambor, Brad Garrett Running time: 100 mins Rating: **** THE Disney people let their hair down in the 50th feature animation from the company
Stars: Paul Giamatti, Rosamund Pike, Dustin Hoffman, Minnie Driver, Rachelle Lefevre Running time: 133 mins Rating: **** PAUL Giamatti won the other Golden Globe best actor award – the one for being in a musical or comedy, as opposed
Controversial Radio DJ Tom Binns talks to Viv Hardwick about his decision to use his Wearside connections to create Sunderland psychic Ian D Montfort. THERE’S something funny about Sunderland, I thought that was self-evident” says stand-up
Recreating fairy tales in its own inimitable style is what Disney does best. Steve Pratt finds out what is making the latest offering such a success. THE name of Disney and fairy tales go together in the world of animated movies. As Tangled
ARTERIES describe themselves as a DIY band. From music, to album design, to organising tours, the Swansea punk outfit take charge of the lot. While there are obvious benefits to this approach, it does mean that unless you are an ardent fan of
HAVING recently been branded as Nashville’s newest and hottest export, Mona are ready to release their first single of 2011, Teenager. This single is a soundtrack for a new generation, an angst-driven anthem with vintage roots. Passion, obsession
THE first release from her forthcoming album Let England Shake, the song begins with jangly guitars, jumpy rhythms and Harvey on the saxophone. Don’t let the joyful sounds fool you, the real message is hidden within the lyrics. The track is the
THIS new up-and-coming singer songwriter hails from Portsmouth and has recently released her debut album. It’s an amazingly emotional magical journey of the cliched world of love, pain and loss. The songs switch between scorching dance tracks,
INOFFENSIVE and unremarkable, Painted Like a Picture retells Townsend’s life up to this point. A decent enough singer, he intertwines his vocals with a pleasant guitar-based soundtrack. It’s not bad, it’s just not great and I’m not sure I’d be able
JINGLY, jangly indie pop from a New Zealand outfit that have gone under my radar, but have picked up numerous awards in their part of the world. Featuring repetitive guitar chords that give the song a train-like feel, and sounding not unlike some
FEATURING rapper, Ludacris (why can’t they just spell their names properly?), Bodyshots featured on an episode One Tree Hill and was a No 1 hit on the Billboard Dance chart – thanks Wikipedia. It’s pretty run of the mill R and B, with lyrics that
DESPITE the title The Go! Team prove there’s still plenty of electricity coursing through their bodies. Announcing itself with a Beastie Boysesque bang, Rolling Blackouts reestablishes the Brighton band as one of best kept secrets in British music
CD REVIEWS: Meadow/Blissful Ignorance (Edition Records EDN1025) I’m not sure what can be read into the album title as this is in fact a very thoughtful and considered performance. Meadow comprises three of Europe’s most experienced musicians with
TAYLOR Swift is 22 and tours the UK in March having been ranked as the bestselling musician in the US as far back as 2008. Her debut single, Tim McGraw, released in 2006, was subsequently certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association
WHAT’S ON: Northern Sinfonia, conductor Thomas Zehetmair, The Sage Gateshead, 7.30pm, tonight. Stephen Reay leads Mozart’s Basson Concerto. Box office: 0191-413-4661. REVIEWS: Schubert Octet (Deux Elles DXL1145) The Fibonacci Sequence perform the
GLASGOW’S Celtic Connections Festival is in full swing at the moment, and much of it is being broadcast by the BBC, either on Radio 2, on Radio 3, or via their various “listen again” internet outlets. Some of the festival’s many shows are also
Jamie Brown has taken on the lead role in Val Laws’ tribute to South Shields’ hero John Simpson Kirkpatrick. Viv Hardwick finds out the tricky nature of this Arts Council England-funded play. How did you get involved with this project?
PASSENGERS were evacuated and delayed after a train pulled into a busy station with its engine on fire. The 5.55pm East Coast train to London King's Cross pulled into platform three at York Station on Wednesday with flames leaping from the engine.
A CONCERNED parent has urged senior council figures to protect an award scheme for teenagers and young adults. A review of the Open Award Centre, in Darlington, which helps youngsters in the town taking part in the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award,
A PROJECT has been granted £360,000 to help arrest the growing rate of youth unemployment in Darlington. An estimated 300 people aged from 16 to 25 will benefit from the scheme over the next three years, as the YMCA looks to get young people
A WOMAN who was punched in the face by a female dog walker has spoken of the harrowing incident, which she said had made her wary of strangers. The mature student, who did not want to be named, was attacked near Broken Scar, on the western edge
A MAN breached a restraining order by sending a series of text messages to his former partner, a court heard. Following the breakdown of Craig Cummings’ relationship, he was issued with a harassment warning which he ignored, landing him in court
AN overhaul of Darlington’s primary school dinners system will be tried out next week. Plans to introduce a nochoice menu across all of Darlington’s primary schools will be piloted at one school. The plans are believed to be in the early stages
WORK on a popular bridleway and country walk is about to begin. On February 7, contractors will start improving Salters Lane bridleway in the Harrowgate Hill area of Darlington. It is hoped that the improvements will lead to more people from
TERRIBLE Tracy Barlow is used to being time behind bars. And normally rival Becky McDonald is more than happy to see her there. That’s bars as in prison, where Tracy has been doing time for bashing lover Charlie (the late lamented builder with
POLICE are investigating a burglary at a house on the outskirts of Crook. Several electrical goods and items of jewellery were stolen during the incident, which took place at School Street, in Howden-le-Wear, sometime between 6pm and 8.40pm on Sunday
The Town (15) 119 mins, Warner, DVD £19.99/Blu-ray £24.99) DOUG MacRay (Ben Affleck) masterminds a four-strong team comprising best friend Jem (Jeremy Renner), Gloansy (Slaine) and Desmond (Owen Burke). On their final job, Jem
POLICE are appealing for information over the whereabouts of a stolen pedal bike. The black Hora adult mountain bike was stolen from Fieldhouses, in Eldon Lane, on Tuesday, sometime between 4.30pm and 5.45pm. The owner had replaced the front wheel and
Famously stuck in a snow drift at Bleath Gill, engine 78018 has been in out of the cold much too long. THE Welsh town of Barry was the locomotives’ graveyard, their condemned cell. Darlingtonbuilt 78018, an evening star among steam engines,
The dangers of being a bargain hunter are revealed when the broccoli bites back. AS I may have mentioned once or twice before, shopping is one of my wife’s hobbies. The desire to find a bargain is in her bones. She buys things we don’t need, just
HEALTH bosses are expected to back revised plans to build a hospital in the region today. Despite last year’s disappointment when the coalition Government refused to pay for the project out of public funds, trust officials are said to be confident
JLC: Turning Japanese (Channel 5, 9pm); Skins (E4, 10pm); Relocation, Relocation (C4, 8pm); Not Going Out (BBC1, 9.30pm) JUSTIN LEE COLLINS is no stranger to dealing with situations and people alien to him – after all, this is the man who became
I HEARD in my local pub the other day that the BBC were thinking of producing a new version of The Last Of The Summer Wine. They were thinking of calling the show The Last Of The Good Times For Joe Public. The lead character was to be a pompous
I HAVE noticed that during the dark winter months our streets are dimly lit. We live in semidarkness. The light bulbs used in street lighting must be weak. This must encourage crime. We have already had numerous burglaries in my area. Have the
THROUGH no fault of his own, my son is confined to a wheelchair. He cannot walk after complications suffered as the result of an operation. He wants to return to work, owns an automatic car and has no problems driving. However, he needs someone
I WOULD like to make people aware of the danger to pet dogs or young children when walking. On Monday, my dog and I were attacked by two lurcher-type dogs, which were with their owner but not on leads. My dog was on a lead and is a gentle type
LAST year almost 300,000 jobs were created in the UK. Good news for the thousands of unemployed people in this country you would think. Unfortunately, almost two thirds of these jobs were filled by migrant workers, mainly from Eastern Europe.
AM I alone in thinking North Yorkshire County Council is out of control and out of touch with reality? Is it reasonable to ignore the results of public consultation and go ahead with closures of schools and libraries regardless? Or is this a demonstration
THREE years ago I wrote to HAS arguing against the use of wood as a bio-fuel. I mentioned the essential part trees played in our environment. Sadly, the industry has continued to use wood-chip, old timber and fast-growing timber. I’m alarmed that
I WOULD like to congratulate the members of Animal Aid for all their hard work, especially in persuading Marks and Spencers and Morrisons supermarkets to install CCTV cameras in their slaughterhouses. Importantly, both companies have also promised
REGARDING the recently withdrawn Harrier jump jet and its remarkable capabilities. I suppose we should not worry about these jets being sent to the scrap heap. Instead, I am sure they will be sold to our good friends in the Middle East, such as
NICK CLEGG has the most exciting and radical plans for delivering power and independence to our towns and cities of any Westminster politician. There, I’ve done it – I’ve praised the hate figure who has gone from the adulation of “Cleggmania”
Size doesn’t matter, Sir Ian McKellen discovered on a visit to the City Theatre, in Durham. He tells Steve Pratt about the importance of the amateur stage in the country’s cultural life. SIR IAN McKELLEN has barely set foot through the door of
PLANS were revealed last night to build a revolutionary £100m waste conversion plant that could create hundreds of jobs in the region’s chemical processing and construction sectors. Four sites beside the River Tees are being considered as locations
DAVID Cameron has made it clear that the balance of the North-East economy has to change because it is too reliant on the public sector. We understand why that imbalance has to be addressed. We also understand that the North-East does not have
THOUSANDS of private sector jobs and millions of pounds of investment could come to the region if bids for Government funding are successful. Tees Valley Unlimited (TVU), the area’s Local Enterprise Partnership, has confirmed it has submitted
A £20M wind turbine plant is creating hundreds of jobs as the region bids to become an international centre for the renewables industry. The initial phase of development will create 100 jobs, and a further 300 workers will be needed to service
Birmingham City 3 West Ham United 1 LIFELONG Birmingham fan Craig Gardner sent City through to their first major Wembley final for 55 years with an extra-time winner in the Carling Cup semi-final clash with West Ham United at St Andrew’s. Gardner
MIDDLESBROUGH have not given up on striking a deal with Stoke City for Andrew Davies despite the defender’s return to the Britannia Stadium. Boro boss Tony Mowbray has identified the centre of defence as an area of priority to strengthen following
DARLINGTON could be without four strikers when they host Kettering on Saturday as injuries take their toll at The Northern Echo Arena. Liam Hatch and Nathan Modest (dead leg) had to be subbed during Tuesday’s draw with Mansfield while Tommy Wright
AS Nicky Butt prepares to relaunch his career in Hong Kong, a documentary looking back on the midfielder’s time in England will be broadcast highlighting the differences between life at Manchester United and Newcastle. The former England star
STEPHANE SESSEGNON was in the North-East last night hoping to receive the goahead to complete a move to Sunderland as an ongoing internal dispute at Paris St Germain threatened to derail the deal. But Black Cats boss Steve Bruce has learned that
MARTIN JOHNSON last night waded into the furore over Dylan Hartley and branded Warren Gatland’s attempts to wind up the England hooker as the actions of a man under pressure. Wales coach Gatland lit the blue touch-paper ahead of a potentially
MICK WADSWORTH has welcomed a weekend off for his Hartlepool United players. After Tuesday’s 1-1 draw with Notts County, Pools are not in action until they go to Oldham next Tuesday. Amid a busy schedule, the free weekend, due to Huddersfield
ENGLAND skipper Andrew Strauss admitted it felt ‘‘very good’’ to beat Australia on their national day and remain alive in the one-day international series following a 21- run win in Adelaide. Jonathan Trott produced an unlikely all-round performance
PAUL DI RESTA is relishing the prospect of again going head to head with Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel after finally securing his place in Formula One. Di Resta will join world champions Hamilton and Vettel on the grid for the new campaign
KIM CLIJSTERS is confident of producing the improved performance she feels is required to beat Vera Zvonareva in the Australian Open semi-finals today. The Belgian overcame Agnieszka Radwanska 6-3 7-6 (7/4) yesterday to join Zvonareva in the
ANDY MURRAY moved into the semi-finals of the Australian Open and then watched as his expected lastfour opponent Rafael Nadal crashed out. Murray beat Alexandr Dolgopolov in four sets but Nadal could not follow suit as, severley hampered by a
WHEN Andy Murray is quizzed about his failure to win a maiden Grand Slam, his favoured response is to highlight the strengths of the players he is competing against. Thanks to the presence of Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer, Murray finds himself
SHE returned to tennis dreaming of Wimbledon glory and emulating Roger Federer, but Justine Henin last night laid down her racquet for good with those targets still unfulfilled. Little over a year after she ended her brief period period in retirement
ROBIN DICKIN will no doubt be driven to distraction by Restless Harry’s Cleeve Hurdle raid on Saturday, but Kathleens Pride can at least keep the wagon ticking along at Warwick. The 11-year-old gelding has had no end of problems over the years
SUNDERLAND’S Hazel Robson admits she got a little help in claiming 100m silver at the IPC World Athletics Championships – but insists that shouldn’t take anything away from her performance. Robson, of the Jarrow and Hebburn club, lined up on the
NEWCASTLE striker Andy Carroll is set to be sidelined for at least another month after suffering a setback in his recovery from a thigh injury. Carroll will visit a tendon repair specialist in Sweden tomorrow after he was unable to take part
WHEN Andy Murray is quizzed about his failure to win a maiden Grand Slam, his favoured response is to highlight the strengths of the players he is competing against. Thanks to the presence of Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer, Murray finds himself competing
A TRAINING firm has been acquired by a rival business. High Force Training (HFT), based in Darlington, has been bought by Simon Williamson, who also runs North-Eastbased leadership development company Boardroom Consulting. HFT, established
A PLANNING application for a £15m shopping centre expansion has been approved. The proposal, for the extension of The Bridges, in Sunderland, submitted on behalf of owner Land Securities, will include a three-storey Primark store and a new
A SCHOOL for autistic children has taken delivery of a 17-seater minibus donated by a showbusiness charity. The Variety Club Sunshine Coach was handed over to the Barbara Priestman School, Meadowside, Sunderland, by Kevin Ball, youth team
A £5M incubator facility for green businesses is to be constructed on the site of a former circuit board factory. Up to 41 office, workshop and hybrid units will form the Green Incubator, on brownfield land at the former Circatex site, in Eldon
SCORES of bank workers in the region are facing an uncertain future after Barclays said it was planning to move away from offering financial planning advice through its retail branches. The move could lead to about 1,000 job losses and could
AN IT and business consultancy which began life in a couple’s basement is targeting further growth. Waterstons, based on Belmont Business Park, in Durham, was founded in 1994 by director Sally Waterston. She was working in IT and doing some consultancy
PRESIDENT Obama’s State of the Union address buoyed the London market yesterday as investors cheered moves to support growth in the world’s biggest economy. The FTSE 100 Index closed 51.5 points higher at 5969.2. Mr Obama called for the lowering
A MAILING house has moved to a new facility in the North- East, securing 250 jobs and paving the way for more in the future. MetroMail has invested £10m in the move to the Foxcover Enterprise Park, in Seaham, County Durham. The firm, part of
A NORTH-EAST electric vehicle firm is on the verge of securing a major deal with the Hong Kong government. The Tanfield Group’s Smith Electric Vehicles division is understood to be in advanced talks with the territory’s government to provide
THE fate of a North-East hospital’s accident and emergency unit is being debated today. A two-day review into plans to close the accident and emergency department at the University Hospital of Hartlepool started yesterday. The review panel
A CARER who stole thousands of pounds from the resident of a home where she worked blamed a gambling addiction for her crimes. Nichola Readman emptied the victim’s bank account of more than £10,000 during a four-month thieving spell, Teesside
A FURNITURE store is helping to flush away poverty by signing up to a quirky twinning scheme. While most schemes involve matching towns and cities, this is more unusual. Barkers Furniture Store, in Northallerton, has twinned its new toilets with
A MAN who failed to turn up at court last week because he had jet-lag finally appeared in front of a judge yesterday. Bryan Hall, 53, admitted a string of child pornography charges and will return to court next month to be sentenced. Married
SCHOOLS may be putting themselves at financial risk by converting into independent academies, a report by MPs warns today. Financial checks on schools that opt to break away from their local authority are “not fit for purpose”, the powerful Commons
A MAN who stabbed his neighbour to death when a joke turned sour during a family barbecue has had his 16- year jail sentence cut by a quarter. James William Thornley, 44, was branded a calculated liar when he was jailed for the manslaughter
A SEX attack in which the victim was dumped in a deserted lay-by has been reconstructed in the hope witnesses will come forward. Detectives have yet to arrest anyone in connection with the incident, which happened last June, despite scientists
A LIFE-LONG football supporter died after collapsing outside the ground shortly before the match kicked off. Brian Filby, believed to be Hartlepool United’s first ever season ticket holder, was heading for the turnstiles at the team’s Victoria
POLICE arrested four people and seized potentially dangerous vehicles in an operation against scrap metal thieves. Officers from Durham Police launched Operation Falconwood and ran roadside checks on vehicles on the A690 at West Rainton, near
THE wishes of a North-East child at the heart of a transatlantic tug-of-love battle may not necessarily be heeded when a court decides which parent he is to live with, a leading family lawyer has said. Yesterday, The Northern Echo reported
A MUCH-LOVED sheep has been saved after a new home was found for him while he was facing eviction by the church. Bertie the sheep’s future was far from certain after his owner, Paul Tidy, was given until the end of the month to find somewhere
A PUB more used to serving up ale than arias has entertained regulars with a vocal performance that hit the high notes. The Old Well, in Barnard Castle, held an operatic night starring Penelope Randall- Davis, who has performed all over the
PASSENGER numbers at Durham Tees Valley Airport have slumped to their lowest for 35 years, The Northern Echo can reveal. Officials at the airport said it has “borne the brunt” of a difficult period for the aviation industry. The Civil Aviation
The Tees Valley submits bids for Government funds to support up to 11,000 new jobs. THE fate of a “golden age” for the North-East economy, which could create thousands of jobs and millions of pounds in investment, lies in the hands of ministers
Stokesley manager Ted Watts was pleased with the way his team’s response when they drew 0-0 with Billingham Synthonia last night. Stokesley were hammered 6-0 at Bedlington last Saturday, and Watts said: “The lads showed a bit of character
THE North-East’s biggest council could face spending cuts of more than £200m over the next four years, it emerged yesterday. Last week, Labour-run Durham County Council announced plans to slash £125m from its £1bn-a-year budget by 2015, including
THREE communities are joining forces to fight controversial plans to dig opencast mines on greenbelt land. Councillors and villagers from Pittington, Sherburn and West Rainton and Leamside are teaming up to oppose ATH Resources’ interest in
UNION leaders say the public will suffer if a police force closes one of its two control rooms. North Yorkshire Police are considering the future of the Newby Wiske and York call centres. The force is consulting on whether to keep both
PLANS to scrap a controversial council-run newspaper, which costs taxpayers almost £400,000 a year to produce, will be debated next week. North Yorkshire County Council produces 11 editions a year of its North Yorkshire Times, which is delivered
