Designer labels needn’t be confined to the wardrobe. Gabrielle Fagan unveils the signature style you need in your home. IF you’ve ever yearned to own a piece of homeware which is unmistakably the work of well-known designer, you’re in luck. A host
THERE will be a temporary road closure in Bedford Street, Darlington, from the southern side of its junction with Victoria Road and Herbert Street back street, southwards to its end. The closure will be in place for about 27 weeks while Northumbrian Water
A SQUAD of young girls represented Darlington after winning the town's five-a-side football tournament. The year seven girls, from Hummersknott School, won the Darlington trophy then went on to finish second in the County Durham equivalent. Their
TRADE unions in Darlington are inviting the public to show their love for the town on Valentine's weekend. On Saturday, February 12, Darlington Against Cuts and the Darlington Trades Union Council are holding a campaigning day in the town centre
Eshott Hall is not only one of the finest 17th Century houses in Northumberland, but it is also gaining a reputation for its food, style and service. Ruth Addicott goes along to find out more. "PEOPLE choose Eshott because it’s a unique
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, in North Road, last year. Of those, more than 14,000 attended events designed to increase
FIVE men could face prison for their part in a brawl behind a kebab shop. Belts and a broom handle were used in the five-way stand off after Thomas Boyd and Lee Disley ordered a pizza from Best Kebab in North Road, Darlington, without being able to
As Durham city prepares to exhibit its copy of Shakespeare’s First Folio, Steve Pratt looks around to see what else in on show in a new exhibition at Durham University. THE Durham copy of William Shakespeare’s First Folio has a chequered history
A TOWN'S MPs are calling for work to be done to rejuvenate its high street. Alex Cunningham, MP for Stockton North, and James Wharton, MP for Stockton South, have made the pleas to help improve Stockton's High Street after it came under fire at a planning
HEALTH bosses have backed plans to build a state of the art hospital in the region. The £299m plan is to build a new 626-bed hospital which would be ready for use in 2016. Designed to replace ageing hospitals in Hartlepool and Stockton, the new Wynyard
Sharon Griffiths speaks to an author who’s come up with some ‘idiotproof’ recipes. IT’S great food shopping in Turkey as each village has a market day when all the local farmers turn up at daybreak to lay out a stall. Here is the place to
A REFURBISHED block of flats has officially been reopened following £2.5m pounds worth of work. Coast & Country invited Redcar MP Ian Swales to cut the ribbon at the entrance of Spencerbeck House in Middlesbrough. The extensive building and modernisation
A GROUP of German students are visiting east Durham as part of an annual exchange programme. Nineteen German students from the school Stattliche Fachoberschule und Berufsoberschule in Altötting, Bavaria, will be spending two weeks in the North-East
A TEENAGE tearaway has been given an anti-social behaviour order to curb his reign of terror on a Middlesbrough estate. David Woodier has been banned from hanging around in a gang, intimidating residents and drinking in public in the Hemlington
PUPILS from a North-East school have helped prepare traditional food for royalty. Four students from Greencroft Business and Enterprise Community School, near Stanley, were the joint winners of a national competition. The school's School Nutrition
A POLICY for dealing with complaints about caravans and trailers parked on roads has been adopted by Hartlepool Borough Council. The move aims to ensure action is taken to remove vehicles posing a risk to road users. If visibility is affected, warning
THIEVES have stolen cable from more than 20 street lights across the Stockton borough. Offenders have stolen copper and in some cases dug into the surrounding area to get at the cables leaving exposed wires. Councillor Bob Cook, Stockton Borough Council's
A new Sure Start centre is reaching out to families in Seaham. A children’s outreach centre for families with little ones under five has opened at Seaview Primary School (previously Seaview nursery annex) and staff are inviting people to drop in and
Whether gym bunny or couch potato, Lisa Haynes reveals how beauty aids can help you get from bloated to beautiful. IT’S official, the nation is in diet fever. And if you’re not following some faddy eating plan, the chances are you’re consumed
STAFF at a Durham store put their best foot forward to lose a few pounds and gain some pounds for charity. The Sainsbury’s supermarket at the Arnison Centre, Pity Me, held a 12-hour fitness event in which employees took turns on a walking machine
Lottie Kay talks to Darlington wedding planner Samantha Whitehead-Young, who is bringing her business to the North-East. ANYBODY who is planning to get married knows that the reality of creating this perfect day is far from stress-free. It
COMEDIAN and radio presenter Sue Sweeney was impressed when she unveiled a community room after it had undergone a major refurbishment. The communal room at Gibside, Chester-le-Street, which is run by Cestria Community Housing, was closed for six weeks
With foreign players joining English football in their numbers during the summer and January transfer windows, Tom Page takes a look back at one of the first foreign signings ever to play in the North-East. HARTLEPOOL United currently have such foreign
From Lindisfarne to Durham City and back again, St Cuthbert provided guidance to the monks who carried his body to his final resting place. IN the year 698 AD, 11 years after St Cuthbert’s death and burial in the simple Celtic church on the
How the extraordinary vision of a railway pioneer turned a smugglers’ hideaway into one of the region's most cherished seaside resorts. Exactly 150 years ago, a small group of men with spades huddled together by the sea. They had come not to
WORKERS are facing a volatile cocktail of job cuts and attacks on pay and pensions which could spark industrial action, the head of the TUC said today. The warning came after a meeting to discuss co-ordinated action against the Government's spending
BRITAIN'S Andy Murray has reached the final of the Australian Open for the second year in a row with a 4-1 win over Spaniard, David Ferrer. He will face Serbia's Novak Djokavic who relinquished Roger Federer of the last grand slam in his possession
Online reviews are a good thing… as long as you take them with a big pinch of salt. RELAX, Duncan Bannatyne – we’re more grown-up than you give us credit for. We know that Trip Advisor is not necessarily the truth, the whole truth and anything
OPINIONS over plans for a wind farm on land between Stockton and Darlington are mixed, according to an MP. Banks Developments wants to erect four turbines and build a combined heat and power scheme at Lambs Farm, Stillington, which would supply electricity
Head Over Heels in Rats (C4, 7.30pm); Mark Knopfler: A Life in Songs (BBC4, 9pm); The Million Pound Drop (C4, 10pm); Ice Road Truckers (Five, 8pm); Hustle (BBC1, 9pm). FOR many people, the word rat conjures up the words disease or vermin and images
A REVIEW of supported bus services across Darlington will not take place until later this year. Darlington Borough Council will carry out an assessment of its 34 supported bus services because of its budget cuts. The authority said last year it
SORRY is not the hardest word. In my previous job as a policeman, I heard thousands of people say they were sorry – really sorry – for what they had done. Most meant they regretted they had been caught and were having to pay the price. So despite
THE paintings by the Spanish artist Francisco de Zurbaran, which hang in Auckland Castle, were painted between 1640 and 1645 and were aquired in 1756 by Richard Trevor Bishop of Durham for £124.00 after being seized from a ship at sea. This shows
BRAVO to The Northern Echo for reporting that the NHS has lost the contract to provide healthcare for prisoners and young offenders (Echo, Jan 22). A private company, Care UK, won only on price – but not on quality. We are now seeing the slow
I WAS saddened to read the letter about the Catholic church from Martin Forester (HAS, Jan 21). His information seems to have come from a leaflet entitled Putting the Record Straight published by Sam Miller, a prominent Jewish businessman from
AN education centre for pupils not in mainstream schooling, which was placed in special measures last year, is making satisfactory progress. An Ofsted inspector reported the Phoenix Centre Pupil Referral Unit, in Darlington, has made satisfactory
AS well as not swearing (HAS, Jan 26), could footballers refrain from spitting? Athletes don't spit at every opportunity, and they tend to run about a bit more than footballers. This filthy habit is copied by a lot of schoolboys and youths while
COME off it, Ray Mallon (Echo, Jan 25). Your version of savage cuts takes you back to a budget level of 2008, when nobody was talking about closing this, that and the other. I don't recall Ray and his brethren worrying as to whether the public,
DAVID CAMERON wants to get rid of hospital administration staff and primary care trusts so GPs can run everything. It appears that privatisation is making a comeback. Mr Cameron also wants to privatise the Post Office. British Rail is still
Environmental campaigner David Bellamy says he is baffled and outraged by Government plans to sell the nation’s forests. Joe Willis reports. "I’M a bit worked up,” admits botanist David Bellamy, from his home on the edge of Hamsterley Forest
HAVING taken over parking enforcement from the police at the start of the year, Darlington’s Labour council has declared war on residents, businesses and commuters alike. Instead of inviting the car, Labour is fighting the car – to everyone’s
THE second inquest into the death of 14-year-old Adam Rickwood has made heartbreaking and disturbing reading. And its fundamental finding – that the unlawful treatment of Adam contributed to his decision to take his own life – is an appalling
KING FINGAL can maintain a sharp ascent by collecting his division of the skybet.com Novices’ Hurdle at Doncaster. The six-year-old is held in quite a bit of regard by his colourful connections and has certainly made pleasing progress over hurdles
IT all started as a bit of horseplay. A rude note written about a care officer passed between two boys who refused to hand it over. What followed was to lead to the tragic death of 14-year-old Adam Rickwood – the youngest person to die in the
HASSOCKFIELD has been dogged by controversy since its inception. The then director of the Howard League For Penal Reform warned before it had even opened that “there will almost certainly be tragedies inside”. Those prophetic words from Frances
GRAEME STORM is the leading Englishman in the Volvo Golf Champions after a stunning start that leaves him two shots shy of Swedish leader Johan Edfors. Storm was flawless in his opening round at the Royal Golf Club in Bahrain after shooting
ANDY MURRAY is hoping his experience of regularly going far in grand slams will help him edge past David Ferrer and into the Australian Open final this morning. Murray plays in his fifth semi-final at a major compared to Ferrer’s two and the
PAUL COLLINGWOOD has admitted he does not want to bat at seven for England, despite drawing some longawaited confidence following his demotion down the order in Wednesday’s 21-run win in the fourth one-day international against Australia in Adelaide
ROGER FEDERER faced up to relinquishing the last grand slam title in his possession and insisted “it’s not the end in any way”. The Swiss was beaten 7-6 (7/3) 7-5 6-4 by Novak Djokovic in the semi-finals of the Australian Open and is now without
POLICE today appealed for information from witnesses to a road accident involving one of the force’s own officers. The patrol car driver was heading along Times Inn Bank, at Cold Hesledon, near Seaham, County Durham, responding to an incident, when the
BLACKPOOL have been fined £25,000 by the Premier League for fielding an under-strength side against Aston Villa earlier this season. Manager Ian Holloway controversially made 10 changes for the game at Villa Park on November 10, arguing he needed
SCOTT FLINDERS will return to the Hartlepool United side next week after four months out with a thumb ligament injury. Replacement Jake Kean has now returned to parent club Blackburn Rovers after a hugely impressive loan spell was ended by
AFTER making his side watch a DVD of Darlington’s disappointing display against Mansfield Town, Mark Cooper is hoping for a big improvement when his side entertain Kettering Town tomorrow. Tuesday’s draw stretched Quakers unbeaten run in the
THE Football Association’s new chairman David Bernstein will play the leading role in finding Fabio Capello’s successor after it was announced he is to take over as chairman of Club England. Bernstein will replace Sir Dave Richards, the Premier
NEWCASTLE UNITED’S first team squad returned from four days training in Portugal last night, with Alan Pardew’s new No 2 insisting it was ‘no holiday’. As well as squeezing in a few rounds of golf in the Algarve, the players have been on the
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
A MAN accused of stabbing his girlfriend’s mother to death has been remanded in custody ahead of his next court appearance. Gary Simon Richard Thompson, 24, of Moorland View, Castleside, Consett, County Durham, appeared at Newcastle Crown Court
A FORMER police officer is using his skills to help businesses to protect themselves against industrial espionage. Espion TSCM, based in Stockton, has been launched by John Mason, who spent more than 30 years in the military and police service
A CHEF who made his name at the Savoy Grill, in London, is aiming to have tastebuds sizzling at Rockliffe Hall Clubhouse, at Hurworth, near Darlington. Darlington-born Mark Whiteley has joined the culinary team at the five-star hotel, golf and
AN embattled senior police officer has had his conduct scrutinised again, following a row over personal development training he received. Adam Briggs, deputy chief constable of North Yorkshire Police, hired a company called Enabling Development
THE judge in the case of a man accused of killing his girlfriend by pushing her from a multi-storey car park has told the jury they must decide whether he intended to harm her. The jury in the trial of Shaun Foley, 45, from Torquay, Devon
A LEADING regional cancer charity is calling on businesses to financially support its medical students. Yorkshire Cancer Research (YCR) has appealed to businesses to donate £17,000 to sponsor a PhD student in the region for one year. Despite
A NORTH Yorkshire steel firm has agreed a breakthrough partnership in the Middle East to make up for plummeting demand at home. Severfield-Rowen, based in Dalton, near Thirsk, said the outlook for the UK steel industry was poor amid rising
COMPETING businesses need to work more closely together if Tees Valley tourism is to prosper in the wake of budget cuts, it was claimed yesterday. About 100 representatives of local authorities, businesses and other interested organisations
SHARES pressure in the retail sector weighed on the FTSE 100 Index yesterday as a mixed session on Wall Street also hit stocks. High street chains Next and M&S led the retail declines as investors reacted to a worse-than-expected update from
ENERGY efficiency business Eaga has blamed the Government’s spending cuts for a slump in revenue and profits. The Newcastle-based Warm Front company announced before Christmas that it plans to make up to 700 people redundant and yesterday said
MIDDLESBROUGH have been in contact with Newcastle United in the hope of striking a deal until the end of the season for Spanish forward Xisco. Boro are keen to make one or two additions to their squad before the transfer window closes on Monday
A POPULAR factory worker told her family she felt let down by health workers the day before she died on a country road, an inquest heard yesterday. Julia Sellars, 34, sustained fatal head injuries when she was struck by a car in Burtree Lane
THOUSANDS of homes could be built on greenbelt land on Durham City’s northern outskirts, under plans being considered by council chiefs. The city is set to get 5,000 new homes by 2030 under the County Durham Plan – the county council’s multi-billion-pound
A MISSING man may have had a near-miss with a taxi as he stumbled into a road a week ago, say police. Darren Waller, of Hartlepool, has not been seen by family or friends since about 5.30pm on Sunday, January 9. Kathleen Waller has now
EDUCATION watchdog Ofsted will no longer check the contents of students’ lunchboxes under measures contained in yesterday’s Education Bill. Education Secretary Michael Gove said the schools inspectorate should concentrate on key areas such
PREMIER League footballer dropped in to the region to star in a national television advertisement. Tottenham Hotspur and England star Peter Crouch arrived by helicopter yesterday to appear in a commercial for Mars being filmed at Carperby, near
A CHRISTIAN charity has said it behaved “responsibly” during a saga which saw a centre for homeless men closed and its staff lose their jobs. Tom Raine Court in Darlington was forced to close in June last year when the Salvation Army, which
HUNDREDS of people, young and old, have backed a fight to protect a popular music service. Tees Valley Music Service (TVMS), which provides instrument tuition for 11,000 youngsters across the Tees Valley, is waiting for the renewal of its grant
IT might not have been as destructive as the sexist comments about Sian Massey or the puerile innuendos directed at a junior member of staff that ultimately cost Andy Gray and Richard Keys their jobs at Sky Sports, but in my eyes, it was every bit as
STEVE Bruce last night expressed his confidence that Sulley Muntari and Stephane Sessegnon will both be confirmed as Sunderland players within the next 24 hours. Sunderland officials were locked in discussions with Muntari and his representatives
‘WHAT gave them the right to assault my son?” Carol Pounder asks, her pronounced Lancashire accent placing the emphasis on right. “If I’d done that to him, I would have been arrested and charged. What gave anyone the right? “I know he was no
THE mother of a teenager found hanged in his cell only hours after being unlawfully restrained, last night called for the staff responsible to face prosecution. The jury at an inquest into the death of Adam Rickwood yesterday found that the
Newton Aycliffe manager Alan Oliver has warned his players not take anything for granted as they prepare for Saturday’s home game with Washington. Aycliffe are top of the Second Division table and on course for promotion, but a cautious Oliver
Consett are defending their unbeaten home record when they face Sunderland RCA at Belle Vue pn Saturday. The Steelmen have dropped just two points in their 13 home games so far, a record which has helped to put them five points clear at he top. Apart
Troubled Gillford Park will be allowed to continue playing in the league -- but it isn't clear for how long. The Cumbrians have had more than their fair share of problems this season in staging games on their own ground in Carlisle, and a fortnight ago
THOUSANDS of homes could be built on greenbelt land on Durham City’s northern outskirts, under plans being considered by council chiefs. The city is set to get 5,000 new homes by 2030 under the County Durham Plan – the county council’s multi-billion-pound
AN MP has called for the Home Secretary to review gun laws after a 12- year-old was given a shotgun licence. As part of a Freedom of Information request, Durham Police disclosed that 11 shotgun licences were given to children under the age of 16
CAMPAIGNERS have vowed to fight plans to sell off 230,000 acres of publicly-owned forests and woodland. Ministers yesterday unveiled a controversial proposal to allow private companies to manage land currently owned by the Forestry Commission
A GROUP of young people with learning difficulties who are due to lose vital day care provision say they will fight the plan. Durham County Council has told residents and staff at Craigmore House, in Barnard Castle, that it plans to cut day
