Archive

  • Match Report: Swansea City 1 Middlesbrough 0

    Final Score: Swansea City 1 Middlesbrough 0 TONY MOWBRAY has challenged his players to make sure Middlesbrough return to the Liberty Stadium as a Premier League club next season after missing out on a semi-final spot in the Capital One Cup.

  • Lowe takes bronze

    Jemma Lowe won Britain's first medal of the World Short-Course Championships by finishing third in the 200 metres butterfly in Istanbul today. The 22-year-old from Hartlepool swam from lane one after qualifying seventh, meaning she had no idea of how

  • All the 12s as baby Jake arrives on the "luckiest'' day

    LITTLE Jake Atkinson was born today (Wednesday, December 12) on what is believed to be the luckiest dates in the calendar. But not only did he make his entrance on 12.12.12 he did so at 12 minutes past 12. Jake was born at the University Hospital

  • Christmas crackers...

    I’m indebted to Gary Peart and Christine Mapp for sending me these little gems. Knowing how hectic the next week or so will be for everyone, including me, the blog will be back in the New Year. Merry Christmas. A couple were Christmas shopping

  • Darlington man faces dangerous dog charges

    A MAN appeared before magistrates accused of allowing his dog to be dangerously out of control and cause injury at Darlington Railway Station. Sean Michael Derbyshire, of the town's Eastbourne Road, is charged with possessing a fighting dog, namely

  • Spennymoor man hits customer in parent's pub

    A SPENNYMOOR man who hit a customer in his parent’s pub has received a conditional discharge. Lee Andrew Ellis, of High Street, admitted he acted in a threatening and abusive manner towards a male customer at the Quinns Pub in Spennymoor on August

  • X Factor winner tells fans: "Don't give up on your dreams"

    X FACTOR winner James Arthur urged people not to give up on their dreams when he visited his home town today. Hundreds of fans queued up in the cold for hours to get a chance to meet their hero as he signed copies of his debut single ‘Impossible

  • Effort to bridge East Coast Main Line funding gap

    COUNCIL leaders have lobbied the Government in an effort to bridge a £260m shortfall in funding earmarked to improve the East Coast Mainline (ECML). The Department for Transport (DfT) has set aside £240m for upgrades on the line, including better

  • Sedgefield Pub back in the family

    A COUNTY Durham pub is back in the hands of a family who devoted their lives to it for almost an entire century. From acrobatic punters performing headstands in the bar; to “beer-free” Mondays and Tuesdays brought on by wartime rationing –the Golden

  • Police warning over 'skimming'

    Police are warning people to be alert following two suspected ‘skimming’ incidents in Durham City. It is believed crooks have stolen details from cards used at cash points at supermarkets in Dragonville and Newton Hall. It is not yet known whether

  • Railway museum runs Santa Christmas Special trains

    SANTA TRAINS: Santa Christmas Special trains are to run at Locomotion: The National Railway Museum at Shildon. Passengers will meet Santa and get a gift plus there will be a magic show, music and other family fun. The trains run on December 15, 16,

  • Local planning pleas for windfarms

    Local planning authorities should decide whether big wind farms are allowed to go ahead, Sedgefield MP Phil Wilson told the Commons today (Wednesday, December 12). He said his constituency, was already at capacity for the number of wind farms the

  • Comedy date

    COMEDY DATE: Comedian Milton Jones comes to the North-East in the New Year with his One The Road Again Tour when he performs at Newcastle City Hall on Wednesday, February 13 at 8pm. Tickets cost £20 from the box office on 0191-277-8030.

  • Christmas cards for charity

    CHARITY CARDS: A Dales village has opened a pop-up shop to take part in a national scheme to sell Christmas cards on behalf of a number of charities. Cards for Good Causes (CFGC) has opened a store in the Dales Countryside Museum in Hawes, and

  • WOMAN DIED:

    ACCIDENT VICTIM: Police are appealing for witnesses after a woman in her 40s died in a car crash in Northumberland. It happened at 6.55am this morning, (Wednesday, December 12) at Horton Road in Bebside, Blyth, where for reasons yet to be established

  • Diving in for charity

    A DIVING event is being held on Saturday to help raise money for the Dreams Come True charity. Members of Sunderland Diving Club will complete sponsored dives at Sunderland Aquatic Centre from 1.30pm to raise money to help send a teenage cerebral palsy

  • Staff help ski-ing charity for the disabled

    STAFF at the Chester-le-Street branch of Barclays Bank helped raise £3,000 for Sunderland Adaptive Snowsports (SAS) at a charity night. SAS gives young people with disabilities and medical needs the chance to go skiing. It is planning a fourth

  • Village affordable homes plan

    HOUSING APPLICATION: The Galliford Try Partnership North is asking Durham County Council to grant planning permission for an affordable housing development of eight bungalows and 16 houses at The Green, Nettlesworth. PUB DEMOLITION An outline plan

  • Mona's 100th birthday is one for the history books

    A CENTENARIAN who celebrated her 100th birthday on a once-in-a-lifetime date puts her longevity down to “good old-fashioned food, hard work and a positive outlook”. Mona Parnaby, who lives in the Elderwood care home, in Darlington, reached the

  • Beth's panto idea is a winner

    A SCHOOLGIRL has won a competition to christen a fictional kingdom featured in a Christmas pantomime. Beth Shaw, nine, from Chester-le-Street, County Durham, won the contest to name the land in Sleeping Beauty, at Durham’s Gala Theatre, with her

  • Darlington news in brief

    GARDEN MEETING: The Salters Community Garden Association will hold its monthly meeting on Monday (December 17), at 7.15pm, at Harrowgate Hill Club. Local residents are welcome to attend. WARD SURGERY: Harrowgate Hill ward councillors Marjory Knowles

  • Party thanks for kind-hearted Larry

    GYM coaches threw a party for an Olympic torchbearer to thank him for his charity efforts. Octogenarian Larry Smith, who became County Durham’s oldest Olympic torchbearer when he carried the London 2012 flame through Blackhall, east Durham, this

  • Police inquiry after dog kills cat

    POLICE are investigating after a woman claimed her cat was killed by a lurcher. The woman, from Redmire Drive, Consett, believes the dog was with two men in a field close to her house on December 4. Following the two-year-old cat's death, she

  • Military band concert in Richmond

    CAVALRY CONCERT: A free concert of the Heavy Cavalry and Cambrai Band will take place at St Mary’s Church, Richmond, on Wednesday, December 19 at 7pm. The Heavy Cavalry and Cambrai Band is an amalgamation of the Band of the Dragoon Guards and the

  • Residents left in dark thanked for patience

    AN ELECTRICITY supply company has thanked customers who suffered a power cut last week for their patience. Around 1,500 homes in Chilton, Ferryhill Station and Windlestone, in County Durham, were left without electricity for up to ten hours on

  • News in brief

    A "disgraceful" lack of financial education is costing the UK around £3.4bn a year, a report warned today. The cost to the taxpayer of subsidising the retirement of people who have not saved enough for their later years could be slashed by a third

  • News from the north

    HOSPITAL HOURS: A protest march is planned for Malton, North Yorkshire, on Saturday (December 15) to demonstrate against a cut in hours of the local hospital’s minor injuries unit, which has switched from 8am to 9.30pm seven days a week to 9am to 5pm

  • New grandmother hatches baby business

    A FIRST grandchild was the inspiration for a primary school teacher’s new business. Semi-retired Geraldine McHugh wanted to buy her new grandchild a baby gift basket but after trawling the internet and making a number of unsuccessful visits to

  • Local author's book signing

    BOOK SIGNING: Author and broadcaster Peter Cook will be signing copies of his new book Now and Then at Marton Library in Middlesbrough tomorrow (Thursday, December 13) from 10am to noon. Copies of the book, which is a collection of 50 stories and almost

  • Young rockers star in school's production

    ORGANISERS of a school’s adaptation of the Queen musical We Will Rock you have described the performance as a huge success. Youngsters from Longfield School took to the stage for the first time on Tuesday (December 11). A spokeswoman for the

  • Councillors back dimming street lights and housing transfer

    COUNCILLORS have agreed to dim thousands of street lights, in a bid to save £55m over the next 25 years. Durham County Council’s Labour cabinet today (Wednesday, December 12) agreed to reduce the brightness of 82,000 lights by a quarter between

  • Wensleydale Creamery gets go-ahead to redevelop factory

    THE WENSLEYDALE Creamery has announced it will go ahead with a redevelopment project after planning permission was approved. Planning officers at the Yorkshire Dales National Park granted permission for the 60-year-old Creamery building in Hawes

  • Last show at Fountains Abbey by The Harp Singers

    A colourful North Yorkshire singing group is to give its last public performance next week. The Harp Singers, a dozen-strong mixed choir which performs in Victorian dress, will give its farewell recital, a programme of carols, in the Cellarium

  • Decision delayed on controversial flats plan

    COUNCILLORS have delayed a decision on whether to grant planning permission for a controversial housing development at the second time of asking. Developer Tim Wilks has applied to build five flats and one studio apartment on derelict land in Pendower

  • Elderly warned not to let fraudsters ruin Christmas

    POLICE are warning elderly people against becoming a victim of conmen and fraudsters in the countdown to Christmas. More than 600 instances of fraud were reported in County Durham and Darlington last year – and authorities believe many more cases

  • TV's Angela Rippon launches dementia drive

    TELEVISION presenter Angela Rippon has launched a new drive to improve care for the North-East’s 30,000 dementia sufferers. Ms Rippon, the first woman to present BBC national television news on a long-term basis, chaired NHS North East’s Dementia

  • Woman knocked down on Stanley pedestrian crossing

    A WOMAN has been knocked down while using a pedestrian crossing. High Street in Stanley was closed by police following the incident at 4.30pm today (Wednesday, December 12). Durham Constabulary said she was struck by a silver Vauxhall Omega

  • Roman road discovered under York Minster

    A SOLID link to the real Roman past has been uncovered beneath one of the region’s greatest places of worship. During construction work for a new visitor development in the undercroft of York Minster a team of archaeologists have unearthed an intact

  • Drink driving mum could lose job because of driving ban

    A SINGLE mother of twins stands to lose her job after being banned from getting behind the wheel following a  drink driving conviction. Justine Miskell, 24, of James Street, Shield Row, Stanley, pleaded guilty at Consett Magistrates’ Court to driving

  • 'Overloaded' Durham street set for 18 more students

    A CITY centre street already ‘overloaded’ with students is in line for nearly 20 more, after a developer was given three more years to build three large houses. Kingswood Properties North East’s 2009 planning consent to build three six-bedroom

  • Ice festival set to open tomorrow

    A TEMPORARY ice rink will be the main attraction at a Christmas festival which starts tomorrow. (Thursday, December 13) The concierge team at Durhamgate, a business, retail and housing development at Thinford, Spennymoor, is hosting the event.

  • Pupils trained to use wildlife camera

    CHILDREN have been learning how to capture footage of animals in their school grounds. Durham Wildlife Trust has donated a motion detector camera to Ebchester Primary School, near Consett. It takes snap shots and ten second clips of creatures

  • Cricket coaching scheme a success

    A SCHEME to coach cricket skills to young cricketers has been hailed a success. The Durham and Northumberland cricket boards joined with the Tony Blair Sports Foundation in January to support the development of cricket across the North- East.

  • Schoolchildren get ready for pantomime walk

    PUPILS from Whinfield Primary School, in Augusta Close, Darlington, will be bringing some festive cheer to their school walk by dressing up as colourful pantomime characters. The event takes place on Friday, December 14, and forms part of Darlington

  • Yuletide cheer

    CHILDREN are spreading the festive spirit in Ferryhill. Pupils from Cleves Cross and Dean Bank Primary Schools entertained shoppers at Ferryhill market and the town hall gardens on Friday.  There will be more carol singing on Friday, December 21 by

  • Policeman helps Aussie tourists and discovers a link

    A POLICEMAN helped a lost Australian tourist locate a part of his family tree – and discovered an unexpected link to his guest from down under. Bill Whykes and wife Pat had travelled to the UK and Ireland for a six-week holiday as part of their

  • Police hunt car park vandals

    POLICE are hunting vandals who ripped windscreen wipers off vehicles in a Darlington car park. The wipers were taken from a Renault Megane and Fiat 500, which were both parked in Garbutt Square car park, near Bank Top railway station. The first

  • Pupils host school exhibition on Anne Frank

    YOUNGSTERS are acting as exhibition guides for a school display on the life of Holocaust victim Anne Frank. Pupils at Windlestone School, Chilton, have worked with the Anne Frank Trust on the exhibition. Students at the school, for pupils who

  • Pupils prove they are road smart

    YOUNGSTERS from Our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary School have proved they are street smart after winning the annual road safety quiz. The successful pupils from Billingham beat off competition from second-place Mill Primary School, in Ingleby Barwick

  • European youngsters decorate Christmas tree

    THE Christmas tree at Durham County Council’s headquarters has been decorated by youngsters from across Europe. As part of a project to foster closer links between young people throughout the continent, primary pupils have been busy making baubles

  • Animal centre supporters' fair effort

    A FESTIVE fair has helped pay for the cost of Christmas Day care for abandoned cats and dogs. The event at the RSPCA’s Felledge Centre, Chester Moor, Chester-le-Street, on Sunday, December 9 raised £1,234. Four people also signed up for the

  • Acting hospital boss is given top job by trust board

    PROFESSOR Tricia Hart has been appointed as the new chief executive of one of the region's biggest NHS trusts - South Tees Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. Prof Hart, who has been acting as the interim chief executive of South Tees since September

  • House fire treated as suspicious

    POLICE have revealed they are treating a fire which swept through a terraced house as suspicious. The blaze started in the attic of property in Stanhope Road North, Darlington, shortly before 7pm on Tuesday. No one was injured in the incident

  • Fundraisers seek good cause to back in the new year

    CHARITABLE shop staff are seeking a good cause to raise money for over the coming year. Staff at The Original Factory Shop, based in Crook and Spennymoor, are looking for a good cause to be backed under the store’s Make A Difference scheme.

  • Cash for two groups

    TWO organisations in Ferryhill are celebrating cash windfalls. Ferryhill Town Council awarded grants to Ferryhill Town Band and the Ladder Centre, which runs a variety of services for residents of The Lakes estate. Mayor of Ferryhill, Councillor

  • Appeal after theft of horse tack

    Police are appealing for information after the theft of items of horse tack. The haul of riding equipment was taken in a break-in at an outhouse in Teesdale Avenue, Penshaw, on Wearside, between noon on Thursday, December 6 and 9.15am on Monday

  • Objectors and bar find compromise

    A FORMER leisure centre bar can extend its opening hours after reaching a compromise with objectors. Ferryhill Community Hub has secured permission to open its bar until midnight at weekends and 11.30pm the rest of the week. It was previously able

  • Parking charges lifted for festive shopping

    MOTORISTS visiting Hambleton’s market towns for some festive shopping will be able to grab some bargains when parking charges are lifted for ten days. The district council is waiving fees from December 22 to January 2 on its car parks in Northallerton

  • New refuse wagons for Hambleton

    REFUSE collection across the Hambleton district has taken on a shiny new look – with the introduction of a new fleet of wagons. The district council is investing £2.3m in the service over the next five years and ten new vehicles have now been acquired

  • Official protest planned over impending health cuts

    A FORMAL protest is expected to be made over plans to make wide-ranging cuts in health services across North Yorkshire. County councillors are next week being asked to vote on a strongly-worded motion calling for no reduction in the breadth or

  • Tributes to former Northern Echo chief photographer

    TRIBUTES have been paid to a former Northern Echo chief photographer, who has died aged 91. Charles Westberg passed away at his home in Darlington on Sunday (December 9). He and his wife, Phylis, who passed away in 2009, had three sons and

  • Note of caution sounded as unemployment falls again

    THE Government was last night warned to “pause the fanfare” despite further encouraging news on the jobs front with unemployment continuing to fall. The number of people out of work in the North-East in the three months to October fell by 8,000

  • LEP report adding £367m to North-East economy

    HUNDREDS of millions of pounds of investment into the North-East economy has been secured by a local enterprise partnership over the past 20 months, according to its annual report. Since April 2011, local enterprise partnership (LEP) Tees Valley

  • Supermarket staff raise cash for special schools

    Two special schools have been given £500 each after staff at a supermarket did a 24 hour bike ride. The exercise bike marathon was staged in the foyer at Asda in Stanley and the money has been split between Hare Law School and Durham Trinity School

  • Jennifer is named Young Gun of the year

    A BUSINESSWOMAN who is set to step up to the role of chief executive of a £72m North Yorkshire vegetable oil company has won a national award. Jennifer Kerfoot, of The Kerfoot Group, was named UK’s Young Gun of 2012 at the Red Ribbon Awards.

  • Young runners win cross country trophies

    SPORTING youngsters have been named as cross country champions after they clinched two trophies at a race meeting. Pupils from Teesdale School, Barnard Castle, took part in the Area Cross Country Championships. The school’s intermediate boys

  • Concern over motoring costs

    CAR CONCERNS: Two fifths of North-East drivers, or 37 per cent, will use their case less in 2013 if costs associated with driving continue to rise, according to a survey for insurer AXA. The figure was even higher in North Yorkshire, 41 per cent.

  • Fire brigade to give 5-year-old lift to school

    A 5-YEAR-OLD will arrive in style at school next week. Taylor Guttridge will show up at her school gates in a fire engine after winning a Christmas card competition. The competition, organised by Cleveland Fire Brigade and TFM Radio, was part

  • Virgin boss invests in North-East entrepreneurs of tomorrow

    PRIMARY school pupils are pushing ahead with their business plans after receiving investment from Sir Richard Branson’s Virgin Money. Four schools in Darlington are taking part in the Newcastle based bank’s Make £5 Grow project. Under the project

  • Nicholls sad to say farwell to a Star

    PAUL NICHOLLS admitted his ‘‘sadness’’ after Kauto Star’s time at his Ditcheat yard came to an abrupt end yesterday. The winner of five King Georges and two Cheltenham Gold Cups had been officially retired in late October and was expected to remain

  • Woman marks 12/12/12 with chilly challenge

    A WOMAN who is wild about swimming broke the ice on a North Yorkshire lake today (Wednesday) to celebrate 12/12/12 at noon with a chilly challenge. Pauline Squire is no stranger to icy swimming conditions and trains in Ellerton Lake near Brompton

  • Handbag stolen

    A pensioner has been left shaken but unharmed after having her handbag stolen whilst walking home from the shop at about 7.50pm Tuesday (December 11) on Wilton Way, Eston, near Middlesbrough. The 73-year-old woman was approached from behind and

  • Great North Air Ambulance weekly lottery draw for December 12

    The winning numbers for the Great North Air Ambulance Service weekly lottery draw for December 12 are: £200 N26418, Scarborough; £100 N17540, Darlington; £50 N06712, Darlington; £50 N42020, Whitby; £25 N31573, Penrith; £25 N04042, Alnwick; £25 N30078

  • Messiah concert date

    Portico, a newly-founded choir including students and others, will perform Handel’s Messiah at St Oswald’s Church, in Durham, on Friday (December 14). The concert starts at 7.30pm. Tickets are £8, or £4 for concessions. To book, visit wegottickets.com

  • Khan hopes for a rematch with Garcia

    AMIR KHAN hopes victory against the unfancied Carlos Molina on Saturday will earn him a shot at revenge against recent conqueror Danny Garcia. Garcia stopped Khan in four rounds in the summer to win their light-welterweight unification clash and

  • Still no fix for the A66

    TWO years ago, the upgrade to the A1(M) was rejected by the Government. Now George Osborne, in his Autumn Statement, has approved it (Echo, Dec 6). Just how much has this delay cost? However, the Government has still missed the point on road

  • Carolling

    ALTHOUGH I’m now a confirmed atheist, as a boy I was leading choirboy and candlesnuffer, and as a result I have a great love of Christmas Carols. My absolute favourite is the majestic and moving German carol Silent Night (Stille nacht, heilige

  • Thanks

    MAY I thank all who attended the recent sell-out RAF in Concert Diamond Jubilee performance at the Royal Hall, Harrogate, which was staged in support of the RAF Charitable Trust. The musicianship was of the highest order and the feedback we have

  • Remploy

    I WRITE as one who worked for Remploy for about 15 years as a factory manager in the North- East so I know what disabled people are capable of. Their contribution to local industry from the production of Remploy factories has much greater value

  • Winter Weather

    I WISH to congratulate Durham County Council on the gritting of Edmondsley Bank, a well-known trouble spot in winter, on the afternoon of December 6. This was not bad considering it was only 24 hours after the road had been temporarily closed by the

  • Football tournament revived for charity

    MAJOR companies at the Wilton International site are to clash in a revival of an historic sporting contest. For the first time in more than a decade, workers will compete for the Wilton Cup raising more than £600 for the Finlay Cooper Fund, set

  • Medals for NAAFI members

    MEMBERS of the Navy, Army and Air Force Institutes (NAAFI) have been honoured for their work with the forces in Afghanistan. The Lord Lieutenant of County Durham, Sir Paul Nicholson, presented operational service medals and Queen’s Jubilee medals

  • Gay Marriage

    DAVID CAMERON is not being courageous wanting to legislate for gay marriages to take place in churches (Echo Comment, Dec 10). He is merely trying to get the Conservative Party to live with the times. The struggle over the acceptance of homosexuality

  • Christmas cheer at threatened nursery

    CHILDREN from the closure threatened nursery staged a special Christmas concert and invited all of Darlington’s councillors. Only North Road Ward councillor Anne-Marie Curry was able to attend the afternoon show at Kids and Co Nursery, in Borough

  • Calendar girls

    A GROUP of North East women who bonded over boot camp fitness sessions on a beach have created a fundraising calendar after discovering their lives had all been touched by cancer. The Fitness with Grace calendar is the brainchild of personal trainer

  • The writer who turned down Hollywood

    STANDING on a hilltop in south-west France, addressing actors John Hurt and Vanessa Kirby, proved a surreal experience for best-selling novelist Kate Mosse. The 51-year-old author of Labyrinth and Sepulchre, the first two in her blockbuster Languedoc

  • Investment for funeral firm

    A FAMILY-RUN funeral business has expanded its services following a significant investment. Darlington Funeral directors Seaton Leng and Son secured finance from Barclays as well as assistance from the bank’s area business manager, Keith Crossley

  • Honoured by degree... angered by cultural cuts

    BILLY Elliott screenplay writer Lee Hall has been given an honorary degree. Mr Hall, who also wrote The Pitmen Painters, received a Honorary Doctorate of Letters from Northumbria University. The Newcastle-born writer used the ceremony to reiterate

  • Interesting times for first-time house buyers

    IS the big chill that has frozen first-time buyers out of the housing market finally beginning to thaw? And will it soon be possible to buy a first home without a massive £20,000 deposit or a handout from the “bank of mum and dad”? The answer

  • Theatre Review: Jack and the Beanstalk

    Forum Theatre, Billingham THE festive season is never quite complete without a Christmas panto and this year the Forum has served up a real treat with its production of Jack and the Beanstalk. From the moment the curtain went up and requisite

  • Theatre Review: Robin Hood (and the Babes in the Wood)

    Tyne Volvo Theatre, Newcastle IF it’s good, old-fashioned fun you’re after, this cracking production is spot on. Having rolled two stories into one with the tale of Robin Hood and King Richard’s children who have been captured by the evil Sheriff

  • British Comedy Awards (C4, 9pm)

    IN the winter of 1990, some bright spark thought: “Let’s have an annual celebration of British and international comedy.” It was a good idea, though the big-screen mirthmakers that year weren’t much to write home about. Arnold Schwarzenegger playing

  • Weight Loss Ward (ITV1, 8pm)

    FOR some, Christmas is a time to eat too much rich food and then worry about the calorific cost in January. Weight Loss Ward might make you think again about accepting that extra roast potato or second helpings of pudding with tasty brandy sauce

  • Youngsters take to stage to perform comedy play

    YOUNGSTERS are taking to the stage to show off their acting skills in a comedy play. Members of the Bishop Auckland Theatre Hooligans will perform The Schummanators and the Terrible Events of Moscow Fashion Week 2012. The play was written by

  • Care patients ‘sedated with drugs in meals’

    A CARE home boss ran an “institutionalised” care home where residents with dementia were sedated with drugs hidden in their meals, a hearing was told. Meal times at the Victoria House Care Centre were “appallingly organised” and 15 out of 17 residents

  • The Queen is losing her grace

    LITTLE-REPORTED, a bizarre rescue took place recently on the North Yorkshire coast. A man was trapped for 15 hours among rocks at Scarborough. At dusk one evening he slipped between boulders. He spent the night wedged in the rocks, thankfully above

  • Greater persuasion

    EDUCATION Minister Liz Truss said yesterday in the House of Commons that there was a “persuasive case” for the 480 civil service jobs at Mowden Hall to remain in Darlington. This feels like a significant step forward in the campaign to keep the

  • One in, one out at Darlington

    Darlington last night agreed to sign goalkeeper Mark Bell from West Auckland, while they have released Jack Norton. Manager Martin Gray had wanted to sign Bell since the summer, and has finally got his man. He played under Harry Dunn - Quakers' chief

  • Promotion still the aim says Mowbray

    TONY MOWBRAY has every intention of leading Middlesbrough in to the Capital One Cup semi-final tonight, but admits Wembley would mean nothing without a Premier League return. The Boro boss is wary of making any wild predictions ahead of a trip

  • Steele hopeful of further away day cup joy

    AFTER four successive away days in the Capital One Cup this season, Jason Steele thinks Middlesbrough can draw on the experiences of previous encounters to seal a semi-final spot tonight. An opening day League Cup victory at Bury back in August

  • Years in Durham 'happiest of my life' - Bryson

    POPULAR writer Bill Bryson says his years as Durham University chancellor were the happiest of his life. On his first return since stepping down last year, he spared a few minutes to talk to Mark Tallentire. BILL Bryson has written many millions

  • Couple to wed at 12pm on 12/12/12

    A couple are taking advantage of a once in a century opportunity to get married at noon on 12.12.12. Anne Poole and Ian Cuthbertson are tying the knot today (Wednesday, December 12) - at 12 noon on the 12th day of the 12th month, 2012. Ian,

  • The wedding dress fairy godmother

    Ever wondered what it’s like to be a... dress fairy godmother? Rebecca Lombard-Earl, 42, runs alterations service Save the Day, as well as dress-making firm RJ Designs, bridal vintage and contemporary dress agency Bex Brides, and vintage clothing

  • Record results for Darchem for the second successive year

    PRECISION engineering firm Darchem have shaken off the economic downturn to produce record results for the second year running and bringing annual turnover to £76m. The record sales saw turnover increase by 21 per cent in the year to October 31

  • Tragic Ian's schoolmates draw warning posters in his memory

    THE classmates of an eight-year-old boy who died after falling in a river have drawn posters for a new safety campaign being led by his family. Ian Bell was playing with two friends beside the River Wear in April when he slipped and fell in near

  • Christmas events in South Durham

    CHORAL CONCERT: The Bishop Auckland Choral Society will hold their Christmas concert at Bishop Auckland Town Hall on Friday (December 14). Tickets cost £7 for adults, £5 concessions and £3 for children from 01388-834359 or 01388-747621 or on the door

  • Fans brave the cold to meet X Factor winner

    Hundreds of James Arthur fans queued through the night in freezing conditions for a chance to meet the X Factor winner. The fans were queueing for wristbands which will enable them to attend the pop idol's first ever CD signing tonight in HMV in

  • Fish introduced to homes in North East rivers

    THIS is the moment 1,500 fish were introduced to their new home in a North East river. The dace released by the Environment Agency into the River Gaunless near Bishop Auckland this afternoon (Wednesday, December 12) were some of the 11,000 fish

  • Teacher invites you to celebrate end of world at art show

    A TEACHER who moved to Colombia seven years ago is inviting people to celebrate the end of the world at an art exhibition about the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. Sarah Genner has returned to her native North East after seven years teaching English

  • Onion farm fire may have been arson

    DETECTIVES believe a fire at a farm which made national headlines because of an unpleasant onion odour was an arson. Firefighters from Bishop Auckland spent 45 minutes tackling the blaze at West Musgrave Farm in St Helen Auckland, on the outskirts