Archive

  • College worker in drink-drive ban claims she was set-up

    AN EMPLOYEE of a County Durham college has been banned from the wheel after admitting to drink driving.Helen Slee, who works for Bishop Auckland College, was found to be over the legal alcohol limit when police breath-tested her on Wednesday, May 3.The

  • Tories refuse to rule out increasing taxes

    THERESA May has ditched David Cameron’s pledges not to raise income tax or national insurance in a Conservative manifesto she said laid out a vision for dealing with the “five great challenges” of the coming years.The Prime Minister promised there would

  • Council leader's pledge to protect frontline services

    THE NEWLY re-elected leader of North Yorkshire County Council has said the council will continue to work to protect frontline services a priority in the face of continued austerity.Councillor Carl Les was elected leader at an annual meeting of the council

  • Repeat burglar stole from grandmother as she watched TV

    A REGULAR burglar sneaked into a grandmother’s home late at night to steal her property, a court heard. The woman was alone watching television in the house in West Pelton, near Chester-le-Street when she heard noise downstairs at 11.20pm on December

  • Reach for the Beach offers week of free fun activities

    A WEEK of free fun activities for all age groups is on offer at half-term across the Heritage Coast of Sunderland, Durham and Hartlepool.Reach for the Beach - an outdoor festival from Saturday May 27 - features a wide range of activities to help families

  • Sirius Minerals looks to tweak plans for Whitby potash mine

    A FIRM building a 1,000-job fertiliser mine is looking to tweak plans on the development. Sirius Minerals wants to simplify elements of its York Potash project, based near Whitby. Bosses say the amendments will make operations smoother and

  • Darlington: Three players sign new contracts

    DARLINGTON have handed new contracts to three players. Mark Beck, Nathan Cartman and Phil Turnbull have all committed themselves to Quakers, quelling fears they would leave the club this summer. There had been speculation that the three would

  • Manhunt after prisoner escapes

    HEAVY police presence in York today is due to a prisoner escaping custody, it is understood. North Yorkshire Police will not confirm what the increased presence in the Clifton area is in relation to, only stating it was part of an ongoing investigation

  • Missing Benidorm holidaymaker found

    A NORTH-East man who went missing in the Spanish resort of Benidorm has been found safe and well, Cleveland Police said this afternoon. Donald Cheetham, 65, from Redcar, had been due to fly home to the UK on May 12. All of his belongings were

  • When the greens and the reds were in the same beds

    IT is an increasingly curious election with politicians popping up in the most unlikely of places – a Conservative minister yesterday pitched up in New Coundon, a mining community near Bishop Auckland with a population in 2001 of just 41, hoping to pick

  • Lions set to take over market town

    VISITORS to Northallerton should keep their eyes peeled in the coming week as dozens of furry friends will be hiding around the town centre. Northallerton and District Lioness Club is celebrating a special anniversary and launching a 'lion hunt

  • Home from home

    THIS is the moment I have been waiting for, for 25 years. My eldest son has just moved into his first ‘proper home’ with his girlfriend. And he’s invited us to stay. Since he started working, he’s lived in shared houses, where he’s had a bedroom

  • Virtual reality brings Viking camp to life

    THE sights and sounds of a Viking army camp have been brought to life through state-of-the-art virtual reality.Visitors to the Yorkshire Museum in York will be able to see what life was like in a Viking camp in AD872-873, as the Vikings waited out the

  • Racing remembers Alan Swinbank on a Dante Day with a difference

    DANTE DAY at York, and after Wednesday’s incessant deluge, the sun was shining again on the Knavesmire. It should have been a day to savour, especially with Middleham’s Mark Johnston springing a 10-1 surprise as Permian became the third North Yorkshire-trained

  • 'Ready, Set, Glow' on midnight walk

    A POPULAR hospice fundraiser returns this summer and there is still time to get onboard.The St Leonard’s Hospice Midnight Walk takes place on June 10 and will see hundreds of people complete an overnight 6.5-mile circular walk from York College.This year

  • Charity night for neo natal unit

    A MOTHER whose baby son was born 17 weeks prematurely is raising money for the hospital which saved his life.Doctors hope little Leo Taylor Corkin, who weighed just 650 grams when he was born at 23 weeks and five days on December 23 last year, will soon

  • Don't be a part of the silent majority, your vote does count

    ‘ALL politicians are the same; all of the parties are peddling the same message; my vote doesn’t count’. All of the above is complete nonsense. The right to vote them out keeps politicians on their toes otherwise you end up with a leader who

  • Disruption to trains expected over the next bank holiday

    RAIL passengers are being warned to check before they travel between York and Harrogate over the next bank holiday weekend due to disruptive engineering work taking place. The work will see Starbeck level crossing replaced during the long weekend

  • A&E plans are ill-thought-out

    I HAVE to have my say on the future of the Accident and Emergency Department at Darlington Memorial Hospital. If it were to close, how do they expect people to travel to Durham or Teesside for treatment, and why should we when we have a hospital on

  • Concerns about the future of cricket

    IT has been noticeable during the last few months that there has been a growing concern with the way in which the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) is governing cricket. Notably: The harsh treatment of Durham CCC despite their massive contribution

  • Ambulance firm receives positive inspection report

    A FIRM which provides services to the North-East Ambulance Service (NEAS) has received a positive report from the Care Quality Commission.Darlington based Emergency Medical Services provides emergency and urgent care and patient transport and is sub-contracted

  • Corbyn v Blair

    I'VE come to the conclusion that there’s a lot to be said in favour of Jeremy Corbyn. I mean it’s not often you come across a politician who, however much you might disagree with him, is clearly a man of principle and integrity. The contrast could

  • Time is running out to have your say on future development

    TIME is running out for residents to have their say on the direction of all future development in Hambleton.The district council is currently preparing a new Local Plan which will set out how much land is needed to accommodate new homes and jobs up to

  • Durham Regatta announces line-up of family entertainment

    THE entertainment line-up for Durham Regatta has been announced.The rowing spectacle, which takes place on June 10 and 11, will feature theatre performances, music and games as well as two days of racing. There will be performances by The Bread and Butter

  • Am I right wing?

    I HAVE been accused of being too right wing to the extent that a couple of musicians have refused to work with me. I don’t think I am right wing, do you? I’m proud of our heritage but I look to the future. I help support those less fortunate than myself

  • Fake news is nothing new

    I’M sure we all welcome the Echo’s “Fighting Fake News” campaign, but this topic is by no means a modern phenomenon. Never forget the classic question: “Is that the truth – or the official version?” Steve Lawson, Tow Law

  • Ancient honour for inspirational students

    YOUNG role models have been honoured by staff and their peers for their achievements and dedication to school life.Northallerton School and Sixth Form College students Lizzie Mallett and Josh Form were presented with the Cuthbert Cross in a closely fought

  • A big thank you to staff at Darlington care home

    IT’S not often I see people writing to Hear All Sides being extra positive – it tends to be moans about politics! I would like to say a very big positive thank you to the carers and staff at Ventress Hall Care Home. They are the most kind,

  • Vic Reeves Big Night Out returns for surreal special show

    VIC and Bob are returning to their roots to bring back surreal stage show Vic Reeves Big Night Out. The one-off special, a "reimagining" of the original, will air on BBC2. Vic Reeves Big Night Out introduced viewers to Yorkshire-raised comic Vic

  • Boxing: Savannah Marshall teams up with Floyd Mayweather

    BOXING superstar Floyd Mayweather has won the battle for Savannah Marshall’s signature – and she will move to Las Vegas to enhance her global reputation. Hartlepool's Marshall has been inundated with offers from across the world since deciding

  • Boxing: Savannah Marshall teams up with Floyd Mayweather

    BOXING superstar Floyd Mayweather has won the battle for Savannah Marshall’s signature – and she will move to Las Vegas to enhance her global reputation.Hartlepool's Marshall has been inundated with offers from across the world since deciding to leave

  • TV presenter backs new Darlington care home guide

    A CARE home in Darlington has launched a new support guide which has been backed by a TV presenter.Ventress Hall, located on the town’s Trinity Road, has created a support guide with practical and emotional advice for people in the town.A Helping Hand

  • Darlington law students to be given cash rewards

    A COLLEGE in Darlington is looking to inspire the next generation of lawyers with help from a firm of solicitors.Ten top performing law students Queen Elizabeth Sixth Form College are to receive £125 from Latimer Hinks Solicitors – which is based in the

  • Plans for cinema put on hold indefinitely

    PLANS for a major revamp of a city's only cinema have been postponed indefinitely. The Gala Cinema in Durham was due to undergo substantial renovations before reopening as a Picturehouse cinema with restaurant at the end of last year. Six months after

  • Can-do attitude is key to success for Marmax

    From its early beginnings of using recycled plastic to make potato storage boxes, Marmax is now responsible for a raft of goods, ranging from picnic tables to dog agility equipment. Kay Wilson finds out more A MULTI-MILLION POUND business that

  • Appeal to witnesses who may have seen Darlington rape suspect

    A COUPLE seen on CCTV talking to a man who police suspect may have carried out a rape in Darlington are being urged to come forward. Footage captured on security video from a business in Brunswick Street shows a couple walking down the street towards

  • Pensioners’ reunion rolls back time

    A GROUP of pensioners who have only properly met twice since their childhoods have reminisced about life growing up in a rural village.It took several years to get the women – all in their 70s – together after Angela Stevenson floated the idea of a reunion

  • Hartlepool United: Paynter the biggest casualty of relegation

    CLUB captain Billy Paynter is the biggest casualty of Hartlepool United’s relegation from the Football League. After missing the latter part of the season following Achilles’ surgery, the striker’s contract has not been renewed. He is one of

  • Restaurant Review: Sol Tapas, Darlington

    THE last time we had tapas it was August in Spain, the temperature was 35 degrees at 7.30pm, and we were sitting almost alone in the street outside a bar – it wasn’t until much later the locals turned out, hours after we’d finished off our patatas

  • Mixed bag of folk

    THERE'S a mixed bag of styles for local folk fans to pick from in the week ahead, but all of them come with a high standard of entertainment value. Tonight at The Beamish Mary at No Place near Stanley, there's an event called an Oxjam Night, with

  • Playing to Mr Tom's tune: Coming to Whitley Bay

    A classic tale of wartime evacuation gets a musical makeover by Tynemouth Operatic Society GOODNIGHT Mr Tom is a well known stage play, but a new version by Tynemouth Operatic Society turns the much loved story into a musical. Based on the

  • A working class hero takes a bow

    The golden age of Geordie music hall is brought to life as North-East playwright Ed Waugh pays tribute to forgotten performer Ned Corvan. Viv Hardwick reports IT’S almost time for forgotten North-East musical superstar Edward "Ned" Corvan to take

  • Review: King Arthur, Legend of the Sword (12A)

    Certificate: 12A Running Time: 126 mins Star Rating: 2/5 SEVERAL years in the making, director Guy Ritchie's testosterone-heavy reworking of Arthurian legend is an interminable bore. A lumbering script, co-written by Joby Harold and Lionel

  • Music: Tickell to call the tune at 2017 Holy Island Festival

    Multi-award winning Northumberland piper to headline 2017 Holy Island Festival AWARD-WINNING Northumberland piper Kathryn Tickell will headline this year’s Holy Island Festival, which celebrates North East talent. The two-times winner of the

  • Shaun Williamson coming to Newcastle in a Ray Cooney farce

    Viv Hardwick finds that Shaun Williamson has high hopes of a TV return after finding his comedy feet in a Ray Cooney farce SHAUN WILLIAMSON reveals his car is in for its MoT as he prepares to hit the road for Newcastle Theatre Royal in a tour of

  • Cirque to Soleil lead clown coming to Scarborough

    A NEW show from a member of the world’s largest theatrical producer, Canadian "contemporary circus" Cirque du Soleil, visits the Stephen Joseph Theatre, Scarborough, at the end of May. Stuff, a one-man show written and performed by Cirque du Soleil

  • Saturday fight at the movies

    A MAN is launching a legal fight against a woman over a disastrous date at the cinema. Brandon Vezmar, 37, took the woman to see Guardians of the Galaxy in Texas but she texted during the movie, got into an argument and did a runner. Brandon

  • Chef to provide a taste of Yorkshire with book deal

    A SELF-TAUGHT chef who earned a Michelin star at just 24 and a national following after appearing on the Great British Menu at 27, has secured his first book deal.Farmers’ son Tommy Banks became the country’s youngest ever Michelin star recipient as head

  • Cups of kindness

    BRIEFLY, for these columns overflow, we mentioned last week the death of Dave Dale, a passionate football man and a genuinely great lad. Thereafter a couple of beers in the Boro with Peter Livingstone, Dave’s close friend and fellow fighter, elicits