THIS week 15 years ago, the Northern Echo's fight to stop an Act of Parliament jeopardising the Olympic futures of the region's best young sporting talent at the time reached the floor of the Commons.

Culture secretary Tessa Jowell was asked by North Durham MP Kevan Jones why The Northern Echo had been prevented from pressing ahead with its Olympic Dream campaign.

Fifty MPs had also put their names to an Early Day Motion calling for community organisations to be allowed use the word "Olympic".

Labour MP Mr Jones asked Ms Jowell to re-examine the Olympic Bill, which became an Act of Parliament in March, to make it possible for the newspaper to use the word "Olympic" in its campaign to raise funds to support the next generation of sporting talent.

Mr Jones described Ms Jowell's response as "gobbledegook".

Mr Jones said: "An important part of the Olympics is ensuring that funding is directed to the next generation of sports stars."

Also that week, A self-styled cowboy involved in a two-year planning wrangle was facing assault and criminal damage charges after confronting his neighbours on horseback.

Hungarian-born Django was arrested by police after they received reports of a man riding a horse around the back garden of a house in the Yorkshire Dales.

The occupants arrived at their Swaledale home to find Django - real name Martin Kiss - on his horse and banging on their door.

The Northern Echo understood that there was a confrontation, which left the couple with severe bruising and Django with a facial injury.

The couple had objected to Django's planning application to train horses in Western riding techniques.

The plans had been recommended for refusal.