Archive
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Barclays' 1,000 jobs boost
Barclays announced last night that another 1,000 jobs are to be created at a thriving North-East business park - then dropped a broad hint that more may be on the way. The new posts, at the bank's centre on Sunderland's Doxford International Business
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Power failure wrecks Christmas shopping
TRADERS were left counting the cost last night after contractors cut through a power cable, wrecking Christmas shopping trips across the region. About 20,000 people were affected by the power failure yesterday afternoon, caused when contractors accidentally
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Healthy source of material for writer's new project
HEALTH matters will provide the inspiration for art as part of an unusual project. Tees and North East Yorkshire NHS Trust has joined forces with Cleveland Arts to employ Kathleen McCreery for a project inviting people's experiences of the health service
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Bag snatches may be linked
DETECTIVES believe two handbag snatches may have been linked. A 37-year-old woman managed to cling on to her bag when she was attacked in Split Crow Road, near Felling Library, Gateshead, at 5.40pm on Monday. The thief was described as aged 15, 5ft 3in
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Appeal for death fall witnesses
POLICE investigating the death of a 26-year-old man who fell 100ft from a Newcastle bridge are still no closer to establishing exactly what happened. The man, from Gateshead, was found lying in a pool of blood in the middle of a city road after the death
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Internet launch for tidy-up project
AN environmental project responsible for clearing tons of colliery waste from County Durham's beaches is going on the Internet. Turning the Tide, which was a hit with local surfers, is hoping for similar success with web surfers. The website celebrates
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Missing man plea renewed
POLICE have renewed an appeal for information about a missing man. Stephen March, 34, was last seen when he left his home in Sunderland to travel to work on Monday, November 20. At the time, it was thought he may have travelled to either Whitby or Doncaster
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Wor Jackie wins praise for drink-driving confession
SOCCER hero Jack Charlton stunned anti drink-drive campaigners yesterday by admitting that he once drove 60 miles while over the limit. The former Republic of Ireland manager made the revelation at the launch of a police road safety campaign. Mr Charlton
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Machines that failed the world
THERE appears to be a fundamental flaw in an electoral process in which 103 million ordinary people take part, yet nine politically partisan appointees pick the winning candidate. But the fault lies in the competency of machines used to punch holes in
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Power cut wrecks Christmas shopping
TRADERS were last night left counting the cost after contractors cut through a power cable, wrecking Christmas shopping trips across the region. About 20,000 people were affected by the power failure yesterday afternoon, caused when contractors accidentally
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Day of decision arrives for birthday-boy Lumsdon
Sunderland midfielder Chris Lumsdon celebrates his 21st birthday tomorrow with his career at the crossroads. Lumsdon is back at the Stadium of Light following a successful spell on loan at Crewe, although his chances of figuring in Peter Reid plans appear
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Ex-miner takes 'neighbour' title
A widower from Wear Valley has won a County Durham Good Neighbour Award for caring for a stroke victim who lives next door. Jim Simpson, 78, of York Court, Witton Park, scooped the Durham Aged Mineworkers' Homes Association award, beating a record 130
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Will Bush stick to his roots?
AS HE swaggers down from his Texan ranch to the waiting cameramen, George W Bush looks every bit the all American boy. Sporting dusty denim jeans and a silver buckled belt, he won't be the first cowboy to inhabit the Oval Office - it was, after all, one
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Santa's well suited, thanks to students
A CHRISTMAS crisis has been narrowly averted after Santa sent out an SOS to Darlington College of Technology. Darlington Bondgate Round Table's annual Father Christmas tour of the town, to raise money for local charities, was threatened after it was discovered
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Plea to bus firm over withdrawal
A COUNCIL leader is appealing to a bus company to show Christmas spirit following the withdrawal of services from a town's bus station. Arriva pulled its buses out when Middlesbrough Borough Council introduced a six-month trial to ban buses from part
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Robbery costs victim his job
A MAN who was attacked by two would-be-thieves is facing a bleak Christmas because his injuries mean he can no longer work. The 32-year-old Securicor driver, who does not want to be named, was attacked as he made a delivery to the Co-op chemist, in York
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Working in a winter wonderland
ARTIST Paul Denham has created an enchanting winter wonderland in the grounds of a Medieval castle. Mr Denham, who works at the Art Shop, in Bondgate, Darlington, has made a grotto in the gardens of Raby Castle, County Durham, to mark Santa's first visit
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Business start-up training programme proposed
TRAINING to help people start their own community businesses are being planned as part of the regeneration of run-down areas of Durham. Durham City Council's economic development committee will be recommended tomorrow to launch Ideas into Action workshops
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Warning over get rich scam
TRADING standards officers are warning people to ignore a get rich scam from Las Vegas. Mail shots for a prize draw have been sent from the US gambling capital to homes in the county. The letters urge people to apply for cash in excess of £881,130, but
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Thieves' haul 'worthless'
POLICE are warning thieves who stole specialist surveying equipment from a North-East building site that their haul is virtually worthless to other builders. The equipment was stolen over the weekend from Balfour Beatty, at the Barrack Street Docks, in
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Letters
PRINCE WILLIAM IT'S touching to see Prince William mucking in like the rest of us. PR par excellence. He must be the most privileged toilet cleaner in the world. A couple of years doing the essential menial tasks and living entirely on the minimum wage
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ABPbuoyed by strong demand at all of its ports
ASSOCIATED British Ports has revealed it is on course to post a year-end increase in turnover following strong demand at its 23 UK ports. The company, which employs 3,000 people in the UK and US, and boasts Whitby among its stable, said trading had been
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Pool player is joining the big fish
A DARLINGTON pool player will be competing against the world's best next year. Peter Allison has qualified for the Embassy International Pool Tour, which starts in February. He will play in five events and hopes to secure enough ranking points to allow
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Surgeons boycott waiting list plan
SURGEONS in the Health Secretary's own local hospital trust are boycotting a radical Government-backed bid to slash waiting times. Health bosses are spending more than £1m on sending hundreds of NHS patients from South Durham to the private Cleveland
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Plea for witnesses after man attacked
POLICE last night said a man was "lucky to be alive" following a street attack. The 27-year-old needed hospital treatment for head injuries after the attack in Front Street, Perkinsville, near Chester-le-Street, County Durham. A 29-year-old local man
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Sweet signing in the choir of little angels
CHILDREN showed their signing as well as their singing skills yesterday. A choir from Beverley School for deaf and autistic children, on Teesside - some of whom are pictured above - provided Christmas cheer for staff and visitors when they performed in
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Trip to school is a strain by train
YOUNGSTERS in one of the region's most isolated rural areas are facing extreme difficulties getting to school because of continuing railway chaos. About 200 pupils who live on the North York Moors depend on Northern Spirit's Esk Valley line, which connects
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Website is a winner
THE latest statistics received by Newsquest (NE) Ltd, the official media sponsor and designer of the Interprise 2001 web site, show that the site is proving to be an extremely valuable tool in the promotion of the event, and is helping it to reach a world-wide
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Runners make a habit of winning
WINNING the Town Championships is becoming something of a habit for a Darlington school's cross country teams. Eastbourne School's cross country teams have taken the title again, for the fourth year in a row. It was the seventh time in nine years the
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£200,000 for mayor's rooms
A controversial plan to spend at least £200,000 redecorating the Middlesbrough mayor's parlour should go ahead, councillors agreed last night. The money, enough to buy a small street elsewhere in the town, will be spent on the revamp of the suite in the
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Business initiative boosts estate
A PROJECT to help residents start up their own businesses in one of County Durham's most deprived estates is proving a success. The People's Learning and Community Enterprise (Place) is the result of local organisations coming together to help give budding
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Shop's second display prize
ONE of Saltburn's newest shops has picked up its second award in the town. In the summer, Nozzlebag, a cake decorating shop, won the best dressed window competition during the town's Victorian week celebrations. Now it has been presented with a shield
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Calendar helps friends pay for exchange visit
STUDENTS from a Teesside college are pulling out all the stops to repay the hospitality of some new-found friends from the other side of Europe. The students, from Prior Pursglove College, Guisborough, recently received an "unforgettable welcome" from
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Hospital trust gets a clean bill of health
A NORTH-EAST hospital trust has been given a clean bill of health by a national watchdog. The Commission for Health Improvement has published its first reviews of hospitals. In the next four years, comission officials will visit every hospital, health
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Joy at finding war hero father's medal
THE son of a war hero travelled to North Yorkshire yesterday to be reunited with a medal awarded to his father during the First World War. Private Tom Dresser, of the 7th Yorkshire Regiment, won the Victoria Cross for his bravery in the trenches in 1917
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Pollution battle farmer hit by stroke
A FARMER fighting to save his pollution-hit business has suffered a stroke. Stricken Ken Saddington's wife, Heather, blames the attack on worry about the future of their Carlton Bank Stud, near Stokesley, which was hit by a spill of 1,500 gallons of diesel
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1,000 new jobs as call
Barclays announced last night that another 1,000 jobs are to be created at a thriving North-East business park - then dropped a broad hint that more may be on the way. The new posts, at the bank's centre in Sunderland's Doxford International Business
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Prison chief moves to quell sell-off concern
SENIOR managers at the North-East's oldest prison have moved to quell unrest among staff following speculation that the building is to be sold off. Dave Thompson, deputy governor at Durham Prison, spoke out after news that the Prison Service is considering
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Premier class shines through at Anfield
Michael Owen grabbed an early 21st birthday present with the extra-time goal which put Liverpool on their way to the Worthington Cup semi-finals. First Division leaders Fulham stretched Liverpool to the limit during normal time but the home side wrapped
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Mother fighting for life in son tragedy
A MOTHER was fighting for her life last night - after seeing her nine-year-old son die in a freak accident. Robert Veitch slipped on a wet path as he returned from his grandmother's house after delivering her Christmas present and fatally banged his head
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Relax, it was only a mini-mini-tornado
SOUTH America has El Nino, the Far East has its monsoons - now the North-East has woken up to its own bizarre meteorological phenomenon, a "gust front". The Northern Echo's switchboard was inundated by calls yesterday from startled residents reporting
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Bennett leaves new striker decision in Reynolds' hands
Darlington manager Gary Bennett is hoping to sign a player from a Premiership club today. Bennett spent most of yesterday making enquiries for at least one new striker and he said: "We've made a little bit of progress." "I've left it in the chairman's
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At long last, it's Bush
Democrat Al Gore finally threw in the towel last night and accepted defeat in the most dramatic and traumatic US presidential contest in history. Texas Governor George W Bush will become 43rd US president and leader of a nation sharply divided along political
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Region to 'escape' Vauxhall aftermath
AS 2,000 Vauxhall workers come to terms with the shock news of the closure of the car group's Luton plant, it emerged that the North-East's beleagured car component industry looks set to escape the brunt of supplier job losses. With Vauxhall taking a
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Cinema chain considers
AN independent cinema chain is looking at opening in Durham - despite the likely closure of the city's picture house. Consultants for a London company that specialises in screening arthouse films have expressed an interest in the city. The Robins Cinema
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Gift will help to get Scouts on the road
A CHARITY dinner with Cabinet Minister Clare Short has provided a Scout group with a boost. The Minister for International Development was guest speaker at Bishop Auckland Constituency Labour Party's dinner last month. The occasion, at Auckland Castle
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Domi issues plea
BOBBY ROBSON'S problems at Newcastle piled up last night when left-back Didier Domi launched an attack on the United manager and flashed a "come and get me'' message to former club Paris St. Germain. Almost two years since Ruud Gullit lured him from the
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Anger at MEPs' cigarettes verdict
A THREAT to almost 600 North-East jobs in the tobacco industry moved a significant step closer yesterday when Euro MPs voted to cut permitted tar levels in cigarettes for the domestic and export markets. The European Parliament also voted for a massive
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Beat bobbies have speeders in range
BEAT bobbies are to be armed with radar speed guns to tackle speeding drivers on housing estates. Ten officers from Durham Constabulary have been trained to use the Muni Quip radar speed detector, which enables them to monitor stretches of road where
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Police training centre to expand
THE Home Office is to pump £2.2m into expanding a specialist national training centre for crime investigators. The Durham Constabulary-run National Training Centre for Scientific Support to Crime Investigation, at Harperley Hall, near Crook, County Durham
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Punishment more fitting to the crime
'TOUGH on crime, tough on the causes of crime." We all remember that. And our hollow laughter rings out. The Tories are right to highlight the decline in police manpower, now down by about 3,000 since the General Election, against that "tough on crime
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Where there's a way, there was Will
GREAT compliments of our time: "You are The Northern Echo," said a charming old lady at Ferryhill Wheelers cycling club's annual dinner on Friday night - "you, Sharon and the death notices." It gets no better than that. WILL Hay's death notice appeared
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Fogarty's quit call
Former World Superbike champion Carl Fogarty has called on his old team Ducati to quit the series in which he won his four titles. The former Ducati star, who walked away from racing this year following a protracted recovery from a broken arm, wants the
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Go on, send that card...
IT'S THAT time of year when your whole life passes in front of your eyes. Yes, it's Christmas card list time, that annual lurch down Memory Lane. It starts with people you went to school with, through college, first job, to that nice couple you met on
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Woman leaps to safety from fire
A WOMAN jumped to safety from a first floor window following a fire at her home in Marske. Firefighters called to Dovecote Close just after midnight yesterday used one hose reel, breathing apparatus and a thermal imaging camera during the operation to
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Honour for Special who saved boy
AN off-duty Special Constable who risked being swept to his death to save a 13-year-old boy trapped in a sinking dinghy is to receive one of the country's top life-saving honours. Steven Linfoot, 34, braved treacherous currents to wade into waist-high
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Artist's work aims to give hope to cancer sufferers
AN artist whose battle against cancer inspired his work is staging an exhibition on Tyneside. Michele Angelo Petrone was diagnosed as having Hodgkin's disease in 1994, but after extensive treatment his cancer is now in remission. He used his talents to
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Ex-soldier on murder charge boasted he could take on 50 men, court told
A MARTIAL arts instructor on trial for the murder of a Teesside drug dealer told police he was not aggressive - but said he could take on 50 men if he had to. Former soldier Tony Bottrill, 41, told detectives during three interviews that he had never
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Prized medal taken by thief
POLICE are hunting burglars who stole property worth £3,000, including a prized football medal. The burglary took place at Mandale Road, Acklam, Middlesbrough, on Monday, between 1pm and 4pm. Several items of jewellery were taken, as well as a 1906 FA
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Robbery costs victim his job
A MAN who was attacked by two would-be-thieves is facing a bleak Christmas because his injuries mean he can no longer work. The 32-year-old Securicor driver, who does not want to be named, was attacked as he made a delivery to the Co-op chemist, in York
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92-year-old robbed by youths
A PENSIONER was robbed of her handbag by three youths on pedal bikes. The 92-year-old was walking in Brinkburn Crescent, Houghton-le-Spring, near Sunderland, when the gang cycled up behind her. Her bag was snatched from her hand and the youths, aged about
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Court told of girl's struggle with killer
NORTH-EAST teenager Carol Sanderson put up a desperate struggle for her life when she was pinned to the ground and suffocated, a court heard. The 16-year-old, from Easington, was allegedly killed by boyfriend Christopher Levey, 24, who was terrified she
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Five million reasons to give
PEOPLE in east Cleveland have collected more than five million postage stamps for the Guide Dog Training Centre in Middlesbrough. Sotheran's, the Redcar stationery and art shop, has acted as the central collection point for the five years it has taken
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Whizzkids make a date with Number 10
TWO Darlington schoolboy engineers who won a national competition have been invited to Downing Street. Tim Latter and Alex Strachan, both pupils at Hurworth House School, will be in London tomorrow to meet the Prime Minister and Mrs Blair to discuss their
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Villagers want yob sentenced
A TEENAGER'S intolerable behaviour could provoke his neighbours to take the law into their own hands if he were not curbed, a court heard yesterday. People living in Minskip, near Boroughbridge, North Yorkshire, had complained to Harrogate Magistrates
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Art follows an office theme
A design exhibition has mixed the workplace with the art world. Designer David Arnold yesterday unveiled his latest display in Barnard Castle, as part of theDesign for the Dales project. The exhibition, called Work, features four large painted rectangles
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Sally, you're our little hero
BRAVE schoolgirl Sally Slater joined children from around the country yesterday for the 27th Woman's Own Children of Courage 2000 Awards at Westminster Abbey. The seven-year-old, whose battle for life earlier this year gripped the nation, joined teen
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Children sing out for charity
ANGELIC young voices chose a fitting North-East landmark to launch a charity Christmas record. Singers from Rickleton Primary School, in Washington, and Fencehouses YMCA, near Chester-le-Street, joined forces to perform the specially-written song, Year
