Archive
-
Date
Courts body takes on warrants role
A MAGISTRATES' courts committee has taken over the responsibility from police for executing warrants against fine defaulters and people who breach community sentences in County Durham. The Durham Magistrates' Courts Committee said that the move will allow
-
Date
Getting ahead with the web
A report launched this week has recommended the use of a so-called "surfing proficiency test" to help youngsters get more out of the Internet. The idea is that children will be able to take the test to qualify for unsupervised use of the Internet at school
-
Date
Putting the 'e' into election
WITH election fever bursting out all over, politicians' minds should now be turning to how they harness the power of the Internet. While all the major parties want to be seen to be a part of the online world, none have yet demonstrated any great ability
-
Date
Possessed by mission to seek out city's ghostly goings-on
GHOSTS, ghouls and things that go bump in the night are usually a subject reserved for Halloween but a retired teacher believes they are far more common than previously imagined. Dave Shotten, who lives in Belmont, near Durham City, became interested
-
Date
A good year brewing for draught information company
THE year is already shaping up to be a very good one for a company which has just enjoyed the best month in its history. Record-breaking figures in March saw Brulines, the Stockton company behind the revolutionary draught dispense information service
-
Date
Get your love online
WITH just a week to go until Valentine's Day, perhaps the Internet can help you find that special something. Plenty of websites offer some amour online and the world wide nature of the web can be found at www.valentines.com where they have been thinking
-
Date
A fox that's worth running to ground
HER emotions stretched to the limits, we have had a call from Mrs Joan Bates. One recent eating experience was "absolutely tremendous", she says - so special she was tempted to keep it secret - the other so "utterly dreadful" that she wrote to the manager
-
Date
Boro come first for Boksic before resuming international career
ALEN Boksic is ready to revive his international career - but only when Middlesbrough's relegation issues are resolved. The £2.5m striker has responded to pleas from Croatia by agreeing to rejoin their World Cup campaign. But Boksic has declined to link
-
Date
Action on the agenda for estate
A SURVEY of residents' views is helping council officers to develop a community action plan for Darlington's Whinfield estate. Hundreds of responses have been received from 2,500 questionnaires asking people about their problems and priorities for the
-
Date
Workers 'sold down the river'
NORTH-EAST industry suffered a second blow in two days last night with the closure of one shipyard and job losses at another. Receiver PricewaterhouseCoopers said 170 North-East workers would lose their jobs as part of the shake-up at troubled Cammell
-
Date
Warning over petrol
A MILITANT fuel protestor has warned there could be a repeat of last autumn's crippling fuel blockades if fears of a widespread rise in fuel costs prove correct. Shell yesterday put up the price of petrol by a penny a litre blaming the increase in the
-
Date
Bar approved despite fears
PERMISSION has been granted for a £2.4m bar and restaurant development on a cinema site, despite police warnings about possible disorder. Luminar Leisure, which already runs the Chicago Rock Caf and Liquid nightclub, in Middlesbrough, asked Middlesbrough
-
Date
Love Warnes England not to forget spin king
DON'T write off Shane Warne. That was the message from Durham's new overseas player Martin Love yesterday as he looked forward to watching his countrymen in action in the Ashes series. "I hope to get to one or two days' play if my Durham commitments allow
-
Date
Demolition reveals past of cinema
THE demolition of a former cinema has revealed more secrets from an 18th Century banqueting house. Archaeologists discovered that a pillar and two lintels at the front of the derelict building in Trimdon Village originally came from the house in Hardwick
-
Date
Appeal to dog owners
POLICE in east Cleveland are asking dog owners to be aware of their animal's whereabouts after sheep were killed in two separate attacks. Two Alsatians and a terrier attacked and killed four sheep at a smallholding in Liverton village, near Loftus, on
-
Date
French favourite Jeannin signs three-year Darlington deal
Darlington yesterday received a massive boost when classy French defender Alex Jeannin signed a three-year deal. Jeannin arrived at Feethams just before the transfer deadline last month and after watching him in training for only a couple of days, manager
-
Date
Get some Comic Relief on the web
TOMORROW is Comic Relief's Red Nose day and the Internet has the chance to bring you some laughter while changing the lives of people around the world. The official Comic Relief website provides plenty of fund-raising inspiration and gives readers lots
-
Date
Asthma 'cure' scientist to visit region
A RUSSIAN scientist who has pioneered a controversial "cure" for asthma is to visit the North-East. British followers of Professor Konstantin Buteyko claim that his unconventional approach to treating asthma could help millions to live without inhalers
-
Date
The Cyber Space - Look out for the love bug
ACCORDING to one of the definitions in the Oxford English dictionary, a virus is "a harmful or corrupting influence". And that influence could mean you will never get to read this article because rumours abound that there is a Valentine's Day virus out
-
Date
Wanted: A garden in need of a makeover
TV producers are looking for people who would like to receive a free makeover of their garden or on a room in their house as part of a new television programme. Yorkshire-based independent production company NMTV is to begin filming Style File, for the
-
Date
Music festival will go ahead, vows director
ORGANISERS of a rural music festival have pledged that the show will go ahead, despite the epidemic. Preparations are still being made for the annual Swaledale Festival, which is staged in the most northerly areas of Swaledale, Wensleydale and Arkengarthdale
-
Date
Organisers decide to cancel this year's show
ONE of the biggest agricultural shows in the region has been cancelled because of the crisis. The showground for Egton Show, in the North York Moors, is in agricultural land and is out of bounds because the disease has spread to the nearby village of
-
Date
Businessman in £7,000 benefit case
A businessman has been charged with obtaining £7,000 in housing benefit for a house he did not own. Benefit fraud investigators claim property developer Jagmohan Malhotra continued to keep benefit of his former tenant of a house in Wallsend, two and a
-
Date
£8m cinema joins battle for audiences
THE region's own Star Wars is about to be played out when an £8m multi-screen cinema opens later this summer. A string of Hollywood box office flops have failed to dampen enthusiasm for the movie-going experience. Audiences in the region have more than
-
Date
Mechanic jailed for handling stolen cars
A MECHANIC who sparked police chases through a busy city has been jailed for stripping down stolen cars and selling them for parts. Robert Sampson, 38, of Oaklands Crescent, Southwick, Sunderland, was arrested following police surveillance at his vehicle
-
Date
Shrubs soften school security
GREEN-FINGERED students have changed the face of their school with a planting project. A group of year 11 science students at Sunnydale School, Shildon, have planted about 40 shrubs on the main pedestrian approach to school. The students grew the shrubs
-
Date
Reasons to be cheerful in the virtual world
As the year 2000 draws to a close it is time to look at what lies in store for the World Wide Web in the year 2001. The past 12 months have prompted some pessimistic responses to the Internet - not least from the mighty stock markets. High-profile names
-
Date
Courts take over police role
A MAGISTRATES' courts committee has taken over the responsibility from police for executing warrants against fine defaulters and people who breach community sentences. The Durham Magistrates' Courts Committee said the move will allow the courts to give
-
Date
Villagers dig deep to improve landscape
A MOUNTAIN of topsoil has been delivered to villagers to help them dig deep to improve the landscape. The first of two 30 tonne loads have already been delivered to Oley Meadows at Shotley Bridge, near Consett, to help create a nature area on the site
-
Date
Bus ride back to times of glory
DARLINGTON has a proud record as a pioneer of transport, and for many people there is no prouder name in its history than that of Scott's Greys. Everyone knows that in 1825 Darlington gave birth to the first proper passenger railway, and nearly everyone
-
Date
Centre builds bridges with financial experts
A SHOPPING centre's recent multi-million pound expansion is building bridges with City financial institutions. The Bridges, in Sunderland, is bucking the trend in regional retail ratings, according to visiting Stock Market experts. Twelve City of London
-
Date
Nigel, oh Nigel, what a name...
LIKE Wally or Herbert, for example, the name Nigel now has undertones, slightly giggly and wholly inexplicable. At least two Nigels work in this office, both perfectly good eggs. One of the Arsenal's legendary back four was a Nigel, Nigella Lawson's old
-
Date
Council worked with agency despite public denial - claim
A NORTH-EAST council worked alongside the agency hoping to build a deeply unpopular bail hostel - despite publicly backing the campaign against it, it was claimed yesterday. Last year, Chester-le-Street District Council threw out controversial Probation
-
Date
Looking to regain old glories
THREE course Sunday lunch at the George in Piercebridge is £13.95, which may explain why a couple inquired, conferred and ordered two packets of plain crisps instead. It's a bit steep for a north countryman is that, worse still for a Yorkshireman - within
-
Date
Bellissimo, truly bellissimo
POCO is Italian for tiny, Caf Poco abundant proof of what they say about good stuff and little bundles. It's in Wolsingham, one of those eating places - there are too few - which doesn't just help put in the day but positively enhances it. Though the
-
Date
Stepping down from the high ground
AS a home to thriving colonies of birds, from ducks to waders, there is nothing to suggest the lake has not been there for generations. Just below the top of the moor, it provides a seemingly-perfect natural stopping off point for its feathered visitors
-
Date
Nice cafe, shame about the trains
THE period of breast beating and atonement upon which the railway companies must surely soon embark appears to have begun rather early. A red carpet had abased itself almost exactly where we stopped from the train at Newcastle Central station; a flower
-
Date
Are the days of letters numbered?
DEAR reader. When did you last write a letter? Unless you are in love, in dispute with the gas board or writing to complain about something in these pages, the chances are that it was some time ago. If you are under 30, it could well not be since your
-
Date
And a good time was had by all...
NOT particularly early doors, the Breakfast Club assembled unannounced at the Kings Head in Richmond. Probably it was about 9.15, though many of the hotel's handsome old clocks put a different face on it. Though the clocks were monthly maintained, said
-
Date
Getting to grips with the divide
IT MAY be known as the World Wide Web but how truly world wide is the Internet and the opportunities it has to offer? As the developed countries get more and more economic clout from technology, the so-called digital divide increases so that developing
-
Date
Military services in firing line for sell-off
MORE military services are to be sold to the private sector in the latest efficiency move by the Ministry of Defence. Fire and crash services at 96 British military air bases around the world - including the fighter base at Leeming, North Yorkshire -
-
Date
Mum's the word online
MOTHER'S Day won't go by unnoticed on the Internet this Sunday. Whether you're a mum looking for some fun or a son or daughter looking for a gift, the Internet can help you out for Mother's Day. If you are a mum looking for the chance to chat to other
-
Date
Look in right direction for help
AN organisation is aiming to make every County Durham resident aware of its goldmine of information on health, disabilities or family matters. Directions was set up six years ago to create a database of local and national information on everything from
-
Date
Allegations of attacks 'near PM's home' rejected
ALLEGATIONS that children as young as three are running riot near Prime Minister Tony Blair's North-East home have been rejected by a housing association. It had been claimed that cars and houses were regularly attacked, and elderly residents harassed
-
Date
Nurse hurt in late-night A&E attack
A WOMAN patient was questioned by police yesterday after a nurse had her wrist broken in an early morning incident in a hospital casualty department. Violence flared as the patient was about to leave the accident and emergency unit at Bishop Auckland
-
Date
Where Sheena leads, it wise to follow
THOSE with an O Level in Religious Education (or Religious Knowledge, or Scripture or whatever these doubtful days it has become) may be familiar with the parable of the centurion's daughter. So great was the Roman's belief that he urged Jesus not even
-
Date
Keeping up with the Smiths
ST Valentine's Day: a solitary two-course lunch consumes just 12 minutes in the caf at Darlington Covered Market. Romance may not be in the air, but there's plenty of tobacco smoke. Music, food of love, appears to be Radio 2 with mufflers on. Vegetable
-
Date
Making his Marc on lunchtimes
DJ Marc Henry will be hitting the airwaves in his new position on Metro Radio's lunchtime show. Marc has taken on the 10am to 2pm weekday slot on one of the region's most popular radio station after moving to Gateshead from Reading, where he worked on
-
Date
My yummy Valentine's
A LITTLE lovelorn, last week's column dwelt upon an unaccompanied February 14. Last week the lady returned, gingerly, to her feet. "Take her to Valentine's," suggested Tom Dobbin from Durham and, belatedly, we did. Though he considered the food very enjoyable
-
Date
The lady really knows her onions
SHEENA Lawson likes the column, anyway. Beset by Hear All Sides correspondents alleging more froth than a pint of Whitbread, it is good - like Lady Windermere - to have a fan. To the point, the carpists claim to suffer from indigression - more Two Ronnies
-
Date
B+ Could try harder
BACK to school, or to the schoolroom anyway, we dined at the Bridgewater Arms in Winston - recently kitted out to reflect its formative years. Though they still have lessons to learn, chiefly in addressing the puddings (D-minus, unfortunately) and the
-
Date
Cheap, chatty and very cheerful
FEW may remember the Ballad of Bethnal Green, nor even Paddy Roberts, the chap memory suggests who many years ago recorded it. Heaven knows why it should have been Bethnal Green. Why not Tooting Bec, or Shepherds Bush or even the Elephant and Castle,
-
Date
Cat charity's plea for homeless 'mogolescents'
A GENERATION of cats are in desperate need of homes, says an animal charity. The pets, aged from four years, have found their way to the Teesside Cat Protection League, Stockton, and are in need of permanent homes. David Williams, of the charity, has
-
Date
Getting online with William
The activities of Prince William have been well documented in the media over the past few days and nowhere more so than the Internet. But his high-profile appearances as a volunteer worker in Chile are not reflected in the official online coverage of
-
Date
Cyber help to quit the weed
Next week sees the annual day set aside to help smokers give up the evil weed. And smoking surfers are not left out, with plenty of useful advice, help and information provided online. The official No Smoking Day site at www.nosmokingday.org.uk was still
-
Date
Get away from it all, now
With the bad weather, the foot-and-mouth crisis and a possible election on the way, perhaps it's time to leave the country. Why not click on a holiday? There are plenty of bargains on the World Wide Web and just about all the major travel companies offer
-
Date
Schools to share £13m handout
CRUMBLING schools in the region are to get almost £13m for major rebuilding work and to create modern facilities. Schools in Darlington, Hartlepool, Redcar and Cleveland will receive a share of the modernisation package announced by School Standards Minister
-
Date
The case for vaccination gets stronger
A SINGLE outbreak of foot-and-mouth in Devon last weekend triggered the slaughter of 12,000 animals on the infected farm and its 15 neighbours. From space, North Cumbria, overhung with a pall from its grim animal funeral pyres, now ranks second only to
-
Date
Bayern gain revenge as United crash out
Sharpen the guillotine and prepare to let those heads roll. Sir Alex Ferguson should carry out Roy Keane's threat to make some Manchester United players a few inches shorter after they were dumped out of the Champions League by Bayern Munich. Despite
-
Date
Farmers dig in
THE Government was last night facing determined opposition from many farmers and food producers to plans for a limited vaccination programme to ''dampen down'' foot-and-mouth in the worst-hit parts of Britain. After lengthy meetings with Government scientists
-
Date
Letterrs
HOLIDAY CLUB AS one of the churchwardens of All Saints' Church, Preston-on-Tees, I would like to congratulate you on your story and picture of our Easter holiday club (Echo, Apr 14). It was really good to see you printing such a positive story of our
-
Date
Rain dampens Nayef's hopes of enjoying Classic warm-up
With the persistent rain in the Newmarket area yesterday it now seems unlikely that Marcus Tregoning will let the current Guineas favourite Nayef, who looked to hold outstanding claims, take his chance in today's Macau Jockey Club Craven Stakes. Tregoning
-
Date
Stars come out to play
FROM diaries about their lives to online performances, celebrities are embracing the Internet like never before. It is now possible to read how Hollywood actress Melanie Griffith tackled her addiction to pain killers in a sugary online journal at www.melanieonline.com
-
Date
Young people lead the way in sport
A DOZEN young people received certificates yesterday at the end of a community sports leadership course. Darlington leisure services and community education has been running the course as part of efforts to promote leadership and organisational skills
-
Date
No price on children's safety
WHEN there are finite resources, it is always difficult for education authorities to determine priorities. But surely there can be no greater priority than the health and safety of our children? When parents hand over responsibility to authorities for
-
Date
Record Easter attendances for museums
MUSEUMS in east Cleveland had a record-breaking Easter weekend. There was double the number of visitors at Kirkleatham Museum, Redcar, and Margrove Heritage Centre, at Margrove Park. Officials from Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council said visitor numbers
-
Date
Patient's gift to send plastic surgeon on a mercy mission
A TEENAGER who had plastic surgery as a child is doing her bit to help hundreds of disfigured people in the developing world. Rachel Burnett, 17, has raised £1,101, towards a mercy mission to Sri Lanka. The cash will be used towards the costs of corrective
-
Date
Tourist centre's celebration muted
STAFF at a rural tourist information centre in County Durham will be putting on a brave face when they celebrate its first anniversary tomorrow. Despite the foot-and-mouth crisis crippling local tourist spots in the area, staff at the Middleton-in-Teesdale
-
Date
Organisers decide to cancel this year's show
ONE of the biggest agricultural shows in the region has been cancelled because of the crisis. The showground for Egton Show, in the North Yorks Moors, is in agricultural land and is out of bounds because the disease has spread to the nearby village of
-
Date
'Mortified' by attack on officer
A woman was mortified when told she kicked a police officer in the testicles during a drunken rampage, said her lawyer yesterday. Catharine Doyle, 35, was ordered to pay Cleveland PC Scott Spitty £50 compensation yesterday after she pleaded guilty to
-
Date
Builder denies site attack
A BUILDER denied assaulting a colleague and damaging a metal chain, before Bow Street magistrates, London yesterday. John Barclay, 42, of Chatham Road, Hartlepool, was bailed to appear in court on May 25. He is accused of grabbing Matthew Harlow around
-
Date
Mystery surrounds source of outbreak
DOUBT was last night cast on the theory that the outbreak began on a Northumberland pig farm. The virus may have been in Britain three weeks before it was spotted in this area, it was claimed. Sheep exported to France from south Wales allegedly showed
-
Date
Chinatown extends meal offer to Brown
CHINESE restaurateurs have invited agriculture minister Nick Brown to dine in Newcastle's Chinatown, in an effort to allay public fears. Restaurants in Stowell Street have lost 40 per cent of their business since allegations that it was contaminated waste
-
Date
Ministry abandons burning proposal
THE Ministry of Agriculture has ditched plans to burn animal carcasses near a village, after bowing to pressure from objectors. Many Tow Law residents have opposed proposals to dump diseased cattle on a former opencast quarry, half a mile from their village
-
Date
Builder denies site attack
A BUILDER denied assaulting a colleague and damaging a metal chain, before Bow Street magistrates, London yesterday. John Barclay, 42, of Chatham Road, Hartlepool, was bailed to appear in court on May 25. He is accused of grabbing Matthew Harlow around
-
Date
Police force overhauls the way it works
DURHAM Police have overhauled their corporate development by enlisting a new head of department. Superintendent Derek Hall, who worked as divisional commander at Sedgefield for four years, will be head of the department that monitors demands and changes
-
Date
Four more police facing Lancet discipline charges
FOUR more police officers are to face disciplinary charges as a result of the Operation Lancet inquiry. Although the inquiry concluded earlier this year that there would be no criminal charges, some Cleveland police officers are still facing disciplinary
-
Date
Tempting new year deals from ISPs
NOW that Christmas is over, the new computer is out of the box and you're fed up with the free games which came with it, you could be wondering where to go for the best Internet access. Whether you are a new surfer or you just fancy shopping around to
-
Date
Lottery boost for church fund
A CHURCH which faced possible closure is now less than £100,000 away from undergoing a major transformation. A few years ago, the future of St Columba's, in Darlington, looked bleak because its congregation had dwindled. But following lots of work and
-
Date
Sous on the warpath?
The Game Tavern isn't the place for those who like Sunday lunch to offer change and a doggy bag from a fifty shilling note, nor indeed - as shortly we shall explain - for diners who prefer to be home for the World at One. With one or two slings in the
-
Date
Are you among these fresh faces from the Fifties?
TWO former school friends are searching for their classmates - 50 years after starting their education in Darlington. Rosalind Lewis and Susan Little started at Arthur Pease Infant School, in Vane Terrace, in Easter 1951, and returned to the town to celebrate
-
Date
Going to work on an egg
IT WAS Lilliput, memory suggests, where the nation was divided into Bigenders and Littlenders, depending on the direction from which they assaulted their eggs. It was in the cheek-by-jowl lay-by caf on the north-bound carriageway at Scotch Corner that
-
Date
Bigger Chips will be keeping dream alive
THE chips may be down for the UK video games industry, but one North-East chain is pressing ahead with plans to expand. Despite the introduction of the long- awaited PlayStation 2 machine, UK publishers and stores have endured a bad time in the past six
-
Date
Equally deserving of recognition
Like the signs of a storm, or a profile of Ms Vanessa Feltz, this column is not difficult to recognise. Barry Dowson seemed to have cracked it straight away. "Either that or he's a nervous wreck," suggested Garry Gibson, former chairman of Hartlepool
-
Date
Citizen space online for Government
THIS week saw a major step forward in the Prime Minister's campaign to get Britain online with the launch of the web portal www.ukonline.gov.uk. Rather unkindly dubbed "Pravda.com" in some sections of the media, this attempt to link up Government services
-
Date
Landowner faces battle over village green proposals
A STABLE-OWNER is resisting neighbours' attempts to take over her land. The picturesque patch by the River Gaunless in Toadpool, West Auckland is the centre of a dispute between residents of a nearby estate and landowner Anne Reynolds. Residents want
-
Date
Local art work goes on show
ARTISTS from across Teesside are showing off their work at an exhibition in Billingham. More than 300 works by 92 artists will be on show at Billingham Art Gallery as part of the 20th annual open art exhibition. A variety of styles and subjects, including
-
Date
Road safety measures welcomed
PLANS to introduce measures to slow traffic in an east Cleveland town have been welcomed by councillors. Loftus ward councillors David Walsh and Eric Jackson were commenting on plans to rebuild some roads in the town to make them safer. The work, which
-
Date
Keeping track of your e-mail
'Hi. how are you? Thought you might like the attached image. See you soon. Have you seen our latest offers? Your shopping order has been received and will be delivered on Thursday. Thank you for your order." Fascinating reading? I don't think so, but
-
Date
White Bear shows its teeth
TO those who have seen much water under the bridge, the brewery tap will be familiar. Traditionally, it was the pub closest to the fountain-head; usually it was a turn-on. Despite fierce opposition, Vaux's in Sunderland closed last year. The White Bear
-
Date
Foot-and-mouth updates online
While the foot-and-mouth crisis is gripping the country, many organisations are using the Internet to keep people informed and provide the most up-to-date advice. All users are catered for - from specialist farming information to general news and advice
-
Date
A safe landing at The Twig
THE Oak Tree, known to a generation of hedgehoppers as The Twig, is officially in Middleton St George but almost on the front doorstep of Teesside Airport. Last Tuesday evening it was like a jumbo jet-load had unexpectedly parachuted in. It should at
-
Date
A genuine collectors' item
HOLME House prison is alongside the Portrack Lane Retail Park in Stockton. Last time we were inside, the inmates shouted very rude things through the windows. "They shout very rude things at everybody," said a prison officer, by way of feeble reassurance
-
Date
Proposals for health trust to be published
PROPOSALS to set up a trust to improve health care in Darlington are being published as part of a consultation process. County Durham and Darlington Health Authority set up a primary care group (PCG) in 1999 and hopes to expand the services it provides
-
Date
St George would be proud
IT COULD hardly have been more British. It poured down, we carried a copy of the Daily Telegraph - the Guardian, somehow, would not have been so stiff upper lip - and the chattering classes had gathered in cheerful congregation to talk, as Dr Johnson
