Archive
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Opposition to dealership plans
PROPOSALS to build two car dealerships on land at the side of a busy trunk road, creating up to 60 jobs, are being recommended for refusal by Darlington Borough Council's planning officers. South Cleveland Garages' plans for the site of the derelict Ivanhoe
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Event in Tent gives residents a voice
NEWTON Aycliffe residents will be given the chance to have their say on proposals to improve their area The community planning event is being held in the West Ward of the town on Saturday, July 20, from 11am to 4.30pm, as a key stage in work to prepare
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Hollywood legend Rod Steiger is dead
Legendary Hollywood actor Rod Steiger died in Los Angeles last night at the age of 77. The star - who was once married to British actress Claire Bloom - won a best actor Oscar for his 1967 role in movie classic, In the Heat of the Night. His publicist
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Footprints help trap burglar
A BURGLAR who left his footprints behind at five commercial premises was jailed for more than three years yesterday. Andrew Wootton's size nine shoes left prints on floors and desks at companies he raided in Darlington and Yarm during a trail of 13 break-ins
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University honour for soccer favourite Quinn
Veteran footballer Niall Quinn, who gave the proceeds from his testimonial season to children's charities, has been chosen to receive an honorary degree from Sunderland University. The well-loved Ireland international, who was praised in the House of
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Burglars ruin bikes scheme
A SCHEME that has taught more than 17,000 new motorcyclists to ride on Teesside may have to close its central site due to a spate of break-ins. Instructors and staff at Cleveland Motorcycle Training Scheme spent yesterday counting the cost of yet another
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Man laughed as he set light to victim court told
A man laughed after he told passers-by he had doused a former family friend in petrol and turned him into a human fireball, a court heard. Jobless Mark Towell, 26, denies murdering 49-year-old Arthur Leak just weeks after Mr Leak tried to get into bed
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Student in hospital following fight at top school
A PUPIL at a leading public school is being treated in hospital after being badly beaten by a classmate in an end of term punch up. The dormitory brawl left one of the classmates needing emergency surgery to remove his spleen after the fight at the £14,000
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Hospital wing under way
HEALTHCARE staff in Gateshead have joined forces with construction experts to celebrate the launch of a development at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital. Gateshead Health NHS Trust clinical staff cheered the start of work on site for the Jubilee Wing which
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Training company reviews a great year
AN engineering training company in the region has celebrated possibly its most successful year. South-West Durham Training, in Newton Aycliffe, has had a busy 12 months and capped it off with an awards ceremony for its trainees covering a variety of disciplines
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Premiership chiefs opt for experience at the helm
At a time when the working world is turning its back on older members of society, Premiership chairmen are falling over themselves to welcome football's elderly managers back into the fold. The script for next season's title battle could easily have been
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Detectives waiting to quiz stab probe wife
DETECTIVES are still waiting to resume questioning a 33-year-old woman whose husband died from multiple stab wounds at the weekend. Jane Lovegreen, from Greenfields Farm, High Etherley, County Durham, has been kept under observation in Bishop Auckland
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Stores overhaul is pick-up for Safeway
Safeway delivered a sharp improvement in sales figures yesterday after reaping the rewards of a stores overhaul. Like-for-like sales picked up four per cent in the six weeks to June 22, helped by the success of four new "megastores" and 29 refurbished
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Inspectors toast a clear case of improvement in tap supplies
A report has revealed how drinking water quality in the North-East is continuing to improve. The Drinking Water Inspectorate says that breaches in water quality in the Northumbrian Water area are at their lowest level for more than a decade. Almost 207,000
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Parking spaces to be increased
INCREASING numbers of visitors to Thorp Perrow Arboretum near Bedale has led to a need to increase the number of parking spaces. The attraction has now won conditional planning consent for more than 100 extra spaces, despite concerns about the effect
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Jobs boost in firm's £2m plan to expand
A £2m expansion plan for a North-East company could nearly treble its workforce, it was revealed yesterday. Onyx Scientific, of Sunderland, supplies top pharmaceutical companies and researches, develops and manufactures new drugs. It began two years ago
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Jobs boost in firm's £2m plan to expand
A £2m expansion plan for a North-East company could nearly treble its workforce, it was revealed yesterday. Onyx Scientific, of Sunderland, supplies top pharmaceutical companies and researches, develops and manufactures new drugs. It began two years ago
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Yorwaste's £5m contract
A NORTH-YORKSHIRE waste management company is celebrating after winning a major new contract. Yorwaste, the company responsible for managing the disposal of domestic and business waste in North Yorkshire and City of York, has won a contract worth about
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Businesses warned to watch out for fax scam
TRADERS in Stockton are being warned to watch out for a premium rate fax scam being used in the area. A bogus customer telephones the business and asks to have specific information faxed to them, claiming they are from out of the area. However, the fax
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Here's hoping Euan gets the last laugh
LET us spare a thought for Euan Blair. In the middle of the crossfire about his parents' hypocrisy and double standards, the poor kid is - at the moment - in an absolutely no win situation. He's been in it since somebody let slip that he'd been offered
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Taking a look on the dark side
Shipman (ITV: The Secret Life Of The Office (BBC1) IT'S a pity that the factual drama Shipman, about the man known as Doctor Death, will be judged on its timing rather than its quality. Relatives have complained that this film about the mass murderer
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Sport festival unites schools
THOUSANDS of youngsters from all over east Durham took part in their own mini Commonwealth Games Festival yesterday. More than 2,000 children from 45 primary schools hit the ground running in a mass celebration of youth sport and dance at East Durham
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MP calls for help in probe into doctors
AN MP is urging anyone with information about two former psychiatrists to present it to an independent inquiry. Patients have made a series of allegations against William Kerr and Michael Haslam, who both worked in North Yorkshire. The inquiry, to be
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Boy, 12, held after police drugs swoop
A SCHOOLBOY has been arrested by police who foiled a drugs deal. The 12-year-old, arrested on suspicion of supplying heroin, is being held for questioning at Middlesbrough police station, together with a 17-year-old youth. The youngster was sitting in
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Reid ready to splash £2m to land McCann
SUNDERLAND boss Peter Reid is stepping up his interest in Rangers winger Neil McCann. Reid is ready to tempt the Glasgow giants with a £2m offer for the speedy Scottish international. Sunderland's service from the flanks has been lacking since the 1998
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News In Brief
Crackdown on cooking books A financial crimes "Swat team" to crack down on the corrupt business practices that have shattered public faith in corporate America was announced by George Bush yesterday. The US President also called for harsher penalties
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Youngsters' travel scheme is extended
A POPULAR scheme giving teenagers cut-price bus travel is to be relaunched. City of York Council first started the Yo Zone bus card initiative for youngsters aged 14 to 16 three years ago. The card allows teenagers to travel on buses in York at child
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Ken steps down
A SKELTON ex-serviceman has stepped down from his role as chairman of the Cleveland branch of a charity for ex-forces personnel. Squadron Leader Ken Kime began working as a volunteer for the Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Families Association 18 years
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Group wants UK to follow guidelines on steroid use
CAMPAIGNERS are urging European leaders to punish the UK for failing to enforce strict rules on labelling medicines containing steroids. A directive from the European Commission makes it obligatory to enclose patient information leaflets with all medication
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The true business of education
BEFORE Tony Blair led New Labour to power, he gave as his priority "education, education, education''. Very fine. But what kind of education? The Prime Minister's ideas have become clearer with the plans to ditch what is now denigrated as the "bog standard
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Free eco advice is on offer for firms
BUSINESS chiefs are to launch a pioneering environmental scheme to save companies in North Yorkshire thousands of pounds. The Leeming Bar industrial estate, near Northallerton, has been selected for a pilot project which, if successful, could be rolled
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News In Brief
Appeal follows road accident: POLICE yesterday appealed for witnesses to a two-car collision which left one of the motorists seriously injured. The driver of a Nissan Micra car was freed from the damaged vehicle by firefighters using cutting equipment
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Queen Camel is truly a king among names
REMEMBERING its place, and that there'd be an eager void to fill upon returning, the column pondered before last week's holiday in Dorset upon the sublime ridiculousness of English village names. It was the Dorset parish of Piddletrenthide, Piddle Hinton
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Ancient markers of early fell folk
STANDING high on Cockfield Fell, with the wind tearing at your face, you feel on top of the world. All central Durham is laid out before you. At your feet lies the history of the entire county, for the face of the fell has been pitted and pock-marked
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Wind power project could boost redundancy-hit dale
A CONTROVERSIAL wind farm project could become a factor in the revival of a dale which is being hit by job losses next month. Energy company National Windpower is asking planning officials for their views on a project at Rookhope, in Weardale, which is
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Challenge project reaches peak
A challenge which has involved more than 5,000 teenagers in environmental, crime prevention or social projects reaches its climax next week. The Square Mile Project, which has been running for 10 years, is open to teams of 11 to 17-year-olds from throughout
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Ailing firm puts hall on the market
A STATELY home yesterday became the highest profile asset to be put up for sale by a crumbling North-East business empire. Wynyard Hall, one of the region's finest properties, which comes complete with nearly 800 acres of parkland, two lodges, a 15-acre
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Housing boom set for Sunderland
PLANS have been unveiled for a city's biggest new house building programme for decades. At a major conference staged by Sunderland Housing Group, the organisation revealed plans to secure funding for 4,000 new homes in Sunderland over the next five years
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Pool seek happy medium in Holland
HARTLEPOOL United's pre-season kicks-off tonight - with Chris Turner's side going Dutch. All roads lead to Carlisle and the Division Three campaign on August 10, but Pool's preparations start off by visiting Dutch outfit Theole. They also play SV Nootdorp
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Starr and Dodd set to tour region
CONTROVERSIAL comedian Freddie Starr and showbiz legend Ken Dodd will be ticking audiences in the region this autumn. The pair have been signed up as part of Darlington Civic theatre's autumn season programme. Freddie Starr, who once hit the headlines
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Parish council in funding appeal for speed restriction
A PARISH council is asking nearby communities to help pay to get the speed limit lowered on a village road. Members of Croft-on-Tees Parish Council have written to neighbouring councils and community groups about the speed of cars in South Parade, near
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Solicitor remanded on bail
A SOLICITOR facing a total of 82 charges in connection with an alleged £325,000 legal aid fraud was remanded on bail when he appeared in court today. John Tate, 50, of Mayberry Grove, Middlesbrough, appeared before Newcastle magistrates on 81 charges
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Quakers to pay in wrongful dismissal suit
A NORTH-EAST football club that wrongfully sacked a commercial manager has been ordered to pay her a five-figure sum in damages. Darlington Football Club must pay Helen Coverdale £12,400 after she won a claim for unfair dismissal and breach of contract
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Airport celebrates double helping of KLM good news
A NORTH-EAST airport was celebrating last night after a major boost from international airline KLM. Teesside International Airport got a vote of confidence from the company which announced it was to double capacity on its three-times-a-day service to
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Stage set for jubilee baton celebration
THE Queen's Jubilee Baton Relay will visit Bishop Auckland and Darlington today, with organisers promising a memorable celebration to mark the occasion. The baton is due to reach Bishop Auckland at 4.20pm before travelling on to Darlington at about 6.55pm
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A day for the naked and the dead curious
ANYONE who has ever nursed a naked ambition to embark on the free and uninhibited lifestyle of a naturist now has their chance. Greenacres Naturist Club in County Durham is inviting curious members of the public to throw their inhibitions and clothes
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HRT shock:'Risks outweigh benefits'
A major study into the long-term effects of hormone replacement therapy involving more than 16,000 women has been halted early because the risks so clearly outweighed the benefits. Researchers in the US were forced to abandon the eight-year investigation
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News In Brief
Gardening solutions: Royal Horticultural Society gardener Graham Porter will be at Raby Castle gardens today, to answer any gardening queries. Visitors are being invited to take plant specimens to discuss with him. HOUSE BURGLED: About £300 in cash was
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Company aid for school's specialist bid
A VILLAGE school has received a donation from a regional company to help its bid for specialist status. Hurworth Comprehensive School, near Darlington, is moving closer to raising the £50,000 it needs to lodge a bid with the Government for specialist
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'My son did not take his own life'
Last year, 17-year-old Geoff Gray died from two gunshot wounds to the head at Deepcut Barracks in Surrey. The Army claims it was suicide. His parents disagree. Liz Lamb reports on the unusual circumstances surrounding his death. IT is a moment every parent
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McKeown can make amends
DEAN McKeown has a heaven-sent opportunity at Newmarket this afternoon to make up for a bungling performance aboard Vicious Warrior last time out. Admittedly we can all ride perfectly-judged races from the safety of the stands, but even to the untrained
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Suspicion over Army secrecy
THERE are legitimate concerns over the Army's investigation into four deaths in seven years at the Royal Logistics Corps headquarters in Deepcut, Surrey. And it is wrong for the Army to hide behind a cloak of secrecy over the issue. There must be respect
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Man laughed as he set light to victim court told
A man laughed after he told passers-by he had doused a former family friend in petrol and turned him into a human fireball, a court heard. Jobless Mark Towell, 26, denies murdering 49-year-old Arthur Leak just weeks after Mr Leak tried to get into bed
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Strike may close schools
UNIONS have warned there is a realistic prospect of schools and other public buildings being forced to close during a national day of strike action. The country's biggest union Unison has sent notices to local authorities across the region informing them
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Dismal weather but show is Great
IT was a dismal day, grey, overcast and raining - but in the end it didn't matter. The Great Yorkshire Show lived up to its name by shrugging off the elements and the disaster that was 2001 to bounce back in spectacular form. Last year's show, the premier
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£3m windfall announced for market towns
More help is on the way for the region's market towns to help them build towards more prosperous futures. Nearly £3m is to be pumped into a wide variety of projects over the next ten years by the regional development agency, Yorkshire Forward. Executive
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Shares spree sparks Magpies rumours
SPECULATION that Newcastle United may return to private ownership has increased after a company owned by chairman Freddie Shepherd bought more shares in the club. Rumours that the club may be taken off the Stock Exchange grew after a Shepherd family business
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Raunchy stock excites sales
RETAIL chain Ann Summers yesterday said sales at its stores increased by 28 per cent in the past year as customers snapped up saucy lingerie and raunchy sex toys. The group, which has a 62-strong chain of shops in the UK including in Middlesbrough and
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Hear All Sides
EUROPE: SEVERAL polls in Europe have found that people in Britain have very little accurate knowledge about Europe and the European Union, but it was surprising to read (HAS, July 2) that someone was "fed up with the Prime Minister trying to rush us into
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Harmison could be handed Feethams role
DURHAM are considering taking a gamble on Stephen Harmison when they visit one of their outgrounds for the first time for two years today. The England Academy paceman had the batsmen hopping around in the nets at Feethams yesterday and could return against
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Flowers attacked on eve of judging
VANDALS have destroyed part of a market town's spectacular floral display on the eve of Britain in Bloom judges arriving to inspect them. Flowers in tubs along the bridge outside Safeway, in Pickering, were pulled out and thrown away at the weekend. The
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Taking a step toward fitness with walkers
THE first in a new series of guided walks through the North Yorkshire countryside gets under way tomorrow. The hour-long walk is part of an initiative to improve people's health through the newly-formed Hambleton Strollers group. Organiser Cathy Munro
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Appeal for kerbs advice
The public can help a major drive to make crossing the road easier in Hartlepool. Officials from Hartlepool Borough Council want people to continue suggesting where special dropped kerbs - which are designed to help the disabled and parents with prams
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Pensioner is mugged outside her house
DETECTIVES are appealing for information after a 71-year-old Horden woman was mugged on her doorstep. The pensioner left Horden Labour Club with a friend on Monday and the pair walked along Sunderland Road in the village before parting company. The woman
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Brian wins top award in bus competition
PARALLEL parking and emergency stops held no fear for Brian Scott, who has won a regional bus driver of the year contest. Mr Scott, from Pelton, near Chester-le-Street, County Durham, has scooped the title of Go North East Driver of the Year and a cheque
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News In Brief
Crackdown on cooking books: A financial crimes "Swat team" to crack down on the corrupt business practices that have shattered public faith in corporate America was announced by George Bush yesterday. The US President also called for harsher penalties
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Work starts on £180,000 sports hall
WORK has started on a £181,000 sports hall for the young people of Stanley. The development at Oxhill Youth Club, at Oxhill, Stanley, comes less than three years since the clubhouse was destroyed by fire. Lottery agents Sport England donated £142,000
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Protect all 999 staff, MP tells Commons
AN MP has called for legal protection offered to emergency services staff from abusive and violent members of the public to match that offered to police. North Sunderland MP Bill Etherington told the Commons that attacks on firefighters in the city last
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Top drugs adviser resigns
GOVERNMENT drugs adviser Keith Hellawell today announced his resignation in protest at the proposal to reclassify cannabis. Mr Hellawell, the former Drug Tsar who is now a part-time adviser to the Government, also attacked Government "spin" for relaunching
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999 shake-ups 'just waste of time and money'
AN influential health watchdog yesterday condemned the possible restructuring of the North's ambulance service as a waste of time and public money. Harrogate and District Community Health Council (CHC), which covers a large part of North Yorkshire, claimed
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Tell us how our sons really died
ANGUISHED parents last night demanded a fresh inquiry into the mysterious suicides of two young soldiers at Catterick Garrison, Europe's biggest Army base. Private Alan Sharples and Private Richard Robertson both died of gunshot wounds while they were
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Managers defend hospital care
MANAGERS at a new £67m North-East hospital have rebutted claims it cannot offer adequate care for seriously ill patients. According to a report by the Royal College of Physicians (RCP), acutely ill patients should not be admitted to hospitals which do
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New landlord triples size of her portfolio
THE youngest landlord in Darlington is celebrating after tripling the size of her business. Sarah Cockburn, 21, has owned and rented a two-bedroom house in Newton Aycliffe since February 2000. She has just added two Darlington properties to her portfolio
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Street that keeps artistic tradition alive and kicking
AN historic North-East street, which was home to some of the region's most famous artists, has been turned into a modern art gallery. Westbrook Villas, in Darlington, was built in the 1860s, on land which belonged to railway pioneer Henry Pease, and the
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Tough decisions on future for council house tenants
COUNCIL house tenants are facing tough decisions as local authorities consider turning their homes over to private housing associations. Residents from Shildon will discuss the future of the town's council homes at a meeting this week, as Sedgefield Borough
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Flight of fancy for Jack the falcon
What goes up must come down, but not in the case of Jack the falcon who decided to break with years of falconry tradition and stay in the sky. It was a routine part of falconer Rob Allott's act, sending his pair of Lanner falcons Jack and Jill up into
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Church to celebrate first mass in 500 years
History is in the making in a forgotten corner of the North-East. A tiny church is being reopened this weekend to celebrate the first Roman Catholic mass there, for 500 years. Benedictine monk Father Philip-James French has worked in partnership with
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Brazilian midfielder must wait
Quakers' new Brazilian trialist, Volmair Manfrin, will have to wait before making his first appearance in a Darlington shirt after tonight's friendly at North Shields was cancelled. The 25-year-old began a two-week trial yesterday but tonight's game was
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Scale of rail near-disasters 'probably underestimated'
THE full scale of the scandal surrounding Britain's crumbling railway bridge barriers may be even worse than damning official figures show, it has been claimed. Last week, The Northern Echo revealed that there were hundreds of near-disasters on the railways
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Queen Camel is truly a king among names
REMEMBERING its place, and that there'd be an eager void to fill upon returning, the column pondered before last week's holiday in Dorset upon the sublime ridiculousness of English village names. It was the Dorset parish of Piddletrenthide, Piddle Hinton
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Here's hoping Euan gets the last laugh
LET us spare a thought for Euan Blair. In the middle of the crossfire about his parents' hypocrisy and double standards, the poor kid is - at the moment - in an absolutely no win situation. He's been in it since somebody let slip that he'd been offered
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Residents take to streets in protest at 'dumping ground'
ANGRY residents who claim their area has become a "dumping ground" for criminals and drug users are to take to the streets in protest. Scores of people in North Ormesby, Middlesbrough, plan to march through the streets next Wednesday because they were
