Archive
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Court in the act of bad spelling
BUMBLING workers have put up signs at a court with the town's name spelt wrongly. Two signs at the roadside entrance to the newly refurbished magistrates' court in Racecourse Lane, Northallerton, North Yorkshire, name the building as Nothallerton Court
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Family devastated by deaths
A DEVASTATED North-East family were hit by a double tragedy on Christmas Eve as a former soldier killed his wife before taking his own life. Richard Mace, 26, and his police constable wife, Clare, 23, were found dead at their home in Lancashire. Detectives
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Sales fever begins to take a grip around the North-East
SHOPPERS rushed to join in the Boxing Day sales yesterday with retailers across the region reporting bumper figures. A number of big name chains started their post-Christmas sales, including Debenhams, Selfridges, Dixons and Currys. At the MetroCentre
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Meyrick win to provide icing on the Cake for Mary
A Piece Of Cake, who should be all the better for a recent outing, looks the one to be on in the skybet.com Rowland Meyrick Handicap Chase over three miles and one furlong at Wetherby today. Mary Reveley has enjoyed a good season so far and her ten-year-old
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Policeman dies after officers gunned down
A POLICE officer died and another was seriously injured in hospital last night after they were shot while on duty. The traffic officers were gunned down after they stopped a BMW car in Leeds, West Yorkshire Police said. Both policemen were taken to a
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Dippers brave the cold to aid charity
HUNDREDS of hardy people braved the icy North Sea yesterday for a series of Boxing Day dips - including Europe's largest. More than 700 people took the plunge at Seaburn, in Sunderland, helping to raise a record £41,000 for charity, while 200 splashed
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Written in the sands
If the best judges of a family holiday are children, then Pontins have got it right. MARK PRATT took his family to Pontins' Prestatyn Sands resort and they liked it so much they wanted to live there 'WOW" was the only word my ten-year-old daughter Sarah
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Praise for fight to erase stigma
A HOSPITAL team has won praise for its battle to erase the stigma attached to mental health problems. The Tees and North East Yorkshire NHS Trust, which provides mental health and learning disability services to people on Teesside, has been praised in
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Babbel's late goal takes gloss off Juninho double
THE RECORD books may stay intact, as Middlesbrough's long search for a goal came in the shape of a double at Blackburn Rovers yesterday. Top-scorer Juninho grabbed both Boro goals as Steve McClaren's men extended their unbeaten run to 11 matches. But
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Mills deal could be firmed up
MIDDLESBROUGH boss Steve McClaren wants to clinch a permanent deal for Danny Mills during the transfer window. The England right back joined Boro in August on a season's loan from crisis-torn Leeds. And McClaren, who could tempt the Elland Road board
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We're in the Army now
IT IS a December morning and I am lying flat on my stomach in the mud, my mask steaming up in the icy air. Looking down the barrel of my gun, I see the enemy ahead. "ENEMY!" I scream as I take aim and watch orange bullets fly across the field towards
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Fans rally in fight to save Quakers
THOUSANDS of supporters turned out yesterday to back Darlington Football Club as the fight to save the Quakers began in earnest. More than 6,200 people - one of the biggest crowds of the season at the Reynolds Arena - attended the match against Huddersfield
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Museum cuts ticket prices
Ticket prices will be reduced at Hartlepool's Historic Quay between next Friday and Wednesday, March 31, for anyone who lives in the borough. The adult entry price will be reduced from £5.50 to £2 and admission for children, pensioners and the unemployed
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Albany Northern League: Consett boss's warning
Consett manager Ray Lish has told his players that promotion to the Northern League first division is by no means certain. Consett are 16 points clear in the second division, and if they win today at Hebburn, will have the distinction of having picked
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Who are the Jonnys?
As the sun sets on 2003, we pause to consider the winners and loser of the TV year. Who are the Jonny Wilkinsons deserving a pat on the back? Who are the Saddam Hussains meriting being locked up? An who on earth commissioned another series of Merseybeat
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Airport access to be improved by £2m road
A ROAD is to be built at a cost of £2m to create better access to Teesside International Airport. It is hoped the development, which will include a cycleway and pedestrian footway, will ease traffic congestion during the summer, and create jobs and investment
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Ref blamed for ending Pool's proud record
After 29 games, almost 65 weeks and 455 days, the longest unbeaten home run in English football is over. Barnsley yesterday became the first team since Rushden and Diamonds on September 28, 2002 to win a League game at Victoria Park. There was fury at
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Peaceful protest as hunts ride again
THOUSANDS of enthusiasts throughout the North-East and North Yorkshire turned out in a show of strength yesterday to mark what could be the last annual Boxing Day hunts. Pro-hunt campaigners believe the Government is preparing to force legislation banning
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Action to raise book spending
COUNCIL bosses are likely to take action over concerns that public library standards in Darlington are not high enough. The borough council could open up a branch library in the north end of the town to complement the main facility in Crown Street. Funding
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Childcare plans are amended
PLANS for children's centres in the most deprived areas of Darlington have been altered. Darlington Borough Council agreed earlier this year to create facilities offering nearly 200 childcare places in total in the Cockerton West, Eastbourne, Park East
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Volunteers get to grips with improving landscape
A HARDY band of countryside-loving volunteers is doing its bit to aid the rural landscape of County Durham. Members of the county council's voluntary countryside ranger team have been out in force recently, even on Christmas Eve, helping to transform
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Policeman dies after officers gunned down
A POLICE officer died and another was seriously injured in hospital last night after they were shot while on duty. The traffic officers were gunned down after they stopped a BMW car in Leeds, West Yorkshire Police said. Both policemen were taken to a
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Lifeboat warning of holiday dangers
LIFEBOAT crews are asking the public to think about their own safety over the festive period. Last year, from Christmas Eve to New Year's Day, Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) lifeboats were called out 107 times and rescued 60 people from the
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Fans rally in fight to save Quakers
THOUSANDS of supporters turned out yesterday to back Darlington Football Club as the fight to save the Quakers began in earnest. More than 6,200 people - one of the biggest crowds of the season at the Reynolds Arena - attended the match against Huddersfield
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Dippers brave the cold to aid charity
HUNDREDS of hardy people braved the icy North Sea yesterday for a series of Boxing Day dips - including Europe's largest. More than 700 people took the plunge at Seaburn, in Sunderland, helping to raise a record £41,000 for charity, while 200 splashed
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Park revamp likely to be delayed
RESTORATION work on two 19th Century park buildings looks likely to be delayed, after planning officers raised concerns over the materials to be used in the revamp. Gateshead Borough Council has applied for planning permission to refurbish two shelters
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Tree scheme points way forward for environmentally-friendly power
EUROPE'S biggest coal-fired power station is to receive its first delivery of home-grown bio-fuel, courtesy of farmer Sir Ben Gill. More than 160 tonnes of willow coppice has been harvested at the farm of outgoing National Farmers' Union president Sir
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Arca going nowhere, insists McCarthy
SUNDERLAND boss Mick McCarthy last night insisted he would resist any approach from Celtic for Argentinian star Julio Arca. Black Cats stalwart Michael Gray is due to return from a loan spell at Parkhead where he has failed to impress. Celtic boss Martin
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Black cat defies odds to be award nominee
A BLACK cat that has survived against the odds has been shortlisted in the Ultimate Survivor section of the Rescue Cat of the Year Awards. Four-year-old Tottie has been nominated by his owner, veterinary nurse Lisa Holmes, after he went missing for six
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Hospital staff back healthy travel scheme
HOSPITAL staff have welcomed extra cycling lockers as part of a campaign to persuade people to find healthier ways to travel to work. North Tees and Hartlepool NHS Trust has invested in 36 secure cycle stores for staff. Twenty cycle lockers have been
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Party with healthy food on the menu
CHILDREN in the Durham Dales enjoyed a healthy Christmas party with Father Christmas as special guest. Thirty children feasted on a buffet of fruit and vegetables and other healthy treats provided by the Durham Rural Community Hands on Heath Team. The
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Artist returns to open her exhibition
ARTWORK inspired by the Spanish sunshine will warm winter visitors to a museum and gallery. Semi-abstract paintings from the brush of former art teacher Barbara Vine have gone on show at the DLI Museum and Durham Art Gallery. Since retiring, Ms Vine has
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Quakers go west in bid to halt Carlisle revival
Not so long ago a trip to Carlisle would have been treated with as much relish as the January sales. But tomorrow's journey across the A66 is as welcome as a hand-knitted Christmas jumper. Quakers' visit to Brunton Park could not have come at a worse
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Long fight back begins after clubhouse wrecked in blaze
A CHRISTMAS DAY blaze came close to spelling the end of a proud footballing history for one of the country's best- known amateur football sides. Officials at Spennymoor United have been left devastated after a fire swept through the clubhouse at their
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Let's focus on Red Devils' visit, urges McClaren
FRUSTRATED Steve McClaren last night urged his Middlesbrough players to focus on Manchester United after witnessing his side let victory slip from their grasp in the last few seconds at Ewood Park. An injury-time leveller from Markus Babbel secured a
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Fishing fleet gets a lifeline
THE fishing industry along the Yorkshire coast is to get a lifeline of almost £500,000 after suffering decline in recent years. It results from the setting up of the Yorkshire Coast Fishing Forum four years ago to explore ways of developing the industry
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McAteer gem helps pile on misery for Robson
SUNDERLAND re-ignited their promotion hopes and piled on the agony for beleaguered Bradford boss Bryan Robson. Mick McCarthy's Black Cats climbed three places in Division One to fifth, five points behind second-placed West Brom. But there was no end to
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Off-field woes are no excuse
Darlington manager David Hodgson has warned his players that administration will not deflect attention away from their problems on the pitch, writes Lee Hall. Yesterday's Boxing Day defeat at home to Huddersfield leaves Quakers four points adrift of third-bottom
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Something old, something new
While there are big changes in the boardrooms of the TV companies, all viewers want to know is not who's running the show but what shows are on offer. Steve Pratt looks at what's coming up in the new schedules. Behind-the-screens changes in British TV
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Something old, something new
While there are big changes in the boardrooms of the TV companies, all viewers want to know is not who's running the show but what shows are on offer. Steve Pratt looks at what's coming up in the new schedules. Behind-the-screens changes in British TV
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Gardening: A year of change, building sun and creosote
IT only seems five minutes ago that I was going through the horticultural successes and failures of 2002, and here I am again, mulling over this year's events. The main topic of 2003 has to be the weather (all gardeners are obsessed by the weather). I
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Comment from The Northern Echo: Put troubles into context
AS the world braced itself for terrorist attacks over Christmas, it was not a man-made disaster but the power of nature which shattered the peace and left the Iranian city of Bam looking like it had been bombed. With the estimated death toll reaching
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Fraud system wins praise
A GROUND-breaking fraud detection system developed in the region has been recognised as one of the most innovative uses of technology at the Technology Industry Awards 2003. City of York Council's "disguised business sales" project uses i-document systems
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Bumper crowds fail to lift under-threat club's spirits
WHETHER it was down to too much turkey the day before, the winter chill or the enormous question mark hanging over their football club, Darlington supporters were a subdued group yesterday. If it were not for the compilation of Christmas tunes blaring
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Railway station plan back on track
PLANS for a commuter railway station on the edge of the congested city of York could become a reality in a couple of years. Details of the local authority's latest proposal for a new railway station at Haxby have been sent to the Strategic Rail Authority
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Bereaved father's plea for N-E job
GRIEVING father Iain Readshaw is appealing to a North-East employer to help his family through its darkest hours. Devastated by the loss of a second child in a swimming incident, all Mr Readshaw wants for the future is to find a job near his home in Ferryhill
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McAteer gem helps pile on misery for Robson
SUNDERLAND re-ignited their promotion hopes and piled on the agony for beleaguered Bradford boss Bryan Robson. Mick McCarthy's Black Cats climbed three places in Division One to fifth, five points behind second-placed West Brom. But there was no end to
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Wilkinson plays a waiting game
NEWCASTLE Falcons still hope to have Jonny Wilkinson back for the first of three successive home games tomorrow. After facing Northampton and Harlequins, they tackle Montferrand on January 11 in the first leg of their European Challenge Cup second-round
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En Garda in style
ITALY, it seems, is currently the place to holiday. The discerning readers of the upmarket Conde Nast Traveller magazine have voted it their favourite destination in the world. Hollywood hunk George Clooney has also decided it is bellissimo and bought
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Appeal for volunteers to save real ale festival
REAL ale enthusiasts have been urged to lend a hand or risk the loss of a popular event on the traditional beer drinking calendar. The Durham Beer Festival returned to its traditional home in August, following several years at smaller pub venues across
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Police ban Christmas cards in fundraising drive
POLICE officers in Darlington have been raising hundreds of pounds to bring smiles to the faces of sick children in hospital. There is a lack of Christmas cards at the town's police station because officers decided to donate money to the children's unit
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Home bid made for church
A 19TH Century church could be converted into a luxury home after villagers lost their fight to buy it. Plans have been drawn up to transform the disused Methodist church, in Middleton St George, near Darlington, into a house. The church, which was built
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Man charged with death of teenager
A MAN appeared in court yesterday charged with causing the death of a teenager on Christmas Eve. Paramedics tried to save the 16-year-old after the accident, which happened as he rode a moped on the A189 in Cramlington, Northumberland. The accident happened
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Warning over increase in council tax
THE council tax rise in one Teesside town could be even bigger than last year's inflation-busting 4.5 per cent increase. The warning came from the Mayor of Hartlepool, Stuart Drummond, who also predicted 2004 would see improvements to the town, including
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Drive to keep youths out of trouble
A VILLAGE community has confirmed it is to channel cash into fresh initiatives to help keep youngsters off the streets and out of trouble. The Community Works initiative in the Catterick area of North Yorkshire has already won an award for its work with
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Wearside League: Keeper change again for Stokesley as Martin gets the Ball
Stokesley SC can close in on leaders Birtley Town when they visit bottom-of-the-table Ferryhill Athletic this afternoon. Although their goalkeeping crisis shows no signs of abating, Stokesley are confident of claiming their 13th win of the season. "We
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Staff achievements celebrated at service
THE achievements of staff at a County Durham hospital have been recognised at a celebratory carol service. The Richardson Hospital, in Barnard Castle, held the carol service, which was attended by staff, patients and relatives, to celebrate the work done
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Special needs scheme set for expansion
A CHARITY that helps people with special needs has been given a cash boost to extend its services. A partnership between the Learning Skills Council, Education in the Community and Aim High has allowed Spennymoor Learning Library, in County Durham, to
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TV stars help to fight hoax fire calls
A fire brigade has teamed up with children's TV stars to step up its fight to end a plague of hoax calls. Tyne and Wear Fire Brigade received 1,000 hoax calls last year. To combat the problem, it has made a hard-hitting video featuring actors from children's
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Course adds up for parents
PARENTS and children are improving their maths together. A course run by Stockton Borough Council's adult education service at Bader Primary School is part of the family learning scheme in which children and parents learn numerical skills.. Parents spend
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£17m hospital wing opens the doors to first patients
CHRISTMAS celebrations started early at Gateshead's Queen Elizabeth Hospital when the doors of its Jubilee Wing opened for the first time. Healthcare staff marked the arrival of the first inpatients at the £17m wing, which is the flagship scheme in a
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Appeal for volunteers to work
A CINEMA run by volunteers is looking for more people to help out. The Ritz Cinema, in Thirsk, North Yorkshire, has been running for eight years as a voluntary venture and is open almost every night of the year. Four volunteers have left in the past few
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Engineer courses free for women
A COLLEGE has launched a series of ten-week taster courses in engineering for women. The courses at Derwentside College, which are free of charge, cover a number of engineering areas, including computer-aided design, decorative metalwork, welding and
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Cash boost to help learning library grow
A CHARITY that helps people with special needs has been given a boost to extend its services in the New Year. A partnership between the Learning Skills Council, Education in the Community and Aim High has paved the way for Spennymoor Learning Library
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Cash boost to help learning library grow
A CHARITY that helps people with special needs has been given a boost to extend its services in the New Year. A partnership between the Learning Skills Council, Education in the Community and Aim High has paved the way for Spennymoor Learning Library
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Legacy helps congregation fund repairs to church roof
A CATHOLIC church faced with a £150,000 bill for roof repairs has received a surprise legacy from a priest's housekeeper. Nellie Tobin, who was known as Auntie Nellie to the congregation of St Joseph's Church, Pickering, North Yorkshire, died three years
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New look for wood
AN area of woodland is being given a facelift. The site, next to a path between Muirfield Walk and Thornbury Close, in the Clavering area of Hartlepool, is being improved by the borough council and probation service. Residents have complained about the
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TV stars help to fight hoax fire calls
A fire brigade has teamed up with children's TV stars to step up its fight to end a plague of hoax calls. Tyne and Wear Fire Brigade received 1,000 hoax calls last year. To combat the problem, it has made a hard-hitting video featuring actors from children's
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Sisters take charge at their favourite local
TWO sisters have taken over their local pub. Jacqui Grace and Maria Pinkney took over the lease of the Queen's Head pub, in Cockfield, at the beginning of the month. Mrs Pinkney has been coming to the pub since she moved to the village more than 20 years
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Youngsters take up maths challenge
A GROUP of the most able students at a Newton Aycliffe school are rising to the challenge of taking their AS-level mathematics examination a year early. The 23 students at Woodham Community Technology College have already completed a maths GCSE course
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Looking back in despair
JOURNALISTS are a curious breed. Just as the rest of the world is looking forward to Christmas and then onto the New Year, journalists are looking backward to what has just been. You can't move in the newsagent's for reviews of the year. While preparing
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Woman in labour drives to hospital
MOTHER-TO-BE Joanne Cook had to drive herself to the hospital in labour because her husband had drunk too much. With a month to go before she was due to have their first child, her husband, Neville, was drinking over Christmas while she stayed sober.
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Babbel's late goal takes gloss off Juninho double
THE RECORD books may stay intact, as Middlesbrough's long search for a goal came in the shape of a double at Blackburn Rovers yesterday. Top-scorer Juninho grabbed both Boro goals as Steve McClaren's men extended their unbeaten run to 11 matches. But
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Late-night bird catches the worm
The early bird - the saying goes - catches the worm. Not so, according to work done by scientist Simon Gillings who carried out a study of lapwings and golden plovers. The University of East Anglia researcher's findings in Norfolk and Suffolk are relevant
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A year of change, building sun and creosote
IT only seems five minutes ago that I was going through the horticultural successes and failures of 2002, and here I am again, mulling over this year's events. The main topic of 2003 has to be the weather (all gardeners are obsessed by the weather). I
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20,000 feared dead as quake strikes Iran
THE world was responding to Iran's plea for help last night after an earthquake devastated an historic city, killing up to 20,000 people. Survivors and rescue teams were struggling in sub zero temperatures to find anyone still alive under the rubble that
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So this is Christmas...
THE central heating is on the blink, the Christmas Tree lights don't work and half the North-East seemed determined to join us for food shopping at 8am on Tuesday morning. Am I close to joining the Grumpy Old Men At Christmas (BBC2, Christmas Day)? Not
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Sir Rembrandt to master Welsh National rivals
Sir Rembrandt, a progressive chaser who turned in a career-best performance last time, is taken to land his biggest prize to date in the Coral Welsh National Showcase Handicap over three miles five and a half furlongs at Chepstow today. Robert Alner has
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Late goal keeps Magpies in Champions League hunt
Sir Bobby Robson insisted Newcastle United are still on course for a place in next season's Champions' League despite being held to a 1-1 draw by struggling Leicester City at the Walkers Stadium yesterday. Paul Dickov took advantage of some sloppy defending
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27/12/03
RIO FERDINAND: I AM no fan of Manchester United but I think that the FA's clumsy handling of Rio Ferdinand's failure to attend a routine drug test was deplorable. They named him before any tribunal and, with the instant tabloid media publicity, the FA
