Archive
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Lack of volunteers means charity gala will end after 27 years
THE organisers of a long running charity fundraising event have announced that it is to come to an end due to a lack of volunteers. Romanby Gala has been held in the village near Northallerton, North Yorkshire, for 27 years and donates all its profits
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One for the girls
Does the idea of relaxing over a glass of wine, chatting to friends and the chance to have Reiki type massage appeal? If so, come along to Hutton Magna village hall to a Hot Pink Angels party on Saturday 14th November from 2pm. Admission
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Line-up for Durham City light fantastic is announced
THE full programme for a spectacular light festival has been announced. Lumiere will see streets, bridges and the River Wear in Durham City lit up between November 12 and 15, along with other processions and events. There are seven new commissions,
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Man walks free after Hartlepool pub attack
A MAN who fractured the jaw of a person he claimed was being a pest towards him and his girlfriend in a pub walked free yesterday. Adam Wellings knocked out David Johnson with an uppercut and punched him several more times when he was on the floor, a
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Smith returns for Quakers
Gary Smith returns to the side for Darlington's FA Cup clash at Barnet today as one of two changes. The midfielder returns after missing two games with a knee injury, and he takes the place of Jamie Chandler who drops to the bench. Also
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Three changes for Sunderland at Spurs
STEVE Bruce has made three changes to Sunderland's starting line-up for today's away game at Tottenham. Two come in the defence, with Phil Bardsley returning at right-back and George McCartney earning a recall on the opposite flank. Bardsley's recall
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Boro new-boys handed first starts at Palace
NEW signing Isaiah Osbourne has been introduced to Gordon Strachan's Middlesbrough team at the earliest opportunity at Crystal Palace today. Osbourne, who arrived on loan from Aston Villa on Thursday, is likely to start in the middle of midfield
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Pools boss Turner makes changes
ANTONY Sweeney was handed a recall to the Hartlepool United side as, as expected, three players weren't fit for the starting XI through injury. James Brown and Leon McSweeney were absent, but Ritchie Jones was named on the bench. Kettering, bossed
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Woman pulled free from car before it caught fire
A WOMAN was pulled from her car before it caught fire after it left the road and crashed into a tree this morning. The accident happened at 8.14am on the Chilton to Kirk Merrington Road, near Spennymoor, County Durham. Firefighters were called to the
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Prisoners raise money for children's charity
BAKING and ball skills combined as prisoners raised more than £1,200 for a childrens hospice. Inmates from HMYOI Deerbolt in Startforth, near Barnard Castle, took part in a football tournament and sports skills days to raise money for The
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Young man "serious" after Teesdale road accident
A YOUNG man was seriously hurt in an accident on a country road last night. A Land Rover Defender and a Volkswagen Polo collided on Eggleston Lane, near the cemetery on the outskirts of Romaldkirk in Teesdale, County Durham, shortly before 10pm. The
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A bit of Dutch courage for Brandon
BRANDON United play their 1,000th Northern League game, home to Stokesley, this afternoon. Five years ago they won the first division; now they’re in the second and facing an FA deadline to meet ground criteria by next March. It’s been a rocky
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Going green in style
As people become increasingly conscious of their carbon footprint, a Eurostar trip to Paris leaves the skies and the conscience clear. Mark Pratt gets onboard. PARIS may not be the obvious choice when thinking of a green holiday destination
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Judgement and Wrath by Matt Hilton (Hodder and Stoughton, £12.99)
JOE Hunter is the man you turn to if you have a serious problem. The former military vigilante is only too willing to rescue a young girl from her bullying boyfriend, but he is not ready to cross his own moral boundaries and become a hired assassin
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The Burning Land by Bernard Cornwell (HarperCollins, £18.99)
THE blood is up, the sword is out and the fury of battle rages across the land as the war lord Uhtred seeks to save King Alfred’s Wessex from a fresh onslaught of Danes led by the ferocious Harold Bloodhair. It’s grim, bloody work and Uhtred is
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Remarkable Creatures by Tracy Chevalier (Harper-Collins, £15.99)
ONCE again, Tracy Chevalier has turned real people into fiction. Mary Anning was the first and greatest fossil hunter. As an illiterate young girl on the Dorset coast she found the fossilised remains of the ichthyosaurus – which she called a crocodile
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Demobbed: Coming Home After the Second World War by Alan Allport (Yale University Press, £20)
THE popular image of Britain after VE day is one of street parties, bands welcoming home proud soldiers from the four corners of the world and happy reunions. The reality was a bit more complex. While there may have been elation at the end of conflict
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‘I won’t be pigeonholed’
Viv Hardwick speaks to Eighties punk rock icon Hazel O’Connor about going her own way as an artist and coming to the North-East on tour. MY mobile rings in the middle of my family’s annual Guy Fawkes’ Night party and, to my astonishment, I
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A Tender Thing, Royal Shakespeare Company, Northern Stage
HAVING watched elderly family and friends depart this Earth and noted my father’s struggle to cope with my mother’s advancing dementia, it was only a matter of time before Ben Power’s powerful take on Romeo and Juliet reduced me to tears. This
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Hart beat
FUNNY lady Miranda Hart, whose comedy series begins on BBC2 on Monday, has often been compared with fellow comediennes French and Saunders. She has, after all, appeared in their sketch show as well as in The Vicar Of Dibley and Absolutely Fabulous
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Crazy For You, Whitley Bay Operatic Society, Whitley Bay Playhouse
THIS show combines a classic George Gershwin score with a sharp and witty fresh, new script. The story tells of Bobby Child, a weak and ineffective banker from New York who is only interested in dancing his troubles away and who dreams of a
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Local TV news
RE Stephen Oliver’s letter (HAS, Nov 4) concerning the regional news bulletin on ITV Tyne Tees and Border last Sunday. Since February, we have been serving the separate audiences in the Tyne Tees and Border regions with programmes local to each
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BNP
MOST of us enjoy those improbable facts that occasionally crop up; eg, if the population of China jumped into the air at the same moment the gravitational pull would move the earth off its orbit by three inches and cause tidal waves in the River
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Statue move
IN the heated debate over the possible moving of the Lord Londonderry statue from the centre of Durham Market Place, the more important issue of how best to regenerate the city has been sidelined. Durham County Council’s planning committee will
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One North East
RE your article (Echo, Nov 4) on Conservative policy toward the regional development agency One North East (One). Labour claims we want to “scrap” One and cut funding. While we would transfer powers to different bodies this will not impact on
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The wonder of Wooley
After 125 years, the folk of Wooley Terrace chapel will soon congregate for the final time. SAVE for the fact that there’s not six feet of snow on the ground – and that may only be a matter of time – it might be considered a fairly typical November
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Afghanistan
FIVE more soldiers killed on Tuesday and others injured while involved in training the Afghanistan police. Then another death reported on Thursday, taking the total lost there since 2001 to 230. It is time all political parties got together and
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Life after Lisbon
NOW that the Lisbon Treaty has become part of EU law we are members of a European superstate. This means almost all our laws will be enacted in Brussels, reducing Westminster’s status to little more than a local authority. While this sinks in,
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Stirring up a story in a teacup
A DELICATE aroma wafts on the wisps of steam rising from the teacup. Usually, it’s a sweet citrusy perfume, but this morning, the scent of the Earl Grey has a whiff of dismay about it. Twinings wants to close its tea-packing plant in Earl Grey Way
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Getting plastered
His wet shirt moment in Pride and Prejudice is a TV classic, but being cast for his latest film, a reworking of Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, gave Colin Firth a panic attack, he tells Steve Pratt. COLIN FIRTH never stops smiling as the ever-cheerful
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An end must be in sight
AS Sergeant Phillip Scott, from North Yorkshire, is named as the latest soldier to die in Afghanistan, we find it increasingly difficult to go on arguing that our troops should not be brought home. It has been our consistent view that it would
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Baila Me to maintain the revival for Godolphin
GODOLPHIN looked set for another disappointing campaign earlier in the year but they can top their late-season resurgence by landing the feature totesport.com November Handicap at Doncaster. The Town Moor fixture marks the end of the Turf Flat
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Wallabies having a tough time
Lawrence Dallaglio, the former England World Cup winner writes for The Northern Echo. THE challenge facing Martin Johnson’s men is daunting – Australia, Argentina and New Zealand over consecutive weekends will test the mental strength of a new-look
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Quakers can find relief in FA Cup
DARLINGTON can put their relegation worries to one side today when they play at Barnet in the FA Cup, a competition that their manager knows all about. League Two may be a experience for Steve Staunton but he is well-versed in the glories of
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Henderson has makings of local hero
While Newcastle and Middlesbrough have had their local legends in recent seasons, Sunderland supporters have been deprived of a hometown hero to call their own. Perhaps the wait is at an end. Chief Sports Writer Scott Wilson met midfielder Jordan Henderson
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Cooper’s men get Pools’ respect
THERE may be a few places and a couple of divisions between them, but Chris Turner insists there is no danger of his Hartlepool United players taking anything for granted this afternoon. Kettering Town, managed by ex-Pools midfielder Mark Cooper
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Bogie looking for cup upset
GATESHEAD play a Football League club at home in the FA Cup for the first time in three decades – and manager Ian Bogie hopes his own cup pedigree will rub off on his charges against League One Brentford today. Bogie was a key component of
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Fabio Capello unveils bust of Sir Alf Ramsey at Wembley
ENGLAND boss Fabio Capello spoke of his emotion as he unveiled a bust at Wembley of Sir Alf Ramsey, the man he wants to emulate at the World Cup next year. The sculpture, crafted by Philip Jackson, will be displayed in the tunnel area at the
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Campbell feels more settled than at Tottenham
WHILE the eyes of the Tottenham fans will be firmly focused on Darren Bent this afternoon, Fraizer Campbell could just about sneak in under the radar. Bent was hauled off a preseason flight to the Far East to finalise a £10m switch to Wearside
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Children's centre installs finger print software
A CHILDCARE centre which uses finger recognition technology to identify parents has hailed the new software a success. The Easydentic device was installed at Buddies, in Bishop Auckland, last week, and screened the finger prints of parents, grandparents
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Is sportsdirect.com @ St James’ Park a decent compromise to a difficult situation?
THIS week, we asked The Legends: Is sportsdirect.com @ St James’ Park a decent compromise to a difficult situation? MALCOLM MACDONALD No, and I’ll tell you why not, because it’s only Mike Ashley and Sports Direct that have created the situation
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Liverpool wait on Torres and Gerrard
LIVERPOOL will play a waiting game with the fitness of a string of top stars, including Fernando Torres and Steven Gerrard, as they prepare for Monday’s home clash with Birmingham. Striker Torres returned to the club’s Melwood training ground
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New boy Bent is an old hand at Championship game
MARCUS BENT has spent much of his career in the Premier League, but he has also experienced what life is like in the Championship. Perhaps tellingly from a Middlesbrough point of view, he knows exactly how to win promotion. Bent is now with his
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Bent out to prove point to Spurs critics
DARREN Bent has described the criticism he received at Tottenham last season as “ridiculous”, and claimed the warmth of his reception at Sunderland stands in marked contrast to the lukewarm response that accompanied his move to White Hart Lane
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Chelsea won’t rush in
CARLO Ancelotti insists he will not be rushed into buying new players in January, even though the Court of Arbitration for Sport has suspended their transfer ban. CAS agreed yesterday to suspend their FIFA-imposed transfer ban until a final
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Strachan’s disbelief at Boro’s bachelor boys
ONE of the biggest surprises Gordon Strachan had in his first few days as Middlesbrough manager was not the lack of strikers he had inherited or the size of his squad, just the amount of singletons he had at his disposal. Having spent the last
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Coloccini makes a bold – or is it bald – statement
His defending can be every bit as hair-raising as his appearance, but Fabricio Coloccini has developed into something of a cult hero at Newcastle United. Chief Sports Writer Scott Wilson met the Argentinian to discuss responsibility, relegation and
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Hughton ready to fight his corner in January sales
CHRIS HUGHTON has denied that he is a “Yes man” for Mike Ashley’s unpopular Newcastle United regime, and claimed he will “fight tooth and nail” to keep his squad intact if he is asked to sanction further player sales in January. Thousands
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Fine return for Trott
JONATHAN Trott made a successful return to his native South Africa in the colours of England yesterday. His 85 helped his adopted country make a winning start to their tour with a convincing 185-run victory over the Diamond Eagles in Bloemfontein
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Belgian makes his long-awaited return at Wharfedale
TYNEDALE skipper Phil Belgian will make his first appearance for 14 months in today’s National One match at Wharfedale. The 34-year-old Gateshead product will hope his powerful boot has not deserted him as he seeks to halt a run of four defeats
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Midfield duo key to England’s success
SHANE GERAGHTY is ready to emulate his mentor Mike Catt and strike a devastating midfield partnership with Jonny Wilkinson in today’s Investec Challenge showdown with Australia. The 23-year-old, who will make his first England start at inside
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All Blacks recall could see Hayman exit
STEVE BATES admits Carl Hayman could be persuaded to return to New Zealand next summer in order to further his World Cup ambitions, but the Newcastle Falcons director of rugby insists the tight head is still to decide on his future. With
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Beast of a challenge for Haye to land title
THE size of the task facing David Haye was brought into sharp focus yesterday as WBA heavyweight champion Nikolai Valuev weighed in a daunting seven stone heavier than the Englishman. Haye will tonight attempt to take Valuev’s belt in Germany
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British Airways to cut extra 1,200 jobs
BRITISH Airways is to cut an extra 1,200 jobs, taking the total reduction to 4,900 by next year, it was revealed yesterday. Most of the new losses will be overseas and follow a high response from staff wanting to work part-time or take voluntary
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Off-licences in region to close
MORE than 60 off-licence workers in the region are to lose their jobs after administrators announced the closure of 13 loss-making stores. The administrators of First Quench Retailing, the owner of Thresher, Wine Rack, The Local, Haddows, Bottoms
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Interest shown in struggling bakery
SEVERAL potential buyers have come forward to rescue a wholesale bakery which went into administration last week, it was revealed last night. Riverside Bakery, in Middlesbrough, has been trading for more than 25 years but has suffered badly through
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Young burglars locked up after admitting robbery
TWO young robbers attacked a student making his way home from a railway station, a court heard. Michael Hopps and Shane Richardson then broke into another student’s flat during a drunken rampage following a hospital visit. Hopps, 23, was yesterday
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Boro coach donates in memory of son
MIDDLESBROUGH Football Club coach Colin Cooper has presented cheques for more than £10,000 to charities helping ill children from a fund set up in his son’s memory. The Finlay Cooper Fund was set up by Mr Cooper and his wife, Julie, after the
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Trouble over water bridge
RESIDENTS say they have been left stranded in their homes after a council closed a 50-year-old bridge across the River Tees over fears it may collapse. Barforth Bridge is the direct link between a group of seven houses and Gainford, near Barnard
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Fire brigades report ‘quieter than normal’ night
FIRE crews reported a quieter than normal Bonfire Night, with the number of call-outs down on recent years. County Durham and Darlington Fire and Rescue service said they were yet to compile accurate figures for the number of incidents on November
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Geordie stars give fillip to North film industry
GEORDIE stars Kevin Whately and Robson Green are returning to the North-East to appear together onscreen for the first time as part of the revival of film and TV production in the region. They will appear in a one-off Newcastle-set period drama
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Developer proposes moving listed bull ring
A BUILDER plans to give a Grade II-listed former auction mart a new lease of life by dismantling it and moving it to a new farm shop complex. Peter Coverdale says the bull ring, in Tow Law, County Durham, could be transformed into a “mini-Globe
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Tributes to remarkable Cats fan
A SEA of red and white filled a North-East church yesterday as hundreds of people paid their last respects to a courageous boy who overcame leukaemia – only to be killed in a road accident. Sunderland Football club bosses joined friends and family
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Councillor hits out at court gag
A SENIOR councillor will be prevented from cross-examining a colleague when he goes on trial over an alleged incident at a charity dinner, magistrates have ruled. John Blackie, who represents the Upper Dales on Richmondshire District Council
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The heat’s on to get fighting fit
A FIREFIGHTER is setting up a military-style bootcamp to get people fit. Matt Stirland, 30, a firefighter with Durham Fire Brigade, was praised by the Entrepreneurs’ Forum for his Streetlife Youth Fitness organisation, which gets young people
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A right royal day filled with opening remarks
THE Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh officially opened a school, a library and a museum during a day-long visit to the region. The Royal couple visited Washington School, Washington, Wearside, on a site which has been used for nearly 100 years
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Ex-preacher admits abusing young boys
A FORMER Methodist lay preacher has pleaded guilty to sexually abusing two young boys. Keith Morton, who was a preacher in Darlington, admitted a series of child sex offences at Stafford Crown Court yesterday. Morton committed the offences before
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Relief as wartime medal is returned
A GRANDMOTHER has described her joy at being reunited with a treasured football medal dating from the First World War. Hazel Theobald, 80, was devastated when she discovered she had lost the sentimental piece of gold jewellery on a necklace
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Green development is more than just hot air
A PIONEERING green housing development has been officially opened in a North-East pit village. Easington MP John Cummings and Durham County Council deputy leader Councillor Alan Napier launched one of the first energy-saving new homes developments
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Paedophile who took photos of rapes is jailed indefinitely
A PAEDOPHILE who photographed himself raping a child has been locked up indefinitely after a judge branded him a significant danger to the public. Former soldier Martin David Hawk, 37, will be released only when Parole Board officials are convinced
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Honeymoon is better late then never
A COUPLE hit the jackpot when they won their dream honeymoon – three years after getting married. Terrix and Raymond Melville will fly to Mauritius after winning a holiday through online bingo site tombola.co.uk The couple, from Newton Aycliffe
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Toughest of men, gentlest of friends
Zetland estate’s gamekeeper mourns son. THE family of the latest soldier to die in Afghanistan paid tribute to “the bravest of men” last night as the Prime Minister reaffirmed Britain’s commitment to the campaign. Phillip Scott, a
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Two arrests as man fights for life
TWO men have been arrested following an incident at a North-East nightclub which has left a teenager fighting for his life. The 30-year-old and the 45- year-old, both from the Darlington area, have been arrested in connection with an incident
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North MP defiant over expenses claim
A NORTH-EAST MP told to repay part of an expenses claim has vowed to tell the auditor to “p*** off” unless he can come up with firm proof. Frank Cook, the outgoing Stockton North MP, has gone into battle with Sir Thomas Legg, who has carried
