A SON has broken half a century of silence to reveal he believes his father was the man responsible for a notorious unsolved murder. Detectives sensationally reopened the investigation into the death of May Rebecca Thompson earlier this year. At the time
THE pay gap between women working part-time and men working full-time has not narrowed in 25 years, the Equal Opportunities Commission said. Women in part-time jobs earn on average 40 per cent an hour less than men doing a full 40-hour week, said commission
RICHMOND Amateur Dramatic Society is celebrating its 70th anniversary with a production of a famous satirical comedy. The Beggar's Opera, by John Gay, is a period romp with music. It is set in 1728 in the world of highwaymen and gin-swilling prostitutes
USING stopwatch figures as the definitive guide, Tournedos (3.00) must hold an outstanding chance in by far the most valuable race of the day, the £135,000 Weatherbys Super Sprint at Newbury, writes Colin Woods. The collateral evidence of the clock is
Darlington Building Society NYSD Premier League Premier Division: Even though they defeated Darlington in the final of the Randall Orchard Cup on Wednesday night, Northallerton are pleased to have seen the back of their rivals - and Stephen Chapman in
A consultancy in Darlington has won a contract to work on a groundbreaking medical facility. AMP Consultants, which employs eight people in the town, is providing a steel superstructure design for the first polyclinic in Sheffield, South Yorkshire. The
HOUSEHOLD appliances manufacturer Electrolux reported a 39 per cent fall in half-year profits following a factory closure and the settlement of a lawsuit. The group, which employs 2,200 people at a cooker factory in Newton Aycliffe and a Flymo plant in
TICKETS are now on sale for The Northern Echo's CD launch gig. North-East bands The Shining, The Fray and Eskimo will launch their CDs and perform at the event at The Forum Music Centre, Darlington, on Friday, July 30. The event is part of the Revolution
AN advertising campaign for Dove featuring "real" women rather than supermodels has been voted one of the favourite adverts of the year. The soap and beauty cream maker came top in the Superbrands organisation's awards for its firming body cream advert
PLANS will soon be revealed for the £500m transformation of an area of Middlesbrough. The team behind the project, to transform the 250-acre redundant waterfront area of Middlehaven, said it will be transformed into a groundbreaking landscape of contemporary
PATIENTS with minor ailments can get free medicines from their pharmacy without visiting their doctor through a scheme being tested in two Wear Valley communities. Practices in Willington and St Helen Auckland are piloting the project, which was developed
AN operation has been launched to protect neighbourhoods from juvenile tearaways during the school holidays. Schools across Teesside staggered end-of-term closure times yesterday to prevent a mass exodus of excited youngsters causing problems on the streets
Durham Tigers Rugby League Club is holding a summer holiday rugby league activity scheme next week. Children aged nine to 13 years can join sessions on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, from 9.30am to 3pm, at Bishop Auckland Rugby Club's West Mills ground
BROADCASTER Kate Adie will be a special guest when the Royal Navy's largest vessel receives the freedom of a North-East city. HMS Ocean is being honoured with the first freedom to be granted by Sunderland since it gained city status in 1992. The honour
A PROCESSION of classic cars will make their way to the Kirkleatham Almshouses in a parade through the streets of Redcar and Marske a week tomorrow. Scores of vehicles will leave Redcar seafront at 1.30pm and travel through the two seaside towns before
A BID is being made to resurrect a vanished landmark. The Six Stoupes were a group of standing stones on the top of Birk Brow, just off the A171, near Guisborough. Over the years vandalism, accidental damage and the weather have taken their toll, leaving
A FORMER church and church hall are to be turned into Richmondshire's most ambitious community office yet. Due to be opened in September, it will be the fifth such office to open in the district and will be in the heart of Richmond. It will provide one-stop
A COMMUNITY playscheme has been launched at a school. Part of the playground at Cassop Primary School, County Durham, has been converted into a sensory garden with rides and a climbing frame. It will be used by pre-school children in the village and younger
THE schoolwalk on Thursday was wet. My daughter was back in her winter shoes, her winter coat zipped up against the wintry weather. As we scooted around the puddles, lime tree seed pods helicoptered about us, and I found myself playing my favourite September
FOUR people were arrested yesterday in a series of police raids at 12 properties in Darlington. Three men and a woman were arrested on suspicion of being involved in the supply of controlled drugs. All four were later released on police bail, pending
MORE than £1,000 has been raised for breast cancer at a pink-themed ladies night. The event, organised by All Saints and Salutation Ladies Night, Darlington, saw women dressed entirely in pink and sipping pink champagne to raise money for charity. The
A DARLINGTON primary school headteacher was greeted by 75 lookalikes yesterday. Year six pupils at Whinfield Junior School imitated their headteacher, Pauline Wood, by donning wigs, suits, pointy shoes, lipstick and long nails at an end-of-year assembly
Speculation was growing last night that one of the region's most famous regiments could be axed in a military shake-up. The Green Howards, based in Richmond, is one of 19 single-battalion regiments facing an uncertain future ahead of reforms to be outlined
WORK has started on the construction of the new £5.5m primary school in Darlington. Harrowgate Hill Primary School is to be built on the site of the existing Harrowgate Hill Junior school. The scheme is part of Darlington Council's plan to relocate the
A GROUP of autistic teenagers have been given an insight into the world of work. Eleven youngsters who attend Beverley School, Middlesbrough, took part in a course developed specifically for young people with disabilities, at the Teesside base of TTE
HOMELESS families are costing council taxpayers on the Yorkshire coast £8,000 a week in bed and breakfast accommodation. The leader of Scarborough Council, Councillor Eileen Bosomworth, said it was vital that action was taken to action to reduce the number
SPORTS coaches are being urged to sign up to a child protection course to be held in Northallerton next month. The Good Practice and Child Protection course aims to enhance coaching practice by teaching more about child abuse and how to handle potential
Children are using the arts to help them with the national curriculum. Staff at Bullion Lane Primary School, in Chester-le-Street, County Durham, use drawing, painting, song and dance to help pupils understand a range of subjects. The idea to engage children
ON the day lifeguards returned to a beach where an eight-year-old boy drowned, a leading councillor warned the cost of the service was unsustainable. Lifeguards will patrol the beaches at Seaton Carew, nearby Block Sands and the Headland Fish Sands, all
A WOMAN has turned her four-bedroom house into a mass dormitory for 20 children and teenagers from Africa. Kath Brotton, from Howard Drive, Marske, has squeezed the 15 boys and five girls, from the slums of Kampala, into her modest-sized home, to support
Q I am 60 years old and on Incapacity Benefit of £72.15 a week. My wife, aged 58, earns £58.60 a week and we have savings of £13,000. Our council tax is £82 a month and we have no mortgage. Is there any help we can get? A Once you reach 60, the benefit
DURHAM's two home-grown Test players will appear together in the side for the only time this season in skipper Jon Lewis's benefit match at Riverside tomorrow. Paul Collingwood returns after his knee injury to join Stephen Harmison in the line-up, while
HARTLEPOOL United Football Club's pre-season tour of Holland was marred last night as a minority of visiting supporters clashed with home fans in Eindhoven. Sections of opposing fans baited each other in FC Eindhoven's Vriendschappelijk Stadium, and a
VOLUNTEERS who restored a swimming pool have been honoured by the Queen. The team behind Weardale Open-Air Swimming Pool, in Stanhope, County Durham, was presented with a Queen's Award for Voluntary Service by Lord Lieutenant Sir Paul Nicholson. They
A HOSPITAL has been absolved from any blame over the death of a mental patient who spent more than 50 years in custody. Unfit to plead to sex attack charges in 1952, because of his mental state, Middlesbrough-born Stephen Agnew was sent to Durham Prison
Fosters North-East Regional Premier League: Sunderland, now only 24 points off the top, could have an ace up their sleeve when they meet bottom of the table Gateshead Fell at Ashbrooke, this morning. There is a chance that the former Middlesex and Durham
NEW signing Mark Lynch is confident that his 11 years at Manchester United will help Sunderland win promotion to the Premiership. The 22-year-old right back, who signed a three-year deal with the Black Cats on Thursday, will link up with the rest of his
SCHOOLBOY Max Cashman has been scarred by a holiday tattoo filled with poison. Eight-year-old Max was left in agony with weeping sores when he suffered a delayed reaction to the henna tattoo which he received while holidaying with his family in Turkey
Yorkshire's director of cricket, David Byas, is hoping that pay-back time arrives at Bristol today when his side cross swords with Gloucestershire in the semi-finals of the Cheltenham and Gloucester Trophy. Gloucestershire, the Trophy holders, have become
Readers Durham County League: Evenwood have the opportunity to pull further away from their rivals Kimblesworth, who have a free day. Currently only eight points separate the pair in what is developing into a two-horse race for the championship following
CHECKOUT RAGE: I PICKED up two small items plus a newspaper at my supermarket this week and went to the baskets-only checkouts. I joined the smaller queue but in front of me with a laden trolley was a young woman with her grandmother. I looked at the
RED-FACED rugby star Jonny Wilkinson hit the roof when he was outshone by his brother yesterday. The World-Cup-winning fly half, 25, had been brought in by the Hilton chain to open its latest hotel. Jonny was asked to open the six-storey complex by kicking
ORCA the golden retriever is a truly remarkable dog of many and varied talents - and now he has achieved another first. Already he has won a bravery award and widespread praise for the way he looks after his disabled owner. But now Orca is believed to
A SCHEME to convert listed farm buildings in a national park into eight luxury homes has been given the go-ahead. North York Moors National Park Authority passed the project at Home Farm, Hutton Gate, Guisborough, which will be carried out by Southlands
A SON has broken half a century of silence to reveal he believes his father was the man responsible for a notorious unsolved murder. Detectives sensationally reopened the investigation into the death of May Rebecca Thompson earlier this year. At the time
Fosters Northumberland and Tyneside Senior League: Newly installed leaders Ashington know that they cannot afford a slip up at home to strugglers Swalwell today since Tynedale are breathing down their necks. "It is extremely tight, but I suppose it now
DEAN MCKEOWN might easily walk away with the two feature races at Ripon this afternoon courtesy of Nevada Desert (3.15) and Lets Roll (3.45). The canny forty-four-year-old jockey relies on guile rather than brute force to make the job pay these days,
NEWCASTLE chairman Freddy Shepherd has insisted skipper Alan Shearer will not be leaving St James' Park this summer, writes Scott Wilson. Shearer created a storm this week when he suggested he would consider leaving Newcastle if he was not guaranteed
A GOVERNMENT cash injection into NHS dentistry should ease the worst shortages in the region, according to health bosses. Health Secretary Dr John Reid announced yesterday that he was investing an extra £368m for dental services. Dr Reid also launched
PARENTS were warned that children may be upset when their primary school staged one of Shakespeare's most violent plays. Macbeth, only referred to by actors as the Scottish play for fear of bringing bad luck, is one of the most violent of the Shakespearean
NEALE Cooper last night declared Hartlepool United's pre-season tour of Holland a huge success. Two goals from Joel Porter secured a 2-1 win over FC Eindhoven and, after a 2-2 draw with Top Oss on Tuesday, Pool return to England today with their pre-season
Speculation was growing last night that one of the region's most famous regiments could be axed in a military shake-up. The Green Howards, based in Richmond, is one of 19 single-battalion regiments facing an uncertain future ahead of reforms to be outlined
Copycat shows are packing out the TV shedules at the moment as producers latch onto a few successful ideas. But will viewers turn off as familiarity breeds contempt? IF imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, then TV programme makers on all channels
DECATHLETE Dean Macey is in "confident" mood as he attempts to book his ticket to the Olympics in the unlikely surroundings of Hexham this weekend. Macey was being heralded as 'the new Daley Thompson' when he arrived from nowhere to win the silver medal
A MAN was badly hurt when a gas explosion ripped through his home this week. Unemployed joiner Geoff Wilkinson suffered serious burns and other injuries in the mystery blast in Westfield Way, Dormanstown, near Redcar. The explosion, on Tuesday afternoon
IF imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, then TV programme makers on all channels should be feeling very smug and self-satisfied indeed. Once one of them gets a ratings-winning idea, then all the others clamber on to the bandwagon to present carbon
IT can be tough without any TV at all for two weeks. My wife was reduced to watching Moonlighting with Cybill Shepherd and Bruce Willis gabbling away in French having collapsed on a sofa after an exhausting day's sight-seeing in 100 degree temperatures
BRITISH American Tobacco announced yesterday it is to invest £800m in a factory in China. Only weeks after ceasing production in Darlington, with the loss of nearly 500 jobs, the second largest tobacco producer in the world has become the first foreign
The cost of cigarettes has more than trebled during the past 15 years while the price of televisions and computers has fallen by 74 per cent, researchers have found. Lender Halifax said the cost of a packet of cigarettes had risen more than anything else
A FERRYHILL teacher who has become as much a part of the community as the school has retired after 30 years. Yesterday, Christine Earl spent an emotional last day at Dean Bank Primary School, where she has spent the majority of her teaching career. Former
WHEN Paul Davies broke his back in a riding accident, the Air Ambulance Service was summoned to the scene. But before the helicopter landed in the field in Meadowfield, near Durham, paramedics had already reached the injured 39-year-old. Paul never forgot
DEVELOPERS have been given permission to build 41 homes in Auckland Park, near Bishop Auckland. Wear Valley District Council's development control committee gave Hall Construction Services permission for the estate in Thomas Street. The decision has to
OVERFLOWING drains are sending raw sewage into two Shildon streets near a housing development. People living in College Street and Albion Avenue are demanding action over their doorstep drain problem, which started about a year ago when Broseley Homes
A student has won a scholarship to play football at university in the US. In autumn, Phil Liversedge, 19, from Willow Road, Darlington, will fly to Texas to begin a BSc degree in fitness and sports certification at A&M International University, Phil
POLICE are hunting two doorstep conmen who stole thousands of pounds from an elderly couple. The pair got into the house in Seaham, County Durham, by telling the 71-year-old woman there was a problem with her drains. The woman let them in despite having
A NORTH-EAST company has celebrated the busiest June in its 23-year history with 80 add itional people placed in contracts abroad. The Stockton-based Wolviston Group management agency has an £8m annual contract with the Shell oil company. Details of the
VOLUNTEERS who restored a swimming pool have been honoured by the Queen. The team behind Weardale Open-Air Swimming Pool, in Stanhope, County Durham, was presented with a Queen's Award for Voluntary Service by Lord Lieutenant Sir Paul Nicholson. They
ONE of the North-East's leading businesswomen received an honorary award from the University of Sunderland yesterday. Former Tyne Tees boss, and current One NorthEast chairman, Margaret Fay was recognised for her contribution to public life in the region
A MAYOR is to host a Yorkshire Festival dinner to raise money for her civic charity fund. Councillor Madge Moses, Mayor of Redcar and Cleveland, will hold the dinner at Redcar Racecourse on Yorkshire Day - Sunday, August 1. Proceeds will be shared between
BUSINESS confidence in the region has fallen slightly during the past year, according to a survey by the regional Chamber of Commerce. Despite improvements in important areas of the region's business performance during the past three months, optimism
A STUDENT'S determination to overcome the odds was rewarded yesterday when she graduated with the highest marks in her year. Rachel Bibby, 22, who pressed ahead with her A-levels despite having diabetes and ME, graduated from the University of Sunderland
THE talents of a gifted young girl whose life was cut tragically short have inspired a series of memorials. Twelve-year-old Lydia Purcell, of Swinton, died on March 9, two days after an accident involving a pick-up truck at Flowery Bank, Broughton, near
CHILDREN are being invited to become archaeologists this summer at one of the region's most famous addresses. As part of the More 4 Kids programme which is being held at Castle Howard, near Malton, youngsters can take part in hands-on activities from
A TOWN's shoppers were given impromptu lessons in how to fight stress - Chinese-style. Eight practitioners of Falun Gong demonstrated Tai Chi-type exercises in Middlesbrough's shopping centre. The largely spiritual movement is based on Buddhist and Taoist
A DARLINGTON primary school is celebrating after winning an award for its sports provision. Beaumont Hill Primary School and Technology College, in Darlington, is among 440 schools nationally to be recognised in the latest round of Sportsmark awards.
Tributes were paid yesterday to a teacher who has devoted more than four decades to one school. Judith Burtt retired from Abbey Junior School, Darlington, where she has taught thousands of pupils over the past 43 years. Mrs Burtt was known to most of
VISUALLY impaired people are being given the chance to pass comment on the accessibility of books at libraries in Middlesbrough. During Make a Noise in Libraries Week, starting on Monday, visually impaired and sighted people are being encouraged to visit
Federation Special Durham Senior League: The place to be this afternoon is Hetton Lyons. There is no question that the match of the day billing is this encounter against Boldon. It has all the ingredients of an intriguing fixture. Both teams have the
CHILDREN at Beech Grove Primary School, South Bank, have something to shout about after raising £400 through a sponsored silence. Each of the school's six classes kept quiet for periods ranging from 15 minutes up to an hour to raise the cash for the Teesside
STARS from the cast of ITV soap Emmerdale will be in the region tomorrow for a charity cricket match. They will take on Crakehall Cricket Club, near Bedale, which has organised the day to raise money for children's cancer charity Candlelighters. As well
While Shotton Colliery's population may have shrunk, its 150-year-old church is still standing tall. UNLIKE certain of the Holy Mysteries, it may not be said that Shotton Colliery hath no beginning and hath no end. It just sometimes seems that way, that's
A PARISH council is opposing a caravan park's bid to replace some touring caravans with static caravans because it said it would harm the landscape in the Nidderdale Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. Azerley and Winksley Parish Council wants an application
A BATTLE over a North-East businessman's attempt to run an off-licence 13 miles out to sea took a twist last night. HM Customs and Excise pledged to return an estimated £150,000 worth of alcohol and cigarettes seized from entrepreneur Phil Berriman's
OF course, polls and by-elections can mean all things to all men. So yesterday morning's by-election results were a satisfying scoredraw according to Labour, a famous victory for the LibDems and an unsurprising performance on someone else's patch according
POOR weather failed to dampen the enthusiasm of visitors to the region's leading countryside event, the Great Yorkshire Show. In spite of rain on the last two days, the overall gate figure of 124,502 was one of the highest in the history of the event,
Durham Coast League: Easington, who have gradually moved up the table into third position, aim to keep the pressure on leaders Murton and Silksworth by defeating visitors Bill Quay this afternoon. Following an indifferent start to the campaign the Colliers
A NORTH-EAST school has thrown its weight behind The Northern Echo's Forgotten Hero appeal. Middleton St George Primary School, near Darlington, is planning events to celebrate the bravery of Andrew Mynarski, the 27-year-old Second World War airman who
IN Middlesbrough, where the authorities have been engaged in a long-running battle to remove prostitutes and kerb-crawlers from the streets, Mr Blunketts proposals received a lukewarm reception. Barry Coppinger, executive member for community safety and
THE fight to save one of the region's most successful community theatres has received a boost. Plans to demolish The Forum Theatre in Billingham to build a new town centre have met widespread opposition in the town. But now the Billingham Partnership,
MIDDLESBROUGH have not given up hope of adding Chelsea pair Bolo Zenden and Geremi to their ranks ahead of the new season. Boro chief executive Keith Lamb met with Zenden's father and agent Pierre on Thursday to discuss terms over a permanent switch to
BRITISH American Tobacco announced yesterday it is to invest £800m in a factory in China. Only weeks after ceasing production in Darlington, with the loss of nearly 500 jobs, the second largest tobacco producer in the world has become the first foreign
AN OPERA singer will return from Australia to perform at a concert held for her parents' golden wedding anniversary. Sarah Sweeting is flying back to her parents' home in Guisborough to perform at Saltburn Community Theatre on August 7. She will team
NEW signing Mark Lynch is confident that his 11 years at Manchester United will help Sunderland win promotion to the Premiership. The 22-year-old right back, who signed a three-year deal with the Black Cats on Thursday, will link up with the rest of his
ORCA the golden retriever is a truly remarkable dog of many and varied talents - and now he has achieved another first. Already he has won a bravery award and widespread praise for the way he looks after his disabled owner. But now Orca is believed to
BROADCASTER Kate Adie will be a special guest when the Royal Navy's largest vessel receives the freedom of a North-East city. HMS Ocean is being honoured with the first freedom to be granted by Sunderland since it gained city status in 1992. The honour
CONTROVERSIAL plans for a multi-million pound marina redevelopment have been dropped because of resentment to the scheme. Mounting opposition to the proposals for Whitby Marina have led to the Evans Property Group, of Leeds, withdrawing its plans. While
TWO major events only a few miles apart are giving a North-East district a massive boost this weekend. After an 11-year campaign, the £5m Weardale Railway is up and running this morning with a new steam service linking Stanhope and Wolsingham, County
A TEN-YEAR-OLD girl who led three horses to safety from a blazing barn has been awarded a certificate of merit from fire chiefs. Amelia-May Herbert went into action when she and her parents arrived at the scene of the fire in a field at Waterhouses, near
DESPITE the trappings of fame that accompany being a children's television presenter, Matt Baker has always remained close to his North-East roots. Rather than a glitzy celebrity wedding, he opted for the small but beautiful parish church of St Andrew
PLANS for the North-East to become Europe's leading scrapyards for "ghost ships" were confirmed yesterday. Peter Stephenson, chief executive of Able UK, said there was "real potential for Teesside to become recognised as the European centre of excellence
TWO young members of a roller skating club have been selected to compete in the world championships. Katie Beth Lodge, from Newton Aycliffe, County Durham, the British junior free skating champion, and Redcar's Emma Gaffney, British senior champion for
TWO children's homes are set to open in the region by the end of the year to provide a safe environment for youngsters with disorders. Young Foundations, a Castlebeck group company, has spent almost £1m on acquiring and redeveloping two properties in
A dog day will be held at one of the region's largest new woods tomorrow. The Forestry Commission will stage a doggy day at Coatham Wood, at Long Newton near Stockton, between 1pm and 4pm. The animals will be able to take part in a number of competitions
MIDDLESBROUGH have not given up hope of adding Chelsea pair Bolo Zenden and Geremi to their ranks ahead of the new season. Boro chief executive Keith Lamb met with Zenden's father and agent Pierre on Thursday to discuss terms over a permanent switch to
WHEN Paul Davies broke his back in a riding accident, the Air Ambulance Service was summoned to the scene. But before the helicopter landed in the field in Meadowfield, near Durham, paramedics had already reached the injured 39-year-old. Paul never forgot
