Archive

  • Homeopathy college enrollments double in region

    THE number of students enrolling in the region's only homeopathy college has more than doubled in two years. The Northern College of Homeopathic Medicine in Gateshead has seen a surge in enrolments. Year one has 17 students studying part-time over four

  • Wellock's World

    iT'S always fun at Faisalabad. It was there that Mike Gatting had his infamous slanging match with umpire Shakoor Rana, now we have had a Test with more sideshows than a travelling circus. Never mind the exploding Pepsi cart or the mystery of Inzamam-ul-Haq

  • Fitting comeback for a favourite Bond

    From Russia With Love Publisher: Electronic Arts Format: PS2 Price: £39.99 Family friendly? 12+ IT'S been a good year if you're a gamer who also loves movies. But has it been a vintage one if you happen to be a fan of 007? Bond has something of a chequered

  • Burton's Bytes

    From Russia With Love Publisher: Electronic Arts Format: PS2. Price: £39.99 Family friendly? 12+ IT'S been a good year if you're a gamer who also loves movies. But has it been a vintage one if you happen to be a fan of 007? Bond has something of a chequered

  • One in five suspects are not convicted in court

    NEW figures have revealed that in parts of the region, nearly one in five criminal suspects are not convicted. Information on the performance of the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has revealed that Durham and Northumbria are in the top six areas in the

  • Boro's Euro expertise books knockout place

    THE victory Dutch duo Jimmy-Floyd Hasselbaink and George Boateng craved in their homeland may not have arrived last night. But Middlesbrough achieved the next best thing - qualification for the knockout stages of the UEFA Cup. Boro are fast becoming European

  • McClaren sings praises of back five after clean sheet

    MIDDLESBROUGH boss Steve McClaren paid tribute to the "whole back five" after a resolute and commanding display from an unfamiliar defence kept the clean sheet needed in Holland last night. Centre-backs Chris Riggott and Ugo Ehiogu were outstanding against

  • Boro's Euro expertise books knockout place

    THE victory Dutch duo Jimmy-Floyd Hasselbaink and George Boateng craved in their homeland may not have arrived last night. But Middlesbrough achieved the next best thing - qualification for the knockout stages of the UEFA Cup. Boro are fast becoming European

  • Why death must be an option

    Unfortunately we have to accept the fact that there are some people in society who are so wicked, so evil, that they can pull the trigger to end a life without any feeling or remorse. In trying to prevent such acts it is no good appealing to the human

  • Clouding Over to make light of extra distance

    KEITH REVELEY despatches Clouding Over (1.20) to Musselburgh in the hope that the five-year-old mare can open her account over fences. The Lingdale-trained raider made a rather sluggish chasing debut when only fourth at Kelso three weeks ago, but there

  • Thanksgiving Day message told to pupils

    A US-born Darlington councillor yesterday helped to teach primary school pupils about the importance of Thanksgiving Day. Councillor Cyndi Hughes spoke to youngsters at Mowden Infants School about the significance of Thanksgiving in her native US, which

  • Pride and joy over national accolade

    AN initiative aimed at making people in Middlesbrough proud of where they live and work is to receive national recognition. The Middlesbrough Pride campaign works to make staff in hotels, shops and restaurants aware of the events that are happening both

  • Early age reading scheme is expanded

    AN extension to a scheme encouraging youngsters to read from an early age has been launched in Northallerton. Bookstart Plus provides free bags of books to children between the age of two and two- and-a-half. At Northallerton library yesterday, children

  • Fears raised over plan for block of flats

    RESIDENTS are opposing a developer's bid to build blocks of flats on the site of accommodation for foreign Durham University postgraduate students. Kepier Homes - made up of the Three Rivers Housing Group and Laing O'Rourke - is seeking permission from

  • Traffic census to determine the needs of Army garrison

    DRIVERS are to be stopped and questioned by police in an attempt to find out the long-term traffic needs of an Army base. North Yorkshire County Council and the Ministry of Defence have teamed up to carry out a comprehensive study of travel needs in and

  • Youngsters express views at conference

    YOUNGSTERS in Wear Valley gave their views on what matters to them in their communities at a conference. About 50 youngsters, aged between six and 18, attended the Community Network Youth Conference. Organised by The Wear Valley Community Network, the

  • Signage criticised as roadworks cause chaos

    ROADWORKS brought a town centre to a standstill yesterday causing a three-mile tailback. Traders in Northallerton said takings were down as a result of the congestion. Some drivers were so fed up with waiting that they gave up on their attempts to get

  • Brighter future for new-look street

    A FORMER pit village's Christmas lights will be switched on to mark the completion of a £320,000 revamp of its main street. Shona Walmsley, aged 16 months, who was born during the development of the scheme that has improved the look of Front Street in

  • Operation to educate drivers

    AN operation will be launched next week to crack down on motorists parking in pedestrianised areas of Bishop Auckland. Police will launch the traffic enforcement scheme, designed to educate road users about when red zones are in use in Victoria Avenue

  • The good, the bad and the ugly of region's streets

    BROKEN paving stones, garish signs, unsightly waste bins and lines of bollards are disfiguring the region's streets, English Heritage declared yesterday. Launching a campaign to rid the region's streets of clutter, the organisation said it wanted to bring

  • George Best dies

    Manchester United legend George Best has died. Best was still breathing with the help of a ventilator today after doctors said last night they could do nothing more to save him. With his family by his bedside the 59-year-old passed away this afternoon

  • Cancer research boosted in Katie's memory

    CANCER research has been given a vital boost with an early Christmas gift. New equipment has been delivered to the Northern Institute for Cancer Research, in Newcastle, courtesy of The Katie Trust, with an aim to find a cure. The charity, based in Marske

  • 'Small firms are relying on MoD contracts too'

    THE Northern Defence Industries (NDI) group yesterday stressed the importance of billions of pounds-worth of Ministry of Defence (MoD) projects to the future of the North-East economy. The organisation, which represents companies working in defence industry

  • 'Small firms are relying on MoD contracts too'

    THE Northern Defence Industries (NDI) group yesterday stressed the importance of billions of pounds-worth of Ministry of Defence (MoD) projects to the future of the North-East economy. The organisation, which represents companies working in defence industry

  • Lifeboatman's heroism immortalised in bronze by his successors

    ONE of the region's greatest lifeboat heroes has been immortalised by one of the country's most renowned sculptors. Henry Freeman was one of the most celebrated lifeboatmen of the Victorian era and his larger-than-life bronze bust has been created by

  • Amecable separation 'will lead to growth'

    ENGINEERING services company Amec announced last night that its French division is for sale. Amec is selling its Spie division, which offers engineering services in France in the transport, telecoms and nuclear sectors. The company has two further divisions

  • Proposed new £60m retail park would create 500 jobs

    A £60M plan to create 500 jobs by building a 260,000sq ft retail park in Darlington has been announced. The proposals would transform the site of the former Torrington plant, on the town's Yarm Road industrial estate. The park would be made up of a 100,000sq

  • Verdict on teenager found dead in grounds

    A TEENAGER admitted to a psychiatric ward as an emergency case was found dead in the grounds of the hospital. Nathan Simms, 17, was admitted to West Lane Hospital, Middlesbrough, in January, showing signs of a psychotic disorder and schizophrenia -the

  • Coroner asks for review of accident evidence

    A CORONER said yesterday that he was adjourning an accident inquest so that the case could be referred back to the Crown Prosecution Service "for their further consideration". North Durham Coroner Andrew Tweddle made the decision during a hearing at Chester-le-Street

  • 'Tony and I had our moments'

    He spent a turbulent six years in Downing Street, but more than two years since his departure from Number Ten, Alastair Campbell still misses being at the centre of public life. But, he tells Nick Morrison, there are some aspects that he doesn't miss

  • Why death must be an option

    Unfortunately we have to accept the fact that there are some people in society who are so wicked, so evil, that they can pull the trigger to end a life without any feeling or remorse. In trying to prevent such acts it is no good appealing to the human

  • Ramage threat to top duo

    TITUS Bramble and Jean-Alain Boumsong will be playing for their places this weekend after an exasperated Graeme Souness warned he was not afraid to play Peter Ramage in his preferred position of centre-half. The Newcastle boss has spent the last week

  • Food straight from the farm

    If you want to give the supermarkets a miss for a change, why not think small and do some of your shopping at your local farm shop? We visit two award winners DEBBIE Bell is standing at the stove in her kitchen, stirring up an enormous pan of what will

  • On TV

    Bleak House (BBC1) I SHOULDN'T think there's a man in the world who would want to marry a pockmarked nobody like me," a resigned Esther told Mr Jarndyce. Mr Jarndyce begged to differ. Indeed, he looked as if he was on the point of declaring his true intentions

  • Fitting comeback for a favourite Bond

    From Russia With Love Publisher: Electronic Arts Format: PS2 Price: £39.99 Family friendly? 12+ IT'S been a good year if you're a gamer who also loves movies. But has it been a vintage one if you happen to be a fan of 007? Bond has something of a chequered

  • Zimbabwean hurled racist abuse at shop staff and police

    A COMPUTER programmer has admitted racially abusing white people. Eston Maigurira, from Zimbabwe, flew into a rage after he was told that a Coral bookmakers was closing for the night when he was on a winning streak on a roulette bandit. Maigurira, 29,

  • How the schools fared after their first challenge

    Judge Margaret Fay, of One NorthEast sums up the schools' efforts BELMONT COMPREHENSIVE SCHOOL: Significant evidence of research and I really like the mood board style, but it would have been nice to have a paper summary of the presentation to back up

  • Radios scam investigated by officials

    TRADING Standards officers are investigating thousands of postcards promising FM radios that carry a sting in the tail. The junk mail is landing on doorsteps across the North and officials fear it could leave people out of pocket. It has emerged that

  • Wellock's World

    iT'S always fun at Faisalabad. It was there that Mike Gatting had his infamous slanging match with umpire Shakoor Rana, now we have had a Test with more sideshows than a travelling circus. Never mind the exploding Pepsi cart or the mystery of Inzamam-ul-Haq

  • Top-class effort as school sets pace in business world

    YOUNG aspiring business leaders from a Durham City school have soared to the top of the table in a high-profile competition. The team of entrepreneurs from St Leonard's RC School have leapt into the lead in the Future Business Magnates competition. Not

  • Police 'found gun hidden in Jaguar'

    POLICE stopped an X-type Jaguar car carrying three men and a youth and found a gun and ammunition hidden under the bonnet, a court has heard. The home of the driver, Domenyk James LattlayFott-foy, 41, was under observation and police were videoing him

  • Charisteas boost for McCarthy

    EUROPEAN Championship winner Angelos Charisteas has given Sunderland the green light in their attempts to sign him for the second half of the season. Charisteas, who scored a dramatic second-half winner as Greece beat Portugal in the final of Euro 2004

  • 'I can't escape from HIV - but maybe you can'

    Next Thursday is World Aids Day and with a recent increase in the number of newly diagnosed North-East HIV cases - with more heterosexual women becoming infected than gay men - many believe it is time to take this potentially life-threatening disease

  • Children can count on parent support

    A GROUP of parents have been learning how to encourage and improve their children's numeracy skills. The family numeracy course in Darlington is one of many courses available to parents through the council's libraries and community learning service. A

  • Traders seek compensation

    TRADERS affected by the pedestrianisation of Darlington town centre are seeking cuts in business rates to compensate for their loss of trade. Several retail outlets have recorded a sharp downturn in turnover since the £6.5m Pedestrian Heart scheme was

  • A Ferrari or a child: The full price of parenthood revealed

    COUPLES planning a family in the North-East and Yorkshire could be made to think again after a survey was released. The cost of raising a child from birth to the age of 21 is more than £160,000 - an increase of 26 per cent on last year and ten times the

  • Top-class effort as school sets pace in business world

    YOUNG aspiring business leaders from a Durham City school have soared to the top of the table in a high-profile competition. The team of entrepreneurs from St Leonard's RC School have leapt into the lead in the Future Business Magnates competition. Not

  • Guide issued to help people stay healthy

    HEALTH chiefs have produced a guide to help local people stay fit and well over the winter period. The leaflet, Getting the Right Treatment, has been produced by the Hambleton and Richmondshire Primary Care Trust. It gives information and advice on obtaining

  • No date for long-awaited £7m bypass

    THERE is still no date fixed for the start of work on the long-awaited Rillington bypass, says a North Yorkshire County Council report. The scheme for the A64, which straddles the village, has been put to the recently set-up Regional Transport Board for

  • How the schools fared after their first challenge

    Judge Margaret Fay, of One NorthEast sums up the schools' efforts: BELMONT COMPREHENSIVE SCHOOL: Significant evidence of research and I really like the mood board style, but it would have been nice to have a paper summary of the presentation to back up

  • Talented Belfast boys who almost missed the boat

    George Best was a legend on the football pitch and to this day his skills in front of goal stir the memory. Chief Sports Writer Scott Wilson met one Middlesbrough resident with more to remember than most. OUTSIDE of Middlesbrough, few football fans will

  • College seeks opinions on logo

    DARLINGTON College is calling on the community for a mark of approval for its new logo. A shortlist of four designs has been drawn up on which the public is invited to comment to help the college decide which to choose. The old logo has graced college

  • Residents compete to light up parish

    RESIDENTS of a Teesdale village are being encouraged to light up the parish this Christmas. Etherley Parish Council is asking all residents on the main routes of Toft Hill and Etherley to put up window lights to brighten up the parish. The lights will

  • 'Keep policing within the borough'

    THE leader of Darlington council has called for policing to be carried out within borough boundaries if a regional police force is created. Councillor John Williams has written to the Durham Police Authority expressing the council's views on proposals

  • Sobering reminder over binge-drinking culture

    A CAMPAIGN to curb the rise of binge drinking in Middlesbrough has been launched in time for the change in licensing laws and the build up to Christmas. The initiative is the idea of a University of Teesside design and marketing student and it sends out

  • £2,500 of tools stolen in raid

    Tools with a value of at least £2,500 were stolen from a shed in Wear Valley. The equipment was taken from an industrial shed next to a house in West Roddymoor, on the outskirts of Crook, between 1am and 5am on Wednesday. A metal panel had been removed

  • Jail 'safety fears' for pair on rape charge

    PRISON bosses have refused to confirm speculation that two teenagers accused of raping a North-East pensioner are being held in a high security prison unit for their own safety. The attack on the 65-year-old woman, at her home in The Grove, Marton, on

  • Initiative to clamp down on binge-drinking under way

    As the new Nightsafe initiative to crack down on binge drinking is launched today in South Durham and Darlington, rural publican Andy Power, who helped set up a Barnard Castle's Pub Watch scheme, tells David Roberts how he hopes it will work THE fall-out

  • Nightmare of man wrongly convicted of officer's murder

    A MAN whose life sentence for murdering a police officer was quashed in a landmark miscarriage of justice case revealed his torment yesterday. Durham Crown Court heard how Philip English, 28, had suffered years of harassment since he was cleared of the

  • Hammering home message to criminals

    CRIMINALS across east Cleveland face a "hammer" blow as police target thieves, trouble makers and thugs from today. Under Operation Hammer, extra officers are being drafted in to form a special strike force to tackle known criminals and hit crime hot

  • Town mayor in the frame as artists display their talents

    ASPIRING artists have been given civic praise by the subject of their paintings. The Mayor of Stockton, Councillor Mick Stoker, handed out prizes following a portrait workshop at St Bede's RC Primary School, in Stockton. A group ranging in age from nine

  • Spotlight on dangers of smoking

    A NO-SMOKING message is being presented to schoolchildren in the form of a play. Four schools in Middlesbrough have been chosen for the pilot project by the Middlesbrough Primary Care Trust (PCT). The play, which looks at the reasons why youngsters smoke

  • Boro fan stabbed to death in Holland

    Police confirmed at a press conference today that a murder enquiry was underway following the death of a Middlesbrough man. Senior police officers from Cleveland are in discussions with the foreign office and colleagues in Amsterdam and expect to fly

  • Blaze at supermarket

    ABOUT 40 firefighters battled to control a blaze at a supermarket today. Crews were called at about 9am to the Co-op, in Leyburn, North Yorkshire, after fire broke out on a flat roof at the rear of the store. Staff and shoppers were evacuated. Nobody

  • Drug dosages were justified, says professor

    A MURDER charge GP was justified in administering high doses of the painkiller morphine to three of his patients who were already dying, a court was told. Dr Howard Martin was said to have not acted unreasonably in the circumstances by an expert defence

  • Tanfield Group reaches new heights

    ENGINEERING company the Tanfield Group has reported progress in two of its divisions. The company, based in Stanley, County Durham has more than doubled its international network of distributors for its powered access platforms. The platforms, known as

  • Persimmon buys rival for £643m

    CONSTRUCTION group Persimmon bought rival Westbury for £643m yesterday creating the UK's biggest housebuilder. Persimmon, which is based in York, said the proposed tie-up, which has been backed by the Westbury board, put it on course to build as many

  • Tearful mother's appeal to killer

    THE mother of murdered shopworker Jenny Nicholl made an emotional appeal direct to her daughter's killer yesterday. Ann Nicholl pleaded for the murderer to end the uncertainty and tell detectives what had happened to the 19-year-old. A tearful Mrs Nicholl

  • Police investigate Boro links to murder

    A BRITISH man has died and another is fighting for his life after they were both attacked in Amsterdam, police have confirmed. It is thought the pair could be Middlesbrough FC fans and were in Holland to watch their team play a Uefa Cup match last night

  • Far better memories

    IT was reportedly George Best's decision to allow himself to be photographed on his deathbed because he wanted the picture to act as a warning to young people of the dangers of excessive drinking. If that is the case, it was a very brave thing to do.

  • Keltie: I feared for career

    CLARK KELTIE last night revealed how he feared his professional football career was over when his Darlington contract neared its end earlier this year. In missing the remaining four months of the 2004/05 campaign with a knee injury, Keltie, by his own

  • 85 jobs lost at rural factory

    A METAL fabrication company is shedding up to a third of its workforce after a downturn in the industry and pressure from the Far East. The Eliza Tinsley Group, which employs 240 people in Evenwood, near Bishop Auckland, County Durham, is making up to

  • Army to join police on drinks patrol

    POLICE have warned that the first real test of 24-hour drinking will be this weekend. And they are taking no chances in Darlington by drafting in military police from Catterick, North Yorkshire, to ensure there is order in the town in the run up to Christmas

  • Jonny ruled out for a month

    JONNY Wilkinson had a groin operation in London yesterday and is not expected to play again for a month. It's the latest in an extraordinary sequence of setbacks for the Newcastle Falcons star since his winning drop goal in the World Cup final two years