RORY DELAP has revealed he sought advice from a Sunderland goalscoring legend before agreeing to sign a deal at the Stadium of Light. The 29-year-old was a surprise deadline day addition to the Black Cats squad and, before completing his move, asked a
AN enthusiastic email arrives from Dick Fawcett, in Redcar. "Your name is synonymous with good food," it begins, though it's not that about which he waxes lyrical. Happy landings, Dick was in Redcar RAFA Club last Saturday night. "I've visited clubs for
Extraordinary Breastfeeding (C4) The World's Biggest Penis (C4) Rameses: Death Of The First Born (five) THE knobs and knockers season on C4 continued by asking, "Breast is best, but for how long?". The British have one of the worst records in the world
A man who tried to silence vulnerable witnesses when his son was facing a murder charge has had his jail term slashed by Appeal Court judges today. Thomas Robert Harrison, who urged one witness to "tell a pack of lies" to police and paid for 750-worth
BUSES and trains group Arriva yesterday moved one step closer to its target of becoming Europe's leading transport operator after clinching its first rail contract in Sweden. The £15m deal will see Sunderland-based Arriva operate the regional train service
CANCER CURE RE Colette McCormick's letter (Has Jan 21) regarding cancer. Where's the evidence that scientists are closer than ever to finding a cure? Cancer kills more people in the UK than ever before. Death rates from the major cancers have nearly all
A MULTI-million-pound golf course and hotel development is expected to bring a plush leisure development into a rural corner of County Durham. The 18-hole course, clubhouse and 126-bedroom hotel at Sharpley Hall Farm, Seaton, near Seaham, has won outline
EMANUEL Pogatetz has admitted his own anger management techniques are paying off in his bid to play a full part in Middlebrough's relegation fight. The Austria international has endured a difficult first season in England, both on and off the pitch, with
CHEMICALS and materials group Johnson Matthey announced yesterday it had bought a chemical technology licence company for £40m. Johnson Matthey, which employs 450 people at the UK headquarters of its catalysts business in Billingham, Teesside, has acquired
They once symbolised Britain's love affair with the Great Outdoors, but it seems the future of youth hostels is now uncertain. Nick Morrison looks at how a rite of passage for millions is responding to the challenge of catering for today's tourists EVEN
AFTER being rightly berated for his impetuous handling of Mathew Tait last spring, it seems strange that England coach Andy Robinson is now being accused of undue conservatism ahead of this weekend's Six Nations opener against Wales. Tait's rapid elevation
HI-TECH imaging equipment is being installed in Darlington to help prevent blindness among residents with diabetes. Digital apparatus at Darlington Primary Care Trust (PCT) is one of five units set to boost health care in the area. Almost 20,000 people
DARLINGTON residents are to be given the chance to comment on plans to improve cycling in the town. The town has been chosen as one of six Cycling Demonstration Towns nationally, by Cycling England. The appointment means Darlington Borough Council will
A BOOKLET has been designed to help Darlington schoolchildren through their teenage years. Young people have played a key role in designing the booklet, which has been produced by Darlington's Teenage Pregnancy Partnership Board. Three groups of teenagers
PROPOSALS for cut-price parking in a town have been rejected. The Car Park Action Group had called for cheaper parking in Malton, saying the town was not a tourist action. Campaigners wanted to see a 50p one-hour charge and an all-day £1.50 long-stay
A BATTLE to save a neighbourhood from demolition will be at the forefront of a by-election next month. Residents campaigning to overturn plans to bulldoze rows of terrace streets in central Middlesbrough are putting up their own candidate for election
A DILAPIDATED former football club site is poised to be turned into a housing estate, under plans revealed last night. Feethams, the home of Darlington Football Club until 2003, is owned by the town's Cricket Field Trust and controlled by members of Darlington
CHILDREN from a Derwentside special school are to try out the good life with their own vegetable patch. Villa Real School, in Consett, is making an allotment accessible to wheelchair users, to teach youngsters about healthy eating. They will learn how
DETECTIVES hunting a paedophile who snatched a six-year-old girl from her bath received more than 30 calls after a television appeal, police said last night. The young victim was left naked and shivering in an alley near her North Tyneside home after
A FARMER who breeds rare native pigs has won £87,000 in grants to convert derelict outbuildings into kitchens. Timothy Wilson, from Grange Farm at Levisham, near Pickering, produces free-range meat under the Ginger Pig trademark. It is served at London
She may be a star in the wings, but ice cream maker's daughter Lindsey Drenon feels frozen out AN enthusiastic email arrives from Dick Fawcett, in Redcar. "Your name is synonymous with good food," it begins, though it's not that about which he waxes lyrical
Campaigners are calling for a minimum of one Test to be shown live on terrestrial television in the wake of the England and Wales Cricket Board's exclusive deal with BSkyB. A Culture, Media and Sport select committee report released yesterday was critical
RARELY can fans of the NorthEast's three biggest football clubs have entered a New Year with such feelings of doom and despair. Hangovers are nothing new when it comes to the start of January but, for the followers of Middlesbrough, Newcastle and Sunderland
A CHIEF constable yesterday published an open letter backing the idea of "super force". North Yorkshire Police chief Della Cannings dismissed reports that a Greater Yorkshire amalgamation would cost more than £100m and said that local identity would not
CANCER CURE : Re Colette McCormick's letter (Has Jan 21) regarding cancer. Where's the evidence that scientists are closer than ever to finding a cure? Cancer kills more people in the UK than ever before. Death rates from the major cancers have nearly
SKIPPER Matt Clarke has been impressed with the impact defensive partner Shelton Martis has made in his first season in England and believes the Dutchman will be an influential figure in the crucial months ahead. In conceding one goal in their last four
POLICE last night charged a man with murder after the body of a father-of-two was discovered in the grounds of a North-East hotel. The body of Lyndsay Kennedy, 40, of Penshaw Gardens, East Stanley, County Durham, was found behind the Harperley Hotel,
WHILE Brian Barwick claims he is willing to leave "no stone unturned" in his search for Sven Goran Eriksson's successor, the Football Association's chief executive had better not be banking on adding to his air miles in the next six months. Innumerable
THE Government last night dealt a further blow to plans to bring 7,000 jobs and millions of pounds worth of investment to the region. The Department for Transport approved plans for the third port expansion in the South-East, throwing question marks over
A TALENTED team of young female footballers has won the title of county champions. The under-11 side at Coxhoe Primary School won through against seven other teams at an English Schools Football Association competition at Soccerena, in Durham City. The
HOUSEHOLDERS in Ryedale face a 4.2 per cent rise in their council tax bills this year. The district council's policy and resources committee is to be told that while it plans a 2.5 per cent increase -an additional 8p a week - other increases will come
CONSULTANTS say a North Yorkshire council's offices are the worst they have seen. Richmondshire District Council has released details of reports on its offices to support the case for new headquarters in Colburn. Over the past four years, three consultants
'How old are you Nana?", asked my grandson just before Christmas. "Sixty-one", I said. "But in a few weeks I'll be 62". Say that to an adult and you'd probably get: "Oh, I can't believe you're that old! You don't look it!" Four year olds don't go in for
Just like Sunderland's Roker Park and Middlesbrough's Ayresome Park in the 1990s, Darlington FC's spiritual home, Feethams, now looks likely to be developed for housing Ever since Darlington Football Club left Feethams for its new stadium in Neasham Road
'How old are you Nana?", asked my grandson just before Christmas. "Sixty-one", I said. "But in a few weeks I'll be 62". Say that to an adult and you'd probably get: "Oh, I can't believe you're that old! You don't look it!" Four year olds don't go in for
A GRIEVING family have begun legal action after an inquest ruled that a depressed mother killed herself hours after being allowed to leave a psychiatric hospital. Anthony Coverdale believes his wife, Karen, would not have died if doctors at St Luke's
A DOWNBEAT Graeme Souness last night admitted his Newcastle side were embroiled in a relegation scrap after a 3-0 defeat at Manchester City plunged them closer to the Premiership drop zone. With Birmingham having drawn 1-1 at Liverpool, the Magpies now
GREEN, recreational space within town centres is becoming an increasing rarity and we regret the prospect of Feethams being swallowed up by another housing estate in Darlington. But we do not blame Darlington Cricket Club for planning to capitalise on
IT seems that winning the Champions League is not all it's cracked up to be. Not content with watching his players stage one of the greatest comebacks of all time to be crowned kings of Europe last May, Liverpool chief executive Rick Parry has criticised
Leicester became the latest scene for a 'wrong way' racecourse drama when conditional jockey Richard Gordon was banned for ten days for failing to take the correct course. It was a tale of three claimers as rising star Liam Heard guided Rojaaba to an
MORE than £500,000 could be invested in improving facilities for children and their families in some of Darlington's most deprived areas. The next phase of work in the town's children's centres scheme would create vital provision over the next two years
A SCHOOL which faced closure is now looking to a positive future after being granted specialist school status. Sunnydale School, in Shildon, will become a maths and computing college from next September, following a remarkable turnaround. Just three years
COUNCILLORS have rejected an application from Derwentside residents to protect an open space from development. Durham County councillors yesterday agreed that land, known locally as the Blue Heaps, in Consett, should not be registered as a village green
The home of what was once one of the biggest names in the confectionery industry is set to enter a new era. The site of Terry's of York, overlooking the city's Knavesmire, is being bought in a deal thought to be worth around £26m. The huge factory closed
A MIDDLESBROUGH councillor has been hauled before a standards watchdog for speaking up for the community she represents. When she appeared before an adjudication panel of the Standards Board for England, Councillor Joan McTigue was found to have broken
WITH Joey Barton's transfer request having caused considerable consternation in the blue half of Manchester, Newcastle experienced a unique reversal of fortunes ahead of last night's game at the City of Manchester Stadium. For once, they were taking on
BISHOP Auckland Town Hall has a busy programme of events over the next week. Friday's lunchtime concert, with pianist George Hetherington and soprano Susan Limbert, starts at 1pm and costs £2.50, concessions £2. On Saturday, Crook Rotary Club is hosting
CHILDREN are celebrating the success of an 18-month long arts project which has kept generations of village residents in touch with their mining roots. People of all ages from Coundon and Leeholme have worked together on Creative Coundon, Forging a Future
HUNTSMAN, the US chemical group which saved 1,600 jobs on Teesside when it bought a large slice of ICI seven years ago confirmed yesterday that it was in takeover talks. The New York stock market-listed corporation said it had received an approach from
LAST Saturday's late abandonment of Cheltenham's big-money meeting was not all bad news since Wincanton has managed to salvage the £40,000 HBLB Cotswold Chase. Originally the field was headed by ante-post favourites Celestial Gold and Take The Stand,
THE manager of one of the region's professional football clubs was last night suspended after a changing room bust-up. Martin Scott has been temporarily relieved of his position as manager of Hartlepool United while a club investigation takes place. The
IT is incredibly rare to witness sporting perfection. Talented displays are all around us, but the sight of a genuine great performing at the peak of his or her powers remains an elusive phenomenon. Ali dragging himself back from the brink to see off
THE manager of one of the region's top football clubs was last night suspended after a changing room bust up. Martin Scott has been temporarily relieved of his position as manager of Hartlepool United while a club investigation takes place. The club has
TOUGHER rules to force improvements at rundown rail stations will be demanded by a committee of MPs today. A damning report by the public accounts committee (PAC) condemns the "deplorable state" of stations that have been forgotten in the rush to improve
NEWCASTLE UNITED boss Graeme Souness has been sacked and temporarily replaced by Glenn Roeder and skipper Alan Shearer. Newcastle are only six points above the relegation zone after collecting just one point from their last six Premiership games. A statement
DETECTIVES hunting a paedophile who snatched a six-year-old girl from her bath received more than 30 calls after a television appeal, police said last night. The young victim was left naked and shivering in an alley near her North Tyneside home after
A fresh trial in the case of a labourer accused of murdering a North-East mother 16 years ago was a step closer last night. Cleveland's Chief Crown Prosecutor Martin Goldman has lodged an application at the Court of Appeal for the case of Billy Dunlop
A FREE service has been introduced in east Durham to help householders get rid of unwanted items. Easington District Council has introduced the removal to help residents and prevent fly-tipping. The council will collect a wide range of household waste
PRAISE is the motto at the heart of success after a school was awarded specialist status. Norton School had to raise the Government-required £50,000 before being granted specialist humanities college status, which includes English, geography and drama
A CAR scheme for those unable to use public transport is under review in east Durham. The Easington District Health Appointment Social Car Scheme was launched last July since then has drawn up a register of more than 200 users. The scheme is being assessed
AN extensive survey is to be carried out to assess the effectiveness of home care services on Teesside. The adult and community services - formerly social services - department in Hartlepool intends to send questionnaires to a random sample of more than
THE campaign against doorstep crime took another step forward yesterday with the creation of another "no cold-calling" zone. The number of uninvited callers at Great Ayton, Pickering and Selby, in North Yorkshire, has fallen since the zones were created
