The North East | Archive | 2004 | November
MORE public libraries in County Durham are to extend weekend opening hours to meet demand. more...
A NORTH Durham community beat inspector has been nominated for lifetime achievement award. more...
CYCLISTS are facing a police crackdown because bikes are being used in crime. Operation Harbour has been launched in Darlington after cycles were being used by criminals to make a quick getaway from muggings and thefts. more...
A DARLINGTON man renowned for his many letters printed in The Northern Echo has died aged 83. more...
PUPILS at a Darlington school have helped pack almost 250 shoeboxes with gifts for underprivileged children across Eastern and Central Europe. more...
SCHOOLCHILDREN had first-hand experience of other cultures in an event timed to coincide with Armistice Day. more...
HOSPITAL boss Kevin Oxley put his best foot forward to raise £400 for Darlington Association on Disability (Dad). more...
A CAMPAIGN to encourage youngsters to turn their back on drugs has been hailed a success. more...
A Plaque in memory of a devoted couple who died a month apart has been stolen from a Darlington park. more...
PLUMBING student Jonny Green's has battled his way to the finals of a national skills competition. more...
WATER bosses say a mains pipe that burst for the second time in 18 months should be replaced in the near future. more...
HEALTH workers in north Durham have won a national award for helping colleagues around the country. more...
POLICE are appealing for information after a woman was robbed as she walked home from visiting her elderly mother in a nursing home on Sunday. more...
A PARTNERSHIP is being set up to provide carers with a help and support network. more...
ST JOHN Ambulance Durham is launching its new Youth Programme this month. more...
THE lives of the lead miners who shaped the history of County Durham will come under the spotlight next week. more...
A LOCAL market has become the toast of farmers thanks to a beer that has been brewed to celebrate its success. more...
WHEN fundraiser Aubrey Hanley was planning a cross-country marathon for charity he decided to do it with style. more...
THOUSANDS of households across North Yorkshire are to be issued with free smoke alarms and advice on fire safety. more...
TEACHER Adrian Bramley may not be sure what he has let himself in for - but at least he knows its all in a good cause. more...
COUNCIL staff raised more than £575 for breast cancer research - by simply thinking pink. more...
A FOOTBALL club groundsman who has transformed a pitch from quagmire to quality has no plans to quit, despite celebrating his 80th birthday. more...
PLANNERS are to redesign a North-East community to give it a new start. more...
A GOLF club has donated money to a hospital's children's ward and the air ambulance appeal. more...
CONCERNS have been raised over plans to grant a public entertainment licence to a Stockton pub. more...
A CHARITY golf day at Wynyard Golf Course, near Billingham, has raised money for Stockton mayor Jennie Beaumont's chosen charities. more...
POLICE patrols are being stepped up in a Teesside town, following a spate of burglaries. more...
PLANS to hold a farmers' market in Hartlepool will be discussed by councillors today. more...
TEENAGERS are giving up their time to help children enjoy sport. PE students at Stockton Sixth Form College have started a Stockton Healthy Schools initiative called Fitbodz. more...
IT has happened at last. Northallerton now has its own skatepark. more...
THE Government's scheme to scrap pension books for elderly people is to be investigated by officials in North Yorkshire. more...
THE beat of African drums has been echoing around North Yorkshire school corridors. more...
PLANS by an engineering firm to move to an industrial estate have been recommended for approval, despite objections. more...
THE safeguarding of a town's historic open spaces could take a step nearer next week. more...
Theme bar operator Luminar yesterday said sales and profits had fallen in a difficult and highly competitive market. more...
* HARTLEPOOL accountants Howarth Clark Whitehill (HCW) has appointed RACHEL McGHEE as tax assistant. more...
CONCERNS have been raised over plans to grant a public entertainment licence to a Stockton pub. more...
NEWCASTLE law firm Mincoffs has recruited another solicitor as part of an expansion programme. more...
Each month, we hear of more ludicrous compensation claims, leading to the belief that Britian is in the grip of a damaging compensation culture. The president of the Association of Personal Injury Lawyers says there is no such thing - but small businesses in the North-East disagree. Business Editor Julia Breen reports. more...
THE group controlling Tees and Hartlepool ports has announced a rise in turnover of 0.9 per cent in the first six months since it floated on London's junior stock market in July. more...
AN independent financial advisor has been appointed at Skipton Financial Services, in Northallerton, North Yorkshire. more...
DFDS Seaways has appointed CRISTIAN FELICETTI as commercial analyst at its headquarters in North Shields, North Tyneside. more...
NEARLY 100 jobs are at risk across the region following the Co-operative Insurance Society (CIS) announcement that it plans to close hundreds of offices across the UK. more...
Earlier this year, a leading healthcare insurance provider carried out research and found that the nation's employees made no fewer than 22 million requests for doctors' sicknotes every year. more...
Christmas shopping in New York? Sounds like a nice idea. It may not be as expensive as you think, given the current exchange rate. Despite the high oil price, flight bargains mean that the pound goes a long, long way in the Big Apple. more...
LAW firm Blackett Hart and Pratt (BHP) has made two appointments in its commercial and agricultural property team. more...
CONSTRUCTION company M&M Plasline (MMP) is a step closer to building flat-pack housing in factories following the acquisition of a steel frame manufacturer. more...
BUSINESS leaders in the region have backed efforts by Chancellor Gordon Brown to highlight two-tier inequality in Europe that leads to UK business missing out on millions of pounds in EU contracts. more...
The company began selling musical instruments from a horse-drawn cart. Nearly a century later, it has grown into the North-East's biggest musical instrument retailer. Business Correspondent Paul Willis looks at the harmonious rise of Willimas Music Group. more...
* LAW firm Watson Burton has appointed insolvency lawyer GRAHAM RIDLER from Hong Kong to its Leeds office. more...
AN insurance company last night announced plans to give away seatbelts for dogs to people who signed up with its car insurance policy before next month. more...
FRESH signs of volatility in the radio advertising market took the gloss off a sharp improvement in annual results at media group Chrysalis yesterday. more...
A company in the region has completed a contract with airline Virgin Atlantic to help people overcome their fear of flying. more...
FINANCIAL advice firm Positive Solutions is opening its new flagship headquarters in Newcastle. more...
EVENTS management company Polar Productions has secured three contracts to provide outdoor ice rinks in the region. more...
as part of a crackdown on flytipping, businesses in County Durham have been warned not to let unlicensed operators dispose of their waste. more...
Nearly three-quarters of people in the region believe that employers who fail to train their workforce should be fined by the Government, according to a survey by the Association of Colleges (AoC). more...
Rises in the cost of steel have been a blessing and a curse for manufacturers in the region. Business correspondent Paul Willis reports. more...
Weardale Ski Club has installed a renewable energy supply. more...
A project backed by business is helping the endangered water vole make its last stand against extinction in the North-East. more...
The organisation which has championed the cause of manufacturing in the Tees Valley for over a decade moved offices yesterday. more...
MUSIC group Williams is opening three new stores across the UK as part of a £200,000 expansion of the Darlington-based company. more...
TWO businesses have been rewarded for their commitment to conservation. more...
Sunderland chartered accountancy TTR Barnes has expanded its financial services operation with the appointment of pension and mortgage specialist GEORGE FARNAN. more...
The bad news just keeps on coming at Mitsubishi. Nigel Burton wonders how the group will dig itself out of trouble. more...
A MANUFACTURER that only months ago was named Tees Valley Small Business of the Year has gone into liquidation with the loss of 12 jobs. more...
Komatsu UK has appointed a manufacturing director at its North-East base. more...
ESTATE agency Michael Poole has appointed SUSAN HORNBY as business development director. more...
FOUR North-East education and training establishments have teamed up to offer courses. more...
FOUR North-East education and training establishments have teamed up to offer courses. more...
JAMES RENFORTH of Gateshead: Champion Sculler of the World by Ian Whitehead, (City of Newcastle Libraries and Information Service, £7.99) more...
Former 'Silly Billy' Adam Stafford tells Steve Pratt why he's more than happy to have come of age as Mother Goose. more...
A CINEMA that has brought a little movie magic to the Yorkshire Dales celebrates its tenth anniversary this month. more...
FROM Sofia to Sunderland, Pru Kitching takes us on an often sad and at times intensely private journey. One moment her writing is dramatic, almost theatrical. Then it makes irony and passion comfortable companions on her global travels. more...
AN exhibition of local art is offering people the chance to buy unusual Christmas presents this year. more...
A COMMUNITY art group is staging a seasonal exhibition for anyone looking for Christmas presents. more...
Michael Jackson's Mind (five); Lie With Me (ITV1): YOU can't blame people for being nosy about Michael Jackson's personal life. more...
A TV documentary charting the final weeks in the life of a North-East man has won an award. more...
A TELEVISION star from the region will take part in a televised tribute to Abba at the weekend. more...
ADAM Stafford knows only too well what getting older does to an actor in pantomime. "They stop seeing you as a young idiot and see you as a woman," he says. more...
The column finds spice and all things nice at Darlington's first African restaurant. more...
I NEVER took Michael Howard for a sanctimonious prat. But what else would you call a leader who sacks a member of his team merely because of an adulterous affair? more...
Michael Jackson's Mind (five) more...
ALTERNATIVE ENERGY: AS a person who is concerned about global warming, I was rather pleased to read news of a plant to produce Biodiesel fuel on Teesside. more...
Parents are being wooed by the political parties with a raft of measures to help with childcare. Women's Editor Lindsay Jennings reports. more...
FIFTY-ONE years ago there was no justice for Ronald Maddison and his family. more...
For more than half a century, the final, agonising minutes of Ronald Maddison's life remined as secret as the nerve gas test that killed him. Dan Jenkins looks at an inquest that revealed the truth behind both his horrific death and the treatment his family suffered afterwards. more...
First fix joiners, £9ph, 39hpw. Experience essential. Must have own transport. Ref: CON 18330. more...
Administrative assistant, Leyburn. Exceeds NMW, 37hpw. Must have a good telephone manner and be computer literate. Ref: NAL 722. more...
Stylist. Wage negotiable, 45hpw. Minimum of three years' experience required. Ref: SPE 13645. more...
A MAN nearly lost his car to the sea after an attempt to rescue his jet-ski. more...
A PLUMBER who left his van to help a woman who had been knocked off her bike was rewarded with a parking ticket. more...
A NEW £250,000 management centre, which links with train company GNER's control centre, will give passengers better information during disruptions. more...
ALL-COMERS failed to beat one of the region's leading scrabble players yesterday. more...
A FAMILY last night won its 50-year fight for justice after an inquest ruled the death of an airman during secret nerve gas experiments was unlawful. more...
A 167 year old school, described as a town's worst eyesore, is likely to be demolished - much to the delight of people living nearby. more...
NORTH-EAST trade union representatives will lobby parliament today. Fifty Unison members are visiting London as part of a wider pensions campaign. more...
A FORMER Newcastle United manager and player yesterday became the latest Geordie football legend to be immortalised in concrete. more...
ONE of the region's leading public schools has appointed a new deputy head. more...
NORTH football fans have the chance to win a van in their club's colours if they design their perfect team vehicle. more...
SOME of the region's largest urban areas are ready to step up their fight against smoking, if Health Secretary John Reid gives them the go-ahead. more...
CAMPAIGNERS pressing for the appointment of female bishops will meet in the region at the weekend. more...
A TRAIN company which had its bid to run regional rail services rejected is hoping to make it second time lucky. more...
A PREDATORY paedophile who indecently assaulted a teenager at a pub where she worked was jailed yesterday. more...
A DENTIST made foul and degrading comments about a patient when she started legal action over botched treatment, a disciplinary hearing has been told. more...
CAMPAIGNERS have launched a drive to secure future funding for voluntary and community groups throughout the North-East, as a vital source of cash dries up. more...
POLICE investigating a degrading gang sex attack last night issued descriptions of people who may hold vital information. more...
A NORTH-EAST surgeon yesterday admitted he was partly responsible for the death of a patient after what should have been a routine operation at a private hospital. more...
AN appeal has been launched to help make Christmas special for deprived North-East youngsters. more...
PARENTS are facing a desperate dash to ensure one of this year's must-have Christmas presents makes it onto Santa's sleigh. more...
A DENTIST made foul and degrading comments about a patient when she started legal action over botched treatment, a disciplinary hearing has been told. more...
CHILDREN found the decomposing body of a middle-aged man as they played on a housing estate at the weekend, police said last night. more...
AN animal welfare charity is investigating after a fox was caught in a snare, condemning it to a slow and painful death. more...
THE Conservative Party has announced the name of the man who will fight Prime Minister Tony Blair for his Sedgefield seat at the next General Election. more...
The funeral of a couple who died in an horrific coach crash in Jordan will take place tomorrow. more...
Former pupils can check up on the friendliness rating of their school thanks to a new league table published by website Friends Reunited. more...
A teenage prankster has died in hospital after his game of 'train surfing' went tragically wrong. more...
HIGH-PROFILE sweeps are under way to ensure shopping centres in the North-East and North Yorkshire become truancy free zones. more...
IT could have been a scene from a Hollywood western - two lawmen on horseback pursuing outlaws. more...
A FAMILY last night won its 50-year fight for justice after an inquest ruled the death of an airman during secret nerve gas experiments was unlawful. more...
SEVEN centuries of history are on the move as one of the most comprehensive archives in Britain is moved to a new home. more...
SCHOOL staff and pupils slipped out in their nightwear yesterday to take part in a cross-country run for charity. more...
Five men have been arrested in connection with the kidnap of a Hartlepool businessman earlier this year. more...
A FAMILY bakery has given a children's charity a boost. Durham-based Peters Bakery has donated £20,000 towards the administration costs of Century FM's 21st Century Kids, which was formed in May to raise money to help the North-East's disadvantaged youngsters. more...
A 93-YEAR-OLD widow survived an explosion that ripped her terraced house apart, throwing debris more than 100 yards and smashing four cars. more...
Timmy Murphy yesterday spoke of his delight at the prospect of riding triple Gold Cup winner Best Mate in the William Hill Chase at Exeter on Friday. more...
HOT-SHOT Hugh Robertson yesterday returned to training - after fears over his future were allayed, writes Nick Loughlin. more...
NEWCASTLE manager Graeme Souness and defender Andy O'Brien have joined forces to present a united front as the Magpies look to turn around a dismal run of results. more...
BRIAN CLOSE will learn his fate today when Darlington appeal against the Irishman's controversial sending off. more...
BOLO ZENDEN has warned Premiership doom-mongers that Middlesbrough should be considered as genuine contenders for a Champions League place. more...
After 115 years of being indisputably man in the middle, the Albany Northern League has its first female referee. more...
LEADING Malton-based amateur rider Niki Wilson makes the long journey down to Lingfield today in the hope of booting Stallone (3.50) to victory in the closing mile-and-a-half race. more...
After 115 years of being indisputably man in the middle, the Albany Northern League has its first female referee. more...
JOHN OSTER has accepted he has no future at Sunderland and he is desperate to make the most of a new lease of life at Leeds United. more...
THE Tyne and Wear Metro is to become an alcohol-free zone by Christmas. more...
A 93-YEAR-OLD widow survived an explosion that ripped her terraced house apart, throwing debris more than 100 yards and smashing four cars. more...
UNION members from a North-East shipyard will today travel to Parliament to lobby their MPs about the lack of orders. more...
POLICE have rewarded the efforts of a team of volunteer lifesavers with a contribution to their fuel costs. more...
VILLAGERS are being urged to enter the Christmas spirit by decorating their homes for the festive period. more...
PEOPLE living near a recently-opened railway museum say their lives have been turned into a nightmare by visitors parking outside their homes. more...
VOLUNTEERS are being encouraged to help restore native woodland in Upper Teesdale. more...
MORE public libraries are to extend weekend opening hours to meet demand. more...
DIGNITARIES joined a lookalike of one of the nation's best-loved comedians as he switched on the Christmas lights in a town centre. more...
A YOUNG man who struck a teenager over the head with a bottle still has little memory of the incident, a court heard. more...
RESIDENTS will discuss the future of their village at a public meeting tonight. more...
THE Tyne and Wear Metro is to become an alcohol-free zone by Christmas. more...
ALL-COMERS failed to beat one of the region's leading scrabble players yesterday. more...
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