ONE of Durham's busiest supermarkets is to open an extension next month. The Tesco Extra store, at Dragonville, is undergoing work to create a first-floor extension. The first elements, including car care, electrical goods and baby products, will open
A GRANDFATHER has told of his desperate attempt to save the life of his neighbour, who was found hanged in the middle of the night. Colin Bosher, 21, was found hanged from a window on Monday. Joseph Liddle, 60, was woken by a friend who was staying with
GIVEN that they were playing against the Mariners, it was perhaps inevitable that Newcastle would have to rely on their skipper to ensure a safe passage into the fourth round of the Carling Cup. Alan Shearer's 80th-minute winner spared Newcastle's blushes
STAFF from an optician's shop were not afraid to make a spectacle of themselves as they plunged into the North Sea to raise £800 for Breast Cancer Awareness. Seventeen workers from the Specsavers Store in Redcar took part in the icy dip. The sponsored
POLICE yesterday issued an appeal for witnesses after a woman was attacked and robbed of her handbag as she walked over a footbridge. The 56-year-old had been walking over Chainbridge Road, near Blaydon Precinct, Gateshead, at 7.35pm last Saturday. Her
THE man accused of being the Yorkshire Ripper hoaxer known as Wearside Jack has been refused bail. John Humble, 49, appeared at Leeds Crown Court yesterday and made a bid to be freed from custody before his expected trial in the new year. But the Recorder
MINISTERS have finally agreed to a way forward on smoking in pubs and clubs and for that we should be thankful. After all the huffing and puffing behind the scenes, the Cabinet has gone back to its original manifesto pledge to ban smoking in enclosed
The Curse Of The Omen (C4) Natural World: Eagle Island (BBC2) CRUEL coincidence or the work of the devil? Those trying to shrug off strange stories surrounding the 1970s horror movie might have changed their minds after watching The Curse Of The Omen.
FIVE east Cleveland children have proved they are successful film makers. Laura Collings from Nunthorpe School, Elisha Lofthouse from Rye Hills, Adam Robinson from Galley Hill Primary, Olivia Smith from Ravensworth Primary and Megan Wealleans from Lakes
A castle has become the newest member of a consortium aimed at promoting the region's historic properties. Raby Castle, near Staindrop, County Durham, has joined the Yorkshire Great Houses, Castles and Gardens Consortium. The castle, which is close to
COACHES from one of the country's most successful football clubs have helped improve the skills of hundreds of youngsters this week. About 240 children from Richmond Town's junior section were given expert coaching by staff from Manchester United's youth
A BAND of 40 volunteers who brave all kinds of weather to get others walking to keep healthy have been singled out for praise. The chairman of the Hambleton Strollers, Dave Goodwin, said without their enthusiasm, the group, now three years old, would
An increase in the number of pensioners in the region dying from the cold is a "scar on society", a charity says. Around 4,700 elderly people died in the North-East and Yorkshire last winter when temperatures plummeted. This is an increase of around 800
HAVING been a match-winner in Europe last week, Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink repeated his heroics domestically to steer Middlesbrough into round four of the Carling Cup at Everton last night. And not even a cheeky Scouse schoolboy, who had the nerve to run
HEART patients provided living proof of the success of pioneering work being carried out in the region when they spoke of their recoveries at an inaugural cardiac conference. Technical innovations, such as cardiac defibrillators and pacemakers, and teams
Northumbria has one of the best performing police forces in England, it was announced today, as the best and worst performing police forces in England and Wales have been identified in government figures. The worst was Humberside, according to the Home
SMOKING will be allowed in food-free pubs after a bitter Cabinet dispute ended in a humiliating defeat for Health Secretary Patricia Hewitt. Private clubs, including workingmen's clubs, will also be exempt from a smoking ban, despite Ms Hewitt's known
A NURSE who cared for a patient allegedly murdered by his doctor told a court yesterday of her shock at his death. District nurse Lesley Roberts said she visited Frank Moss at his County Durham home twice in the hours before he died, but he did not appear
THE widower of a North-East multiple sclerosis sufferer who died after she starved herself to end her pain is calling for a change in the law on euthanasia. Waltraud Coles, 54, of Durham, who had the disease for almost ten years, died of pneumonia in
RESIDENTS in a town are set to demand that a "model citizen" threatened with deportation is allowed to stay. Not only are people in Middlesbrough supporting Liberian Syndou Diarrassouba, but the borough council could take up the case of the African, who
AN NHS dentist performed a sex act over a patient in his chair after she had been anaesthetised, a court was told yesterday. The 32-year-old was referred to Lee Gaukrodger for a tooth extraction and chose to have a general anaesthetic. Newcastle Crown
EVERY football club has dates that are synonymous with their history, a day that is set in stone as a day which shaped the history of the side. For Manchester United, February 6, 1958 saw the tragedy of the Munich Air Disaster; League One strugglers Nottingham
LADIES and gentlemen, Axa Insurance FC have a game this Sunday. No honestly, I know it's April Fool's Day today but I'm not winding you up. After playing only one fixture in the past six weeks, we are finally back in action with a home game against Mitek
THE man accused of being the Yorkshire Ripper hoaxer known as Wearside Jack has been refused bail. John Humble, 49, appeared at Leeds Crown Court yesterday and made a bid to be freed from custody before his expected trial in the new year. But the Recorder
THE competition is hotting up in the battle to find the region's best community website. More entries have been pouring in for the contest organised by CommuniGate, an initiative run by Newsquest North-East, publisher of The Northern Echo. The top prize
TOO LONG:AT last this Government has admitted what some of us have been saying for a long time now, that the 24-page application form sent to pensioners in order to claim a council tax rebate is far too long. Presumably, that is why, of the 2.5 million
SO a new season has begun. New hopes, new kits, new teams and new resolutions not to go out the night before a game to be broken. Fresh players have arrived in the league while others may have packed in over the summer - their partners nagging them to
A NORTH-EAST couple caught up in Hurricane Wilma arrived home yesterday after sheltering in a Mexican brothel for nearly a week. Claire Kavanagh and Paul Wheldon were forced to share a room with seven other people in the brothel while the storm passed
SIR ALEX Ferguson once described this stage of the season as "squeaky bum time". At Axa FC most weeks is squeaky bum time, especially if striker Jon Roote has eaten a curry the night before a game, but there's no doubt that this is when the season really
ONLINE retailer Amazon has warned of a sales slowdown in the run-up to Christmas as it turned the screw on high street rivals in the UK by cutting delivery costs. Amazon is offering to deliver gifts and products for free if customers spend at least £15
A NORTH-EAST town is betting on becoming the home of the UK's first - and only - super casino. It is understood a bid will be launched today to bring a Las Vegas-style gamblers' playground to Teesside, which could create as many as 2,000 jobs. The site
Expectant mothers can now feel sexy after the launch of Britain's first range of lacy lingerie for pregnant women. Mothers-to-be have long had to put up with granny pants and breast pads as they flourish in the later stages of pregnancy. But Durham University
IF this summer's Ashes win was the cricketing equivalent of scaling Everest, then victory over Pakistan this winter would be akin to climbing K2. Marginally less daunting, but fraught with just as many dangers. Less than six-and-a-half weeks have passed
NEW pub group Definnitive Leisure has bought the Wessex Tavern chain of bars out of administration in a seven-figure deal. Whitley Bay-based Definnitive Leisure, headed by the former Pubmaster chairman John Sands, has taken over all 30 establishments
STEVE Caldwell has admitted Sunderland are struggling to cope with their inability to turn positive performances into points. While the centre-back insisted the spirit in the Black Cats' camp remains positive, a return of just one league win this campaign
THE parents of a young woman fatally injured on a rollercoaster have welcomed court action against the theme park. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) will prosecute Lightwater Valley, near Ripon, North Yorkshire, after the death of 20-year-old Durham
THE controversial young persons' institution that was Aycliffe Centre For Children is now firmly in the past. Many of the residential houses, which were once home to a number of 'troubled teens', are empty, boarded-up or adapted for classrooms and offices
LAZY shopkeepers are playing into the hands of identity thieves, investigations have revealed. Middlesbrough Borough Council has uncovered a number of failures among the town's businesses, relating to proper disposal of waste containing personal information
HUNDREDS of students have risen to the challenge in an outdoor pursuit designed to help them bond with their classmates. Darlington College has been running Team Challenge since the beginning of term. More than 600 first year students have volunteered
A THEATRE has welcomed its 500,000th customer with champagne and flowers. The Gala Theatre, in Durham, yesterday rolled out the red carpet for teacher Shirley Brown, from Newton Hall, who ensured the landmark sales figure was passed when she bought tickets
YOUNG drummers beat a path to the door of Darlington Arts Centre yesterday for a musical workshop. They picked up expert tips from the Kakatsitsi African drumming group at the event. The group of Ghanaian musicians has visited the town in the past and
POLICE and RSPCA officers rescued two dogs from appalling conditions in a Darlington house, a court heard yesterday. Brian Myers, 40, of Aldam Street, admitted causing them unnecessary suffering by not giving one enough food and not providing veterinary
DURHAM University has risen in the global university rankings. It was last night named the 83rd-best university in the world -up from 128 last year. There was also good news for Cambridge and Oxford, which rose above US rivals Stanford and Berkeley to
BIG high street names could transform shopping in a town centre where a company has taken over a rundown precinct. Ediston Properties, of Edinburgh, has taken over Festival Walk, in Spennymoor. It is in talks with several national retailers interested
A SCUFFLE broke out between two groups of young women after words were exchanged in a nightclub. In the fracas, two 17-year-olds were attacked - one hit over the head with a bottle, while the other was punched several times. Durham Crown Court heard that
MORE than 160 new parking spaces will be made available in Darlington town centre next month. The borough council took over the operation of the East Street car park from NCP in June. Since then, work has been carried out to open the car park's second
A COUNCILLOR went the extra mile for his constituents as he completed a sponsored run to raise money for a new creche. Councillor David Wilson, who represents the Woodhouse Close area on Wear Valley District Council, raised more than £360 for Auckland
A LITTLE traveller from another galaxy is visiting Seaton Carew library. Zoom the alien is the creation of libraries manager Linda Morley. He is just 4in tall, with a head the same size, and plastic ears that make him look bigger than he is. Youngsters
AN alarm worn as a pendant has proved to be a lifeline for an infirm pensioner. Diabetic Betty Petch managed to press the panic button pendant worn around her neck as felt herself losing consciousness. Ms Petch had been playing bingo at the Park Court
TWO teenagers were robbed near Stanhope Park in Darlington on Tuesday. The 15-year-olds were walking along Stanhope Road North at about 8.45pm when they were approached by a older youth who threatened to assault them if they did not hand over their mobile
COMMUNITY health and social care services in Darlington are to be discussed at a consultation today. Businesses and community groups from across the borough have been invited to attend the Your Health, Your Care, Your Say event, at The Dolphin Centre.
EDUCATION campaigners have pledged to voice their anger at plans for a £25m city academy in Darlington, when council chiefs meet next week. Darlington Borough Council has been invited to pursue Government funding that could bring Hurworth School and Eastbourne
A PRISON, water treatment works and an engine factory will receive royal visits next month. Princess Anne will visit County Durham on Wednesday, November 30. During her trip, she will visit Deerbolt Young Offenders' Institution, in Startforth, near Barnard
MEMBERS of the Wesley Guild are holding their annual two-day festival in the Methodist Church at Cotherstone, near Barnard Castle, this weekend. They will have a concert by Deerbolt Choir on Saturday at 7pm, followed by a supper in the adjoining schoolroom
CAR maker Nissan is creating 200 jobs at its Sunderland plant to ramp up production following massive demand from Russia. The company, which employs 4,100 people in Washington, Wearside, is increasing staff numbers to 4,300 to meet demand from the former
A Rock Detectives geology club for youngsters will be launched next month. The club will be based at Harehope Quarry, in Weardale, and is one of three in the North Pennines area to offer visits and trips to museums, natural features, quarries and mines
Darlington Railway Centre and Museum, off North Road, is hosting a Victorian Christmas weekend, with a range of activities and games on December 3 and 4. The event will run from 10am to 5pm on both days. Admission costs £5 for children and £3.50 for adults
David Blunkett last night faced calls for an independent inquiry into his relationship with a DNA-testing firm after disclosing that he had bought shares in the company in trust for his sons. Mr Blunkett said there was no conflict of interest between
A POLICE station to be officially opened today will benefit the whole of North Yorkshire, police chiefs say. The operations support centre, in Thirsk, will be declared open by Chief Constable Della Cannings and Jane Kenyon, chairman of North Yorkshire
PEOPLE have a chance today for a nighttime look around a little-known beauty spot. Norwood Nature Park, near the bottom of the Team Valley Trading Estate, off Lobley Hill Road, Gateshead, will be open tonight so people can view its woodland and activities
A CAMPAIGN has been launched to deal with problems caused by teenagers riding off-road motorcycles. Police in Stanley have teamed up with Derwentside District Council's Spice youth project and Ace Motorcycles, of Durham, to offer a week-long intensive
A VISIT to the House of Lords and lunch with a local peer is being offered in a charity auction. Noreen and Ken Harris, who run the Rose Tree at Shincliffe, near Durham City, will tonight lay on a free supper for family, friends and regulars to mark their
AN author is to reveal the story behind her award-winning novel tonight. Marion Husband will speak on The Boy I Love, at 7.15pm, in Clayport Library, Durham City. She was a prolific writer as a child, but stopped when she was a teenager and only returned
A sport that is expected to become an Olympic event has been launched in Ferryhill. New Age Kurling, an adaptation of the curling game that is played on ice, was brought to Ferryhill Leisure Centre, where a demonstration match took place. The event was
A PROFESSIONAL theatre company will visit Newton Aycliffe this winter to perform a pantomime to raise money for a local hospice. The town's Somerfield store has organised for Chaplins to visit the town's leisure centre on Sunday, December 18, at 6.30pm
SWIMMER Marion Turner is marking the first anniversary of life-saving surgery with a marathon session in her local pool. On October 27 last year, the 46-year-old had a mastectomy after being diagnosed with breast cancer and, alongside chemotherapy and
A YOUTH club has received funds to improve facilities. The Colburn Community and Recreation Centre has been awarded almost £5,000 from food company Nestl's Make Space scheme. Club manager Andrea Benson said she was delighted to receive the money. "The
A FORMER policeman was badly beaten by two teenagers as he tried to wash away vomit from his drive, a court heard. John Needham, a retired solicitors clerk, 62, was attacked outside his home after 17-year-old Joss Davies became ill following a drinking
Tough measures are being introduced to combat yobs wreaking misery on a neighbourhood. A dispersal order comes into force next month, giving police powers to move ongroups of youths who are acting in a manner which causes - or is likely to cause - harassment
POLICE are appealing to the public for help with two unsolved crimes from earlier this year. At about 6.30pm on February 24, a man, aged about 30, picked up spirits and sweets from a display at Sainsbury's in the Arnison Centre, at Pity Me, Durham City
THE public is being urged to join in a clampdown on fireworks safety, to insure a problem-free Bonfire Night in North Yorkshire. Legislation was introduced last year to curb bad behaviour, not only on November 5 but in the run-up to the celebrations.
HEALTHY food and drink will be on the menu at North Yorkshire's first celebration of all things organic. The Harrogate Organic Festival is being held at the Yorkshire Events Centre, on the Great Yorkshire Showground, on November 20, from 10am to 4pm.
The presence of Jonjo Dickman in Darlington's side has coincided with the team's best results this season so the midfielder is understandably keen for the recurring theme to continue. The former Sunderland trainee played while carrying a stomach injury
MYSTERY surrounded the whereabouts of a hurricane-hit wedding party from the North-East last night. Concerned parents Pauline and Barry Bratt have not heard anything in the past 24 hours from their daughter, Lynn, who flew with fiance Gordon Steels to
THOUSANDS more job cuts are expected in the manufacturing sector as firms step-up cost reduction initiatives to combat soaring energy bills and a slump in consumer spending, according to the CBI. Figures released by the industry body have revealed that
SEDGEFIELD'S spectators witnessed something pretty special yesterday when hurdling newcomer Echo Point pummelled his rivals into abject submission. Prior to the start of the two-mile-one-furlong EBF Novices' Hurdle the race looked fairly evenly matched
RAC'S 3-1 defeat to Haughton two weeks ago was disappointing for both the team and myself. Disappointing for the team because it was a fourth loss in five games and disappointing for me because I was hauled off at halftime. I hadn't even been down town
This was intended to be the final King of the Wing of the season but after last Sunday's game against Brown Trout was postponed Axa's players still have another week to go before they can put their feet up, let their hair down and not worry about what
A GRANDFATHER has told of his desperate attempt to save the life of his neighbour, who was found hanged in the middle of the night. Colin Bosher, 21, was found hanged from a window on Monday. Joseph Liddle, 60, was woken by a friend who was staying with
AN £11m, four-star business hotel could be opened at Newcastle International Airport if planning permission is granted. Newcastle International Airport and Rostock Investments are applying for planning permission for the hotel. The development is expected
DURHAM University has risen in the global university rankings. It was last night named the 83rd-best university in the world -up from 128 last year. There was also good news for Cambridge and Oxford, which rose above US rivals Stanford and Berkeley to
TWO Shetland ponies were savaged by a pack of dogs while they were resting in a field. One of the ponies was left unable to walk following the attack, while the other suffered cuts and bites. Police are investigating the attack in conjunction with the
A CELEBRITY soap couple will switch on a city's Christmas lights next month. Coronation Street's Cilla and Les Battersby, played by Wendi Peters and Bruce Jones, will perform the ceremony in Durham Market Place on Sunday, November 20. Their characters
THOUSANDS more job cuts are expected in the manufacturing sector as firms step-up cost reduction initiatives to combat soaring energy bills and a slump in consumer spending, according to the CBI. Figures released by the industry body have revealed that
THE competition is hotting up in the battle to find the region's best community website. More entries have been pouring in for the contest organised by CommuniGate, an initiative run by Newsquest North-East, publisher of The Northern Echo. The top prize
Families of the young recruits who died at Deepcut Army barracks reacted with outrage to the use of the base for a media open day yesterday. The gates of the controversial barracks were thrown open in a bid to help the base shed its negative image. The
TWO weeks ago the column predicted that unbeaten Model T could break down against RAC but as it turned out the referee broke down instead, as a midweek injury to the official saw the match postponed. Last weekend's game against NASA Goodfellas did go
A MUSICAL based on the story of the world's most famous vet has been snubbed by the county he called home. It had been hoped that Herriot - The Musical would have had a world premiere in North Yorkshire, but now that honour is expected to go to Scotland
SURROUNDED by England's Ashes heroes, cricket's unexpected hero Gary Pratt's cool head brought him a key wicket in the historic series win. In the nerve-jangling atmosphere of the summer's fourth Test, the substitute fielder calmly seized the chance to
They are often overlooked, afraid of drawing attention to themselves while their noisier or disruptive classmates grab the limelight. But a Barnardo's run scheme is showing shy kids how to shine. Women's Editor Lindsay Jennings reports. SCHOOL has technically
SEDGEFIELD'S spectators witnessed something pretty special yesterday when hurdling newcomer Echo Point pummelled his rivals into abject submission. Prior to the start of the two-mile-one-furlong EBF Novices' Hurdle the race looked fairly evenly matched
TACTICALLY speaking, Tony Culhane has few peers on the polytrack, an excellent reason for backing Compton's Eleven in the most valuable event of the day at Lingfield. The popular northern-based jockey regularly goes down south to partner Mick Channon's
The daughter of one of three alleged victims of a family doctor accused of murdering his patients wept as she described her father's death. Mother-of-two Alison Moss, the daughter of lung cancer sufferer Frank Moss, told a court she watched GP Dr Howard
AN NHS dentist performed a sex act over a patient in his chair after she had been anaesthetised, a court was told yesterday. The 32-year-old was referred to Lee Gaukrodger for a tooth extraction and chose to have a general anaesthetic. Newcastle Crown
A NURSE who cared for a patient allegedly murdered by his doctor told a court yesterday of her shock at his death. District nurse Lesley Roberts said she visited Frank Moss at his County Durham home twice in the hours before he died, but he did not appear
IT HAD barely been an epic cup run full of thrills, spills and Holsten Pils, but RAC's involvement in the Division Two League Cup came to an end on Sunday at the quarter final stage. A bye in the first round put us through to the last eight without playing
So far, it has spread between humans in just a handful of cases, but preparations for a pandemic are gathering momentum. Nick Morrison looks at what is being done to stop bird flu becoming a global killer. IN ordinary times, the deaths of six swans at
THE owner of Mills Garages car dealerships chain is eyeing expansion in the region, despite flat first-half results. Although profit before tax and exceptional items lifted only slightly to £8.5m in the six months to August 31, European Motor Holdings
There's a big difference between learning from history and trying to rewrite it. In my opinion, there's far too much of the latter and not nearly enough of the former. Take the recent spate of demands that governments or individuals apologise for historical
With the Crouch-baiting season in full swing and with the striker's confidence being systematically shredded by abuse of his every touch, he should be reassured the one person not to blame for Liverpool's current abysmal form is him. There are far more
WORRIES over rising personal debt levels resurfaced yesterday after it emerged the number of mortgage possession orders in England and Wales jumped by 66 per cent. The Department for Constitutional Affairs (DCA) said 19,687 orders were made in the three
THEY had fought, they had watched their countrymen die and the survivors were finally on their way home to what should have been a rapturous welcome in their home country. But in a stroke of bitter irony, Halifax bomber RG 561 did not complete what should
A WOMAN will tackle an Arctic trek with eight huskies next year. Sharon Whitfield, of Highside Road, Heighington, near Darlington, will march for 35km a day for six days from March 18, a few hundred kilometres north of the Arctic circle. She will be part
MADONNA has declared her children are not allowed to watch TV. "TV is trash... poison. We're a TV-free house," she said last week. It is enough to strike terror into the hearts of the Queen of Pop's devoted followers who, up until now, have treated her
MADONNA has declared her children are not allowed to watch TV. "TV is trash... poison. We're a TV-free house," she said last week. It is enough to strike terror into the hearts of the Queen of Pop's devoted followers who, up until now, have treated her
An emotional Andy Murray was almost lost for words after beating childhood hero Tim Henman to claim the most significant win of his career in Basel. Murray served for the match at 5-4 in the second set of the opening-round clash in Basel but lost the
IT'S unlikely that Green Day had The Northern Echo Sunday Invitation League in mind when they wrote their latest single, Wake Me Up When September Ends, but it is widely accepted the divisional tables only truly begin taking shape from October onwards
PERHAPS it was a bit of a giveaway that the referee was stood in full kit at a papershop some distance away from the ground, newspaper and pint of milk in arm and talking to a bloke walking his dog. But I was one of the many disappointed spectators who
A RAGING Alan Shearer declared he was ready to "do" Grimsby Town skipper Justin Whittle after finding himself on the end of a vicious elbow at Blundell Park last night. Shearer, whose winning goal took him to within four of Jackie Milburn's all-time Newcastle
