The Darlington and Stockton Times | News, Sport, Business, North Yorkshire, County Durham

The North East | Archive | 2005 | May

Stories for 19 May 2005

Consett,Stanley,Chester Le Street News

Burglar hits home of elderly woman

POLICE are hunting a man who stole cash from an elderly woman who left her door open while she went to visit a neighbour in a quiet village. more...

Retrial order made over slapping case

A JUDGE yesterday ordered a retrial in the case of a teacher accused of slapping a pupil. more...

Darlington,Newton Aycliffe,Sedgefield News

Keen response to Bike to School Week

A DARLINGTON school involved in Bike to School Week had the second highest number of cyclists in the country. more...

Club hails cancer sufferer

THE inspiring story of a cancer sufferer has led to a £1,000 donation to charity. more...

999 services on school timetable

A PRIMARY school has been visited by members of the emergency services. more...

Safer travel to schools as traffic-free routes unveiled

THREE new traffic-free routes designed to make it safer for children to get to and from school are to open next week. more...

Tutor's mountain challenge

A COLLEGE tutor is determined to overcome his health problems to climb the world's tallest mountain - outside a mountain range - and raise funds for homeless children and orphans. more...

Work of town's forgotten poet is revived with book publication

THE words of one of Darlington's most famous sons came home yesterday when a book of his poetry was launched in the town. more...

Durham,East Durham News

NVQ students win plumbing awards

TWO plumbing students from north Durham have celebrated success in the regional heat of a trade competition. more...

Concert funds to young musicians

A CHARITABLE trust has staged its annual concert to raise money for its work with young musicians. more...

Radical scheme proposed to deal with crisis in housing

RADICAL plans have been revealed to deal with Durham City's growing housing crisis - by selling off dozens of plots of council-owned land for development and pumping millions of pounds back into council and community services. more...

Waiting list has doubled in 3 years

THE number of people on the council house waiting list in Durham City has almost doubled in less than three years. more...

Pupils find the dentist is better than the tooth fairy

A VISIT to the dentist is not what youngsters would choose to do. more...

East Cleveland News

Killer tells jury he was attacked by victim first

A KILLER who snapped and attacked his disabled landlord with a table leg said he had been assaulted first. more...

Northallerton,Richmond,Hawes News

Charity needs trainee dance teachers

AGE Concern is looking for people to train as dance teachers for those over 60. more...

Youth sport day attracts 1,400

MORE than 1,400 children have competed in a youth games event. more...

Showmen site plan rejected by authority

PLANS to create a site for travelling showmen on the outskirts of a village have been unanimously rejected. more...

Rare Army wildlife reserve now inviting public to visit

A CAMPAIGN to attract more civilian visitors to a nature reserve hidden among the barracks of Europe's largest Army base has been launched. more...

Successful physiotherapy programme expands

A PILOT scheme giving patients direct access to physiotherapists has been so successful that it is being launched across Hambleton and Richmondshire. more...

Blooming results announced

JUDGES in an annual floral contest have scored North Yorkshire's towns and villages highly. more...

Pupils put heart into skipping

YOUNGSTERS put their skipping skills to good use yesterday to raise money for charity. more...

Nurse retiring after 46 years

A NURSE has retired after 46 years of service with the NHS. more...

Celebrating the cream of 100 years

A CREAMERY launched its centenary celebrations yesterday. more...

Teesside News

Here's a walk you otter take...

ANIMAL lovers can go otter-spotting this weekend, as part of a guided walk. more...

Tristar rates one star in Audit Commission report

A COMPANY in charge of running council housing stock has come under fire from a Government watchdog. more...

Citizen of the year honours

AN UNSUNG hero has been given some overdue VIP treatment, beginning with a surprise limo ride and ending with a civic award. more...

Great Wall walk to aid 'amazing' hospice

A TEACHING assistant is stepping out for charity along the Great Wall of China. more...

Laura is headteacher for the day

SCHOOLGIRL Laura Brookes showed fellow pupils and teachers who the boss was yesterday, when she became headteacher for the day. more...

Street brightening is in full bloom

RESIDENTS are being encouraged to use flower power to brighten up streets of terraced houses. more...

The North East Advertiser

Town's new peer once voted to scrap Lords

RETIRED MP Derek Foster was made a peer last week, then admitted he once voted to scrap the House of Lords altogether. more...

Care home is approved despite parking fears

A CARE home with 72 bedrooms has been approved despite fears about parking problems. more...

News from the Guilds and WIs

Annfield Plain WI: MRS Collin presided over the AGM, extending a warm welcome to WI adviser Freda Weatherspoon and tellers Mrs Moorcroft and Mrs Riley. more...

Ex-smoker's new bike joy

BORN-AGAIN biker Peter Ruddick is back on two wheels thanks to his successful battle to give up smoking. more...

Bus station ban sought

EFFORTS are to be made to prevent a teenage nuisance hanging around Consett bus station. more...

Robbie is top learner

A FORMER factory worker from Derwentside has won a national award after turning his life around to train as a occupational therapist. more...

Tenants decide homes future

COUNCIL house tenants in Derwentside are being asked for their views on the future of housing in the district. more...

Fund launched for youth projects

YOUNG people throughout Sedgefield borough could get their hands on a slice of cash being offered through a new grants scheme. more...

Help for MS sufferers

PEOPLE suffering from the debilitating disease Multiple Sclerosis can benefit from an aromatherapy service launched by the Butterwick Hospice at Bishop Auckland. more...

Arts project brings villagers together to preserve heritage

A COMMUNITY arts project has united generations and increased awareness of local heritage. more...

Nigel defends title on home turf

A SPENNYMOOR boxer will fight on home ground for the first time in his professional career, it was announced this week. more...

The North East Business

North-East expansions bring 100 jobs

ALMOST 100 jobs are to be created by two companies who are expanding in the North-East. more...

Region bucks unemployment trend

THE North-East bucked the national trend again after figures showed unemployment had fallen by 8,000 to 5.5 per cent over the past month. more...

Future is lit up by rays of the sun

A SPECIALIST glass maker is preparing for its time to shine, after entering the solar energy market. more...

Sainsbury's on way up after slump

SUPERMARKET chain Sainsbury's said it was seeing early signs of improvement despite a 62 per cent slump in annual profits to £254m. more...

Amec clinches £25m Shell gas contract

ENGINEERING group Amec has won a £25m contract with Shell. more...

The North East Entertainment

Jekyll & Hyde, Sunderland Empire

SHOULD it be particularly surprising that this reworked 1997 US attempt to bring Robert Louis Stevenson's famous story to musical life has developed a good and evil side? more...

Andy fame

The always-busy Jenny Eclair claims she'll never have time for another reality TV project after Celebrity Fame Academy. Viv Hardwick talks to her about touring her latest comdey play to Durham's Gala Theatre and the prospect of TV project Grumpy Old Women becoming a stage tour. more...

Laurence Clark: The Jim Davidson Guide to Equality, Darlington Arts Centre

RIGHT-wing comic Jim Davidson once refused to perform for an audience which included a front row composed of wheelchair-users. By his reckoning, he couldn't have a laugh about people's disability when they were staring him right in the face. If Davidson felt this way about all the different categories of people he slags off in his act, he'd end up with no audience at all, says sit-down comic Laurence Clark. more...

Are you feeling inspired?

VISITORS to an art gallery are being urged to be inspired. more...

6... and out of this world

The sci-fi saga born a long, long, time ago is finally over. Steve Pratt talks to the genius behind Star Wars, George Lucas, and gains the views of Anthony Daniels, Ian McDiarmid and Hayden Christensen. more...

League of Gentleman tour dates

THE comedy team behind the BBC hit programme The League of Gentlemen is coming to the North-East later this year. more...

Top Ten To Rent

UK DVD/VIDEO RENTAL: 1 (-) Meet The Fockers more...

Kat-astrophe

SHE'S back. The Kat is sat on the mat again. And the residents of Albert Square are sorely in need of a cat as the place is being overrun by rats. Not love rats - though, goodness knows, there are enough of them in Walford - but vermin. more...

Geordie joy

George Harris has appeared with some of the acting great and has been directd by the best, but he admits he's fallen in love with the Geordie spirit. Steve Pratt talks to him about making the BBC Drama 55 Degrees North and catches up with the lastest Wearside star Sam Williams, 13. more...

Shows get off to a flyer

FORMER Emmerdale star Peter Amory will star as Mr Rochester in an adaptation of Jane Eyre to launch next month's summer repertory season at Darlington Civic Theatre. more...

With muscles Bard

Viv Hardwick talks to actor Richard Clothier about touring an all-male version of The Winter's Tale. more...

So what was Elvis really like?

Elvis By The Presleys (ITV1): MOST celebrity biographies on the TV are unofficial, comprising titbits and tittle-tattle gleaned from so-called friends with axes to grind with the subject, and unsubstantiated stories from cuttings libraries. They're little more than gossip. more...

The North East Features

19/05/05

POSTCODE LOTTERY: YOU report on the unreliability of the PSA blood test as a diagnostic for prostate cancer, (Echo, May 16) and quote the number of men in this country diagnosed and dying annually from the disease. more...

John North: The day the bomber came down

When a millionaire Australian sheep farmer and former Wellington pilot asked Lance Henderson about a bomber crash he'd witnessed back in 1942, he realised how little he really knew about it and vowed to find out more about the men who died that day. more...

On TV

Elvis By The Presleys (ITV1) more...

Sex, lives and statistics

Statistics may have lost some of their authority through misuse, but they still underpin almost every aspect of modern life. Nick Morrison looks at a portrait of Britain by numbers. more...

Comment from The Northern Echo: Who's above the law?

LAST month, we carried a tragic story concerning ten-year-old Laura Burrows-Schofield, who was killed when she was knocked off her bike by a speeding driver. more...

Dad At Large: From lads to dads - many nappy returns

THERE is a rash of new dads in the office. Or should that be a nappy rash? Paul, Nick, Nigel and Adam all seem to have got bored with what was on telly at the same time, and it's been a joy watching the big build-up to their entry into the world of fatherhood in recent months. more...

Ringing in a new style of life

'I wouldn't have done it if I'd still been bellringing,' said my mother. Pulling the fitted sheet over the mattress on the top bunk bed (for visiting great-grandchildren) she'd pulled a muscle in her shoulder. At 89 it takes a long time for aches to go away. more...

The North East Jobs

North-East expansions bring 100 jobs

ALMOST 100 jobs are to be created by two companies who are expanding in the North-East. more...

The North East Leisure

From lads to dads - many nappy returns

The North East News

Killer tells jury he was attacked by victim first

A KILLER who snapped and attacked his disabled landlord with a table leg said he had been assaulted first. more...

Quakers' stadium under the spotlight

THE first public debate about a report that condemned council chiefs for making a series of mistakes over Darlington Football Club's new stadium will take place in July. more...

Man cleared of sex assaults at second trial

A PENSIONER accused of a string of sexual assault charges dating back two decades has been cleared. more...

Inquiry after workers sent pornography

A POLICE investigation is under way after more than 100 company workers were sent Internet pornography. more...

£3m energy-efficient visitor centre can be built

FRESH plans by the Forestry Commission to build a multi-million pound visitor centre and community centre have been approved. more...

Socks . . . ? The Romans put their foot in it

WITH names such as Versace dominating the world's catwalks, the Italians may regard themselves as being the modern-day epitome of sartorial chic. more...

How my little brother saved my life

TODDLER Jude Phillipson is only two years old, but he has already saved his big sister's life. more...

Man jailed for kidnap prepares to appeal

A MILLIONAIRE jailed for 11 years for masterminding a kidnap and blackmail plot will bid next month to have his conviction overturned. more...

Mother calls for driving tests for the elderley

A mother whose children were killed by a 78-year-old driver has demanded compulsory driving tests for the elderly. more...

Children ensure council gets the message to improve town

A GROUND-BREAKING text message scheme will offer youngsters the chance to shape the future of their town. more...

Series of cruel acts on animals

ANIMAL lovers say they have been sickened by a series of grisly discoveries at a nature reserve. more...

Retrial order made over slapping case

A JUDGE yesterday ordered a retrial in the case of a teacher accused of slapping a pupil. more...

Funding to give others gift of sight

A BID is being made to increase the number of sight-saving transplants in the North-East. more...

Fire brigade confirms first female chief

A NORTH-EAST fire brigade yesterday confirmed the appointment of Britain's first female fire chief. more...

Celebrating top learners

A CEREMONY to celebrate the achievements of adult learners in Darlington is being staged this week. more...

Football player cleared of GBH after pitch punch-up

A FIVE-A-SIDE football player who punched an opponent leaving him with brain damage walked free from a court yesterday. more...

Police believe hit and run deliberate

A mum-to-be was mown down in what police believe was a deliberate hit and run. more...

Senior clergyman charged with drink driving

A senior Church of England clergyman appeared in court today charged with drink driving. more...

Couple evicted from house are forced to live in a tent

A FORMER soldier is living under canvas with his wife after they lost their home because they ran up £2,500 rent arrears. more...

Barrister jailed for child porn collection

A BARRISTER from the North-East has been jailed for two years and eight months for downloading child porn featuring girls as young as ten months old. more...

Order may be needed for site bid

COUNCILLORS are being urged to agree a compulsory purchase order for a former theatre and bar to enable a multi-million pound seafront development to go ahead. more...

'Medical procedure could have led to patient's death'

A PATIENT who died within two days of going into hospital may have bled to death as a result of a medical procedure that went wrong, an inquest heard yesterday. more...

Operation Payback proves successful

CRIMINALS are losing millions of pounds in cash and assets in a major police clampdown - which the villains themselves are funding. more...

Bid to unravel science secrets

A MASSIVE injection of money, jobs and technology - all contained in one single scheme - could put the region at the forefront of world science within the next decade. more...

Nursery carer rewarded for going the extra mile

A NURSERY carer has been recognised as the best in the region for her hard work and dedication to children. more...

Sprinklers to cover thieves in Smart dye

BURGLARS will have no place to hide if they are caught out by a smart sprinkler system being deployed against them. more...

Cleared of speeding - the 159mph policeman

A police constable who reached 159mph while "familiarising himself" with a new patrol car was yesterday cleared of dangerous driving and speeding after a judge criticised the decision to prosecute him. more...

Principal backed in bullying dispute

THE former executive head of a pioneering school hit by claims of bullying and truancy has attacked education chiefs over the suspension of its headteacher. more...

Inquest reports unlawful killing of teenage girl

A TEENAGER was strangled by her violent criminal boyfriend because "she knew too much," an inquest heard. more...

MP criticised for guns joke in Commons

A LIGHT-HEARTED speech by a Labour MP poking fun at her North-East constituency was last night criticised as being "ill-judged". more...

The North East Sport

Seifi on course to complete hat-trick

REJUVENATED Seifi (3.25) should help pay the afternoon's expenses on a busy seven-race card at Newcastle. more...

It's home sweet home for Wright

NORTH-East boxer Nigel Wright will fight on home turf when he defends his English light-welterweight title for the first time. more...

Seifi on course to complete hat-trick

REJUVENATED Seifi (3.25) should help pay the afternoon's expenses on a busy seven-race card at Newcastle. more...

Lawrence ready for his next step up in class

LIAM Lawrence provides irrefutable proof of Mick McCarthy's ability in the transfer market and, after helping propel Sunderland to the Premiership, the midfielder is confident his boss' dealings will keep them there. more...

United deny Villa deal for duo

CRAIG Bellamy and Aaron Hughes were last night contemplating their future after Aston Villa chairman Doug Ellis claimed he had agreed a deal to take the Newcastle pair to Villa Park. more...

Spot-kick star Scott hails his penalty heroes

AS a regular penalty-taker during his days with Sunderland, Martin Scott knows a thing or two about scoring from the spot. more...

McClaren ready to confirm his future lies on Teesside

STEVE McClaren is ready to end months of speculation over his future by shaking hands on a new contract when he meets Middlesbrough chairman Steve Gibson tomorrow. more...

Winner Hussey gives a cutting edge to Durham

STEVE Harmison has hailed Mike Hussey's contribution to Durham's scintillating start to the season, claiming the skipper's "winning mentality" has spread to the rest of the squad. more...

Webster's best is still to come

DAVID HODGSON insists Darlington have not yet seen the best of midfielder Adrian Webster and has challenged the New Zealand international to prove he is worthy of a regular starting place next season. more...

Tyneside News

Jessie prepares for sail of her life

A NORTH-EAST student is preparing to take on a senior role on one of the boats in the Tall Ships Race. more...

Sprinklers to cover thieves in Smart dye

BURGLARS will have no place to hide if they are caught out by a smart sprinkler system being deployed against them. more...

Transport operator's free travel warning

A TRANSPORT operator has said it will be left with a shortfall of millions of pounds following Government plans to provide free travel for elderly and disabled people. more...

Wear Valley,Bishop Auckland,Barnard Castle News

Chance for young people to get share of cash windfalls

YOUNG people across Sedgefield borough could get their hands on cash being offered through a new grants scheme. more...

Headteachers out of Africa and into North-East classrooms

CHILDREN in Crook and Willington primary schools have been sharing experiences with pupils in Africa through friendships forged between staff. more...