A KEY figure at the centre of the athletics events at the summer’s Olympic and Paralympic games was delighted to avoid the headlines at London 2012. Alan Bell was the starter who famously disqualified Usain Bolt during the 2011 World Athletics
JOHN Hughes, at the seventh attempt, racked up his first win as Hartlepool United boss. And now the Scot hopes his side's stunning victory at Sheffield United is not just a one-off. With Preston visiting Victoria Park tomorrow, Pools are out to achieve
LIFEBOATS were scrambled after a man and dog got stranded on a North-East beach by the rising tide. The alarm was raised on the coast at Sunderland at 2.30pm on Saturday. One man, believed to be the pet’s owner, was on the promenade, with a
A BEER which started life as a fictional tipple enjoyed by hard-hitting Los Angeles crime investigators has been turned into a real ale by a North Yorkshire brewery. When the 2011 Christmas episode of NCIS: Los Angeles finished with its characters
AFFLUENT areas of North Yorkshire are now amongst those struggling with debt, according to a charity. Figures released by the debt charity StepChange for the first nine months of 2012 show the average person contacting it for advice in Harrogate
A 25-YEAR-OLD woman who fell 80ft from her hotel balcony seven months ago is walking once again. Chantelle Serginson, of Middlesbrough, was told it could take 18 months for her to walk again. However she is already on her feet and described
YOUNG performers from a Hartlepool youth theatre have had their talents recognised with a series of awards. The Hartlepool Footlight Youth Theatre, which provides opportunities in performing arts for young people aged 4-21, held its annual presentation
CHILDREN have taken part in a seasonal sheep-finding Nativity trail across Durham City. The event was organised by Elvet Methodist Church on Old Elvet and included a dozen shops around the city centre. Today (Sunday, December 30) participants
OLD people in a residential care home have been visited by a reindeer and a pony. Pet Therapy, a group which takes trained animals on visits, took the creatures to Stockton Lodge Care Home in Stockton. The idea is provide company comfort to
BASEMENT FIRE: North Yorkshire firefighters were called to a fire in a basement flat on Nidderdale Terrace in Harrogate at 4am on Sunday morning (December 30). The fire is believed to have been started by smoking material discarded amongst a bookcase
YOUNGSTERS in the Chester-le-Street area have become green-fingered thanks to a school gardening project. Twenty-eight schools, children’s centres and youth groups were given the chance to make their grounds more colourful. The All Together
FIVE council buildings on Teesside are to be fitted with solar panels in the coming weeks in an effort to reduce carbon emissions. Stockton council will fit the photo-voltaic panels on the Municipal Buildings and Bayheath House in Stockton, Queensway
YOUNGSTERS are preparing for a school trip with a difference, Down Under. Ten year five and six pupils at Bullion Lane Primary School, in Chester-le-Street, will spend two weeks in Australia at the beginning of March. They have been raising
A MOTHER has told of the moment she heard her family were involved in a major car collision on Boxing Day. Deborah Doddy’s twins, Max and Halle, both seven, were seriously hurt in the four-car pile-up and were taken to hospital. Her husband
TWO of the region’s police forces have among the best records in the country for putting bobbies on the beat at the cheapest price, according to a survey. Both Cleveland and Northumbria Police scored highly for having among the highest numbers
A MOTHER tormented by the disappearance of her daughter has issued a stinging criticism of the police's handling of the case, claiming their investigation has been wrong "from day one". It is nearly four years since chef Claudia Lawrence disappeared
The Forum music centre in Darlington is appealing for a local resident with an ear for a note to tune its piano. The venue on Borough Road was kindly given the baby grand piano by supporter Diane Moss and anyone who can help tune it should contact
TWO new bus routes will be running in Darlington from Wednesday this week. Scarlet Band will run the new 16/16A service between the west end of Darlington through the town centre and beyond to Harrowgate Hill, while Central Coaches will operate
A MOTORCYCLE project for young people has received a donation of nearly £500. The Richmond Area Motorcycle Proficiency Scheme (Ramps) was founded in 2006 to encourage teenagers between 13 and 19 to act responsibly whilst enjoying off-road motorcycling
A GROUP of upper sixth form chemistry students from Carmel College, in Darlington, broadened their knowledge with a factory visit. The group visited the INEOS Newton Aycliffe site earlier this month (December). During their visit they learned
A NORTH-EAST council boss has joined two of his counterparts in writing to the Government to warn of social unrest and a rise in community tensions resulting from "Dickensian" local authority budget cuts. Leader of Newcastle City Council, Councillor
A MOTHER has said her son, who was stabbed to death days before Christmas, was left to die "like an animal". Father-of-two David Scott was taken to the Royal Victoria Infirmary in Newcastle suffering from stab wounds after a disturbance in South
A WOMAN has been arrested after ink was thrown at crime writer Val McDermid during a book signing. The award-winning author had been holding a signing after giving a lecture at Sunderland University when a woman allegedly covered her in black ink
BRAIN power has been helping students expand their minds in an innovative project designed to boost learning techniques. GCSE students at Darlington School of Mathematics and Science (DSMS) explored a variety of memory skills to help them revise
POLICE are hunting thieves who stole three guns from a car. Yesterday (Saturday, December 29), a shotgun and two rifles were stolen from a car parked on Old Mill Road in Southwick, Sunderland. Police were called just before 12.50pm and are
POLICE in Hartlepool are warning party-goers to be on their guard following a spate of mobile thefts in the town. Three mobiles and a laptop were stolen at the weekend while people were out of their homes. Inspector Peter Howarth said owners
A COMMUNITY centre is continuing to survive despite vital funding being withdrawn and jobs lost. Whale Hill Community Association in Eston, near Middlesbrough, has won £1,500 from the Middlesbrough and Teesside Philanthropic Foundation (MTPF) to
A NORTH Yorkshire artist who took the scenery of the region and turned them into Middle Earth has found a delighted international audience. Saltburn beach, the Yorkshire Dales and Northumberland all feature in artist John Cockshaw’s digital depictions
NORSE mythology and Viking folklore will form part of New Year celebrations in the North-East tomorrow night. (Monday, December 31) The highlight of Tyneside’s Winter Festival culminates with a free carnival on the streets of Newcastle from 5pm
PANTOMIME fever swept through a North-East care home to help residents laugh away any post-Christmas blues. Touring company Act One Panto visited The Grange Residential Care Home in Darlington and delighted residents and staff with their version
The Boots and Sainsburys stores at the Arnison Centre, Pity Me, are the duty chemists for Durham and Chester-le-Street on New Year’s Day. Boots is open from 10.30am-4.30pm and Sainsburys from 10am-5pm. PUNK SOUNDS: Punk tribute group 1977 will
The Northern Variety Company is to stage Aladdin at The Forum in Northallerton from Sunday, January 20 until January 26. Evening performances take place at 7.15pm and matinees on January 20 and 26 at 2.15pm. Telephone bookings can be made on 01609-
A LEADER of a Teesside town has warned tough times and job losses lie ahead in the coming years. Bob Cook, leader of Stockton Borough Council, told The Northern Echo that a 3.5 per cent deficit needed to be dealt with in the coming budget and a
A DESCENDANT of a man who helped shape America's history, is set to give a talk. Jeremiah Dixon was responsible for helping create America’s Mason-Dixon line, which divided the slave-owning Southern states from abolitionist Northern states during
TRIBUTES have been paid to an accountant who oversaw a council’s response to the foot-and-mouth crisis and a flooding emergency before spending nearly a decade working for a charity. Family, friends and former colleagues say they will remember
Bedale Archaeology & History Society’s Annual General Meeting will be held on Tuesday 8 January at 7.30pm in Bedale Hall and will be followed by a talk on archaeological methods and techniques by field archaeologist Oliver Cooper MA. New members
A SOCIAL landlord in north Durham is celebrating a prestigious award. Cestria Community Housing won the Investors in People (IiP) accreditation at its first attempt and did so by achieving silver status. Investors in People encourages companies
PEOPLE in Chester-le-Street who want a new war memorial are being asked to put their money where their mouth is. The Chester-le-Street District War Memorial Group hopes that work will start on the new monument in the spring. If all goes to
HELP is at hand for Darlington residents who overindulged at Christmas as a host of council-run sports activities resume this week. Weekly ‘no strings’ badminton sessions are held at the Dolphin Centre from Wednesday (January, 2) between 5pm and
A FEAST of live music is lined up for New Year's Eve at Inside Out nightclub in Darlington. Local band Alcoholidays will be performing live in the basement and playing DJ sets until 4am, They will play tracks from their new EP which will be
FIREFIGHTERS from Barnard Castle and Bishop Auckland were called to the Tees after a dog was reported in the river. The incident happened in the river at the Demesnes, Barnard Castle, at about 3.50pm on Sunday. Two appliances from Barnard Castle
A COUNTY Durham clergyman is preparing for life on the ocean waves as chaplain to passengers and crew during a round-the-world cruise. Canon Neil Russell, associate priest at St Mary's, Gainford, near Barnard Castle, will be joined by wife Kathy
FORMER Prime Minister Tony Blair's constituency agent John Burton has spoken of his delight at receiving an MBE in the New Year honours list. Mr Burton, 72, said he was particularly pleased the award recognised his work in the community as well
RESIDENTS in part of Teesdale will get a chance to raise crime concerns with local police early in the new year. The next Evenwood and Ramshaw Police and Communities Together (PACT) meeting will take place in Lands Village Hall on Wednesday, January
ALMOST 40,000 visitors took their seat on Weardale's Polar Express, which completed the final journey of its debut season last night (Sunday, December 30). The festive train, operated by the Weardale Railway, in County Durham, was inspired by the
A COUNTY Durham school returned triumphant from the regional final of a national chemistry competition. Top of the Bench is organised by the Royal Society of Chemistry, and featured eight schools battling it out for the Durham and Teesside regional
A YOUNG County Durham filmmaker has been commissioned to produce a promotional video highlighting the work of the Teesdale Action Partnership (TAP). Barnard Castle-based Oliver Smith, who runs Ambitious Motion Pictures, has been asked to produce
PROPOSALS for a specialist veterinary hospital located close to the A1 in County Durham have been unveiled. The plans are earmarked for land next to the Bradbury Services, on the A689 near the A1 at Sedgefield. If the scheme progresses, the
