Archive

  • EVENTS taking place in East Lancashire on Monday, June 16

    A LOOK at events, from amateur theatre to rambles through our beautiful countryside. Floristry Workshop, Towneley Hall, Burnley, 1.30pm-4.30pm. Progressive Threads Exhibition, Helmshore Textile Museums, Holcombe Road, Helmshore. Until August 16. Arts

  • Fitting honour for rescue team

    NOT outshone by today's Birthday Honours is the recognition being given to members of the Rossendale and Pendle Mountain Rescue Team. In particular, the presentation of the Queen's Volunteer Award to their leader, 51-year-old Dave Barrington is much deserved

  • My First. . .

    This week, with SUZANNE McCULLOCH, award-winning artist in residence at the Platform Gallery, Clitheroe MEMORY: I was three years old and I remember standing at the top of the stairs and shouting: "Catch me" to my mum, who was standing at the foot of

  • Sure signs of life up on Beacon Fell

    Drive & Stroll, with RON FREETHY I ALWAYS know when we are into spring when some of the birds which spend the winter on the Fylde Coast head for the hills and begin nesting. One of my favourite hills overlooking the Fylde is Beacon Fell whilst one

  • A daily juggle of work and kids

    ALAN Milburn's decision to swap his post as Health Secretary for more quality family time showed the stresses of juggling a high-flying career a kids can be equally as demanding for dads. On the eve of Father's Day JENNY SCOTT spoke to three dads with

  • Pupils hit the airwaves

    STUDENTS from St Bede's High School in Blackburn left their desks for discs at their very own radio station. Pupils from the school ran their own Teenwave 106 MHz FM radio station for three days thanks to sponsors East Lancs Creative Industries Development

  • No wonder when it's in this state

    THE residents of Trinity Ward in Burnley (LET, June 5) should not be paying any council tax with the state of the place. No wonder the BNP is going to take control of the council JEFF FETARSY, Ribchester Avenue, Burnley.

  • Town, paradise for parkers

    THE other day I happened to wander through the weird little town called Darwen and couldn't help noticing that the town centre there seemed to be a vast number of free parking areas. Since I have regularly read that the people of this town want parity

  • I fear the worst for wildlife haven

    TO create a wildlife meadow in Blackburn's Queen's Park area where vandals assisted in the demolition of the houses previously there sounds very nice indeed (LET, June 9). But I foresee the vandals again returning to spoil this project and deem it a waste

  • Man stabbed himself to death

    A MAN prone to depression stabbed himself to death, an inquest heard. The death of Paul McCarthy, aged 44, sparked a murder investigation after his body was found at his home in Morris Street, Tyldesley, with multiple stab wounds to the chest. Yesterday

  • Arise, Sir Bill

    GOBSMACKED council leader Bill Taylor today spoke of his delight at being knighted in the Queen's birthday honours but insisted: "Don't call me Sir!" And he revealed he came close to turning down the honour because he feared it would make him less approachable

  • My air rage shame

    A MAN told today how his dream holiday turned into a nightmare when he was arrested after a mid-air brawl on an aeroplane. Stephen Hyatt, 46, right, of Chapelhouse Road, Nelson, appeared before Minshull Street Crown Court, Manchester, yesterday after

  • Souness ready for Amoruso talks

    BLACKBURN boss Graeme Souness today said he's confident he can clinch the signing of Lorenzo Amoruso next week. The Rangers defender recently returned to Italy to think over a move to Ewood Park after the Glasgow giants accepted Rovers' £1.4 million offer

  • Disgruntled dad who 'had lost it'

    A DISGRUNTLED father-of-two created mayhem outside his estranged wife's home because he wanted to see his children, a court was told. Burnley Crown Court heard how Richard Turton, 29, "lost it,"shouting abuse and setting about wrecking his ex-partner's

  • Youths have their say on play venue

    YOUNGSTERS from areas of Nelson are hoping to get involved in making decisions on their future. The youths attended a meeting to discuss youth nuisance and what could be done to tackle it, which was held at Williams Hall Community Centre, this week. Residents

  • My air rage shame

    A MAN told today how his dream holiday turned into a nightmare when he was arrested after a mid-air brawl on an aeroplane. Stephen Hyatt, 46, right, of Chapelhouse Road, Nelson, appeared before Minshull Street Crown Court, Manchester, yesterday after

  • Why you shouldn't mix beer and sex

    THE government is running out of patience with the drinks industry's advertising campaigns, heavily reliant on sexual innuendos. So, just when you thought Saint Anthony and his disciples were ignoring things at home in the pursuit of global greatness,

  • Woman of Year Madeline's surprise

    ROSSENDALE'S Woman of the Year 74-year-old Madeline Claypole couldn't believe it when she found out she had won the prestigious award and said: "I thought it was a joke." Proud Madeline was presented with the accolade at the glittering ceremony yesterday

  • Receivers in at shut care home

    RECEIVERS have been called in after the owner of a former care home fell behind on her mortgage repayments. Great Harwood Lodge closed last month, giving the 17 residents just two hours to leave. Security guards have been at the site, in Edward Street

  • Council reviews charity grants

    A COUNCIL is to review how it gives money to needy groups after a charity that helps carers and disabled people was refused a £3,000 grant. Hyndburn Council leader Coun Peter Britcliffe made the promise after Crossroads , of Edgar Street, Accrington,

  • Village hall dream becomes a reality

    A HISTORIC community hall in a Ribble Valley village has been put up for sale to make way for a meeting place. Tosside, on the Lancashire-Yorkshire border in Gisburn Forest, is to have a new community hall serving 60 sq miles of isolated countryside between

  • Ex-Claret is eyeing new deal in England

    GREEK goalkeeper Nik Michopoulos could be back to thwart Burnley next season. Michopoulos is back in his homeland licking his wounds after being one of the unlucky 13 released by the Clarets this summer. But Michopoulos, 33, wants one last hurrah in England

  • Red Rose confirm Hooper is on board

    AFTER four weeks as a stand-in, Carl Hooper will have an air of permanence for the first time in Lancashire's National League game at Derby tomorrow. The former West Indies captain was signed last month to play until Harbhajan Singh recovered from his

  • Souness ready for Amoruso talks

    BLACKBURN boss Graeme Souness today said he's confident he can clinch the signing of Lorenzo Amoruso next week. The Rangers defender recently returned to Italy to think over a move to Ewood Park after the Glasgow giants accepted Rovers' £1.4 million offer

  • Cut above the rest firm to give hair seminar

    LONDON hairdressers of the year Brooks and Brooks will be making their way to Rossendale to give a one-day seminar. The hairdressers will be coming to Freddie's, Bank Street, Rawtenstall, to show staff their latest techniques on Monday, June 23. Students

  • High-tech council finance system

    A NEW high-tech finance system is set to be installed at Rossendale Council, giving residents access to their town hall accounts 24 hours a day. New software to put the customer first will be installed next month at the council and, in the short term,

  • Parents get even more help and advice

    A NEW service to help parents has been launched following the success of a newsletter in Helmshore -- its has been expanded to the internet. The website has been launched by Rossendale Family Forum to give parents information and the chance to play a

  • Developer hits at homes objectors

    THE head of Rossendale developers the Hurstwood Group has said he is disappointed at the opposition to develop the former Lea Bank School site. A special meeting at Lea Bank to officially launch the plans for apartments, executive homes and a woodland

  • Women's forum launch

    A PROJECT to provide help and support to young Asian women was launched last night after securing £48,000 in lottery cash. About 50 women attended the session, at the YMCA in Clarence Street, Blackburn, to formally launch the town's new Young Asian Women's

  • Man, 28 admits hammer attack on his mum

    A MAN has admitted assaulting his own mother with a hammer. Rene Kieran Tristan Shepherd, 28, of Lindisfarne Avenue, Blackburn, pleaded guilty at Preston Crown Court to causing his mum, Patricia, grievous bodily harm, during an incident on February 28

  • Muslims 'have it worse than blacks'

    BLACKBURN Muslims have told a parliamentary committee that it is often better to be black in Britain than a follower of Islam. The controversial claim came in a submission from the town's Masjid-e-Iraan organisation to a House of Lords group investigating

  • Arise, Sir Bill

    GOBSMACKED council leader Bill Taylor today spoke of his delight at being knighted in the Queen's birthday honours but insisted: "Don't call me Sir!" And he revealed he came close to turning down the honour because he feared it would make him less approachable

  • I hope everything stays the same

    WHEN people come to look back on Bill Taylor's career, he would rather he was not remembered for his knighthood. "I'd much rather people remembered me as the man who helped bring Boy George to Blackburn," said the man made a Sir in the Queen's Birthday

  • CYCLING: Metcalfe is the fastest once again

    PENDLE Forest ran their Thursday evening event over 10 miles based on Thornton-in-Craven with the course having to be slightly shorter due to road works in the village. Regular winner Dave Metcalfe of Barnoldswick was again fastest in 22m 10s and followed

  • The Saturday Message

    with the Rev Kevin Logan, Vicar of Christ Church, Accrington. IN my younger more ignorant days, the cruelty of God amazed and horrified me. Don't do this, or that, and, especially, not the other. And by the other, you'll know exactly what I mean, from

  • Moonstruck by a dream come true

    JENNY SCOTT meets a writer whose two ambitions have been perfectly fulfilled. . . IT is the year 2015 and the moon has disappeared. That is the world a Burnley playwright is hoping to evoke for children and teenagers in the world premiere of her new play

  • Wind farms are lovely to look at

    WHAT is it with these people who don't want windfarms? (LET, June 4). I would rather see a hillside full of windmills than a nuclear power station. They say that they are noisy. I think that you could put up with that rather than have ill-health through

  • Winos now out of fashion for me!

    I WOULD like to thank Mr James Cook (Letters, May 21) for showing me the error of my ways. I, too, was once a fan of the local band, The Fashionable Winos, until I read his remarks pointing out how the name of the band clearly encourages under-age drinking

  • Protest at fluoride move

    BLACKBURN and its MP, Jack Straw, have always been opposed to water fluoridation. Blackburn has been a member of North West Councils Against Fluoridation since it began in 1988 when the battle was last fought. In 1992 North West Water said that: "We regard

  • Think positive and town will become a city

    I WAS very sorry to learn that Blackburn did not get the city status it deserves. Blackburn is a cathedral town of Lancashire, with a population of 140,000 people; the second largest town in Lancashire after Blackpool and is the 39th-largest town in England

  • Rovers confirm their American adventure

    BLACKBURN Rovers have confirmed details of a pre-season trip to America. The 10 day visit to the United States has been arranged through goalkeeper Brad Friedel, pictured left, and will include at least one major friendly fixture against DC United --

  • Staff on a knife's edge over jobs

    STAFF at a threatened textile manufacturers are waiting on a knife's edge to find out if the plant is to close. Workers at Northern Textiles, Sycamore Avenue, Burnley, are anxious to find out if their jobs are to be axed as part of the re-location programme

  • Pupil's school joy after DIY classes

    A 12-YEAR-OLD girl who has been taught at Burnley's DIY school since last September was celebrating today after winning a place at a mainstream school. Kira Grant, of Rosegrove Lane, Burnley, was one of four remaining children at the school, in Valley

  • £400,000 health centre opened

    A £400,000 health centre has begun the work of breathing new life into one of Burnley's most deprived wards. And Burnley's favourite footballing son said it was about time the district of town where he lived was the envy of the others. Clarets legend

  • Four men arrested in drugs raid

    FOUR men were arrested in Pendle during early morning raids in Nelson and Brierfield as part of Operation Nimrod. Officers swooped on three addresses in Nelson and a fourth in Brierfield at 7am on Thursday when a small amount of controlled drugs was seized

  • Raider caught by householder

    A RAIDER caught by a householder in his garage in the early hours claimed he had never been in trouble with the police. But Burnley Crown Court heard how the truth was drug addict Patrick Peter Johnson, 24, was an ex-convict, with a long criminal record

  • Meningitis drive dad was banned

    A YOUNG dad who got behind the wheel while banned has got almost six months to prove he can stay on the straight and narrow. Colin Thomas, 22, did not know he was disqualified when he rushed his daughter to hospital fearing she was suffering from meningitis

  • Prison drug smuggler is jailed

    A YOUNG man from Accrington who tried to smuggle drugs into a jail has himself been sent to prison. Joseph Aspin was caught out as staff at Wymott prison, near Leyland, monitored a video of visitors arriving, Preston Crown was told. He was seen to place

  • Driver jailed after escape

    A BANNED driver escaped from a policewoman's grip after he was stopped and gave a false name, a court heard. Burnley Crown Court heard how ex-convict Liaqat Ali, 35, broke free even though he had been cuffed on one arm. He left the officer shaking and

  • Cannabis man told to 'stay clean'

    POLICE found 33 cannabis plants growing in a hydroponic system when they searched a house in Clayton-le-Moors, a court was told. Burnley Crown Court heard how Ranjiv Thind, 37, had the windows in the room blacked out. He later told police he was growing

  • Club refurbishment reveals records 100 years old

    A £263,000 refurbishment has taken club owners on a trip back in time after they uncovered records dating back nearly 100 years. James Street Sports and Social Club, Oswaldtwistle was built at the start of the last century at a cost of £600 -- equivalent

  • Lip stud girl looked like she'd had Tyson fight

    A MOTHER is warning parents to think twice about letting their children have facial piercings after her daughter ended up in hospital. Gemma Clark, 17, suffered swelling and bleeding after she went for a 'Madonna' piercing - a stud in the upper lip near

  • Carnival time for Prestwich

    THREE top tribute acts will headline Prestwich Carnival in a huge open air concert on Sunday. Organisers, the Sunshine Team, have made sure the event will be bigger and better than before with sound-a-likes of Elvis, Kylie and the Blues Brothers. An afternoon

  • Couple cheat death in Lakes terror

    A CLITHEROE couple cheated death when their their boat exploded just yards from a petrol station on Windermere. The 65-year-old pensioners had just refuelled their Princess cruiser moored at Waterhead Marine, Ambleside, from the boatyard's filling station

  • Past master

    FORGET all those new computer shoot 'em ups and take a step back into the world of historic console games. The creaky old games consoles of the seventies and eighties have become fashionable of late, lending credibility to many an advert, album sleeve

  • Ex-Claret is eyeing new deal in England

    GREEK goalkeeper Nik Michopoulos could be back to thwart Burnley next season. Michopoulos is back in his homeland licking his wounds after being one of the unlucky 13 released by the Clarets this summer. But Michopoulos, 33, wants one last hurrah in England

  • Family blasts 'the kitchen from hell'

    A FAMILY of seven had to spend £100 on take-aways after workmen left them without gas for a week. Isabella Nicholson, of Olive Lane, Darwen, said she was 'at the end of her tether' after landlords Twin Valley Housing Association left her with the "kitchen

  • 'Inspiration to help was my rescue'

    ONE of East Lancashire's longest serving lifesavers today revealed he was inspired to help others after being rescued from a mountain when he was 15. Dave Barrington, 51, of The Bowling Green, Edenfield, Rawtenstall, is set to receive a Queen's Volunteer

  • Pamela's pride in Queen's honour

    A ROSSENDALE woman who helped turn a failing school into one of the top five per cent in the country has been recognised in the Queen's birthday honours. Pamela Coward, 59, of Cowpe, has been made a Dame Commander of the British Empire for her services

  • War veteran in drink drive fine and ban

    WORLD War Two hero Francis Nickson went over the top during his regular tea-time drink at a working men's club. Blackburn magistrates heard that the 76-year-old veteran drank much more than his usual one pint and as a result failed a breathalyser on the

  • 'Thoughtful' portrait impresses Straw

    FOREIGN Secretary and Blackburn MP JACK Straw collected the first ever portrait completed of him -- and thanked the Blackburn College artist for making him look "thoughtful". Mr Straw said he is likely the hang the portrait by 21-year-old art student

  • Drug man jailed after friend's death

    A BLACKBURN man who supplied drugs to a friend who later died has been jailed for two-and-a-half years. Preston Crown Court was told Steven McLaughlin had tried to warn the other man of the dangers of taking drugs and drink. But 37-year-old Gary Dixon

  • Forget Dibley! This is serious business

    DON'T mention the Vicar of Dibley to Jo White! Her friends, family and colleagues have been giving her an affectionate ribbing ever since she decided to quit her job to become a curate. But the similarities between Jo's new life in the picturesque Peak

  • Five given a 'birthday present' by Queen

    FIVE other East Lancashire people were given honours. Geoffrey Braithwaite, of Downham, was awarded the MBE for services to the Clitheroe and surrounding community. He said: "I'm absolutely thrilled to bits and it was quite a shock. It's important to

  • Driver dies in head-on M66 smash

    ONE man died and another iss fighting for his life in hospital following a horrific two-car motorway collision in Bury. Police say a VW Passat driven by a 47-year-old man collided head-on with a BMW driven by a 29-year-old man just off the slip road of