Archive

  • Property developer blames council for site delays

    A PROPERTY developer is at odds with Rossendale Council over who is responsible for delays in starting work on a new supermarket and leisure complex. Hurstwood Developments, which is being placed into administration as a consequence of the global credit

  • ‘Suicide watch' Nelson man damaged police cell

    A MAN who damaged a police cell toilet was being watched because of previous suicide worries, a court was told. Mark Sumner, 35, who has almost 100 previous convictions, also interfered with a vehicle and did not turn up to court when he should

  • Alexander silences his Burnley critics

    CLARETS manager Owen Coyle admits has hailed renaissance man Graham Alexander after silencing his Turf Moor critics. Alexander came in for some flak from a section of supporters following the club’s poor form to the Championship campaign, in which Coyle

  • Blackburn Rovers take Aussie teenager on trial

    Blackburn Rovers are hoping they have unearthed the next ‘Wizard of Oz’ after handing Australian teenager Joey Gibbs a trial at Ewood. Gibbs is a product of former Rovers’ skipper Lucas Neill’s scholarship, which has presented him with the

  • Man fined over theft of whisky

    A SHOPLIFTER who made a run for it when a relative stole two bottles of whisky from a store has been fined by Rossendale magistrates. Joseph and Carmel Roche were in Bacup Co-op when she picked up two bottles of spirits and they left, the court heard

  • False name given in a 'panic'

    A HUNCOAT man was given a fixed penalty after giving a police officer a false name and date of birth. Blackburn magistrates heard the deception was quickly spotted and the same officer who had issued the ticket went round to Anthony McMillan’s home and

  • New Blackburn head teacher takes over

    THE new headteacher at Blackburn's Roe Lee Primary School is settling in – but he has not moved very far. Mark Geldard, 40, of Langho, has begun his first term at the helm, but had already worked with the school as part of networking groups in his

  • Paddle power from Blackburn and Darwen young people

    Young people from Blackburn and Darwen took to the water as part of their Duke of Edinburgh gold award. They took part in a five-day expedition canoeing and camping along 65km of the River Tarn in France. The group raised money for the expedition

  • Accrington Stanley pair to miss Darlo trip

    ACCRINGTON Stanley midfield men Andy Procter and Robert Grant and defender Leam Richardson remain sidelined and will miss Saturday’s trip to Darlington. Bell hopes that Procter will be over a knee injury in time to face Rochdale on Sunday-week

  • Burnley hotshot: I will get better

    SHARP-SHOOTER Martin Paterson believes he is far from the finished article after continuing his whirlwind start to his Clarets career. The Northern Ireland international bagged his sixth goal of the season with a fine finish in Tuesday night’s 2-0 Lancashire

  • Holland’s Pies launches search for 12 official tasters

    IT SOUNDS too good to be true but Hollands Pies is looking for 12 people to become official tasters of its products. The Baxenden-based firm wants volunteers to sink their teeth into helping improve existing offerings and helping shape new

  • East Lancashire MRSA cases plummet

    CASES of MRSA have fallen by more than half at East Lancashire’s hospitals - and bosses said outbreaks were at their lowest level for seven years. New figures from the Health Protection Agency show that there were just 28 cases recorded throughout

  • Newchurch's past in old photographs

    THESE photographs depict Newchurch in Rossendale in a bygone era. They were on show at a heritage open day, staged at St Nicholas’ Church, and gave local residents the chance to step back in time. Visitors to the display found out more about the history

  • Boys’ toy guns a blast at cinema!

    IN the days before television, people made their own entertainment. There were clubs and groups, sports leagues and the theatre – before live performances were superseded by the cinema. Many Looking Back readers will, no doubt, be able to remember the

  • Petition for shuttle from Brierfield to Blackburn hospital

    HUNDREDS of people have signed a petition for the hospital shuttle bus service to stop in Brierfield. The 800-signature petition, backed by Pendle Labour leader Coun Mohammed Iqbal and Brierfield councillor Naeem Ashraf, has been handed to Pendle MP

  • Bump on car park leads to court

    A 45-YEAR-OLD man who reversed a car “a matter of metres” across a supermarket car park found himself heading to the Crown Court for sentence. Blackburn magistrates heard that Derek Isherwood had been given the keys to his sister’s car so that he and

  • Hapton remembrance plans

    ARRANGEMENTS for the annual Remembrance Day service in Hapton village were discussed at the Hapton Parish Council meeting.

  • Padiham off-licence presentation

    IAN Cogle and David Parsons gave a presentation on the proposed opening of a Bargain Booze store at 11-13 Burnley Road at the Padiham Town Council planning meeting. Councillors asked questions and expressed concerns over the shop frontage, opening

  • Hapton barn plan

    AN application for the conversion of a redundant barn building into two residential dwellings, was received at the Hapton Parish Council meeting. The barn is at Shuttleworth House, Castle Clough.

  • Padiham pantomime funding bid

    THE Padiham Pantomime Society made a request for funding from the town council. This was debated in great depth and it agreed the matter would be given some thought.

  • Blackburn rapist jailed indefinitely

    A RAPIST who attacked teenage girls on consec-utive nights in Blackburn has been jailed indefinitely. And one of Lee Anthony Nield’s victims, who fought him off using television self defence tips, has welcomed the sentence. Nield was branded a danger

  • Pakistan has a sense of hope after Musharraf

    “How many of your judges are corrupt?” I was asked earlier this week by a Pakistan lawyer. “None” I replied. “How many of your judges are corrupt then?” “Oh, 70 per cent in the lower courts, 40 per cent in the higher courts – and that is a conservative

  • Woman faces Bacup stab charge

    A WOMAN has appeared before Burnley Magistrates Court, accused of stabbing her partner at their home in Bacup. Charlotte Elizabeth Bending, 30, is charged with wounding Gary Antrobus, with intent to do him grievous bodily harm, on Saturday

  • Burnley's population decline set to continue

    POPULATION levels are continuing to fall in Burnley – and could do so for the next decade according to economists. Last year the Lancashire Telegraph reported how the borough had one of the largest emigrant rates in the UK, with the population level

  • Rishton girl kicked in head by frightened horse

    A MOTHER has warned about a ‘vicious dog on the loose’ in Rishton after her daughter was injured in an attack. Thirteen-year-old Heather Owens, of Burton Street, Rishton, was kicked in the head by a horse after an Alsatian-type dog attacked her mare

  • Soldier claims 'it was punch'

    A SOLDIER in uniform assaulted a man who was sitting on the pavement talking to his girlfriend. Blackburn magistrates heard the victim claimed Adrian Thomas Hardy had kicked him with his “shiny, black army boots”. But Hardy claimed he had only punched

  • £1.6m Oswaldtwistle Civic Theatre revamp unveiled

    A MAJOR plan for a £1.6million renovation of Oswaldtwistle Civic Theatre has been unveiled. And bosses said it would transform the venue into a stylish new community arts centre. Proposed changes include creating a spacious downstairs

  • Paterson's celebration in tribute to Burnley team-mate

    MARTIN Paterson has revealed that Tuesday night’s push-up goal celebration was in tribute to team-mate Ade Akinbiyi. “Ade is big and powerful and I’ve always joined in with his press-ups and everything he does I copy and do,” said the striker

  • Great Harwood artist paints a smile on life in the North

    AN artist is taking a light-hearted look at northern life in a series of new works. Edward Foster, of Great Harwood, has so far produced three paintings in his new series called Northern Folk. He has created a take of three handmaidens of Venus, represented

  • Scholes motors to Easson award

    TEENAGE rally driver Phil Scholes has scooped one of the sport’s most prestigious awards. The 19-year-old former kart racer has won this year's John Easson Award, administered by the 2300 Club of Blackburn, and worth over £4000. The accolade, now in

  • Review: Room 101, BBC2

    NICE to see you, to see you, nice — or not as the case may be. Finally someone who talks a bit of sense on our screens. I think Brucie should start a campaign based on his Room 101 choices last night, banning the world from all female TV presenters

  • Blackburn man gets shop first tobacco sales ban in county

    THE actions of a Blackburn shop assistant who sold counterfeit cigarettes has cost the shop its tobacco licence. And it was the first shop in Lancashire to face such a ban. Tradings standards officers caught Abdul Mall, 40, selling the potentially dangerous

  • It’s full speed ahead for Hall Trophy Rally

    THERE’S a full house entry for this weekend's Hall Trophy Rally, organised by Clitheroe and district motor club at Weeton army camp near Blackpool. With twelve stages and over 50 miles on offer, clerk-of-the-course Bruce Lindsay and his team have been

  • Accy on ‘Red’ alert

    Accrington Road Runners gave their athletes a rare chance to sample track and field competition when they staged a Track Night at Wilson Playing Fields. No fewer than 45 members accepted the challenge and they were divided into three teams to provide

  • Red Rose dominates in Yorkshire race

    East Lancashire clubs have continued their fine record in the Yorkshireman Off Road Marathon this year. Divina Raidy of Rossendale Harriers was the winning woman, clocking 4hr 18m 31s for the 26.2 mile tour of the moors around Haworth. In 20th place

  • Markendale battles in Brum

    Eleanor Markendale produced a fighting display for the England B Team at the Home Countries’ Combined Events Match at Birmingham’s Alexander Stadium. In the very first event of the heptathlon, the 100 metres hurdles, she hit the ninth hurdle so hard

  • Villanueva looks to long-term with Blackburn Rovers

    CARLOS Villanueva is planning on making Blackburn home “for years to come” as he bids to repay Paul Ince’s faith in him. The Chilean international is currently at Ewood Park on a season-long loan but is already dreaming of earning a permanent

  • 'Return voter forms' reminder

    PENDLE residents are being reminded that they must return their voter registration forms. Householders who are not making changes to the details on the pre-printed forms can register by telephone, internet or text, which reduces the number of postal

  • Man arrested after digger stolen in Accrington

    A MAN has been arrested on suspicion of stealing a £15,000 digger. Officers were called to a builder's yard in Pansy Street South, Accrington, at 1am this morning after residents heard the sound of machinery being started up. A search was made

  • 'Backtracking' row over East Lancashire bus lane

    THE row over a proposed bus lane has escalated after a council leader branded Lancashire County Council “backtracking idiots”. Hyndburn Borough Council leader Peter Britcliiffe hit back after the county’s deputy leader accused him of misleading

  • Bogus officials warning

    POLICE have issued a warning after conmen got into the house of an elderly woman in the Whitehall area of Darwen. Men posing as water board workers knocked on the door of an 88-year-old woman on Duxbury Street, saying there had been a leak and they had

  • Blackburn Rovers target released by Turkish club

    Blackburn Rovers target Ugur Yildirim has been released by Turkish outfit Sivasspor, days after it was revealed he has been offered a trial at Ewood Park. The right-winger, who has been capped once by Holland, was only signed by Sivasspor in

  • Youths benefit from grants

    MORE than £1000 worth of grants are to be handed to Rossendale youth groups after councillors backed schemes. The Ignite Youth Group, based in Edgeside, have been awarded £600 to provide the young people with craft materials, snacks for the group and

  • Burnley police use technology to trap metal thieves

    HI-tech tactics are being used by police in Burnley as part of a crackdown on metal thieves. Smart Water, which contains an individual iden-tification code similar to DNA, is being place on metal pipes at unoccupied homes as part of Operation

  • Motorist arrested after 50 mile pursuit across Lancashire

    A MOTORIST led police on a 50-mile high-speed pursuit in a stolen van after refusing to stop when spotted driving “suspiciously”, officers said. Pollice eventually halted the Ford Transit, using a “stinger” strip on the M6. The pursuit went through

  • Blackburn teacher’s funeral takes place

    THE funeral of a Blackburn teacher who died two days after being diagnosed with a brain tumour has taken place. Clare Whittle, 27, who lived in Euxton near Chorley, was diagnosed with the tumour by medics at Royal Preston Hospital on September

  • ‘Rocky’ fancy dress raises £500 for SOPHIE fund

    AN EAST Lancashire social club raised more than £500 in memory of Sophie Lancaster by holding a freaky fancy dress with a difference. As part of the Rocky Horror Picture Show-themed evening, held at Brooks Club, Infant Street, Accrington, people dressed

  • Lancashire Telegraph health expert tells of cancer battle

    LANCASHIRE Telegraph health expert Dr Tom Smith has told how being diagnosed with cancer allowed him to see a doctor’s role from the other side. The family GP, 69, was told he had a tumour in his bowel after a routine screening in June.

  • Residents asked to set standards

    RIBBLE Valley Council is looking for residents to join its standards committee. The body is responsible for assessing any com-plaints about borough and parish councillors and deciding what action, if any, to take. It also advises the council on ethical

  • Healthy roadshow hits Burnley

    COUNCIL bosses in Burnley have organised a “helpful and informative” event to boost the health of the borough. Town centre shoppers will this Saturday be offered information and advice about health and well-being. The council’s healthy

  • Almost 1,000 Lancashire workers injured

    ALMOST 1,000 people were injured at work in Lancashire last year. Statistics based on cases passed on to the Health and Safety Executive by Lancashire County Council, Blackburn with Darwen Council and Blackpool Council show 979 injuries.

  • Accrington man slapped boy, 5

    A FIVE-year-old boy was left with a hand shaped bruise on his face after being struck by a 38-year-old Accrington man. Blackburn magistrates heard Jason Wayne Heys admitted to police that he had “lost it” and hit the boy “far too hard”.

  • Lancashire job worries after bank merger

    SCORES of jobs could be at risk in Lancashire by banking giants Lloyds TSB’s takeover of the Halifax Bank of Scotland group. That is the view of workers’ union Unite, which has vowed to fight any plans for compulsory redundancies. Bosses

  • Rawtenstall solicitor blasts renewed law guidelines

    NEW sentencing guidelines are preventing magistrates from using common sense, according to an East Lancashire solicitor. Keith Pilkington, of Woodcocks Solicitors, said magistrates were now less able to use their discretion when dealing with

  • Scheme hopes pupils will cultivate success

    SCHOOLS in the North West have signed up to a campaign to teach children about growing their own fruit and vegetables. Children at 158 schools in the region will learn about fresh produce after joining the Let’s Grow campaign, sponsored by

  • Century since Blackburn man invented Vimto

    VIMTO, the soft fruit drink, celebrates its centenary this year. But did you know that the man who created the secret concoction 100 years ago was from Blackburn? John Noel Nichols, born in 1883, was the son of a cotton yarn agent and governess, and

  • Union boss has changed views

    I NEVER thought I would ever hear a trade union official vigorously support the Council Tax (Paul McCarthy, LT September 11). The Trade Union movement, along with the Labour Party, vigorously opposed the Council Tax, when the Tory Government introduced

  • Put vaccination before religion

    THE vaccination programme for cervical cancer covering East Lancashire to protect against the human papilloma virus, cannot be an easy decision for many parents, especially of a religious persuasion. It is bound to be associated with lifestyle and by

  • Name and shame deliberate debtors

    WITH reference to the article (LT, September 11) headed Council tax cheats owe £6million. May I state at the outset that not all the debtors are cheats. Some people are in genuine financial difficulties because of the increased cost of living and general

  • Innocent people have rights too

    I AM writing as a member of the community that cares about the way we bring our children up. In the early hours of September 14, I was yet again the victim of a crime. Last time I was the victim of a burglary committed by a 16-year-old

  • Bin spies were out of order

    WE all know people should be sorting out their rubbish properly to minimise the amount that has to go to landfill. It is in all our interests to make an effort because the penalties, which will soon be imposed on local authorities where recycling levels

  • £30,000 Blackburn jewel raid suspects caught on CCTV

    THESE are the two men wanted in connection with a £30,000 raid on a Royal Mail van laden with expensive jewellery. Police the vehicle was targeted in King William Street, Blackburn, where it was due to make a delivery to Humberstones jewellers

  • Darwen art students in country’s top ten

    TWO Darwen sixth form students are celebrating after it emerged their exam results were among the top 10 in the country. Adam Fenton of Belgrave Road, and Katherine Midgley, of Bury Fold, both 16, sat the GCSE Art and Design: Fine Art exam earlier this

  • Burnley are not up for sale, says Flood

    BURNLEY’S operational director Brendan Flood insists the Clarets are not up for sale – but revealed that the club would welcome mega-bucks investment to help realise their Premier League ambitions. The ambitious multi-millionaire property developer

  • Accrington Stanley keeper back in training

    ACCRINGTON Stanley goalkeeper Ian Dunbavin is heading back towards first-team contention after recovering from a badly gashed knee. Dunbavin has been sidelined for a fortnight with a cut even Tranmere physio Les Parry admitted was the longest

  • Andrews: Blackburn Rovers boss is 'natural-born winner'

    KEITH Andrews insists Rovers boss Paul Ince is a ‘natural-born winner’ having already had vast experience of his ‘inspirational’ leadership skills on and off the field. The Irish midfielder was reunited with his former MK Dons boss and Wolves team-mate

  • Plea for help to catch East Lancashire fugitives

    POLICE are hunting two East Lancashire criminals who are wanted on prison recall. William James Cross, 24, is a convicted robber and has been on the run from police since May when he was recalled to prison for breaching a curfew order. He was originally

  • Clitheroe Booths expansion decision date

    PROPOSALS for the expansion of the Booths store will be considered by Clitheroe Town Council on Monday. If they are given the green light a new shop front could be placed on the site of the former Kwik Save store. A new walkway linking the two buildings

  • Blackburn and Darwen council bin spies slammed

    COUNCIL officers have been snooping in residents’ back gardens in a bid to find ‘unauthorised’ second wheelie bins. The Blackburn and Darwen wardens - branded the ‘bin police’ by furious critics - were even spotted using ladders to peer over

  • Reedley grandmother dies after 'records blunder'

    A GREAT grandmother died after she was given drugs she was allergic to in hospital following a medical records blunder, an inquest heard. Doctors at Burnley General Hospital prescribed Beatrice Sagar paracetamol and an epilepsy drug after her

  • Controversial Huncoat industrial estate plans approved

    CONTROVERSIAL plans to build a new industrial estate creating up to 600 jobs in Huncoat have been given the go-ahead. The decision was met with anger from dozens of villagers who had turned up to protest against the development on land south