Archive

  • How did fiend slip through the net?

    THE shocking case of Martin Steve Tibbett who was allowed to 'groom' a young girl for sex will send a shiver down the spine of every parent today. But the whole sorry episode leaves us with more questions that need to be answered in order for a sickening

  • Tower power!

    Melissa Westwood can't believe her good fortune to working at the stately home she visited as a child. She spoke to JENNY SCOTT WHEN Melissa Westwood was eight years old she visited Hoghton Tower with her family. Now 37, Melissa can remember little about

  • Thanks for lost letter return

    I WOULD like to publicly thank a kind lady called Shirley Sumner who found a letter I'd lost with a large amount of money in it and walked from one side of town to the other to return it to me. SALLY FOX, Blackburn (full address received).

  • Why council has got its comeuppance

    THE leader of Burnley Council in all his infinite wisdom, said in front of the TV cameras: "Will someone tell me why the BNP has got in?" Well, the truth should be staring him in the face. The years of urban neglect have taken their toil and why? Because

  • Voters have seen through Lib/Dems

    IT never ceases to amaze me how the Liberal Democrat Party tries to be all things to all people -- promising some people they will cut taxes, but promising others they will increase taxes. This is the party that warned voters higher taxes would cause

  • Tribute to fine representative

    MAY I make a point about Hapton having elected a BNP councillor? It is not just the village of Hapton but Hapton with Park' which has elected Councillor Starr. 'Park' comprises of a large chunk of Padiham, so the village does not stand alone in this.

  • Child advice worker's sex with girl, 13

    A 20-YEAR-OLD child advice worker indecently assaulted a 13-year-old girl after "grooming" her for months after she called a Lancashire County Council children's help-line. Martin Steve Tibbet, who was employed by the authority at an advice centre for

  • Jay puts his feelings on hold

    JAY McEveley has no option but to turn his back on his beloved Everton tomorrow. The 18-year-old left back knows that if he is to be playing European football for Rovers next year, it will be at the cost of the team he has supported all his life. McEveley

  • Mayor hands over robes for show

    A MAYOR who decided to dip into his pockets and replace his borough's ceremonial robes has handed them over to an exhibition. Coun Gordon Birtwistle paid £900 for the new robes to replace the existing ones which he said were "tatty". They have been in

  • Murder trial told of fight before death

    A MAN accused of murdering his mother's ex-lover admitted using violence towards him hours before he died. Daniel Antonious Delker, 24 denies killing witchcraft enthusiast James Bowman, 44, in Cornholme, Todmorden, on September 15 along with his co-accused

  • Son knifed his dad after festive row

    AN EX-CONVICT who knifed his dad after a Christmas Day drinking session is behind bars for 21 months -- and was warned by a judge to stay away from him in future. Burnley Crown Court heard how Mark Jackson, 33, who was originally charged with attempted

  • Council's stalwart Frank takes reins

    LONG-STANDING councillor Frank Clifford, has taken the reins of Pendle Labour Party after his colleague Councillor Azhar Ali lost his seat in the town. The decision to appoint Coun Clifford to the role was made at a Labour Party meeting this week, but

  • A fatal wound for Labour's future?

    ANY hope the present Labour administration had of justifying its oft-repeated but tarnished pledge to be tough on crime has been scuppered by Home Office lawyers. In a story which beggars belief, they are trying to persuade the judiciary to review laws

  • Man who provided false alibi jailed

    A MAN who provided a false alibi for an alleged attacker has been sent to jail for six months. Burnley Crown Court heard how Duane Marcel Pickles Murphy, 24, made an untrue statement after police were put in touch with him. Sentencing the defendant, Judge

  • Clog and Folk traditions

    THE Lancashire Clog and Folk Festival returns to Accrington next weekend with a feast of family entertainment. The event kicks off at 8pm on Friday with a concert by folk act Eddy Morton and the Bushburys at Accrington Town Hall. On Saturday the action

  • Extra cash pitches play area closer

    A NEW facility for youths in Church took a step closer to reality today after county council bosses made more money available for a play area scheme. The play area, to be built on a derelict field at Dill Hall Estate, is still at the planning stage but

  • Chemists on Duty

    SUNDAY, MAY 11 BLACKBURN: 10am-1pm: Aston Pharmacy, 95 Accrington Road; 10.30am-4.30pm: Superdrug Pharmacy, 5 Stonybutts; noon-1pm: RH Wilson, 75 Whalley New Road, Bastwell. DARWEN: noon-1pm: Lloyds Pharmacy, 11 Church Street. ACCRINGTON: noon-1pm: Boots

  • Action call over river pollution

    A COUNCILLOR has demanded action after a late-night pollution spill covered a 50-metre stretch of the River Calder in Whalley with white foam. Pollution inspectors were called to the River Calder late on Thursday after a white frothy substance and numerous

  • Claret Diallo is target for Ipswich

    IPSWICH Town have targeted out-of-contract Burnley defender Drissa Diallo. The Guinea international is believed to be high on Blues manager Joe Royle's summer shopping list of potential new signings. Diallo was one of only two players offered new terms

  • Turf Beat

    Spell with Clarets was just champion PAUL Fletcher says he was proud to be part of Burnley's 1972/73 Division Two championship winning team. The Bolton-born striker, who signed for the Clarets from Bolton Wanderers in 1971, spent a decade at the club.

  • Claret Diallo is target for Ipswich

    IPSWICH Town have targeted out-of-contract Burnley defender Drissa Diallo. The Guinea international is believed to be high on Blues manager Joe Royle's summer shopping list of potential new signings. Diallo was one of only two players offered new terms

  • MATT'S EURO VISION

    MATT Jansen today set his sights on penning a dramatic ending to the season as he plots his Rovers return at White Hart Lane tomorrow. The 25-year-old striker has been named in Graeme Souness's squad for the Euro decider with Tottenham in the capital.

  • Child advice worker's sex with girl, 13

    A 20-YEAR-OLD child advice worker indecently assaulted a 13-year-old girl after "grooming" her for months after she called a Lancashire County Council children's help-line. Martin Steve Tibbet, who was employed by the authority at an advice centre for

  • Call to demolish mill hit by fierce blaze

    A BACUP mill ravaged by fire yesterday has been described as a "timebomb waiting to explode." Residents and local businesses have been calling for Waterside Mill, off Burnley Road, to be demolished since it became empty. Ronnie Barker, managing director

  • Vandals wreck park work

    COMMUNITY volunteers in Stacksteads were today picking up the pieces after vandals smashed up a stone table in a park where thousands of pounds have been spent on improvements. Rosemount Community Park, at the top of Huttock End Lane, recently received

  • Lancs soldiers on Iraq duty

    SOLDIERS from the first battalion of the Queen's Lancashire Regiment have started training for a four-month tour in Iraq . It will focus on peacekeeping and humanitarian operations. The soldiers, who are based at Catterick, North Yorkshire, will deploy

  • The way to stop growth of BNP

    EAST Lancashire computer mogul Tahir Mohsan last night said the BNP could be stopped by ensuring white people received the same support as the Asian community. The Blackburn-born managing director of Simonstone-based Time Computer Group, who is worth

  • My First. . .

    This week, with SAMINA KAUSER, pastoral support worker at Walton High School, Nelson. MEMORY: Being in class and thinking that one day I was going to be a teacher because they have so much power over the children! HOLIDAY: Kharian in Pakistan as a child

  • Saturday Message

    with the Rev Kevin Logan, Vicar of Christ Church, Accrington. I'VE overdosed recently on why eight out of ten of us believe in God, according to the recent national census results. I've come up with three reasons: 1. Our incredible universe is full of

  • Village is packed with sights to see

    Drive & Stroll, with RON FREETHY THIS stroll begins with a bit of pleasant controversy relating to the name of the White Bear, at Barrowford. Most think that it refers to the fact that an albino bear was baited here. Others, albeit a minority, think

  • Togetherness will be lost

    TO say I was shocked by events in the local elections does no justice to the anger and disappointment that I and I'm sure many other people from around Burnley are feeling now. The BNP's 'success' highlights the obvious problems within the area and we

  • Town sculptures fall far short of beauty

    I AM grateful to your reporter, David Higgerson, for enlightening me concerning the two lumps of rusty old iron (LET, May 3), which I observed in a prominent position outside the Staples store. I now know that they are another example of 'public art!'

  • Manning ban support wrong

    YOUR leader supporting Burnley Council's decision to ban Bernard Manning (LET, May 6) shows considerable lack of understanding of the causes -- real or perceived -- of the tensions in that (and for that matter this) town. Every council should treat people

  • Controversial road work 'will finish on time'

    UNITED Utilities has promised that roadworks creating traffic chaos in Leigh will be finished on time. The pledge comes as businesses in the Tamar-Wigan Road area, hit by the sewer works in Leigh Road which are due to finish at the end of next month,

  • Top planner sees vision for future

    THE regeneration of Burnley and Pendle came under the spotlight once again when the president of the Royal Town Planning Institute came to see the area for himself. Vincent Goodstadt met with planning chiefs in both boroughs yesterday as part of a North

  • Perfect run is on the line

    LEIGH Centurions will put their 100 per cent National League One record on the line this weekend when Featherstone make the trip to Hilton Park. Having already lost to Rovers in the Challenge Cup earlier in the season and seen them send Salford tumbling

  • Stars are out for Europe

    DAVID Dunn reckons Rovers will boost their chances of hanging on to Damien Duff if they qualify for Europe. Duff is reportedly the number one target for Liverpool and Manchester United, who are ready to fight it out for the Irishman's signature this summer

  • Matt's Euro vision

    MATT Jansen today set his sights on penning a dramatic ending to the season as he plots his Rovers return at White Hart Lane tomorrow. The 25-year-old striker has been named in Graeme Souness's squad for the Euro decider with Tottenham in the capital.

  • It's all or nothing for Rovers, says Short

    Tottenham Hotspur v Blackburn Rovers - big match preview DEFENSIVE king-pin Craig Short today insisted Rovers deserve to pip Everton to a place in Europe as their UEFA Cup fight goes down to the wire. Rovers head for White Hart Lane tomorrow knowing they

  • Nursing hopes of jobs in the NHS trusts

    THE work of local nurses is being celebrated by hospitals in East Lancashire over the coming week. To mark National Nurses Day yesterday, East Lancashire Hospitals Trust invited people to join them in Burnley town centre and also in Blackburn, at Asda

  • 'Hopes fading' for missing Daniel, aged 7

    POLICE searching for missing Burnley boy Daniel Entwistle today said hopes of finding him alive are fading. "We must be realistic the longer this goes on," said Det Supt Julian Gregory. "We are beginning to reach a stage where we think we may not find

  • Cabinet minister joins in jobs bid praise

    A CABINET minister has joined Burnley MP Peter Pike in praising the North West Development Agency in its efforts to bring new jobs in the town's former Michelin factory. The Labour backbencher raised the issue this week during Commons Questions with Chief

  • Top planner sees vision for future

    THE regeneration of Burnley and Pendle came under the spotlight once again when the president of the Royal Town Planning Institute came to see the area for himself. Vincent Goodstadt met with planning chiefs in both boroughs yesterday as part of a North

  • Parallel pricing plea by MP to Brown

    EAST Lancashire MP Gordon Prentice wants the Government to ensure that all goods and services are priced in both sterling and in euros. He said that doing this would make life easier for travellers returning from the continent with the new currency, help

  • Over-limit drive on car park

    A TEENAGE girl was over the limit when she drove in a car park at a seaside resort. Debbie Standring, an 18-year-old receptionist, of Petrie Crescent, Rishton, admitted driving with excess alcohol to Blackpool magistrates. Prosecutor Wendy Evans told

  • Robbers tie up security guards

    TWO security guards were tied up and beaten as a gang raided their security van where cash from a supermarket had just been deposited. The balaclava-clad robbers made off with a 'substantial' amount of money after the raid in the car park of the Co-op

  • MP Pope defies Whips over fire strike Bill

    REBEL East Lancashire MP Greg Pope has told the government to drop it's controversial plan to impose a pay settlement on the firefighters and ban them from striking. Although the Hyndburn backbencher did not vote against the government, he deliberately

  • Street's Hayley and Roy put on a Posh Do for charity

    MADCAP soap star Julie Hesmondhalgh led her Coronation Street pals in "a bonkers night" of entertainment to raise bumper funds for an East Lancashire charity. Julie ---known to millions as Hayley Cropper -- was the brains behind 'Roy and Hayley's Posh

  • Chemists on Duty

    THURSDAY, MAY 15 BLACKBURN: To 9pm: Lloyds Pharmacy, 4-6 Railway Road; Cohens Chemist, 63 Whalley Range; To 8pm: Johnston Pharmacy, 50-52 Johnston Street. To 7.30pm: Aston Pharmacy, 95 Accrington Road. To 6.30pm: Donald Wood Ltd, 53 Fishmoor Drive; Healthbook

  • Chemists on Duty

    FRIDAY, MAY 16 BLACKBURN: To 9pm: Lloyds Pharmacy, 4-6 Railway Road; Cohen, 63 Whalley Range. To 8pm: Johnston Pharmacy, 50-52 Johnston Street. To 7.30pm: Aston Pharmacy, 95 Accrington Road. To 7pm: Moss Pharmacy, 314 Bolton Road; The Pharmacy, Oakenhurst

  • Chemists on Duty

    WEDNESDAY, MAY 14 BLACKBURN: To 9pm: Lloyds Pharmacy, 4-6 Railway Road; The Surgery (Chiropody), 132 Lammack Road; Cohen, 63 Whalley Range. To 8pm: Johnston Pharmacy, 50-52 Johnston Street. To 7.30pm: Aston Pharmacy, 95 Accrington Road. To 7pm: The Pharmacy

  • Chemists on Duty

    MONDAY, MAY 12 BLACKBURN: To 9pm: Lloyds Pharmacy, 4-6 Railway Road; Cohen, 63 Whalley Range. To 8pm: Johnston Pharmacy, 50-52 Johnston Street. To 7.30pm: Aston Pharmacy, 95 Accrington Road. To 7pm: Moss Pharmacy, 314 Bolton Road; The Pharmacy, Oakenhurst

  • Chemists on Duty

    TUESDAY, MAY 13 BLACKBURN: To 9pm: Lloyds Pharmacy, 4-6 Railway Road; Cohen, 63 Whalley Range. To 8pm: Johnston Pharmacy, 50-52 Johnston Street. To 7.30pm: Aston Pharmacy, 95 Accrington Road. To 7pm: The Pharmacy, Oakenhurst Road; Geloo Bros, Cleaver

  • Helpful type

    DO you often find yourself typing the same things over and over again on your computer? If a simple task takes you 30 seconds to do and you do it 100 times in a day, that's around an hour of wasted time. What if you could claim that time back and use

  • 'Lift' ended in police cell

    CHARLES Showemino thought police should give him a lift home to Darwen after releasing him from the Greenbank station in the early hours of the morning. But instead of earning him a free ride, Showemino's drastic action earned him free board in a police

  • I do-oo la-la! Charity rider proposes in Paris

    A CYCLIST who rode from Darwen Tower to the Eiffel Tower had a double celebration up his sleeve. He helped raise £11,000 for children with cancer - then proposed to his girlfriend under the Paris landmark. Dave Worden who celebrated his 40th birthday

  • Darwen next is BNP's next poll target

    CHURCH leaders have expressed concern at the news that far-right party the BNP have opened a new branch in Darwen. The party this week announced that Darwen would be their "number one" target for next year's elections and that party members would be canvassing

  • Boat people celebrate milestone

    LANDLUBBERS are invited to join a boaters' gathering to celebrate the bicentenary of the Leeds and Liverpool Canal in Whittle-le-Woods. A weekend of events on May 31 and June 1 is being organised by the Lancashire and Cumbria branch of the Inland Waterways

  • Mercy staff take to the skies

    THE North West Air Ambulance has recruited paramedical staff from neighbouring ambulance services in a bid to promote their work. And for the first time two female paramedics. including one from Lancashire Ambulance Service. will be helping to swell the

  • Sports cash boost

    EDUCATION bosses today expressed delight over a lottery grant for sports projects. They say it will have 'life-changing' implications on thousands of youngsters. The Lottery-financed New Opportunities Fund announced it would pump £170,000 into Blackburn

  • 'Breast is best' says young mum

    A YOUNG Blackburn couple are spearheading a campaign to get more new mothers breastfeeding. Parents Ellen Gardner and Damian Whelan have spoken about their experiences and views on breastfeeding to encourage others to find out about the benefits. Ellen

  • ANGLING: A case of trying to keep up with the Joneses

    by KINGFISHER GALE-force winds, that were also cold, ensured many fisheries produced less than we might have expected last week. A much better forecast, however, should guarantee an improvement everywhere this week. As far as pleasure fishing is concerned

  • 112 years behind bars for £130m drug gang

    EIGHT men have been sentenced to a total of 112 years in jail for their part in a multi-million pound drug smuggling operation. Relatives packed the court's public gallery as Judge Morris handed down some of the longest sentences ever given for drugs