Archive

IT is ‘highly unlikely’ that Hyndburn Borough Council will terminate its long-term lease on a recreation ground because it would ‘deprive the community of a recreational facility’, it has been claimed. Holt Street Recreation Ground is one of the

A BUSINESSMAN has spoken of his horror after being ‘within yards’ of the fatal high-speed crash at the famous Le Mans 24 Hour endurance race. Matthew Metcalfe, 30, of Colne-based IT firm Holker Network Solutions, had travelled with colleagues to

A HUSBAND and wife pick-pocketing team who repeatedly targeted pensioners in Burnley and Pendle have each been jailed for 10 months. Aura Luca, 28, and Pardalian Luca, 36, had started stealing cash in Colne and then went to Brierfield and on to

A DRUG addict who took part in a raid on a property in Colne has been locked up for a total of 10 weeks. Burnley magistrates were told how young dad Daniel Anthony Ryder, 20, was with an accomplice when they deliberately targeted Primet House on

A HOMELESS shelter has seen the number of young people needing a roof over their heads soar in the past 12 months. Blackburn’s Nightsafe centre reported a 12 per cent increase in the number of rough sleepers in its latest report. Its staff

TEACHING unions are threatening further strike action if the government does not listen to their demands. It comes as teachers from 141 schools across East Lancashire walked out of the classroom yesterday in a row over pay, pensions and working

RESIDENTS have been pushed to have their say in changes to how they pay their water bills. United Utilities wants customers with a Blackburn postcode to tell the company what they think about their new 25 year strategy for the region which will

THE sculptor behind wood carvings that were defaced by vandals in Witton Park has pledged to reinstate them for free in response to the public’s outrage. Kind-hearted Blackburn-based sculptor Martyn Bednarczuk created the four bird-themed artworks

IF The Voice achieves nothing else its legacy may well be bringing Bo Bruce to a wider audience. The Beeb’s talent search may be much derided but I’ll even forgive Will.i.Am’s inane ramblings having seen last year’s runner up perform live.

THE world’s greatest detective is on stage at Manchester Opera House until Saturday. Sherlock Holmes: The Best Kept Secret is an all-new mystery featuring the super sleuth created by Arthur Conan Doyle. This spectacular new production, in Manchester

A BURNLEY fundraiser is cycling 45 miles in aid of a testicular cancer awareness charity. Matthew Allen, of Kyan Street, Burnley, will leave his home on Sunday, and ride through Rawtenstall, Waterfoot, Todmorden Moor, Hebden Bridge, the Long Causeway

A CAR which raced off when police signalled for the driver to stop was later found on its roof extensively damaged. Blackburn magistrates heard that the car had been taken from outside a house in Oswaldtwistle, without the owner’s consent.

TWENTY years ago, almost to the day, a bunch of East Lancashire musicians performed on stage together at the Buchanan Club in Ramsbottom for the first time. An audience of 75 witnessed the birth of a band which has become one of the area’s most

THE new Clitheroe Food Bank, opening on Monday, July 8, is set to receive up to £2,500 from the town council. Councillors voted to donate money from the town’s Common Good Fund after organisers of the bank, Clitheroe Christians in Partnership,

A CAMPAIGN to stop motorists parking on dropped kerbs around the town is being launched in Clitheroe. The group, which includes Shop Mobility head and wheelchair user Coun Simon O’Rourke, said that kerbs should be clearly marked with white paint

CANCER patient Sam Shaw got a special treat when he was shown around Darwen fire station. The four-year-old from Hoddlesden and his grandad, Phil Speakman, were shown around by crew manager Pete Derbyshire. Sam, who was diagnosed in January

UNION representatives have warned East Lancashire farm labourers about moves to reduce their pay when the abolition of the agricultural wages board takes effect. The union Unite fears that more people may be forced into poverty if they accept new

A CLINICAL trials firm in Chorley is seeking patients to take part in a study about heart disease and blood sugar. The study will look at the connection between diabetes and coronary heart disease, which can affect people once diabetes develops

CLIVE Jackson is best known to millions as the chalk-faced vocalist of Doctor And The Medics. And the man behind the makeup and mascara brings his unholy union of psychedelia, glam and punk to the Ribble Valley’s Beat-Herder Festival next week.

HALL hire charges for blood donation sessions in Lancashire have cost the NHS more than £335,000 in the past three years, new figures show. A Freedom of Information request has revealed that tens of thousands of pounds are paid out each year to

POLICE are appealing for information after three horses were spooked in a road incident. Officers are asking people to come forward over an incident in Hapton involving a bus which saw a horse fall in the road. It took place on Wednesday, May

A REPORT showing that almost two million pensioners in the UK have less disposable income than an 11-year-old-child has prompted an older people’s champion to urge workers to take out a pension. Fgures show that more than half of people in the

A 1980s night raised £900 for Rossendale Hospice. Donning their finest 80s get-ups, over 100 party-goers boogied the night away while raising money for a good cause. Costume judges had a tough time choosing the best dressed person to receive

QUESTIONS marks have been raised over grant aid for community groups as Rossendale Borough Council seeks to save £1.5million this financial year. In June 2011, financial allocations were made to a number of organisations, under three year deals

MORE than 200 people have signed a petition to oppose a proposed landfill site extension near Ramsbottom. Peel Environmental Ltd wants to build an anaerobic digestion plant at Fletcher Bank Quarry, Shuttleworth. A public exhibition of the plans

A NEW station master is wanted to marshal one of East Lancashire’s most popular halts – but he or she need not be a ‘Fat Controller’. But just like the Thomas The Tank Engine character, the lucky candidate will have the opportunity, at Ramsbottom

A SPECIAL treat for a pre-school audience has been announced for Easter next year at Manchester Arena Cbeebies Live - The Big Band brings together some of the best-loved CBeebies' characters in a music-themed spectacle, which is sure to have youngsters

THE headteacher is retiring from Padiham Primary School after 21 years. John Hughes, who started at the Burnley Road school in 1973, is now working alongside teachers who he taught at the beginning of his career. The 61-year-old, who moved

EXPERT advice and demonstrations of activities including card making and cake decorating will be given at a hobby outlet on Saturday. Craftrange, on the Network 65 Business Park, Burnley, will open its doors to art enthusiasts as part of its ‘summer

A NEIGHBOURHOOD project that benefited from a grant of nearly £300,000 has urged community groups to apply for funding made available by the Lancashire Telegraph and the Big Lottery Fund. The Community Cash Awards were launched on Monday, giving

LOUISE Woodhead raced into pole position at Blackburn College’s art exhibition with her popular photographs of her pet racing whippets. Louise, 20, has just finished her level 3 extended diploma in photography at Blackburn College and took the

There will be a hog roast and music at Pendle Forest Sports Club tomorrow from 6.30pm. The Four Alls Inn from Higham are doing the catering, and Jack's Trio will be playing through- out the evening. Proceeds are for St. Annes Church building fund

Burnley Youth Theatre has launched its summer activities programme to keep youngsters entertained over the holiday period. Young people up to the age of 18 have been invited to take part in drama workshops that will help them learn about theatre

I start with a confession. Throughout the thirteen-plus years that I was a Minister, I went just four times on the Tube. Each of those journeys was to (and from) a Rovers’ away game. These trips were hardly a typical London Transport experience

THE newly-published report which claims 89 per cent of transport cash has been going to London and the South East should not come as a great surprise to people in East Lancashire. It reveals that transport spending in the North West equates to

WITH reference to your story ‘Blackburn bus welcomed home’ (LT, June 26), I am sure that the build quality of vehicles has contributed to the decline of ELCB. They built them nearly nuclear bomb-proof and they will outlast the planet. You can

Given the distance between the accessable A&E hospitals, Blackburn or Airedale, Barnoldswick does not have enough local ambulance cover. Think about it – it could be up to an hour turn-round time after a trip to these hospitals. Gazzandste

FOLLOWING on from your story about Clive Wilson retiring from Darwen Market (‘End of an era as Darwen market stall closes after 56 years’, LT, June 24), I think it’s a shame. This stall was full of bargains even before someone thought of the pound

YES, he is a local good guy and I’m glad he’s still got a job. But sure BBC waste money having duplications when a major story is being reported nationally and locally. They have a BBC reporter with a film crew, then a local reporter with a

SO, East Lancashire broadcaster Tony Livesey is leaving BBC’s North West Tonight for The One Show (LT, June 26). But is it promotion or demotion? I can’t decide. I like Tony Livesey and he cares about the North West Like this switch, he has

Perhaps the ‘village children’ could be directed to Helmshore’s designated play area at Snig Hole/Helmshore Memorial Gardens – it is about to get thousands of pounds of investment for the benefit of all children in the area. There is absolutely no

RE: ‘ Hyndburn MP speaks out on diluted ASBOs’ – make prisons far less hospitable. A lot of space is taken up by repeat offenders who find it easier and less lonely inside than out, and so they do whatever they have to to get back inside. It

Parents have expressed their horror over plans to allow open access to the grounds of Helmshore Primary School (LT, June 24). As the number of children grows, there is surely a case for providing more land for them to play on. Fencing off the

THE organisers of the Great British Rhythm and Blues Festival at Colne are hoping music lovers in East Lancashire will help them regain the title of Britain’s top blues festival. The event, held over the August bank holiday, was voted Best British

HE turned his back on being one of the ‘bright young things’ of the Eighties music scene, but Martin Stephenson is now enjoying life as one of the elder statesman of rock and roll. As he prepares to return to Darwen’s Library Theatre next month

A WEEKLY free stop smoking clinic will be held in Burnley every Thursday. The sessions, at St Peter’s Centre, Church Street from 1.30pm to 3pm, will include support and motivation to quit smoking. Call 01282 477134.

Rossendale Computer Learning Centre has offered free courses for beginners keen to get to grips with computer basics. The classes will run on Wednesdays and Thursdays from their office in Room 210 in the Business Centre in Futures Park, Bacup.

JOHN Lydon’s Public Image Limited (pictured), fresh from supporting The Stone Roses, rock up at Manchester Ritz tomorrow. Meanwhile Marillion have announced date in Manchester later this year. The band will play the Academy on November 8. Also

A FAMILY fun day will be staged at Nelson and Colne College’s Scotland Road home when they put on an adult advice and enrolment event from 10am to 2pm on Saturday, July 6.

PENDLE Youth Orchestra meets on Wednesdays at the Grassroots Centre at St Philips, Leeds Road, Nelson. The beginner string group meets 6.30 to 8.15pm and the main music group 7.30 to 9.30pm. For more details, contact Justine Leedam on 01282 865934

BETHEL Independent Methodist Church in Burnley Road, Colne, will host Lesley Barlow playing the Tyros 3 Twin organ and tackling everything from big band and rock n’roll to orchestrals and light classical, tomorrow from 7.30pm.

BOROUGH councillors will consider a submission by countryside access officer Tom Partridge for a £5,830 grant for urban ginnel improvements from Hallam Road to Waterford Street in Nelson when the town’s area committee meets on Monday.

HISTORIAN Geoff Crambie will deliver a talk on ‘Growing up in the post-war years’ at the Colne Legion Club tomorrow at 10am. Mr Crambie has been invited to the Keighley Road venue as a guest of the Colne and District Probus Club.

A BOUNCE and rhyme session for babies will be held at Nelson Library on Friday at 10.30am. The free sessions provide music and stimulation for babies and toddlers up to 18 months and last about half an hour, no booking required. Call Nelson

STAN the Van has returned to Pendle this week. The ‘Services To A Neighbourhood’ bright yellow van was outside Colne Open Market yesterday and will be found today on the North Valley Retail Park in Colne. Tomorrow the van on is on Market Street

PENDLE Leisure Trust’s Out and About evening walks have been extended until the middle of September. The free walks are fortnightly on Wednesdays at 6.30pm and last for between one and two hours and are free to attend. Dogs must be on a lead.

Fans of Strictly Come Dancing are in for a dazzling treat, when the glitzy and glamorous show Strictly Confidential comes to Salford on July 8. SIMONE O’KANE spoke to Lisa Riley about her the show. HER role in Emmerdale seems a million miles away

DETECTIVES are quizzing a 16-year-old over an attack which left a great-grandfather from Nelson with critical injuries. David Hutchinson is still in a serious conditon in the Royal Preston Hospital after being attacked close to his Leeds Road home

IT’S good to talk if you believe the adverts for the British Telecom from the late 1980s, while people who wear pin-striped suits and red socks in marketing insist that communication is king. While both of those phrases are now well and truly filed away

A TOWN came out to say farewell to a brave teenager at his funeral yesterday. Jack Heath's coffin was carried by a horse-drawn carriage after his last spoken word to his family was ‘horse’. Jack defied the odds for years as he battled an incurable

BAKERS saw their extractor fan turn into a ‘weapon’ after they were targeted by vandals. Father and son bakers Alec and Liam Fleck at Darwen’s Bread Roll Bakery said they were astonished when damage to the fan turned it into a danger. When

AMONG the positive spin and self-advertising from Steve Kean at the weekend, there was an interesting number. It was the number 14, the number of times Kean travelled to India to meet Venky’s during his time as Rovers boss. Everyone was well aware that

FITNESS assessments are taking place at a sports centre in an upcoming event. Haslingden Sports Centre staff are holding an MOT Fitness awareness day to check the health of centre users. The sessions next month measure weight and waist to hip

A TEA party saw a care home open its doors to the public. Hope House Nursing Home in Clayton-le-Moors hosted the Victorian tea party with mayor Judith Addison as guest of honour. Manager Catherine Henney said they organised the party as part of

A HUGE hobbycraft outlet in Hapton is set to throw its doors open to offer expert demonstrations to the public this weekend. Craftrange, which employs 14 people at its Boran Court site, in Network 65 Business Park, will hold a host of workshops

A SUSPECTED deliberate fire caused severe damage to an empty house in Blackburn. Two fire crews spent an hour and a half dealing with a blaze in Stansfeld Street in the Mill Hill area on Wednesday at 6.30pm. The fire caused considerable fire

TWO residents have been ordered to pay £230 each after their ‘disgusting’ anti-social behaviour saw them dumping rubbish on the streets of Blackburn. Lonel and Carmed Mirea, of Audley Range, Blackburn, had been leaving their household waste to

WORK has started on a £10million project aimed at revitalising the derelict Woodnook area of Accrington. The strip out and partial demolition of phase one properties between Augusta Street and Booth Street has now been completed, with the main

ST Mary’s College is becoming paperless and inviting parents to register for it’s new Parentmail scheme. Parents of pupils at the college can sign up to the system and instead of letters sent home, they will learn of all updates by text message

A TWILIGHT trek up Darwen Tower is set to raise funds for young people. Blackburn Youth Zone is launching the evening event this summer and it will see fundraisers make their way up the tower accompanied by music and bright lights. Laura Jones

A MAN banned from Accrington by bail conditions was found hiding under a child’s bed at his home in Richmond Avenue. Mohammed Liaqat, 32, admitted breach of bail conditions attached to charges of criminal damage to a car belonging to Mohammed Riasat

AN AUTHOR is to be the guest of honour at an upcoming Women’s Institute meeting. Accrington writer Jill McDonald-Constable, a celebrated Westerns author who has published three novels will be the speaker at Accrington Women's Institute on July,

A HERITAGE group is forming a new committee when it holds a public meeting on its plans to found a museum. Hyndburn Heritage and Community Group is raising funds and holding mobile exhibitions towards its goal of a permanent home. The group

FIREFIGHTERS were called to an unoccupied home in Stansfeld Street, Blackburn on Tuesday. The first floor was severely damaged and the ground floor saw light smoke damage. The blaze is being treated as suspicious.

A DEMENTIA awareness meeting is set to be held at the Higher Trapp Hotel, Simonstone, on Wednesday. For more information call 01200 414549.

A NEW network to promote innovation in the NHS has been set up for the North West Coast, including Lancashire. The group will bring together health commissioners, providers, academia and industry.

A THEATRE is holding a clairvoyant event next month. Oswaldtwistle Civic Theatre are to host an evening of clairvoyance with international medium David Holt. The event on Friday, July 26 is on at the Union Road theatre at 7.30pm.

MP Jack Straw will visit Blackburn Food Bank tomorrow at 10.30am. The Food Bank, in Whalley Banks, Blackburn relies on food donations to feed local people in crisis. Project Manager Ros Duerden said: “He wants to come and see the good work we’ve

SKA stalwarts Owter Zeds perform at Number 39 Hopstar Brewery Tap in Bridge Street, Darwen, tonight, from 9pm. Admission is free.

THE Prime Minister has backed an East Lancashire MP’s campaign to send packages to troops in Afghanistan. Rossendale and Darwen MP Jake Berry and his team were busy packing boxes for charity Support Our Soldiers at Rawtenstall Asda on Saturday.

DARWEN Subscription Bowling Club has a ‘Free & Easy’ on Sunday at 3pm. Basil will be playing the organ, accompanied by Dennis, the compare. All are welcome.

FIRE broke out yesterday at a house in Walmsley Street. Crews were called at around 7.30am to the blaze caused by a cigarette and tissue box. An elderly resident suffered from smoke inhalation.

THE Golden Cup, in Blackburn Road, Darwen, is having a karaoke night on Saturday. The fun starts at 9pm and the sing-song will go on until late.

DARWEN Aldridge Community Academy will host an art show on Thursday, July 4, from 5pm to 8pm. GCSE and A-level artwork will be showcased in the academy’s Dart Gallery. There will be live music and refreshments.

STUDENTS at Darwen Aldridge Community Acadamy have been hard at work perfecting their song and dance numbers for their up-coming production of Willy Russell’s ‘Our Day Out’. Tickets at £3 are on sale from the school reception on Sudell Road. The

AN evening of darts and dominoes takes place tomorrow at Darwen Subscription Bowling Club in Anyon Street at 8.30pm. The club wants people to register by 8pm. Entry is £3 for darts and £2 for dominos and there will be cash prizes for the winners

FIONA Marie Gordon, 55, of Cranfield View, Darwen, was remanded on bail for the preparation of a pre-sentence report when she appeared before Blackburn magistrates. She pleaded guilty to driving with excess alcohol, while disqualified and without

BLACKBURN with Darwen housing boss Yusf Jan-Virmani will tonight tell the borough’s full council forum that work on the Orchard Grove development in Darwen’s Sunnyhurst ward is ‘progressing well and on track to be completed in spring 2014’. There

NO British woman has hurled the hammer as far as Blackburn Harrier Sophie Hitchon. Indeed, Britain has never won a hammer competition at a global senior event, a statistic Burnley’s Hitchon, who finished in the top dozen in the world at the London Olympics

PENDLE rally star Daniel Barritt is gearing up for next month’s Rally of Finland with a brand new car. The professional co-driver from Barrowford has spent the last few weeks testing the Ford Fiesta R5 alongside promising Welsh driver Elfyn Evans. “

JON Schofield will use the ‘bitter disappointment’ of losing his European crown to spur him on to world glory. Schofield and Liam Heath finished in fourth place in the K1 200m at the Canoe Sprint European Championships in Portugal to end a run of three

THIS year’s Darwen Pedal Car Grand Prix has been split into two races to pit the fastest vehicles against each other and allow pub teams their own fun competition. The fourth annual running of the event, which sees teams take part in a two-hour

RESIDENTS have branded a council decision to not cut the grass near their houses for three years as ‘a disgraceful act’. The grass, in Peel Close, Blackburn, has now grown to over five feet tall and has prompted anger from nearby householders.

DESIGN guru Wayne Hemingway has created an electronic greetings card for well wishers to sign worldwide welcoming the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge’s new royal arrival. The Red or Dead fashion house founder, who grew up in East Lancashire, hopes

MELLOR Brook racer John Holden continued his golden summer to increase his lead at the summit of the Formula Two British Sidecar Championships. Holden and passenger Andy Winkle were in tip-top form again, just a fortnight after swooping to collect a

THE Labour leaders of Burnley and Blackburn with Darwen councils led calls for government investment in East Lancashire road and rail links after a report claimed 89 per cent of transport cash went to London and the South East. As they reacted

DAVID Dunn wants to finish his playing career at Blackburn Rovers – and even then he hopes he will not have to leave the club. Dunn penned a new one-year contract at Rovers this week, ending uncertainty over his future at the club, and he will rejoin

BURNLEY returned to pre-season training at Gawthorpe this week with star striker Charlie Austin among the stars being put through their paces. New goalkeeping duo Tom Heaton and Alex Cisak were among those training while Austin was present despite speculation

ENGLISH light-welterweight champion Shayne Singleton could be set to take on a former World Champion in a stiff test next month. The 23-year-old from Colne is set for a six or eight-round contest at Bolton’s Reebok Arena on July 20 as a tune up for September

A DROP in profits of 15 per cent at Thwaites brewery last year has been blamed on the wettest summer for more than 100 years and the consumer environment. The Blackburn-based firm, which posted profits of £10.5million, said it had had to respond

WHALLEY’S Adam Morgan survived two dramatic smashes to maintain seventh place overall in the British Touring Car Championship driver points standing following a testing weekend in the wind and rain at Croft. Morgan celebrated his first BTCC podium finish

MORE than 1,700 women ran, walked and danced their way to the finish line while taking part in this year’s Race for Life in Blackburn. Women from across East Lancashire descended on Witton Park to complete the 5k course and raise money for Cancer

Four dead cats found at a Blackburn cemetery were deliberately killed – it is feared. The shocking finds came as an RSPCA report revealed a big increase in convictions for cruelty against cats, with Lancashire identified as a ‘hotspot’ for animal

TRIBUTES have been paid to the son of the founders of the Boundary Mill retail chain who was killed in a crash in the Yorkshire Dales. Tom Bannister, 48, died when the Range Rover Vogue he was a passenger in ended up in a field. A 41-year-old

BLACKBURN’S David Robinson was the winner of the CSMA autosolo event at Lymm Services at the weekend. Robinson secured victory in the national B section in a Peugeot 106, with son Simon taking sixth place. John P Morris was first in the Accrington Production

BURNLEY team FPW Racing have signed a third rider for the remainder of the British Motostar Championship season. Milo Ward and Greg Greenwood have been riding for FPW this season but the team were keeping their third bike free for the right rider. They

A WORRYING report into care at the Royal Blackburn and Burnley General hospitals should act a ‘wake-up call’ for health chiefs, said a patient representative. Russ McLean, chairman of the Patient Voices Group, said he was ‘shocked and appalled’

NUNO Gomes is expected to hold talks over his Blackburn Rovers future following his return for pre-season, his brother has confirmed. Rovers’ first-team squad are back at Brockhall for the first day of pre-season training today as they start their preparations

SEAN Dyche wants Burnley to upset the odds and push for the top six this season – after admitting contractual issues may have been a factor in their fall from play-off contention last term. The Clarets returned to pre-season yesterday and are aiming

A STUDENT who accused a former schoolmate of being a paedophile in an online harassment campaign has been spared jail. John Mark Waywell, 26, admitted harassing the neo-natal nurse with a succession of offensive posts on Twitter and Facebook.

MORE than 70 schools across East Lancashire’s seven borough’s will face total or partial closure today as teachers across the northwest strike over ‘relentless attacks’ on their profession. The National Union of Teachers (NUT) and NAS/UWT will

BOROUGH regeneration boss Maureen Bateson checks on the demolition of Blackburn’s old market buildings as the stage is set for the latest stage of the redevelopment of the town centre. Work started two weeks ago on knocking down the three-day sales

LABOUR is set to force through new caps on Blackburn with Darwen councillors’ expenses and allowances despite Tory and Liberal Democrat opposition. Borough leader Kate Hollern’s plan to stop elected representatives claiming more than one responsibility