A COMPUTER game store chain is planning to float on the stockmarket. GAME, which has a major store in Blackburn shopping centre, said it hoped to raise £10 million and use the cash to invest in new stores around the country. "We are well positioned to
DISCOUNT retailer T J Hughes, which is investing more than £2 million in its two East Lancashire stores, has announced a 66 per cent rise in profits. Sales across the group's shops in the last financial year jumped 19 per cent to £75 million. Earlier
POLICE were today searching for the driver of a car which ploughed through a hedge and somersaulted into a field at an accident blackspot. The driver had left the scene when police arrived at the accident near the Duckworth Hall pub, Haslingden Old Road
DON Brennan is back from the dead and working at the Lancashire Evening Telegraph - well at least the actor who played the Coronation Street character is! Geoff Hinsliff was one of the stars who took over the Darwen officeThe office was transformed into
THE Government was urged to step in and solve the schools places crisis in Darwen. Rossendale and Darwen MP Janet Anderson tabled a motion in the House of Commons condemning Whitehall's policy of open enrolment. A storm of protest blew up after more than
A PROJECT which has helped slash crime levels on a Blackburn housing estate is to form part of a blueprint for a national scheme to keep young offenders out of prison. The Home Affairs Select Committee examining alternatives to jail is to visit Youth
EAST Lancashire doctors are NOT guilty of over-prescribing antibiotics, says top hospital microbiologist, Stephen Dealler. His statement came as the Government was today warned that over-prescription had led to major bug resistance to drugs and posed
A THREATENED strike by refuse collectors due to start today was averted, after talks that went on late into the night. Rossendale binmen were threatening the first of six one-day strikes in support of their campaign for equal pay and conditions with other
A DECISION to build a security fence at a Blackburn school has come under fire. Objectors have accused Blackburn town hall of a costly U-turn following months of wrangling. A pressure group was formed last year after plans to fence off the popular Buncer
Vaux Northern League CHORLEY begin their Northern League programme with a home game against Morecambe, bidding to finally get their hands on the championship trophy again after a run of frustrating near misses. But Darwen have suffered an eve-of-season
THE Environment Agency is planning a May Day blitz on East Lancashire anglers who do not have rod licences. From May 2 to May 4, agency staff will be out checking licences throughout the country, focusing on urban areas where evasion is above average.
THE aftermath of the Gulf War not only affects veterans with Gulf War Syndrome, it also affects thousands of Iraqi children, who now suffer from cancer, as a result of weapons used in the war. The warheads were treated with uranium to enable them to penetrate
TWO things have really "bugged" me lately. The first is the general attitude on the opening of a teenage "boot camp". My opinion? Great, should have happened years ago. Pussyfooting about with counselling sessions and police "ticking off" talks in schools
Drive & Stroll, with Ron Freethy - KILNSEY PARK IN my opinion there are far too few attractions which are open all the year round. One which is open throughout the year from 9am to 5.30pm is Kilnsey Park. Situated near Skipton on the B6160 between
Political Focus, with Bill Jacobs JACK STRAW and Robin Cook have both benefited from their boss Tony Blair's loyalty to his lieutenants in times of crisis. The Blackburn MP's problems with his son William and drugs might have persuaded a lesser Prime
Friday Folk ELIZABETH Taylor and Frank Spencer are just two of the famous people to be taught by a Rishton man. Former teacher Keith Ellel, 70, taught a whole host of famous names during his 38 year career - even if the people were ordinary folk from
FUNERAL director Alec Baker is going green in his new venture. Alec has set up his Burnley firm after almost 15 years in the funeral business. And as well as offering conventional funerals, Alec specialises in ecological services. The services include
THE brutal killer of James McParland is being shielded by someone in the area police believe. Det Supt Bob Denmark, the man leading the murder inquiry, said: "I am still convinced the offender is likely to live locally and I am convinced someone is shielding
HOLLYWOOD Park cinema has won an "Oscar" of its own - the Mayor's Award for Excellence. The £5 million nine-screen Apollo development at Burnley produced its own blockbuster, beating fierce competition from other schemes which have received commendations
A CARNIVAL atmosphere greeted Wembley football heroes Colne Dynamoes as they returned home after their 1-0 FA Vase triumph over Yorkshire side Emley. Bunting in yellow and red decorated the town, and goalscorer Stuart Anderson said of the thousands gathered
AN accident in which a bus shelter was demolished has fuelled residents' fears about the speed of traffic. More than 80 people have already signed a petition calling for measures, including a speed camera, to put the brake on cars and lorries going past
LANCASHIRE have sold over 18,000 tickets for the Old Trafford Texaco Trophy International between England and South Africa on May 23. The game looks certain to be a sell-out which would mean receipts topping £500,000, easily a record for a one-day international
OSWALDTWISTLE are hoping for better things in the Vaux Ribblesdale League this time around and both the team and their new professional have enjoyed a promising start. The opening day of the season saw them record a nine wicket win over Blackburn Northern
ONCE again, spring has sprung, heralded on cue by the cuckoo - if, along with other creatures, it has not already been silenced by wretched morons with air guns. Meanwhile, I would be obliged to know the whereabouts of a clock with the distinction of
JOE SCUDERI is chasing the unlikely cricketing double of the Lancashire League and the European Cup this summer. As well as hoping to guide Colne to their first league crown since 1959, the South Australian will also be spearheading Italy's bid for European
UNTIL now, they have been religiously applied by millions, more as daily acts of hope, than of faith. But, now, science tells the adherents to this worldwide ritual that their prayers are indeed answered. For research has shown that those anti-wrinkle
READING Ribble Valley MP Nigel Evans' comments (LET, April 20), I did not know whether to laugh or be astonished at his nerve and audacity in questioning what was wrong with the present voting system used at elections. Correct me if I'm wrong, Nigel,
THE Good Friday peace agreement for Northern Ireland is coming under heavy fire from its opponents as the date for the referendum north and south of the border now lies less than a month away. And for its brokers, the British and Irish governments, and
MISMANAGEMENT of housing finances and the failure of the borough's housing services to implement and administer appropriate policies and procedures in respect of allocations, repairs and improvements during recent years, has resulted in the degeneration
THE top music festival in the Ribble Valley kicks off with a launch concert tonight. The Goldberg Ensemble will take to the stage at St Wilfrid's Church, in picturesque Ribchester, for the launch of this year's Ribchester Music Festival. The event has
A DISTRICT judge has retired after seven years' service in Blackburn. Judge Ian Belcher was transferred from the Wigan Group of Courts to Blackburn in 1991. He attended Manchester Grammar School before qualifying as a solicitor at Manchester University
MYSTERY "explosions'' shattered the night's peace in the Coal Clough area of Burnley. Residents came out on to the streets after the loud bangs were heard, first in Every Street and half an hour later in Coal Clough Lane, a couple of hundred yards away
ANDERS Andersson looks certain to make his first Premiership start for Blackburn Rovers as Roy Hodgson sifts through the wreckage of his squad to put together a team he hopes will be capable of getting back on track for Europe against Wimbledon at Ewood
Blackburn Rovers v Wimbledon - Peter Whie's big match preview ALEX Ferguson's youth policy might have the highest profile but Joe Kinnear will arive at Ewood tomorrow leading a Wimbledon squad packed with home-grown stars. And, if there is a secret to
ANDY Payton is out of Burnley's survival battle at Bournemouth tomorrow, forcing player-boss Chris Waddle into a major rethink over his strike force. Payton has gone down with a groin strain, leaving Burnley with only one recognised striker in Andy Cooke
Bournemouth v Burnley - Pete Oliver's big match preview CHRIS WADDLE'S singing career has been well documented but he could be persuaded to rush out a version of Three Steps To Heaven if his Burnley side guarantee their survival over the final three games
