Archive

  • Friends saddle up for 1,000-mile trip

    A TRIO of cyclists are set to use pedal power to travel 1,000 miles from one end of the country to the other to raise cash for charity. Brother and sister Frances and Gareth Cooper and their friend Geoff Senior are to cycle from Land's End to John O'Groats

  • Singing tree a step closer to taking root

    PROPOSALS for a singing' tree on moorland above Burnley moved a step closer after the scheme was given the green light by planners. A planning application for the panopticons project The Singing Ringing Tree, set to grace moorland at Crown Point on the

  • Man, 29 attacked partner in front of baby

    A MAN attacked his partner not long after he was given a community order for the same thing, a court heard. Keith Traill, 29, tried to strangle victim Rebecca Dunmore and threatened her with death as their six-month-old baby cried nearby. A passer-by

  • Designs on building a brighter town centre

    BURNLEY people are getting ready to have their say on plans to make their town the envy of the region as part of a masterplan for the town. Car parking, preserving Burnley's history and better public transport are among the key challenges picked out

  • 1 in 6 will not pay fines

    ONE in six crooks in the county are refusing to pay their court fines, a damning new report has revealed. Lancashire magistrates courts collected 85 per cent of financial penalties dished out in 2004/05 although that was still above the national target

  • Rovers star loses drive ban appeal

    A BLACKBURN Rovers player had an appeal against a driving ban thrown out. Aaron Mokoena was disqualified from driving for a year by Blackburn magistrates last month. The punishment came after he was caught driving his BMW Coupe to the Rovers training

  • Threats were made to witness

    A 23-year-old man shouted threats at another man who had given evidence against him in a Crown Court trial. But Blackburn magistrates heard the threats were without reason because Christopher Waring had been acquitted by a jury and nothing could be achieved

  • My husband needs that handbag

    I have never been able to understand how my husband, or any man, come to that, can live without a handbag. Now, as everyone who knows me will vouch, my handbag' is more the size of a bin bag, and contains just as much refuse. But, however large and

  • Insight into teaching

    WANNABE teachers are being encouraged to go back to school to learn more about the profession. Alder Grange High School in Rawtenstall is hosting an open evening aimed at students looking to pursue a career in teaching. The two-hour event takes place

  • Too many repeats on TV

    WE all have to go digital in a few years with our TVs. I think before that, they should get the TV right. I would like some new programmes on instead of all the repeats we get. We pay enough for our TV licences without having to pay again for digital

  • Thanks for support over the years

    MAY I take this opportunity to thank the hundreds of people who have telephoned me and sent cards with good wishes on my retirement as a local councillor. May I also thank the officers of Hyndburn Borough Council, particularly Mr Brent Clarkson and Mr

  • Get tough on litterbugs who ruin our streets

    AFTER reading David Bartlett's article about our dirty streets, I have to say I feel so ashamed of our dirty town. Chewing gum seems to be one of the main problems. It covers a lot of pavements near where I live at Roe Lee and in the town centre. I walk

  • Village gets all steamed up with annual festival

    THE eighth annual Chipping Steam Fair chugged into the village at the weekend. The fair, held on the Green Lane showground next to the Gibbon Bridge Hotel, featured its usual mix of classic cars, steam engines, working exhibits, a fairground and stalls

  • Azmat’s Sunday best

    ALI Azmat flayed the VEKA Ribblesdale League bowlers two days running as Earby staked a double claim on the senior division title. Azmat smashed 138 in just 89 balls against Barnoldswick yesterday to follow his 116 against Baxenden 24 hours earlier.

  • Colne get home tie

    COLNE, who knocked out holders Ramsbottom in the first round of the Get Solutions Worsley Cup, have been drawn at home to Haslingden in the second round. Enfield, who have their sights set on a league and cup double, will entertain Nelson and Burnley

  • Coyne eager to win back number one shirt

    CLARETS stopper Danny Coyne says he'll be ready to fight for the number one shirt come the start of the season - but he knows he'll have some battle on his hands. The Wales international looked to have won the race to be considered as Steve Cotterill's

  • Gray reveals deal delight

    BLACKBURN Rovers defender Michael Gray has admitted even he's surprised' by the way he has managed to turn his career around over the last 12 months. This time last year, Gray appeared to be heading for the exit door at Ewood Park after failing to impress

  • Machete threat to shop worker

    A Darwenn shop assistant was threatened with a machete as two robbers raided an off licence in Anyon Street at 8.50pm yesterday. Police said the men, who fled with the contents of the till, were today being hunted. They are described as white, in

  • Where Has All the Pleasure Gone?

    From Ann M Rowell, Havelock Street, Oswaldtwistle. Why is life today full of gloomy thought? For if we all did, everything we ought So many things we're told are bad for us all, The list of things seems manifold. Don't sunbathe or eat red meat

  • 'Super school needs parking for students'

    PLANS for two of Burnley's new super-schools will be decided on later this year after the schemes were given the approval of councillors in Burnley. However, Burnley Council chiefs have demanded a re-think of plans for one of the schools because of concerns

  • One-day show set to return

    Trawden Show, one of the largest one-day agricultural shows in the North West, will be held at the recreation ground on August 13. Each year around 5,000 people visit the show which includes sheepdog trials, heavy horses, Shetlands, poultry, dry stone

  • Boozing in public ban?

    BOOZING in public in a Pendle town could be barred under plans announced by councillors. Liberal Democrat members in Barnoldswick want to outlaw drinking in public places in the town to curb youths hanging around the town drinking alcohol and causing

  • Bus pass delight for MP

    TODMORDEN'S MP Chris McCafferty has expressed her delight at the start of free bus pass travel during off-peak hours for the over-60s and disabled. She said: "For many older people this will mean they can go about their daily lives as well as enjoy trips

  • Tenants’ anger at 'shoddy' workmen

    SHODDY' workmanship by sub-contractors has resulted in complaints flooding in to Pennine Housing, responsible for Todmorden's housing stock, the town's development committee was told. Coun Dorothy Jordan said: "We have had several complaints about

  • Asian traders' group relocates

    A FLAGSHIP business organisation set up to represent Asian traders in the county is moving out of East Lancashire. The Asian Business Federation (ABF), based in Blakewater Road, Whitebirk, Blackburn, was launched in February 2001 from a small office

  • Mother-in-law’s thumb bitten in attack

    A MAN bit his mother-in-law's thumb until it bled profusely when she tried to drag him off her ex-husband. Blackburn magistrates heard that when Norma Latham used her other hand to prise her thumb free Damian Philip Berry, 21, bit her on the finger.

  • Booze thief caught on CCTV

    A 37-YEAR-OLD man made repeated trips to a Longridge store to steal bottles of spirits. Blackburn magistrates heard that Thomas Winters was caught on CCTV and a stock check to establish just what was missing showed a £628 shortfall. The court was told

  • Town backs plans for major change

    MAJOR plans to transform Darwen have moved a step closer after the town gave its approval. Details of the masterplan were sent to every home in the town in a bid to get feedback on what residents want to see developed. There were three options for

  • MP in visit bid to Guantanamo

    EAST LANCASHIRE MP Greg Pope wants to visit the controversial Guantanamo Bay detention camp in Cuba in a new embarrassment for Tony Blair. He is a member of the House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee, which has been strongly critical of the holding

  • Alert for fame-hungry students

    EDUCATION chiefs today warned fame-hungry youngsters not to pin their hopes on entering celebrity culture and drop out of school or college. A new survey completed by the Learning and Skills Council (LSC) reveals that one in seven pupils would drop out

  • Art not paid for with council tax

    MRS Eileen Singleton complains about the "useless rubbish" on Church Street, Blackburn, and linking this with the rise in council tax (Letters, May 9). It has been pointed out time and time again that the various pieces of art in Blackburn and Darwen

  • Bishop right to hit out at BNP

    A SEDGWICK (LET, May 12) asks what business the Bishop of Blackburn has in calling upon voters to refrain from voting for the BNP and tells him to stick to teaching the Ten Commandments instead. May I refer A Sedgwick to St Matthew's Gospel (19:16-20

  • Darwen’s 10,000 maniacs

    MORE than 10,000 music lovers have already swarmed into Darwen to watch a record number of performers in the town's annual Live festival. And today fans were urged to support the Darwen Music Live event. Over the past two days more than 60 acts have

  • Tough time for Foggy duo

    FOGGY PETRONAS Racing riders Craig Jones and Steve Martin finished the fifth round of the Superbike World Championship battered and bruised after a harrowing race day at Silverstone. Jones crashed on the first lap of the first race and, although he took

  • Wyk sinks hopes of first East Lancs win

    TODMORDEN professional Morne van Wyk was the star of the day as the Lancashire League completed the first Sunday games of the season. The weather has played havoc with the programme so far this year. But the big-hitting South African brightened Centre

  • Craney ready for fresh challenges

    DYNAMIC midfielder Ian Craney is relishing a competitive new season with Accrington Stanley. The 24-year-old, who was on international duty in the Four Nations Tournament last week with the England National Game XI squad, is looking forward to the outcome

  • Devil’s Elbow road is on list of shame

    AN ACCIDENT-ridden road to the Ribble Valley has been included on a list of shame highlighting the most dangerous stretches of highway in Britain. Figures from the AA-led European Road Assessment Programme (EuroRap) have placed A671 Burnley to Whalley

  • No-show witness jailed for 28 days

    A WITNESS who failed to turn up to give evidence in a court case was today starting a 28 day jail term. Father-of-two Mohammed Ziareb, 21, of Richmond Hill Street, Accrington, was the second witness put behind bars by Judge Barbara Watson at Burnley

  • 'Wallpaper king' moves into pavilion

    EAST LANCASHIRE'S famous king of wallpaper', John Wilman, is back in business. For the man who once employed 1,000 people has signed the tenancy for an historic building at the heart of Blackburn's flagship Church Street regeneration which has been vacant

  • Single review: Hundred Reasons – The Perfect Gift (V2)

    Hundred Reasons are so dizzyingly hard-working, it can be exhausting just reading their tour schedules and discography. Their releases don't seem to skirt around the lower reaches of the charts any more, but they're still a formidable - and shouty

  • Single review: 747s - Night & Day (Ark)

    New single taken from the forthcoming debut album by this English/Irish/Italian/German four-piece, who have put their globe-trotting on hold to settle in London. Night & Day is classic melodic indie-rock with catchy guitar riffs, reminiscent of everything

  • Single Review: Joan As Police Woman – The Ride (Reveal)

    New Yorker Joan Wasser has described her music as "Punk Rock R&B" and "American Soul Music". But her previous work with Rufus Wainwright, Antony and the Johnsons, Lou Reed and Sparklehorse gives a better idea of the style and quality of her own band's

  • Album review: Matthew Herbert – Scale (!K7)

    Even if you thought a sample was what you took the doctors in a little plastic pot, you need this absolute beast of an album. Matthew Herbert has used a vast array of strange sounds - coffins, petrol pumps, meteorites, an RAF Tornado bomber to create

  • Single review: The Answer - Into the Gutter (Albert)

    The Answer play bluesy hard rock like the 90s never happened, drawing heavily on classic British and American bands. Into the Gutter, taken from their forthcoming debut album, Rise, sports layered classic rock riffs lifted straight from 80s Aerosmith

  • Album review: Superqueens – Royal S*** (Supermarket)

    They're probably heartily sick of the comparisons by now, but geographically, musically and lyrically, it's hard to ignore the influence of punk poet John Cooper Clarke on Manchester duo Superqueens. But their second album Royal S***, an affecting,