A COUNCILLOR accused of breaching planning rules said he had been "vindicated" following a decision not to investigate him. Coun Paul Browne was reported to The Standards Board for England by Coun John Smith, chairman of the borough planning committee
FORMER tea rooms on Foulridge Wharf look set to be converted into a cottage after a plan for a canalside tourism centre was scrapped. Plans to convert the dilapidated tearooms and restaurant into housing will go before Pendle Council's Colne and District
ROSSENDALE'S Festival of Remembrance will return on Sunday. The event was a tradition in the Valley on Remembrance Sunday, but last year it was axed. Now council bosses have re-instated the event, which will be staged at Bacup Leisure Hall at 7pm.
A BUSINESSMAN who married in Las Vegas came back with a gambling addiction and spent more than £15,000 on his wife's credit card. Blackburn magistrates heard that Ian Newton, 32, of Bower Close, Mill Hill, Blackburn, visited casinos and gambled on the
ARSONISTS killed 60 racing pigeons by torching an allotment. And Geoffrey Williams said he may now give up on his lifelong love of the sport after the attack on his allotment in Quarry Street, Padiham, at 3am yesterday. The blaze, which destroyed two
A SELF-confessed "booze monster" has gone teetotal in order to help children in a Ribble Valley village. Jacqui Ashton, 43, of Padiham Road, Sabden, is well-known in the village's White Hart pub where she can be regularly seen knocking back her favourite
AN East Lancashire nursery is taking on the giants of the childcare industry in a bid to safeguard its long-term future. Care 4 Kids is an 85-place nursery which was opened in 2001. But now its owners have branched out as a provider of childcare vouchers
A MAN had to be sprayed with CS gas when he became aggressive towards police trying to arrest his wife, a court was told. Blackburn magistrates heard that Michael John Butterworth, 32, struggled violently with officers who had to strike his leg before
BACUP manager Brent Peters picked up the Manager of the Month award for October after watching his side dispose of Atherton LR. The visitors were reduced to ten men early on, when Atherton's Stuart Tulloch deliberately head-butted his former team mate
COLNE'S recent good run came to an unceremonious end in the Tameside Stadium with their heaviest defeat of the season. Yet things could have been so much different had they not squandered a host of chances, and the scoreline certainly didn't reflect
BLACKBURN Rovers manager Mark Hughes staged his own firework display at Villa Park after Rovers suffered more penalty heartache in the Premiership. The irate Rovers boss blew a fuse when referee Howard Webb controversially awarded Aston Villa a first
Burnley manager Steve Cotterill applauded his side's "never-say-die" attitude after seeing them claim all the points with a stoppage time winner against Ipswich. Burnley looked like having to settle for just a draw, despite edging the game on points
ACCRINGTON STANLEY have been drawn away at Doncaster Rovers in the Johnstone's Paint Trophy northern section quarter final. It will be Stanley's first visit to Doncaster since a 1-0 league defeat there in 1961. The game will be played at the Earth
ACCRINGTON Stanley manager John Coleman said he was devastated after his side's third consecutive league defeat. The Reds failed to build on their first half dominance, which sent them into the break a goal up at Peterborough United. Coleman knew their
STEVE Cotterill lavished praise on starlet Chris McCann after his Herculean performance for Burnley against Ipswich Town. The 19-year-old midfielder was used as an emergency centre-half against the Tractor Boys and not only helped his side to keep a
FIREWORKS were always guaranteed this weekend - but few would have expected Chris McCann to light the blue touchpaper. Just over 400 years ago, Guido Fawkes was foiled in his attempts to blow up Parliament in the "Gunpowder Plot". But at Turf Moor,
TWO young women shot a pub manager with a stun gun and stole £1,000 for a shopping trip to the Trafford Centre, a court was told. Nicola Eyre, 20, of Carr Hall Gardens, Barrowford, and Jade Walker, 18, formerly of James Street, Barnoldswick, who had
MORE than 39 tonnes of rubbish have been removed from the streets of Burnley as part of a mass clear-up. There have also been 74 on-the-spot fines worth £75 handed out to people caught dropping litter or not cleaning up after their dog. The council's
A MAN has died after spending six years in a coma following a tragic accident that left him severely brain damaged. Mark Holroyd, 37, of Nelson, died in hospital at 5am last Tuesday morning of pneumonia, the last is a series of bouts that had gradually
FIFTEEN thousand people flocked to Blackburn Rotaract's 25th annual bonfire on Saturday, organisers said. Pub and club boss Margo Grimshaw launched the evening by setting the fireworks off at Witton Park. David Hamer, bonfire co-ordinator for the Blackburn
A FIREFIGHTER who was attacked by a gang of 30 yobs as he tackled a blaze said: "In 15 years, I've never experienced anything like it." Paul McHugh has spoken of his anger after he was set upon while he attended a fire off New Chapel Street in Mill Hill
FLYBE, the airline owned by Blackburn's Walker family, has bought part of British Airways - doubling its passengers from five to 10 million. The firm has reached an agreement with BA to acquire the struggling no-frills BA Connect regional airline business
AN East Lancashire man is flying high after landing a top job with the world-famous Red Arrows aircraft display team. Corporal Pete Targett, 34, from Accrington, has been selected for the prestigious role after spending more than 14 years with the Royal
RAMSBOTTOM carved out an assured victory over basement boys Stone Dominoes at the Riverside Ground. Liam McManus scored after five minutes and Stone conceded again after 23 minutes when Lee Cryer headed into the back of the net. Cryer scored a second
PADIHAM suffered only their second NWCL Division Two defeat of the season when they lost 2-1 to Derbyshire side New Mills. A late Vinny Braine goal robbed Padiham of what would have been a hard fought for point. But what might be more damaging to the
THE Blues stunned their Southern Premier League opponents with a late equaliser to earn a replay in this FA Trophy match - but they left the West Midlands with thoughts of what might have been after a string of good chances. Blues manager Chris Stammers
A DOUBLE substitution turned the game Nelson's way as they recorded their second win of the season against fellow strugglers Abbey Hey at Victoria Park. The visitors were reduced to 10 men on 24 minutes when Craig Doyle was sent off after using his elbow
THE scoreline might not suggest it, but when John Coleman said his side had snatched defeat from the jaws of victory, he couldn't have been more right. Accrington Stanley exploded out of the blocks in the first half and a lacklustre Peterborough could
BLACKBURN Rovers manager Mark Hughes launched a stinging attack on the match officials after Aston Villa were controversially awarded a penalty during Rovers' 2-0 defeat at Villa Park yesterday. Hughes was incensed when referee Howard Webb pointed to
By Sheila Brennan. Once more the rain is falling Everything is dull and drear How we long to feel the sunshine Wishing summer days were here. You will find a shining moment That lifts your spirits high A glimpse of dappled sunlight Birds soaring
I WANTED to let readers know of an idea by the charity Animal Aid, to remember our innocent friends lost in conflict. This year, Animal Aid has issued a purple poppy as a reminder that animals have been victims of war. £1 each. If you would like one
I'VE heard that the campaigners against the new Darwen Leisure Centre want it to be built behind the Access Point, not in Darwen Town Centre. That's a long way from Darwen bus station. have they not thought about us pensioners? What about mums with
IT is high time bosses at East Lancashire Health Trust got to grips with reality. What on earth have novelty socks' got to do with patient care? If I was ill and in need of hospital treatment, the last thought on my mind would be what type of socks
I FIRST met George Hill in the early 1980s. While working as a teacher in a difficult special school in Horwich, he carried out voluntary coaching of swimming and life saving at Darwen Swimming Club. Along with many children in the town, my own children
I NOTICE that there seem to be a number of problems to report at the new Royal Blackburn super hospital: generators don't always work, so operations have to be deferred, the car park needs reorganising, there aren't enough flu jabs for the staff. A couple
Producer and MC Ty quickly made a name for himself as one of the shining stars of UK hip hop, with a Mercury nomination in 2003 to cement his rising fame. Despite all of this acclaim, Closer, the title track from his recent new album, seems to be pretty
Here's a rare thing in these times of black-clad emo-kid clubbers: an electronic dancefloor-filling stomper. Yes Yes Y'all smothers Roxanne Shante's vocals amidst a fat, grinding bassline to create an awesome, heaving track that commands everybody
The Beatific Visions veers all over the unbeaten track of an indie band keen on punky shouting and country twang. Brighton-based Brakes are a new-indie supergroup of sorts, featuring (former) members of British Sea Power and Electric Soft Parade.
Highlights from every phase of the modfather's illustrious career. Starting of course with the heady early days with The Jam, it passes through the '80s hep-cat days with The Style Council and on to Paul's current position of musical deity within the
THEIR third offering isn't dissimilar to predecessors, with traces of cheesy rock heart-throbs from across the decades. It's a melting pot of Beach Boys, Queen and Bon Jovi with a "Noughties" edge. Transylvania has a West End ambience, while Star
Zinedine Zidane is an enigmatic man. Mogwai are an enigmatic band. Who else could soundtrack a movie glued to the footballing legend's on-pitch talent? Mogwai's last album Mr Beast got a lukewarm reception for being good, but not particularly challenging
GIVEN Moby's tendency to move from one musical genre to another for each album, it's surprising that this best of could still pass as a consistent album on its own merit. That aside, these are the musician's finest moments all on one CD, with none
Punk-rockers The Bronx released a decent second long-player earlier this year. This is far and away the worst song on the album. White Guilt begins with a horrible riff and continues with a poppy sound that borders on 80s soft rock. It's no surprise
This Merseyside band has managed to make some crazy, beautiful music that's almost as smart as their clever-clever name. World of Fashion gathers wailed, strained male vocals around a repeated guitar riff to form a rolling, heaving, psychedelic clump
