I'M SURE we've been called worse by some of our detractors, but I thought "despicable" was a tad unfair. After all, when we launched our Pay And Dismay campaign against the proposed startling rise in car parking charges in Bournemouth, it was a reaction
CYCLING on Bournemouth's prom could be legalised for good. Councillors will tomorrow debate the trial scheme which has seen cyclists allowed on the seafront since last May. A report says 57 per cent of people questioned backed cycling on the seafront,
BATTLE-lines are being re-drawn over controversial plans to open a trendy late-night pub a stone's throw from Christchurch Priory. A public hearing is to be held into the borough council's refusal to allow the creation of a 500-plus capacity Toad nightspot
TEACHERS can help help their pupils' multi-cultural education, thanks to a new van purchased by Development Education in Dorset. The educational team, called DEED for short, now have a van to take resources, such as musical instruments and artefacts from
THREE students from the New Forest netted a great victory when they were challenged to dream up and stage a one-off event for local children. And the creative teenagers from Arnewood School in New Milton scored a hat-trick of successes. The tactics came
DEARIE me, it's fast becoming that time again, isn't it? Far be it from me to tinkle on anyone's parade or anything, but this whole Christmas malarkey has got to stop. While all the big computer corporations and chainstores are rubbing their hands with
NICE try Martin, but your breakfast didn't quite do the trick this time as Wimborne Town tumbled out of the FA Vase at the hands of Lancastrian visitors Clitheroe. Despite superstitiously munching at the Old Bakehouse on Saturday morning, two Lee Cryer
RACING driver Win Percy is gearing up for yet another season of thrills and spills behind the wheel. The Weymouth-based speed-king kicks off his 38th consecutive campaign with a trip to the world famous Daytona race track in America next month. It's the
NEW Forest District Council is making it easier for the elderly and disabled to apply for concessionary travel on public transport. As from June 1 pensioners and the disabled will be able to apply for a free farepass which will entitle them to half-price
THE cost of dealing with recent flood damage on Dorset's roads could be more than half a million pounds. But Dorset County Council has only allocated £59,000 in its budget to deal with highway emergencies. A report today says the floods have already cost
AN ALERT was today issued after a drug addict was caught injecting herself in the toilets of a Weymouth charity shop. Police have now warned other shops to be on their guard after it was revealed how some addicts use the toilets because they think they
British and Greek police hunting the terror gang which murdered a Dorset army officer in Athens are making good progress, Foreign Office minister John Battle said today. Forensic scientists in London have been analysing a note released by the November
THE latest crime figures in Dorchester are disappointing, but there's no reason to despair, the town's police chief said today. Incidents of disorder caused by alcohol and drugs have increased for the first time this year, which has generally seen a downward
TALENTED Weymouth College theatre students are getting set to dazzle audiences in a re-creation of the greatest story ever told. Budding actors in the theatre group Pants Trium-fant are preparing to make their mark on the crowds when they perform John
PORTS in Dorset have scooped more than £140,000 of Government cash to fund essential safety projects. A tidal defence scheme at Weymouth, designed to protect homes and businesses from the sea, and a harbour improvement project at West Bay are set to benefit
WEYMOUTH made a slight dent in Burton Albion's promotion hopes with a fully deserved point against the Dr Martens Premier Division leaders at the Wessex Stadium. But it could have been a lot worse for the Brewers had the depleted Terras made the most
WHEN organic farmers Sara and Andrew Cross started out in 1987 they had just a quarter of an acre of crops and one polytunnel. "We were producing just six boxes of organic veg for customers a week - we were earning less money then if we had claimed unemployment
FIRMS can find out how to Unlock Your Profit Potential at the latest Focus IT and Business Club this week. Members will be meeting on Wednesday at the Marsham Court Hotel, Bournemouth from 2pm to 5.30pm. The guest speaker will be Michael Ogilvie, a UK
WIMBORNE Town manager Alex Pike admitted he had no complaints after watching his side crash out of the FA Vase 4-2 to Clitheroe, reports Karenza Morton. Pike's men wasted several gilt-edged opportunities to put Wimborne into the last 16 before a Lee Cryer
DORSET's new Learning and Skills Council chief Graham Yates has urged local businesses: "Help us to identify your training needs." LSC chairman elect Mr Yates outlined the potential benefits to business and the local economy of the government shake-up
MANY consumers across Dorset and Hampshire are now spending more than they earn, warn experts. Windfalls and millennium bonuses have masked the threat of mounting debts, reveals a study by Ernst & Young. "Spending has overtaken disposable income as
BATTLE-lines are being re-drawn over controversial plans to open a trendy late-night pub a stone's throw from Christchurch Priory. A public hearing is to be held into the borough council's refusal to allow the creation of a 500-plus capacity Toad nightspot
POOLE co-promoter Matt Ford has hit back hard at those fans who have criticised the club for replacing Mark Loram with Tony Rickardsson. The Daily Echo Pirates Postbag has, over the past 10 days, included letters from supporters who have threatened not
A MIDDLE-aged man has died after fire swept through a bedsit in Bournemouth yesterday morning. Firefighters tried to rescue the 49-year-old man who lived in a block of flats in Portchester Road, Charminster but he was pronounced dead at the scene. Neighbours
AS BOURNEMOUTH School celebrates its 100th birthday today teachers and their 1,000 pupils have begun experimenting with state-of-the-art computer facilities and an internet video-link with schools here and abroad. It's a stark contrast to the school's
PUPILS across Dorset and Hampshire look set to benefit from a £80m injection from the government to rebuild crumbling and sub-standard school buildings. The cash comes in the wake of research, which claims a link between well-maintained and well-equipped
DEARIE me, it's fast becoming that time again, isn't it? Far be it from me to tinkle on anyone's parade or anything, but this whole Christmas malarkey has got to stop. While all the big computer corporations and chainstores are rubbing their hands with
Bishop Sutton 2 Bridport 2 BRIDPORT snatched a scrappy game out of the fire with two late goals from man-of-the-moment Peter Knox. Deep into the second-half they trailed 2-0 to a home side that had only won two Screwfix Direct Premier Division games all
A drunken Accident and Emergency patient who violently assaulted three terrified nurses has been placed under the guardianship of the Borough of Poole. Gary Hill, who suffers serious learning difficulties, narrowly escaped jail after a judge ruled the
JERMAIN Defoe's bid to break a post-war Foot-ball League goalscoring record could be helped by a goalkeeping crisis at Cambridge United. Defoe heads for the Abbey Stadium tomorrow looking to make history by scoring in his 10th consecutive league game
LYMINGTON and New Milton boss Derek Binns has expressed his disappointment that the Wessex League has no representatives in the fifth round of the FA Vase, reports Karenza Morton. Binns' side crashed out of the competition at the last phase to unfancied
WEYMOUTH and Dorchester Taekwon-do instructor Nick Bale, left, congratulates Campbell Houston, right, who was one of only seven students to receive a credit pass at the recent national black belt grading ceremony. Jackson Turner, centre, picked up a distinction
JEHOVAH'S Witnesses have hit back at claims their members are using pressure tactics against vulnerable elderly people. Three Legged Cross resident Fred Spencer said he receives many complaints of alleged harassing techniques by the organisation. "Some
DORCHESTER fell further behind with their Dr Martens Premier Division fixtures - and lost ground on several of other relegation-fighters who picked up points - when their fixture at Margate was called off on Saturday. Snow and ice covering the Kent club's
POLICE are on the trail of a New Forest car criminal after a trio of vehicles were targeted during night-time thefts in the Lymington area. A Dell laptop computer worth £2,000, plus an Ericson mobile phone and Samsonite case, were stolen from a silver
WEYMOUTH hockey star Chris Standing was saved by an opponent after swallowing his tongue during a crucial cup-tie yesterday. Centre-half Chris, a teacher at St Andrew's Primary School, Preston, was playing for Weymouth Hockey Club against the Royal Signals
A PLAN for about 700 houses on the edge of a Dorset village has come under fire following fears it could ruin the quality of life in a rural community. A proposal to build a housing estate and community facilities on the site of the former quarries at
A DORCHESTER nurse is jetting off on a transatlantic adventure after being selected from hopefuls across the South West. Lorraine Sers, 33, from Preston, who works on the Churchill Ward of Dorset County Hospital in Dorchester, is set to spend a month
THE number of people killed off the Dorset coast has dropped, despite a surge in the number of emergencies dealt with by coastguards. New figures show six deaths in the Portland Coastguard district last year, compared with 16 in 1999. But rescuers faced
THE promotional blurb describes him as one of the last of the living giants of the music industry. Past initiates of this top drawer club include Frank Sinatra, Bing Crosby, Sammy Davis Jr and Dean Martin. And after a performance at the BIC plucked from
CHIEF Executive Tom Grainger is warning councillors that most people will not be interested in this Thursday's crucial debate on the future structure of Weymouth and Portland Borough Council. The special Guildhall meeting will discuss putting four options
OIL giant BP Amoco has now revealed it will continue production from Furzey Island in the heart of Poole harbour - possibly for up to 10 more years. This reverses the company's position of just a year ago when it was expecting drilling from the island
THE call for a referendum on the future of Portland Town Council may be in abeyance at present, but it will be brought up again at the annual parish meeting in May. Honorary Alderman and former town and borough councillor Alan Martindale said: "Many people
A SIXTY-nine-year-old biker is setting off from Dorchester on a round-the-world trip. Author Ted Simon is to retrace an epic 78,000-mile motorbike adventure he made in 1973 that resulted in a best-selling book. He will be riding a customised bike specially
THEY'RE a humble lot those journalists from Burton. After watching their table-topping side take a point off Weymouth at the Wessex Stadium, the Derbyshire-based hacks were full of praise for the Terras. "They're by far the best team Burton Albion have
THIS year's big Mayflower Theatre pantomime Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, which finished its month-long run yesterday, took more than £1 million at the box office. With nearly 75,000 tickets, the show, which starred Lily Savage as the Wicked Queen,
THE cost of dealing with recent flood damage on Dorset's roads could be more than half a million pounds. But Dorset County Council has only allocated £59,000 in its budget to deal with highway emergencies. A report today says the floods have already cost
POOLE co-promoter Matt Ford has hit back hard at those fans who have criticised the club for replacing Mark Loram with Tony Rickardsson. The Daily Echo Pirates Postbag has, over the past 10 days, included letters from supporters who have threatened not
A POIGNANT notice will appear in the Echo on Saturday, telling Michelle Hamblin's dead partner of the son he never knew. A year ago Michelle - just 13 weeks pregnant - had to take the agonising decision to switch off the machine which was keeping her
A drunken Accident and Emergency patient who violently assaulted three terrified nurses has been placed under the guardianship of the Borough of Poole. Gary Hill, who suffers serious learning difficulties, narrowly escaped jail after a judge ruled the
HAMPSHIRE'S Justin Rose came agonisingly close to a first European Tour victory after a thrilling duel with fellow rising star Adam Scott in the Alfred Dunhill Championship in Johannesburg, South Africa. Rose carded a final-round 69 to finish 20-under-par
TIM Henman was left scratching his head for an answer after coming off a poor second to Pat Rafter in their Australian Open clash in Melbourne. Rafter, seeded 12th against Henman's eighth, kept the home flag flying at the first Grand Slam of the year
THREE men accused of assaulting a group of youths with a claw hammer, screwdriver and metal bar in a "retribution" attack have denied the allegations before a crown court jury. Brothers Jeremy and Matthew Warren say they were acting in self-defence after
