Archive

  • Lee's late show steals limelight

    FORMER Bashley footballer Lee Naylor netted a week's golfing holiday in the Algarve after winning the Daily Echo's Sunshine Challenge match play final at East Dorset on Monday September 17. The 15-handicapper from the Isle of Purbeck pipped Tim Sholem

  • Ex-newsman opposed to reprisals

    A former ITN war correspondent and veteran of Middle East reporting has spoken out against possible military reprisals for last week's terrorist attacks. As US forces prepare to retaliate for what President Bush branded an "act of war", Keith Hatfield

  • 'OBSESSION'

    A WOMAN stole £47,750 from her employers to fund her obsessions with Cliff Richard and Daniel O'Donnell. Sara-Jane Samways, 41, splashed out to watch her idols, buy souvenirs and book into top hotels. Yesterday at Bournemouth Crown Court she admitted

  • Sell-off warning in facelift project

    SUBSTANTIAL public assets would have to be sold off if ambitious plans to regenerate Bournemouth with help from the government founder, a report has warned. The council is seeking a private finance initiative (PFI) to enable the £40 million refurbishment

  • Man not guilty of starting flats fire

    A CHARITY shop worker with learning difficulties has been cleared of arson by a jury at Bournemouth Crown Court. Kevin Joliffe, 36, of Ashley Road, Poole, was accused of arson being reckless as to whether life was endangered, following a fire in the early

  • Charity ride takes in three canyons

    FINANCIAL consultant David Wilkinson will swap figures for fitness when he embarks on a marathon sponsored cycle later this month. The 50-year-old of Holdenhurst Avenue, Bournemouth, will take in the Grand Canyon during a 300-mile ride which must be completed

  • Proposal for residents to run beach facilities

    RESIDENTS and beach hut owners will be asked if they want to take on responsibility for running public toilets at Burlington Chine, Swanage. The proposal is one of a number of ideas being considered by civic chiefs, who are faced with a £30,000 bill to

  • Volunteers' clean sweep to protect beachfront wildlife

    More than 12 plastic sacks containing sweet wrappers, drinks cans and even a tyre were picked up from the beach off Lake Drive in Hamworthy by a group of volunteers. Around 30 schoolchildren, council workers and marine experts joined together to both

  • Sponsors continue to support BFA

    M A HART Asphalt and Macadam Contractors are to continue their sponsorship of the Bournemouth FA's cup competitions, and Priory Sports will also continue the Fair Play Award, the local FA announced this week. Also, from this year, Key Industrial Equipment

  • Priory anger at Lee 'cash lure' claim

    CHRISTCHURCH assistant manager Ian Bradley and Wimborne boss Alex Pike were yesterday locked in a bitter war of words over more accusations of 'player poaching'. Magpies' boss Pike says Bradley has offered striker Lee Manning a cash incentive to move

  • Badgers boss on defensive

    BROCKENHURST boss Chris Collinge has warned his side must tighten up in defence or face an FA cup exit at Bedfont tonight. The Badgers were just 60 seconds away from going out at Grigg Lane on Saturday before Alex Rossi scored to make it 3-3 and earn

  • Zorro covets Poole return

    PIRATES star Magnus Zetterstrom today admitted he hoped the club's fans would keep their fingers crossed that he will be back at Wimborne Road again next season. The 29-year-old Swedish showman has returned across the North Sea to his homeland for the

  • Middleton set to play despite injury scare

    RICHARD Middleton is included in the Bridport squad for tonight's Screwfix Direct Premier Division game at Odd Down despite an injury scare on Saturday. The 26-year-old midfield player was injured during the second-half of Saturday's 5-0 home defeat against

  • Bill and Bob the medical men

    TWO of football's most experienced physiotherapists came face to face at the Wessex Stadium on Saturday when Weymouth entertained Cambridge City, writes Paul Baker. Popular Terras stalwart Bob Lucas, 77, pictured right, was joined on the sidelines by

  • WEYMOUTH OUT TO RECLAIM TOP SPOT

    WEYMOUTH will be out to reclaim top spot in the Dr Martens Premier Division when they travel to Bath City tonight, kick-off 7.45pm. The Terras short reign as leaders came to an end last night when Crawley Town beat Cambridge City 1-0 at Milton Road. "

  • Caretaker Preston under no illusions

    NICK Preston is hoping to kick-off his reign as Portland United's caretaker manager with victory over Bournemouth Poppies at Grove Corner tonight, kick off 7.45pm. The former Dorchester and Weymouth star takes over from number one Matt McGowan, who today

  • 'I can't write music since terror attack'

    VETERAN bandleader James Last says he hasn't been able to write music for days following the terrorist attacks on New York and Washington. The 72-year-old German-born musician is currently preparing for a new UK tour which brings his perennially-popular

  • Concorde date for top jazzman Coulber

    DUNSTAN Coulber, winner of the Perrier Young Jazz Musician of the Year 2000, arrives at the Concorde Club near Eastleigh tomorrow night, when he brings the melodic swinging sounds of his quartet to the club's International Jazz Night. This year has seen

  • Nursery parents mourn boy, 3

    A THREE-YEAR-OLD boy died hours after he was taken ill in the classroom of his Weymouth nursery school. Little Jack Hardy became unwell soon after the start of the morning session at Wyke Regis Infant School's nursery. He was rushed to hospital in Dorchester

  • Review: Outstanding Requiem that reflected world in mourning

    Grange Choral Society, Christchurch Priory IN VIEW of the devastating events in the United States of America last Tuesday, the coincidental inclusion of Faure's Requiem in the Grange Choral Society's concert was entirely apposite. The first half of the

  • Hardy player will steal the show

    MEMORIES from 77 years ago came flooding back for the last surviving cast member of Thomas Hardy's Tess of the D'Urbervilles - when she met the girl who will play her role in a 2001 production. Norrie Woodhall, 95, who played Tess's sister Liza Lu in

  • Plaque tribute to Roland's efforts

    A NATIONAL charity has recognised the fundraising efforts of a Dorset man by presenting him with a plaque. Major Roland Dangerfield, 31, of Alton Pancras, near Dorchester, raised £4,600 for the British Heart Foundation by running the London Marathon earlier

  • Vikings in village invasion

    A DORSET village was invaded by Vikings - but there was no need to panic. Key stage II youngsters from all four village sites of Dunbury School staged a Viking Day at the school's Winterborne Whitechurch site as part of their studies into the Norsemen

  • Groups get their fayre share

    GROUPS and voluntary organisations from across Dorset received a share of £9,000 proceeds from Blandford Georgian Fayre. More than 25 groups accepted their cheques in a special ceremony in the Sealy Suite at the Crown Hotel, Blandford, attended by around

  • Zorro covets Poole return

    PIRATES star Magnus Zetterstrom today admitted he hoped the club's fans would keep their fingers crossed that he will be back at Wimborne Road again next season. The 29-year-old Swedish showman has returned across the North Sea to his homeland for the

  • Interest rate is cut again

    THE Bank of England today announced a 0.25per cent cut in interest rates, bringing the cost of borrowing to 4.75per cent. The move follows a 0.5per cent cut in the US rate yesterday. The US Federal Reserve's lead was followed by the European Central Bank

  • Business boost for town hotels

    HOTELIERS across the Bournemouth area are set to gain extra business from a series of conferences won by the BIC. The peak holiday season may be almost over but the BIC and Pavilion are continuing to attract more visitors to the town with new business

  • One-stop on move

    ONE Stop Car Shop is selling off its Bournemouth outlet after sourcing new larger premises at Verwood through commercial property consultants Sibbett Gregory. As reported in the Echo, UK car search and acquisition firm One Stop Car Shop has moved to 22

  • Fantasist fraudster jailed

    A CAB driver who passed himself off as a top businessman providing multi-billion dollar loans was a bankrupt fantasist who ran the bogus operation from the dining room of his Christchurch home. Fraudster Peter Gellatly lived the extravagant existence

  • Fantasist fraudster jailed

    A CAB driver who passed himself off as a top businessman providing multi-billion dollar loans was a bankrupt fantasist who ran the bogus operation from the dining room of his Christchurch home. Fraudster Peter Gellatly lived the extravagant existence

  • Let us prey

    THEY spend their days nursing sick or injured birds back to health but now Terri and Jon Hall need help. Four months ago the couple from Canford Heath set up Wessex Birds of Prey Rescue at their home in Kelly Close. As one of just two specialised centres

  • Parents in heart unit campaign

    PARENTS of young heart patients have launched a campaign to head off any threat of closure for Southampton's paediatric cardiac unit. They fear that a national review being carried out in the wake of the Bristol heart scandal could result in the number

  • Council looks to extend snack shop tidy-up rule

    BOSCOMBE residents concerned at the amount of litter from cafes and take-aways will be invited to meet ward councillors and council chiefs to try and solve the problem. A petition signed by more than 600 residents has already been given to Bournemouth

  • CVs at the ready as job fair opens

    JOBSEEKERS have just 24 hours left to prepare their CVs ahead of the Daily Echo Recruitment 2001 jobs fair which starts tomorrow. Hundreds of careers will be on offer at Recruitment 2001 which is co-sponsored by Barclays Bank. The jobs fair will take

  • Woman stole £47,750 to follow her idols

    A WOMAN stole £47,750 from her employers to fund her obsessions with Cliff Richard and Daniel O'Donnell. Sara-Jane Samways, 41, splashed out to watch her idols, buy souvenirs and book into top hotels. On Monday at Bournemouth Crown Court she admitted

  • Lee's late show steals limelight

    FORMER Bashley footballer Lee Naylor netted a week's golfing holiday in the Algarve after winning the Daily Echo's Sunshine Challenge match play final at East Dorset yesterday. The 15-handicapper from the Isle of Purbeck pipped Tim Sholem (Crane Valley

  • Hilling edges out duo for trophy glory

    THE sun shone throughout and the Parkstone course was in glorious condition for the 14th Robson Cotterell Golf Day - but the tricky wind proved a great leveller. Half the field finished within five strokes of the winner, and the top three players all

  • Priory anger at Lee 'cash lure' claim

    CHRISTCHURCH assistant manager Ian Bradley and Wimborne boss Alex Pike were yesterday locked in a bitter war of words over more accusations of 'player poaching'. Magpies' boss Pike says Bradley has offered striker Lee Manning a cash incentive to move

  • Marconi rescue plan meeting

    STAFF at Marconi in Poole are being invited to a "beer and sandwiches" meeting to talk about a possible rescue plan with a group of shareholders next week. The Marconi Share-holders Association believes the research and development site in Wallisdown

  • Cannabis seized

    Cannabis resin worth £250,000 has been seized by Customs officers at Poole port. The drugs were found hidden amongst a consignment of onions in an unaccompanied trailer on the Barfleur ferry. Officers at Poole discovered the 72 kilos of cannabis in two

  • Man not guilty of starting flats fire

    A CHARITY shop worker with learning difficulties has been cleared of arson by a jury at Bournemouth Crown Court. Kevin Joliffe, 36, of Ashley Road, Poole, was accused of arson being reckless as to whether life was endangered, following a fire in the early

  • Council off the hook on land deal

    TAXPAYERS were not ripped off by council blunders in a multi-million pound redevelopment deal, an internal investigation has decided - but not without reservations. An alliance of seven residents' associations had accused Poole council of being "taken

  • WEYMOUTH OUT RECLAIM TOP SPOT

    WEYMOUTH will be out to reclaim top spot in the Dr Martens Premier Division when they travel to Bath City tonight, kick-off 7.45pm. The Terras short reign as leaders came to an end last night when Crawley Town beat Cambridge City 1-0 at Milton Road. "

  • Girl's nightmare walk to school

    MOTHER Lorraine Bunting fears her daughter's life is in danger on a nightmare walk to school in West Dorset after her free bus pass was axed. Eight-year-old Hannah Bunting faces a daily walk over a notorious railway crossing and through dark country lanes

  • Vandals in attack on holiday coach

    PASSENGERS watched in terror as a gang of yobs dropped objects on to the roof of their holiday coach. The coach was travelling from Worcester to Weymouth when teenage thugs attacked it in Dorchester. Holidaymakers saw a gang of three children hurling

  • Pupils get a taste of life before the mast

    STAR Weymouth school pupils went to sea for the day on board tall ship the Astrid. The trip by the Year 10 pupils, aged 14 and 15, was part of a scheme to increase community involvement in the Astrid's return visit to Weymouth. It was organised by Weymouth

  • Home buyers shunning the countryside

    PEOPLE moving to West Dorset are ignoring the area's rural charm in favour of better facilities on offer in built-up areas such as Weymouth and Dorchester town centres. People buying property in the area for the first time, and those moving within the

  • Ace play for school

    GOLFERS in Weymouth clubbed together to raise funds to buy sensory equipment for children at Weymouth's Wyvern School. Members of the Weymouth Hoteliers' Golfing Society dug deep and collected £1,700 which was donated to the school to spend on special

  • Parking bid to ease Marsh traffic chaos

    SPECIAL parking restrictions could be brought in to combat gridlock traffic conditions during major events at Weymouth's Marsh playing fields. Vehicles generally park or move smoothly through Knightsdale Road, but members of tomorrow's Weymouth and Portland

  • County town's winners in the picture

    CHILDREN had a chance to show off their artistic and literary abilities in a competition in Dorset's county town. Youngsters aged up to 10 were asked to colour in a dragon's mask in the Dorchester arm of a national competition, centred around the theme

  • Holt, who goes there? An otter!

    TO LET: newly-built, single-storey thatched dwelling, several bedrooms, secluded riverside location on edge of New Forest. Those are the particulars of a special des res which has just been built near Ringwood - for otters. Volunteers working under the

  • Review: Foam balls, French cast and manic musketeers

    The Three Musketeers, All Saints Dramatic Society, De La Salle Theatre, Southbourne WHEN Alexander Dumas penned his classic novel I doubt if he had the remotest idea that it would eventually become a manic stage comedy. Quite what he would have made of

  • Court bid to clear beauty spot camp

    A COURT order is being sought to evict a group of travellers from a popular beauty spot. North Dorset District Council is hoping to go before Yeovil County Court later this month to seek the eviction order to remove an encampment of travellers on St James