PARENT power has helped to save a popular after-school club, which was set to close its doors today. Shocked parents organised a petition to protest at the sudden closure of the Blue Dragon Club and the Dragon's Nest at Old Town First School in Green
PLANS for a multi-million pound sea defence system to protect Bournemouth and Poole's beaches from erosion have been outlined. Options including rock groynes, timber groynes and offshore breakwaters have been investigated as Bournemouth, Poole and Purbeck
THE Matrix Reloaded ended on a tantalising cliff-hanger which is speedily resolved at the beginning of this third film. Plot details are scarce - and there are no advance screenings for the press until early next week - but the final instalment of the
WHEN Tobe Hooper made his seminal slasher The Texas Chainsaw Massacre way back in 1974, his budget was miniscule, not even stretching to $150,000. What the film lacked in finance, it more than made up for with invention and splatter. Unfortunately, the
Eleven-year-old Pip, spending summer on a beach, watches her mother Ophelie grieve over the loss of her husband and son. Pip befriends painter Matt who offers to teach her to draw, creating problems when Ophelie finds out. Eventually a friendship evolves
SAMUEL'S Bay is the main setting in Athene Brown's early life. Her father disappears when she is seven, along with all the fish in the bay. She stays with the three remaining old men who live in the bay. After they've gone she leaves and sets out unknowingly
JUST three minutes help is all frail war pensioner Ron Newton is entitled to receive. The 81-year-old, newly discharged from Poole Hospital's high dependency unit, has had his personal home care cut. Social services chiefs say Mr Newton, who suffers from
SERVICEMEN and women from Dorset and Hampshire are well represented among those being honoured today for their courage during the recent hostilities in Iraq. Poole Royal Marine Gareth Thomas, serving with D-company 40 Commando, has been given the Military
IT is not unusual for staff to be coming and going from the Daily Echo's head office in Bournemouth at strange times. I have been here in the early hours a number of times myself, but have to confess I have never seen anything of the ghosts that are said
A CLAY pigeon shooting school in Purbeck has come under fire from local residents complaining about noise. Purbeck Shooting School near Bere Regis has been given until the end of next January to finish work on installing three large earth bunds to help
SIGOURNEY Weaver, Jon Voight and Tim Blake Nelson add the steadying adult hands to this excellent family film that seems to understand what it is to be a kid. When Stanley (Shia LaBoeuf) is falsely accused of a stealing a donation of shoes to the local
Thirteen-year-old Rice, having lost her mother, washes up at a Bournemouth hotel, The Water's Edge. Here she grows up with her Mum's old friend Beatrice and her daughter Esther, eventually discovering her own identity and that her relationship with the
Bournemouth's cycle-cross champion Stuart Bowers takes on the country's top riders again in the third round of the National Trophy series at Ipswich on Sunday (2 Nov). The Hargroves Cycles RT man warmed up for the event with a double success in the Purbecks
BRIDPORT kick off a new era both on and off the pitch tomorrow when Paulton Rovers are the visitors in the Screwfix Direct Premier Division (kick-off 3pm). The new management team of Bob Russell, Kevin Leigh and John Godbold are looking forward to their
PETE Conning admits he cannot wait to take his bow as Portland United's new manager tomorrow. The former Terras favourite, who quit the Bridport hot seat last weekend, begins his reign with a trip to Blackfield and Langley (3pm). "I just can't wait to
THE final chapter in the eventful history of the Topsy Ann motor launch was written on Tuesday when the profits from her sale were presented to three maritime organisations. Cheques for £2,700 were handed to the Bridport Sea Cadets and the West Bay Sea
RENEWED calls for a multi-storey car park in the centre of Bridport this week sparked a fresh row over how to tackle the towns growing traffic problems. Councillor Roger Stoodley has suggested adding a second level to the car park behind Somerfield supermarket
PLANS to demolish West Bay's Harbour Garage to make way for a major new housing development have been welcomed by town councillors. The project will see three terrace houses, two commercial units and a block of 12 flats built on the prime site. Two of
SOMERFIELD is investing more than a million pounds in its Bridport store creating 15 new jobs. The refurbishments are part of a £70 million nationwide investment programme and will include complete redecoration and extra lighting. The store also plans
PACKAGE holiday bookings for next summer are 30 per cent down as consumers face a hike in prices of nearly 20 per cent. Last year, the early-booking market for summer 2003 was boosted by cut-price deals following the events of September 11 the year before
PIRATES chief Matt Ford hopes their 2003 treble-winning team will go down in folklore as much as the club's much-loved pioneering 1969 British League champions. It may be 34 years on since Poole's first top-flight success, but the older members of the
EAST Dorset councillors have objected to county council plans to place a controversial waste treatment facility near residents in Ferndown. Various sites in the vicinity of Ferndown Industrial Estate have been identified in the Waste Local Plan to install
TAX RISES in Weymouth and Portland next year will be below 10 per cent. That's the promise of councillors who met last night to discuss the borough's financial strategy for the coming year. Councillors also pledged to carry out public consultations on
PSYCHIATRIC nurse Hettie Harrower is set to take on the Sahara desert to help cancer sufferers. She plans to trek 100 kilometres in scorching heat to raise money for the charity Macmillan Cancer Relief and will be packing one surprising item in her rucksack
PENSIONERS who appealed in the Echo for help have been thrown a lifeline. Elderly members of a social club based at the Beachview Centre at Wyke Regis, Weymouth, are delighted after volunteer drivers stepped forward to take the wheel of their new minibus
TWO leading Dorset cancer charities are in discussions which could see them merge. The trustees of Cancer-Care Dorset and the Joseph Weld and Trimar Hospice Trust confirmed today that they have been discussing how the two organisations may work more closely
VOLUNTEER gardeners are digging for success after getting a new image. Members of the Dorchester Volunteer Bureau garden help scheme are now decked out in a set of matching polo shirts. The group of 15 members made the move to promote themselves as they
DORSET County Museum is throwing open its doors on Sunday to offer visitors a day of free activities The Dorchester attraction will be opening up for free to give people an insight into what it has to offer. Museum Director Judy Lindsay said: "We want
BEN the collie just hates litter - and he's on a mission to clean up the town. Owner Clive Pedley, 69, and Benjamin, three, from Meadow Court, Bridport, walk out on Askers Meadow three times a day and Ben spends his time picking up the litter and putting
PLANS to demolish West Bay's Harbour Garage to make way for a major new housing development were welcomed by town councillors this week. The project will see three terraced houses, two commercial units and a block of 12 flats built on the prime site.
RENEWED calls for a multi-storey car park in the centre of Bridport sparked fresh controversy over how to tackle the town's growing traffic problems this week. The suggestion to add a second level to the car park behind Somerfield Supermarket came from
MP ROBERT Walter has vowed to fight on against wind farms being built in his North Dorset constituency after crossing swords with a minister in Parliament. Mr Walter secured an adjournment debate in the House of Commons where he spoke out against the
PLENTY of women in Lyme Regis would jump at the chance of cleaning a bus shelter for £25, town councillor Nigel Clarke assured the council on Wednesday. "After all, it's just a shelter, not rocket science" he said. Coun Clarke made the suggestion while
MANAGER Sean O'Driscoll's wafer-thin Cherries squad could be further stretched by a flu bug which is threatening to hit the camp. Defender Shaun Maher and midfielder Brian Stock became the latest victims of the mini-outbreak and have both been laid low
RECEIVING a police letter telling you your son has been caught under-age drinking is a nasty surprise for any parent. But for William Davies it was a real shock. Mr Davies, 71, and wife Kathleen were stunned when a letter from Dorset Police's Gravel Hill
TRAFFIC chaos is on the cards because of plans to dig up Bournemouth's Wessex Way during the daytime after Christmas. Bournemouth council is about to start the second phase of a £2.1 million maintenance project on the busy A338. At first work will be
A KNEE and a hip - it doesn't take a surgeon to decipher which one is which but at the Royal Bournemouth Hospital there appears to be some confusion. When Poole pensioner Stefan Munster was admitted for surgery at the hospital he was certain he would
THE PURBECK FILM FESTIVAL showing movie classics and favourites at a variety of venues closes tonight. Here's the final day's programme. 3pm, Matilda (U), St Martins Community Hall, Broadmayne. Slick film version of Roald Dahl's blackly comic children's
THE Daily Echo Film Club in conjunction with UCI offers Echo readers the chance to enjoy top movies at a cut price every week at UCI. Membership is free to every Echo reader who applies and includes: Two tickets for the price of one on a selected film
BASED on a true story, this little charmer of a movie provides something of an antidote for all those tender souls whose sensibilities are reeling from the onslaught of blood and gore emanating from cinema screens over the last couple of weeks. Former
THE Rugby Football Union's fixture computer has thrown up two games this weekend that could go a long way to deciding the destination of the Powergen Southern Counties South championship trophy. League leaders Tadley visit third place Ivel Barbarians
THERE'S a role reversal for Dorset Premier League newcomers Dorchester United who find themselves in the position of favourites when they travel to Cranborne tomorrow to take on the Dorset Senior League side in the second round of the Dorset Senior Cup
DORCHESTER Reserves boss Phil Simkin admits he does not know quite what to expect when unpredictable Cobham Sports visit the Avenue Stadium in the Dorset Premier League tomorrow. "They're in the bottom half of the table, but they have pulled off several
MAGPIES hot-shot Justin Keeler is expected to return to the starting line-up as Dorchester break new ground with an FA Trophy trip to Leyton in London's East End tomorrow. Top scorer Keeler injured a groin in the Magpies' Two Counties Cup success at the
STEVE Claridge says Weymouth's FA Trophy home clash with Merthyr Tydfil is 'huge' for the club. The Terras boss believes his side's early FA Cup exit means it is vital they overcome the Welshmen in the first round tomorrow, kick-off 3pm. The player manager
EXPLOSIVE Joseph Harvey may have thrown his last punch for Weymouth Amateur Boxing Club. But what a punch it was as the big-hitting heavyweight knocked out Terry Hines from Cambourne and Redruth at the ABA Southern Area Novices Championships in Bideford
DORCHESTER FC director Keith Miller has stood down as the club's vice-chairman because of work commitments. But he is remaining as an associate member of the Magpies board and will continue to work behind the scenes with special responsibilities for the
EMOTIONS are running high in Eype since the new owner of Eype Down has applied to put up fences around what villagers have come to think of as their common land. Mrs Denise Mathews bought the 63 acres last September and wants to put the land into a Countryside
A STARTER homes development at Bridport is being opposed by town councillors. An application to demolish Millbrook and The Hair House in East Road and build 11 two-bedroom flats was condemned as "over development" by members of the plans committee on
TWO Bridport neighbours have been jailed after a police officer was kicked during a row. Weymouth magistrates sentenced Brian Michael Ferguson, 37, of Dr Roberts Close, Bridport, to four months in prison after he pleaded guilty to assaulting PC Alan Iveson
A GOVERNMENT Inspector has decided a footpath in West Bay missing from the definitive map is to be put back on it. Mr Peter Millman heard evidence at a public inquiry in September that the footpath that is supposed to run through the garden of 176 West
PIRATES chief Matt Ford hopes their 2003 treble-winning team will go down in folklore as much as the club's much-loved pioneering 1969 British League champions. It may be 34 years on since Poole's first top-flight success, but the older members of the
CAR park charges are set to soar again. Weymouth and Portland Borough Council is set to hike some charges by 100 per cent in a move that would net £200,000. Visitors to the resort look set to be hit the hardest as council chiefs focus on generating extra
POLICE have cracked a Weymouth-Guernsey drugs ring. More than 20 CID and uniformed officers from Weymouth were involved in an operation carried out in co-operation with Customs and Excise and police in the Channel Islands. A significant amount of drugs
ARMED SERVICEMEN across Dorset have been honoured for their part in the war in Iraq. They include four soldiers from Bovington Camp, a Royal Naval Commander and a Royal Marine, both from Dorchester. Corporal Carl Victor Lewin of the Queen's Royal Lancers
Stefan Savic will not be visiting Weymouth today as originally planned. A spokeswoman for Great Ormond Street Hospital in London, where Stefan has been undergoing facial surgery, said they will not comment until they are sure the operation has been a
CAMPAIGNERS braved the rain last night to back calls to axe the tax. More than 30 people joined a rally in Dorchester's Corn Exchange organised by local Liberal Democrats to air views on Dorset's soaring council tax bills. They said more rises would not
EDUCATION chiefs have welcomed the pledge of a cash boost for Dorset schools. The Government has promised every school in the country a minimum funding increase of four per cent per pupil next year, with the chance of more for smaller, rural schools.
A DORCHESTER athlete has been selected to represent Great Britain in an international competition. Thirteen-year-old Laura Mitchem, of Thomas Hardy Gardens, will be a member of the British gymnastics team (disability) at an international event in Northern
FARMERS in Dorset are making a stand against national supermarket chains after fears the dairy industry could disappear from the county. More than 20 Dorset farmers joined a mass protest from around the country at the main Sainsbury's distribution depot
YOUNG people in the New Forest who find themselves homeless and in need of a bed for the night can find an open door at a network of Nightstop voluntary host families across the district. Among them are new recruits Ann and Kevin Blake from Godshill near
A CONTROVERSIAL Tetra mast has been bunkered by Lyme Regis golf club after its members voted to have it removed. The club resolved not to extend permission for the mast to stay in a secret ballot at the AGM last Thursday. Club member Brian Thornber said
LYME Regis town council should be doing more about affordable housing, or it might as well tell youngsters they haven't got a chance. That's the view of councillor Stan Williams, who was firing on all cylinders at Wednesday's town council meeting after
RESIDENTS in Charmouth have formed a steering group to raise funds for a skateboard park in the village. Parish councillor Hilary Cleden - chairman of the playing field and cemetery committee - says the group wants to raise around £20,000 for an area
BOSS Sean O'Driscoll believes Cherries' pioneering Playershare scheme will "undoubtedly be the difference between success and failure" this season. O'Driscoll's comments come just days after the supporter-backed initiative allowed Cherries to finance
YOU know, there are a lot of similarities between the Conservative Party and dear old Tottenham Hotspur. (Yes, today's column is about politics and football; if you don't like it, feel free to go back to your copy of Heat magazine, OK?) Both have somehow
FOOD FOR THOUGHT ON MY LITTLE BUS RIDE I recently had the good fortune of travelling to work on the number 10 bus in Weymouth. A gentleman (I use the term loosely) of senior years got on the bus and proceeded to attempt to distract the bus driver from
PARKING restrictions will be imposed in Dorchester next month while investigations are carried out into condition of a part of the town's Roman heritage. From November 10 to 23 Dorset County Council is making boreholes into the bank behind the existing
HALLOWE'EN fiends will be asking people for a bit of blood today - for the National Health Service. A bloodthirsty pairing of a devil and a witch will be opposite Debenhams in Weymouth to offer advice on becoming a blood donor and to help existing donors
ABANDONED kittens have been melting hearts at a veterinary practice. The male and female pair were found in cat boxes by the side of the road this week near Winterborne Abbas and taken to Fielding and Cumber veterinary practice on Chickerell Road, Weymouth
A BROTHER and sister have repaid a debt of gratitude - handing over more than £800 in vital funds after beating a killer heart condition. Eight-year-old Ashley and four-year-old Yasmine Wild rode 32 miles of North Devon's Tarka Trail on their bikes with
SOMERFIELD is investing more than £1million in its Bridport supermarket creating 15 new jobs. The refurbishment is part of a £70 million nationwide investment programme and will include complete redecoration and extra lighting. The store also plans to
LYME Regis town council is stepping up its maintenance of the town cemetery amid fears that collapsing memorials could cause injuries or even death. The council has formed a working party of councillors who will visit the cemetery regularly to record
CHERRIES have invited freed Ipswich Town striker Matthew Robinson to spend a week on trial at Dean Court. Robinson, a former team-mate of Alan Connell's in the Academy ranks at Portman Road, will join Sean O'Driscoll's squad for training at Canford School
