CONSERVATIVES from across West Dorset are celebrating today after retaining overall control of West Dorset District Council. The group returned 26 councillors with the Liberal Democrats on 16 and the West Dorset independent group returning six. The
THE planned Weymouth relief road will not be called in for a public inquiry, the Government has confirmed. Work on the £77 million scheme could now start early next year after Dorset County Council was given the go ahead to proceed. A letter from the
16: THE TRASHMEN Surfin' Bird (Garrett, 1963) MUCH as I love a literate lyric and an adventurous melody line, there's a part of me that sometimes wishes that things had never progressed beyond such innocently moronic fare as Surfin' Bird by The Trashmen
MANIC STREET PREACHERS Send Away The Tigers (Sony/BMG) BUCKS FIZZ The Very Best Of (Sony/BMG) THE HOLLIES Finest (EMI) SANDIE SHAW The Collection (EMI) ADMIT it, you never thought there could feasibly be such as thing as a "very best" of Bucks
The Dorset Echo has teamed up with Lulworth Castle and Park to offer 10 lucky readers the chance to win a family pass to their Circus skills workshop taking place Sunday 27th May to Friday 1st June from 10.30am to 6pm. To be in with a chance of winning
I REFER to the story More trouble and you're out' (Echo, April 30) about the Magna tenant whose anti-social behaviour had led to warnings about her tenancy At Magna Housing Association we take a zero tolerance approach to anti-social behaviour. The
It's the right time of year to launch a convertible alright, although some would say it's a year or two overdue. Ford has finally produced the Focus convertible in the UK, Europe's biggest buyer of drop-tops and, needless to say, it will be popular with
NOTICES were today lodged for compulsory purchase orders for the £77 million Weymouth Relief Road. Dorset County Council gave notice that it intended to issue the orders so it could buy land to secure the line of the relief road and complete other works
HORRIFIED staff arrived to find their workplace spattered in blood after it was raided by burglars. The intruders smashed a store-room window at Zoom the Loom in St Mary Street, Weymouth, but fled after a self-locking door trapped them in the building
Plymouth return for Cats' chief WEYMOUTH Wildcats' chairman Phil Bartlett has admitted that the gloves will be off tonight when he takes his side to his former club the Plymouth Devils (7.15pm). Bartlett was team manager at the Devon outfit last season
PAUL Hammond is looking forward to the visit of second-bottom Minehead in Toolstation Western League Division One tomorrow (3pm). With the St Mary's Field hoodoo laid to rest and with three excellent performances under their belt confidence is flooding
Dorset Premier League Cup final. PORTLAND UNITED 1 HAMWORTHY RECREATION 1 (aet, Hamworthy win 4-2 on pens). THE Blues suffered penalty shoot-out heartbreak in the Dorset Premier League Cup final at Dorchester Town's Avenue Stadium last night. Adam
Dorchester Arts Centre youth theatre leader Bianca Judd opened the door of a storeroom - and found a body inside. But it was a case of Hammer House of Horror and not a real life murder that had come to light at the arts venue. Bianca found the frighteningly
A SCULPTOR and part-time teacher has been tipped for national acclaim after scooping a prestigious art prize in London. Juliet Haysom, 29, from Langton Matravers, has landed the Jerwood Sculpture Prize together with the £25,000 first prize. The award
PORTLAND Boxing Club hold the Western Counties Southern Area Golden Belt Championships at North Portland Working Men's Club tomorrow (7.30pm). The event is for juniors who have had under ten bouts and there will be six championship fights as well as
A NEWLY-recruited Royal Navy sailor from Portland was today taking part in a prestigious and historic field gun competition. Trainee air engineering technician Phillip Stone-house is one of 18 sailors to have been selected to represent HMS Raleigh at
BELVEDERE player-boss Bobby Darch believes the winners of Sunday's Len Mahoney Cup final at the Avenue Stadium (1.30pm) will go on and claim the WindowMan Premiership title. Table-topping Belve are up against second-placed Black Dog and an enthralling
WHEN Robert Needham was made redundant from New Look he knew what to do - start his own car wash and valet business. He launched Steam and Clean after losing his job as a lorry driver when the fashion giant moved its distribution centre to Newcastle-under-Lyme
CONFERENCE centre bosses aim to make a splash with open days before the opening of their new swimming pool. They are throwing open the doors of Southwell Park on Portland for people to have a look at the indoor pool and take out membership over the Bank
IT WAS a golden ending for Weymouth windsurfer Bryony Shaw and the borough's 49er sailing team Draper-Hiscocks at the French Olympic Sailing Week. British sailors won five medals in five classes on the final day of the regatta in Hyeres last Friday
I write on behalf of the residents of Wyke Regis who are, like myself, appalled at the prospect of closure of their library, along with several others around the county. To shut the library is a travesty - not every child has a computer or have parents
A TENSE election night at Weymouth Pavilion saw cross-party tributes paid to popular long-serving councillor Andy Hutchings when he lost his Westham North seat. Mr Hutchings, whose 24 years made him the third longest serving councillor in the borough
AN ELECTION night of shocks saw eight new councillors elected when twelve seats were contested on Weymouth and Portland Borough Council. There were gasps of disbelief when popular Labour councillor Andy Hutchings was ousted from his Westham North seat
