SURGEONS have fought to save the sight of a man whose right eye was cut after his glasses were smashed in an unprovoked attack. Civil engineering buyer Keiron Ranking, 30, from Parkstone has been left with permanent damage to his eyesight and faces further
BOURNEMOUTH is lacking in cultural diversity and needs to reverse the trend away from the existing culture of "vertical drinking". This was the impassioned plea made by Daniel Winch, president of Bournemouth University's Student Union, to members of Bournemouth
UNDER the waves of Poole Harbour lie the remains of a Spitfire... and a 57-year-old mystery. The wreck of the crashed plane was discovered accidentally by divers who are now trying to find other parts to confirm its identity. The aircraft is thought to
A BLUE plaque has been erected outside a house in suburban London commemorating one of Dorset's pioneering heroes. The English Heritage plaque was placed earlier this year outside a terraced house in Denman Road in Camberwell that was the birthplace of
Top Dorset amateur golfer Dean Barnes has turned professional and has already played in his first tournament. It was only a matter of time before the 23-year-old Ferndown member took the decision to try and join the best players in Europe by trying to
LYMINGTON AND NEW MILTON learned yesterday that it will be Salisbury City who stand between them and a place in the FA Cup first round proper. The local derby will take place on Saturday, October 25 at Salisbury's Partridge Way ground and is a game that
Powergen Dorset & Wilts Division One Supermarine 48 Weymouth 0 WEYMOUTH are still looking for their first win of the season following another heavy Dorset Wilts Division One defeat at Supermarine. But despite the Seasiders away day ending in disappointment
Dorset & Wilts Division Two South Bridport 53 Poole 0 BRIDPORT got back to winning ways in style at the Brewery Field. The Blues were quick to open the score with an overhead pass from Jamie Dawe at number eight in his debut first team appearance.
Southern Counties South Dorchester 17 Tadley 17 DORCHESTER put their horror show of the previous weekend behind them with a much more controlled and committed performance, which should have netted them victory over the league leaders. They conceded an
THE inaugural Dorchester Tennis and Squash Club Charity Cup competition attracted 20 doubles pairs and raised £291 for Breast Cancer Care. First winners of a new silver trophy donated by Turner Associates Sur- veyors were Ros Clark and Tom Legg who beat
PAUL Durkin's reputation as England's top referee has been further enhanced by two high-profile appointments. The Portland official takes charge of tonight's Division One promotion clash between West Brom and Sheffield United at the Hawthorns and Saturday's
PORTLAND United chairman Phil Laming is urging candidates to come forward for the vacant manager's post at Grove Corner. The Blues have received a number of applications following Nick Preston's shock resignation last week, but the island club chief wants
PETE Conning will be hoping to get one over on former Weymouth colleague Steve Claridge when Bridport travel to the Wessex Stadium in the Two Counties Cup tonight, 7.45pm. The pair were team mates in the late 1980s when the Terras enjoyed one of their
ON the eve of my 46th birthday it was a bit disconcerting to read in the Echo last week about a new recruitment franchise aimed at unemployed over-45s and called Dinosaurs Unlim-ited! I knew I was getting old, but a dinosaur! Having recovered my composure
COMPTON Acres has beaten all its records - and directors' expectations - by more than doubling visitor numbers to 161,546 between January and September this year. It follows development work to rejuvenate the gardens and the introduction of new all-weather
MANY leading mortgage lenders are selling "expensive" and often "unsuitable" payment protection insurance with their loans, a new investigation reveals. Some failed to give out policy documents, others did not tell buyers what was covered and what was
HE makes a bit of a splash wherever he goes - you don't expect to buy the Big Issue from someone in top hat and tails or wearing a CCTV camera on his head. You don't expect him to have amassed £30,000 for charity or have been voted Citizen of the Year
AN ARMED robber tied up two members of staff during a terrifying raid on a Wimborne shop early on Monday morning (Oct 13). The raider threatened the man and woman with a shotgun after walking into Lone Pine Stores in Wimborne Road West wearing a black
POOLE'S magnificent Pirates stayed on course for the treble with a brilliant victory in the British League Cup semi-final in Manchester last night. A brilliant display of gating saw them provide 11 of the 15 heat winners and dominate the match after taking
DORSET Police have scooped £450,000 to boost the firearms unit at their Winfrith base and update a station. The force was awarded the Government cash as part of a national £20 million handout to improve facilities. A £300,000 share will be used to extend
PENSIONERS warned councillors to 'beware of the grey vote' as they took to the streets of Weymouth. They assembled in St Mary Street to air the grievances of the older generation and fire a warning shot across the bows of a council they say is complacent
A CAMPAIGN urging shoppers to buy Dorset-produced food celebrates its first anniversary with a market on October 28. Direct from Dorset is holding the event from 10am to 1pm in the Brownsword Hall courtyard at Poundbury to mark the occasion. The celebration
MOBILE phone users have been warned to be on their guard after a spate of thefts in Dorchester. Police said a 19-year-old man fell victim while walking along Cornwall Road in the town late on Saturday night. They said a thief grabbed the phone from the
SHE has turned out every day for the past 40 years to guide children safely across the road. Now Bransgore lollipop lady Nellie White has been honoured yet again for her long service to the community. Friends and family joined Nellie at a celebratory
THE prostitute at the centre of a sex scandal in a North Dorset town is selling her home. Jilly Bywater, 44, was dubbed the Harlot of Hovis Hill because of her line of work, run from a cottage close to the famous steep cobbled slopes of Gold Hill in Shaftesbury
MILLIONS of motorists are being driven round the bend because of a "chronic" shortage of parking spaces and high charges. A study by Privilege Insurance found half the 2,000-plus people polled blamed "parking rage" for breaking the law, while a third
GARETH Stewart will be bidding to help keep Cherries in the LDV Vans Trophy tonight - but admits: "We must concentrate on the league". (Oct 14) Stewart is in line to make his first start for 10 months when Cherries face Football League new boys Yeovil
POLICE plans to install CCTV cameras to identify irate motorists who vandalise speed cameras are not being ruled out in Dorset. Under proposals currently being examined, CCTV cameras would be erected beside the speed traps to curb the growing number of
EXACTLY two years ago they had arrived at the Dorset campus full of excitement and hope for the future. Two years later and they were back, this time to mourn the loss of one of their number whose life had been ended when a terrorist's bomb exploded.
OLD memories were relived and stories shared when a golden couple took a step back in time to celebrate their wedding anniversary. The entire wedding party who watched Greta and Terry Hardy from Kingston marry at Betchworth in Surrey in 1953 reunited
ONLY days after denying any link to the sale of the Sea Witch Hotel, Bournemouth entrepreneur Richard Carr has revealed he will be the new owner from this Friday. The millionaire's name was linked to the Poole property by a Land Registry document which
Dorset & Wilts South MARTOCK 38 PUDDLETOWN 10 Puddletown lost their unbeaten record in a bruising encounter at Martock. From the start the visitors found themselves on the back foot and, from a lineout, the ball was spun wide for the hosts to score
TOP spot in the Dorset Premier League is at stake at the Avenue Stadium tonight when unbeaten Dorchester Reserves take on Holt United (kick-off 7.45pm). The Magpies, now one of only two unbeaten sides in the division, go into the clash in fourth place
STRIKER Matt Tubbs, freed by Dorchester to make way for the anticipated return of Danny O'Hagan, has signed for Salisbury City. The former AFC Bournemouth and Bolton Wanderers teenager is likely to make his Whites' debut in their Dr Martens Eastern Division
FURIOUS residents last night warned they may take the law into their own hands to combat rising gang crime on their streets. Calls for action against youths terrorising the neighbourhood rang out at a gathering of more than 60 people in Weymouth's Park
A £6 MILLION plan to build a new sports centre in Dorchester will be unveiled tomorrow. The Duchy of Cornwall has teamed up with the Wessex Sports Charitable Trust, supported by the town, district and county councils, to produce plans for a new sports
GARDEN designer Amanda Patton from West Dorset snapped up an award in a national photographic competition. She beat 3,500 entrants to take first prize in the private gardens section of the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) competition for a picture taken
POLICE reinforcements were called when violence flared in the centre of Bridport following the football match between England and Turkey. Up to 15 officers, including eight specially trained in public order offences from Weymouth, attended the incident
A FALLEN road sign's framework triggered a pollution scare when it punctured a lorry's fuel tank. Hundreds of litres of diesel fuel poured out of the tank on to the road and down a nearby drain, threatening the nearby River Stour. Firefighters from Blandford
VANDALS have carried out a spate of vehicle damage across the county. In Dorchester, police said a car parked in Culliford Road South had a wing mirror snapped off, while a window of a Renault in Weymouth Avenue was also smashed. Nothing was taken. Elsewhere
A CAMPAIGN urging shoppers to buy Dorset-produced food celebrates its first anniversary with a market on October 28. Direct from Dorset is holding the event from 10am to 1pm in the Brownsword Hall courtyard at Poundbury to mark the occasion. The celebration
THE Official Monster Raving Loony Party is set to field a candidate in West Dorset at the next general election. The party, which will officially launch a branch for West Dorset on Saturday, is expected to announce that Duke de Ranged will stand against
MORE people are visiting Dorset County Museum, new figures reveal today. Between June and August this year 10,403 people visited the Dorchester attraction, compared to 9,916 during the same time last year, members of Dorset County Council's corporate
DORSET'S libraries are searching for their youngest member. In a new scheme called Bookstart, libraries in the county are working with health professionals to give books to babies at their nine-month health check. Spokesman for the Dorset library service
A BUDDING designer delved into the world of fashion after winning a competition in her favourite magazine. All Saints School pupil Rebecca Bird, 13, of Rip Croft, Portland, scooped first prize in a contest to design a T-shirt in teen magazine Mizz and
TEENAGERS in Dorset have given the thumbs-up to a plan to improve sexual health services for young people. More than 30 youngsters were involved in the debate yesterday on whether or not to expand a pilot scheme which allows specially trained youth workers
