Archive

  • Bid to get rail services back on track

    TRANSPORT bosses at Blackburn town hall are vowing to get tough on rail companies in a bid to improve services between the town and Bolton and Manchester. Services to and from Blackburn through Darwen, Entwistle and Bromley Cross have come in for major

  • Down by the Riverside

    A fan's-eye view from Ewood Park, with Phil Lloyd THE romance of the Third Round of the FA Cup, eh? Well it was in short supply at Ewood last Saturday. I'm not knocking a 2-0 win gained with 10 "regulars" missing, extending our unbeaten run under the

  • Backers in waiting for Clarets shares

    POTENTIAL backers are waiting in the wings for the prospect of buying into Burnley Football Club. And that spells good news for the Clarets as the club bids to sell out its share issue and raise £5.7 million for a financial re-structuring and team strengthening

  • Meningitis: Parents put on red alert

    PARENTS were today put on meningitis red alert after ten suspected cases of the deadly brain bug were reported over the Christmas and New Year period. They included the death of 13-month-old Ethan Smith, of Mosley Street, Blackburn, who died after developing

  • Kidd in top boss contention

    BRIAN Kidd is a shock contender for the Carling manager of the month award - after just four weeks in charge at Ewood Park! The Blackburn Rovers boss took the job on December 3 when the club were rock bottom of the Premiership table. And he has helped

  • Events in East Lancashire tomorrow (Wednesday, January 6th)

    "Aladdin On Ice" pantomime, King George's Hall, Blackburn, 1pm and 7pm. "Mother Goose" pantomime, Empire Theatre, Rochdale Road, Bacup, 7.30pm. Friends in Bereavement meet in the lounge at St John's Methodist Church, Albert Road, Colne, 7pm. "Children's

  • Back room for the boys!

    THE back room of a village pub that is turning into an international tourist attraction has received a New Year boost. The Ribble Valley Museum of Transportation at the Black Bull, Rimington, is a paradise for "little boys of all ages". It is the brainchild

  • FIVE YEARS AGO: Pay parking move

    HOSPITAL staff were sick over plans to introduce car parking charges which would cost workers at Blackburn Royal Infirmary and Queen's Park Hospital around £100 a year. Patients and visitors were expected to fork out 50p and faced clamping if they didn't

  • The contest is not over yet

    EVIDENTLY, with the toppling of Chancellor Gordon Brown's right hand man, Treasury press chief Charlie Whelan, Tony Blair is hoping to have seen off the damaging Cabinet rivalries it exposed. Yet, if axing the Chancellor's trouble-making henchman is a

  • NHS failure would kill New Labour

    THE announcement by the government today of more than 2,000 initiatives aimed at combating the winter crisis in the NHS may backfire politically. For these measures are not exactly new, but form the package put together with the £159 million given out

  • Cracker of a turn-out

    ON behalf of the Cancer Research Campaign in Turton, may I thank everyone who supported the annual Fancy Dress Three Legged Race on December 27 - 95 couples took part and £1,300.77 was raised within the village of Edgworth that day. We look forward to

  • Time to end farce

    THE behind-the-scenes attempts to prevent Brian Foster continuing as chairman of the Burnley, Pendle and Rossendale NHS Trust, are becoming farcical. In order to redress the balance, whereby traditionally, chairman and chairwoman have usually been chosen

  • Simply sequins

    ATTEMPTING to watch some television over the Christmas period has been an ordeal that has sorely tried my patience - what with repeat films, unfunny cartoons and late-night viewing designed for children. But I came upon an absolute gem that had it all

  • Chaos caused by Labour

    THE news that the NHS is terribly short of beds was brought home recently when it was revealed that a patient suffering from meningitis was left on a trolley, and subsequently died. I thought that our brave new government was going to really look after

  • Boost for branch

    STAFF at a building society branch are celebrating after winning an award. The Clitheroe branch of the Skipton Building Society won the CGU Regional Award for the North West. The awards, organised by insurance giant CGU, recognises good practice in areas

  • Degree of skill

    LOCAL employers are more interested in experience and qualifications than which university job applicants went to. Those who did express a preference said that Manchester was the most respected university followed by Leeds and Edinburgh and then Oxford

  • Sparkling ideas for a wedding!

    TWO enterprising businessmen are hoping to make dreams come true for lucky couples. Tasadduck Hussain and Yunis Mohammed Ali have set up Diamond Events to take the hassle out of organising Asian weddings. "There are services out there to help people organise

  • New charity challenge

    THOUSANDS of aerospace workers are throwing their weight behind a new charity. Leukaemia Research has been chosen to be British Aerospace's charity and to receive an estimated £400,000 plus from a series of events over the coming year. During 18 months

  • Super story search roll of honour

    CONGRATULATIONS to the following pupils who have completed their literacy targets in our Super Story Search project. Karina Barnes, Matthew Conning, Eve Fogarty, Gemma Nightingale, James Shears, Emma Walton, Hollie Wright, Katie Bell, Laura Collinson,

  • Building trade in good shape

    DESPITE an economic downturn the construction industry in Lancashire is set to remain strong, according to a report out today. Employment in the industry is continuing to grow in the county despite an overall levelling off in orders. "Growth in the region's

  • Living the high life

    WE would like to wish a very happy New Year to all our friends, both old and new, in schools and colleges throughout East Lancashire. Now is the time for looking forward, and older pupils may be thinking about life after school with all the exciting prospects

  • At last an end to all the junk!

    PEOPLE are to get greater protection against unwanted 'junk' faxes and unsolicited telephone calls from the summer, according to Pendle MP Gordon Prentice. The Labour politician, who admitted sending out hundreds of press releases by fax each year, said

  • Dispute over poverty pay boost

    THE national minimum wage will have a huge impact on low-paid workers in Pendle, says the area's MP - but many bosses aren't happy about it. Eight per cent of the area's full-time employees and one in four part-time workers will benefit from a pay boost

  • Callers jam care lines

    SAMARITANS' telephone lines were jammed with callers on New Year's Eve - the busiest night of the year for volunteers throughout the country. At the Burnley, Pendle and Rossendale branch, volunteers took 93 calls on New Year's Eve and 127 calls from midnight

  • No disruptions during revamp

    RAIL chiefs have promised passengers in East Lancashire that work on the £5.5 million re-vamp of Blackburn Railway station will not affect services. The Victorian rail shed and platform buildings at the station are to be ripped down and replaced with

  • Black marks for Ofsted visits

    HEAD teachers in East Lancashire say Ofsted inspections fail to motivate staff and that they create extra work and stress. Staff in the county were among 1,250 heads who responded to a survey by the National Union of Teachers on the controversial inspections

  • Straw's girl takes week out of school

    HOME Secretary Jack Straw was today dragged into the Cabinet school holidays row as it emerged that his daughter Charlotte is missing a week of classes to be on a family vacation in India. The Blackburn MP was under fire after it was revealed that Prime

  • Spy van plan to catch speeders

    A SPEED camera in the back of a van is being considered for an accident blackspot. The mobile camera will be the first of its kind to be used in the area if councillors choose to go ahead with the scheme along Buncer Lane between Preston Old Road and

  • Takeaway death: Woman bailed

    Jennifer Pamela Harper, 25, of Lincoln Street, Haslingden, has appeared before Burnley magistrates accused of unlawfully killing mother of two Sharon Hampson, 27, a trainee nurse, outside a Haslingden takeaway on Sunday. Mrs Hampson was pronounced dead

  • Cinderella sparkler

    HUNDREDS of young and young at heart theatre-goers had a ball as panto season kicked off at Colne Municipal Hall. Audiences enjoyed the first performances of Cinderella yesterday and the show will run until January 17. Lydia Griffiths, winner of ITV's

  • Sobbing mum's 'pervert' story to jury

    A MOTHER-of-two sobbed as she told a court how a pensioner sexually abused her - and that all she wanted was for him to say sorry. The woman, one of two alleged victims of Walter Pearson, 67, said the assaults took place when she was a schoolgirl, but

  • Row over drink-drive figures

    LANCASHIRE Police today hailed the Christmas and New Year anti drink drive campaign a huge success despite failing to reveal the exact number of motorists who were given breath tests. Police in the county revealed that they carried out 960 breath tests

  • Cummings and Goings

    A fan's-eye view from Turf Moor, with Stephen Cummings FIRST of all, a very happy New Year to you all. And should the Clarets continue to put in performances of a nature similar to that which they produced on Saturday, this year may turn out to be far

  • Timber firm's closure stuns staff

    FIFTEEN workers at a family timber merchants have had a New Year jobs blow with news that their firm is to close. The stunned workforce at STS Timber and DIY Centre in Shay Lane, Longridge, were told they were out of a job yesterday. Managing director

  • TEN YEARS AGO: Wards face closure

    HOSPITAL wards faced closure as nurses were struck down with flu and stomach bugs, leaving hospitals with minimum staff. At Blackburn's Royal Infirmary, 29 day-staff nurses were taken ill and numbers also rose across Burnley, Pendle and Rossendale at

  • CRICKET: East Lancs sign slow left-armer Henderson

    EAST Lancs have snapped up South African slow left-armer Claude Henderson as professional for next season. The 26-year-old, who plays for Western Province, replaces Australian Brad Young as paid man at the Alexandra Meadows club. The club's Lancashire

  • CRICKET: Cheap pro key to Rishton profit

    RISHTON CC came up trumps financially in a very poor summer for cricket, recording an overall profit of £4,384. One of the major factors was a much-improved performance on the social side, where a net profit of £1,109 was recorded even after a donation

  • Muslim workers' time for prayers

    WORKERS at a Burnley firm have been given extra time for prayers and a special room to observe them in under a deal agreed with bosses. The agreement was reached between management at Specialist Anodising and worker Abdul Mutahir and applies to all the

  • Cadet Martin aims for the top honour

    A TEENAGER from Burnley will take on others from across the country this weekend in the fight to win the title of Britain's St John Ambulance Cadet of the Year. Martin Grogan, 16, of Derwent Avenue, became the first cadet from Burnley to win the coveted

  • Campaign launched against euro

    CAMPAIGNERS aim to warn the people of East Lancashire against the dangers of being short-changed by the euro. Members of the East Lancashire branch of The Democracy Movement will begin their campaign by handing out leaflets to town centre shoppers in

  • Rovers boss Kidd in top boss contention

    BRIAN Kidd is a shock contender for the Carling manager of the month award - after just four weeks in charge at Ewood Park! The Blackburn Rovers boss took the job on December 3 when the club were rock bottom of the Premiership table. And he has helped

  • Backers in waiting for Clarets shares

    POTENTIAL backers are waiting in the wings for the prospect of buying into Burnley Football Club. And that spells good news for the Clarets as the club bids to sell out its share issue and raise £5.7 million for a financial re-structuring and team strengthening

  • Mystery man aids animal rescue

    A CASH-STRAPPED animal sanctuary has been thrown a cash lifeline - just weeks before it was due to lose its home. A mysterious businessman from Suffolk has offered the Only Foals and Horses charity a low-interest loan of up to £100,000 to help buy the

  • Hotel chains talk over £120m deal

    REGAL Hotels today confirmed it was in talks to buy the chain of County Hotels, including Blackburn's, in a deal believed to be worth around £120 million. The portfolio of 25 properties includes Burnham Beeches, the occasional residence of the England

  • Row over drink-drive figures

    LANCASHIRE Police today hailed the Christmas and New Year anti drink drive campaign a huge success despite failing to reveal the exact number of motorists who were given breath tests. Police in the county revealed that they carried out 960 breath tests

  • Homes found for spiky lodgers

    NINE hedgehogs have started 1999 in new homes, thanks to an appeal made through the Lancashire Evening Telegraph. Hedgehog rescuer Helen Adsett, of Blackburn, was seeking people who could provide garden nest boxes for the animals to hibernate. They had

  • Meningitis: Parents put on red alert

    PARENTS were today put on meningitis red alert after ten suspected cases of the deadly brain bug were reported over the Christmas and New Year period. They included the death of 13-month-old Ethan Smith, of Mosley Street, Blackburn, who died after developing