ONE of Britain’s biggest pub chains has launched a new attempt to open a watering hole beside an ancient Hampshire church. J D Wetherspoon has submitted a second application to convert the former Palfrey & Kemp shop in Lymington into a bar
Two years ago at the weekend, I had a huge birthday party to celebrate turning 35yrs. I invited everybody I knew and celebrated like it was my last birthday - because at the time I thought it would be. On Saturday I had a small garden party
THE family of a Royal Marine who died in Afghanistan are planning to paddle the length of the River Stour to raise cash to buy a beach hut in Mudeford for wounded comrades and bereaved families. Marine Adam Brown, 25, was killed in an explosion
THE Conservatives have won a landslide majority on Bournemouth council. The leader of the council’s Liberal Democrat opposition said her party had suffered “a national kicking”. Former council leader Cllr Stephen MacLoughlin – who resigned
The Conservatives strengthened their hold on East Dorset District Council, taking seats from the Liberal Democrats and standing unopposed in eight wards. Election night saw few surprises, but a few closely fought contests, particularly in
SHE used her theatrical background to assume a string of alter-egos and illegally claim £118,000 in VAT. Today 48-year-old Alison Reynolds, who ran a clothes shop in Lymington, is starting a seven-year jail term after admitting eight fraud charges.
WE’VE all heard of the midlife crisis, but how about the quarter-life crisis? While writers, TV producers and film scripts have for years wrung dry the cliché of a 50-something meltdown, could it now be happening to people in their mid-20s and 30s?
AFTER a long night in Purbeck there will be just one new member of the district council. Unsurprisingly, the change comes in the Lytchet Minster and Upton West ward, which was widely tipped to be the closest fight of the eight seats up for
UP to 12 people had to flee their homes after a suspected arson in Boscombe in the early hours of Friday May 6. Firefighters were called to the Oxfam store on Christchurch Road at 12.40am and found a fire which had started in a bin at the rear had spread
MY mum usually always remembers my name; most days she can come up with husband’s and she knows I have children and what they are called, though she doesn’t always remember they’re now at school, has no idea how old they are, when their birthdays are
LEGAL experts have branded new controls on pubs and nightclubs as a “recipe for chaos”. Solicitors criticised the Police Reform and Social Responsibility Bill, which is currently in the House of Lords. Dorset nightclubs currently have
TWILIGHT pin up Robert Pattinson stars opposite Oscar-winner Reese Witherspoon in Francis Lawrence’s adaptation of the novel Water For Elephants by Sara Gruen about a doomed love affair in a 1930s circus troupe. DOES Kate Hudson ever get
A CYCLIST who shocked a woman by his nudity as he was about to embark on the Sandbanks ferry was putting his clothes on at the time, a court heard. Electrical engineer Richard Collins, 54, from Hardwick, Cambridge, denies committing a public
A CHRISTCHURCH family has thrown its weight behind a campaign to save Southampton’s heart surgery unit. Tamara Armstrong and her husband Ian are urging others support the fight to save the high-quality unit after their son Eden was treated
THERE’S only one thing to do after a morning spent scrambling over the rocks, in the sea-caves and round the edge of Dancing Ledge. Eat. Large amounts. And quickly. Unfortunately on a sunny bank holiday, most of Dorset had the same idea but if your
AN EXPENSIVE judicial review is being sought over crucial matters of law raised by the town or village green application for Branksome Rec at Poole. The Campaign for Planning Sanity is launching the legal action to clarify a point of law, which arises
Although Britain’s “elf and safety” killjoys are famed for party pooping, remarkably, some of the country’s silliest and most dangerous festivals remain. You can still quaff stingers at the World Nettle Eating Championships, or climb a greasy pole in
Honey-roasted Jersey Royals with Yoghurt and Mint Shoulder of Lamb Serves 6 1 x 2.5kg shoulder of lamb on the bone For the marinade: 200ml natural yoghurt 1tsp cumin seeds (roasted and crushed) 1tsp white peppercorns (roasted and crushed) 2tsp
IT was the kind of weather politicians pray for on election day to bring out the vote. But in Poole, the majority of the electorate appeared content to enjoy the sunshine away from the polling stations. Despite a steady start, the stream subsided to
"I DIDN’T even realise it was today.” The man passing the polling station at Bournemouth’s Town Hall is not the only one, if the level of activity there is anything to go by. Some people have called this Super Thursday – with seats contested
ANGRY shop and restaurant owners struggling to pay their rent bills, claim disruption caused by constant roadworks could force them out of business. The latest in a long list of road schemes since last autumn, currently being carried out by
A HUGE swathe of Poole heathland devastated by an intense fire will take up to quarter of a century to fully recover, wildlife experts say. Firefighters, who have refused to rule out arson as a cause of the blaze, spent hours tackling the inferno on
WITH reference to the on-going problems and suggestions regarding the Imax, I still think a good idea would be to put a swimming pool on the ground floor, an Ice Rink on the floor above it and a curved sunroof above the Ice Rink (i.e over the floor
BBC Radio 5-Live is always having a go at Benefit claimants. They seldom mention the rich people who evade/avoid paying taxes. (including massive businesses). This is surely clobbering the poor, and allowing the rich to get away with cheating (even
ON the 24 March you printed a letter from a postal worker at the Winton Delivery Office. I am in total agreement with him about the way the new system is working – or not. We in this area of Upton hardly ever see our normal and helpful and efficient
I READ with personal interest the letter concerning the disposal of hospital property following home use. There appears to be a case of logistical mismanagement here, for we recently experienced first class service. For the final weeks of my wife’s
MAY 9 is Europe Day or, as one might have guessed, ‘EU Day’! It will be the annual occasion when Brits should enjoy more street parties to celebrate the event, though as yet it hasn't been declared an international holiday by our masters in Brussels.
We rarely heap praise on people and companies these days so I would like to thank the media, press ie The Daily Echo and staff for the wonderful coverage of the Royal Wedding pageantry locally and nationally. Also the terrific job the BBC did in their
I WAS somewhat surprised at the puerile suggestion by the Council to liken the responsibility of causing an oil spill to the offence of depositing chewing gum on the pavements caused by its own residents. To ask Wrigleys to pay because they
STRANGE, how the latter part of the Lord’s prayer was omitted from last weeks Royal Wedding service. (Why, and at whose behest?) Stranger still, with only one exception so far, everyone I’ve mentioned this to, including avowed Christians, didn’
IT’S not something I want to shout out too loudly but, in my weaker moments, I feel sorry for politicians. They can put in a bucket-load of hard work and, often through no fault of their own, get a metaphorical bucket-load of something else
North Dorset District Council remains under Conservative control after a disappointing night for the Liberal Democrats. The highest profile Liberal Democrat loss was Steve Hitchings, who until the election had been the district council’s chairman
Finding a new take on one of Shakespeare’s great tragedies is never going to be easy but the Icarus Theatre Collective do a fine job with this wonderfully realised production of Hamlet. Giles Roberts takes the title role as the tormented and grieving
TOP stopper Jason Harvell may have put himself in the shop window after admitting he would like another crack at the Southern League. Harvell is arguably the best goalkeeper in local non-league circles and has enjoyed another fruitful campaign
NEWLY-appointed skipper Simon Watkins says he is relishing the chance to plot Bournemouth’s defence of their Southern League crown. Watkins has taken the reins on a permanent basis from Craig de Weymarn who stepped down last season following his appointment
ORGANISER Roger Woodall has confirmed the fourth annual Bournemouth Sevens Festival is set to attract a host of high profile figures from the world of international rugby. Woodall and his Diamond Sports Events team are putting the finishing touches to
PIRATES chief Matt Ford insists there is no pressure on Kyle Newman as the local lad prepares to re-enter the Elite League fray tonight. The rookie Poole-born racer will line up for his hometown club in this evening’s clash at Lakeside.
LEYTON Orient chief Barry Hearn has voiced his support for Cherries as they aim to strike a blow for League One’s unlikely lads. Cherries ended Orient’s hopes of squeezing into the play-offs when they sealed a top-six place with last weekend
BOSS Lee Bradbury wants his Cherries players to finish with a flourish when they bring down the curtain on a memorable League One campaign. Bradbury is keen for Cherries to take momentum into the play-offs and says they will be targeting fifth place
Cherries star Steve Fletcher believes fellow frontmen Stevie Lovell and Danny Ings are blossoming as a strike partnership. The duo, both products of the Dean Court youth system, have been paired in attack in Cherres past four games and have
THE Dorset branch of a trust that supports the Vulcan bomber has warned it could be grounded if vital cash is not raised. One of the stars of Bournemouth Air Festival, the mighty Cold War jet has captivated crowds at the seafront event, but it costs
POOLE has a hung council after the Liberal Democrats snatched one seat from the Tories. The Conservatives’ drop to 21 of 42 seats leaves them with a narrow three seat lead and no overall control of the council. It wasn’t until 5am, after
IT was a Conservative whitewash in Christchurch as the Tories took all but three seats in the council elections. The party increased their majority at the borough council from 17 to 21, ousting their Liberal Democrat opponents in the Portfield
The early signs are a bad night for the Lib Dems, a better one for Labour. Candidates are predicting hard fights in several wards but no overall changes in control in Bournemouth, Poole and Christchurch. Talk around the hall at 11pm
