IN his latest best-seller, American crime novel writer Harlan Coben is clearly unimpressed by the ability of the internet to afford the world a soapbox. “The great thing about the internet is that is gives everyone a voice. The bad thing about the internet
ESSENTIAL work to repair a bridge in Christchurch will close one of the main routes into the town for eight weeks in the autumn. Businesses and traders are being asked to attend a public meeting on the evening of Monday June 13 at the Regent
A SECTION of the Wessex Way is now reopening following an accident. The northbound carriageway was closed from 2pm between Richmond Park Road, where the Fitness First centre is and the Cooper Dean Roundabout, Castle Lane West. An elderly
It doesn’t matter how long you spend training in a venue there is still always something new to learn about it every day. It has been great to have been able to spend the last month down in Weymouth, training hard and getting in some good hours
VERWOOD Leisure Centre is to be bought by Morrisons. After years of talks, bosses at East Dorset District Council have finally struck a deal with the supermarket giant over land in Brock Way. The sale, which goes before councillors on
PLANS to convert Bournemouth’s historic Pier Theatre into an all-weather attraction have come under fire from the National Piers Society. After the Daily Echo revealed that the Grade II listed building could face closure at the end of this summer, the
THEY’RE record breakers! A crew of 25 people have made it into the Guinness book of Records for circumnavigating the world in a Dorset fire engine in a nine-month epic mission. Steve Moore, 33, dreamt up the Follow that Fire Engine expedition
SADDLE up! The 2011 British Beach Polo Championships have arrived. Polo ponies trotted along the beach yesterday as organisers launched Poole’s ultimate summer extravaganza, now in its fourth year. Top polo player Jack Kidd, Miss GB
THE Heather Barnett murder trial heard today from the A&E doctor who examined an injury on Danilo Restivo’s hand the day Elisa Claps disappeared. Elisa Claps, 16, went missing from Potenza in Italy on September 12, 1993. Her remains were not
AFC Bournemouth chairman Eddie Mitchell is calling for immediate action to be taken on Bournemouth’s ice centre. Following fears the multi-million pound scheme at King’s Park is in “meltdown”, the Cherries chairman has hit out at the state
A WOMAN who had to watch two of her pet cats suffer long and painful deaths as a result of drinking antifreeze fears they may have been poisoned. Vicky Coward, 39, is urging drivers to be more careful with the lethal coolant after losing four-year-olds
WHEN I was little my toys used to come to life whenever I was asleep or out of the room. Fact. How else could my Sindy doll get from the bottom of my bed, where I’d left her looking after Tiny Tears, all the way to her own bed and even manage to pull
AN aggressive rail passenger is being sought after attempting to punch a member of staff at Hamworthy, Poole. The man, who did not have a ticket, threw a punch at a 57-year-old member of South West Trains staff, but did not make contact. British Transport
CHAIRMAN Eddie Mitchell has, in the past few minutes, told the Echo that Peterborough United's bid for Jason Pearce has NOT been accepted. Mitchell was responding after Posh director of football Barry Fry told the Peterborough Evening Telegraph
WOLVERINE may not have fared quite so well, but X-Men: First Class will lift the spirits of any fan of the film franchise based on the Marvel Comics. British director Matthew Vaughn (Kick-Ass) delivers a sleek, action-packed prequel.
COUNCIL chiefs are fighting the latest attempt to open a cut-price pub in a New Forest conservation area. The JD Wetherspoon chain has submitted a second application to convert a shop next door to the historic St Thomas’s Church in Lymington. But town
SOUTHBOURNE is a quirky high street with a plethora of independent retailers and its latest eatery, Ludo Lounge, is clearly a welcomed addition to the street. This popular informal neighbourhood café/bar opened its doors in July 2010 in what had previously
I AM disgusted about the Sovereign Twynham office block in Southey Road. Traffic will be terrible, as it is only a short road to the office block with “No Parking”. We already have more than our share of traffic, as this is the main artery to the estate
I IMAGINE the writer of the anti-cycling letter (Daily Echo, May 20),peers fearfully from the window as ‘killer’ cyclists go whizzing by. Regretfully, the time has come when I can no longer get around on two wheels. There remains for me a feeling of
I TURNED on the TV to find two men kissing. I thought that I had got a porn channel by mistake, but no, it was BBC1, EastEnders. Surely this is hardly the stuff of family television. I am a grandfather and I would not have felt comfortable
IN reply to the letter from Alexander Lewis, (Letters, May 26). I fear that the end of your letter lets your argument down - “Many of those tenants who decided to sell made a substantial profit”. I do not disagree with the sale of council houses to
VISITING Parkstone Park today, I was looking forward to seeing the results of £360,000 developer’s contributions and months and months of work. Sadly, I was very disappointed. I spoke to a number of people who thought similarly. There is not really a
THE head of Bournemouth University has said he is “proud” of the graduate who went undercover to film abuse at a residential hospital for Panorama. Vice chancellor John Vinney praised Joe Casey after he spent five weeks secretly recording at the Winterbourne
OK, I admit it - I am Mrs Worried from Worrytown on National Worrying Day. I worry so much about everything I hardly know where to begin. Before I had my kids I worried about them being born disabled. When they arrived I worried they might die of cot
TWO violent rapists could spend up to 15 years behind bars for battering, raping and falsely imprisoning two women. Poole man Jermaine Kraftner, 27, of Poole Road, Branksome and cousin Corrie Pinney, 35, took it in turns to rape the women in
A BICYCLE tribute to cyclist Rob Jefferies, who was killed in an accident close to Wareham, has been chained to a spot near the crash site. Mr Jefferies, a member of Poole Wheelers Cycling Club and a fierce competitor in the UK riding scene
WAS it worth it?! At last the green at Ashley Cross is finished – long after the predicted time of Easter! We went to see what had taken so long and at a cost of around £360,000. Well the fountain is very nice, I agree, and the French boules will probably
YOU can learn a lot from penguins. Especially the way they look after each other... which is clearly more than can be said for some humans. Bournemouth University, rightly has expressed its pride at the way former student Joe Casey exposed on Panorama
BUMPER crowds packed out Lulworth Castle yesterday as the Antiques Roadshow rolled up in Purbeck. Thousands of people clutching a variety of items – from the world of high art to the simply bizarre – queued anxiously in the morning sun for
“DRASTIC” action is needed to protect Bournemouth and Poole residents from young offenders, according to a damning new report. Following a reinspection of youth offending work earlier this year, HM Chief Inspector of Probation Andrew Bridges
TEAM manager Sean Walbridge wants his Dorset players to concentrate solely on maintaining the winning habit – and ignore complicated statistical issues. Dorset must beat group rivals Hertfordshire at Dorchester on Sunday to stand any chance of qualifying
SKIPPER Simon Watkins is planning a policy of all out attack as Bournemouth look to maintain their impressive start in defence of their Southern Premier League crown. Watkins, in his first month at the helm, presided over three wins and one
COUNCILLORS have pledged to protect vulnerable older people following a charity’s warning that social care and support in England has reached “breaking point”. Hundreds of thousands of older people who need social care are not receiving formal support
CHERRIES chairman Eddie Mitchell has admitted player sales could be “inevitable” – with the Daily Echo predicting captain Jason Pearce could be the first to go. Pearce has been strongly linked with Championship new boys Peterborough, with speculation
New Milton skipper Eric Linge is hoping their dramatic triumph over Bournemouth will belatedly herald “the start of our season”. Milton finally opened their Southern League Division Two account after edging out their rivals by one run, although
DORSET’S six-time Challenge Tour winner Lee James has targeted three more British-based victories this summer to help resurrect his European ambitions. The 1994 British Amateur champion added a second Jamega Tour success at Wharton Park near Kidderminster
