PLANS for a permanent travellers' site for use around the time of the Great Dorset Steam Fair have taken a step closer to becoming reality. Cabinet bosses at Dorset County Council gave the green light to proposals for a long-term arrangement with the
DORSET fire chiefs fear the recent spate of fire-related deaths tell only part of a more alarming tale. Six deaths in two months have prompted Dorset Fire and Rescue to take a close look at the common factors in the blazes. The two primary causes have
A RESPECTED A&E doctor wrote hundreds of fake prescriptions to fuel his addiction to painkillers, a court was told. Dr Timothy Wright, who lives in Blandford, admitted nine offences and asked for a massive 522 further crimes to be taken into consideration
MOMENTS after the motorbike crash, superfit Lindsay Chapman just knew what had happened - her spine was severed. Lying on Alderney Roundabout on the Wessex Way last August, Lindsay instantly realised she might never walk again. She talks with such brightness
VANDALS have attacked school buses at a business park in Blandford. The weekend attacks were made at the Sunrise Business Park on Higher Shaftesbury Road. Every window was smashed in two vehicles owned by Damory Coaches, which operates school contracts
ON March 12, Alistair Darling will make his first budget announcement, the first time in ten years that the statement has not been delivered by Gordon Brown. Whilst it may go down as a day in history for the chancellor, small to medium enterprises (SMEs
A LUCKY labrador fell 115ft from Old Harry Rocks and survived. Dexter was being walked by owners Jonathan and Christine Dodd on the clifftop on Monday afternoon when he suddenly ran off the edge and plunged into the sea below. Incredibly, the hardy
ONE night around 12 years ago, my teenage daughter decided that it would be a really good idea to light a candle in her room and place it in a plastic container. Unfortunately, when she settled down in bed and went off, the candle didn't and continued
I'M A self-confessed cardigan wearer. And yes I've heard all the insults before, thank you very much. I picked up my first one several years ago in Barcelona and from that day forth was referred to as "Granddad" or "Geography Teacher". But all that looks
DORSET homeowners could get an affordable safety net if they get into difficulties with their mortgage payments. This year there could be as many as 45,000 repossessions according to The Council of Mortgage Lenders and whilst many homeowners take out
The night they invented Champagne... Now there's a thought! Well it certainly became an overnight sensation and saw the start of an era where a glass of bubbly was synonymous with luxury, opulence or simply having a good time. For the past 80 years
"I'M not green, or PC, or any of that rubbish. I want to do what makes sense." Straight-talking Castlepoint boss Peter Matthews hates waste. He keeps a plastic bag in his car for rotting banana skins from his breakfast until it is full and ready for
BOURNEMOUTH Council is employing two new parking wardens to target parents who park dangerously outside schools. They will be on a one-year contract and are part of the council crackdown on school run danger drivers after a year of Daily Echo campaigning
BOURNEMOUTH University is pressing ahead with more changes and possible redundancies. Almost 50 lecturer posts were lost last year with the university saying that only around 12 of the losses will be compulsory redundancies. But an administrative review
A MAN robbed The Royal Bank of Scotland in Bournemouth town centre just before midday today. He went into the branch on Old Christchurch Road opposite Beales and handed over a note saying no-one would be hurt if he was given money. The man escaped with
A MAN has pleaded guilty to stealing and crashing a car into a Christchurch house. Neil Kavanagh from Beauford Road in Southbourne, admitted aggravated vehicle taking and three other motoring charges, including failing to give a breath specimen on Wednesday
POLICE investigating the death of a Poole woman, whose body was found in a burning house, have charged her son with murder. Kevin John Burbidge, 49, appeared before Bournemouth magistrates on Wednesday charged with murdering 70-year-old Marion Merritt
WIMBORNE Wayfarers are through to the semi-finals of the England Hockey Vase competition. They secured their place with a hard-fought 4-2 victory over Cheshire side Bramhall on Sunday. Wayfarers had tp overcome some early pressure before a quickly taken
THE first Dorset county water polo teams to enter a pool for 35 years took on the might of neighbours Devon, whose teams included internationals and National League players. The senior men lost 15-4 and the under-17 team went down 19-3. But Dorset coaches
ON the eve of the 2008 Premier League season, Poole/Sea View Coaches have received a major boost with the signing of former British Cycle Speedway champion Gavin Wheeler. Wheeler will be joined by two additional new signings with fellow Southampton-based
NEW bus services in East Dorset are set to offer a partial replacement for those controversially axed in January. A direct link between West Moors and Bournemouth is to be restored by the Verwood Bus Company after Wilts & Dorset called time on its service
WITH Welsh patients due to benefit from free parking at NHS hospitals from April, Dorset people are asking why they still have to pay the charges - which some have dubbed "a tax on being sick". The Welsh Assembly is expected to confirm free parking,
ORGANISERS are urging fans to dig deep with donations this weekend to keep the Swanage Blues Festival as one of the south's biggest free music gatherings. The ever-expanding event bursts into life once more on Friday, with three days of live music, from
CHERRIES boss Kevin Bond will step up his search for a new goalkeeper after failing in a bid to re-sign Portsmouth's Asmir Begovic. Bond has been given permission by the Football League to sign a back-up stopper on a seven-day basis to help ease Cherries
"I WAMTED a mission, and for my sins, they gave me one. Brought it up to me like room service. It was a real choice mission, and when it was over, I never wanted another," murmured Martin Sheen in the film Apocalypse Now. So it was that I found myself
PIRATES chief Matt Ford admits he is getting sick of answering the same old question from supporters: Why don't you have any Brits in your side?' "It's a question I seem to have to answer on many occasions," said Ford, who has built a seven-man team
WHEN I first came to Bournemouth in the late 1970s I was surprised by the town's drinking culture. There seemed to be too few bars in the town centre. I had moved from a village, near Manchester, that boasted 19 pubs. Close to Bournemouth Square, by
THIS is the Daily Echo's online book of condolence following the death of Marion Merritt. Her body was found in suspicious circumstances by firefighters who tackled a blaze at her home in Lulworth Crescent, Hamworthy, on Monday. Please leave your tributes
A BABY who was killed in a car crash had been taken out of her safety seat by her mother moments before the impact, an inquest heard. Sophia Salvia, 13 months, received multiple and fatal injuries when the family's Renault Laguna collided with another
CHERRIES geared up for their tough League One double-header against Leeds and Oldham by enjoying the better of a behind-closed doors friendly against Portsmouth yesterday. Kevin Bond's first team entertained a strong Pompey outfit at Dean Court, with
GERALD Krasner has remained tight-lipped over suggestions he could be set to unveil the successful bidder for stricken AFC Bournemouth - with Jeff Mostyn believed to be in pole position. A consortium involving current chairman Mostyn, vice-chairman Steve
AFTER the authors of a new Lonely Planet travel guide branded Bournemouth "a nation's drinking problem personified", we decided to find out how foreign students view the resort. Do they feel safe on the streets of Bournemouth? Are they perturbed by the
Godspell, Pavilion, Bournemouth IT is 37 years since rock musical Godspell's Broadway debut but it remains a timeless, vibrant, thoroughly entertaining show. While it is still essentially a story based around the parables from the Gospel of Matthew
SUPER Scott Joyce struck a first half double as Wimborne Town put one foot firmly in the Sydenhams Wessex League Cup final. The prolific forward boosted his already impressive tally for the season as Magpies ran out comfortable 3-0 winners at Horndean
