Archive

Gardeners tend to remember the weather from the previous year, for example I remember how the April showers didn't arrive and how warm the weather was and that friends planted out their tomatoes too early, thinking it was warm enough, well the days were

BOURNEMOUTH children say they feel safer walking and cycling to school thanks to a roll-out of road safety measures. Pupils at St Luke’s School, Winton are celebrating the launch of a new 20mph zone, a zebra crossing on Heron Court Road and

PARIS Morgan, 10, said: “People have been telling us that when children have been walking to school that road is a bit too dangerous. “I use it for school and also when we go to Winton Recreation Ground.” MOLLIE Soulsby, 11, walks or

ELLIOT Turner told ambulance staff that Emily Longley assaulted him and put her hands around his throat, a trial heard. Ambulance Technician Stephen Stratton was giving evidence this morning at Winchester Crown Court. He said 20-year-old

AN injured soldier who inspired a new Dorset holiday home for disabled members of the armed forces cut the ribbon for its official opening. Fundraising for the £250,000 log cabin began two years ago after Rifleman Jack Otter’s mother Helen emailed Swanage

A CRIME reduction charity is giving budding Jamie Olivers and Nigella Lawsons the chance to showcase their culinary skills. The National Association for the Care and Resettlement of Offenders (Nacro) has launched a new cafe at the Lion Works

Child-appropriate cake. Is there such a thing? My daughter is about to turn one, and on the hunt for a birthday cake I’d be happy for her to eat, I’ve spent the weekend testing recipes for banana cake. There are as many types of banana cake

Mini superheroes from Poole flexed their muscles for charity in a superhuman effort to raise funds. Toddlers at a nursery had the time of their lives dressing up as their favourite characters to take part in Superheroes Day. The fun at The Co-operative

THE woman at the forefront of the campaign to secure NHS dentistry in Swanage will be among the new temporary surgery’s first customers. Mum-of-two Mandy Mason galvanised the community into action earlier this year after the only NHS dentist

A NEW exhibition is offering local artists an opportunity to display and sell their work at Moors Valley Country Park. The park’s visitor centre will host Colour in Nature from Saturday May 19 to Sunday June 17 and the exhibition is the first

A SECOND live seahorse has been rescued from the sands of Poole Bay and successfully returned to the sea. And the story of the first rescue in Wednesday’s Daily Echo has been credited with helping save this fully mature spiny seahorse. Dave Hartwell

AS if our Sunday evenings weren’t already exciting enough thanks to Homeland, Channel 4 aired a new trailer for Prometheus last night. Viewers were asked to tweet their reactions to the promo, which debuted during the first commercial break

Harry Redknapp insists he holds no grudges against Roy Hodgson, even though the West Brom boss is set to inherit the England role he craved. The Football Association stunned most observers when they went against public opinion and confirmed

TWO devoted Christchurch mums who set up a support group for families of children with Down’s Syndrome are appealing for more people to reach out to them. Ceri Tyack and Jo Duckworth were inspired to set up the group Down’s in Dorset two years ago after

Friday April 27 was a good day for wildlife at Arne! Despite a poor start, the weather improved a bit and there were some decent sightings out on the heath. It was a bumper day for wheatears which probably came in on the weather fronts we are

THE widow of Royal Marine Sgt Luke Taylor has thanked people for their “overwhelming” turnout at his memorial service. The 33-year-old from Burton was remembered at Christchurch Priory before a private internment at Hinton Park Woodland on

A FREE arts show that takes over Bournemouth’s Lower Gardens has opened its 10th anniversary show. Every spring Fine Arts students from The Arts University College of Bournemouth put their skills on display. This year’s theme is ‘Benchmark’ and there

A MAN who drove an oil tanker into a house while his wife Christine was inside has been jailed for seven years. Hugh Robertson Billington, 51, was sentenced at Dorchester Crown Court today after admitting offences of arson being reckless as

SCHOOLCHILDREN who do not get free school transport may still qualify for price reductions. Dorset County Council is inviting parents and guardians to apply for a concessionary scheme covering students up to age 18 on contracted school routes only. This

'CONTROVERSIAL' proposals to impose time limits and charges in Bournemouth parks have been drawn up. Officers want to stop commuters and football fans using up the room at places like King’s Park and Meyrick Park. There was also said

POLICE declined to give details of their views on street lights being switched off at night in Blandford. The Daily Echo asked for a copy of their consultation response under the Freedom of Information Act. The force said the information

A BLOCK of flats for elderly people was treated for an 'infestation' of bedbugs. Twynham Court in Dean Park Road in Bournemouth is run by Christchurch Housing Society. One resident in her 80s told the Echo: “They are in three flats – the people in them

FEARS are growing for the safety of a Bournemouth pensioner who has not been seen for more than a week. Simone Lategan, 71, from Frances Road was last seen at 4pm on Sunday, April 22. PC Debbie Wilkie said: “I understand that Simone

A GROUP of bodyboarders love using the Boscombe Surf Reef despite it being officially closed on safety grounds. They say around 20 bodyboarders – and a handful of stand-up surfers – still use the reef, which they claim is far less dangerous

Big Vern, a 24-year-old Jaguar Sovereign, motored around 10 miles before it ground to a halt and had to be rescued by a breakdown service. But the aged white car with white-walled tyres has a much bigger challenge ahead in July when it will

Hardy motorists will turn out in their sporty convertibles in Poole on Friday for the first Rockley Park Quay for My Car of the season. The popular event sees Poole Quay playing host to 18 unique themed car events every Friday evening from

I SEE that the council have granted permission for development of 57 self-contained flats plus holiday flats in the Priory Road area. I certainly agree with the civic society that the development of six storeys high will have a negative effect on the

I FELT I should reply to the letter from Ron Bryant claiming that the demolition of the Imax building is the worst possible solution because some residents object to its appearance and loss of view. Bournemouth residents have been very clear that they

Richard Grant of Burley has written many letters recently. However I cannot agree with his comments describing Bournemouth’s pier theatre as a 'shed on legs' and his comments for a low-budget hotel on the Waterfront site Can I suggest he puts his efforts

WE were in Bournmouth on Saturday, April 21 for my daughter’s hen weekend and I must say we had a fantastic time. However I lost my Samsung camera at around midnight in the area of Chilli Whites or during the taxi ride home. As you can imagine, we

A WEEK or so ago my hair looked and felt worse than a birds nest….without the soup! I had been ill for some time as I suffer with multiple sclerosis. The state of my hair was really depressing me as I just didn’t have the energy to wash and colour

I am writing in response to the recent letter in the Echo from the anonymous 'Local Businessman for 35 years' calling for fresh blood on Bournemouth Council. I am one of 17 new councillors elected last May, with three of us on the cabinet already

CHANGED The Way You Kiss Me and Won't Go Quietly are just two of the tracks you can expect to hear from UK rapper Example, who performs at BIC as part of his latest UK tour tonight. The hip-hop/house/dubstep star, otherwise known as Elliot Gleave,

I WOULD like to remind dog owners that the last opportunity to exercise their dogs on some of our local beaches is fast approaching. I know from my local beaches at Steamer Point and Avon Beach that the areas banning dogs in the summer are seen as much

SHOULD Bournemouth Council move its operation onto council-owned land in Littledown and convert the current town hall into a hotel? The town’s biggest landlord Dave Wells thinks so and wants to spark up a debate about the idea. He’s sure to

PAUL Merton, one of Britain’s best-loved comedians, is back on tour for the first time in 14 years – and his show is proving a bit of a mixed bag. The audience at Bournemouth’s Pavilion Theatre waited with eager anticipation, on Friday night, for the

OFFICIALS will serve a summons on an illegal traveller encampment at a Branksome Chine car park today. The travellers moved onto the site two weeks ago, much to the annoyance of local residents. Borough of Poole officers served direction orders on

STARRING Brian Conley in the famous frockcoat of Fagin, one of Britain’s most beloved musicals Oliver! arrives at The Mayflower this week. Bringing Dickens’s timeless characters vividly to life with its ever-popular story of the boy who asked for more

FOR the first time in its 80-year history, the stage at The Regent in Christchurch will be transformed into a synthetic ice rink for Magical Extravaganza On Ice next Saturday at 7.30pm. The show has just returned to the UK following an extensive

Boscombe beach was deserted yesterday as torrential rain and strong winds continued to lash the South Coast. Simon Lloyd was among the few walkers who braved the wintry conditions on the sand-covered promenade. But his mangled brolly provided

BOURNEMOUTH council staff should be moved to the Littledown area and the Town Hall turned back into a hotel. That’s the view of the town’s biggest landlord Dave Wells, who believes the current ‘antiquated old building’ in the centre of town

Roy Hodgson has been approached about the England manager's job, the Football Association have confirmed. West Brom chairman Jeremy Peace granted permission for the FA to hold talks with their 64-year-old manager, and Hodgson has already had

THE prompt actions of her neighbour saved the life of sleeping Sheila Thompson after a fire broke out in her first-floor flat early yesterday. Speaking just hours after being led to safety by fire crews, the 48-year-old antiques dealer told

CHRIS Holder vowed to add to his World Championship victory record after racking up his third career Grand Prix triumph in Leszno. The Pirates captain came from behind to top the podium after a dramatic final in Poland on Saturday night. Holder’s win

GOALS from Jamie Davidson and Tom Jeffes were not enough to save Wimborne Town from a final-day defeat. At the end of what has largely been a season of struggle for Magpies, the Cuthbury outfit brought down the curtain by suffering a 3-2 reverse

PAUL Groves believes consistency will be decisive in determining whether bad boy Donal McDermott can go on to fulfil his rich potential with Cherries. McDermott repaid Groves for handing him his first start since March by netting for Cherries during

PERHAPS Lord Justice Leveson should be tasked with trying to ascertain whether Paul Groves wants to become Cherries’ next permanent manager. Poker-faced Groves has continued to play his cards close to his chest regarding the role and again

CHRIS Holder will lead race-shy Pirates into battle at Wolverhampton tonight. Poole Coastal Aluminium have not rolled on to the track since Good Friday’s double-header against Coventry, with home clashes against Wolves and Swindon and an away trip to

POOLE Town boss Tom Killick watched his side beat league champions Bideford and insisted promotion was well within their grasp. Goals from Dan Cann and Carl Preston, either side of Steve Orchard’s strike for Bideford, gave Dolphins the lead on Saturday

TWENTY years after being relegated from the Southern League Premier Division, there is something fitting about Poole Town’s promotion battle being played out on home soil. Crashing through the levels without anywhere to call home was the most barren

BOSS Glenn Burnett saw New Milton stage “the greatest comeback since Lazarus” to leave their Wessex Premier fate on a knife edge. Burnett feared Linnets’ destiny had been decided by half-time after the Humbugs had raced into a 3-0 lead at Hayling College

Local residents are being urged to don their walking boots and complete a walk along Bournemouth seafront to raise money for women’s health.The event, on Friday 1st June 2012, will see local residents and hospital staff complete a 1k, 5k or 10k