ALEX Browne has vowed to remain patient in his search for new recruits. The Wimborne Town boss is looking to bolster his squad during the close-season after key wide men Pete Smith and Scott Arnold both headed through the Cuthbury exit door. But Browne
A colleague of mine recently proudly proclaimed that he can still remember the registration of his first ever car – a very retro Austin A40 that wouldn’t look out of place in Heartbeat – yet he couldn’t tell me the registration of his current automobile
ROLL up, roll up for the Mystery Tour. Visitors to Bournemouth Town Hall on Tuesday evening might have wondered what the 53-seater coach was doing parked outside. Was it to whisk councillors away on some expenses-fuelled jaunt to London
IN an age of cutbacks in public transport, it’s an unusual story. Two campaigning Lytchett Minster business people are celebrating their very own transport victory. David and Joanne Bridgen asked Transdev Yellow Buses to run a link between
STUDENTS and staff at Bournemouth University’s School of Services Management are celebrating their highest-ever league results. Sports Sciences at the university have been ranked number two in the country, second only to Bath, as has tourism, second
LATELY, I’ve been feeling an increasing sense of déjà vu. It seems to occur mainly while watching television, particularly the soaps, or sometimes during a reality show. Somehow, I just know what’s going to happen – so much so that I feel I
A GRIEVING daughter has pledged to continue her fight for justice following the death of her mother in a tragic accident in Spain. Rosemary Probert died after mistakenly walking into a glass panel and careering head-first down a flight of marble
RESIDENTS are calling for greater traffic controls after claiming a popular new play park is adding to the “mayhem” in a Poole road. Parkstone Bay Association welcomed new play equipment at Whitecliff public open space, but have for many years
JESUS was a charismatic Jewish teacher rather than the divine figure of Christianity. That is one of the claims of Professor Geza Vermes, an expert on the historical Jesus, and one of the first people to examine the Dead Sea Scrolls. Prof Vermes, who
A BOURNEMOUTH councillor has hit out at further delays to a project that would provide a new route across the River Stour and benefit hundreds of people. Cllr Ron Whittaker says he is disappointed that another site visit is required – and will not happen
FOUR men were being questioned after a dramatic armed police raid on a flat in the Charminster area of Bournemouth. Eight police vehicles, armed officers and a handler with a sniffer dog went to the premises and the area was temporarily sealed
TOBIAS Ellwood's first public meeting on MPs' expenses was a subdued affair. The anger from the audience of 55 at Bournemouth School for Girls was mainly directed at the system and not Mr Ellwood, and little time was spent discussing his own
AN “ACCIDENT is waiting to happen” on a Shaftesbury road that home owners claim is being used as a rat run. Knapp resident Sonya Foreman says an increasing number of drivers are using her road as a short cut to and from the Sherborne Causeway
MP Sir John Butterfill looks set to be next in line for the Telegraph treatment. Last week Sir John told the Echo that when the expenses system was announced, a treasury minister told MPs to rejoice and that they didn't have to justify claims
BOURNEMOUTH council has posted its members allowances for 2008/09 online. Councillors get a basic allowance and can claim for some expenses. Members of the Cabinet and chairmen of other council meetings are entitled to a special responsibility
WORK on a project to build a flagship school near Wimborne is about to start a new phase. The redevelopment of Queen Elizabeth’s School is now scheduled for completion at Easter 2011. Residents were told two years ago that the new buildings would
HIGH-FLYING Lee James has shrugged off a rare low point to his season in Italy on Sunday to concentrate on this week’s battle of Waterloo. James, who won the previous European Challenge Tour event in France, plummeted 31 places after a six-over-par
A 38-year-old man is still receiving intensive care treatment more than three weeks after he was set upon during a vicious gang attack in Boscombe. The victim, who is from Poole and has not been identified, was walking along Centenary Way towards
Rhinoceros, Arena Theatre, Regent Centre Studio, Christchurch IONESCO wrote his play in response to the collusion with the Nazis that he witnessed in occupied France during the Second World War, but there are parallels in today’s world, with many
AN angry ambulance boss has issued a stern warning after two crew members were allegedly attacked while going to the aid of a patient. Ken Wenman, chief executive of South Western Ambulance Service, said: “If you want an ambulance dispatched
ADDITIONAL safety measures to reduce the number of fatal crashes on the A338 between Ringwood and Fordingbridge are being investigated by Hampshire County Council roads engineers. Numerous people have lost their lives on the road, the latest
IT gives a whole new meaning to soothing the sole and for Freddie Miller it’s one of the few opportunities she gets to put her feet up. For 55-year-old Freddie is a full-time carer who looks after her elderly mother at their home in Dorset. “It is a
POLICE have launched an investigation after a man leapt from a first floor window during a serious fire. Detectives believe the blaze, at Wavell Avenue on Poole’s Waterloo estate, was arson and specially-trained officers are now trying to establish the
A CLAIM of £700 for a six-day language course in France has been defended by North Dorset MP Bob Walter. The claim was among those published by Mr Walter on his website and reported in the Daily Echo on Saturday. In a subsequent email seen by the paper
AN MP who formerly represented Dorset claimed more than £1,800 in expenses to buy 215 trees and fencing to mark out the boundary of his house. Christopher Fraser, who was Conservative MP for mid Dorset and North Poole between 1997 and 2001
A CLAIM of £700 for a six-day language course in France has been defended by North Dorset MP Bob Walter. The claim was among those published by Mr Walter on his website and reported in the Daily Echo on Saturday. In a subsequent email seen by the paper
A mass migration of butterflies into Dorset over the weekend has delighted conservationists. Not since 1996 have the butterfly recorders and members of Butterfly Conservation been so excited about the numbers of Painted Ladies alighting.
SUMMER is here and it is quite simply buzzing. It appears after a worrying year of dwindling numbers, Dorset’s honey bee population is on the up. Beekeepers have received countless reports of swarms in recent weeks following a good spring
A DORSET MP and government minister has defended his use of a colleague’s husband to give him tax advice. It was revealed yesterday that Dennis Bates, who is married to former foreign office minister Meg Munn, was paid more than £5,000 in Parliamentary
“I DON’T know where/Confused about how as well/Just know that these things will never change for us at all.” The words of Snow Patrol’s Chasing Cars seemed completely appropriate when played at a special Service of Thanksgiving and Celebration
I TOOK no pleasure from telling a former colleague – a passionate Liverpool fan – that I would not be able to attend the concert he is performing in Poole tonight. To be honest, there was a certain vicarious pleasure in telling him that I had a prior
With reference to your article Gay Parade Facing Bus Route Opposition, (Daily Echo, May 23) I think that this is an outrageous stance for Yellow Buses to take. In the past when Yellow Buses was municipally owned there was never an problem with
WHY is it Hamworthy is screaming out for parking places for workers and local schools? It’s an absolute disgrace. Go to Hamworthy Park at 8am and sometimes you can’t park. It is full of work vans and, at school times, pick-up cars for local schools
The RAF St Eval Friends Reunited Association is trying to contact all ex RAF St Eval personnel, and invite them to our next reunion, at the Trebarwith Hotel Newquay, Cornwall in October. We would also like to contact Rosemary Garner, physical
Having just read the letter headed Second Class (Have Your Say, May 26) I felt I had to write and sympathise with the writer. I too posted a card on the same day at the post box in Poole. This too has not yet arrived at its destination in Ruislip
A BOURNEMOUTH MP has become the latest to publish details of his expense claims, including a £1,100 bed and mattress and almost £1,000 worth of furnishings. Since 2005/06, Bournemouth East MP Tobias Ellwood has claimed for £250 of roof repairs
LYMINGTON took full advantage of a depleted Poole Park team in A Division. Lymo skips Kay Richardson (28-5) and Jean Stopp (29-9) maintained a firm hand on the tiller as Lymington sailed into Poole Park, cruised through the match (57-14) and
IT STILL ceases to amaze that in a Section One match where 1,344 woods have been bowled, the scores are level. That was the case in the clash of the Titans between Alexandra Park and Boscombe Cliff. At one stage the Cliff appeared to be well in control
STAFF were reeling yesterday after Siemens VAI announced they were set to axe 240 jobs at their Bournemouth Airport offices. The UK head office in Enterprise Way at the Aviation Park focuses on the design and engineering of rolling mills and
I WISH to complain about the way cyclists are allowed to get away with lawbreaking that would result in criminal prosecution for car drivers. Any cyclist can blithely sail past a red traffic light without fear of prosecution. Any movement sensitive
As the furore over MPs’ expenses starts to wind down, perhaps we should look closer to home, in detail, at the profligacy of our local council. I do not mean our beloved democratically elected councillors, rather the tail that wags the dog,
PIRATES new boy Hans Andersen has hit back at critics who claim the club have dropped some of their rider averages on purpose to fit him into their side. The Dane believes British speedway supporters from other clubs should lay off Poole Castle
In your article of May 16 regard-ing MPs’ expenses, Annette Brooke MP stated that she was aware that some people were buying flats and almost becoming property developers at the taxpayer’s expense: that “didn’t seem right” to her. I’d like to know
I JUST wonder, with so many MPs making “accounting errors”, “administrative errors” and “oversights” on their basic household accounts – should they be in any position of importance, let alone being responsible for national matters? With all the talk
PAUL Baker last night confirmed that a fresh bid has been submitted for Cherries. The Cherries co-owner revealed that the bid, which was put forward on Monday, is the only one currently on the table. Baker is hoping to receive one further offer in the
HANS Andersen has said he can happily work with Pirates team manager Neil Middleditch again following their infamous fall-out over an acrimonious last-heat decider in the World Cup final at Poole in 2004. Although the Dane has guested for
ALEXANDRA Park gave further proof that they are serious Dorset Championship League title contenders by defeating reigning kings Greenhill 8-2 (51-48). The 25-15 verdict of Verne Singleton, Bob Turnbull, Derek Ames and Alan Miller against Kevin
COOPER Payne insists his Studland team will continue to live by their fun philosophy as they set the pace in the Dorset Sunday Division One. Vice captain Payne was again delighted as his men notched up a fourth consecutive win with an eight-wicket hammering
