DORSET Police say the county is relatively free of asylum seekers being caught behind the wheel without the correct driving documents. Some police forces have reported that illegal driving by refugees has reached epidemic proportions. Wolverhampton Police
IT'S the baby he thought he could never have. Cancer survivor Tony Maycock, 33, was told it was highly unlikely he would ever father a child after he endured intensive bouts of chemotherapy and a bone marrow transplant in his early 20s. But now the Christchurch
IT'S not often you see a frog skating along the prom. A mad money-making charity mission is seeing one local vet donning crazy animal costumes, inline skating along Bournemouth promenade and singing on the beach every morning for a month. Anne McCloy,
HIGHWAYS bosses have defended their decision to allow roadworks on a busy Bournemouth road yards from the major disruption on the Wessex Way. A developer will be allowed to dig up Wimborne Road to connect a new block of flats to a sewer at the junction
AFFORDABLE housing, a bridge that does not lift and no congestion - these are just some of the things the people of Poole want to see at a proposed Urban Village on a former power station site. Hundreds of Hamworthy residents gathered to voice their views
A 28-YEAR-OLD Poole man was banned from 10 shops and made the subject of other strict conditions when he appeared before Bournemouth magistrates. Nathan Cooper accepted an Anti Social Behaviour Order follow-ing an application to the court by Poole council
NOT only does Diesel the cat have her name in common with American action star Vin Diesel, she also shares his sense of adventure, as she proved when she went missing for six months. The two-year-old moggy's owner Stella McPherson, from Creekmoor, Poole
BROCKENHURST continued their recent improvement with a comfortable 2-0 win at Bemerton Heath Harlequins. Player-manager Graham Kemp was pleased with his team's showing and pointed towards a continued progression among his troops. He said: "It is the third
CHRISTCHURCH boss Pete Moore believes his men could be the "dark horses" of the Wessex League next season after their impressive 3-1 victory over AFC Totton. The Hurn Bridge outfit are one of the form sides in the Wessex League at the moment having won
WARREN Cummings goals are like buses. You don't see one for ages and then two come along at once. Cummings bagged his second goal of the season to help Cherries see off plucky Wycombe Wanderers at Dean Court on Saturday. His stunning left-foot volley,
LOUISE Damen was celebrating today after being told that she would be in the Great Britain team that will take part in the World Cross-Country Championship later this month. The 21-year-old Bournemouth AC runner was pipped for the final automatic qualifying
HAMWORTHY United have moved four points clear at the top of the Elite Teamwear Dorset Premier League, following their 2-1 home win over Wareham Rangers. Tom McCormack gave Hamworthy the lead from the penalty spot, before an excellent free-kick from Matt
SHERBORNE TOWN 3 DORCHESTER UNITED 0 ALREADY fielding a makeshift team missing seven regulars, United ran into more problems at Sherborne when star goalkeeper Dan Claxton and top striker Martin Hillier were both taken to hospital with serious injuries
TORRINGTON 1 BRIDPORT 1 A DESPERATE last-ditch challenge from Dean Ritchie preserved a precious point for improving Bridport in the Screwfix Direct Premier Division at Vicarage Field. With 12 minutes remaining, Torrington winger Danny Robinson looked
MONEYFIELDS 0 PORTLAND UNITED 2 PORTLAND United completed a quick-fire Sydenhams Wessex League double over Moneyfields in Ports-mouth on Saturday. Having beaten their opponents 2-0 at Grove Corner a fortnight ago, the Blues gave a repeat performance at
DORCHESTER TOWN 0 STAFFORD RANGERS 0 DORCHESTER extended their unbeaten Avenue Stadium sequence to seven games as they proved once again that they can live with the best in the division on their day. Unfortunately the league table shows those days have
EVEN breaking his back racing motorcycles hasn't dampened Andrew March-ington's enthusiasm in rubber stamping his company's lucrative two-year team sponsorship of Poole Pirates speedway team this season. Marchington, managing director of the rapidly growing
DEVELOPERS at the centre of a controversial planning dispute have threatened to come down hard on vandals who they claim have been damaging their property. Weymouth house builder Betterment Properties says the fence to its land at Markham and Little Francis
MORE than 600 amateur musicians tuned up their instruments at Weymouth Music Festival. Children and adults from across Dorset gathered at All Saints' School in Weymouth for the non-competitive event, now in its 17th year. Professional musicians held classes
MAJOR STORES COULD RUIN A TOWN CENTRE I WAS intrigued by recent letters to the Echo published under the headings 'Councils have failed us over big stores' and 'Somebody, please stop the planners'. The correspondents, although on a similar subject, take
COUNCILS in Dorset must break down political barriers and put an end to infighting if the county is to become a world class destination, tourism leaders said today. Local authorities must join forces and use the expertise of business to make the most
STUDENTS at a special school have been forced to give up money raised for new equipment to pay for damage caused when their bus was vandalised. The youngsters from Wyvern School, Weymouth, walked across Dartmoor to raise funds for a hydrotherapy pool
STUDENTS at a special school have been forced to give up money raised for new equipment to pay for damage caused when their bus was vandalised. The youngsters from Wyvern School, Weymouth, walked across Dartmoor to raise funds for a hydrotherapy pool
PALS Sara Parvin and Sarah True are getting ready for the trip of a lifetime. The energetic Dorchester pair plan to use pedal power to boost a medical charity. The women hope to raise £5,000 between them so they can take part in a cycle ride along Africa's
ROADKILL could give the clue to increasing polecat figures in the New Forest. Forestry Commission chief keeper Martin Noble has the grisly job of checking out corpses he finds in the road. The sad irony is the more polecats that he finds squashed, the
PARENTS have come up with their own solution to schools re-organisation in their town. And because questions have been raised about the county council's justification of its own proposed £19.5 million upheaval, an independent analyst has been appointed
THIS replica market cross has been put up in Blandford to give people an idea of what the real £200,000 Portland stone sculpture will look like. The plywood replica was erected for £200 and planners will be visiting it before deciding whether to give
A COUNTRY pub gutted by a fire earlier this week will be open for business. While flames swept through the main part of the thatched 17th century Langton Arms at Tarrant Monkton near Blandford on Tuesday, the fire did not spread to the kitchens, restaurant
CHERRIES boss Sean O'Driscoll is reportedly being linked with the vacant manager's position at Division Two table-toppers Plymouth Argyle. The Home Park hot-seat became available following Paul Sturrock's appointment as manager of Southampton at the end
IT'S the baby he thought he could never have. Cancer survivor Tony Maycock, 33, was told it was highly unlikely he would ever father a child after he endured intensive bouts of chemotherapy and a bone marrow transplant in his early 20s. But now the Christchurch
A ZOO visitor was astonished when a fish ate his mobile phone. Peter Garland, 29, from Bournemouth, saw a catfish swallow the handset after he lent over its pond at Marwell Zoo. His partner Hayley Battle, 22, said Peter had dropped his phone, camera and
AIR accident investigators have been removing the wreckage of the helicopter which crashed in a field near Bournemouth Airport, killing its two occupants. Officials from the Air Accidents Investigation Branch are still trying to find out why the Agusta
AN off-duty police officer witnessed a vicious attack outside a Bournemouth nightclub last summer which left one man in hospital. The 30-year-old victim suffered a fractured cheekbone, hand injuries and bruising after being set upon as he left the Opera
A VANDAL who took a key to 18 cars in Bournemouth has piled more misery on an unlucky single mother. Emma Harrison, 21, has already had to pay two hefty bills following collisions in which she says the other drivers failed to leave their details. Now
THE mild, unsettled weather of the previous three months continued until the seventh. Most of the month's rain fell during this period, while the fourth was our third mildest February day on record. A developing anticyclone then spread from the west and
ROYAL visitor HRH the Earl of Wessex got stuck into the action at Bovington camp when he took control of a military training vehicle on Saturday. On his first visit as the Royal Wessex Yeomanry's honorary colonel Prince Edward, wearing combat gear, watched
A LINE of sweet chestnut trees has been planted along a busy road into Poole, each sponsored and dedicated with a special plaque. The row of 15 trees alongside Holes Bay Road was the brainchild of the mayor, Cllr Ray Smith, to improve the landscape, encourage
EIGHTY scrap cars caught fire in a suspected arson attack on a Poole scrapyard. Six fire engines were sent to the Nuffield Industrial Estate as acrid black smoke engulfed the area. The fire broke out at a vehicle recycling site belonging to W&S Auto
GARETH Barnes was the hat-trick hero for table-topping Wimborne Town as they crushed Blackfield and Langley 6-1 - and he should have scored four. The home side took a shock lead on nine minutes as they bossed the opening exchanges. But Paul Arnold's men
LYMINGTON & New Milton made it nine straight league wins as they triumphed 2-1 over 10-man Cowes Sports in an ill-tempered affair on the Isle of Wight. But the gritty victory was overshadowed by a serious knee injury to John Bailey who was stretchered
TWO own goals condemned lowly Bournemouth Poppies to a 3-1 home defeat to title-chasing Winchester City. Poppies gave a good account of themselves but were eventually undone by their powerful opponents, despite leading for much of the contest. Lewis Till
POOLE Town saw their four-month unbeaten league record perish at runaway Hampshire League leaders Vosper Thornycroft in a 4-1 battering. The Dolphins, who were rocked by the news of key defender James Guelting's defection to Dorchester on Friday, were
TWO excellent goals from Bashley were enough to gain three vital Dr Martens Eastern Division points in a 2-0 win at Bashley Road over lowly Erith and Belvedere. It is also a win that comes straight on the back of their 3-2 victory over Corby Town, resulting
STEVE Bendall has stressed he will be looking forward from now on - not back. The unbeaten mandatory challenger for the British middleweight title has been denied a tilt for the crown against Battersea Bomber Howard Eastman. But Bendall has decided to
WEYMOUTH Wildcats have completed their team building for the new season by snapping up Jack Gledhill. The 17-year-old arrives at the Wessex Stadium on loan from Conference League rivals Swindon Sprockets. Gledhill, who was introduced to fans at Saturday's
WEYMOUTH RES 4 MONEYFIELDS RES 0 MARTIN Underhay struck twice to help Weymouth Reserves to an easy victory over their Moneyfields counterparts. The veteran attacker, now in his third spell at the club, found the net either side of half-time at a deserted
BRIDPORT RES 0 GILLINGHAM TOWN 0 BRIDPORT Reserves ground out an important Elite Teamwear Dorset Premier point against Gillingham Town. Bees second string manager Chris Fry described his team's performance as the best he's seen this season and they coped
BOURNEMOUTH SPORTS 1 DORCHESTER RESERVES 1 FORMER Northern Ireland international goalkeeper Jimmy Glass was in inspirational form as Sports held the Magpies for the second time this season. "I don't think I have ever seen a goalkeeper run the game like
CRAWLEY TOWN 2 WEYMOUTH 1 TWO goals in three second half minutes fired Crawley Town into pole position in the Dr Martens Premier Division title race. Paul Armstrong and Kevin Hemsley secured victory at the Broadfield Stadium to give the Sussex side a
DORCHESTER boss Mark Morris insists "nothing's impossible" - even though his men stayed in the relegation zone despite holding high-flyers Stafford Rangers to a goal-less draw the the Avenue Stadium. Wins for fellow strugglers Bath City, Chippenham and
STEVE Claridge claimed a few minutes of madness at Crawley Town cost Weymouth the lead of the Dr Martens Premier Division. Paul Armstrong and Kevin Hemsley's quick-fire double sealed the points at a packed Broadfield Stadium to take the Sussex side a
A POOLE cosmetics company and a Bournemouth law firm were yesterday named among Britain's top "100 Companies to Work For" by the Sunday Times. Lush, the Poole-based manufacturer and retailer of hand-made cosmetics made it into the list in 10th place,
POLITICIANS have come up with an idea which could slash costs and save a vital service in East Dorset. The under-used minor injuries unit at Wimborne Hospital is under threat of closure - but since the row surrounding closure has hit the headlines the
EAST Dorset District Council is hoping to boost its recycling efforts after the launch of the revolutionary brown bin composting scheme. A total of 5,000 households in Verwood were issued with new waste containers including a 120-litre brown bin and seven-litre
IT'S a recipe for guitar heaven - three masters of the instrument veteran blues blasters Alvin Lee, Edgar Winter and Tony McPhee are heading for Bournemouth this spring. Touring together for the first time, this trio of guitar superstars, who play the
RAM-RAIDERS smashed their way into shops in Weymouth causing extensive damage. They grabbed designer clothes worth about £3,000, but in a second raid three hours later the thieves escaped empty-handed after an attempt to steal a cash machine. Two different
CHILDREN at St Andrew's School in Weymouth have been learning what life is like on the buses. Year 1 pupils at the school in Littlemoor Road, Preston were visited by bus driver Julian Pettit from First Buses. Year 1 class teacher Jenny Board said: "Year
SHE celebrated her 80th birthday last week, but Lymington-born Alice Coles has only just decided it's time to leave school. For the past 25 years, the cleaning lady has been keeping Hordle Walhampton School in tip-top order. But now at last she is hanging
THERE are enough tough decisions to be taken in supermarkets. Do I go for the man-sized trolley or the girlie medium-sized version, or perhaps do I risk incurring the wrath of fellow customers by trying to take 11 items through the express till? More
