Archive

  • Public 'safer' as robber gets life

    A BRAZEN armed robber who raided a Bournemouth building society during a six-month crime spree was jailed for life on September 16. David William Love, 40, stole more than £12,000 from building societies the length and breadth of the country. The former

  • Toy museum sale seen as triumph by owner

    ARNE Toy Museum, one of only two toy museums on the South Coast, has been sold for £500,000. Brian Etches, who set up the museum 18 years ago, has sold the 1.5 acre site and toy collection to Joyce Kosinski, the wife of a businessman. Brian said: "I'm

  • BOURNEMOUTH PLANS (Aug 18-25)

    Old Christchurch Road, Dalkeith Arcade; 7/2004/1179/AM, Erection of various internally illuminated fascia and projecting signs. Christchurch Road, No.51A; 7/2004/19801/B, Change of use from dwelling house to mixed use as dwelling & medical consulting

  • For Love or Money

    If you like Cookson and Cox you will love this. An irresistible read. Connie Ryan is from a working-class family in Southampton but her ambition in life is to be a singer. The chance of a lifetime is offered to her when a bookmaker, Les Baxter, hears

  • Gran's fury over pool sex antics

    A GRANDMOTHER is calling for a leisure centre's unisex changing rooms to be separated after her grandson, 10, saw two people having sex in a cubicle. Joan Self reported the incident to staff at Poole's Dolphin Swimming Pool just a month after a voyeur

  • 'Sort out our school system'

    PARENTS and teachers have demanded changes to Poole's complicated education system. A survey revealed they agreed it must be changed - but nobody knows how to do it yet. Eight out of ten parents, teachers and governors who responded to the Borough of

  • Council will bail out toilets

    BRIDPORT Council will spend its own pennies to save the town hall toilets. Members of the finance committee agreed on Wednesday that funds should be made available to keep them open - whatever the cost. The loos are currently operated by the district

  • Big name stores close in Bridport

    TWO familiar high street stores are quitting Bridport. Victoria Wine closed its West Street shop last week and Curry's has announced it is shutting its East Street branch soon. A sign in the window of the off-licence told its customers "sorry - we are

  • Elderly widow targeted in sweepstake scam

    A BRIDPORT pensioner has been targeted in a new international scam. Eileen Willer, 79, got a letter from Spain telling her she was a Euro lottery winner - and asking her to send her bank account details so she could get paid. A widow who lives alone,

  • Engaging residence up for sale

    ANYONE wanting a bijou residence in Beaminster may be in luck with the sale coming up of the former telephone exchange in Whitcombe Road. Estate agents Symonds and Sampson are selling the property at auction in Poundbury on September 24. The guide price

  • Eldridge Pope to be sold for £42 million

    TROUBLED Dorset pubs operator Eldridge Pope has backed a £42.3 million takeover by entrepreneur Michael Cannon after no sign of an upturn in trading. Shares rose five per cent as Eldridge Pope directors recommended Mr Cannon's offer of 171p a share, made

  • Eldridge Pope to be sold for £42 million

    TROUBLED Dorset pubs operator Eldridge Pope has backed a £42.3 million takeover by entrepreneur Michael Cannon after no sign of an upturn. Shares rose five per cent as Eldridge Pope directors recommended Mr Cannon's offer of 171p a share, made through

  • Youth, 19, is banned from town

    A 19-YEAR-OLD youth who was part of a gang that terrorised residents has been banned from a Ferndown housing estate for two years. East Dorset District Council were granted an anti-social behaviour order this week barring Christopher William Moore (aka

  • Tough or tactful

    A SOFTLY, softly "tact" force at the Dorset Steam Fair and a simultaneous rapid-reaction approach to oust illegal itinerants from Christchurch this summer reflects the twin-track strategy employed by Dorset police. The differing operations at Stourpaine

  • RSPB FEARS FOR NATURE RESERVE

    WARDENS today demanded tough new controls over fishing at Radipole Lake bird reserve amid fears for its future. Keith Ballard, manager of the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) reserve, claimed the beauty spot had become a 'free for all'

  • Boxing club in appeal for helpers and funds

    BOXERS at a Dorchester club are calling for more sponsors and helpers to weigh in. Dorchester Amateur Boxing Club started in October last year in the Scout hut at Little Britain in the county town. But it proved so popular with youngsters that they soon

  • Politicians given a royal tour of estate

    PRINCE Charles was in Poundbury yesterday showing politicians around his model village. The Prince of Wales invited Planning Minister Keith Hill and members of the Welsh Assembly for a royal tour of the development to show how the mix of private and social

  • Carnival joy bubbling up for a magical weekend

    CARNIVAL magic is set to bewitch Ringwood residents on Saturday with another spellbinding programme of colourful cavalcades, eye-catching entertainment and booming fireworks. Last year's procession attracted 37 floats as well as walking entries, bands

  • Dad's protest is laughable

    BEING a fairly new father, I can appreciate how traumatic it must be if you can't see your child every day. And I can only imagine how awful it must be if you are separated from them for months, or even years, at a time. So I know where the "Fathers 4

  • WOMAN TOOK HER OWN LIFE

    A SHOP assistant who was found collapsed on a West Dorset beach took a drug overdose before her death. An inquest at Dorchester heard that Susan Hill committed sui cide in April this year. The body of the 56-year- old woman, of Nutcombe Terrace, Charmouth

  • ARSON SUSPECTED AT BEACH HUTS

    POLICE and fire and rescue teams believe that a hut on Monmouth beach in Lyme Regis was set ablaze deliber ately. Officers found rubbish and detected an accelerant - pos sibly petrol - at the scene of the blaze last Friday, which left most of the beach

  • CALL TO SCRAP PARKING FEES

    A MINIMUM two-hour park ing charge at the Woodmead Halls in Lyme Regis has resulted in an increase of £27,000 on last year's parking revenue for Lyme Regis town council. But some councillors are still keen to abolish the controversial two-hour charge,

  • DO YOU BACK A BAN ON HUNTING?

    THE Daily Echo is seeking readers' opinions on a burning issue of the moment. This week we want your views on hunting with dogs, which has just be banned by Parliament. Vote on the homepage or see Saturday's Echo for details of how to vote by phone or

  • Collateral (15)

    IT doesn't happen often, but every once in a while, along comes a film that changes the way you look at similar films forever. Such a film is Michael Mann's masterful Collateral. Shot on digital video rather than film, it peers further into the night

  • Little Earthquakes

    THREE young women who are all living the "happy ever after" until one by one they become pregnant and reassess when baby comes along. Becky has to juggle her restaurant with her little girl, doctor husband and the mother in law from hell. Kelly thinks

  • Do you know a local hero?

    DO you know someone who has raised thousands of pounds for charity or made a difference in their community or is just an all-round good egg? If so, we want to hear from you. The Daily Echo has joined forces with Haskins Garden Centre, to mark the 10th

  • Remote possibilities

    WHO hasn't ever dreamed of escaping to a new life on a remote island the other side of the world? But the Falkland Islands? Peter and Caroline Wakefield are emigrating from Swanage to a place so remote they will be boosting the local population to seven

  • 300 SPEEDERS NICKED IN A338 BLITZ

    AN INCREDIBLE 300 motorists have been caught speeding on Dorset's A338 spur road since road works began there. One driver was clocked doing more than 90mph during an earlier check which prompted the latest crackdown. The 300 were all victims of a mobile

  • Hero plucks kids from burning flat

    A MOTHER wants her neighbour decorated as a hero after he saved the lives of her two young children trapped as flames tore through her Bournemouth flat. When Mike Shave heard the desperate screams of mum Sarah Dimmer, who was locked out of her burning

  • The Motorcycle Diaries (15) preview

    WALTER Salles' highly acclaimed road movie charts the true story of how the young Che Guevara (Gael Garcia Bernal) and his medical school pal Alberto (Rodrigo De La Serna) embarked on an epic journey from Buenos Aires to Caracas that would change the

  • Japanese Story (15) preview

    HUMAN alienation in the Australian desert provides the meat of this acclaimed drama from director Sue Brooks and writer Alison Tilson. Geologist Sandy (Toni Collette) and businessman Hiromitsu (Gotaro Tsunashima) are stranded in the blistering heat of

  • The Motorcycle Diaries (15) preview

    WALTER Salles' highly acclaimed road movie charts the true story of how the young Che Guevara (Gael Garcia Bernal) and his medical school pal Alberto (Rodrigo De La Serna) embarked on an epic journey from Buenos Aires to Caracas that would change the

  • Trauma (15)

    BRITISH film, British film, what has become of British film...? What a silly question. The fact is, films are still being made in this country, some good, some bad, but most are pretty average. Just like anywhere else. Mark Evans' creepy psychological

  • What a lot of grot

    ONCE upon a time, auctions were fairly mysterious, even rather glamorous affairs, where monocled gents and coiffeured ladies would bid with the merest raise of an eyebrow or twitch of a lip for priceless objets d'art. Now, thanks to the telly, auctions

  • NEW FOREST PLANS (Sept 17)

    Land of The Carpenters Arms, Burley Road, Bransgore; 82543, one block of four, 1 block of five terraced houses, modify existing car park layout; Jerry Davies Planning Consultancy, Suite 333, 80 High Street, Winchester (for Inntown Properties Ltd). Land

  • Dead Ringer

    BENNIE Rosato has her own law firm and employs three other female lawyers. Due to her biggest client going bankrupt her firm is heading for financial trouble and she is drawing on savings to keep the company afloat. Her long lost twin sister returns to

  • Bendall bids to fulfil title dream

    UNBEATEN middleweight Steve Bendall has admitted it would be a dream come true if he were to lift the vacant British title tonight (Sept 17). The Poole-based southpaw goes into the ring against Scott Dann, from St Judes, in the Cornishman's home city

  • Former Bridport Mayor dies

    A FORMER Bridport Mayor whose community work encompassed all sections of the town died in Dorset County Hospital on Tuesday after a long illness. Colin Crosby, who was 69, leaves a widow Gillian, four children, a stepson and five grandchildren. He was

  • Shock rise in vandalism

    A MASSIVE rise in vandalism and anti social behaviour at Bridport has set alarm bells ringing. Figures show a 100 per cent increase so far this year with the town's hard-pressed council tax payers facing a £36,000 repair bill - around £12 a head. Now

  • Specialist firm goes north

    ANOTHER Beaminster business is packing up and heading north with the sale and closure of Ken Caldwell's Wellhose company. Mr Caldwell, 69, has been operating his business on the Horn Hill Broadwindsor Road industrial estate for the past six years and

  • Net a new job!

    RUBICON Staffing Solutions has won a major contract with exciting prospects for those looking for employment in the local area. A Poole-based aerospace company has signed with Rubicon to supply it with CNC Operators and millers, and the positions available

  • Positive response to composting scheme

    EAST Dorset's innovative Brown Bin composting scheme is to be extended this autumn with almost 8,000 more homes joining the initiative. The district council launched the scheme in March to some 5,000 homes in Verwood. The next phase will include more

  • Aces promoter blasts Pirates as 'abysmal'

    POOLE'S off-course Pirates were blasted by Belle Vue promoter John Perrin after an abject performance at the Manchester track. (Sept 15) The defending Elite League champions looked a beaten side from the word go as they failed to get to grips with a difficult

  • Hidden costs of burden to council staff

    WHILE the public, press and politicians let off steam, it's the council backroom staff who bear the brunt of dealing with the problems of travellers. From the moment the caravans arrive to when they move on, council staff in many departments are lumbered

  • Hidden costs of burden to council staff

    WHILE the public, press and politicians let off steam, it's the council backroom staff who bear the brunt of dealing with the problems of travellers. From the moment the caravans arrive to when they move on, council staff in many departments are lumbered

  • Vandals shatter hall's windows

    CHURCH leaders are counting the cost after their building was targeted by stone-throwing vandals for the third time in a month. It is believed a group of children are responsible for the damage to windows at the hall behind historic Hope United Reformed

  • Tories hit out at dental service for the elderly

    ELDERLY care home patients are facing a four-month wait for dental appointments, Conserv-atives claimed today. South Dorset Tory parliamentary spokesman Ed Matts said elderly people faced "a distressing and demeaning" problem because a visiting NHS dental

  • Store welcomes cat care stall

    CAT-loving shop assistants welcomed charity volunteers into their store to promote care for feline friends. The West Dorset branch of Cats Protection spent a day at Matalan in the Jubilee Retail Park, Weymouth, to celebrate Cats Protection Week. Cats

  • Sea body is missing OAP

    A BODY found washed up at a Dorset beauty spot has been identified as missing Milford-on-Sea pensioner Ralph Shawcross, who disappeared from a local care home earlier this month. Solent Coastguard helicopter was called in to help police units, including

  • Festival plans could draw in 15,000 fans

    A FESTIVAL which hopes to become Dorset's answer to Glastonbury could see thousands of people descending on the border of Dorset and Wiltshire if planners give the go-ahead. Despite being postponed by a month after hopes of holding it on the site of the

  • Ripping a fox to bits is quite uncivilised

    IT'S the paradox of our times; people who want to chase a living creature to exhaustion, and then watch it ripped to death by hounds, should, by the very nature of their desire, never be allowed to take part in hunting. It's just not good for them. And

  • Ripping a fox to bits is quite uncivilised

    IT'S the paradox of our times; people who want to chase a living creature to exhaustion, and then watch it ripped to death by hounds, should, by the very nature of their desire, never be allowed to take part in hunting. It's just not good for them. And

  • CHEMICAL FIRE FALSE ALARM

    FIVE fire and rescue pumps were called out to a suspected chemical fire at Lyme Regis sewage pumping station, but it turned out to be a false alarm. Officers from Charmouth and Lyme Regis, as well as police and coastguards, attended the seafront station

  • BROWNING BATTLE

    MARCUS Browning is an injury doubt for Cherries' trip to Sheffield Wednesday after picking up a calf problem in the midweek reserves outing. The influential midfielder reported a tight calf in the last five minutes as the Cherries first team slipped to

  • Prescott rejects Gypsy families' planning pleas

    DEPUTY Prime Minister John Prescott has rejected the latest bid by three Gypsy families to win planning permission for their caravan homes on the outskirts of Christchurch. Following a three-day public inquiry earlier this year, government planning inspector

  • THIEVES SMASH BOATS

    FOUR fishing boats in Lyme Regis harbour were broken into in the early hours of Thursday morning. Ten fishing rods, worth over £100 each were taken from one boat alone. Yesterday, police scenes of crimes offi cers were still assessing the extent of the

  • MORE TETRA MAST FEARS

    A NEW group of residents is fighting the threat of a powerful emergency service TETRA mast being installed on a Jurassic Coast World Heritage Site. Residents of Stonebarrow in Charmouth will have an emergency meeting today to discuss what they believe