A DORSET mother has been jailed for three months after a judge branded her "the neighbour from hell". Sentencing 49-year-old Teresa Whitaker, Judge John Beashel said: "Your behaviour towards your neighbours was outrageous. You caused them continuous distress
A RECORD-breaking racing punter has missed out in a bid to double his £878,939 winnings. Ron Nicholson's amazing run of luck finally deserted him on Saturday when the horse which could have netted him £1.8 million went lame. Ron, 51, duty manager at a
A TERMINALLY ill man who was reunited with his long-lost brother by the Daily Echo has had his hopes that his sibling could offer him a chance at life dashed. Tests have shown that Christopher Phillips, who we traced to his Greek home last month, is not
WHILE most of her school friends were busy revising for this week's exams, 12-year-old Brianna Stubbs was concentrating on a rather more challenging task. Instead of spending the weekend with her head in the books, the youngster was busy setting a world
VETERAN socialist and thorn in the side of New Labour, Tony Benn, has confirmed he is appearing at this year's Tolpuddle Martyrs Festival. The festival weekend will take place from July 16 to 18 in the village of Tolpuddle - the birthplace of British
DORSET pinched a dramatic one-run win against Bournemouth in Sunday's 50-over Cheltenham & Gloucester Trophy warm-up at Chapel Gate - despite Sean Walbridge, their new captain, dismissing four of his would-be Minor Counties Championship teammates!
THE streets of Poole were awash with patriotism when a St George's Day parade made its way through the town. Some 600 scouts from Poole East District group took part in yesterday's event, which was led by the Dolphin Marching Band and began from Bournemouth
A BAN on smoking in Poole's public places would be a "draconian" move, according to the director of pro-smoking group Forest. Simon Clark told the select committee set up by Borough of Poole Council to help make a decision on the controversial proposals
LYMINGTON and New Milton played the role of party poopers to perfection as they gate-crashed champions Winchester City's celebrations to steal a famous victory. Darren Curtis' last-gasp winner provided sweet revenge for Ian Robinson's side after they
GIANT Norwegian striker Harold Todman grabbed a hat-trick to help Poole Town put their Dorset Senior Cup final defeat behind them with a 4-2 win over nine-man Liss Athletic. Despite a sloppy start, the Scandinavian found his shooting boots to steer a
BASHLEY'S hopes of Dr Martens Premier Division football next term were finally put to bed as old demons reared their heads again to send them crashing to defeat. Goals conceded from set pieces, coupled with an inability to convert chances, have been the
WIMBORNE Town's hopes of hitting the 100-points-for-the-season tally were dashed by a dozy opening five minutes which handed Andover a final day victory at Cuthbury. Before most people had even had time to apply their sun cream on a sweltering day, Magpies
THE curtain came down on another Wessex League season and for Brockenhurst and Christchurch it was fitting that they fought out a competitive 1-1 draw to compliment what has been an excellent season for both clubs. Their fortunes have practically mirrored
SWANAGE and Wareham threw away a 19-0 lead with only 26 minutes to go to lose their South West Division Two promotion play-off 23-19 at home to Penryn. Tries from James Warren, Chris Leak and a penalty try, coupled with two conversions from Phil Graves
WEYMOUTH face a battle to clinch the Dr Martens Premier Division runners-up spot after scraping a last-gasp 2-2 draw at Welling United. The Terras trailed 2-0 with just 90 seconds of normal time left at Park View Road. But strikes from Paul Buckle and
GUTTED Magpies skipper Alex Browne admitted it was hard to force a smile despite sweeping the board at the club's traditional end of season awards ceremony on Saturday. Party-poopers Newport County put a huge dent in Dorchester's dreams of automatic qualification
DON'T miss our special Tony Rickardsson souvenir poster offer which will be sold with copies of the Echo for the combined price of just 50 pence when you buy your Daily Echo at Ricko's final meeting for the RIAS Pirates against Belle Vue Aces at Wimborne
ECHO reader Jan Ryan cried with joy after winning a £7,000 conservatory. The 48-year-old wife and mother of two from Eldridge Close in Dorchester triumphed after unlocking the grand prize door at Larkin Windows in Weymouth. She was the tenth of 12 finalists
YOUNG people flew the flag as parades were held to celebrate St George's Day across South and West Dorset. Dorchester, Weymouth and Portland all hosted events in honour of England's patron saint. More than 200 Scouts, Cubs, Beavers, Guides and Brownies
HOTELIERS have launched a new safety campaign to avoid a repeat of the double drowning off Burton Bradstock. Members of the World Heritage Coast Hospitality Association have attended the group's first ever 'safer resort training program' at the Acropolis
PLANS are afoot to make Ringwood the safest town in the New Forest for pedestrians and cyclists. A host of routes to get people from A to B and back again safely - and healthily - have been drawn up by Hampshire County Council. The urban network will
TRIALISTS Andrew Wright and Adam Flynn have both been invited back to Dean Court. Defender Flynn and midfielder Wright will train with Cherries tomorrow (Tuesday) and could line up for the reserves at Swindon on Wednesday. The teenage pair, both third-year
A TELEVISION programme has raised questions about whether the fatal helicopter crash in Bournemouth in March was an accident. Stephen Curtis, a millionaire businessman with links to the Russian oil industry, died along with Bournemouth pilot Max Radford
A GROUP of 10,000 volunteers will soon be the first Britons for more than 50 years to carry identity cards. The government hopes the pilot will be the first step towards making ID cards compulsory within a decade - and on April 26 Home Secretary David
SOME social services charges are rising by up to 50 per cent under plans to make the better-off contribute more. The price for going to a Bournemouth day centre will rise from £5 a time to £7.50 for those affluent enough to pay the top rate. The maximum
A 17-YEAR-OLD accused of a catalogue of offences has had a court order put on him in a bid to improve life for residents of Bournemouth's Townsend estate. Bournemouth Borough Council was recently granted an interim antisocial behaviour order (ASBO) for
A CAR dealership and a hotel had to be evacuated after a potentially explosive chemical leaked onto a major Poole road. Holes Bay Road was closed by police after the incident, which happened just after 5pm on Friday, while 10 fire engines were called
WHILE most of her school friends were busy revising for this week's exams, 12-year-old Brianna Stubbs was concentrating on a rather more challenging task. Instead of spending the weekend with her head in the books, the youngster was busy setting a world
HELL hath no fury like a football team scorned. Although Cherries' hosts were aggrieved to Loos to Carl Fletcher's late winner, this often messy affair was certainly spiced up by some diatribe from Posh. So revenge, despite being long overdue, was sweet
BOURNEMOUTH'S biggest hotel group Blue Mermaid has just got bigger after acquiring the Tralee Hotel, quoted price £2 million. Blue Mermaid's purchase of the Tralee means that it now owns five hotels - all in Bournemouth and all three-star - and employs
ANGRY Matt Ford has hit back at Newcastle's claims that Pirates had not paid the first instalment of Bjarne Pedersen's transfer fee. The new Danish champion - Pedersen scorched to the title at Holsted with 14 points over the weekend - moved permanently
SHOCKING new figures have put the average house price in parts of Dorset at nearly a quarter-of-a-million pounds. And sky-rocketing prices in East Dorset have escalated by 220 per cent in just four years. To get a mortgage for an average priced home in
RESIDENTS have until the end of this week to submit their ideas for the future of the Sturminster Marshall area. The deadline for the return of a parish-wide questionnaire has been extended until April 30. Already, suggestions have ranged from simple
VISITORS to a Dorset school might have been forgiven for thinking they had travelled back in time. Youngsters at Wimborne St Giles First School wore Victorian-style costumes, took part in Victorian lessons and even Victorian games. The school decided
THE wife of the Portland businessman killed in a mysterious helicopter crash today refused to comment on claims he had become a police informant days before he died. It was reported that Stephen Curtis, an international lawyer who ran Group Menatep, the
SAYING it with a kiss is helping to boost the coffers of the charity Cancer and Leukaemia in Children. Weymouth-based Virgin Cosmetics Company manager Cheryl Wright has been at Dorothy Perkins in St Mary Street. Visitors are being encouraged to pay £1
A TALENTED young North Dorset horsewoman will be going for gold next weekend when she represents Great Britain at a top dressage competition in Germany (May 1,2). Louise Crutcher, aged 15, is one of just 13 youngsters from across the UK selected for the
"LORD grant that Marshal Wade may by thy mighty aid, victory bring." I will guarantee that there will be few people out there who will recognise these words, yet they are contained in one of the most famous songs of all time. Stumped? Well, these comprise
A DORSET mother has been jailed for three months after a judge branded her "the neighbour from hell". Sentencing 49-year-old Teresa Whitaker, Judge John Beashel said: "Your behaviour towards your neighbours was outrageous. You caused them continuous distress
A SALES assistant who stole £22,712 from his employers to fund "the high life" has been jailed for two years. Scott Twaddle, 24, admitted six counts of theft between January 21, 2002 and June 11, 2003, asking Bournemouth Crown Court to take into account
WARREN Feeney has spoke of his "relief" at being told he had sustained only minor ligament damage during Cherries' 1-0 win over Peterborough United on Saturday (April 24). Feeney left London Road on crutches and with his right knee in a brace after suffering
