THE 19th Annual Weymouth Conger Festival saw 70 anglers compete from eight boats over three days to catch the biggest conger eel. Always competitive but also conservation minded, the skippers stayed in regular contact to ensure that only the biggest
A LACK of entries has forced the cancellation of the Weymouth & Portland Open Bowls Tournament for the first time in its 53-year history. Organisers hope to stage the event again in the near future but this year’s competition will not go ahead
WEYMOUTH’S Michael Watson continued his remarkable run of success by winning the St Austell Pro-Am for his 11th victory in his last 23 Pro-Ams. He has also finished second three times. The Wessex Golf Centre professional shot two-under-par 67 to
A MOTORCYCLIST is recovering in hospital after suffering serious injuries in a crash on the Weymouth to Bridport coast road. Emergency services rushed to the B3157 just outside Swyre at around 7pm this evening. The Portland Coastguard rescue
A WEYMOUTH cyclist took to the streets of London in memory of two former army colleagues. Paul Stockwell pedalled 102 miles in a bid to raise much-needed funds for Leukaemia and Lym-phoma research and the National Coastwatch Institution. The
SINGER songwriter Ralph McTell will be playing at the Electric Palace in Bridport on Monday October 7. He will be appearing as part of his One More for the Road tour in October and November.
CRAFT lovers can make their own willow pig with a specialised workshop on September 7 from 10am to 4.30pm, with tutor Kim Creswell at the Dorset Wildlife Trust Kingcombe Centre in Toller Porcorum, near Maiden Newton in Dorchester. Each participant
PUBLIC open spaces in a north Dorset town have been given the thumbs up for looking their best. Meadows that border the River Stour as it passes through Blandford have been awarded a Green Flag Award for the first time. The Milldown received the
PARENTS in Dorset are being urged to ensure their children get enough exercise. The Register of Exercise Professionals (REPs) has said that half of all seven-year-olds nationwide are not getting the recommended one hour of physical activity each
NEW guidelines are being introduced to stop A-board adverts clogging up town centre pavements. Many businesses use A-boards to attract customers into their premises. But council officers claim when a number are used they can hinder or impede
CRAFT lovers can make their own willow pig with a specialised workshop on September 7 from 10am to 4.30pm, with tutor Kim Creswell at the Dorset Wildlife Trust Kingcombe Centre in Toller Porcorum, near Maiden Newton in Dorchester. Each participant
THERE will be a Dorset Wildlife Trust Sunday stroll, focusing on today’s farming practices and conservation from 10am to noon on September 1. The walk will be at The Kingcombe Centre, Toller Porcorum, near Maiden Newton in Dorchester. Strolls
MP Robert Walter visited Sixpenny Handley Bowls Club to congratulate the team on their successful bid to Sport England for over £23,000 in grant funding. The North Dorset MP was delighted to accept club treasurer Patrick Taylor’s invitation to
PEOPLE are being urged to donate bags of donations to British Heart Foundation (BHF) shops for the charity’s Great British Bag-athon. During September, Dorset BHF shops will each be aiming to raise almost 2,000 bags full of unwanted things.
A WEYMOUTH councillor took the plunge in a 200-foot abseil to help raise almost £2,000 for a domestic abuse charity. Weymouth and Portland Borough Councillor Rachel Rogers, who represents Littlemoor, made the journey down into Bristol’s Avon Gorge
BLANDFORD 112 (6pts) lost to BRIDPORT 114-9 (18pts) by one wicket BRIDPORT made hard work of disposing of a depleted Blandford side in their penultimate game of the season at Brewery Field. The West Dorset outfit appeared to be cruising at
DORCHESTER RES 3 WINCHESTER CITY RES 1 THE Magpies delighted boss Dave Kiteley as they got their Wyvern Premier League season off to a winning start at the Avenue. Two goals in the space of 10 minutes midway through the first-half took
ALLEN Road in Shaftesbury was transformed into a summer fair as the community came together to enjoy a host of entertainment. Magna housing, which built 162 properties on the development, organised the event to bring people together during the
THERE will be an open day at Dorset Wildlife Trust's Lorton Meadows Conservation Centre on September 7 from 10am to 4pm. Visitors can go for a walk around the reserve, enjoy a drink, browse a selection of gifts & wildlife books and watch birds
A TALK on Thomas hardy and architecture will take place place the the Dorset County Museum on Thursday August 29 at 7pm. It is free of charge.
PORTLAND RED TRIANGLE 204-9 (20pts) beat CERNE VALLEY 179 (9pts) by 25 runs PORTLAND achieved a memorable victory on Saturday, inflicting just the second defeat this season on Dorset League Division Three leaders Cerne Valley. Put into bat
WEYMOUTH RES 4 PORTLAND UNITED 0 REIGNING league champions Portland saw their unbeaten start to the season brought to an abrupt end at the Bob Lucas Stadium. Boosted by the inclusion of a handful of first-team squad members, the Terras
A GUIDEBOOK on Dorset’s new cross-Channel cycle route is set to be published this autumn. The book, Petit Tour de Manche: Weymouth 2 Weymouth via Poole, Cherbourg and Saint-Malo, will be published on September 7. Written by cycling journalist
THE final call has gone out for women to join in the Marie Curie driving challenge at Bovington. Double decker buses, fire engines and steam trains will be among the vehicles available. Call 08450524184 or visit mariecurie.org.uk/events for
THERE will be a butterfly and dragonfly event at Kingcombe nature reserve on Thursday, August 29. Visitors are invited to spend the morning searching for butterflies and dragonflies before making models of the insects at the centre. The event
VOLUNTEERS and community groups in Weymouth and Portland are being given a helping hand. The Dorchester-based charity Dorset Community Action (DCA) is running a surgery in September offering free information and advice. Hannah Solloway from
FOOTAGE of RAF Volleyball championships on Weymouth beach is to hit Sky Sports in early September. The action will be broadcast on September 4, 5 and 8 on Sky Sports 3 and 4. Shows will be at 11pm on Sky Sports 4 on September 4, 3am and 9am
FIREFIGHTERS are urging residents to warn them before having a bonfire. Crews from Wareham were sent to Burngate Wood near East Lulworth and found a bonfire. A spokesman for Dorset Fire and Rescue said: “Please inform us on 01305 252040 if
Vandals hurled a large stone through the front window of a Weymouth office. The yobs smashed the glass at the premises in Buxton Road between the evening of Friday August 23 and morning of Tuesday August 27. Dorset Police are appealing for
HOLIDAYMAKERS can flock to Portland Bill and make the most of the island’s most treasured landmark this summer. Perched at the end of the isle of Portland sits the lighthouse, which is more than 100 years old and provides views across the ocean
FIREFIGHTERS were called to a Weymouth camper van fire. Crews from Weymouth and Dorchester arrived to Puddledock Lane to find the blaze had already been extinguished. The incident happened at around 3pm today.
EXPERTS at Weymouth Sea Life Park have launched a campaign to encourage people not to eat octopus. The campaigners say the creatures, which have no external or internal skeletons and are cephalopod molluscs, are as intelligent as dogs. They
NEWLYWEDS Sheri and Jason Smith were flying high after their wedding at Portland Castle – quite literally. The happy couple had their heads in the clouds when Jason arranged the surprise helicopter to their reception for his new wife. They
A TRIUMPHANT Portland teen has completed a 200 mile trek in support of the new Portland Academy at Southwell. Adam Greaves, 16, set out on the afternoon of Thursday August 22 to walk, paddle and cycle his way to London to present a petition to
SUMMER fireworks in Weymouth came to an explosive finale as more than 75,000 people flocked to the spectacular displays over the summer. The free displays were held on Monday nights throughout August except for carnival week when they were held
THE FIFTH Dorset One World Festival will take place on September 15 in Kings Road Playing Field, Dorchester between 11am and 4pm. The day is a celebration through music, dance, sport, food and information stalls and organisers still have space
AS THE summer holidays draw to a close, children are invited to join in with a session of traditional storytelling, all based on local tales from the South Dorset Ridgeway area, in the last of the Artsreach summer workshops for young people. From
FOLLOWING frequent demand for more dance nights, Bridport’s Electric Palace opens its doors for a diverse new club night, High-Life. On August 31, BBC DJ Lopa Kothari brings her eclectic mix of sounds from around the world to the Electric Palace
ORGANISERS hope that the Great Dorset Steam Fair will be the best ever as it marks its 45th anniversary. The show opened to the public today with around 15,000 people expected to set up camp at the Tarrant Hinton showground near Blandford, and
DORCHESTER’S town crier Alistair Chisholm treated the county town to a rendition of Martin Luther King’s famous ‘I have a dream...’ speech half a century after the original. The town crier delivered the speech to shoppers in South Street 50 years
SINCE the beginning of July, Dorchester and Sherborne policing section has recorded 26 burglaries to sheds and garages. There is no specific pattern of locations being targeted – they are not just confined to rural and isolated locations, they
JUDGES were impressed with the produce on show at the Dorchester and District Garden Club’s annual summer show. There were 224 entries for the event at St George’s Church Hall in Fordington from 27 different exhibitors. Show secretary Brian
A POUNDBURY legal firm is showing its support for the Weldmar Hospicecare Trust. The Commercial Law Practice has agreed to sponsor this year’s annual Weldmar Fete at the Joseph Weld Hospice on Saturday, September 14. Thousands of visitors are
RESIDENTS of a Dorchester development have had their say on future investment. Staff from Yarlington Housing Group have been asking their 2,500 residents, including those at Poets Way in the county town, where they believe its money will be best
THE Dorset County Hospital will open its doors for a public open day. The event is being held on Saturday, September 21 from 2pm to 4pm. A range of departments will be open for tours and the on-site Education Centre will host displays and activities
IF there is anything Les Phillips doesn’t know about the county town it probably isn’t worth knowing. With nearly 50 years of public service and involvement with countless local charities and organisations, the four-time mayor could lay as good
DORCHESTER is still basking in the glow of a booming bank holiday weekend. Visitors and locals alike turned out in force for a host of events that showcased Dorchester at its finest. Maumbury Rings was the focal point for much of the action
VISITORS are flocking to the former home of the literary master Thomas Hardy in Dorchester. Max Gate is enjoying a busy summer with visits showing a healthy rise from previous years as more of the house is opened to the public. National Trust
A CHARITY bike ride will be heading out from Dorchester on Sunday, September 8. Mayor of Dorchester Stella Jones will start the race off from the Old Market car park outside the new West Dorset District Council Offices and Dorchester Library from
A TASTE of Dorset has been unveiled by a Michelin starred chef in Dorchester. Russell Brown, from Sienna Restaurant, was tasked with coming up with a unique creation for the Dorset County Show from four flavours voted for in a public poll.
Firefighters have extinguished a gorse fire near Swanage. A spokesman for Dorset Fire and Rescue Service said that during the fire an area of around 500 square meters of gorse was alight at Newton Heath near Swanage. Crews from Swanage, Westbourne
Fire crews extinguished a skip fire. The small fire in the skip in Chickerell started earlier this morning. A spokesman for Dorset Fire and Rescue Service said the cause of the fire is believed to be accidental.
A BRIDE and groom to be will be spending their first weekend as a married couple at the Dorset County Show. Jodie Membury and Jordan Thorpe will be tying the knot in Dorchester on Friday, September 6 and have chosen the Dorset County Show as the
POLICE are probing an early hours fire near a home in the Wyke Regis area of Weymouth. Owner Paul Hunt, pictured below, said he was awoken by a neighbour banging on the door of his house on Doncaster Road to raise the alarm about the blaze next
A SCHOOLBOY is spreading a crime safety message after his prized possession was stolen while he was out volunteering. Alfie Bungay, 12, was helping at Weymouth Carnival before he returned home to find his Xbox missing. Burglars took the console
I have just been made aware of yet another threat to our democratic rights. Given the parlous state of social justice, ironically it comes from those we elect to protect our democracy. Parliament is apparently rushing through a new law which
On the morning of Sunday, August 25, I walked past Dorchester’s Cenotaph at the junction of South Street and South Walks. Access to the Cenotaph was blocked by the stalls of a ‘French market’ which were clustered around it. Worse still, the
FARMERS and protesters in Dorset are on standby as badger culls begin in Somerset and Gloucestershire. Around 5,000 badgers are being killed in West Somerset and West Gloucestershire in a bid to control TB in cattle. Dorset is third in line
AN octogenarian from Poundbury went wild in the aisles in the name of charity. Mary Oaten, 86, enjoyed a two-minute trolley dash in Dorchester’s Iceland store after winning a charity raffle in aid of Alzheimer’s Research UK. She was one of
WHITE paint was poured over five vehicles in a late night vandalism spree. An unknown offender or offenders poured the emulsion paint over four cars and a motorbike between 9pm and 10pm on Sunday August 25 along Dundee Road in Weymouth. No
A WOMAN who was critically injured in a bank holiday horror crash has died. The 48-year-old Poole woman was a passenger in a Land Rover Discovery along with her husband and young son which overturned on the road between Bridport and Dorchester
Coastguards helped to rescue a woman who had fallen and injured her wrist while walking along the Jurassic Coast. At 4pm yesterday the coastguards received two 999 calls reporting the woman had fallen and injured her wrist while walking in the
Followers of fashion QUEUES are expected as womenswear retailer Hobbs opens its doors at Brewery Square tomorrow. Mayor of Dorchester Stella Jones will be officially opening the store at 11am. The first 30 customers in line will be able
A FORMER carnival queen who suffers from multiple sclerosis is to embark on a challenging charity walk. Hayley McNulty, 27, who lives in Poundbury, was diagnosed with the condition four years ago and wanted to give something back to the Multiple
DANNY Clay couldn’t disagree with manager Brendon King’s assessment of the Terras’ below-par display at Poole – but the midfielder isn’t too disheartened given Weymouth’s impressive start to the season. Despite dropping their first points of the
