• I recently mentioned the plans to create two new pedestrian crossing islands in Preston Road. Whether these were really necessary was open to debate, but the Highways Department obviously thought so and workmen duly appeared and installed them.
BEN Ward went beyond the second round of a Players’ Championship event for the first time this season at Crawley’s K2 Centre. The PDC pro from Dorchester didn’t get off to the best of starts in Saturday’s third event of the year, losing 6-2 to
CORFE MULLEN GIRLS 2 SOUTHSIDE ANGELS 3 A DRAMATIC last-gasp winner saw Southside Angels protect their three-year unbeaten league record, in a tough away win against Corfe Mullen. The home side, boasting seven Dor-set development players
THE Weymouth Sunday League title is Bar 314’s again after Phil Groves’ men secured the three points they needed over Lazy Lizard. A 4-2 win gave the reigning champions an unassailable lead in the race for top spot with four games to spare.
BRIDPORT RESERVES 1 MERE TOWN 2 ROBIN Townsend was disappointed his side couldn’t follow up last weekend’s victory over Blandford with at least a point in their midweek clash with title outsiders Mere Town. Ben Clarke’s second-half penalty
TWO Weymouth pubs are taking part in Project Fair Play’s World Cup Shirt Amnesty. Fans are being asked to dig out their unwanted football shirts (especially children’s ones) to donate. The old strips will be taken directly to disadvantaged
PASTEK ran a cracking race under co-owner/trainer/rider Martin Peaty to take the Men’s Open at Milborne St Andrew. Peaty, a Dorset vet who was also on duty at the meeting, was considering retiring the 11-year-old gelding from race-riding after
SOUTH Dorset MP Richard Drax says he is facing red tape in a bid to get compensation for fishermen affected by the winter storms. He has been investigating what support is available and tried to ask a question today in Parliament after being contacted
The Environment Agency has completed five weeks of intensive work to restore the sea defences damaged by the severe winter storms at Preston Beach. A significant amount of shingle was washed away by the waves at the Preston Beach Sea Defence Scheme
LYME REGIS SAC THE best whiting was the target in the first boat competition of the year at Lyme Regis. Seventeen anglers participated, fishing two charter boats – Pegasus and Blue Turtle. The event saw some large pout being caught as well
The south’s top train stations have been revealed today. Staff at South West Trains’ stations are celebrating after the winners of the company’s annual Station Pride Awards were announced. Now in their 16th year, the awards recognise the best
FIREFIGHTERS helped to rescue a trapped seagull on a roof in Weymouth town centre. A high-rise fire appliance was used in the rescue operation in St Thomas Street this afternoon. The bird was caught in netting. Part of the street was cordoned
AGATHA Christie’s iconic murder mystery starts with a scream and ends with, not a whimper, but a thoughtful sigh of relief. With 60 glorious years under its belt, this London play is the longest running theatre production in the world and, now
AFTER over 25 years of playing almost every style of music, except the one usually associated with the banjo, renowned five-string banjoist Leon Hunt decided it was time to get back to playing some good old-fashioned bluegrass. So with his long-time
Dorset Sports Cars has opened a new Subaru dealership at Three Legged Cross, near Ringwood.
The next Weymouth and Portland Chamber of Commerce breakfast is being held on Tuesday, April 1. Members are invited to register now for the next breakfast at the Rendezvous in Weymouth starting at 8am. Book online at wpchamber.co.uk
WEST Dorset travellers can take a little bit of home with them when they travel. Award-winning wine estate Furleigh has introduced one of its new sparkling wines to the World Duty Free shops at Gatwick, Heathrow, Southampton and Jersey airports
NICHOLAS JAMES EWERS, aged 26, of no fixed abode. Admitted stealing three jars of honey to the value of £75 belonging to a store in Blandford. Committed to prison for six weeks, suspended for one year. Ordered to pay compensation of £75. Admitted failing
RYAN CAMERON WOOD, aged 20, of Burlington Road, Swanage. Admitted driving a motor vehicle after consuming so much alcohol the proportion in 100 millilitres of blood was 147 milligrammes. The legal limit is 80 milligrammes of alcohol in 100 millilitres
ROBERT M HARRIS, aged 26, of South Street, Bridport. Found guilty in absence of using a colour television receiver without a licence. Fined £200 and ordered to pay costs of £120. ROSS WILL, aged 46, of London Close, Piddlehinton. Found guilty of
JASON PAUL TURRELL, aged 43, of East Weare Road. Admitted stealing four packs of meat of an unknown value from a store in Trinity Street, Dorchester. Ordered to pay compensation of £20. Also admitted stealing a sandwich and a bottle of water to the
KEITH JOSEPH AIREY, aged 31, of Selwyn Close. Admitted possessing two grams of cannabis, a controlled drug of class B. Fined £50 and ordered to pay costs of £85. Drugs to be forfeited and destroyed. Ordered to be detained in courthouse. Detention deemed
THE wonderfully bonkers Kepow Theatre Company, pictured, returns to Dorset next month with a comedy that touches on all the edgiest experiences of life. On the Edge! explores those moments in life when we are just that – on the edge. From falling
Home improvements firm Connaught Windows has reported a 15 per cent growth in the last two months of 2013. The Bournemouth company has added a new member of staff and its managing director, Linda Witczak, says its ‘significant growth’ in the first
Local businesses are getting ready to host a Big Brekkie in support of World Autism Awareness Day on Wednesday, April 2. Autism Wessex, which supports anyone affected by autism, would like to thank the local businesses and community groups that
A LAW firm has strengthened its international links by adding a German and Chinese law firm to its worldwide network of experts. Humphries Kirk, solicitors with eight offices across Dorset and Somerset, is part of a group known as the HKI-Network
After the success of the Dorset Echo’s Dorset books series, this year we are producing a book picturing the changes to the Dorset landscape, featuring a selection of nostalgic Dorset landscape, town and village scenes over the years coupled with how
SIX men thought to be working as slaves have been rescued after a police operation into forced labour and human trafficking in Dorset. It came after a raid at an address in Bournemouth today. Police officers and staff were involved in the operation
It can be very expensive to find somewhere to live and some people find living in a mobile home is an affordable option. There are a number of sites around the Dorchester area and we quite often have clients contact us for information on their rights
THE news will be hot off the press at Brewery Square with the opening of a newsagent. Moorland News Express opened its doors for the first time on Copper Street yesterday. Owner Ruban Sathia said he was ‘delighted’ to be part of the growing
SCHOOLS, businesses and community groups across Dorset are being asked to grab their wigs for a charity event supporting children and young people with cancer. On May 21, schools, people and organisations across the county will be wearing wigs
The 2014 Dorset Boat Jumble returns on March 29 at Canford Park Arena, Magna Road, Poole. The event was cancelled last year because travellers set up camp on the site. Over 100 private and trade sellers are expected to attend selling new and
The Dorset People’s Assembly is being held at the Dorford Centre in Dorchester on Saturday. The event, from 2pm to 5pm, is for people to express their concerns over the government’s austerity programme.
SALTY water blown in from recent storms has led to tree burn in Dorset. Tree burn has been found in gardens and parkland from West Bay to Beaminster. Groves Nurseries in Bridport estimates that the weather has caused more than £700 worth of
Visitors are welcome to drop in any time to listen to an early music workshop in St John’s Church in West Bay on Saturday. The day, which starts at 10am with a final concert at 4.15pm, is run by the South West Early Music Forum.
A fundraising event for renal patients at Dorset County Hospital has been postponed. The Kidney Fundraising Convoy (KFC) will see motorbikes and other vehicles travel together from Pier Approach in Bournemouth to the Fleet Air Arm Museum in Yeovilton
The 14th annual Whitchurch Canonicorum farmhouse breakfast made £1,377 for the village hall. There will also be a contribution given to Macmillan Nurses. Next year the event is on January 25.
A night of music with One Night Stand at the Five Bells in Whitchurch Canonicorum on March 29 will include a hog roast at 8pm. Donations will be collected for the Somerset Levels flood appeal.
Dorchester’s French speaking club Le Cercle Francais de Dorchester is holding its next meeting on Tuesday, April 1. The meeting will be held in the Tolpuddle Room at the United Church from 7.30pm and will feature a review by Jim Millard of Andrew
A TRIO of charity cyclists from North Dorset are preparing to embark on a European adventure. Jeremy Gibson, Myles Wheaton-Green and Luke Graham will be pedalling from North Dorset to southern Spain over two weeks, covering around 120 miles a day
RUNNERS are getting ready to roar into action for the 32nd Dorchester and District Lions Club Fun Run. The popular event is being held on Sunday, March 30 and will see hundreds of runners – many in fancy dress – hitting the streets of the county
KEEN cyclists Nathan Wilmington and Mike Tizard went the extra mile for Sport Relief by completing a six-hour spinathon. The event ran from 2pm until 8pm at the Fitness World gym in Southill, Weymouth attracting gym members and interested onlookers
The Dorset Sole Sisters running club danced, swung, stretched and exercised for Sport Relief raising more than £100 for the cause. The women-only running club for all ages usually run on Monday evenings in Dorchester and Wednesday evenings in Weymouth
FOUR sports leaders from Damers First School wanted to go that extra mile to support this year’s Sport Relief, and in fact they went much further than that. Kirsten Thorpe, PE coordinator, organised a Jurassic coastal walk along the Purbecks for
STAFF at a Poundbury store added a sporty touch to their day behind the café till. Luke Earley, the manager of the Potting Shed deli at Olives et Al on Poundbury, said staff did laps of Poundbury while running the café to raise £321.53 in customer
TOWN councillors have approved spending thousands of pounds to assess what needs doing to improve the condition of the Town Walks. The walks, which are based on the Roman footprint for Dorchester, are owned by the town council, which agreed to
RESIDENTS at a Dorchester care home have been busy knitting and making handmade items to raise funds for the Weldmar Hospicecare Trust. Colten Care’s Castle View at Poundbury handed over a cheque for more than £700 to the local charity after setting
MORE than 80 people took part in the Weymouth Sport Relief mile at the Redlands Community Sports Hub. The Sport Relief fundraiser had mile events taking place up and down the country with a choice of distance to suit all abilities. Entrants
A COURAGEOUS six-year-old girl took the plunge for Sport Relief raising more than £300. Charlotte O’Dowd raised money for the cause by swimming four lengths – or 100 metres – of her local swimming pool. Charlotte, who lives on Portland, took
The Rev Stephen Skinner and his wife Jane are looking for people to join them on a ‘twinning’ visit to Normandy in May.The Golden Cap team is twinned with Gaillon and last year a group from the Evreux Dioceses came for four days. The trip will
THE CURTAIN is getting ready to rise for the sixth Dorchester Community Play. The production of Drummer Hodge, which runs from April 1 for 11 nights, will involved a cast of 100 local people as well as a backstage and musical team. It has taken
DORSET Police and Crime Commissioner Martyn Underhill faced a grilling from Dorchester residents and community leaders at a forum. Among the questions asked of the Dorset PCC as he explained his role was: “Do you think you’re value for money?”
Portland coastguards were alerted to a small fire on a cliff east of the entrance to the River Axe. A call reporting the fire came in just after 2pm on Monday and further investigations revealed the cause of the fire to be a controlled burn.
An algae bloom several miles long was mistaken for a pollution spill. Portland Maritime Rescue and Coordination Centre on Weymouth harbourside was alerted to the algae bloom by a concerned member of the public yesterday. They reported a pollution
AN astonishing World War I album is coming up for sale tomorrow, March 28, full of extraordinary and evocative images – from a rather unusual standpoint. The album documents the life and work of a team from the Quaker ‘Friends War Victim Relief
Burglars smashed down a front door in a raid on a Weymouth house. On Saturday around 7.40pm, burglars broke down the door of an unoccupied house at Coastguard Cottages, Barrack Road, Weymouth.
A YOUNGER population, smaller homes and more parking – councillors have set out their vision for the future of Dorchester. Following a series of meetings with councillors, town clerk Adrian Stuart produced a document outlining how the county town
We are about to advance the clocks by one hour for British summer time. In my opinion it should be two, in line with the French, or to be more precise – Continental time. Why do I believe this? Because two hours’ longer daylight would save a significant
Now that Oliver Heald, the Solicitor-General, has told the House of Commons that eradicating the grey squirrel is ‘no longer considered feasible’, we must be prepared across Dorset for these animals to spread far and wide. Parks and green spaces
THE staff who support the two councils are employed by Weymouth and Portland Borough Council – not West Dorset District Council. The two councils still operate separately – but use the same staff. It is not a takeover as implied by M Hooper-Immins
A DORSET resident is urging people to ignore a scam email which tells people they have cancer. David Ruck says he received an email with the header ‘important blood analysis result’ that urged him to open an attachment to see the ‘test results’
Families can search for seashore creatures in a fun discovery event with Dorset Wildlife Trust. It takes place this Saturday from 10am-3.30pm at the Fine Foundation Marine Centre, Kimmeridge. For more details, contact 01929 481044.
The Friends of the village library are organising a quiz night and ploughman’s supper to mark World Book Night which is on Friday, April 25. It will take place at the D’Urberville Centre from 7.30pm. Tickets, priced £6, are available from the
Nearly three-quarters of children in the South of England know another child who is suffering from neglect, according to a report published today by Action for Children. The charity says the government does not have a strategy to deal with the
The town’s choral society will perform Stainer’s ‘The Crucifixion: a Meditation on the Sacred Passion of the Holy Redeemer’ on Saturday, April, 5 at Holy Trinity Church. Tickets are £12 (free for under-16s) available on the door or in advance from
WORK has started on a new £2.3 million science block at Kingsdton Maurward College. The project will see the construction of a new Animal Sciences Centre to further boost its teaching and learning facilities. The scheme, by public sector construction
DORCHESTER'S next mayor has been revealed. Councillor Peter Mann was announced as the county town's first citizen for the 2014/15 mayoral year. Current deputy mayor Andy Canning revealed at a meeting of Dorchester Town Council that Cllr Mann
TEACHERS are set to strike across Dorset causing disruption to some schools. Members of the National Union of Teachers (NUT) will strike today in a dispute with the government over working conditions, pay and pensions. Here is a list of all
A LARGE motor boat which had suffered steering failure with three people on board caused concern for coastguards. Shortly after 7.30pm yesterday evening, the large boat reported it had suffered steering failure, was in rough seas close to Portland
A WEYMOUTH family has hit out at a driver who failed to stop after striking down their beloved pet dog. Two-year-old chocolate cocker spaniel Cookie lost her leg in the distressing incident near Radipole Park Gardens last week. Fiona Adams,
PHIL Simkin was left feeling slightly “shell-shocked” after the Magpies’ 6-0 thrashing at Eastleigh last night – but he was still proud of the effort his players put in against the table-topping Spitfires. Jai Reason’s hat-trick and goals from
TEACHERS are striking today ‘for the sake of the children’. The claim comes from a teacher and union member who has defended the industrial action by the National Union of Teachers (NUT) which is set to cause disruption across Dorset. Government
TERRAS’ boss Jason Matthews claimed that having goalscorer Isaac Vassell at the club gives his side a “new dimension” following Weymouth’s 2-1 victory over Burnham. The Plymouth loan star netted his third goal in as many games to claim the Terras
PORTLAND is launching a new strategy to encourage more people to visit the island. Some residents on Portland felt neglected after the launch of a £100,000 marketing campaign that focused on attracting holidaymakers to Weymouth. Now businesses
AUTHORITIES missed opportunities to act before the brutal murder of a Weymouth mum by her 16-year-old son, a review has found. An independent domestic homicide review into the fatal stabbing of Leah Whittle by her son Kieren Smith says numerous
WEYMOUTH 2 BURNHAM 1 ANOTHER second-half turnaround saw Weymouth claim their fourth successive league victory, as they edged past Burnham at the Bob Lucas Stadium. Boss Jason Matthews claimed earlier this week he wanted to keep the continuity
