DORCHESTER Town boss Phil Simkin has signed former Horsham skipper Ryan Woodford on a 12-month deal after his side secured a morale-boosting pre-season win at St Mary’s Field. Woodford, who can play in defence or midfield, came on at half-time
THE highlight of the South West’s hill climb season is undoubtedly the visit of the country’s premier series, the Avon Tyres/TTC Group British Hill Climb Championship, set to be held at Wiscombe Park this weekend. The main championship event with
WITCHAMPTON SECONDS 78 (2pts) lost to CHARLTON DOWN 79-2 (20pts) by 8 wickets PRE-MATCH thunder, lightning and rain could not stop an emphatic eight-wicket victory for Charlton Down. Eighteen-year-old Sam Roles produced an excellent all-round
ROUNDERS sessions for young people with disabilities are being held in Dorchester this summer. Youngsters between the ages of seven to 16 are being invited to come along with their parents and enjoy the sessions, which have been organised by West
A student from Blandford Forum has been awarded the Interior Educators award for Best Overall Presentation or Drawing. Evie Sudlow, who has just graduated from Leeds Metropolitan University, scooped the award at the interior architecture and design
Bookings are now open for the next business breakfast meeting of the Weymouth and Portland Chamber of Commerce. It will be held on September 2 at Rendezvous, and will include talks from Alice Driver of Budmouth College, Weymouth BID manager Nigel
A man has been arrested on suspicion of assault after a child was allegedly assaulted at a theme park. The incident happened at Paulton’s Park, Hampshire on Sunday. A 37-year-old man has been arrested and detained, police said. Witnesses and
The next meeting of the Weymouth Accordion Club will take place this evening. It will be held at St Anne’s Hall on Radipole Lane, and both visitors and players are welcome to the meeting. Starting at 7.30pm and finishing at 9pm, the event will
IT isn’t the national Open Farm Sunday, but two family enterprises in West Bexington are having their annual open days between 10.30am and 4pm on Sunday. Between them, the families who run Tamarisk Farm, which includes Labour-in-Vain Farm, Cogden
Staff at Dorset based telecommunications company 4Com are celebrating after successfully completing their 4Forty charity walk in under 18 hours. The challenge saw 17 hardy members of staff plus three support members take on the Lyke Wake Walk,
A pilates class will be held at the 1on1 Fitness Suite at Burraton Spa in Poundbury. The class will start at 6.15pm tomorrow, and one-to-one sessions are also available. A session will also be held in Maiden Newton at the village hall.
Learn everything about Chesil with a guided tour. It will be held on Monday, August 25 from 2pm at the Chesil Beach Centre. Admission is £3 for adults and £2 for children.
The Friends of St Mary’s Church, Stratton will be offering cream teas at the church on Sunday August 27 and August 31. It is taking place between 2.30pm and 5pm.
A line-dance class will be held at Weymouth Pavilion this evening. The class is for beginners and intermediates, with the beginners’ starting at 7pm and intermediates at 8pm. For more details call 01305 773033.
Meet the horse at Warmwell Stables in aid of charity. The stables will be open from 2pm on Sunday with displays, refreshments and fun activities.
The Upwey Summer Craft Show will take place until Sunday, July 27. It is being held in the village hall on Church Street, and includes high quality craft stalls, demonstrations by expert craftsmen and a raffle. The hall is open after 10am and
A drop-in surgery for people suffering from the after-effects of a stroke will be held in Christchurch. It will be held on the first and third Tuesday every month at St Joseph’s Centre on Purewell Street. The session specialises in helping
The Keep Military Museum is hosting two self-guided heritage walks. The walks, with an optional treasure hunt, are suitable for all ages and can be taken separately or together and typically take between one and two hours to complete. They
WEYMOUTH & Portland Rookie Lifeguards held their awards evening at the Osprey Leisure Centre. The Rookies train on Saturday evenings at the leisure centre on Portland, teaching children from eight years old essential skills. These include
A SUSTAINABLE development charity is set to host its first ever Eco Living Fair in Poundbury. Dorset Agenda 21 has invited companies, groups and individuals to exhibit their renewable energy, sustainable products and services to the public.
Dorset Farmers’ Market will be in Poundbury’s Queen Mother Square on Saturday, August 2 from 9am.
DORSET is basking in a heatwave with the highest temperatures of the year so far. And the sizzling temperatures of 25 degrees-plus – which is putting the county on a par with temperatures in the South of France – is set to continue with the mercury
THIS year’s seafood festival in Weymouth was the biggest ever, organisers have said. They confirmed the event on July-12-13 saw the largest crowd in its seven year history – an estimated 60,000 people flocked to the resort. The Pommery Dorset
Test your limits for fun and fundraising PEOPLE with a sense of adventure are being encouraged to sign up for this year’s Kamikaze Adventure Run near Bridport in aid of Dorset disability charity Diverse Abilities Plus. Diverse Abilities Plus, the
IT is an absolute delight at Larmer Tree to discover unexpected gems. Seeing Boppin’ B, a German rockabilly band with a singer by the name of Sebastian Borgensperger, was one of those moments. Their energetic, dynamic performance in blazing
ONE DORSET couple have celebrated 28 happy years together. Andy and Cherie Rose, who live just outside of Dorchester, celebrated their 28th wedding anniversary recently. The pair spent time with their family and also celebrated the wedding
DORSET students were praised in the fourth National Farmers' Union student of the year awards. Sixteen students from Dorchester-based college Kingston Maurward battled it out to be crowned champion in a tense day of tasks. The students, all
PUPILS from June Hornby’s Dance Studio in Weymouth are jumping for joy after securing places at some of the country’s top dance schools in London. Imogen Breaks, 11, who attends St Andrew’s School in Preston, was awarded places from several leading
COUNCILLLORS have decided against reviewing the decision to close a Blandford care home. Dorset County Council's cabinet made the decision earlier this month to close Phoenix House, which provides residential and respite care for people with learning
PROJECTS in Dorset which help armed forces families can benefit from funding. Grants of between £250 and £250,000 are available from the Community Covenant scheme, which helps projects that strengthen the ties between members of the armed forces
PIONEERING work in Dorset to combat malnutrition has been recognised. Sue Hawkins, care catering services manager at Dorset County Council was named as one of the top 50 people by the Local Government Chronicle (LGC) and Health Service Journal
SAINSBURY’S has launched a free bus service for shoppers. The supermarket is sending free buses across Weymouth to bring shoppers to the store on Mercery Road. The free bus scheme, which started on July 14, has six services travelling to different
PORTLAND Castle offers a historic adventure for all the family. Overlooking Portland Harbour, Portland Castle is one of Henry VIII’s finest coastal forts. The castle was once part of a series of 16th century defensive buildings, called Device
DORSET desperately clung on to a draw in their Minor Counties clash with Oxfordshire despite a last-gasp slump at Dean Park. Chris Park’s men had looked like pushing for victory before three quick-fire wickets from James Phillips (3-45) swung the
CARAVAN owners are being reminded they need a licence if they plan to watch live television. TV Licensing has issued the warning as thousands of people descend on Weymouth for their summer holidays. Richard Chapman, spokesman for TV Licensing
A FAMILY of swans died when they became trapped in a weir. The parents and their four cygnets were discovered near Dorchester at Sydling Water. It is believed they dropped through gaps in the weir and either starved or drowned. A spokesman
THE heatwave is not only bringing out the beachgoers in Dorset. The combination of a mild winter, a warm spring and a hot summer has meant that loquats have fruited for the first time ever at Abbotsbury Subtropical Gardens. Loquats - not related
PAUL Blake has been selected to represent Great Britain at next month’s IPC European Championships in Swansea. The Dorchester athlete will compete in both the T36 100m and 400m as he looks for his first ever gold medal at European level. Blake
A NEW scheme designed to improve accuracy when testing for bovine Tuberculosis (bTB) in camelids has been launched at a Dorset farm. SureFarm launched the first private Defra approved TB initiative at a farm in Higher Chilfrome, Dorchester.
DORSET County Hospital’s newly refurbished day surgery unit has been hailed as a ‘superb facility’ for patients. The unit was officially reopened following a refurbishment project aimed at improving patient experiences. Divisional director
A SHORT film competition run by the Purbeck Film Festival is open for entries. This is the sixth year of Purbeck Shorts and the event is going from strength to strength, attracting films from the UK and internationally. It is run by the Purbeck
CHILDREN and staff at Rodwell Pre-School welcomed local MP Richard Drax into the classroom as the school celebrated the start of the summer holidays. Mr Drax visited the pre-school on Friday morning and staff gave him a tour of the building and
I opened Q in Dorchester under the NGS (National Gardens Scheme). We are a small town garden offering cottage style planting. We appeared on Gardeners World in 2011, and ITV West Country News this year A big thank you to all who have visited Q
Where will affordable housing for local residents be in built in Dorchester? Having been to Simons’ latest plans for Charles Street exhibition, I was pleased that their latest plans envisage an increase of apartments to 67 one, two and three bedroom
ENTRIES to this year’s Tourism Awards across the South West have hit new records, with more than 370 entries already received – including over 65 into the Dorset Tourism Awards. Numbers are expected to grow further, as organisers announce a later
After a funeral I lost my mobile phone between Prezzo's and the Crown. The sim card was more of sentimental value to me than the phone itself as it held some precious photos of my late husband who died in March. I was absolutely devastated,
A COUPLE in Dorset were given a shock when they discovered an old human skull outside a church in Wareham. Clive and Pat Cherrett found the skull at Lady St Mary’s Church on Church Green at around midday on Friday July 11. The skull had been
A BLUE Badge guide has pieced together the wartime story of his courageous father. Alfred Frederick Pride from Owermoigne was awarded the Distinguished Conduct Medal for capturing a German machine gun post during the First World War. The medal
A man who got stuck in quicksand and then became lost after freeing himself was plucked to safety by Portland Coastguard’s rescue helicopter. Shortly before 3pm on Sunday, Swanage Coastguard rescue officers were tasked to assist a man stuck in
A woman in her 40s was treated by paramedics after collapsing on Shore Road in Swanage on Sunday. Shortly after 2pm, Swanage Coastguards requested an ambulance to a woman in her 40s who had collapsed and was unconscious at Shore Road. Before
Police are continuing to investigate an alleged stabbing, on the Esplanade, on June 6. A 29-year-old man from Doncaster was taken to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. A 44-year-old man and 39-year-old woman were arrested and released
A WOMAN who was taken to hospital with life-threatening injuries after a crash last week remains in a critical condition. The 67-year-old Weymouth woman suffered injuries to her leg and head, after her car collided with a post on Commercial Road
AN appeal in Looking Back from three years ago has resulted in us receiving this picture, left, from Jess Hartshorne of Chickerell. She was interested to see the Rose Queen competition as featured in the Looking Back pages of the Echo on August
THANKS to Rob White for sharing these photographs with the Looking Back pages. They are of his great uncle Herbert Charles Downton, who was killed in the First World War. Rob, of Lanehouse, Weymouth, also requested these photos of the grave
AN ALLEGED victim claims a 78-year-old Weymouth man sexually abused him on multiple occassions when he was a child. Aubray Arthur Pegg, of Canterbury Close, is accused of multiple counts of indecent assault and two counts of indecency with a child
RESIDENTS are being encouraged to rethink their rubbish with a new campaign. Dorset Waste Partnership has teamed up with a Dorchester photographer to make the county’s bin men the focus of a series of photographs. Richard Budd went out and
JASON Matthews has officially announced the appointment of Craig Laird as his assistant-manager. The former Weston-super-Mare and Bridgwater Town boss has been working with the Terras over the last two weeks in pre-season, and will now become a
DORSET’S hopes of securing back-to-back victories for the first time in four years remain on a knife-edge going into the final day of action at Dean Park, writes Andy Mitchell. Chris Park’s men trail Oxfordshire by 196 and need to find five wickets
DORSET County Hospital’s eye clinic has been shortlisted for a national award after being labelled as “exceptional” by its patients. The clinic’s macular service is in the running for ‘Clinical service of the year’ as part of eye charity The Mascular
Portland Coastguards assisted in a search for a missing man and rushed a man to hospital after he suffered an epileptic fit yesterday. Coastguards launched a search for a man his partner raised concerns after he was late returning from a shopping
NATHAN Walker faces his first real test as Dorchester Town captain tonight when he tries to lift his team-mates after Saturday’s nightmare against Bournemouth. Magpies’ skipper Walker will do his best to rouse the squad before their pre-season
A WEYMOUTH lad will take on a charity challenge to help raise money for the Motor Neurone Disease Association in memory of his father. Eleven-year-old Samuel Bates, son of talented Weymouth drummer Spencer Bates, will be doing a sponsored walk
NEW parking charges in Weymouth have come under fire. And council chiefs have also been criticised for failing to promote the pay and display charges in front of the Pavilion. Sixteen parking bays on the forecourt used to offer 30 minutes free
PEOPLE with convictions of assault, arson, and possession of drugs have applied to work at West Dorset schools – but education chiefs can’t tell us how many made it into the classroom. The Echo has learned that 42 people with criminal convictions
