Stories for 15 June 2006
Accrington
Children are being blamed for a fire that broke out in an Accrington cellar last night. more...
Amir Khan: Latest News
BOLTON'S Amir Khan has vowed to cut out the showboating that led to some criticisms following his impressive points win over Laszlo Komjathi. more...
Bamber Bridge News
Preston and South Ribble have seen a massive rise in teen pregnancies compared to the rest of the country. more...
One of the oldest railway buildings in Lancashire will be restored as part of a refurbishment to Bamber Bridge station. more...
Blackburn
FUNDRAISING pensioners have been prevented from selling tea and biscuits in Blackburn's new super-hospital. more...
FURIOUS residents today demanded answers after their electricity was cut off for a day and a half. more...
AN annual football tournament has been created in memory of a Blackburn teenager who died in a car crash last month. more...
A 66-YEAR-OLD retired bus worker has scooped more than £52,000 playing bingo. more...
A 66-YEAR-OLD retired bus worker has scooped more than £52,000 playing bingo. more...
BLACKBURN with Darwen has the 12th worst incidence rate for tuberculosis in England, according to new figures. more...
A POSTMAN'S dog which was accused of biting a woman has been saved from "death row" after magistrates dismissed the case. more...
A Blackburn man who carried out more than a dozen burglaries while out on prison licence, has been sent to jail for five and a half years. more...
A MULTI-COLOURED sculpture, the first in the panopticons series for East Lancashire, has been officially unveiled. more...
A GROUP set up to promote Asian business has decided to stay in its home town of Blackburn, just weeks after announcing it was to move to Preston. more...
Blackpool News
A fascinating glimpse into the Blackpool of yesteryear will help drive the resort into the future and boost its exciting bid for World Heritage Status. more...
Extra bobbies will be on the beat in Blackpool for tonight's England clash with Trinidad and Tobago. more...
A grilling greeted the Prime Minister, Tony Blair as he faced the GMB union's conference at Blackpool's Winter Gardens this week. more...
Blackpool beach lifeguards and RNLI crews staged a daring sea rescue this week after a holidaymaker got into difficulties at a notorious drowning spot. more...
Blackpool Panthers Rlfc
Blackpool Panthers will be prowling in to a new home this weekend as pitch work continues at Bloomfield Road. more...
Bolton News
A POLICE woman used her home as a drugs den to smoke cannabis and take lines of cocaine, a court was told. more...
A TODDLER died after taking more than twice the lethal dose of his mum's methadone. more...
RESIDENTS are being warned to be extra vigilant following a rise in burglaries since the start of the World Cup. more...
PETER Kay relaxes between filming scenes for his role as a monstrous baddie in this week's episode of Doctor Who. more...
LICENSEE Tony Bolton had an unusual customer at his Farnworth pub, when a lost budgie landed on his windowsill. more...
A 21-YEAR-OLD man who lost control of his car and killed a mother-of-two has been banned from driving for 12 months. more...
PATIENTS waiting for ultrasound scans are being sent to the private Beaumont Hospital in Lostock in a bid to cut NHS waiting times. more...
LICENSING bosses have given the green light for two of Bolton's parks to become year-round venues for music concerts, dance shows and carnivals. more...
PLANNING bosses were today expected to give the go-ahead for 152 new homes in the Bolton area. more...
LOCAL Government and Communities Secretary Ruth Kelly has pledged to help more homeless people. more...
A YOUTH MP from Bolton has been quizzing two of the town's political heavyweights and won praise from a Cabinet Minister. more...
EIGHT women who formed a thirty year friendship after their personal experience of heart disease are appealing to others to join their fundraising cause. more...
UP TO 15 forced marriages are known to be taking place in Bolton every year, a victim support group said today. more...
HORWICH'S beat officer is now based in an office in the town centre. more...
Organisers promise that this weekend's Horwich Carnival will be bigger and better than ever. more...
Bolton Lads and Girls Club is looking for more than 100 local men to act as mentors. more...
IT used to be dog's life for Ellie until she was rescued by animal lovers holidaying in Cyprus. more...
FIREFIGHTERS had to free a two-year-old girl who locked herself in her parent's car. more...
POLICE in Wigan are appealing for witnesses after a man was assaulted. more...
A FAMILY of bluetits have hatched in a nest with a difference inside a box for cigarette ends. more...
BUDDING young actors and stagehands will have the chance to polish their skills at a performing arts summer school. more...
A SILVER water jug from a Bolton jewellers fetched more than double the estimate at an auction of Princess Margaret's cherished items yesterday. more...
THREE community groups have won a share of £6,000 being handed out in Bolton as a result of the town's recycling efforts. more...
Burnley
A Burnley woman burgled a hairdressers to raise cash to fund her £40 a day heroin addiction, a court was told. more...
Bury News
DRUNKEN yobs attacked staff and customers at a Bury pub following England's victory against Paraguay. more...
DRUNKEN yobs attacked staff and customers at a Bury pub following England's victory against Paraguay. more...
IT used to be dog's life for Ellie until she was rescued by a Bury couple holidaying in Cyprus. more...
COOL-HEADED thieves are taking advantage of residents who are giving them an open invitation. more...
DRUNKEN yobs attacked staff and customers at a Bury pub following England's victory against Paraguay. more...
A POLICE officer was hit over the head with a beer glass when he stopped a motorist outside a Bury pub on suspicion of drink-driving. more...
MORE than 1,000 NHS staff angry at plans to slash hundreds of jobs within the trust which runs Fairfield Hospital will be protesting this weekend. more...
A MAN who slashed the tyres of 80 cars in 20 streets over a four-mile radius in Radcliffe has never told police why he did it. more...
THREE-year-olds Emma Thomas (left) and Gabrielle Oliver take a big step towards helping out disadvantaged children for charity. more...
A FED-UP pub landlord faces a further five months of misery because town centre roadworks have been delayed. more...
CUSTOMERS at a Higher Summerseat pub are on the ball when it comes to fundraising, netting thousands of pounds for three charities. more...
ADVENTURER Melvin Magnall has visited the home of Henry Wood after sailing thousands of miles in his wake to the American city of Woodbury. more...
THE mother of a teenage boy who died from a brain tumour six months ago has launched an appeal to fund more research into the condition. more...
FIRE chiefs were forced to cut Bury's fire service cover by half last Friday in the wake of a staffing crisis. more...
PARRENTHORN High School has staked a claim on profits made from the sale of land at Prestwich Arts College if the proposed closure goes ahead. more...
SHOPS and businesses in Bury town centre were evacuated for 90 minutes on Friday lunchtime after a suspected gas leak. more...
AT the age of just two, Christina Troy was rushed into hospital with diptheria and doctors feared she would not survive. more...
MARKET traders in Bury are setting up a direct hotline to the town's patrolling bobbies. more...
THE demolition of several houses in Whitefield on Friday marked the start of a new future for the town centre. more...
A SUPPORT centre offering cancer sufferers and their families a quiet place to relax and find encouragement in fighting the disease has doubled its opening hours. more...
SEVEN car parks in Bury have achieved an award to show that vehicle crime has fallen. more...
BURY Magistrates Court is taking the lead when it comes to community representation. more...
FAMILY fun galore is heading for Bury town centre with the second annual street festival on Saturday, June 24. more...
THIEVES stole goods worth hundreds of pounds from 14 cars in one night in Ainsworth. more...
SCHOOLBOY Jamie Sanders joined thousands of young runners to pound the streets of Manchester and raise money for the Cystic Fibrosis Trust. more...
SIZZLING summer sunshine helped bring Tottington alive with the sound of music as hundreds of people attended the annual Music in the Park. more...
RAMSBOTTOM football fans hung up the football boots in favour of walking gear to embark on a nine-hour trek in the name of charity. more...
AN elderly couple from Ramsbottom have fallen victim to a bogus caller. more...
A ROBBER armed with a knife fled empty-handed in a bungled raid on a Tottington store. more...
A Second World War veteran has finally earned his wings. more...
AN alcohol awareness group is warning about a growing trend for some people to drink themselves to "oblivion". more...
CANCER survivors are being sought to accompany brave Aimee Read during Bury's Relay for Life fundraiser later this month. more...
IT was sunshine all the way as thousands of spectators basked in the success of Bury's first Carnival Parade for nine years. more...
NINE American nurses have been getting a taste of life in the UK with a week-long visit shadowing their Bury counterparts. more...
DRUNKEN yobs attacked staff and customers at a Bury pub following England's victory against Paraguay. more...
Business Headlines
NORTH-WEST manufacturers have seen their profits rise by £20 million in the last year thanks to advice from the DTI's Manufacturing Advisory Service. more...
It was a hat trick celebration for staff at the Co-op Travel superstore in Bolton. more...
Business News
A GROUP set up to promote Asian business has decided to stay in its home town of Blackburn, just weeks after announcing it was to move to Preston. more...
Business Updates
BURY-based computer crimebuster Joel Tobias could be crowned Ernst & Young's Entrepreneur of the Year. more...
LOCAL businesses will soon be benefiting from more than £200,000 of European funding through new projects at Bury College. more...
TRAVEL adviser Simon Myerson takes a green approach to work every day. more...
AN Italian who came to the UK eight years ago to be word-perfect in English is learning the language of running a successful business. more...
Clarets News
GIFTON Noel-Williams is nearer a Turf Moor exit after his agent confirmed "eight or nine clubs" are keen to snap up Burnley's striker. more...
Darwen
BLACKBURN with Darwen has the 12th worst incidence rate for tuberculosis in England, according to new figures. more...
ANGRY Darwen residents today said it was blooming ridiculous that their missing town hall flowers have still not been returned three weeks after they were taken. more...
Editor'S Comment
IT'S become a feature of our urban landscape over the past few years cars parked at the roadside displaying "For Sale" notices and a mobile phone number. more...
Education News
THREE Bury Grammar School boys are certainly made of the write' stuff. more...
Great Harwood
WORKERS at a Great Harwood haulage firm were left baffled after what appeared to be a tornado formed in their yard. more...
Health
FUNDRAISING pensioners have been prevented from selling tea and biscuits in Blackburn's new super-hospital. more...
BLACKBURN with Darwen has the 12th worst incidence rate for tuberculosis in England, according to new figures. more...
Health News
PATIENTS waiting for ultrasound scans are being sent to the private Beaumont Hospital in Lostock in a bid to cut NHS waiting times. more...
Health Updates
PLANS to cut millions from the budget for diabetics treatment have been slammed by the chairman of the Bury support group. more...
Ice Hockey Updates
Fernando Pisani scored a short-handed goal in overtime to give Edmonton Oliers a 4-3 victory over Carolina Hurricanes in game five and keep their Stanley Cup hopes alive. more...
Manchester Phoenix has announced that new junior and youth sections, under the banner of Manchester Phoenix Junior Ice Hockey Club, have been officially affiliated to the English Ice Hockey Association. more...
Jack Straw
So there I was, gazing at a picture of Moses bringing down the tablets of stone from Mount Sinai and delivering the Ten Commandments. more...
Latest Sport
BOLTON'S Amir Khan has vowed to cut out the showboating that led to some criticisms following his impressive points win over Laszlo Komjathi. more...
Leigh Headlines
TERMINALLY-ILL cancer patient Stanley Collins died "in pain and without dignity," it has been claimed. more...
TERMINALLY-ILL cancer patient Stanley Collins died "in pain and without dignity," it has been claimed. more...
WIGAN Council is today (Thursday) expected to end its housing contract with the government's National Asylum Support Service (NASS) and make over 120 council houses available to people currently on the waiting list. more...
SALUTE Sergeant Susan Shuttleworth, 42, a TA volunteer from Leigh who serves with the Lancastrian and Cumbrian Volunteers. more...
TWO men have been charged with the murder of the uncle of a Leigh Centurions RL star. more...
A RICKSHAW crash which killed a Leigh mother in Cuba may have been caused by British tourists riding recklessly on motorcycles, an inquest has heard. more...
A PLACE that was once home to one of Britain's biggest coal mines is in danger of becoming a "ghost town". more...
LEIGH Infirmary celebrates its 100th birthday on Friday, October 27, and Wrightington, Wigan & Leigh NHS Trust aims mark this momentous occasion by staging various celebrations with a past, present and future theme. more...
VANDALS put lives at risk and delayed rail services for an hour after a train ran over a mattress which had been placed on the track bed at Atherton. more...
TERRACED houses could be built on a mill site in Leigh. more...
A YOUNG father died after the go-kart he was driving collided with a concrete wall. more...
FEARS that the former Leigh Inland Revenue Office is to close next month with staff transferred to Liverpool have been quashed - but HM Revenue and Customs have admitted they can not guarantee the long term future of the Leigh Road building. more...
TWO thousand women will toe the start line at Leigh's first big Race for Life on Sunday. more...
FOOTBALL mad Tim Lees has been selected to play for England at the World Cup. more...
Letters
DID doctors create the universe? Or breathe the spirit of life into new born babies? more...
I READ with interest Jack Straw's congratulations to Lancashire Constabulary for naming suspected drug offenders. more...
I WRITE in compassion and also anger at Dennis Cramp's fight for his wife's happiness, sanity and comfort (LET, May 27 and June 8). How sad has this system got when a man who undoubtedly loves his wife of more years than us young unappreciative swine have been alive, has to fight for the right to look after her. more...
I LIVE on Olive Lane, Darwen and around this area thousands of pounds have been spent on upgrading the bowling green and surrounding area. more...
I AM writing to ask if Darwen councillors will stop bickering between themselves about the cash share-out in the town. more...
ON June 8 I went to Preston to see Art 2006 and do some shopping while I was there. more...
The letter from County Council leader Hazel Harding, headed Dismay at Comments of Local Government', Citizen letters, June 1, and many over the past few months from paid senior elected councillors and paid senior executive council officers, make me shudder in fear. more...
Have you or an older member of your family been in hospital in the last six weeks or do you know someone who has? Then Age Concern wants to hear from you. more...
Last year about 114,000 people took part in CSV Make a Difference Day, the UK's single biggest day of volunteering. more...
I am asking local residents to complete the 2006 BUPA Great North Run in support of disability charity Leonard Cheshire. more...
Leyland News
A Leyland museum is to host a spectacular photographic show, detailing a famous Antarctic expedition. more...
Preston and South Ribble have seen a massive rise in teen pregnancies compared to the rest of the country. more...
Local Cricket Round-Up
VIC Isaacs has never played a game of cricket in his life. But he has seen thousands. more...
RADCLIFFE were left deflated on Saturday as Rochdale managed to overhaul the home side's 273-6 in a run-feast at the Racecourse. more...
Museums And Galleries
A Leyland museum is to host a spectacular photographic show, detailing a famous Antarctic expedition. more...
News
The summer transfer season has made a slow start - but players turning down moves to Blackpool will no longer be able to use agents' fees as an excuse. more...
Next Monday could be a red letter day in the history of Blackpool Football Club as Latvian millionaire, Valery Belokon, makes his investment in the Seasiders. more...
Penwortham News
Preston and South Ribble have seen a massive rise in teen pregnancies compared to the rest of the country. more...
Both serious athletes and fun runners are being invited to lace up their trainers and step to it for a hospice's charity run. more...
Pne News
Phil Parkinson has resigned as manager of Colchester United manager, sparking increased speculation he is heading for the vacant post at Preston North End. more...
Phil Parkinson has resigned as manager of Colchester United, sparking increased speculation he is heading for the vacant post at Preston North End. more...
North End chairman Derek Shaw has hit out at critics of the club's board following the sale of star defender Claude Davis to newly-promoted Sheffield United. more...
Fans who accuse players of not working hard enough may have scientific proof next season, thanks to Preston North End's new kit. more...
Sir Tom Finney is not well enough to attend the unveiling of a floral tribute, dedicated to him. more...
Preston News
Preston and South Ribble have seen a massive rise in teen pregnancies compared to the rest of the country. more...
Both serious athletes and fun runners are being invited to lace up their trainers and step to it for a hospice's charity run. more...
Both serious athletes and fun runners are being invited to lace up their trainers and step to it for a hospice's charity run. more...
Sir Tom Finney is not well enough to attend the unveiling of a floral tribute, dedicated to him. more...
Radcliffe Boro
RADCLIFFE Boro goalkeeper Danny Hurst has stressed a desire to play at a higher level was behind his decision to request a transfer from the club. more...
Rossendale News
ROSSENDALE Council is getting better, according to the government. more...
ROSSENDALE Council is getting better, according to the government. more...
Rovers News
BLACKBURN manager Mark Hughes could face a battle to sign Egyptian striker Mido. more...
Shakers Updates
SHAKERS striker Matt Tipton has urged former teammate Danny Whitaker to join the growing Gigg Lane revolution. more...
THE Shakers' secret World Cup scout has hatched a plan to bring top African players to the club. more...
Sport Tasters
BLACKBURN manager Mark Hughes could face a battle to sign Egyptian striker Mido. more...
ACCRINGTON Stanley chairman Eric Whalley has admitted he has a greater interest in Friday night football after the club's home games were paired with Burnley. more...
GIFTON Noel-Williams is nearer a Turf Moor exit after his agent confirmed "eight or nine clubs" are keen to snap up Burnley's striker. more...
Sporting Highlights
by Gaynor Clarke
WHILE many teenage girls dream of becoming a pop star or an actress, Elton High pupil Gill Munro is hoping to play for the England football team. more...
WOODHEY High School pupil Alex Mallion is proving he's a giant on and off the football pitch. more...
YOUNGSTERS have won prizes for putting their passion for sport into poems and stories. more...
NOT many rugby players turn down the chance of playing professionally for one of France's top clubs, but that's just what Sedgley Park's recent signing Andy Craig did. more...
THE Edinburgh cycle speedway team made a slight detour on their way home from a single point victory at Heckmondwike last Sunday, to complete the re-arranged Northern Alliance match at Goshen against Bury-Pedalsport. more...
IN complete contrast to some of last week's surprise results, this Monday's first division games saw the current top five teams all come out victorious over teams currently sitting in the bottom five positions. more...
THE World Cup is the biggest event to be involved in at any sport, but for most people it is just a distant dream. more...
Stanley News
ACCRINGTON Stanley chairman Eric Whalley has admitted he has a greater interest in Friday night football after the club's home games were paired with Burnley. more...
FORMER Accrington Stanley player Norman James McCredie has died, aged 78. more...
Tasters
FUNDRAISING pensioners have been prevented from selling tea and biscuits in Blackburn's new super-hospital. more...
FURIOUS residents today demanded answers after their electricity was cut off for a day and a half. more...
A POSTMAN'S dog which was accused of biting a woman has been saved from "death row" after magistrates dismissed the case. more...
ANGRY Darwen residents today said it was blooming ridiculous that their missing town hall flowers have still not been returned three weeks after they were taken. more...
Thornton News
GCSE students at a Fylde school may miss out on taking a vital exam this month after teachers timetabled the wrong date this week. more...
A disabled Fylde pensioner is to air his views on the controversial closure of Thornton's only bank in a new "Watchdog-style" TV show. more...
Tv Reviews
IT'S hard to imagine it now, but in the late 1970s if you told someone you were going on holiday to Faliraki they wouldn't recoil in horror, assuming you were off for a week of drunken debauchery involving having neat vodka poured into your mouth in the so-called "dentist's chair". more...
What'S On In And Around Bury
PETER Kay is the first to admit that he has done some pretty amazing things since he became a big name' singing on stage with Elton John, hanging out with Eric Clapton, fronting Live 8 in Scotland, corresponding in character by letter to his comedy hero Ronnie Barker, to name but a few of them. more...
World Cup
LITTLE Jamie Bufton, seven, and his sister Jessica Bufton, four, from Blackburn will be joining the rest of East Lancashire today in cheering David Beckham and the boys on against Trinidad & Tobago. more...
World Cup Briefing
DRUNKEN yobs attacked staff and customers at a Bury pub following England's victory against Paraguay. more...
CAN someone get a translator the next time Gordon Strachan appears on our screens? more...
SVEN-GORAN Eriksson must learn two lessons from the final game of the last World Cup. more...
DRUNKEN yobs attacked staff and customers at a Bury pub following England's victory against Paraguay. more...
DRUNKEN yobs attacked staff and customers at a Bury pub following England's victory against Paraguay. more...
DRUNKEN yobs attacked staff and customers at a Bury pub following England's victory against Paraguay. more...
You Say
I write in response to your story regarding the misers at Bolton Council refusing to allow staff to fly the flag of St George from council vehicles, and the general negativity from certain sources relating to our country's innocent patriotism. more...
I would like to offer my heartiest congratulations to the staff and senior "working'' managers of the Royal Bolton Hospital for their careful "steering" of the services within the overall turbulence in the NHS. more...
I was impressed that young Michael Wilkinson should take the trouble to respond to my letter on wind turbines and other renewable forms of energy. more...
IN response to the letter from the lady about dog fouling. more...
The truth is out! And it seems that the electorate of Bolton had a lucky escape, because had the Conservatives taken power in Bolton in May, their "pledge" to restore a weekly bin collection would not have been implemented. more...
CLLR Morris must think that the public are stupid if he expects us to believe that the £3.7m needed to reintroduce the weekly grey bin collection will not be borne by council taxpayers. There is no guarantee that it will not affect front-line services. more...
SIR,
POPPYCOCK Cllr Rigby! Your comments regarding unemployment, lower crime rates, massive investments in schools, housing and health care is nothing but poppycock! more...
SIR,
I AM contacting you regarding avian flu, which I believe the government has been conned or bullied, or both into shifting the blame for bird flu from where it belongs - with the insensitive poultry industry and on to wild birds. more...
SIR,
I'D like to ask Mr Blair if he could enlighten the public where he stands on this: "Would you like children or grandchildren of yours to be brought up by homosexuals?" more...
SIR,
THERE is a little known hidden treasure in Leigh's indoor market. more...
WE are 24 parents from Higher Broughton and Kersal in East Salford with children currently attending, or whose children hope to attend, Prestwich Arts College (PAC); a school now designated for closure by Bury Council. We wish to voice our objections to this proposal as follows:
Flawed consultation process
We feel that the consultation process was seriously flawed from the outset. The first we heard of any closure was in a letter home which invited us to choose which of two high schools in the area, Prestwich or Parrenthorn, should be closed. We do not feel this is a fair or appropriate way in which to begin a consultation of parents few parents would be likely to vote for the closure of their own school! more...
We hear lots about choice these days. Companies are always offering new products to
choose from, and the Labour government wants us to choose hospitals and schools according to their specialism, league table position etc. more...
I am 10 years old and I am in Year 5 at Bowker Vale Primary School in Manchester. more...
COUNCILLOR Mike Connolly in a letter printed in last week's Bury Times (Secondary schools among the best in the country') identified the borough's secondary schools as amongst the best in the country for which he praised politicians and council officers. more...
I READ Councillor Mike Connolly's letter in last week's Bury Times with some dismay, as I know he live close to Broad Oak High School and presumably understands the issues it faces and the community role it plays as Bury's only extended school. more...
AS a parent of a child at Prestwich Arts College I am so proud of the school for achieving the Gold Artsmark. more...
LAST week's letters to the Bury Times from Coun Byrne, Campbell and Connolly are further evidence (if further evidence was ever needed) that despite a crushing blow to Labour at the recent elections these councillors who are the current and immediate past leaders of the council still bury their heads in the sand and mistakenly believe that it is possible to fool all the people all of the time. more...
I am a parent of a student in Year 8 at Broad Oak High School and it was very rewarding to hear that the 27 students who went on the school skiing trip to Italy in January were actually voted the best behaved school by the travel company that took them. more...
FOLLOWING our carnival parade last Saturday morning can I, on behalf of Bury Lions Club, say a very big thank you to the public of Bury and district for turning out to support us. more...
I can fully sympathise with the disgruntled resident of Nuttall Lane (Bury Times, Letters, June 1) regarding speeding traffic. more...
I write to respond to the letter in the Bury Times on June 8 (Don't condemn when you haven't got the facts') about the Bury Hospice van getting a parking ticket. more...
A WELL deserved congratulations is due to all those involved in the organising of Music in the Park', on Sunday afternoon, in Tottington. more...
Yet again the RSPCA has chosen to prosecute people on low incomes instead of trying to help the family care for their animals (Wretched condition of couple's pet dogs', Bury Times, June 9). more...
EACH year the Lancs and Yorks Historical Society organise pilgrimages to the battle areas of the First World War, we still have a few seats left on our Pilgrimage that leaves in late September. more...
I WRITE in response to recent letters about the escalator at Bury Interchange, being out of service. more...
AS much as I appreciate the council's efforts to reduce speeding through the 30mph zone in Shuttleworth, I can't help thinking that the new radar-controlled warning sign might have more effect if it had not been placed behind a tree (above)! more...
