The Northern Echo back issues from April 2000:
Stamp collecting for the computer age
Apr 01, 2000; ... FAR away on Pokmon Island, the Pokmon live in the grass, in thecaves and on the seashore. Some Pokmon are cute and cuddly likeChansey; others mean and macho like Blastoise, and one, Pikachu, isa cheekily lovable hero. There are 151 different Pokmon (which isshort for 'pocket monsters') ...
Hear all sides
Apr 01, 2000 ... REGIONAL GOVERNMENT MUCH talk has been made in the media and onTV about creating a North-East regional government. The thought ofGeordie Rule makes me cringe. Teesside will only succeed if we can become individual andrecognised as such. The words North-East as a term for this ...
Magnificent effort for flood victims
Apr 01, 2000 ... THE harrowing television and newspaper images of the tragic floodvictims of Mozambique will live in the memory for a long time. In this country, we are quick to complain when the wind gets up alittle, or it starts to drizzle. The Mozambique disaster was a reminder of how lucky ...
Conroys invests in Yorkshire
Apr 01, 2000 ... A FURNITURE firm already sitting pretty in the North-East haslaunched a multi-million pound investment in the Yorkshire region. Conroys, which employs the majority of its 150 staff at itsBirtley headquarters in County Durham, has begun work on a 15,000sqft Sofazone store in ...
In Brief
Apr 01, 2000 ... Wilkinson Sword cuts links Razor blade maker Wilkinson Swordfinally severed its links with the North-East last night when itsfactory closed for good. More than 350 jobs were lost when the plant at Cramlington, setup in 1963, was axed in 1998. Then bosses said a phased ...
Samsung keeps its options open
Apr 01, 2000 ... INWARD investor Samsung has delivered a renewed vote ofconfidence in the region. The electronics giant, whose ambitions for its North-East siteshave mirrored the global ups and downs of the Korean conglomerate,last night secured outline planning permission to develop a 200-acre ...
Judges praise Chinese bridge
Apr 01, 2000 ... A RE-BORN bridge builder has earned world-class praise for itswork on China's longest bridge. Cleveland Bridge, currently hammering out the final details on abuy-out deal to liberate it from its restructuring owner, won theinternational performance category at the annual Quality ...
Extra cameras deployed in speeding crackdown
Apr 01, 2000 ... DRIVERS are being warned to watch their speed as extra camerasstart operating in the region from Monday. Yesterday, Cleveland Police warned they would book anyonetravelling marginally over the speed limit on more than 30 roads onTeesside as part of the crackdown. Inspector ...
Hunt for pair after knifepoint robbery
Apr 01, 2000 ... THREE teenagers were robbed at knife-point as they waited for alift at a city centre car park. The youngsters, two aged 16 and the other 17, were confronted bytwo youths in the Blackfriars car park in Newcastle. One, who was riding a green mountain bike, produced a knife ...
Coastal nestingsite to expand
Apr 01, 2000; ... ONE of the region's most valuable nesting and breeding sites forwild birds, which lies in the shadow of one of Europe's mostintensive chemical industry centres, is to expand. Government Environment Minister Chris Mullin announced yesterdaythat Teesmouth and Cleveland Coast Special ...
Wish comes true for a brave young boy
Apr 01, 2000 ... A RAY of joy has been brought into the life of a child born witha rare blood disorder. On the day of Martin Cunningham's birth, his parents Stephen andJanet were told it could be his last. He was one of only ten children in the country with the disorder,which affects mental ...
1m building to benefit elderly patients
Apr 01, 2000 ... WORK is under way on a 1m hospital building to replace woodenhuts built as temporary accommodation in the Second World War. The millennium appeal building, at the Friarage Hospital,Northallerton, should be finished in the autumn. The project has been jointly funded by the ...
Councillors' anger over ramblers' footpath claim
Apr 01, 2000; ... COUNCIL leaders reacted with barely-disguised fury yesterdayafter they were accused of failing to fulfil their pledge to clearobstructions from public rights of way. They claimed the Ramblers' Association was being "confrontationalbeyond belief" after its latest attack on the ...
Your valued opinion about future of fire service
Apr 01, 2000 ... HOUSEHOLDS across North Yorkshire are about to get their say onplans for the future of the county's fire and rescue service. Under new Government rules, every authority in the country,including fire authorities, has to publish Best Value plans with aview to improving ...
200 acres of woodland to be created
Apr 01, 2000 ... Native woodlands totalling about 84 hectares - more than 200acres - are to be created in North Yorkshire over the next year. The work, in the North York Moors and Yorkshire Dales NationalParks, has been made possible by special grants from the ForestryCommission. Forestry ...
Bakery boss rises to the occasion
Apr 01, 2000 ... A MEMBER of a bakery business family has risen to take up anhistoric ceremonial office in County Durham. Elizabeth Ann Smyth was sworn in as the county's first new HighSheriff of the Millennium this week. In a brief ceremony at Durham Crown Court she read thedeclaration oath ...
Gunner Becky sets sights on former school
Apr 01, 2000 ... GUNNER Becky Ditchfield went back to the classroom to tell pupilsat her old school about Army life. Becky, 18, from Seaham, joined up after leaving EasingtonComprehensive to become one of the first women gunners to join 4Regiment Royal Artillery in Osnabruck, Germany. Now she ...
Dangerous game played by street light vandals
Apr 01, 2000; ... VANDALS who have carried out a series of attacks on streetlighting are putting lives at risk, police have warned. Nine lighting columns have been damaged and put out of action inthe Mendip Terrace and Cotswold Terrace areas of South Stanley inrecent weeks. In each incident, ...
Providers under public scrutiny
Apr 01, 2000 ... THREE major providers of public services have submittedthemselves to a searching test of their efficiency andeffectiveness. A joint report has been published by Durham County Council,Durham Police Authority and the County Durham and Darlington Fireand Rescue Authority to ...
Youngsters reach for the stars
Apr 01, 2000 ... STARSTRUCK Sunderland youngsters have the chance to show offtheir talents in a special competition next week. Twenty-two acts from 11 secondary schools across Wearside willcompete in Search For a Star 2000 in Monkwearmouth School's musicand drama studios on Thursday. The ...
Firms urged to help city bloom
Apr 01, 2000 ... BUSINESSES in Durham are being urged to help the city bloom. The city council is writing to shops and offices asking them toconsider sponsor hanging baskets outside their premises. The authority is part-sponsoring the scheme, making the cost of asingle basket for businesses 34 ...
Partnership working for new hospice
Apr 01, 2000 ... A COUNCIL is forming a partnership with the children's hospiceappeal Chin-Up to help terminally ill youngsters. The charity has over the past six years succeeded in raisingsufficient funds to enable it to seek office premises and create afull-time fundraising manager, while the ...
Soccer centre decision on hold
Apr 01, 2000 ... PLANNING chiefs have left proposals to create a new soccer centreon the outskirts of Durham City on hold. They have decided to hold a site visit before passing judgementon the scheme next to the New Ferens Park football ground in DurhamCity. The scheme, put forward by Durham ...
Villagers reassured by neighbouring force
Apr 01, 2000 ... VILLAGERS have received a reassuring police message - from theChief Constable of a neighbouring force. Householders in West Rainton, on the Durham side of the countyboundary with Tyne and Wear, were delivered copies of the policingpolicy for 2000/2001 of the Northumbria ...
Best feet forward as youngsters take the walking 'bus'
Apr 01, 2000 ... A SCHOOL is taking innovative steps to cutting down the risks ofaccidents. Staff and parents at Yarm Primary School on Teesside have come upwith the idea of a walking "bus" where rota-operating parents escortan ever-growing crocodile of children to school. Groups of ...
Dealers are suspected of wrecking drugs poster
Apr 01, 2000; ... A POSTER advertising an anti-drug initiative has been vandalisedby suspected dealers. The huge poster, encouraging people to ring Crimestoppersanonymously if they have information about drug pushers, has beenrepeatedly attacked since it went on display in centralMiddlesbrough ...
'Bring back birch' call after vandals' spree
Apr 01, 2000 ... A CALL to bring back the birch is being made to deal with vandalsspoiling a tourist town's image. Doreen Myers, founder of community group Guisborough Town Pride,made the call following news that hammer-wielding vandals hadsmashed two signs on the town approaches, which proclaim ...
Links group passes its first milestone
Apr 01, 2000 ... A NEIGHBOURHOOD group, set up to bring local government closer tothe people, is celebrating its first birthday. Three forums covering the North, South and Central areas ofHartlepool were set up in April 1999 to give residents the chance toinfluence decisions affecting their ...
200,000 fire hits farm buildings
Apr 01, 2000 ... A farm fire which caused about 200,000 damage has been blamed onan electrical fault. The blaze destroyed new mechanical farming equipment stored atWoodside Farm, on Whitton Road, between Redmarshall and Whitton,near Stockton. Firefighters could not save offices, a warehouse ...
Happily still part of the Union
Apr 01, 2000; ... IT'S Lady Day, though the language on the way up to DurhamCathedral isn't very ladylike, nor gentleman-like either, come tothat. Saddler Street is snarled, and snarling, a lorry load of refusecollectors - what the Scots more colourfully call scaffies -unwitting piggies in the ...
Prickly problems at the Thistle
Apr 01, 2000; ... IT SHOULD have been straightforward: spending the night in aLondon hotel. A room had been booked by the public relations companyhandling the movie I was going to see the next day. The e-mail informed me that I would be staying at the ThistleKensington Park Hotel and the taxi driver ...
Kevin goes back as goal-hungry striker
Apr 01, 2000; ... ACE STRIKER Kevin Phillips will fulfil a career-long ambitionthis afternoon when he plays in front of a full house atSouthampton. But Dell fans will be left wondering what might have been if thegoal-hungry Sunderland predator had not been changed to a right backby the then ...
Nunez set for taste of Premier passion
Apr 01, 2000; ... EXCITING new Sunderland signing Milton Nunez could find himselfin premiership action sooner than he thought when he is given aplace on the bench at Southampton this afternoon. The stocky little striker, nicknamed Tyson because of his build,was due to have flown to Panama to play ...
Paper talk
Apr 01, 2000 ... NEWCASTLE v BRADFORD "Bradford will struggle. They have losttheir last three games and although they played fairly well againstManchester United for the first half hour last weekend they ended uplosing 4-0. "The worrying thing is that if they lose and Derby beat Leicesterthey ...
Unibond league
Apr 01, 2000 ... Spennymoor hope to include at least three new faces in theirsquad today when they travel to Bamber Bridge in the UniBond PremierDivision, writes RAY SIMPSON. Moors manager Peter Mulcaster has approached West Auckland, whoseNorthern League fixtures finished in midweek, and signed ...
Turner names target to put Pool in play-off spot
Apr 01, 2000; ... HARTLEPOOL United boss Chris Turner is demanding nothing lessthan four home wins to ensure a play-off berth. Pool last week slipped out of the play-off reckoning after losingat York and with only seven games remaining, the Pool boss isdesperate for three points against Exeter this ...
It's no stroll for Mowden
Apr 01, 2000; ... THERE may be only two league games left, but there are likely tobe at least four other tough matches ahead for most DarlingtonMowden Park players. Ten of them are in the Durham squad for the County Championshipand they are also anxious to complete a hat-trick of Durham ...
Hudspiths to the fore
Apr 01, 2000; ... MORPETH Harriers will be trying to beat off a strong North-Westchallenge from the powerful Salford and Sale clubs in today's Northof England 12-Stage Road Relay Championships at Silksworth. Morpeth have strength in depth and demonstrated their dominanceof the North-East athletics ...
Darlington stage Four Nations event
Apr 01, 2000; ... DARLINGTON is to host a prestigious new indoor tournament, theFour Nations Famous Grouse Top Ten Classic, offering prize money of21,000, over the next two years. The British Isles Indoor Bowls Council and the English IndoorBowling Association have backed the new competition, which ...
Harmison has chance to prove his worth alongside England elite
Apr 01, 2000; ... DURHAM paceman Steve Harmison is one of four players invited tojoin the 12 who have been offered England contracts for a three-dayget-together. They will meet in Cheshire tomorrow for fitness work and"bonding", giving 21-year-old Harmison the chance to prove to theEngland ...
Chris discovers commercial role takes his breath away
Apr 01, 2000; ... SO, there we were, me and a stunning model, breathing furiouslyon the car window to try to get it steamed up. And I thought to myself: "This has to be the oddest way I've everearned a day's pay". It was hard, to be honest, to think much else. There were half adozen young ...
Store manager steps into the TV limelight
Apr 01, 2000; ... A STORE manager found himself in the limelight when a TV crewcame into his shop to record an advertising campaign. Graham White, of Thornaby, was pleased that the SCS furniturestore he manages in Middlesbrough was appearing in the company'sNorth-East campaign, but he did not expect ...
Howard still enjoys making waves
Apr 01, 2000 ... AT the age of 78, not even some chilly spring weather is enoughto keep Howard Jelling from his favourite hobby. Each weekend for the past 40 years, Mr Jelling has put on hiswetsuit and gone waterskiing. For most of that time, he has been a member of the ScarboroughWater Ski ...
Hunt goes on for drug dealer's assassin
Apr 01, 2000 ... POLICE are still hunting the murderer of a young father shottwice in the back at a village showfield two weeks ago. The body of Bryan Scott, 25, of New Marske was discovered at theKirkleatham Showground, off Kirkleatham Lane, at 10pm on March 18,by police answering a 999 ...
Bus services rapped
Apr 01, 2000 ... A BUS company has been ordered to pay back 60,000 of fuel dutyrebate as a punishment for running allegedly poor services. Arriva Tees and District is also being prevented from launchingany additional services by Deputy Traffic Commissioner MarkHinchliffe. Chairing an inquiry ...
Moves to centralise cancer ops criticised
Apr 01, 2000 ... A PLAN to centralise women's cancer surgery in the North of theregion at one hospital has been criticised by health watchdogs. Women with ovarian or cervical cancer who need surgery can betreated at a number of hospitals in the Newcastle area. But in line with Government ...
Committee for regional affairs is welcomed
Apr 01, 2000 ... A GOVERNMENT move to create a stronger voice for the region hasbeen welcomed in the North-East. A proposal for a committee on regional affairs, announced by theLeader of the House Commons, Margaret Beckett, has been praised bymembers of the North East Regional Assembly, which is a ...
Club fanzine toasts record 250th edition
Apr 01, 2000 ... THE writers of a North-East football fanzine have broken therecord for the most issues produced by supporters of an Englishclub. The 250th edition of Middlesbrough's fanzine, Fly Me To The Moon,will be on sale for the team's home match against Manchester Unitedon Monday, April ...
Echo receives stamp of approval
Apr 01, 2000 ... CAMPAIGNERS fighting to save services in villages across thecountry have given their backing to The Northern Echo's Last Postcampaign. Dorothy Muir, of the Village Retail Services Association (Virsa),was in North Yorkshire yesterday to see some of the less well-publicised ...
1.4m plans to speed up 999 service
Apr 01, 2000; ... PLANS to beef up the region's ambulance service to meet tough newGoverment guidelines have been announced. Sixty more staff will be taken on and six more ambulances boughtif the 1.4m expansion is approved. Bosses say the proposals will save lives, see three new ...
Stop smoking scheme praised
Apr 01, 2000 ... A SCHEME to help smokers in Durham and Chester-le-Street kick thehabit has won praise from anti-tobacco groups. The area's Primary Care Group is giving people eligible for freeprescriptions a month's worth of nicotine replacement therapy,including gum and patches, for ...
Fire staff can blow the whistle on sexism
Apr 01, 2000 ... A NORTH-EAST fire brigade has become the first in Britain tointroduce an independent confidential telephone hotline to combatsexism, racism and bullying. Richard Bull, Chief Fire Officer for Tyne and Wear, said settingup the line was not a reaction to problems. But he said it ...
Elton show puts the squeeze on Jools
Apr 01, 2000 ... ROCK stars Jools Holland and Sir Elton John are going head-to-head in an outdoor concert clash this summer. The organiser of the former Squeeze star's first big North-Eastconcert has vowed to go ahead with the outdoor event, despite itclashing with Sir Elton's open air performance ...
Mother and baby are winning fight for life
Apr 01, 2000 ... A MOTHER who had to give birth to her tiny baby ten weeks earlyin order to save her own life, is now out of danger and isrecovering at home. Claire Haywood, 19, suffered from a rare blood disorder, whichthreatened to cause blood clots and damage vital organs, such as herheart and ...
Flying the flag for a new era
Apr 01, 2000 ... THE flag was lowered on a military era yesterday as the standardof Army's Second Division came down in York after 17 years. The cross keys emblem was lowered at Imphal Barracks for the lasttime to mark the departure of the divisional headquarters toEdinburgh. And in its place ...
Mystery death boy's funeral
Apr 01, 2000 ... THE funeral takes place on Monday of schoolboy Steven Dawson, afortnight after his death at a beauty spot near his home village. Steven, 15, was found lying in a water course off the DeernessValley Walkway, between Broompark and Ushaw Moor, near Durham, by aman cycling to ...
Star Wars video frenzy
Apr 01, 2000 ... SHOPS across the North-East are gearing up for a midnight frenzyas hundreds of Star Wars fans queue for the release on video of oneof history's most popular films. Star Wars - The Phantom Menace is set to be released at midnighttomorrow, at all the major Woolworths stores in the ...
U-turn urged on cabinet secrecy
Apr 01, 2000; ... A LABOUR-LED council is to scrap its secret cabinet meetingsfollowing a public outcry. On Monday, ruling Newcastle city councillors will be asked tolift the wraps off their cabinet room, six months after introducingthe controversial system which gave increased power to ten ...
Labour 'damage limitation' talk as polling day looms
Apr 01, 2000; ... Labour yesterday fired the starting gun in the campaign for nextmonth's local elections across the North by deliberately talking upTory and Liberal Democrat gains. A leaked document, written by Local Government Minister andDurham North-West MP Hilary Armstrong, predicted that ...
35% allowance increase
Apr 01, 2000 ... COUNCILLORS in Redcar and Cleveland awarded themselves a 35 percent a year allowance increase yesterday. Members of the authority's policy and resources sub-committeehave adopted a new payment scheme drawn up by an independent reviewpanel. Previously councillors received an ...
Warning after man grabs schoolgirl
Apr 01, 2000 ... YOUNGSTERS have been warned not to speak to strangers after twoincidents in which girls were approached by men. In two separate incidents, primary school girls were alarmed bymen near Ingleby Mill School, Ingleby Barwick, near Yarm, Stockton. In one incident, a girl was grabbed ...
So good, even Village people sang YMCA
Apr 01, 2000; ... SECURITY staff dressed as the Village People, a dress-wearingdentist and children spending their day in pyjamas all went intomaking yesterday's Go Casual for Mozambique a huge success. Last night, thousands of pounds had already been raised for themillions of people left homeless ...
Week in Westminster
Apr 01, 2000; ... FEAR stalks the corridors of the Home Office. Quivering withtrepidation, an as-yet-unmasked public servant sits guiltily at hisdesk. A leak inquiry is underway, ordered by the grand inquisitorhimself - Home Secretary Jack Straw. And it's all our fault. The Northern Echo had ...
Week gone by
Apr 01, 2000; ... CARTOONISTS LAST week the column ventured into the world ofpolitical cartoons, comparing the newspapers' attempts at capturingGordon Brown's likeness. This week we were shocked to spot what isbelieved to be the first sighting in a national cartoon of a well-known North-East MP. He looked ...
Services trio in the efficiency spotlight
Apr 01, 2000 ... THREE major providers of public services have submittedthemselves to a searching test of their efficiency andeffectiveness. A joint report has been published by Durham County Council,Durham Police Authority and the County Durham and Darlington Fireand Rescue Authority to profile ...