Archive

  • Seat belt parents sense a victory

    PARENTS in the north Cotswolds are well on their way to victory in their campaign for safer school buses. Gloucestershire County Council seems likely to accept their view that extra safety features and seat belts should be compulsory on school transport

  • Jail for robber under influence

    A ROBBER who said he was forced to hold up a garage by a violent 'boss' has been jailed for four years. Sean Hunt, aged 27, had maintained that he had only committed the robbery because he was in fear of Kenneth Trinder, aged 51, who, he said, had beaten

  • Fine for driver who killed biker

    A PENSIONER whose careless driving caused the death of a Cotswold motorcyclist has been fined £400 by magistrates in Cheltenham. Peter Weaving, aged 71, of Verdon Place, Barford, near Warwick, had driven out of a country lane onto the B4035 Chipping Campden

  • Going up in style

    East Glos 2, Bretforton 6 PROMOTION was assured after Bretforton's six-hit Severn League show at Cheltenham last Saturday. The club's penultimate league match of a successful campaign didn't always go to plan as East Glos took an early lead. That would

  • SHOW IS NEW CRISIS VICTIM

    THE prestigious Three Counties Show has been scrapped and replaced with a new event in August because of the foot-and-mouth crisis, organisers revealed today. It is the first time since the Second World War that the Three Counties, which attracts more

  • Don't kill pedigree cattle says society

    PEDIGREE cattle should be saved from slaughter unless they have foot-and-mouth disease, a cattle society says. Hereford Cattle Society says that herds should not be included in the cull to contain the outbreak. One herd of pedigree Hereford cattle has

  • Store will boost area

    A MEDIUM-sized supermarket could be accommodated in the St John's area of Worcester if Sainsbury's revised its plans, traders and residents heard. A supermarket on the scale of the chain's Lychgate branch could even help boost trade for the community.

  • Kidnapped aid worker is freed

    A HEREFORD aid worker kidnapped by gunmen in Somalia has arrived in Kenya after being freed with a fellow hostage. Bill Condie and colleague Roger Carter flew in to Nairobi on a United Nations plane last night after being held for 10 days. The pair, who

  • 11 drug arrests

    ELEVEN people have been arrested after a massive police drugs operation on homes across Worcester and Droitwich. The series of raids, which also saw detectives targeting properties in Redditch, took place on Wednesday. Seven people were expected to appear

  • Skate park plan for city youths

    A SKATEBOARD park could be created to cater for dozens of youths who ignore Worcester's by-laws. Two police officers are considering whether to ask businesses in the city for donations to pay for a park. At the moment skaters regularly head for the High

  • Dentist runs for cancer charity

    A Worcester dentist will trade surgical gloves for running shoes when she takes part in the London Marathon. Janette Wilcox will run the race for the Prostate Cancer Charity after a colleague at the Shrubbery Avenue practice at which she is an associate

  • Leisure sites on the move again

    VISITOR attractions in Wyre Forest have been boosted by news no new cases of foot and mouth disease have been reported in the district. The Government, keen to press home the message the countryside is open for business, has said it is "essential" the

  • Churches join battle for new town facilities

    CHURCHES are taking up the fight to save cultural and community aspects of the controversial Kidderminster town centre development. Wyre Forest District Council and developer Centros Miller are under fire for lack of recreational and cultural facilities

  • Harrier cleared of racial threat

    KIDDERMINSTER Harriers footballer Neil Mackenzie has been cleared of threatening and being racist to an Asian taxi driver. Midfielder Mackenzie was alleged to have been threatening and abusive to Abdul Malik, calling him racist names and saying he would

  • Church divide in gay-sex row

    A CHURCH has split over a gay-sex row vicar's plan to remove it from its parish. The congregation of St John the Baptist Church, Kidderminster, divided over the controversial issue at a "charged" meeting on Tuesday. Rev Charles Raven, the vicar who favours

  • Gawd blimey guv, it's that Eliza Doolittle

    IF you hear an unusual amount of cockney accents in Evesham or people humming about how much rain there is in Spain, never fear - it's just members of the operatic society tuning their tonsils for their next big production. Yes, the next treat on offer

  • Arts success for Vale pupils

    A VALE school orchestra struck a chord with judges to win a trophy in a music competition. Pershore High pupils clinched the English String Orchestra Cup in the 16 years and under class in the Worcester Competitive Arts Festival. Conducted by Nicola Raggett

  • Help to hit high notes

    YOUNG singers are wanted to help a Vale group hit the high notes. The Avon Singers are particularly in need of high sopranos in advance of a forthcoming programme of events but would be glad to hear from other voice parts too. Future concerts include

  • Durnin loves a battle

    TOP-SCORER John Durnin admitted his performance against Shrewsbury was helped by the needle of the occasion. Durnin appears to thrive in the heat of the battle and some of his exchanges with the opposition inspired him to a match-winning display. Fans

  • Alcester change fixture

    ALCESTER'S opponents on Saturday have changed. The Kings Coughton side were set to entertain Pershore in a friendly but now take on neighbours Woodrush in a friendly A fixture (ko 3pm).

  • Bottom three for Kingfishers

    REDDITCH RFC lost their final chance to escape the bottom three with a 13-7 defeat to second-placed Pershore on Saturday. The result leaves the Kingfishers' Midlands Four West South future hinging on a promotion/relegation picture which will not become

  • A mid-table end for club

    STOURPORT ended their National Hockey League Division One campaign in seventh place following their 4-2 defeat at Brooklands. Mike Rennison put the hosts on the scoreboard after just 27 seconds of play. With Chris Hovington adding two more, the writing

  • Super Suzie

    SWIMMING: Stourport star Suzie Bullivant won a total of 13 titles at the Gloucestershire County and Club Championships. Swimming for her club Gloucester, the 14-year-old King Charles I High School pupil proved superb in the breaststroke, winning the 15

  • Work of art to be unveiled

    A MAJOR new work of art commissioned by Areley Kings parish church will be unveiled on Sunday. Artist Hilary Baker and calligrapher John Burgin have joined forces to produce six panels each for the Trinity Chapel at St Bartholomew's Church. Areley Kings

  • Pulley pulls away

    ATHLETICS: Amazing Feet Running Club's oldest, and newest, members were in action at one of the few events to survive the foot and mouth crisis. Lindsay Pulley continued his excellent current form as he romped to a 10-year personal best in the Centurion

  • Plea for pianist to help tune in

    SCOUTS and Guides across Stourport are on the lookout for a nimble-fingered pianist to come to the rescue and ensure a musical goes ahead. About 80 youngsters from 15 Scouts, Guides, Cubs and Brownies groups in the Stourport district movement are due

  • Games postponed

    WORCESTERSHIRE GAMES: The foot and mouth crisis has caused the postponement of the Worcestershire Games until the autumn. The competition's executive committee took the decision and informed organisers from Wyre Forest, Bromsgrove, Wychavon and Redditch

  • Happy Harrison

    GOLF: Jan Harrison won the Ladies March Stableford at Habberley Golf Club with Edna Cox second. Men's Sunday Winter League: Dave McDermot and Lawson Bolton, Mark Edward and Chris Lewis 58 nett, Trevor Cox and Chris Patrick 60.

  • Following in footsteps of Miss Muffett

    YOUNGSTERS can enjoy a treasure-filled day when Witley Court stages its Easter festivities. Custodian Spencer Trickett with Little Miss Muffet in preparation for the treasure trail event. Picture - JO BLIZZARD They can take part in treasure hunts by solving

  • Semi-finals nearly set

    THREE of the four semi-finalists in the Kidderminster Table Tennis League Vice-Presidents Cup have now been decided. Harriers A had a walkover victory over Chainwire A, Jim's Gym B beat Harriers E and RB Iron beat Bewdley CC A. The other semi-finalists

  • Final station call

    TRIVIA: After their third consecutive win, The Station qualified for the semi-final of the Kidderminster Trivia Cup. Eagle's Nest's high scoring win over Queen's Head put them into contention as losers, with best average score. Results: Red Man Allstars

  • Maurice is leader

    CHESS: Kidderminster Chess Club secretary Maurice Bissell captained Worcestershire's first team to a 6.5-5.5 victory over Lincolnshire at Leicester, despite losing his match. At one stage, Worcestershire were down 2-0 but the team fought back. The only

  • Car firm announces jobs boost for town

    MORE than 100 jobs are to be created at a car interior manufacturer in Redditch. Magna Interior Systems, based at Ravensbank Business Park, North Moons Moat, has announced the jobs after major investment into the company. Over the past year the company

  • Pooches in the swim!

    MANY people would love their own indoor heated swimming pool. And one Hopwood couple have designed and built their own - but it's just for dogs. Lynda and Kelvin Moore, of Birmingham Road, originally created the swimming pool for their German shepherd

  • Trial on stolen prestige cars

    CHARGES against a Stourport man of dishonestly handling three high-value vehicles, knowing they had been stolen, have been sent by Kidderminster magistrates for crown court trial. Richard Whitmore, 37, of Cheviot Close, is accused of receiving two Range

  • Probation for furniture thief

    A burglar who stripped his neighbour's home of furniture has been put on probation for 12 months. John Pugh broke into Gavin Brown's Kidderminster flat while he was away, Worcester Crown Court heard. Police looked through Pugh's letterbox in Witley Close

  • Hunt is on for statues

    TWO dog statues worth £2,000 have been stolen from the garden of a house in Norchard. The life-size bronze greyhound statues were taken from the rear of the property and are very heavy. Kidderminster Police said the owner was given the statues as a gift

  • Guilty of racist abuse in shop

    A MAN who underwent a personality change after a serious assault racially abused the owners of a Kidderminster fish and chip shop for 15 minutes, a court heard. Eric Shepherd made suggestive remarks after buying a portion of chicken, then began complaining

  • Fallout from the fires

    RECENTLY from daybreak to evening my house and garden were pervaded by the smell of burnt meat. My conservatory roof was spotted with particles which eventually developed mould rings. I suspected not atomic reactor explosion fallout, not volcanic eruption

  • GOOD SAMARITAN

    I WISH to thank the gentleman who stopped his vehicle on the Worcester Road on Monday, February 26 after seeing me fall and break my arm at about 10.15am. He used his mobile phone to call an ambulance and stayed with me until they came to take me to hospital

  • Club ban after glass attack

    A TWENTY-ONE-year-old Kidderminster woman convicted of a glass attack has been banned from all nightclubs by a judge before she is sentenced. Rachel Pooler, of Grasmere Close, was cleared at Worcester Crown Court of wounding Peter Whittingham with intent

  • Thoughts on police by a village taxpayer

    I AM currently reeling from the punitive increases in the current council tax bill, and in particular, am incensed for having to pay for a non-existing 'policing' in this village! Imagine therefore, my pleasure at reading in the Journal of the successful

  • Correct the flow of words on flood plan

    WE feel we must point out an inaccuracy in an article which appeared in last week's Journal regarding flood alleviation work in Wychavon. This article states that flood work in some areas had been completed, when this is not necessarily the case. The

  • FAMILY RESEARCH

    I AM researching my family and would like to get in touch with the family of the late Gladys Amelia Loveridge. She was married to George Loveridge, who was a hairdresser, and they lived in Mill Street, Kidderminster. They had four children - Kenneth,

  • Re-writing history to avoid red faces

    MARY Ashlee (Letters Page, March 22), like many a Labour sympathiser, seeks to spare her party's blushes by rewriting history. She well knows that, with the Conservatives, £42 million was invested in Kidderminster Hospital. Under hard Labour, it has been

  • Man faces bat attack charge

    A MAN was attacked with a baseball bat after being chased along a Stourport street in the early hours, Worcester Crown Court was told. Richard Kilgour was struck on the ribs, head and leg and needed hospital treatment. Aaron Weavers, 21, of Bullus Road

  • Macca makes up for own goal woe

    SATURDAY must have been the closest that Hinckley have come to losing an unbeaten home record stretching back 48 matches, writes Mervyn Collins. Stuart Payne's stoppage time strike had goal written all over it until Wayne Starkey's right hand appeared

  • On line to help victims of crime

    PUBLIC opinion is sought on a forum to improve criminal justice. Agencies have united to address issues affecting crime victims and witnesses in court proceedings. The 10 organisations aim for greater public understanding of their roles and to promote

  • Subs sink visitors as juniors shine

    Evesham Utd 4, Malvern Town 0 ANOTHER game will have to be tagged on to United's busy schedule after Tuesday's Worcester Royal Infirmary Cup defeat of Malvern. A rich mixture of youth and experience accounted for the Banks's Brewery League side but it

  • Time to stop talking and start building

    I REFER to an article on the Stourport relief road, in the Shuttle on March 29. Why should businessmen have the right to say if there should be a relief road for Stourport? The questionnaire filled in by them should be sent to every household in Stourport

  • Junior round-up

    Norton Rgrs U-13 3, Newtown 1 SUNDAY'S replay was worthy of the League Cup final itself as the league's two unbeaten sides crossed swords. Norton, sporting a new strip and drill tops donated by Bullrus gained revenge for a penalty shoot-out defeat 12

  • Farmers must take blame for bad practices

    REGARDING foot and mouth disease and sympathy for farmers - well, they haven't got mine. Foot and mouth disease is not a public health risk, no human has ever died from it, neither is it about animal welfare - they don't die of it. So what is it all about

  • Struggling Sports shake off league blues to reach final

    SHIPSTON Sports defied their position at the bottom of Division Three to reach the semi-final of the Black and White Garages Bluck Cup at the expense of Ashton. Goals from Averis, Gainsley and Faulkner set up an unlikely win, with Ashton replying through

  • Six-point blow for Bret leaves Shipston smiling

    THE resignation of Bretforton Old Boys from the Stratford Alliance has meant grave consequences for the village's Sports side. The reigning Journal Premier Division champions were docked six points in the revised standings and their hopes of retaining

  • United at the double

    Crown & Anchor 1 Bishampton 6 BISHAMPTON recovered from being a goal down inside two minutes to hit back six times and record their second comfortable victory over the Crown this season. On a very large and uneven pitch the visitors were rocked in

  • Why risk more suffering?

    I FIND it difficult to believe that anyone would want to risk causing more misery and loss of animals by opening up public footpaths alongside farmland (Julia Leedham-Green, Letters, March 22). What is a path closure but a minor irritation when compared

  • Trench war

    HEAVY equipment moved on to the former Throckmorton airfield this week to begin digging trenches for the grim task of the disposal of thousands of farm animals. Sheep and pigs are to be buried and cattle incinerated there. The animals are from farms alongside

  • Councillors back pub's cheeky plan

    EVESHAM town councillors are backing plans for cheeky entertainment at the Railway Hotel in Evesham. In an effort to pull in the crowds, landlord Bill Preston wants to entertain the punters with scantily dressed men or women dancing in his premises from

  • Another three points in the bag for super Swifts

    HAT-TRICK hero Lee Booth began the goal-rush against Halesowen Harriers with their 6-1 victory consolidating Stourport Swifts' late-season title challenge. Adrian Cooper provided a 29th minute cross for the leading scorer to add to his tally with a first

  • Vandalism puts play site under threat

    RECURRING vandalism in Elmley Castle has reached new depths with the ransacking of a picnic area, the destruction of a fence and car windows being smashed, all on the same night. These latest attacks, on the fence surrounding the children's play area

  • Spring is sprung!

    SPRING has sprung and the lawns of Batsford Arboretum are covered in a golden carpet of daffodils, all ready for Sunday, designated Daffodil Sunday. Warmer weather in recent days has brought the grounds of the arboretum near Moreton to their full glory

  • Harriers lead league table

    Kidderminster Harriers Ladies stay top of the West Midlands Premier League after beating Atherstone United 5-0. Their first goal came in the 11th minute when Lynsey Pollard fired a shot into the bottom left-hand corner, giving the keeper no chance. Though

  • Complaints lead to fine for firm

    COMPLAINTS about a Twister blender supplied by Philips led to the company being fined £1,500 with £18,500 costs by magistrates at Evesham on Monday. The company, Philips Electronics UK Ltd, of The Philips Centre, London Road, Croydon, pleaded guilty to

  • Prolific Phillips inspires village

    FOUR goals from James Phillips and a Russell Godfrey hat-trick put Cookley Boys U-15s well on the way to an 8-1 victory over County Sports in Stourport and District Boys League. U-17s leaders, Mostyn Rangers, notched up 15 with no reply at bottom-of-the-table

  • Farmer wins planning row

    AN ORGANIC farmer from the Vale of Evesham has won an appeal to allow a barn on his land, but has been told he can't have a mobile home there. Appeals were lodged with the Secretary of State at the Department of the Environment by I T Miles when Wychavon

  • Surprise for champions

    BOTH divisional winners went out in the first round of the Kidderminster Six-a-side Soccer League Cup. Mister Men gave a classy display to beat Division One champions Horsefair 3-0. And Woodthorpe Wanderers grabbed a winner in the last seconds of their

  • Help to brighten up a child's day

    THE man behind the Christmas shoebox campaign is launching an appeal to brighten up Eastern European children's summer holidays. Bob James, who co-ordinates the Operation Christmas Child appeal for Worcestershire and the neighbouring counties on behalf

  • Turning the spotlight on the firemen

    IT wasn't exactly London's Burning, but two sixth formers put the town's fire brigade under the spotlight when it became the subject of a docu-soap. The girls, Claire Stephens and Carrie Warren, both 18, from Evesham High School, devised and produced

  • Green-fingered guest visits village school

    CHILDREN from a village near Droitwich Spa donned their wellies for a day of gardening last Monday. Hanbury First School pupils welcomed horticulturalist Mr Rotavator to class. He spent a day with the 90 students, teaching them about planting and the

  • KCs thump leaders in shock of the day

    MIDLANDS Three West (North) champions Shrewsbury were brought down to earth by impressive Kidderminster Carolians on Saturday. KCs won 26-6 and created a bit of history with both the town's football and rugby clubs beating the Shropshire opposition on

  • Barton sounds cup tie warning

    WORCESTER City manager John Barton is warning against over-confidence ahead of to-night's Worcestershire FA Senior Cup semi-final replay against Evesham United at St George's Lane (7.45). City will be firm favourites to book a two-legged final against

  • Worcester duo eye French success

    WORCESTER players Joanne Yapp and Nicky Crawford will be aiming to lift the Six Nations Women's Championship crown this weekend when they play for England against France. England are currently leading the Six Nations Championship and a win over France

  • On safari - by bus

    WEST Midland Safari Park took another step towards normality yesterday when it re-opened its animal reserve. The park, which was at risk of losing tens of thousands of pounds due to the foot and mouth epidemic, opened its gates several weeks late at the

  • Hard-hit arboretum lays off 18 staff

    ONE of Wyre Forest's premier tourist attractions has been losing a "small fortune" as it struggles to come to terms with the effects of the foot and mouth crisis. Bodenham Arboretum, Wolverley - which should have been opening seven days a week starting

  • Community call for prizes

    GROUPS across the district have been given a last call to enter a county contest to mark efforts in the community. Entries to the Community Pride Competition 2001, which was won last year by villagers in Cookley, must be in by April 30. The Cookley 2000

  • Centre stages day of action

    SCORES of wannabe soldiers were out in force when Kidderm-inster's Territorial Army staged an open day at the weekend. Kidderminster's TA unit, B Company of the Worcestershire Regiment, had army vehicles from tanks to motorbikes on display during Saturday's

  • Review time for books

    BUDDING book reviewers are being urged to visit Kidderminster Library to take part in a national competition with a first prize of £30,000. The Orange Prize for Fiction, which got underway on Monday and runs until June 30, involves readers submitting

  • Students building artistic bridges

    A RUN-DOWN Kidderminster bridge on a main road into the town is getting a facelift thanks to imaginative college students. Two designs by art students at Kidderminster College have been chosen to revamp the railway bridge on Comberton Hill after a campaign

  • From the archives

    100 years ago, March 30, 1901 Bengeworth: Henry Masters, a market gardener from Bengeworth, was charged with driving a horse and trap with no light at Hampton on Thursday. PC Merritt proved the case and the defendant was fined 5s, including costs. 75

  • Hospital row is cut from agenda

    DOUBT has been cast on a planned public meeting of Wyre Forest's prospective parliamentary candidates following a row over the health debate. Carpet Weavers' Union general secretary Gordon Rudd had planned a meeting at Kidderminster Town Hall on April

  • John wants a runaway triumph...

    A REDDITCH pharmacist is prescribing himself a healthy dose of exercise as he prepares for the London Marathon in aid of a cancer charity, writes Julian Seva. John Turner, 57, has decided to go the extra mile for The Prostate Cancer Charity after he had

  • Carnival to be best yet

    PREPARATIONS are underway for this year's Bewdley Carnival and organisers are appealing for new members to step forward and help make the event in June the best yet. Attractions already lined-up for carnival day on June 9 include clowns, a funfair, stalls

  • Group's action plan

    AN action group has been set up to press for solutions to traffic problems in Wribbenhall where a new estate is being built. About 50 people attended a meeting at the Shaw Hedge Road Community Centre on Tuesday to discuss disruption and traffic chaos

  • 5/4/01 - Skeggs to stay on at Sixways

    WORCESTER Rugby Club chairman Cecil Duckworth has given Adrian Skeggs a vote of confidence by insisting the Australian will stay on as coach. Despite it looking increasingly unlikely that Worcester will gain promotion to the Zurich Premiership after Sunday's

  • Board aid

    LOCAL clubs affiliated to the Gloucestershire Cricket Board can take advantage of a free fixture exchange facility this summer. Secretaries are asked to ring Derek Howell on 01452 414010 with any blank dates.

  • Get set for hot summer season

    CHIPPING Norton's theatre, is planning to get the summer off to a hotstart with its new season. It kicks off with Chipping Norton School's production of Brecht's The Caucasian Chalk Circle on April 26 and takes in such diverse productions as Not the National

  • New look for RSC theatre

    THERE is guaranteed to be one talking point above any other this summer season at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre and that is the magnificent new stage space, which has brought the tired auditorium back to life. Theatre designer Alison Chitty has doubled

  • 5/4/01 - Building for the future must be priority

    SUNDAY was undoubtedly a very depressing day for all involved in Worcester Rugby Club but we all have to start looking forward again. We have to hold our hands up and admit we were beaten by a better team on the day and if Leeds go on to win the title

  • It's a fiasco

    VILLAGERS at Wyre Piddle are furious at not being informed about the plans for Throckmorton and the effects it will have on the area. They have won a partial victory over traffic movements, however. Loaded lorries will go through the village to the airfield

  • Collections put on display

    PEOPLE'S passions for collecting all sorts of weird and wonderful items are plain to see in a new exhibition. The People's Show at the Cotswold Heritage Centre in Northleach displays some of the fascinating collections gathered together by people from

  • Out and About

    New grants WORCESTERSHIRE County Council's Art Service has announced the names of the successful arts projects in Pershore that will benefit from start up grants, set up to encourage community and voluntary groups to launch arts projects. Successful applicants

  • Volunteers step forward after appeal for helpers

    NEARLY a dozen people have come forward to help eye patients at Kidderminster Hospital after an appeal in the Shuttle/Times and News. The Worcestershire Association for the Blind has established an information desk for eye patients after receiving funding

  • Staff levels drop despite promises

    HOSPITAL chiefs have reneged on promises to keep a minimum number of staff at a Worcester hospital's accident and emergency department, claims a Kidderminster woman. Sam Goodman, whose mother died last October following a 16-hour trolley wait in A&

  • Blockley

    HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY: The speaker at the March meeting was the photographer, Denis Boxall who gave some very useful hints and suggestions on Horticultural Photography. The next event will be the Annual Spring Show on April 21 at 2.30pm in St Georges

  • Charlton

    PARISH COUNCIL: News from the meeting held on March 13: Flood Alleviation Measures: The parish council is still concerned that the works undertaken on The Green and under Canada Road bridge by Wychavon DC in November have not solved the flooding problem

  • Eckington

    PRIZE BINGO: A prize bingo evening was held at the village hall on March 27 to raise funds for the Worcester Scanner Appeal for the hospital. Organised by Mrs D Hickmott and Mrs C Norton, the caller, Mr A Donnelly, welcomed everyone and bingo prize winners

  • Mickleton

    MICKLETON SOCIETY: Minutes and reports summarised the events of the last year at the AGM, the officers were re-elected and the chairman, John Atherton, expressed his warm thanks to the outgoing committee members for their considerable work over the last

  • Wellesbourne

    50th ANNIVERSARY SERVICE: An ecumenical service to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the combining of Wellesbourne Mountford, Wellesbourne Hastings and Walton into one parish was held at St Peter's Church, Wellesbourne last Sunday. Coun Bill McCarthy,

  • Theatre

    Alexandra, Birmingham - Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel Friday. Bee Gees Gold Saturday. Doctor Doolittle Tuesday until April 28. Rep, Birmingham - Having A Ball until April 7. Fourteen Songs, Two Weddings and A Funeral Tuesday until April 21. Grand,

  • Hooray for Henry's after repeat triumph

    HAVING lifted the Midland Counties State Schools Under-14 Cup in its inaugural year in 1997, Prince Henry's High School repeated the feat at Sixways last week. A handful of impressive performances saw the Evesham school earn a place in the final and a

  • Strugglers sparkle as champagne goes flat!

    Evesham 8pts, Stratford 7 EVESHAM pulled off probably their biggest win since a victory over Shrewsbury three seasons by beating local rivals and champions of Midlands West Three (South) Stratford last Saturday. Stratford had earlier in the season beaten

  • Sort out your life with expert help

    AN American idea to help people sort out their lives is taking off in Wyre Forest. "Tidy-minded" Ann Meisner has taken a leaf out of her Detroit-based mother-in-law's book to set up ABClutterbuster (Attics, Boxrooms and Cupboards) a firm which aims to

  • Snell kicks a winner

    Redditch II 10, Pershore II 13 PLAYING with just 13 men, a makeshift pack and scrum half, Pershore didn't expect to take a lot away from the game. Luckily, a combination of factors including some outstanding defence, opportunistic scoring and most importantly

  • Visitors claim a prize scalp

    Bridgnorth IV 10, Evesham IV 12pts A PRIZE scalp for Evesham on Saturday as Bridgnorth head the fourth team merit table in Shropshire and had only been beaten three times in the season. The home side, playing with the sun and a stiff wind behind them,

  • Thompson tops in the sun

    Evesham and District Disabled AC and Partnership's EIGHT members turned out for a fifth round Winter League match fished at Long Marston in beautiful sunshine. Roy Thompson was the winner with a fine catch of 10.0.0, ahead of Frank Lake (7.9.8) and first

  • Don't be sucked dry

    IN response to George Cowley's letter (You Say, March 29) about and "supping with the Devil" rather than vote Conservative, I would rather sup with the Devil that be sucked dry by four more years of this Vampire Government. COUN STEPHEN CLEE, Worcestershire

  • Views are gagged

    6 THE Commission for Racial Equality represents just nine per cent of the population in this area. Yet nationally (Evening News, March 28), it has obtained a pledge from major political parties not to play "the race card" in any election campaign. Does

  • Children's safety

    6 A SPECIFIC question was tabled at the full council meeting at the Guildhall concerning the safety of all the users of the Scout Hut in Swanpool Walk, St John's. All the parents of the Rainbows, Brownies and Guides will be pleased to know that if Sainsbury's

  • Refusal for pump site plan

    STRATFORD District Council has turned down a housing development planned for the Bridge End Service Station in Oversley Green - but a ward councillor believes there may still be a positive outcome. One of the reasons for refusal was the site should be

  • Bid to boost sixth form places

    A SUCCESSFUL bid for hundreds of thousands of pounds to the Department for Education and Employment may open up new opportunities for additional sixth form students at Alcester Grammar School. Last year the school was informed it had succeeded in its

  • Dancers ready to dazzle

    FOUR young girls from Alcester will be bringing a taste of India to Warwick at the weekend as they take part in an event at the Arts Centre. Nileena Premchand, 13, who attends Alcester Grammar School, her eight-year old twin sisters Melissa and Monisha

  • From our archives

    April 4, 1980 TEN days after a £250,000 blaze, forensic experts were still sifting through the burnt-out shell of an Alcester bus and coach garage in an attempt to find the cause. Fire gutted Regent Motorways' Station Road depot last weekend, destroying

  • Charity helps to beat staff stress

    A BIDFORD charity which provides residential care for adults with learning disabilities has proved it's second time lucky after securing thousands of pounds from the Work-Life Balance Challenge, writes Helen Clarke. The Home Farm Trust, in Arden Vale,

  • Boy band set to revive glory days

    A BOY band from Kidderminster are hoping to revive the "glory days" of their predecessors when they take centre stage in the town again. Ready to take centre stage - AWOL members Richard Turvey, Simon Boast, Paul Fuszardi and TJ. One of the members of

  • Return to the time of flower power

    LED Zeppelin fans in Wyre Forest have once again been invited to travel back in time to the days of flower power, flares and Kevin Keegan perms. Top tribute band Fred Zeppelin will be in Stourport next Thursday - April 12 - as part of a hectic schedule

  • Society honours conductor

    BEWDLEY Choral Society's spring concert will be dedicated to their longest serving conductor, who died last year. John Phillips was with the society from 1956, when he joined while director of music at King Charles I High School, until 1997. He died in

  • School delivers a smart lesson

    A "BRILLIANT" scheme to reintegrate disruptive pupils has been welcomed by Wyre Forest MP David Lock. He has officially opened a new learning support unit at Birchen Coppice Middle School. MP David Lock helps launch the learning unit with Stuart Johnstone

  • Cup dispute hits Church

    ALVECHURCH'S marathon run-in has been further complicated by Challenge Cup controversy. Church were set to visit Alveston in the quarter final tomorrow night after knocking high-fliers Romulus out 2-0 at the weekend. But the competition has been held

  • Documents that hold the tale of family home

    ANYONE with an interest in the olden days of the Vale east of Evesham will be keen to see a new book will launched this weekend. Written by Mr Lloyd Edwards, the book is about a former family home in Cleeve Prior, thanks to someone's careful hoarding

  • Torys hit back over criticism

    A SENIOR Stratford District Councillor dismissed the two latest furious onslaughts against the Conservative administration, saying no improper action had been taken. Coun Chris Saint said comments made by Lib Dem councillor Peter Moorse about a budget

  • Molby to face charge

    JAN Molby will deny a charge of bringing the game into disrepute at an FA hearing later this month - but he has reason to be happy with on-field events. Kidderminster Harriers notched their first win in nine games at the weekend, beating Shrewsbury 3-

  • Reeves books final place

    Harriers are through to the Worcestershire Senior Urn final on Tuesday night after two Matt Reeves goals gave a youthful line-up a 2-0 win at Studley BKL. The club are taking a look at Leicester City defenders Tim McCann and Tommy Goodwin, both 21. Midfielder

  • Pretty in pink

    MANY Harriers fans fell for an April Fool's Day prank on Sunday, according to the club. Their official website jokingly revealed Harriers would be sporting a new pink strip next season. And apparently Aggborough was inundated with inquiries from foxed

  • Reds boost charities

    Harriers were not the only winners when they met local rivals Shrewsbury on Saturday. Three charities each went home £2,540 richer after being nominated by Harriers for a share of the profits from this season's Charity Shield game between Manchester United

  • Easter football fun

    Harriers Community Scheme has a series of soccer courses for children over the Easter holidays. The two-day sessions will focus on scoring and saving goals with competitions, prizes and visits from Harriers players. They will run from 10am until 3pm each

  • Local contingent fly out for world championships

    THE British team for the World Youth Fencing Championships leaves for Gdansk, Poland, home of the Solidarity Movement, from Gatwick Airport tomorrow. Six sabre fencers from the region are in the team this year, two fencing for Ireland and four for Great

  • Double delight for unbeaten champions

    WYRE Piddle Elite went into the last week of the season with two matches remaining and needing to win both to take the Evesham and District Association Division One title. In the first one against clubmates Livewyres, Mark Green and Matt Hartwell both

  • On the Water

    FOLLOWING three weeks of postponed sailing because of the high state of the river, last Sunday saw a good crowd gather on the Avon at the Common Road club. With two races on the day, both with a start upstream towards the railway bridge, competition was

  • Webbs the venue

    IN warm, sunny conditions around 25 Evesham Whe-elers'members set off for Webbs of Wychbold. The A run took a route through Offenham, Salford Priors, Bidford, Alcester, Cookhill, Feckenham and on through the lanes to Wych-bold at a blistering pace. Meanwhile

  • Small firm sees some big changes

    A SMALL business in a Worcestershire village has proved that Investors In People is not just for big companies. Jotika (Midlands) Software Ltd, in Inkberrow, employs just seven staff. Company directors decided to apply for the status after visiting one

  • Global efficiency

    AN initiative targeted at businesses in Worcester has been launched by leading global management consultancy McKinsey & Company. The Stratford-upon-Avon-based firm works alongside the world's largest companies with the aim of improving both their

  • Countdown for new school starts

    THE countdown has begun in Bidford to start building the village's new £2.6million school. Signs are expected to go up this week for a new school building at Bidford-on-Avon CofE Primary School. The building will incorporate a new nursery school, a village

  • MP's hospital transport fears

    RULES governing Gloucestershire's hospital transport scheme have been heavily criticised in a parliamentary debate. Cotswold MP Geoffrey Clifton-Brown has been so concerned by a series of cases he has come across of elderly people being denied transport

  • June election as county poll is delayed

    TAXPAYERS will not have to foot the bill for the postponement of the Worcestershire County Council election on May 3. Local authorities will be compensated for expenses on reorganising the election which will now take place on June 7. The county election

  • Councillor suspended amid fresh mystery allegations

    MYSTERY surrounds the future of under-fire Wyre Forest district councillor Rachel Lewis following her suspension from Health Concern. Council chairman and group leader John Gordon confirmed Mrs Lewis, at the centre of a storm over her allocation of a

  • 5/4/01 - Bromsgrove wait on Ball fitness bid

    DEAN Ball, the former Moseley, Worcester and Stourbridge hooker, will have a fitness test before Bromsgrove finalise their side for the North Midlands Cup semi-final against Old Halesonians at Wassell Grove on Sunday (3pm). Ball, who rejoined his first

  • Defeat to finish

    Evesham Ladies 3, Cresconians 5 EVESHAM found their last game more of a challenge than they expected. Cresconians took an early lead but Evesham fought back and a good cross resulted in Becky Woods scoring. Cresconians struck two further goals only for

  • Indecent attack on girl, aged 13, in alleyway

    AN attacker who indecently assaulted a 13-year-old girl as she walked through St John's in broad daylight was being hunted by police today. He pounced on his terrified victim in Meco Alley at around 8.30am yesterday. She was unable to describe her attacker

  • Anguish of OAP fortune 'winner'

    A WORCESTER pensioner has sat by his letterbox for a month after being promised almost half-a-million pounds by a "bogus" Canadian company. Neville Cook sent off a £20 "processing fee" to the Sweepstake Advisory Network when he heard he had won £421,780

  • Lifeline for rescued pets

    AN animal rescue shelter has opened its doors to the county's stray and unwanted animals after 18 years of planning and hard work. The Worcestershire Animal Rescue Shelter at Deblin's Green, near Malvern, will initially only be able to take in dogs but

  • Crunch time on burner

    WYRE Forest people have been urged to turn out in their hundreds for the crunch meeting in the fight to prevent a giant waste incinerator being built in Kidderminster. The rallying call comes on the eve of Monday's unprecedented meeting of county planners

  • Politics is cast aside at demo

    POLITICAL allegiances were cast aside as more than 100 protesters joined forces in a final bid to prevent the building of the Kidderminster incinerator. Wyre Forest prospective parliamentary candidates Dr Richard Taylor (Health Concern) and Mark Simpson

  • Football fan on a losing streak

    WAS it a flash of inspiration that helped Kidderminster Harriers to a first win in nine Division Three games on Saturday? Aggborough fans were served up some unscheduled entertainment when a streaker cavorted naked around the pitch early in the second

  • About turn for forum on bypass

    A MAJOR town group has made a dramatic U-turn to back the controversial Stourport Relief Road - but, if approved, it will not be built until 2006 at the earliest. Stourport Town Centre Forum, which revealed in November it was likely to oppose its construction

  • Safety action on death road

    TRAFFIC-calming measures on the A449 at Hartlebury are planned after the death of teenager Michelle Bolton. The scene of the crash on the Kidderminster-Worcester road. The 16-year-old schoolgirl, of Waresley Park, died after being struck by a car as she

  • Dog owner's 10-year ban

    A WOMAN has been banned from keeping dogs for 10 years after three of more than 50 found in her Kidderminster home had to be put down. Kidderminster magistrates told Susan Carter, 48, she had been very close to a jail sentence after admitting six charges

  • Support pours in for Danny, 17

    A MOTHER has put out a "desperate plea" for support while her son waits for an operation to enable him to give up his wheelchair. Carol McGrath of Habberley, Kidderminster, is still waiting for an appointment with an NHS specialist and is struggling to

  • Boys are back

    AFTER an eight-year break the boys from Dublin are back in Cheltenham. The Hothouse Flowers are due to appear at Cheltenham Town Hall on April 17, at 8pm. The highly triumphant band has played sell-out shows in the UK and abroad and supported the Rolling

  • Painting picture of farming's future

    THE picture on this morning's Front Page will upset some of you. We apologise if that's the case, but we believe there's no more appropriate way to illustrate why the Evening News, and its Berrow's Journal and Malvern Gazette sister weeklies, are backing

  • What's On

    THURSDAY: Birmingham: Ronnie Scott's - I Am Kloot until Saturday. Worcester: Huntingdon Hall - Cofa. Brierley Hill: Robin R'n'B - Ken Hensley & John Lawton Band. Wolverhampton: Robin R'n'B2 - Ka'Enobi. FRIDAY: Lichfield: Guildhall - Daniel Smith Blues

  • A big lift for judo aces

    JUNIORS Kate Walker and Emmy Kimberley put in career best displays for Samurai Judo Club at the tough Midlands U-18s Open Championships. The event is used for British junior squad selection and the Wyre Forest duo caught the eye by beating four of its

  • Exiles on top

    Redditch Exiles 39 Pershore 3rds 12 THE boys in pink turned in one of their better performances with a convincing win over experienced opposition. The plaudits go to winger Wayne Darlo who ran in the last five tries of Redditch's seven. Each of them was

  • Thirds finish on big high

    Kidderminster Boundary's thirds had a busy weekend playing games on Saturday and Sunday. Fine victories over county rivals Bromsgrove and against Finchfield helped them finish fifth in their table. Kidderminster 3rds 8 Bromsgrove 2 The home side totally

  • Young hero is remembered

    THE story of a teenager from Stourport who became a motorbike despatch rider in the First World War will feature in a new book. Reginald Milburne Bell left Titton Hill Farm at the age of 17 and spent the war years on the Western Front, based near La Bassee

  • Two teams are up for promotion

    BOTH first and fourth teams at Kidderminster Boundary Hockey Club are sure of promotion in second place. The firsts finished runners-up after rivals Sikh Union won their last game in DTZ League Midlands Two. And so did the fourths after defeat to Warwick

  • Another gold for Adam

    ADAM Cotgrave won his fifth gold medal at the last event in the Worcester County Championships. There were 20 boys and 25 girls from Wyre Forest Swimming Club competing. Between them, they won five gold medals, seven silver and six bronze plus a further

  • Stuart cooks-up snow success

    A FORMER Stourport High School student who initially joined the army as a chef has completed a tough survival exercise in the wilds of the Canadian Rockies. Stuart Brown, 18, who joined the army in 1999, has taken part in Exercise Snowshoe with the 1st

  • Medals galore

    SWIMMING: Talented Kidderminster swimmer Andy Lowe improved on his fine win in the 100-metre butterfly final at the Worcester County Championships held throughout March. Lowe went on to win the finals in the 200m freestyle and the 100m backstroke in a

  • Tight at the top

    SNOOKER: The top three teams in the Dot Comm Wednesday Snooker League are only separated by one point. St John's C put themselves firmly in the frame with a 5-0 victory over St John's A which puts them level with St George's A in second place behind British

  • Fun on the court

    TENNIS: Bewdley Tennis Club are holding a Head fun day next Tuesday for children and adults. Juniors aged up to 16 are welcome from 2pm, while the older players can head along from 3pm. Non-members can take part with fun games and competitions promised

  • Hotel's history mystery

    THE search is on for information about the history of a Victorian hotel in Mount Pleasant. Little is known about the Montville Hotel but owners Andrew and Joanna Hodges are keen to contact people who can fill in the missing gaps in what appears to be

  • Giving off right signals

    THE Territorial Army rolled into town on Saturday to hold a recruitment day in the Kingfisher Centre.

  • Thief struck outside shop

    A BOY watched in despair as a thief rode off on his bike which he had taken from behind his back moments earlier. The 14-year-old boy was waiting outside a Kidderminster shop for a friend when the thief struck. The boy had put his bike on the ground for

  • £1,000 raid on home

    THIEVES stole more than £1,000 of electrical equipment and cash from a house in Bewdley. A hi-fi, CD player, television and video were among £1,000 of goods and £80 cash stolen from the house in Castle Lane.

  • Playing fields are not the place for dogs

    WHAT a nerve. How dare Jane Glazebrook (Shuttle, March 29) suggest Cookley playing fields as a safe area for dog exercising? What makes her think we want dogs from here, there and everywhere messing up our fields? A few weeks ago I had reason to telephone

  • Numbers row in club trial

    MYSTERY surrounds whether around 700 people crowded into a Kidderminster nightclub only licensed to hold 500. Police watched from a secret location as revellers entered Mirage, which had already been fined £10,000 for overcrowding after twice breaching

  • Passing buck on pothole misery

    IN February my wife had the misfortune to hit a pothole while driving in Stakenbridge Lane, Hagley. The wheel was badly damaged, the tyre ripped and there was damage to the car. On telephoning Bromsgrove council there seemed no surprise, as a number of

  • Threats to PC in shop

    A POLICE officer buying a takeaway supper was greeted by cries of "pig" and threats of violence in the shop, magistrates have heard. A woman shouted obscene abuse and her husband ripped open his shirt and offered to fight PC James Crowther, said Kiernan

  • Millennium mistake

    I had to comment on the glaring mistake in your article about the pending closure of Tarry's in Journal (March 29). Sorry as I am (I, for one, shall miss them), to say that they have "seen the dawn of two millennia" is a gross exaggeration. To have done

  • Civil background on Mother's Day origin

    WHO invented Mothers' day asks Arthur Robinson of Harvington? (Evesham Journal, March 29). I have it on good authority that Mothers' Day is an American custom, dating back to the after math of the American Civil War. This was at a time when mothers from

  • Dismal results of an enhancement project

    I INVITE Pershore folk to take a stroll some time along the banks of the drainage channel that crosses King George's field on its way to the river. There they will see the dismal result of one more act of 'enhancement'. Last year, a serviceable path on

  • 'Crimebusting' scheme launch

    A £10,000 project aims to cut burglary in a deprived area of Kidderminster which suffers more than twice the national average of the crime. The Kidderminster Anti-Burglary Scheme, which also aims to tackle social isolation in Grasmere Close and Windsor

  • Living like a lord while labouring

    I WAS very interested to read the article in your Journal of March 22 about Dumbleton Hall but I would like to point out the fact that another bit of its history was left out. In 1943 it was opened as a Womans Land Army hostel and continued until the

  • Not so enraptured by reports on raptors

    HAVING never replied to an article or letter in a normally much enjoyed local paper, it has taken me two or three weeks to decide that a reply is necessary with reference to Mark Turner's (Ashton-under-Hill) report on birds of prey. I am most disappointed

  • Credit cards stolen from teacher

    CREDIT cards were stolen from a teacher who was giving special help to backward pupils, magistrates have heard. The cards were in a wallet, in a jacket hanging on a chair, prosecutor Liz Tweed told a Kidderminster youth court. The wallet vanished in the

  • Why we must stop the cull

    Re: the longer term damage the current mass slaughter of animals and their burial will have on the environment. Following the killing, the animals are sprayed with chemicals (100s of gallons) before being buried in the ground. The heavy rainfall we have

  • Year-on-year rises are well above inflation

    I HAVE read, with interest, the recent council publications "NewsWyre" and "Words into Action". However do we get value for money? Council Tax for my house has increased by the following: 1995-96 (4 per cent), 96-97 (5.8 per cent), 97-98 (6.1 per cent

  • Town miss out in thriller

    Massey Ferguson 5, Pershore Town 4 PERSHORE Town's poor recent run continued when they lost out after a nine-goal thriller at Massey Ferguson in Saturday's Midland Combination Premier Division clash. Massey went ahead after just 90 seconds when an attempted

  • Youngsters bag a bag!

    THE players of Evesham United Juniors Under-9ss will be kicking-off the rest of their football career in style thanks to a Big Blue Bag full of football equipment, donated by the Co-operative Insurance Society. Manchester-based CIS, is running a Big Blue

  • Reeves strikes twice as semi win repeated

    Kempsey 1, Littleton 3 IN their replayed Baylis Cup semi-final tie, Littleton confirmed the result of the first game with a 3-1 victory at Kempsey. Darren Reeves, who scored the first three in the first match, was on target again scoring the first two

  • Trying to improve cycling safety

    THE new cycle lanes situated on Bewdley Hill, Franche Road and other roads are an attempt at providing safer conditions for cyclists. To my knowledge nothing has been done for cyclists in this area since the cycle track was constructed along the Stourport

  • Knockout matches

    PERSHORE Town's King George's Lane home will play host to two knockout ties this weekend. Archdales Reserves and Broughton WMC will contest tomorrow's WFA Saturday Minor Cup final (7.30), while a final place is at stake on Sunday when Kempsey face Moreton

  • Mayor who gave town music hall legacy

    I WAS interested to read in the Shuttle of Graham Kiteley's presentation of a music stand to the library in memory of his ancestor Joseph Kiteley. It was said that Joseph had helped to raise money for the first music hall in town.In fact it is for the

  • Segregation needed due to lack of respect

    IN reply to Roger Thurston's letter (March 22) issue on his "cyclist survey", I am not surprised he saw no cyclists at mid-morning on a weekday. Most would be at work. More people are being encouraged to cycle, especially for short journeys, the aim being

  • Bonnie bonnets

    YOUNGSTERS from Pinvin Pre-School Playgroup turned up with a magnificent collection of Easter bonnets on Tuesday. Chairman Sue Reeves said: "The children made the bonnets at home, brought them to school and then we had a parade when they were judged.

  • White line is no magical barrier

    I SUPPORT Mr S Jones (Letters, March 8) and Roger Thurston (Letters, March 22) on the subject of cycle lanes. Every effort should be given to protect the cyclist and pedestrian, but these lanes are a total waste of money. I have noticed that vehicles

  • Brintons chasing cup glory

    HIGH-FLYING Brintons aim to bring silverware home on Saturday as they take their place in the Worcestershire Junior Cup final for the second time. Kidderminster Harriers' Aggborough home will stage the clash with Worcester side County Sports from 3pm.

  • Storeys take control in cup

    STOREYS dominated the Saturday event at Moorlands Farm on Meadow Pool. The winner was Pete Davies with a 42lb 13oz catch of roach, rudd and bream with John Rollinson second on 29-13. Two more Storeys men came fourth and fifth - Tony Morton and Ian Robertson

  • No stopping goal-mad Swifts

    WEST Midlands Police held out for 19 minutes before classy Stourport Swifts ran out 8-0 winners in the Midland Alliance at Walshes Meadow. Tuesday's result keeps Swifts five points behind leaders Barwell with two games in hand. They maintain their challenge

  • Brintons stretch lead

    Brintons lead Banks's Brewery League Division One South by a big 12 points after a 2-1 win at Sedgley White Lion. Despite being a goal behind at half-time against good opponents, two John Maffei strikes secured the win. The chasing pack of Ledbury, Bewdley

  • Harriers Arms call time in semi-final

    HARRIERS Arms reached the final of the Worcestershire FA Sunday Minor Cup with a 3-2 victory over Belbroughton WMC. A Wyre Forest derby in the Kidderminster and District Sunday League Junior Cup quarter-finals went to penalties after a 1-1 full-time score

  • Quick, it's time to call in the rat-busters

    RATS were crawling all over Eckington First School last week, but there was no need to call in an exterminator. Children from the school were performing an adaptation of the Pied Piper of Hamelin, which involved every child in the production. The children

  • Close-run affair

    STOURPORT kept up the pressure on table-topping Ledbury with a 34-13 home victory over Five Ways in North Midlands One. It was a crucial win as Ledbury remain two points clear of Stourport who have a game in hand. After Five Ways scored two early penalties

  • Skeggs to stay on at Sixways

    WORCESTER Rugby Club chairman Cecil Duckworth has given Adrian Skeggs a vote of confidence by insisting the Australian will stay on as coach. Despite it looking increasingly unlikely that Worcester will gain promotion to the Zurich Premiership after Sunday's

  • Bromsgrove wait on Ball fitness bid

    DEAN Ball, the former Moseley, Worcester and Stourbridge hooker, will have a fitness test before Bromsgrove finalise their side for the North Midlands Cup semi-final against Old Halesonians at Wassell Grove on Sunday (3pm). Ball, who rejoined his first

  • Town drought ends

    PERSHORE Town ended a run of nine games without a win in some style when they triumphed 1-0 at title-chasing Nuneaton Griff in the Midland Combination Premier Division last night. Town, who boosted their hopes of finishing third as a result, scored what

  • Gregory calls for goal-line technology

    ASTON Villa manager John Gregory is calling for goal-line technology to be introduced to resolve controversial incidents -- even though he admits his side "got lucky" in the hoodoo-breaking 2-1 home win over Leicester City last night. Lee Hendrie's second-half

  • Aintree set for racing bonanza

    THE Martell Grand National meeting was under starters orders today as bookmakers braced themselves for potentially the biggest festival ever. Cancellation of race meetings across the country due to the current foot-and-mouth crisis is expected to result

  • Go for Bleu in Liverpool

    AINTREE will suit Edredon Bleu's attacking style of running and he can see off a high-class field to win the £120,000 Mumm Melling Chase, the highlight of tomorrow's second day of the Grand National meeting. Henrietta Knight's charge has been a leading

  • 'Don't move paedophiles' say mothers

    A MOTHERS' group established to protect youngsters from paedophiles is calling for a change in the way convicted offenders are dealt with. The Kidderminster-based Mothers Against Paedophiles, which formed after a national newspaper's name and shame campaign

  • Natasha's carnival signings

    THERE were smiles on the faces of two Kidderminster Harriers players even before Saturday's first win in nine league games against Shrewsbury Town. Kidderminster Carnival Queen judges Ian Foster and Scott Stamps with current holder Natasha Knott. That

  • Amazing run to clock up cash for charity

    TWO Wyre Forest women are hoping to raise thousands for charities close to their hearts by competing in the world-famous London Marathon. Michelle Rogers and Jennifer Badham in training for this year's London Marathon. Jennifer Badham, from Kidderminster

  • Bid for recruits

    POLICE are holding a recruitment day in Kiddermin-ster in June. West Mercia Police hope to attra-ct district recruits at Kidderminster Library on Wednes-day, June 13. Officers will be on hand to talk about their work and the wide range of opportunities

  • Pacing the way to funds

    TWO Kidderminster women who raised £2,000 for Kemp Hospice by running last year's New York Marathon are staging a further fundraising effort. Glenys Aston and Jan Boddice, both 51, will be putting people through their paces at Kemp Hospice's shop in Load

  • Family mourns death of father

    A PENSIONER whose daughter was "overwhelmed" by support from friends in Kidderminster when he was attacked with an iron bar in his own home has died. Eighty-seven-year-old George Dale, from Ladywood in Birmingham, died on Friday. He had been treated in

  • Praise for ward for elderly

    A WARD at Kidderminster Hospital which cares for elderly people has been praised by health watchdogs. Kidderminster and District Community Health Council said Cookley Ward was a well-managed, pleasant place with highly-regarded staff. The council's acute

  • Death 'policy' change to aid GPs

    PARAMEDICS have been given power to confirm deaths without GPs being present. District doctors have welcomed the news saying it is long overdue. Wyre Forest General Practitioners Association chairman Dr Jim Goodman said ambulance crews were often held

  • Kidderminster Male Choir Town Hall, Kidderminster

    THE choir were joined by Holborne Brass Ensemble, who began brilliantly, transporting us to New Orleans as they walked through the audience playing Just a Closer Walk with Thee. Highlights were a comedy version of Carnival of Venice and the jazz standard

  • Revised scheme for views on plans

    BEWDLEY Town Council has signed up to an invitation to voice its views at meetings to decide major planning applications affecting its area. Councillors said they were keen to try out the scheme which gives parish and town councillors a chance to speak

  • Steve sinks Saints

    STEVE Charlton produced a one-man demolition job to sink St Benedicts in the latest round of matches in the Evesham Indoor League. The Casuals' skipper hammered an unbeaten 26 off just 11 balls after a spell of 3-14 with the ball helped skittle the Saints

  • Singing along to barbershop

    TICKET sales are well ahead of forecasts for the first professional comedy show organised by the Alright On The Night Theatre productions in Salford Priors. Black Country comedians Aynuck and Ayli and a supporting cast will be at Salford Priors Memorial

  • Storm in a cold tap water cup

    A VISITOR to Broadway was left hot under the collar after being refused a glass of cold tap water at one of the village's restaurants. John Rickard, a pensioner from Surrey, wrote to the Journal after his visit angry that, when he asked for a glass of

  • Peter Luff tables 21 items

    VALE MP Peter Luff has tabled 21 Parliamentary questions, 20 of them to MAFF and one to the Prime Minister about the use of Throckmorton airfield. He said: "I am not saying that it should not be used for this purpose. "Indeed, it may now be inevitable

  • Blair questioned

    AFTER meeting farmers at Pershore last Saturday, Sir Michael Spicer, MP for West Worcestershire, said he would ask the Prime Minister in Parliament this week when he would take a decision about the possibility of vaccinating animals. "We need a decision

  • Out and about

    John's in town THE Everyman Theatre in Cheltenham will have One Foot In The Gravy when comedian John Shuttleworth pays a visit on Sunday. The Sheffield-born star is a winner of the Manchester Evening News Comedy Award and will be performing as part of

  • 5/4/01 - Barton sounds cup tie warning

    WORCESTER City manager John Barton is warning against over-confidence ahead of to-night's Worcestershire FA Senior Cup semi-final replay against Evesham United at St George's Lane (7.45). City will be firm favourites to book a two-legged final against

  • Bidford-on-Avon

    GARDENING SOCIETY: The March meeting was well attended and a welcome was given to four new members and four visitors. The chairman announced the results of the Inter-club Horticultural Quiz held on February 19 at Blockley. It was a tight competition,

  • Evesham

    PHOTOGRAPHY: Next Monday The Vale of Evesham Camera Club will welcome Denis Wilkins LRPS, to give a photographic lecture entitled 'Mostly Mono Landscapes' at the Friends Meeting House, Cowl Street, Evesham, 7.15pm for a 7.30pm start. New members always

  • Harvington

    PRE-SCHOOL: It is pleasant to report that Pre-school which last year had some anxieties about its future, is doing well and obviously providing a welcome service in the village. Its next money-raising event will take place on Saturday in the village hall

  • Ladies lose fight against the drop

    REDDITCH Ladies were relegated at the weekend despite a battling performance against promotion hopefuls Charnwood. The Bromsgrove Road side, promoted to the Midlands A two seasons ago, went down 2-1 after conceding a goal with the last action of the game

  • Pershore

    NUMBER 8 GALLERY: An exhibition of contemporary work by John Hammersley. FILM AT NUMBER 8: Pershore and District Film Society 'Stuart Little' (U), starring Michael J Fox. Stuart Little is an orphaned mouse who is adopted by a New York family. The family

  • Willersey

    WEDNESDAY CLUB: At last week's meeting, the 26th anniversary of its formation in 1975, Wednesday Club members enjoyed a most enjoyable talk on 'Quaint and Quirky Gloucestershire' by Mr Gordon Ottewell. His slides and amusing and informative commentary

  • Birdie blows

    LEVEL par golf failed to see Jeremy Robinson through the cut at last week's Argentinian Open in Buenos Aires. The Evesham player was again let down by his putter as a string of birdie chances went begging, especially in the closing stages of the second

  • Car parts firm axes 44 jobs

    FORTY-FOUR jobs are to be axed at a major Kidderminster car component factory. The cuts at United Engineering Forgings (UEF) are expected to take place at the Stourport Road factory in the "coming months". The company, formerly Smethwick Drop Forgings

  • From a single pony and trap

    A COACH company that started life as a single pony and trap has celebrated 75 years on the roads. Whittle Holidays and Coaches, based at Kidderminster's Foley Business Park off the Stourport Road, is now home to 49 top-of-the-range buses and coaches -

  • Stay on title course

    Pershore 13pts, Redditch 7 PERSHORE overcame Redditch in their drive for promotion far more comfortably than the score suggests. Pershore took complete control in the first half. A scrum 15 metres out saw Sid Hirons make a fine break down the blindside

  • Fourths suffer loss

    Redditch III 26, Pershore IV 7pts PERSHORE arrived several players short and then had to face a very strong home side on a pitch that varied from perfect to liquid mud. The visitors opted to play up the considerable slope and in the wet half of the pitch

  • History meets geography

    YOUNGSTERS travelled through time and across continents last week as background research for two projects. Pupils at Feckenham First School dressed in traditional Indian dress while others kitted themselves out in Victorian clothes. Teacher Mr Payne said

  • Pride of place

    BRIDLEY Moor High School has formed its own art gallery to display students' GCSE and A-Level coursework. The exhibition contains a mixture of paintings and sculptures by Year 11, 12 and 13 pupils and has been organised by head of art Jo Harrison. She

  • Happiness is solitude

    A CHARACTER in your comic strip Garfield says (Evening News, March 16) "there are many, many things I will never understand - and they're all women." Perhaps this partly explains why I've lived alone, increasingly happily, for 21 years now. GEORGE COWLEY

  • Sickened by images of death

    I WAS deeply saddened, as someone who lives in Worcestershire and works in Shropshire, to read in last night's paper (Wednesday, March 28) that we are the third worst hit area in the country for foot-and-mouth disease. Along with many others, I am sickened

  • They should keep quiet

    IT would seem ill-judged and something of an over-compensation on the part of the Acute Hospitals Trust even to consider attaching the word "Royal" to the new general hospital. I am no royalist. But I have sufficient respect for the Queen as a figurehead

  • I actually have to work for my living

    I THANK David Candler for his observations (You Say, March 29). Actually, my foot was not placed in my mouth as it was never my intention to stand for re-election to Warwickshire County Council. How anybody could stand for election to Parliament in Worcester

  • Shedding light on rural crime

    A PILOT scheme launched by Alcester police to tackle issues concerning residents has been made a permanent fixture, writes Helen Clarke. The 'spotlight' campaign focuses on a different area each month - one month it will be in Alcester, the next, Bidford

  • Hall group faces wait

    THERE is disappointment in Salford Priors after the memorial hall committee was told it would have to wait even longer to hear if it had succeeded in its second bid for National Lottery money. The committee wants £300,000 to carry out desperately needed

  • Holiday boredom banished

    PARENTS will be able to stop their children being bored during the Easter holidays thanks to an activities scheme at the Greig Centre from Monday, April 9, to Friday, April 20. Wildtime morning sees the day kick off with games of mini-basketball, football

  • Art attack at St Faith's!

    PUPILS at St Faith's School have been bringing their learning to life and putting their creative skills to the test during a series of artistic activities in the classroom. Year 5 did brass rubbings based on their Tudor project. Expert brass rubbers helped

  • Lunch piano treat

    PETER Bradley-Fulgoni will be treating the audience to a rare performance of work by Schumann on Kidderminster Library's new Steinway piano this month. The prize-winning pianist will be performing on Wednesday - the first of two special Spring Into Summer

  • Gray set for recall

    Solihull Borough striker Brian Gray is set to end a month long lay off at the Valley tonight (Thursday, ko 7.45pm). The forward has shaken off a knee injury for the match against Blakenall, played at Redditch's home while Borough's Damson Park ground

  • Blues pull out of the cup

    Moor Green have reached the Birmingham Senior Cup final after Trevor Francis' injury-hit Blues pulled out of the competition. Birmingham are unable to raise a side to comtest Monday's semi final and have conceded. Kings Heath entertain First Division

  • School library opens its doors

    A NEW library is being opened at a Stourport school tomorrow after a £7,000 fund-raising push by parents. The Government has matched the cash for Wilden First School's library. Head Nick Harvey, due to retire after 31 years in the summer, said the school

  • DOROTHY McCLURG British Heart Foundation volunteer

    CELEBRATION was in the air in more ways than one for a 90-year-old Kidderminster woman last week. Dorothy McClurg reached the landmark and also became the oldest ever volunteer at the British Heart Foundation's charity shop in Kidderminster. Mrs McClurg

  • Shocking tales of drug taking

    IN THE wake of teenager Jamer Tustin's death, an urgent call has gone out to young Vale people to give up drugs. Jamer was just 16 when he died alone in a flat in Evesham before Christmas. He was one of a group of friends whose lives revolved around drug

  • Boy who died from drug overdose - aged just 16

    A 16-YEAR-OLD Evesham boy who has not attended school for two years, died as a result of a drug overdose a week before Christmas. Jamer Tustin was found in a bedsit in Greenhill, Evesham on December 18 last year. At an inquest into his death at Stourbridge

  • Take it away kids

    PRIMARY school children enjoyed a pizza the action at a Stratford restaurant this week as a climax to a project concentrating on food. Years one and two from Ilmington Primary dropped in to Pizza Hut to make up pizzas they designed themselves during design

  • Plans signal end of town's tip bid

    PLANS to retain the household waste site in Stratford have been submitted after years of wrangling over its future. The plans, on public display at Stratford Library, signal the end of a long campaign by locals to keep a tip in the town after the closure

  • Firm joins national fight to save jobs

    A STRATFORD family car franchise has joined the national fight to stop Mercedes' plans to scrap the traditional network system and replace it with just 11 main car showrooms, transforming existing showrooms into service centres. The managing director

  • Flashy Harriers look for a winning streak

    IT had taken some time coming but Kidderminster Harriers can at last breathe a little easier after earning the crucial win that should preserve their Division Three status. Boss Jan Molby will hope this weight off the players' shoulders can allow them

  • Fans' group away

    Kidderminster Harriers Independent Supporters Association is up and running after a series of meetings. Fans got together after deciding they needed a link between the board and themselves to do something positive for the club. Their aims are to raise