CHRIS Holder moved to within six points of the world championship lead after finishing third in the Swedish Grand Prix in Gothenburg tonight. The Pirates spearhead completed his qualifying rides on 12 points, with only the in-form Nicki Pedersen in front
A DORSET woman who forced the fight for park home owners’ rights onto the political agenda has welcomed ministerial support for tough new laws. Sonia McColl, founder of the Park Home Owners Justice Campaign, contacted the Daily Echo after taking part
A RARE number plate is being sold which has been traced to Bournemouth from the 1950s. Duncan Macpherson, a car and motoring enthusiast, who lives all the way in Aberdeen, Scotland, got in touch with the Daily Echo after he purchased the number plate
AN OUTDOOR sports fan from Poole is embarking on an epic journey to raise cash to buy a headstone for his dad’s grave. Skateboarder Ben Schofield, 21, will longboard 140 miles from Le Havre in northern France to Paris in an attempt to raise £1,200 in
CAMPAIGNING Christchurch dog owners are trying to halt controversial orders designed to exclude and restrict dogs at popular walking spots throughout the borough. Christchurch Borough Council’s consultation on dog control orders has caused much consternation
EVEN horses wore bras at the first ever Jugs and Gee Gees event, which raised more than £2,000 for Cancer Research UK. The equestrian take on the popular London Moonwalk was a day-time sponsored horse ride in the New Forest organised by 31-year-old Anna
POLICE are hunting a woman who threatened a 71-year-old man with a knife in broad daylight. It happened at 8am on Saturday in Southbourne Grove, Bournemouth. A police spokesman said that a woman on a bicycle approached the man and pulled
STUDENTS and staff at a Bournemouth special school welcomed Lord Julian Fellowes into their midst as they celebrated the opening of their new post-16 building. The award-winning actor, playwright and screenwriter cut the ribbon at Linwood School’s new
AN exciting new chapter in the history of Upton Heath, which was devastated by fire last summer, has opened following a much-needed funding boost to help repair the damage. Community and wildlife lovers are celebrating after SITA Trust presented almost
A MOTHER says she is “disgusted” that a taxi firm left her 14-year-old disabled son by the roadside. Single mum Clare Scott, 35, said United Taxis refused to take Charlie, who has cerebral palsy, back after a night at the Salvation Army Youth Club in
PURBECK Art Weeks Festival’s opening ceremony, taking place in Corfe Castle today, has a historic Olympic flavour this year. Penny Elsom, daughter of the Corfe-born organiser of the 1948 Olympic Torch Relay, Commander Bill Collins, will lead the procession
A 28-year-old Bournemouth man “lashed out” to defend himself after his girlfriend behaved like “a woman possessed” during a night out, jurors heard yesterday. Following his arrest, in the early hours of November 16 last year, Louis King told
Last weekend at Arne we held a series of reptile ‘show and tells’ when we introduced visitors to some of the reserve's incredible snakes and lizards. Male sand lizards have been basking on the sandy heathland paths – this is Britain’s second rarest reptile
Exotic wildlife has abounded at the Weymouth Wetlands reserves this week. A Great Reed Warbler has generated plenty of interest at Radipole Lake and has been merrily singing close to the new viewing facilities. Four white storks were spotted
BOYZONE star Shane Lynch has cut the red ribbon on a new library on an “inspirational” visit to a Corfe Mullen School. Shane, who enjoyed massive success as part of the chart-topping boy band, was at Lockyers Middle School filming part of a documentary
A MAN has received a suspended prison sentence after being convicted of sexual offences against children more than two decades ago. Following a trial at Bournemouth Crown Court, Adrian Strong, 59, was found guilty of two counts of indecency
I believe that London 2012 is going to be a good stepping stone for volleyball and a launch pad to get it more into the public eye. Over the past five years, the sport’s profile has grown enormously through the work that Volleyball England have been
PARALYMPICS legend Darren Kenny is determined to hit top form this summer – and he hopes that will be enough to enhance his remarkable Games record. The Verwood-based cyclist is widely regarded as the most successful member of the GB para-cycling team
THE troubled Twin Sails Bridge is continuing to cause concern as access is barred by unexpected problems. Since its delayed opening to traffic on April 4 there has been a catalogue of niggling difficulties with the road barriers and control
DIGGING out your old mobile phone could help a young autistic boy learn to tell the outside world what he means, thanks to a new charity initiative. Mum Karen Marshall needs 185 unwanted mobiles to exchange for an iPad and a groundbreaking ‘Grace App
A TEENAGE girl who had been drinking was found after a search by the RNLI and the police helicopter. The 16-year-old was reported missing by friends at 10.59pm last night soon after she entered the water by Rockley Park. The Poole RNLI Inshore and
A SCHOOLBOY is leading the charge to raise money for two Bournemouth churches hit by a spate of lead thefts. Charlie Cutler has started a campaign to encourage teachers, pupils and their families to give donations to help St Peter’s and St Stephen’s
We want a medal at the Games – so that means we have to properly manage our time and other commitments. We have been fairly strict on ourselves in terms of what we are and aren’t going to do and what we do and don’t want to do. It is all part of the
SAY THE words ‘Kirrin’ and ‘island’ to most British adults – and quite a few children – and they’ll immediately be transported to a place of unimaginable adventure, freedom and lashings of ginger beer. Yes, it really is 70 years since Julian, Dick and
POOLE lifeboat helped with two dramatic incidents yesterday. The RNLI’s inshore boat was asked at 6.45pm to rescue two jet skiers. They had broken down and were stuck on a “notorious” sandbar, Hook Sands, just outside the entrance to
FIVE men have been arrested after a nightclub worker was found dead at a Bournemouth flat. The man, named locally as Scott Wilks, was discovered at the apartment in the Lansdowne area when paramedics and police were called out but it was too
I AM constantly confronted with requests to support the work of the BCCA in stopping the demolition of the non-listed parts of the Haviland Road centre. It’s difficult to decide whether to, however, when I have repeatedly asked them to publish their
COULD Poole Council explain why they charge £1.60 to park for five minutes between 5.55pm and 6.00pm and then another £1.60 to park until 8.00am the following morning? The car parking scales are not clear and we will certainly not be visiting again.
AN EMERGENCY appeal has been launched by the RSPCA for carers to come forward for neglected and abandoned horses. Foster homes are needed desperately after the number of horses taken in this year doubled from last year resulting in the Stable Future
I AM writing in response to David Atherton’s letter in the Echo on Tuesday 22 May regarding dogs on the beach. I don’t understand his expression “we all know what the euphemism exercising the dog means”. To me it means walking and letting your dog run
I AM trying to locate old friends or relations of Marie Hillman who resided at 128, The High Street Poole in 1950. (Tel: Poole 12) I have in my possession Marie’s diary for the whole of 1950. It would obviously be of great interest to friends or family
I FEAR Bournemouth council are about to make an awful mistake, fuelled by uneducated public opinion. Yes the IMAX is unpopular, but it was always under-utilised and poorly advertised. Decades ago, first and foremost IMAX was to be a state-of-the-art
THE subject of renewable energy must surely be on everyone’s mind. Fossil fuels are as “sure as eggs is eggs” running out and someone somewhere has got to do something about it. But who? People talk of wave power, sounds good but not in this area, the
THE old lifting bridge in Poole opened in 1927 and has been going up and down ever since. It’s had a few snags in its day and needs maintenance but, overall, it seems to behave reliably. The new Twin Sails Bridge is having a more turbulent time. It opened
Boscombe has missed out on money from a Mary Portas-fronted government fund to create a modern “Golden Mile” of shops to Pokesdown station. The cash was supposed to help reinvigorate the area by making it an arts and culture quarter. The team
POLICE ambulance and fire crews were called to the Avon Causeway after a car crash on Friday evening. Emergency services went to the scene at 6.45pm and firefighters freed a man from a vehicle, cutting the roof off to remove him.
A MAN was rescued from his Upper Parkstone flat in the early hours of Saturday after unattended cooking caught fire. Firefighters from Westbourne and Redhill Park were called to the Bournemouth Road flat at 2.10am. They found that cooking
STEVE Fletcher is promising to put his “heart and soul” into any future Cherries role as he decides which path to follow after he retires. Manager Paul Groves, appointed earlier this month, has confirmed that Fletcher will remain part of his squad next
DON Parsons believes Dorset & Wilts are facing a rebuilding mission – and he wants to be the leader of the revolution. Parsons guided Twin Counties to within seconds of a third consecutive County Championship Shield final in his first season at the helm
IF England’s cosseted footballers were ever faced with Chris Holder’s punishing schedule, the FA could have a mutiny on their hands. While the Premier League prima donnas and the cream of speedway may share top billing in their respective sports, in
BOSS Paul Groves has confirmed he is close to bolstering his backroom team as he looks to bring a fresh approach to coaching and fitness. The Cherries manager says he is aiming to “change the dynamics” of his staff, with assistant boss Shaun Brooks telling
