Archive

  • Plumb award for showroom

    Bolton Plumbing of Bolton was the regional winner of this year's Armitage Shanks Showroom of the Year Award. The company received its prize of Marks & Spencer vouchers and a commemorative award at a special ceremony held at the Royal Moat House Hotel

  • 225 years service

    A LOCAL company has honoured employees who have contributed a total of 225 years service. The East Lancashire Paper Mill Company Ltd held a commemorative dinner for nine people who have notched-up 25 years each. Chief Executive Andrew Rothwell presented

  • Hoyle is standing down

    LINDSAY Hoyle is to stand down as mayor and a borough councillor in March. The MP has decided not to seek re-election for his Adlington seat - which he has held for 18 years - in May. Mr Hoyle, whose wife Cath is mayoress, confirmed: "I hope people will

  • Former police chief dies

    FORMER Chorley police chief Barry Sanderson has died following a motorbike accident at the weekend. Mr Sanderson, 53, died in Chorley Hospital after losing control of his 1100cc BMW Belmont bike on Rivington Lane, Rivington. He retired from Lancashire

  • Anger at opening of M-way link

    THE controversial M65 motorway link was officially opened this week amid continued protests from environmentalists. Home Secretary Jack Straw opened the 13-mile link road on Monday as scuffles broke out at Guide, near Blackburn. After more than 20 years

  • Precinct comes in from the cold

    THE long-awaited refurbishment of Little Hulton shopping precinct is set to go-ahead next year. And traders say it is news they have been waiting for, following the shock closure of the TSB bank in October. John Shaw, chairman of the traders' association

  • 'Firebug' fear in club blaze

    AN investigation has been launched into a suspicious blaze at the disused Duke St Sports and Social Club this week. Firefighters rushed to the club just after 3.30pm on Monday, December 15. Thick smoke billowing from the premises was blown into adjacent

  • Armed raid chase drama

    ARMED police arrested three men after surrounding a car on a Bolton motorway following a dramatic 40 mile chase. The three men were pulled out of the car and handcuffed after a high speed pursuit along three North-west motorways ended on the hard shoulder

  • Euxton back on track with new station

    COMMUTERS in Euxton have been gifted an early Christmas present with the reopening of Balshaw Lane station. Father Christmas was among the guests as the first train pulled in from Preston to mark the opening of the £1.1 million, two-platform stop on the

  • Churches join together

    UNITED we stand! That's the message this Christmas from Chorley churches which have joined forces following an historic meeting. Attended by almost every mainstream denomination church in the town - C of E, RC, Methodist and URC - it was agreed at the

  • Those brave men

    SIR: I indeed agree with W Robertson regarding officers shot at dawn during World War 1. I do hope John Hargreaves' relatives and the rest of those brave men get their pardons. Like W Robertson said, those who set up the kangaroo courts and condemned

  • Young minister

    PHILIP Mason looks set to become the youngest minister to head the Bolton Methodist mission. Mr Mason, aged 33, is expected to be appointed at the annual Methodist conference in Scarborough in June. He will become Superintendent Minister of the Bolton

  • Fire crews recalled to arson firm

    FIREFIGHTERS were again called out again today to a business that went up in flames at the beginning of the week. As reported in Monday's BEN, police are investigating a spectacular blaze which tore through Interservices (UK) on Walkden's Linnyshaw Industrial

  • Couple may have been dead five weeks

    A MAN and woman found dead in a Leigh house could have been dead for more than five weeks, it emerged today. The bodies were found in an upstairs bedroom at the house in Glebe Street early yesterday after police broke the door down. Police broke in after

  • Chess star Nigel is making all the right moves

    TOP Bolton chess star, Nigel Short, is making all the right moves to earn himself the opportunity to take on the world. The Atherton-born player is through to the last 16 in the 5 million dollar World Championship knockout tournament. Nigel, a former

  • A credit to the town

    CLLR Campbell Benjamin has served Bolton well. He has decided he will not be standing as a Labour candidate in next year's local election and we respect that. We wish him well in a retirement which is well earned. Previous news story Converted for the

  • Theatre recognition

    BOLTON Little Theatre consistently produces high quality work and attracts large audiences. It is among the town's top amateur theatres and has been honoured at the BEN's Amateur Stage Awards evenings. We think the theatre fully merits its £100,000 National

  • Estate throws party for Christmas kids

    CARING residents on a Bolton housing estate are rallying round to give youngsters their first community Christmas party. Members of the Hunger Hill Residents' Association have decided to inject some Yuletide spirit into their area. Chairman Jean Mulvaney

  • Town stray dog numbers drop

    THE number of stray dogs caught annually on the streets of Bolton and returned to their owners has seen a massive drop - from over 2,000 five years ago to just 229 this year. And there was more good news for strays as the Destitute Animal Shelter re-homed

  • Daily poem

    Mummy and Daddy, I think, were asleep. As round their door I had a wee peep. So I crept down the stairs to look at the tree, And Santa Claus smiled - and winked at me. He was sorting some parcels out there on the floor, There were many more there than

  • Estate throws party for Christmas kids

    CARING residents on a Bolton housing estate are rallying round to give youngsters their first community Christmas party. Members of the Hunger Hill Residents' Association have decided to inject some Yuletide spirit into their area. Chairman Jean Mulvaney

  • From the BEN files

    25 YEARS AGO From the Evening News, December 18, 1972 A RAILWAY line, closed after a six-year fight to save it, may reopen in spring to steam train enthusiasts. Trains will run between Bury Transport Museum and Ramsbottom station at weekends if British

  • Fish heads home

    WANDERER Mark Fish was being given no guarantees of an instant return as he prepared to jet home from the Middle East today, writes Gordon Sharrock. South Africa crashed out of the Confederations Cup when they were beaten 3-2 by Uruguay in Saudi Arabia

  • Top flight job for Rob

    BRITISH Regional Airlines have announced a senior management appointment. Mr Rob Hearn, who is currently British Airways General Manager (North of England), has been appointed Chief Operating Officer. He will take up his new position on April 1 next year

  • Chorley to miss out on White Christmas

    THERE'LL be no white Christmas in Chorley this year. Not according to a pioneering long-range weather forecasting company which bases its predictions on solar activity. The Alternative Weather Service's latest 30-days-ahead forecast, issued at the beginning

  • School to get a classy new look!

    IMPROVEMENTS costing nearly half a million pounds could be carried out at Little Hulton Community School if ambitious plans receive financial backing. The programme includes general repairs, new cloakrooms and better community facilities. These are scheduled

  • Awards for three Chorley organisations

    A PRESTIGIOUS award has been handed to three Chorley organisations at a special ceremony. Woodlands Conference Centre, Bishop Rawstorne CE High in Croston and Chorley and South Ribble Hospital have all picked up the Charter Mark. The Government accolade

  • In line for a windfall

    A REMARKABLE Kearsley woman's fund-raising line dancing classes have led to a huge donation to charity. Freda Riley has presented the Guide Dogs for the Blind with £2,500 - enough to pay for the training of a dog. The money was raised through her twice-weekly

  • Magnificent seven wins for Dawn

    IT'S a magnificent seven wins for Bolton's luckiest woman! Shopper Dawn Baldwin's amazing streak of festive fortune continues to run and run after winning a prize Christmas Draw for the SEVENTH time in just FOUR weeks. More than 1,000 shoppers have taken

  • Derian House on the net

    A Lancashire man whose daughter died of cancer has launched an Internet appeal to help raise cash for Derian House. John Ryan of Hindley Green, Wigan, whose daughter Katie died in April 1995 aged just 21 months, has created a web site for the hospice.

  • Yobbos in car park scare pensioners

    ELDERLY residents are too scared to leave their homes when yobbos take over a Horwich car park at night, it has been claimed. Ivan Cooper, of the Horwich Conservative Association, said vulnerable old folk in Rivington House sheltered accommodation were

  • Crazy pub gang raise cash for ambulance men

    PUB regulars have helped to swell the coffers of St John Ambulance with a zany series of charity events. Margaret Toon, licensee of the Black Boy, Pall Mall, held a social evening with a tombola and raffle, and her lady regulars decided to top up the

  • Parents join pupils in reading classes

    CHILDREN will learn in school alongside their parents in a scheme being planned for Bolton. Councillors were told that up to £2 million could be awarded by over the next four years as part of Government efforts to raise education standards and job prospects

  • University hopes fade for Institute

    BOLTON Institute's hopes of winning university status look to be fading. In a leaked memo to staff, Principal Professor Bob Oxtoby describes the outlook on securing the university title as "pretty gloomy". Although ministers are said to be sympathetic

  • with pic.

    A SPROUT A DAY KEEPS CANCER AT BAY Something to sprout about A LOCAL cancer scientist served up his own advice in Bolton yesterday when he proved life really can be a bed of . . . sprouts. Dr Alan McGown, head of Drug Development at the Patterson Institute

  • Pubs gang up to beat violence

    Pubs in Chorley will soon be working together to stamp out drunken violence following the launch of a new initiative. Under the scheme, louts could be banned from every pub in town. Pub Watch is set to unite local licensees by allowing them to swiftly

  • Residents' relief?

    SIR: It was heartening to read (BEN, November 10) that Mr and Mrs C Haley of Old Ash Nurseries, Darwen Road, only want to be left alone to run a nursery (use as a garden centre was excluded when the 1989 planning application was passed) and have no thoughts

  • Naseem in tribute to tragic young fan, 17,

    BOXING champ Prince Naseem Hamed has sent a message of sympathy to the parents of a young Bolton leukaemia victim. Teenager Warren Fairhurst died in hospital on Sunday after a two year fight against the cancer. His courage had inspired Naz when they met

  • Unibond Football: Chorley 4 Spennymoor 1

    CHORLEY'S revival continued at Victory Park on Saturday as they made it four wins on the trot with a hammering of Spennymoor. This was a magnificent display by the Magpies, capped by Matt Swailes' first hat-trick in a black and white shirt. While Swailes

  • Danger ahead

    SIR: May I draw attention to the pedestrian path, in front of the new sports equipment building on Bradshawgate - just after the 'old' Comet store. The pavement is extremely dangerous, if you take a step onto one paving stone, the stone goes down at least

  • Chorley Ladies 1 Chester 2

    OUT of sorts Chorley were beaten again on Sunday by a Chester side who fought hard to win the three points. The game got off to a scrappy start with both teams trying to win possession, closing down players quickly and stopping the flow of the game. Chester

  • Town is suffering

    SIR: I write to agree with Bill Collinson, (BEN November 25), when he wrote about the junction of Longcauseway and Market Street, Farnworth, being a disgrace, and D E Tattersall when he also stated that yet another entry into Farnworth, the old Fire Station

  • Cat fiend sought

    A REWARD has been put up to help convict a brutal gunman who has been maiming a neighbourhood's cats. Worried residents in Clayton-le-Woods say they fear their children could be the next targets after being plagued by the air rifle fiend for months. The

  • Leave it green

    SIR: I refer to the article headed: Regeneration game winner (BEN, December 9). I applaud the comment made by Noel Spencer "Making good use of vacant buildings", but why not make use of all our vacant buildings in Farnworth and Kearsley and our empty

  • Crippled grandmother has home help cut

    WHEELCHAIR-BOUND grandmother Ellen Cummings has received a Christmas greeting she didn't want to hear. For the vital home help she's had for the past 13 years has been Santa packing after social services scrooges 'reassessed' her case. Ellen, aged 55,

  • Rugby union: Chorley RUFC 5 Old Bedians 17

    ANOTHER Saturday, another First Division team in opposition - this time Old Bedians. Chorley again gave a good account of themselves, but could not resist the urge to play expansive rugby. The visitors used more limited but ultimately more effective tactics

  • Mr G E Ellis

    SIR: I write in response to the article published on page 5 of the Bolton Evening News on Wednesday, November 26, 1997. The contents of the article were accurate, but the overall impression was misleading. At the end of the hearing my legal representatives

  • 999 officer injured in car smash

    A POLICE officer was injured when his patrol car careered out of control early today as he responded to an emergency call. The car veered off Crompton Way, Bolton, and crashed into a bus stop before ploughing into trees. The officer escaped from the crash

  • Students flee blazing halls

    DOZENS of students were evacuated from Bolton Institute halls of residence following a blaze last night. Up to 30 people were forced to leave A Block halls on Radcliffe Road at around 6.30pm after a chip pan set on fire. Firefighters from Bolton Central

  • Bid to keep pensioners warm

    HOUSING chiefs are urging pensioners to take up an offer to make their homes warm and dry this winter. They will be targeting 30,000 privately-owned homes in the New Year asking them to make use of a scheme offering reduced-priced energy saving items.

  • Study at own pace with centre

    BOLTON Community Education Service is offering people the chance to study at their own pace and in their own way. A series of Open Learning sessions are being held in the Deane, Derby, Daubhill Learning Resource Centre. Open Learning courses give people

  • Institute deserves university status

    IT doesn't appear that Bolton Institute is going to get a Christmas present of university status. But, like the town's MPs, we shall continue to support the Institute's bid for higher ranking, which we think would be well deserved. Government ministers

  • Festive fire threat

    FIRE bosses are warning Bolton folk to be on their guard this Christmas. Basic rules to avoid blazes at home include never leaving candles unattended, keeping wrapping paper away from fires and checking ashtrays, plugs and lights. Smoke alarms - with

  • Star joins police academy

    BOLTON TV soap star Paul Nicholls got to grips with his latest role . . . with a little help from the boys in blue. The heart-throb EastEnders actor is currently filming a new drama for the BBC in which he will star as a police officer. And to ensure

  • First choice

    THE Reebok has been voted the best new stadium in Britain. Wanderers' magnificent £35 million show home is tipped to win a succession of design and architectural awards. But the first national recognition of the ground's splendour and facilities comes