SIR: it may surprise 'Colin' (BEN April 14), to hear that I nearly always respond to the letters which I receive, especially those from constituents. It is difficult to respond, however, to anonymous letters! I was born into an agricultural community,
DETECTIVES are hunting teenage firebugs believed to be responsible for a spate of arson attacks on garages and homes in the Horwich area over recent months. Police are probing more than a dozen fires thought to have been started by the young fire raisers
A BOLTON mother claims a health centre treated her daughter "appallingly" when she was suddenly taken ill. Kathleen Matthews has demanded answers from Bolton Community Healthcare Trust and officials have promised to investigate. Mrs Matthews said her
By Gordon Sharrock: Bolton Wanderers 2, Leeds United 3 THEY are determined to go down fighting ... but, deep in those brave hearts of theirs, Wanderers know they are heading back to the Nationwide League! They have now reached the 'We're not relegated
SIR: I refer to the letters 'It's still a risk' and 'Needles' danger'. Of course I sympathise with the families involved. I'm on your side. I apologise if you had the impression that I think it's all right to have discarded needles lying about. I do,
A BOLTON campaigner who is championing family values has launched a stinging attack on gay people. Tom Jones claims homosexuals are "challenging the bedrock of society" by contravening the teachings of the Bible. His controversial comments come as he
TWO Bolton youngsters who received life-saving bone marrow transplants are winning their battles to get better. Doctors say Tom Molyneux, five, and Charlotte Russell, 13, are continuing to recover at Royal Manchester Children's Hospital, Pendlebury. White
EDUCATION chiefs in Bury say they are "extremely pleased" with the £650,000 cash windfall from the government which will see improvements at 23 local schools. Money will be used to repair crumbling classrooms and carry out long-outstanding improvements
BOLTON Association side Walshaw have been bowled a googly before the local cricket season has even started. Their Australian professional Sam Roberts has been refused a work permit and will not be allowed to play over here. Chairman Bill Singleton managed
JJB Sports Super League: Huddersfield 24, St Helens 26; London 14, Warrington 4; Salford 12, Hull 4; Wigan 40, Halifax 6. First Division: Hunslet 31, Hull KR 30; Keighley 25, Widnes 22; Rochdale 16, Whitehaven 38; Swinton 31, Featherstone 30; Wakefield
THE bitter struggle to save Red Moss from becoming a "supertip" could begin again. Hundreds of letters of objection have already been lodged to Bolton Council expressing anger that Red Moss on the Horwich-Bolton boundary is STILL earmarked for waste disposal
WANDERERS were today given a potentially vital boost to their rapidly fading Premiership survival hopes. Last day opponents Chelsea's growing reluctance to risk their star names just three days before the European Cup Winners Cup Final will give Colin
BOLTON'S Mountain Rescue Team were in action at the weekend when a teenage mountain biker was hurt in an accident on Winter Hill. Ben Powell, aged 15, from Formby, near Liverpool, was with three other bikers on Saturday afternoon when he came off his
HUNDREDS of disappointed revellers had their night out cut short when a club was evacuated in the early hours on Sunday. Staff quickly cleared people from Reuben's on Silk Street, Leigh, when the fire alarms started ringing at about 12.30am. Hundreds
BURY-based furniture manufacturer Displad is on the right tracks for success, thanks too efforts of Business Link Bolton and Bury and the Business Environment Association (BEA). In a three-year partnership, the company's turnover has risen from £290,000
POLICE are investigating a burglary at the The Plough in Rainsough Brow, Prestwich, during which two men posing as customers stole £600. The men bought a round of drinks at 10.35pm last night and, while one played on the fruit machine, the other sneaked
BURY'S battle to protect green fields from developers lands in the High Court today. The local authority believes that 18 acres of land at Spen Moor, owned by Peel Investments (Northern) Ltd, should be granted Green Belt status. Controversy has surrounded
DETECTIVES are hunting a gunman who threatened to shoot a terrified cashier during a Farnworth petrol station raid. The thug pointed a long barrelled handgun at the woman's back and told her he was prepared to pull the trigger. He forced the woman back
SIR: Many older people are missing out because they are not claiming a benefit called Attendance Allowance, although they may be entitled to it. This is a benefit which can be claimed by some older people who are sick or disabled and need care. You can
SOME nightmares never seem to end. Just when Horwich folk thought the spectre of Red Moss becoming a "supertip" had finally been banished, proposals have been drafted which may see the area being earmarked for waste disposal in the early years of the
THIS is the Samuel Beckett play in which Winnie is buried first up to her waist and then her neck in scorched earth - literally a talking head. To while away her waking hours Winnie talks, empties her handbag, talks, puts on her lipstick, prays, talks
A GENTLE stroll around the streets of Bolton could have an added dimension thanks to a new guide book produced by Halliwell Local History Society. Retired heating engineer and history society member Peter Nightingale spent six weeks researching and writing
BENEFITS cheats in Bury are set to be busted as council officers begin a "door-knocking" policy. Thousands of pounds of Government cash have been allocated to the council, allowing social services officers to visit homes of potential fraudsters. The scheme
SIR: The Office for National Statistics has reported that imports from South Korea have been 25 per cent higher than usual over the last three months. The ONS has also reported that the UK's non-EU trade deficit for February soared up to £1.6 billion
SIR: I've had similar experiences to the lady who wrote about the 39 bus route, Little Hulton to Leigh. More than once, mostly on Saturday afternoons, the 39 bus has pulled in to Leigh Bus Station, dropped passengers and shot off empty and without explanation
BOLTON head teachers have agreed to share out troublemakers more fairly as a national report blames a minority of schools for a growing exclusion crisis. Secondary school heads are poised to agree a new deal to take in a pupil expelled from another school
WANDERERS 3-5-2 KEITH BRANAGAN ... 6 ANDY TODD ... 7 MARK FISH ... 7 GUDNI BERGSSON ... 6 NEIL COX ... 7 PER FRANDSEN ... 6 JOHN SHERIDAN ... 6 ALAN THOMPSON ... 8 JIMMY PHILLIPS ... 6 NATHAN BLAKE ... 6 BOB TAYLOR ... 6 Subs: John Salako for Phillips
BOLTON firefighters are set to tackle huge "blazes" from the safety of a computer console. Officers are using state-of-the-art virtual reality computer programmes for training in specialised command and control skills. The hi-tech wizardry forms part
PARENTS have been warned by an MP to keep a close eye on their toddlers in babywalkers and other devices. And Janet Anderson said she was speaking from personal experience. She made the call after Trading Standards Officers questioned the safety of more
NORWEB customers on benefit have until the middle of May to buy a brand new fridge - for just £25. There are still 1,000 available under the Fridgesavers scheme - launched by Norweb in the North West last November - which helps people replace their old
Wigan Warriors 40, Halifax Blue Sox 6 ANY hopes Halifax harboured of maintaing their unbeaten tag were quickly crushed by the formidable Warriors. The visitors arrived at Central Park full of confidence after winning their two opening Super League games
SIR: I refer to this year's Grand National which had 37 horses in the race. Three horses died, a jockey was thrown, most of the horses refused to jump, six managed to finish the course, the winner was under the whip for a few lengths and the field was
DRAGON-mania is set to hit the town today with a week of events to celebrate St George's Day. Youngsters will be invited to enter colouring competitions and a writing contest about what it would be like to have a pet dragon. Grown-ups can join in the
BOLTON youngsters are being urged to vote for their favourite book - with a £30 prize at stake. The "election" revolves around World Book Day on Thursday and is a joint activity between Bolton libraries and local bookshops. A chart of the books that Bolton
An uncle painted inside his house But caused my aunt to faint. He'd just been a little bit careless As some flies had gone an t'paint. "I cannot see what all the fuss is about, They've only gone on t'shelf. Anyone would think who heard you That I'd put
Alfreton 3, Leigh RMI 2 RELEGATED Alfreton virtually wrecked Leigh RMI's chances of runners-up spot in the UniBond Premier Division with a shock victory. And the Derbyshire side finished the game with only nine men having had goalkeeper Gareth Bough and
ALMOST 200 Westhoughton shoppers have joined the campaign to try to save their police station from closure. Hulton Park Conservatives, who are opposing the Greater Manchester Police proposal, spent Saturday collecting signatures for campaign letters to
THE voice of a children's charity in Bolton, singer Jean Pasquill, is promising a night of rip-roaring comedy to raise cash for needy kids. The 34-year-old vocal entertainer is organising a charity night with a difference on Friday at Rumworth Labour
A BOLTON businessman believes he has become the victim of a vendetta after a £200 advertising campaign was wrecked. Just weeks after vandals smashed down signs to Sandy Holt's Thai Boxing Club on Brown Street, his expensive banners strung across the town
Craig Fitzsimmons' mother and father were once told that he had little chance of survival. At just a few weeks old he was baptised and given the Last Rites. But 19 years on the born fighter has defied the odds to become a Thai boxing champion and instructor
A BOLTON private hire driver has hit out at car giants Toyota after he was told he would have to spend nearly £90 on new sealed switch units - when only the tiny bulbs inside had blown. Mohammed Wazir, owns an F-registered Toyota Carina, claims the switches
A DISABLED man who vowed to highlight drug problems on a council estate has become the victim of a vicious hate campaign. Bernard McCartin claims his nightmare began last month after he was threatened by a thug wielding a blow lamp. After the attack,
25 YEARS AGO From the Evening News, April 19, 1973 THERE will be no attacks of classroom nerves for youngsters arriving for their first day at Bolton's newest school. For there aren't any classrooms as such in the 260-place St Bernard's Roman Catholic
NORTH-west travel agents may soon be able to claim back thousands of pounds in overpaid insurance premium tax (IPT) following a landmark High Court ruling, says tax expert Martin Ruffles of Arthur Andersen. The court rules that it is not lawful for Customs
