FARNWORTH Cricket Club professional Brenton Parchment made an inauspicious start to his Test career when he made his debut for the West Indies in Durban. Parchment replaced injured skipper Chris Gayle in the team, and made 11 opening the batting before
FC United entertain Chorley on Saturday as they chase a third successive title. After four defeats in five games in November, the Gigg Lane tenants looked to have blown their chances of more silverware this season. But back-to-back victories, including
Continuing our series on local amateur football clubs, Nick Jackson finds out that Thornleigh are a club on the up... IT says something about the family values of Lancashire Amateur League side, Thornleigh, that their four teams are thriving at a
TWO doctors or nurses are physically attacked while working at the Royal Bolton Hospital every month. The latest statistics reveal 58 medical staff were punched, kicked or spat at by violent patients during 2007. In the same period, between January
IT has not ticked for 10 years but now a town centre clock could be given a new lease of life. An online campaign calling for all clocks which have stopped to be re-started has highlighted the timepiece on the wall of the Cheshire Building Society in
STEAM train The Cotton Mill Express will return to Bolton on Saturday January 12, not Sunday as previously reported. The train will depart Manchester Victoria Station at 10.10am, passing through Stalybridge, Huddersfield, Burnley and Blackburn, before
SHOPPERS in Bolton last night backed a move by supermarket giant, Asda, to fine drivers £60 for parking in disabled or parent and child spaces when they have no right to. The scheme, trialled at six of the company's stores last year, will be rolled out
POLICE in Bolton have not ruled out the possibility of naming and shaming troublemakers who are subject to Anti-Social Behaviour Orders on a website. This week, a list of people issued with ASBOs in Bury over the last six months - or who are believed
ARMED raiders escaped with thousands of pounds from Daisy Hill Post Office in Westhoughton. Two masked men entered the premises in Leigh Road just after 2.30pm today. It is understand that at least one of them was carrying a gun. A Greater Manchester
A NEIGHBOUR who made life a misery for the family next door has been banned from living in his OWN house. For five years, Carl Bridson taunted his neighbour Andrew Pennington, in Highfield Drive, Farnworth - referring to him as a Tellytubby. He also
Bolton Boys and Girls Federation will be running a small sided league every Sunday in the summer. Starting on March 30, it will be based at Sharples School, and will be available to all children from under-7s to under-10s. Each of the four age groups
Urmston 3 Bolton Ladies 4 Bolton had a great start to the New Year with victory at Urmston in an exciting, and high-scoring, encounter. In the first half, it was Urmston who made the first breakthrough after an unfortunate own goal, but Bolton equalised
A MASSIVE brain haemorrhage caused by using a dirty drugs needle killed a young dad four weeks before the birth of his daughter. An inquest heard that Jason Wilding, aged 35, died on August 29 at Royal Bolton Hospital, a day after he began complaining
Wigan Warriors will swap the sun of Lanzarote for the mud of Warrington this weekend, in their first pre-season friendly. Brian Noble's side flew back yesterday ahead of Sunday afternoon's friendly at the Haliwell-Jones Stadium (kick-off 3pm). New signing
WIDE-EYED pupils trooped in for lessons at their new £7million state-of-the-art school opened. The new Orchards school development opened after the Christmas break yesterday, bringing pupils from Farnworth's Cherry Tree Primary School and Green Fold
Club owner Mike Ashley did not trust Sam Allardyce to bring in the players who could turn around Newcastle's flagging season, according to close friend Paul Kemsley. More details on our National Sport link HERE.
A FATHER who almost died after being given contaminated blood products is demanding the Government halts imports of the treatment after it was revealed 18 British soldiers could have been infected with a number of deadly illnesses. British soldiers who
Former Wanderers favourite Mixu Paatelainen has been named as the new Hibs manager. The former Wanderers striker, who also had two playing spells at Easter Road, was officially appointed at a Press Congerence in Edinburgh. More details on our
There's been plenty of reaction to Sam Allardyce's exit from Newcastle on our National News Video section. Here's what they're saying: The Toon Army Verdict HERE. Is Sparky Hughes the next in line? HERE.
MOTORWAY bosses have vowed to look into calls to light up a stretch of the M61 where a Westhoughton teenager was killed. Sean Green, of Whitsundale, Westhoughton, was knocked down and killed while trying to cross the motorway between junction five at
TWO thieves who stole copper piping and radiators appeared in court yesterday. Andrew Pilling and Martin Sparrow took the items from Westland Avenue, Farnworth, on June 7 last year. Bolton Crown Court heard they were arrested at the scene charged with
FOUR men involved in violence in a Tyldesley nightclub have been advised by a judge to stop binge drinking. Anthony Jeffreys, aged 36, of Samuel Street, Atherton; Matthew Noon, aged 23, of Emlyn Street, Walkden; Craig Neal, aged 20, of Green Street,
David Cameron has officially opened boxer Amir Khan's community gym. Delays on the train meant the Conservative Party leader did not arrive on time at Gloves Gym in Osman House, Prince Street. But when he finally turned up, he took the time to look
A man has died in a fire at a house in Rochdale. Police were called to the address on Henderson Street, Smallbridge at about 10.15am. Fire crews attended and a 54-year-old man was rescued from the house. He was taken to hospital but died soon after
The poison in vodka bottles allegedly sent by a Manchester man as part of a campaign for Scottish independence was strong enough to kill the intended recipients, a court has heard. It would also have posed a serious risk to members of the public or postal
Thieves who raided a lodge in Mottram stole goods worth thousands of pounds and a framed Andy Warhol lithograph of Marilyn Monroe. The burglary happened sometime between 12pm on Thursday, December 20 and 2pm on Saturday, December 22. The offenders
A CLIMBER from Bolton killed when he plunged 1,000ft from a mountain had been having problems with his climbing equipment it was revealed today. Rescuer Dave Freeborn, team leader of the Patterdale Mountain Rescue Team has revealed the circumstances
AN uncertain market has left home builder Persimmon with a 14 per cent fall in forward sales. Persimmon said the year-on-year dip to £603 million reflected weaker confidence in late 2007. However, it predicted that falling interest rates would boost
High street baker Greggs overcame record prices of wheat and other ingredients with a 5.6 per cent growth in sales growth over Christmas. Wheat prices doubled in 12 months, while coffee and milk rose by 20 per cent. These rises forced the Newcastle
BOLTON property investor and developer Townson Estates has sold the Mount Heath industrial estate in Prestwich in a £6.25 million deal. It was negotiated by surveyors King Sturge and completed by KBL Solicitors of Mawdsley Street, Bolton. Townson, based
DEVELOPERS are likely to concentrate on refurbishing buildings rather than building new housing as the economy slows, according to Rob Bath, regional leader of building firm Rok. He said he expects only modest growth over the next 12 months but believes
A HEALTH clinic for young people is being held on Friday between 3.30pm and 6pm. Youngsters will be offered general health advice as well as help with sexual health concerns and contraception. The clinic is at the Parallel centre in Church Street, Bolton
PEOPLE in Bolton suffering from epilepsy can attend a talk by a leading specialist. Mr Peter Richardson, who is a consultant neurologist at Hope Hospital in Salford, will be highlighting the opportunities for surgery, such as vagus nerve stimulation.
POLICE have hailed a high visibility operation at the Royal Bolton Hospital a success. Extra patrols were drafted in to the hospital's accident and emergency department over the Christmas and New Year period in a bid to prevent violent or anti-social
CHARITY champions are being urged to swap romance for fundraising on Valentine's Day. The British Heart Foundation is hoping to raise £1 million on February 14 and is calling on Bolton people to get involved. Ideas include holding a coffee morning,
IT'S early September 1995. I finished my training at Welsh College of Music and Drama three years previously and have just completed my first repertory theatre job at Birmingham Rep. I receive a call from my agent to tell me I have been offered another
Two people have been arrested on suspicion of murder following the New Year's Day death of Jason Taylor at his home in Oldham. The body of 37-year-old Jason Taylor was discovered in a house on Raleigh Close, Oldham, after police answered reports
NO show can have everything, but Disney's High School Musical: The Ice Tour goes pretty close. It is a high-octane singing, dancing, ice-skating spectacular production of two blockbusting movies - all it needs are celebrities, Simon Cowell and a telephone
THE police are not the only ones under the pay cosh. The Government has widened its assault on the public pay sector settlements. It wants to open talks on three-year pay deals in the public sector, initially focusing on teachers, nurses as well as the
The climber from Bolton killed after plunging 1,000ft from a ridge on one of the Lake District's highest mountains has been named as Michael Hollinshead. A spokesman for Cumbria Police has confirmed that Mr Hollinshead, aged 62, from Egerton, died after
THE prospect of an all-out strike by police should put fear into all our hearts. Why? Because the last time it happened in London and Liverpool in 1919 it did not take long for law and order to break down. Riots and looting broke out and the navy and
STAFF and pupils at schools throughout Bolton have worked extremely hard over the past year. Congratulations must obviously go to the likes of Bolton School's girls division, which is the town's top performer in the new school league tables, while Canon
ON the face of it, transferring the election count from Bolton Arena to the town hall and saving £15,000 seems a good idea. But, as ever, the devil is in the detail. What is not accounted for is the cost of using the town hall - staffing, set up - and
I'M a cyclist and have been for 25 years but I'm also a car driver, as most cyclists are. The one thing guaranteed to create bad feeling between cyclists and motorists is the selfish and arrogant attitude of cyclists riding two abreast and creating a
I WISH to complain about the complete lack of service offered by the council for waste paper collection in the upper Horwich area. On ringing up to enquire as to the problem, I received a 20-second recorded message extolling the virtues of the council
ON three Saturdays in December, Marks and Spencer stores at Middlebrook and Bolton town centre supported Bolton Hospice by holding "bag packing" days. Students from Sharples, Rivington & Blackrod and Bolton School girls division, along with hospice volunteers
MY daughter lives in Egerton and on Monday put out her 6ft-plus Christmas tree and all her papers and cardboard gathered over the festive season, carefully stored to keep dry in the much needed space of her small kitchen, only for them all to be left
AFTER reading yesterday's front page story, "The war on MRSA", about the fight against MRSA and C-difficile, I couldn't help but see one area of attack that the health authority seems to ignore time after time. Whenever I visited my mother whilst she
WITH reference to Iain Camick's letter, "It's time to put British workers first" (January 4), Mr Camick seems to ignore what is actually going on at the moment. Let me take you back to the 1950s, Mr Camick, when British people refused to carry out what
A CARE worker is facing jail over an arson attack at a nursing home which he carried out as an act of revenge after he was suspended. Darren Stephen Hayes, aged 30, set fire to the basement of Shannon Court in The Haulgh as elderly residents slept upstairs
A RARE type of pea, which was last grown in Bolton, has been saved from the brink of extinction by a mystery resident. The man, known only as Mr Schofield, handed seeds for the pea, called Table Talk, to the Heritage Seed Library. He had been growing
Three men held up a Northenden bar with a gun and forced customers to hand over their mobile phones. Police were called to the Lounge About bar on Palatine Road just after 11.30pm following reports of the robbery. On arrival officers found that
PRIMARY school children are getting lessons in rugby from the experts. Coaches from Bolton Rugby Union Club are working with Year Five youngsters at Beaumont School, Ladybridge, as part of their PE lessons. The scheme is part of a Bolton-wide initiative
A RULING on whether an £80,000 play area can be built in a Deane park is expected today. Plans for the playground, with children's equipment such as a seesaw, swings, a roundabout and climbing frames, at Haslam Park, Wigan Road, is due to go before Bolton
A SHOWMAN has hit out after council bosses failed to find a new home for his fairground community's 40 families. Henry Hill said that despite paying council tax, Showmen's Guild families lived in "terrible conditions" on land at Mill Hill Industrial
PEOPLE in two areas of Bolton can raise their concerns with representatives of Bolton Council and the police at a meeting next week. The joint Farnworth and Kearsley area forum takes place on Monday at Trinity Church, Higher Market Street, Farnworth.
A SHORT health walk is being held today in Moses Gate Country Park. The walk will last between 30 and 45 minutes. People interested in taking part should meet at the Rock Hall visitors centre at 1.30pm.
CHARITY champions are being urged to join the Little Hulton Fundraising Group, which brings in the cash for St Ann's Hospice. Group chairman, Sidney Wander, said: "We are looking for supporters to help us continue to stage imaginative fundraising events
CHURCH Schools in Bolton are the borough's top performers outside of the independent sector. Canon Slade has held on to its position as Bolton's top performing state school. The Church of England school in Bradshaw saw its results rise by two per cent
PUPILS and staff at Mount St Joseph School are celebrating after showing a massive improvement in the borough's GCSE league tables. The school, in Greenland Road, Farnworth, has leapt from being in the bottom five of the table in 2006 to number eight
BOLTON School boys division has finished bottom of the borough's league tables - but only because of a quirk in the figures. The tables show that only 13 per cent of the school's pupils gained five or more A* to C grades including maths and English.
Amir Khan's community gym will be officially opened today by Conservative Party leader David Cameron. Mr Cameron will arrive at Gloves Gym in Osman House, Prince Street, at 11.45am and it will be the second time the Tory chief has visited the new facility
BOLTON Community College and Bolton Sixth Form College have defended their performance in the league tables. Both colleges scored less than the national and local average for the points scored per student in AS and A-level, or equivalent, examinations
A DRIVE to push up maths and literacy standards at a school in Breightmet has been hailed a success. Twelve months ago, the headteacher of Withins School, Phil Mather, recruited a new head of maths and an advanced English skills teacher. The move has
THE latest secondary school league tables - published today - make good reading for many of Bolton's previously underperforming schools. A number of schools have enjoyed a massive improvement in GCSE results, helping them to soar up the local league
A PARAMEDIC was sexually assaulted by a man as she treated him for a head injury in the back of an ambulance. Keith Baines groped the woman, then sat back smiling and told her she looked like the computer game character, Lara Croft. Baines, aged 46,
A MURDER victim was killed as he rebuilt his life following a six-month stay in Pakistan where he spent time recovering from mental illness. Pavaiz Iqbal had started to take on more work in his job as a builder, Manchester Crown Court heard. As his
A climber from Bolton has died after plunging 1,000ft from a ridge on one of the Lake District's highest mountains. Police said the 60-year-old man, from Bolton, was blown off the ridge in high winds at Brown Cove on Helvellyn. A companion called
SAM Allardyce has sworn to get back into football following his shock departure from Newcastle United. The former Wanderers boss left St James' Park after just eight months in charge, but will return to the game after a short holiday. "I'm going to
RADCLIFFE Borough director of football, Peter Coyne, has challenged his side to haul themselves off the bottom of the UniBond Division One North table by the end of the month. Despite being seven games unbeaten, Boro are still four points behind second-bottom
