Archive

  • Fitton eyes Open glory

    RADCLIFFE-based darts ace Les Fitton is celebrating after qualifying for the UK Open in June. Fitton beat Paul Baines (5-3) and Andrew Callary (5-3) in Salford to book his place at the Reebok Stadium. The tournament, dubbed ‘The FA Cup of Darts’, runs

  • £16 billion bill as local lines clog up city rail network

    AN influential think tank says rail congestion around Bolton and Greater Manchester could be costing the region up to £16 billion. Northern Way, a body made up of three northern development agencies, says busy tracks around Manchester Piccadilly

  • War games break out on the table tops

    THE battle to save Middle Earth and to win the Wild West was fought in Bolton at the weekend. Characters from history and fantasy films and books, including those from the American Civil War, flocked to the Holiday Inn to re-enact scenes on

  • Leprosy charity praises school for £1,500 gift

    THE lives of more than 70 suffering children are set to be transformed thanks to the fundraising efforts of schoolchildren in Farnworth. Year Seven pupils at Harper Green School in Farnworth were so moved by the devastating effects of leprosy — and struck

  • Draw cheers Gary Megson

    GARY Megson’s glass was definitely half full after watching his side comfortably contain Champions League-chasing Aston Villa. While the manager admitted the standard of football on show at the Reebok was hardly the stuff of vintage, he toasted the effort

  • Sheltered housing complex gets go-ahead

    CONTROVERSIAL plans for a sheltered housing complex on land near Horwich RMI club have been given the go-ahead. McCarthy and Stone Developments originally wanted to build 48 flats for the elderly on the site of the former RMI club car park, in Chorley

  • Plan unveiled to tackle population ‘timebomb’

    BOLTON is facing a “demographic timebomb” because of its ageing population, according to a lobbying group. The number of people in their 60s in the North West is set to rise by 40 per cent over the next two decades, a new report by ageing forum 5050vision

  • Praise for school with a difference

    A first of its kind concept in schooling in Bolton has been given a glowing report by a top Government figure. Jim Knight, Minister for Schools, visited The Orchards in Highfield, Farnworth, which brings together special and mainstream schools

  • Bolton and Bury Business Awards

    Due to a technical problem, the Bolton and Business Business Awards site is not working. If anyone has tried to submit an entry without success, they should call Lynn Ashwell on 01204 537318.

  • BIG MATCH VERDICT: Wanderers 1 Aston Villa 1

    IT was not by accident that Gary Megson let slip earlier this week that his former Aston Villa contingent had failed to perform in their last two games against their old club. The wily Wanderers boss was fishing for a reaction — and judging by the performances

  • Fresh look for Farmers’ Market

    THE Farmers’ Market has unveiled a fresh look with new stalls and branding. The re-launch was marked with music by the Eagley Brass Band and a cooking demonstration by local chef Mike Harrison of the Zest Deli. It follows a formal takeover of the running

  • NHS submits application for new healthcare unit

    A PLANNING application has been submitted to create a new, £1 million community health care unit. NHS Bolton is seeking permission to transform the Bolton Community Unit, which is based on the grounds of the Royal Bolton Hospital. Its

  • Police close road to investigate accident

    A RECONSTRUCTION of a car accident in which a pedestrian was killed has been carried out by police. Egerton Road was shut for a few hours on Saturday morning as officers attempted to piece together the events. Traffic police cordoned off part of Moses

  • Kelly praises help with mortgages

    BOLTON MP Ruth Kelly has joined forces with housing minister Margaret Beckett to highlight the help available to people who are struggling to pay their mortgage. The Homeowners Mortgage Support (HMS) will enable eligible borrowers who suffer

  • DVD Review - Surgical Spirit, the Complete Second Series

    After an inordinately long gap, the eagerly awaited second series of ‘Surgical Spirit’ succeeds in surpassing the first. With any series, the standard of writing and acting can decline after the initial series, but this is not the case with this one

  • Parades and morris dancing to honour St George

    TRADITIONAL parades and events were held across Bolton to celebrate the patron saint of England. Thursday may have been the official St George’s Day but celebrations continued over the weekend. In Horwich, the Horwich Prize Medal Morris Men led a parade

  • Keeley relishing his role helping others

    FORMER Wanderer Glenn Keeley revels in taking football to the parts of Bolton that other sports cannot reach. While his stay at Burnden Park in the late eighties was relatively brief, his impact on the town’s footballing landscape in the four

  • Bolton Wanderers worth a point, says Gary Cahill

    GARY Cahill feels Wanderers more than deserved a share of the spoils against Aston Villa. The Whites came from behind after England winger Ashley Young had opened the scoring two minutes before half time with a fluke cross-shot. Tamir Cohen bagged the

  • Residents praised for helping to save blaze house

    COMMUNITY spirited neighbours prevented a fire from gutting a house after the occupants had gone out. They smelt burning coming from the house in Aldercroft Avenue, Breightmet, at 11.30am yesterday. They called the fire service and managed to get into

  • Blaze at old supermarket

    FIREFIGHTERS were called to the former Kwik Save supermarket in Deane Road, Bolton, in the early hours of Sunday. Youths are thought to have set fire to a bin at around 5.30am which spread to the canopy. Firefighters had to break into the building,

  • Garages on former club site might not be demolished

    GARAGES near a proposed office and flats development could stay. Planning permission was granted for the garages to be demolished and three ground-floor offices and six first-floor apartments to be built at the site of the former Central Club in Harrison

  • Maxine’s Hancock show misses out on gongs at the Baftas

    THE cream of British television gathered at the Baftas last night to honour the year’s best performances and shows. Bolton actress Maxine Peake was among the hopefuls up for a gong for her role in BBC4’s Hancock and Joan. But she lost out in the best

  • Update: Three injured in horror crashes

    A MAN and two teenagers have been seriously injured following two horrific car crashes over the weekend. A 17-year-old boy was thrown clear from the car in which he was travelling when it crashed into a wall in Horwich. Just hours later

  • Cohen's lucky penny pays off

    TAMIR Cohen credited his lucky penny with an assist as the Israel international shrugged of months of injury misery to grab the equaliser against Villa. The 25-year-old midfielder popped up on 60 minutes with a neat volley to earn the Whites

  • Bishop gets recognition

    BURY'S leading scorer Andy Bishop has been named in the PFA League Two team of the year. He is the only Shakers representative in the team. League Two Team of the Season: Scott Shearer (Wycombe), Neil Austin (Darlington), Simon King (Gillingham),

  • Man dies in house fire

    A MAN has died in a house fire in Atherton. His grandmother managed to escape from the blaze, in Sumner Street, and told the emergency services her 27-year-old grandson was trapped inside. Firefighters tried to rescue the man, but they

  • 'Brassed off' Brit

    I KEEP reading people’s views on the BNP. They are not a racist party, they just want to put the rights of people who were actually born here first. Such as pensioners who worked for 50-plus years and who now get a pittance, compared to rapists, murders

  • A worse service with new timetable

    THE rail timetable implemented — one might say, imposed — in December, 2008, has diminished the service at Lostock Station. On Tuesday, April 21, between 5 and 6.30, Northern Rail put up two staff members to speak to commuters arriving at Lostock. The

  • Region's choked railways cost economy £16bn

    RAIL congestion around Bolton and Greater Manchester could be costing the region upto £16 billion, a think-tank has claimed. Northern Way, a body made up of three northern development agencies, says busy tracks around Manchester Piccadilly

  • Gary Megson's plans are held up until Bolton Wanderers are safe

    GARY Megson’s summer spending plans have been put on hold for another week after conceding his side are not yet completely safe from relegation. A battling point against Aston Villa – the first against any of the top six clubs this season – was enough

  • Hospital backing the battle against obesity

    HEALTH staff in Bolton are putting their best feet forward in the battle against obesity — and they want the public to do the same. NHS Bolton and the Royal Bolton Hospital have both signed up to take part in Walk to Work Week, which starts

  • Mother of murder victim Umair Waseem pays tribute to her son

    The mother of a Bolton man who was found dead in Lancashire has made an emotional appeal to help find her son’s killer. The body of Umair Waseem, aged 22, was found in a car park off Moor Road, Anglezarke, near Chorley shortly before 10am on Monday

  • Idea left me shaking with laughter!

    WHAT a laugh, issuing chip shops with fewer holes in the salt shakers. That should sort out the health of Bolton residents. What next? Pubs with quarter-pint glasses, crisps made out of lettuce, chocolate and sweets without milk or sugar? Let’s face

  • Time to consider the birch?

    I DON’T know what readers felt when they read of the mindless destruction of the Susan Isaacs Nursery’s outdoor classroom, and the slaughter of the amphibian creatures in the ponds, but I am afraid that my first reaction is a plea to bring back the birch

  • Family tree

    IN answer to Peter Cole’s query re family tree, I may be of some help. My great great grandfather, James Cole, came to Bolton in 1859. He was born in Middlesex and arrived here with his wife and two sons, one of which was my great grandfather, Alfred

  • Food for thought

    KUDOS to all those eco-warriors out there trying to do their bit for the planet. You may not associate vegetarianism with environmentalism, but studies prove there is a correlation. It should be a no-brainer that eating from the bottom of the food chain

  • Read my letter properly

    REGARDING the reactionary half-baked rant, “Not diversity, but overcrowding” by Ken Cunniff (Letters, April 18). Firstly, Ken, I myself am white. Secondly, I stand by what I said about white, public school educated men milking the country dry. Don’t

  • Simplistic projections of fear

    P H Hayworth, in his letter, “We must mend our bridges with God” (April 23), assumes rather too much in suggesting I believe we were created by anything resembling a god as proposed by any religion. The fact that such stories are written in books some

  • DJ Mark Radcliffe signs copies of his autobiography

    BOOK lovers found themselves in a spin when DJ Mark Radcliffe dropped into Waterstones in Bolton on Saturday. Scores of fans of the Bolton-born radio star queued to get signed copies of his autobiography, Thank You For the Days.

  • Sky high birthday adventure for 100-year-old Maud

    A PENSIONER has celebrated her century by taking to the skies. Great grandmother Maud Barlow was determined to mark her big day with a bang. And she fulfilled a lifelong ambition at City Airport Manchester - in the Barton area of Eccles

  • High-flying Adlington continue storming start

    ADLINGTON equalled last season’s total number of wins when they followed up last week’s opening-day success against Edgworth with a resounding nine-wicket victory over Golborne. Chris Mulligan and deputy pro Usman Tariq posted a 161-run opening stand

  • I hope yobs of all ages will just grow up

    HAVING made the case in my main article for seeing the positives instead of the negatives, I have to admit that this is not always easy in a town where idiots daub Fred Dibnah’s statue with white paint, arsonists cause mayhem and vandals make regular

  • One day, I will be appreciated

    SO far, more than 22,000 people have expressed an interest in spending time on a plinth in London’s Trafalgar Square. Needless to say, it is an arts project and it involves Antony Gormley (the Angel of the North chap) and a group called Artichoke. Thousands

  • Cheers to a cheery night at the cricket club

    WHEN the weather is good, the Bradshaw cricket ground is one of the most delightful spots in Bolton. The hard work of countless individuals over the years has kept it that way and I look forward to watching some cricket down there this summer. My visit

  • It’s good when a fire engine calls

    IF there is a fire engine outside your house it does not necessarily mean there is a crisis. A leaflet came through our door from the Greater Manchester Fire Service recently following a fatal house fire in the neighbourhood. We accepted the offer of

  • Drive to recruit black police officers focuses on Bolton

    POLICE are meeting with ethnic minority community leaders in a drive to recruit more black officers. Representatives from Greater Manchester Police will meet with community worker Donald Gayle and other community members to discuss ways of

  • Better than we care to admit...

    MY short piece a couple of weeks ago, about overhearing a visitor express surprise that Bolton was not as bad as she had presumed, provoked different and interesting reactions. A number of friends responded by telling me that, in their opinion, the town

  • Jack Jones, he was a Great Briton

    LEFT, right and centre, politicians of all persuasions seem to be at it, milking the archaic expenses system for all it’s worth. And then they have the hypocrisy to call each other for doing so. You can reform the system — and it must be reformed —

  • Mechanic breathes new life into garage

    MOBILE mechanic Lee Bromley became a “Mr Fixit” in the business world when he drove past a shut-down Bolton garage. After tracking down the owners, the 38-year-old has reopened the business creating three new jobs. Despite the fact that the banks refused

  • My card

    What was your first job? I started my first job in Cornwall in an Indian restaurant. Name one person you would like to have dinner with and why? My dream dining person would be Sir Richard Branson because once I had a chance to serve him and his guests

  • Turned off by rubbish on telly

    HOW did you get on during the 13th annual TV Turnoff Week? It ran from last Monday and I suppose people who rely on the telly for all their information might well have missed it — such a concept is not popular with broadcasters. A chap called David

  • From our archives, April 27

    10 YEARS AGO From the Evening News April 27, 1999 WORK has started to demolish one of Bolton’s oldest schools and build an innovative health and community centre in its place. The new primary care resource centre, on the site of Pikes Lane School

  • Great view on a clear day

    “ON a clear day you can see forever . . . ” Well, perhaps not quite so far but when this photograph was taken from Bury Road in 1969 you could certainly see a long way over the Quarlton area. The farm in the foreground is Pallet Farm, the then home

  • Jlloyd urges caution

    JLLOYD Samuel refuses to believe Wanderers are completely safe from relegation despite having earned a battling draw against his former club Aston Villa. The Whites took their first point from a top six side all season thanks to Tamir Cohen

  • Allardyce criticises Gartside's proposal

    SAM Allardyce has criticised Phil Gartside’s proposals for a new two-tier Premier League. The ex-Wanderers manager says the Whites’ chairman’s idea would be bad for the game. Allardyce, who worked under Gartside for almost eight years, said the English

  • Nicer than most in politics

    I WRITE in brief appreciation of the generous piece about Cllr Cliff Morris by Angela Kelly in The Bolton News on April 15. I have known him, and politicked alongside him, for many years, and while he is not totally a saint, he is a damn sight nicer

  • No regard for decency or morality

    I COULD not agree more with Mr Brian Derbyshire on his letter, “Litter Lessons for Pupils”. I think we can see a pattern in a section of the generations born from 1980 onwards that have scant regard whatsoever for common decency or moral standards in

  • Haroon through to ABA quarter-finals

    Haroon Khan progressed to the quarter-finals of the ABA junior championships in Barrow-in-Furness when he outpointed Liverpool’s James Dickenson 6-2 for the first time in four meetings with the national 52kg champion. Fellow Bury boxer Awaiz Iqbal lost

  • UniBond League round-up

    A LATE Bradford Park Avenue goal broke FC United’s hearts on Saturday, and their chances of another promotion. The Rebels were all set to take their place in the UniBond Premier Division play-offs after Adam Tong had put them into the lead in front of

  • Colls pay for slack defending

    ATHERTON Colls were held to a 1-1 draw by Colne, despite taking the lead through Shaun Connor. Poor defending allowed the East Lancashire visitors back into the game, and Mark Threlfall netted with less than two minutes left on the clock. The result