STAIRCASE is a heartbreakingly sad play but also very funny. It needs two outstanding actors to do it justice, and Roy Barraclough and Kenneth Alan Taylor do that as two ageing homosexuals. Written by Charles Dyer, who gives his name to Taylor's character
LOOK at this timetable: BEN August 22: According to Cllr Noel Spencer chairman of Bolton housing committee, there are 20,000 houses in Bolton unfit to live in, with 6,000 close to being condemned. BEN August 25: Bolton could be expected to house more
IN my new role as chairman of the UK Red Squirrel Group, I would like to take this opportunity to introduce myself to your readers with an urgent plea for them to support our vital conservation programme, to help protect the endangered red squirrel. There
A LOCAL MP is pressuring the Government to award compensation to former Far East PoWs. David Chaytor, Bury North MP, is lobbying his Labour bosses for cash payouts to be made to those who suffered at the hands of their Japanese captors during the Second
NURSE Debra Coupe's thermometer will be reading pretty high for the next two years - as she works as a volunteer in baking-hot Tanzania. Debra Coupe, aged 39, of Hough Lane, Bromley Cross, is joining a hospital in the north east of the country to train
A BOLTON man who suffered horrific injuries in a climbing accident has fought back from paralysis to scale the heights again. Paul Pritchard's family feared he would die after a rock crashed on his head and crushed the left side of his brain. But Paul
THE LATEST fashion craze according to the glossy mags is fur purses, skirts, jackets, shoes - in fact anything covered in animal skin. Please don't presume it's all man-made. Over 40 million animals are slaughtered each year by the fur trade. Britain
WHILE Wanderers and Barnsley were sharing the spoils at the Reebok on Saturday, domestic rivals Mark Fish and Eric Tinkler teamed up to help South Africa win the first leg of their Afro-Asian Cup decider with Saudi Arabia in Cape Town. Despite struggling
BOLTON couples can now get a ticket to a better relationship .... thanks to an advertising campaign on the buses. The town's Relate organisation is putting its advertising campaign on four wheels this month. An advert involving the famous "sexy feet"
A RAIL users group believes that running the North-west's train services on time is often "beyond the wit" of the private sector. The accusation came today in a damning report on the region's rail network by the Rail Users Consultative Committee. It delivered
MILLIONAIRE clockwork radio inventor Trevor Baylis has called on Bolton education chiefs to set up an "invention academy" in the town. The 62-year-old boffin said he is fed up with great British inventions being shunned by the country's "stuck-up" companies
A FIRST clean sheet in the league has been long overdue for promising Shakers keeper Paddy Kenny who received fulsome praise from his manager and teammates alike after Saturday's victory over Wycombe. The 22-year-old Yorkshireman has taken to first team
WANDERERS have unveiled a new signing at the Reebok Stadium - gas pipeline company Transco. The firm, on Spa Road, Bolton, has taken a hospitality box in the Nat Lofthouse Stand for this season. And club president Nat presented Paul Williams, the network
PARENTS in Belmont and Turton will have to stump up an extra 50p a term for school milk. Starting from the beginning of this new school year, parents of children under eight who attend primary schools in the Blackburn and Darwen area will have to pay
Your Archbishop doubts God's resurrection, Another Bishop, doubts the virgin birth. They must not belong, to God's holy nation, Nor experienced, my spiritual second birth. So in truth,they confirm words from Jesus, God gives wisdom to the poor, not the
COUNCIL staff are turning time detectives to preserve and protect what is probably Bury's most prominent landmark. Bury Council is drawing up plans for the improvement of Peel Tower, situated high on Holcombe Moor, ready for a funding bid to the Heritage
A SCHOOL'S "Straight A's" performance has put it in a class of its own. Ofsted inspectors said they were impressed by standards achieved at Lowercroft County Primary in Bury. Heading the list of achievements were the National Curriculum test results achieved
I EMPATHISE with Ian Middleton (BEN September 9) when he rightly claims that erection of a fence in the Doe Hey area would be "totally disregarding the views of the residents who will have to live with the eyesore of the fencing every day". He elucidates
A BOLTON church minister is to help spread God's word among former Communist country folk. On Saturday Ian Watson, senior pastor at Bolton Pentecostal Church, jetted out to Bulgaria as part of a special missionary group that will train up ex-eastern block
25 YEARS AGO From the Evening News, September 18, 1974 IT'S official at last. Polling day in the General Election is Thursday, October 10. After a one-hour meeting of the Cabinet, a statement from 10 Downing Street today revealed that the Parliament elected
PAUL Flynn, MP for Newport West, has recently written to the press to express his concerns about endowment policies. Some of his comments may be valid, but I would like to warn those with endowment mortgages not to panic. I am concerned that with all
YOU'VE got to hand it to BLT - they will tackle anything. Tom Stoppard's The Real Inspector Hound and Peter Shaffer's Black Comedy are not the easiest plays to perform. But BLT make a terrific success of this comedy bill and Saturday's first night sell-out
Leigh RMI 5, Blyth Spartans 3 ANGRY Leigh boss Steve Waywell left his defenders with no doubt about the way he felt after a goals giveaway in the second qualifying round FA Cup clash. They should have had the game sewn up by half-time but slack marking
FIREFIGHTERS and councillors from Horwich joined forces at the weekend to launch the campaign for Horwich fire station to be upgraded to a full-time service. Councillors Bob and Barbara Ronson came out to support the firefighters in their calls for management
A BOLTON socialist has announced he will be fighting for Arthur Scargill's Socialist Labour Party in the Wigan by-election. Billy Kelly, general secretary of the National Union of Mineworkers Lancashire Area, has issued his challenge to New Labour two
A TERRIFIED girl had an amazing escape after she plunged 70 feet down a virtual sheer drop on a sledge. Victoria Lowthian's evening of fun ended at the bottom of the steep ravine, known locally as Devil's Drop, when she was knocked unconscious as the
THANK you very much for the recent prize I won of a meal for two at Simply Heathcotes, Manchester. The meal was delicious, and the service excellent. My daughter and I really enjoyed our lunch and afternoon in a truly relaxed atmosphere. it was simply
BOLTON council has been accused of wreaking 'blatant environmental vandalism' on an extensive piece of undeveloped land, known as The Bonks, in Westhoughton. It stretches from Cow Lees off Molyneux Road to the rear of Bolton Road. The unmown grass and
HAVING sat through all the various meetings held, regarding school closures, I would like to comment on Mr Eastwood's report that was recently published (BEN September 7) where he states that to keep small schools open would be too costly and that our
RICARDO Gardner is confident Wanderers can steer themselves clear of the Division One doldrums. The Jamaican international, who salvaged a point with a late equaliser in Saturday's Roses battle with Barnsley, admitted the 2-2 draw was another disappointing
HAVE any readers had the same problem that I have had with any of the libraries? About two months ago I took a book out of Westhoughton library and I was told that, on their computer, I had two books at home. I told them I had no books at home and then
By Gordon Sharrock: Bolton Wanderers 2, Barnsley 2 THEY might be struggling to make ends meet - on the field as well as off it - but at least it's good to know that Wanderers aren't kidding themselves. Honesty being the best policy, Mike Whitlow pulled
BOARDROOMS should not just be the domain of corporate high-flying whizz kids. That is the view of directors at car retailers Smith Knight Fay. The firm is set to offer its Audi Centre's boardroom in Bolton to any group with a need for a marketing venue
ETHNIC minority businesses will be featured as part of the Business Voice exhibition taking place at the Reebok Stadium next month. The Business Bazaar will highlight a sector of Bolton's economy which has responsibility for more than 1,500 jobs and generates
UNABLE to attack Labour on law and order, the Tories have once again chosen to play politics with the issue of asylum and immigration. In a letter to the BEN, Paul Brierley alleges that Britain has become a soft-touch for unfounded asylum seekers. This
BAKER Derrick Warburton was one of three dignitaries to receive honorary degrees at the Bolton Institute awards ceremony . The former company Chairman who retired from the family business in 1989, was honoured for his public service in Bolton. Distinguished
PLANNERS saw red when they were faced with an application to put up a giant illuminated sign on top of a newly-opened Bolton nightspot. Members of the planning sub-committee threw out proposals to display the sign "Red On The Square" at Nelson Square.
THE medical profession is helping police track a bogus nurse who carried out a distressing "intimate" examination on a 90-year-old woman at her home. Medical professionals are checking through their records to see if there is any information they can
PROPOSALS to create one of Greater Manchester's first 'wheeled sports' parks in Walkden will be considered this week by councillors. Members of the Arts and Leisure Committee will discuss the plans put forward by the Worsley, Walkden and Boothstown Community
SIX months of traffic chaos on one of Bolton's busiest commuter routes will begin on Sunday. A £1 million repair to the Bradford Street bridge will mean lane restrictions on the A666 St Peter's Way. The work will also mean delays for drivers travelling
Bury 2, Wycombe Wanderers 0 BURY ended Wycombe's fine away run and kept their first clean sheet in the league this season as they bounced back from a poor first half to secure the points. After an opening period that manager Neil Warnock admitted he couldn't
BOLTON has an ancient "treasure" all of its own in the museum. Its Egyptology section is not only renowned but also inspirational. Generations of wide-eyed youngsters have enjoyed its wealth of artefacts and knowledge since fascinating packages were imported
GREATER Manchester transport chiefs are moving a step nearer to introducing Smartcards as a way of passengers paying for journeys. Smartcards were first trialed in Bolton five years ago and were hailed a success in terms of public acceptance and potential
PAUL Warhurst could make his first start of the season at the Reebok tomorrow when Wanderers set out to put the finishing touches to their Worthington Cup demolition job on Second Division Gillingham. The classy utility man, fit again after a seven week
WHEN it seems that all and sundry are calling for motorists to leave their cars at home and get to work on public transport, a double dose of criticism of local rail travel underlines that argument's basic flaw. The Greater Manchester Passenger Transport
THE Egyptian queen Nefertiti was one of the most beautiful women of the world. Worshipped in her days, people around the globe still admire her now for her Audrey Hepburn-esque good looks. You can judge this for yourself, if you visit Bolton Museum and
WHEN a Bolton woman was made redundant four months ago she decided she would celebrate the new year in her own way - by setting up a millennium clothing company. Now Carol Ashcroft is aiming to go global and she is thinking of using the Internet to expand
By Karen Stephen MORE than 30 years ago, deep in the vaults of Bolton Museum, a young volunteer worker discovered what could have been a most amazing mistake. As Christine El Mahdy rummaged through various files and boxes she came across a collection
GOVERNMENT inspectors have noted a "significant improvement" in the quality of teaching at Little Hulton Community School in its recent OFSTED report. But a failure to radically improve standards attained by pupils and a problem with attendance did blot
WHEN you reach the grand age of 100 you might expect life to be a little more relaxed. But not for supergranny Margaret Moores, of Plodder Lane, Farnworth. For the past 40 years the pensioner said she has been enjoying retirement to the full. And to cap
LEIGH Centurions coach Ian Millward and young full-back Stuart Donlan are in line for top awards tonight - but popular prop Tim Street looks like missing out. Millward and Donlan are nominated for the Coach of the Year and Young Player of the Year awards
