Archive

  • Independent snatches key Tory seat

    Click here for Southend results INDEPENDENT candidate Ron Woodley trounced the Tories in their own heartland with a thumping 791-vote majority Tory candidate Nigel Folkard lost to Independent candidate Ron Woodley, chairman of the Burges Estate Residents

  • Timber yard flats plan withdrawn

    CONTROVERSIAL plans to build flats on a timber yard, which has been run by the same family for more than 50 years, have been shelved. Plans to build 11 two bedroom and 13 one bedroom flats on the site of Ashton's timber yard, High Road, Laindon, were

  • Roary to zoom onto TV screens

    BOB the Builder can hang up his hard hat. Roary the Racing Car is ready to zoom onto television screens. Basildon man Keith Chapman, 47, who created Bob the Builder, can't wait for kids to see his latest show. Roary the Racing Car will be screened for

  • Tevez aims to go out with a bang

    CARLOS Tevez is plannng to put on a display to remember in what could be his final appearance at Upton Park. The Argentine striker, who has become a cult hero at the Boleyn Ground, has been in superb form during the Hammers' recent upturn in form.

  • Jones: Let's finish the job

    BILLERICAY Town go into Ryman Premier play-off action in Kent tomorrow with a "let's finish the job" battle cry from manager Matt Jones. Town's starts are still basking in the glory of havintg pulled off a shock 5-3 penalty shootout success at Chelmsford

  • Golf course earth 'not contaminated'

    THE firm behind plans for a £1million revamp of Basildon golf course has dismissed claims contaminated soil might be used. Rumours have been rife golf course firm Jack Barker might import soil from London building projects, such as the Olympic Village

  • Week Beginning 7th May 2007

    Tide times for week commencing 7th May 2007.... High tides for Monday May 7 are at: 0214 and 1427 High tides for Tuesday May 8 are at: 0259 and 1512 High tides for Wednesday May 9 are at: 0350 and 1604 High tides for Thursday May 10 are at: 0452

  • Look at the state of our pavement

    DISSATISFIED residents have demanded the county council sort out its "shoddy" repairs. Four weeks ago, contractors were sent to Albany Road, Wickford, to relay a stretch of pavement following many complaints about the uneven and dangerous surface. But

  • The 'guvnor' winds down

    STAFF and students thanked a special member of the community for 10 years of outstanding service as a governor of Runwell Community Primary School. Headteacher Jeremy Crook, Pauline Landsdale, chairman of governors, and a handful of students delivered

  • Dance with Dane this Saturday

    YOU'RE Out of Your Mind - or at least you will be if you miss Dane Bowers in Southend tonight. As part of Mayhem's special bank holiday line-up, the DJ, who found fame with 90s boyband Another Level, will be coming out to Play and spinning the decks

  • Break-up inspires Beverley's new album

    SHE might have been at the top of her game for the past 12 years, toured with Take That and met the Queen, but it doesn't seem to have gone to Beverley Knight's head. The 34-year-old Midland's-born soul singer chats with ease about her forthcoming album

  • Island charity walk

    A GROUP of dedicated charity supporters marched the 13 miles around Canvey to raise money to help house some of the world's poorest people. Supporters of the Catholic Agency for Overseas Development, managed to raise more than £2,500 pounds during the

  • Pick 'n' mix scoffer gets nicked

    A SHOPLIFTER was caught out when staff spotted him eating sweets from a pick'n'mix counter, a court heard. Assistants in Woolworths' Furtherwick Road, Canvey, shop stopped Terence Heath at 1.30pm on Tuesday, after seeing him munching sweets. When police

  • School goes back to 50s for anniversary

    A CANVEY secondary school launched its 50th anniversary celebrations in style with a 50s theme day. Students went to school dressed in 1950s clothing, had themed lessons, a special dinner and a disco after school as part of the event. The disco played

  • Pancake padre!

    A VICAR'S pancake-tossing skills will be the key attraction at a church fundraiser. For the eighth consecutive year, Father Robin Eastoe will sell his freshly-made pancakes at the May craft fair and family fun day at St Margaret's Church, in Lime Avenue

  • Highs and lows of the Blues

    SO a rollercoaster season of highs and lows for Southend United draws to a close. Whatever the league results, the Blues can count themselves unreserved winners in one respect. The spirit, good humour and indomitability shown by team and players alike

  • Tories fail to make clean sweep

    Click here for Basildon Council results RULING Tories failed to make a widely predicted clean sweep of available seats in Basildon. They gained one seat - Laindon Park - from Labour in Basildon. However, the Conservatives did not do as well as predicted

  • Director denies conflict of interests

    A DIRECTOR of regeneration company Renaissance Southend has defended himself against suggestions of a conflict of interest because he is a private developer. Martin Terry, leader of the Alliance Southend group on Southend Council, said he had concerns

  • Punter claims Lotto jackpot

    ONE lucky ticket-holder from south Essex is quietly adjusting to life as a millionaire after coming forward to collect their National Lottery prize. The Echo reported last month the winning ticket holder from the Castle Point or Basildon area had yet

  • Lamborghini driver could be key witness to crash

    A LAMBORGHINI driver may prove to be the key witness to a crash. A 22-year-old man was driving his red Ford Fiesta along the Southend-bound A127 when the smash happened. He had just reached the A132 Wickford junction when his car was in collision with

  • New police centre coming soon

    AN estate should get its own police and community advice centre by the end of the summer. The drop-in centre is expected to open by September on the Vange 3/4 estate, which is due for a £14.5m redevelopment. It will be a base for police but there will

  • Playground politics

    AMONG this year's new crop of eligible voters, apparently, is Joseph Knuckey. Joseph received a polling card entitling him to vote for his councillor of choice. He is two years old. Politicians are often accused of reneging on their promises, but they

  • Albert says he'll carry on riding on the pavement

    A DEFIANT cyclist says he has no choice but to break the law by riding on the pavement or risk his life on increasingly busy roads. Albert Howard, 85, who lives in the Amelia Blackwell residential home, in First Avenue, Canvey, relies on his bike to

  • Flahavan ready for hometown return

    HAVING been broad and bred in Southampton, Southend United goalkeeper Darryl Flahavan is relishing his first ever appearance at their St Mary's home on Sunday. The talented shot-stopper also started his career with the Saints before leaving after nine

  • Will bats be wiped out?

    AN environmen- talist fears a roosting colony of bats could be wiped out by a developer's plans to build 13 new homes. Residents have recently spotted pipistrelle bats flying in and out of a wooden outbuilding on a site in Scrub Lane, Hadleigh. The

  • Mobile phone ban in hospital may remain

    PLANS to allow hospital patients to use their mobile phones in wards could be scuppered by annoying ringtones and concerns about secret filming. Basildon hospital bosses revealed their worries, but said any delay in lifting the mobile ban had nothing

  • Town may get a war memorial at last

    RAYLEIGH could soon have a new war memorial, as a result of plans revealed by the town council. At the council's next meeting on Tuesday, members will be meeting representatives from the Royal British Legion to discuss the proposal. Rayleigh currently

  • We must talk about all these burglaries

    RESIDENTS concerned about a surge in burglaries has left Langdon Hills residents calling for a public meeting. In the past month there have been 26 burglaries in the Laindon area. In one of the most recent incidents in Langdon Hills, police scrambled

  • It’s time for us all to get water-wise

    SAVING energy is the ultimate green goal, but it's just as important to get water-wise. Global warming, a growing number of new homes and the demand for water-consuming devices, like dishwashers, have stretched our need for water to the limit. With

  • Doctor fails to overturn practice ban

    A GP accused of sexually touching patients has lost his appeal against an order banning him from practising in the NHS. The High Court upheld a decision by the Family Health Services Appeal Authority to remove Dr Harish Doshi, of the Fairway Medical

  • My neighbour, the lifesaver

    A QUICK- THINKING neighbour potentially saved the life of an elderly woman after she spotted smoke billowing from her home. Kelly Archer saw the smoke coming from her next-door neighbour's house in South Avenue, Southend, and dialled 999, enabling firefighters

  • Going down with smiles on our faces!

    SOUTHEND United may have gone down, but fans' spirits most definitely remain up. About 20 supporters will put on a variety of fancy-dress outfits to travel to Southampton for the Blues' last game of the season this weekend. Southend United were relegated

  • Our hot tub caught fire

    A FAMILY of seven had a narrow escape after a hot tub caught fire and threatened to blow up a gas main. Maria and Simon Williams fled with their five children from their home in May Avenue, Canvey, after spotting flames leaping from a summer house in

  • Updated: Waite makes comeback

    Click here for Southend results FORMER Tory council leader Anna Waite is making a comeback after winning a hotly contested seat in a Labour stronghold. Mrs Waite was kicked out as Tory councillor for Prittlewell last May. Now she has ousted former

  • Tory ousted by independent

    FINAL results for Rochford District Council have seen the Tories lose two seats. However, they still maintain a massive majority on the council. Early results produced only one shock with former council chairman Richard Amner being defeated by Independent

  • Updated: Council leader kicked out

    Click here for Southend results SOUTHEND Conservatives are in crisis after the electorate kicked out their second leader in two years. Murray Foster lost his Prittlewell seat to Lib Dem candidate Ric Morgan, a former headteacher and radio presenter

  • New scanner is only the second in the UK

    SOUTHEND Hospital has become a global front-runner in radiotherapy treatment, thanks to the installation of one of the biggest scanners in the world. Patients will benefit from the new large bore computerised tomography (CT) scanner which can give doctors

  • Canvey Independents dominate new town council

    THE Canvey Independent Party has won all but one of the seats on the new island town council. Voters at yesterday's local elections voted for councillors on Castle Point Council. They also voted for the first councillors on the new Canvey town council

  • Tories lose overall control of Thurrock

    CONSERVATIVES suffered a bad night as they lost overall control of Thurrock Council. The ruling Tory group held six seats, gained just one but most importantly lost three vital seats. The Tory heads to roll included Transport Portfolio member, Leo Milan-Vega

  • Warming? It’s perfectly natural

    There have been a couple of interesting programmes on TV recently that more or less blow the global warming theory of being our humanoid fault alone out of the water. What I always suspected was the case. Imagine you are a resident of the planet Zog

  • Clear thinking is needed

    It seems that after any road fatality the need for immediate traffic calming measures is a must, but clear thinking also has to be addressed. I am not against road safety or the need to reduce speed, but accidents do happen and however hard we all try

  • Don't get your knickers in a twist over school

    Margaret Stoll (April 30) expressed concern about the effects of diverse cultures changing the character of Westborough Primary School in Westcliff. The school celebrates diversity and David Amess is quite right to praise it. Celebrating diversity is

  • I'm no Blair Babe, just a Pitsea girl doing her best

    WHEN Tony Blair stood on the steps of Number 10 a decade ago, it was a landmark in British politics. But not only did it bring to an end 18 years of Conservative rule, it also kicked off a political career in the national arena for someone closer to