JUDE Law and David Tennant have both recently taken up the famous mantle, but when Hamlet comes to Westcliff next week it will be a show with a difference. Pioneering theatre group Icarus will put their own spin on Shakespeare’s most universal work
NEW wave legends Squeeze will be belting out hit after hit when they play Chinnery’s tomorrow. The classic band take to the stage at the Southend venue as they tour once more to accompany the release of their album, Spot the Difference, a re-recording
WALKING around Alex Andrew’s luxury home, it’s hard to imagine it was built in a little over three months. In fact, the exterior of the property was put up in just four and a half days. Alex lives in a Huf Haus – a made-to-measure home
LANE closures have started at the Progress Road junction as part of the ongoing improvement works. Traffic Management has now been revised on the eastbound carriageway of the A127 to allow for resurfacing works in the centre of the road. Work has
A MAN has been convicted of raping a young woman at a party. Jamie Abbs, 34, of Leigh Hall Road in Leigh, attacked his victim while she was asleep following the party in Southend on April 25, 2010. Abbs had previously denied the offences
A VENDING machine was stolen from outside a Leigh hairdressers Police want to identify these men in connection with the theft near the Cutting Edge in Leigh Road. It happened around 5.30am on Sunday, October 24. The machine was worth about £100.
THESE men are wanted for a theft from a Westcliff supermarket. They are suspected of stealing £52 of meat from the Co-op in Hamlet Court Road. It happened at about 5.35pm on Friday, October 26. Anyone who recognises the pictured men is asked
FRAUDSTERS used a cloned credit card to book rooms in a Southend Hotel. The scam happened at the Camelia Hotel, in Eastern Esplanade, leaving them hundreds of pounds out of pocket. It happened on three occasions in August and September this year.
THE cost of groups hiring community halls across Basildon is set to rise by as much as 60 per cent. Basildon Council has released a draft leisure budget which details the proposed hikes for the centres used by playgroups, sports clubs and other community
A YOUNG man had a saw blade held to his throat during an arguement in a carpark. Two men had been in the carpark of B&Q, in Fossets Way, Southend, when they got into a heated row. One of the men, aged 29, was then kicked in the shin before having the
FOR a man who only took up running seriously ten years ago, David Butler had more than made up for lost time. The 57-year-old will make his debut for England tomorrow when he competes in the British and Irish cross country international. Butler, from
SOUTHEND churchgoers will soon be worshipping in a stunning new church – finally bringing to reality a plan first hatched before the Second World War. The striking, curved beams which form the skeleton of the new £2million Cornerstone United
Fire fighters are working to cut a man out of a Ford Escort following a crash in Upper Mayne. The crash happened at about 2.40pm today (fri) between the Cranes Farm Road roundabout and the junction with the A127. No other vehicles are believed
POLICE investigating a huge fire which destroyed Canvey shops and businesses have revealed canna-bis was being grown on the site. Officers discovered about 20 plants in a shed on the site, off High Street, Canvey, next door to a wood yard, industrial
YOUNGSTERS in south Essex could unknowingly have changed the way the UK, and even the world, helps to tackle childhood obesity. A groundbreaking scheme, piloted across Basildon and Thurrock, to diffuse the ticking timebomb of dangerously
CANVEY’S young star Jessica Judd sent out a message to her rivals at the English Cross-Country relays. The 15-year-old was running her first race against national competition in the under 17 women’s age group. After dominating the under 15s category
The yellow ribbons around Southend are for the residents living in this out-of-control dictatorship of a town! They carry a message – Our Voice, Our Choice – which conveys the simple fact that although we are being run by nine cabinet members
The Echo recently ran an article about Castle Point Wildlife Group and its work in West Wood, Benfleet. As a result of this article more than 20 volunteers turned up at our work party in the Wood last Sunday. We also had a number of new members
Having just got back from my over-50 aqua-aerobics, I read about Hazel McEwen (Nov 8), who was referred to a specialist health support group now about to lose its funding. She has lost weight and now goes out every day in her electric scooter
The various comments and statements (Nov 9) regarding the Ecclesiastical fears for the eviction of the travellers made interesting reading. Bishop Thomas was quoted as saying: “Alongside the humanitarian concerns, we have to ask if an extremely
A CONTROVERSIAL car wash can open in an empty pub car park, after a developer won an appeal against Basildon Council. Turlbrook Properties, which owns the Railway Hotel, in Pitsea High Road, appealed to the Planning Inspectorate after the council refused
THE selflessness and dedication of fundraisers who give up their free time to help people with terminal illnesses was recognised at a special awards event. Havens Hospices Long Service Awards were presented yesterday at the Hollywood restaurant, Benfleet
A DIGGER was burnt out on the field of a Canvey secondary school. Arsonists torched the high-value digger at Corneius Vemuyden School, in Third Avenue, between 10pm and 10.20pm on Friday, October 29. PC Adam Hall, of Canvey police, said
JACK Midson wants to serve up a treat for Southend United when they host Accrington Stanley at Roots Hall tomorrow. The 27-year-old, who is on loan at Blues from Oxford United, coaches tennis in his spare time. And he is aiming to be
THIEVES stole a BMW parked in a Rochford street. The black car was in St Andrews Road when it was pinched some time between 8.30pm on Thursday November 4 and 9.30am the following day. Anyone with information about the theft is asked to contact Det
A businessman, who has been trying to set up a seafront ice cream parlour and restaurant for four years, faces yet more delays. The trader, who wants to remain anonymous until he signs the lease, says he has spent more than £30,000 getting a deal into
SOUTHEND United Paul Sturrock feels his team must improve their attacking mentality if they are to start converting more of their chances. Blues, who host Accrington Stanley at Roots Hall tomorrow, has spurned a number of opportunities in their
GREAT Wakering Parish Council is holding an election to appoint a councillor. The council is seeking applications for Great Wakering West parish ward following the resignation of John Flaherty, who, the council says, has stepped down for personal
A BOY’S 15th birthday celebration have been ruined by burglars who stole his main present. Joseph Beard, who turns 15 today, returned to his home in Glenwood Avenue, Westcliff, to find his new bike had been stolen. The £140 smoky blue Apollo Ridge men
SOUTHEND skipper Chris Green has been ruled out for six weeks with a broken arm. The captain picked up the injury during last weekend’s defeat at Dings Crusaders. And he will not figure against Westcombe Park at Warners Bridge tomorrow. “It’s a blow
THE FIRM which looks after council housing in Basildon has paid out more than £9,500 compensation to tenants in 18 months because of poor repairs. St Georges Community Housing had 16 complaints about poor housing referred to the Local Government Ombudsman
A £20,000 reward has been offered by a man who wants justice after escaping death from multiple stab wounds. Chris Davies, 43, from Billericay, is desperate to find the two men who attacked him at 6.30am on February 23 this year. He was stabbed in his
A NOTORIOUS car clamping company has been given three months to file accounts with Government business regulators or risk being dissolved. By law, all limited companies have to register with Companies House and file copies of their accounts
AN open-air market will soon be in business on the site of a historic indoor market. York Road market in Southend, was closed last October by Southend Council after fears were voiced about structural safety. The new market will feature about 30 stalls
A MUM had precious photos of her disabled son stolen after a thief took her laptop computer from a library. Kayley Smith had the laptop, which contained cherished pictures of her two-year-old son Jack, who suffers from cerebral palsy, stolen
NEW flights have been announced from Southend Airport, flying from next spring. Irish airline Aer Arann is preparing to begin operations on March 28. The company plans to start flights to Waterford and Galway in the Irish Republic, with
A ROVING “vicar in a van” is to be cut to save Essex County Fire and Rescue Service about £30,000. The service said it will not be renewing its partnership with the Diocese of Chelmsford, as part of its bid to save £7million following the Government’
Magic Mushroom, Barleylands Road, Billericay. 01268 289963 EMBARRASSING as it is to admit, I can’t stop day-dreaming about the meal I ate at the Magic Mushroom. How did they cook the fish so perfectly? What was in that sauce? Why doesn’t my homemade
