Archive
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Our show is Strictly a scorcher
FRED and Ginger who? With their instinctive knowledge of each other’s style and a professional relationship that has stayed strong through thick and thin, Vincent Simone and Flavia Cacace are a true dancing partnership. Despite their 11-year personal
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Animal circus’s ‘come and see us’ offer to MPs
A CIRCUS has invited MPs who want to ban animals from performing to take a behind-the-scenes look at how they are treated. The invitations to watch training, husbandry, and the show at the Great British Circus were sent out following a vote in the House
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Drugs worth £15k seized by police
POLICE seized cocaine and heroin worth £15,000 in a dramatic dawn raid. A team of officers swooped on Bewley Court, Whittingham Avenue, Southend, following suspicions about class A drug dealing. They entered a flat at about 6.15am yesterday and carried
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Heartless thriller showcases talent
PHEW! What a torrid tale. Fatal Excuses begins with a furtive one-night stand towards the end of the Second World War. The fateful consequences escalate into an apocalyptic mayhem that involves torture, abduction, betrayal, suicide, violent incest,
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Firefighters tackle chippy blaze
FIREFIGHTERS shut down Southend town centre after fire engulfed a chip shop. Dozens of officers spent more than three hours battling the flames which tore through The Royal Fish and Chip bar on the corner of Alexandra Street and the High Street on Friday
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What’s sparked the great pension revolt?
Why are workers striking? The mass walkout was mainly due to a planned shake-up of pensions for public sector workers. There’s no way around it. The Government must change the pension system because more of us are living longer and taking more out
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Hundreds of teachers join protests across Essex
HUNDREDS of teachers joined civil servants to march through the streets in protest over pensions reforms. More than 300 schools across Essex closed as members of the National Union of Teachers and the Public and Commercial Services Union rallied over
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Time to take walk on the Artside
SHOULD you encounter something weird and wonderful while you’re browsing through Southend town centre next week, don’t be alarmed. Artside is back and there will be installations and performance pieces in various venues around the town until
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Teens go for glory at English Schools Championships
FOR some of our young athletes, this weekend’s English Schools Championships will be the pinnacle of their careers, while for others it will be just another step on the way to a successful career in the sport. But either way the championships, this year
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Belfairs School ready for bright new future
LEAVING your old school can be a bittersweet moment. But for pupils at Belfairs High School, in Leigh, this landmark moment is cause for nothing but excitement, and for some is coming several years earlier than usual. This is because youngsters at Belfairs
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Lord Hanningfield jailed for nine months
THE disgraced former Tory peer and ex-Essex County Council leader has been jailed for nine months for fiddling his parliamentary expenses. Lord Hanningfield, 70, falsely claimed for nearly £14,000 for overnight stays in London when he was not
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Fish & Chip shop raided for oil
THIEVES used a vehicle to smash down the back fence of a Fish & Chip shop under cover of darkness. This gave them access to the back yard of the Fryery, in Spa Road, Hockley, where they stole waste cooking oil from a tank. Police were
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Sturrock eager for Murray success
SOUTHEND United manager Paul Sturrock would love to see Andy Murray triumph over Rafael Nadal at Wimbledon this afternoon. Sturrock has followed his fellow Scotman's throughout the championships. And he would love Murray to go on and
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Barker named new Blues skipper
CHRIS Barker has been named as Southend United's new captain. The 31-year-old replaces Craig Easton who now looks certain to leave the club. And manager Paul Sturrock is certain the defender will do a good job. “Chris is hugely
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Blues back in training
SOUTHEND United will today report back in for the start of pre-season training. Blues' players have followed their own personal fitness programmes throughout the summer. But the intensity of the work is about to be increased.
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N'Diaye raring to go with Blues
ALASSANE N’Diaye is ready to rip apart League Two after finally completing a season long loan switch to Southend United. The giant French midfielder will be at Roots Hall from Crystal Palace until at least May. And the 21-year-old is
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Cannabis seized in police raid
POLICE have seized about £1000 of herbal cannabis in a dawn raid. Officers swooped on a house in Parkfields, Thundersley, at about 8am this morning. They arrested a woman in her early 20s, and two men in their mid-20s on suspicion of possession of drugs
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New homes would ‘cause road chaos’
PLANS for a massive housing estate on a Canvey caravan park would stretch the island’s already congested roads to breaking point, it has been claimed. The concerns were raised after Jeff King, owner of Thorney Bay Park, revealed his intention to build
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Bouncer re-bailed in murder inquiry
A BOUNCER arrested in connection with a murder investigation has had his bail extended. He is part of a group suspected of fatally injuring Reece Lamude, 37, outside Churchills, in Tylers Avenue, Southend. The father-of-two, from Rayleigh, died in the
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Shrimpers: New skipper named
SOUTHEND United's new captain has been named as defender Chris Barker. Barker, last season's player of the year, has been named today as the Shrimpers new skipper, taking over from Craig Easton for the next campaign. The club's new vice-captain has
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Basildon to get a new Army-themed laser game centre
A WAREHOUSE is set to be transformed into an Army-themed laser warfare game centre. Children’s entertainment company Partyman World is converting a warehouse in Repton Close, Basildon, into the Laser Kombat centre, which is due to open on
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Man suffers injuries in Westcliff fire
A MAN suffered burns and cuts after a fire at his Westcliff flat. The man, believed to be in his 30s, was taken to Southend Hospital following the attack at about 2am today near his front door. Police For full story, see Monday's Echo
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Brides will paint the town white
BRIDE-TO-BE Zoe Hughes has arranged a hen night out with 45 friends and family who will wear wedding dresses. Zoe and her group are sure to turn heads as they visit Bar Bluu and Talk nightclub, both in Lucy Road, Southend, on Saturday.
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Updated: End of the line for Dale Farm
THE eviction of the Dale Farm traveller site is set to go ahead after the final piece of funding was put in place. About 20 protesters staged a demo outside the Basildon Centre ahead of a vote to finalise funding for the eviction of travellers from
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Dustcart fire shock for driver
A DUSTCART had to dump its load into the middle of the road after a fire broke out in the rubbish. The incident blocked Plumberow Avenue, Hockley, for more than an hour yesterday morning. The driver spotted the flames as he picked up
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My boy’s nightmares after having knife held to throat
A SCHOOLBOY has been suffering horrific nightmares since having a knife pressed against his throat by a thug in Southend town centre. The 15-year-old keeps reliving how he and his friends were threatened at the bottom of the High Street by
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UPDATED: Woman dies in Southend blaze
A WOMAN has died in a flat fire in Southend. Three people have been injured while attempting to rescue her from the blaze. Firefighters were called to a mid-terrace property in Sutton Road, Southend at about 5.30pm. Two young
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Council: It's now time to recycle
A RECYCLING revolution will save money and the environment, according to the council. From Monday, a new weekly food waste collection will begin in Castle Point, which will see residents’ mouldy bread, leftovers from dinner, old teabags, and much more
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Closure on A13 sliproad – but no roadworks
MOTORING misery has turned to anger after drivers found out a slip road had been coned off for safety reasons. No roadworks were actually being carried out on the slip road, which allows traffic leaving Canvey to hook up with the London-bound A13 at
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Firefighters spend night tackling barn fire
Firefighters tackled a blaze at a barn in Pitsea. The barn in Lower Avenue, which contained building materials and diving cylinders, went up in flames at 3am. Three fire crews extinguished the blaze from outside the building, because there was a danger
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Why I’m still waiting for the truth about Lee’s death
SERIOUS failings of Essex Police detectives during an investigation into a man found dead on a cement mixer can today be revealed. Lee Balkwell, 33, was found dead, with his head and shoulders trapped between the drum and chassis of a cement
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Fraudster caught claiming benefits and living with £130k salary man
A WOMAN who claimed thousands of pounds in benefits while her husband earned £130,000 a year has been ordered to pay back the money. Lisa Spindler, from Benfleet, failed to notify the authorities she and her husband had got back together and was wrongly
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£68million Sadlers Farm road revolution right on track
EXCELLENT progress is being made on a £68million junction overhaul that is set to revolutionise journeys in south Essex. Frustrated drivers negotiating the long queues that form around the tortuous Sadlers Farm roundabout on a daily basis have
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Festival Park to get 4 new restaurants
PLANS to build four restaurants in Basildon’s Festival Leisure Park have been approved by councillors. The new crescent-shape of cafes will be in front of the main entrance and aims to create a “piazza” area between the new and existing buildings
