Archive
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VOTE: Should Castle Point Council spend £1.25million to defend green belt sites?
TORY councillors are creating a £1.25million fighting fund to take on developers who want to build on green belt. Conservatives on Castle Point Council met last week to discuss the Local Plan to set out where thousands of homes will be built in
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Festival will raise vital funds for church
PARTYGOERS are invited to sing and dance the night away at a traditional celtic festival. St Peter’s Church in Thundersley will be hosting a traditional Ceildh on Saturday to raise cash for the upkeep of the grade two listed building. A Ceildh
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Take your dogs to Bark in the Park in Billericay
TAKE your dogs out for a canine extravaganza of walkies and woofs at a new dog show in Billericay. The Friends of Lake Meadows is inviting dog owners and their pets to Bark in the Park on Saturday. Competition categories will include most handsome
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It's a rocky road for three pub bosses
THREE women from local pubs have joined forces for a fundraising trek across the Canadian rocky mountains. Jan Hill, owner of the Castle in Southend, Jo Carey, licensee of The Esplanade, and Evey Gue, landlady of the Exhibition Inn, will trek across
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Leigh comic Phil Cornwell to host YMCA event
SOUTHEND YMCA’s first youth awards event will be hosted by Leigh comedian Phil Cornwell The awards will celebrate the achievements of young people who have succeeded against a challenging background. Cornwell, the host for the glittering event,
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Mum gathering spare phones to help autistic children get hi-tech gadget
A KIND-HEARTED mum who collected enough mobile phones to exchange for an iPad for her autistic son is now helping other children to get one. Jade O’Donoghue, of Rochford Road, Southend, collected 165 unused phones from friends. Charity Hearts
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Students inspired by paralympics athlete
A PARALYMPIAN has motivated students at a Shoebury school to achieve their dreams. Wendy Smith, who represented Great Britain at the Athens 2004 Paralympics at wheelchair basketball, visited Shoebury High School. Her visit launched the school
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Jaik Mickleburgh shines for Essex against Glamorgan despite rain misery
ONLY two hours of play were possible on the third day at Chelmsford but there was enough time for Essex opener Jaik Mickleburgh to score his second County Championship Division Two century of the season. From an overnight 68, he advanced to 124
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Pensioner speaks of her shock after she is attacked by burglar in Leigh home
A PENSIONER was left needing hospital treatment after a burglar broke into her Leigh home and assaulted her. The break-in happened in Leigh when a man used a garden ladder to enter a house through an open bedroom window at 6am on Sunday, September
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Revamped leisure centre is booming
BUSINESS is booming at Canvey’s leisure centre, with thousands more residents flooding through the doors after its £5.4million revamp. Waterside Farm, in Somnes Avenue, was officially reopened to the public last month after a 15-month refurbishment
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Fenchurch Street station set for £3.4million upgrade
FENCHURCH street station will see a £3.4million makeover. National Express train operator c2c and Network Rail have begun a joint project to create a new passenger exit at the flagship Fenchurch Street station. The construction work, which
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CCTV turned on again at Felmores End after a four-year wait
SECURITY cameras have finally been turned back on at a parade of shops in Pitsea. Basildon Council announced it came up with the £1,500 needed to reinstate and monitor four CCTV cameras in Felmores End, which have been out of action since 2009.
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Police still searching for the owners of two horses killed in A127 crash
POLICE are still looking for the owners of two horses which were killed on the A127 after being hit by a car. The male driver remains in hospital with serious injuries following the accident which happened at around 6am on Saturday. Enquires
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Trauma of watching mum die ...and how I coped
WHEN Alice Addison, 29, found out her mum Maisie had terminal cancer, she immediately deferred her degree in medicine in order to be with her in her last months of life. Here, Alice talks about the impact of losing a parent and the book she wrote
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Andrew Frye takes medal honours at Rochford Hundred Golf Club
THE men’s section at Rochford Hundred Golf Club held their September Saturday medal where the weather played its part as scoring conditions proved difficult. Three handicapper Andrew Frye secured the honours in the top division with his total of
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Plan for 750 new homes is thrown out
COUNCILLORS were cheered by residents after they rejected plans to build 750 homes on the green belt in Bowers Gifford. About 100 residents burst into applause as members of Basildon Council’s planning committee threw out plans to “destroy” a community
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Blackout plan will only save £345,000 across South Essex
PLUNGING south Essex into darkness by turning off the majority of its street lights after midnight will save Essex County Council just £345,000 a year, the Echo can reveal. The authority’s proposals to turn off residential and county road street
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Police say wheelchair woman's fall on to railway line was accident
A POLICE investigation into whether a woman in a wheelchair was pushed onto the tracks in Southend has concluded it was an accident. British Transport Police launched the investigation after railway worker Alan Chittock, 50, was suspended for breaching
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Parking debate anger in Chalkwell
RESIDENTS say they are disappointed a second consultation on parking restrictions near Chalkwell Station won’t take place. Chalkwell Parking Group hoped Southend Council would launch a new consultation with residents and businesses to find a solution
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Southend United manager Phil Brown: Buoyed for Bury by our Scunthorpe DVD
WE’RE looking to end the bad run of results we’re on when we head to Bury this weekend. But I’ve actually been buoyed ahead of our trip to Gigg Lane by watching the DVD of our game against Scunthorpe. On the actual evening of the game there
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Basildon Hospital to be partnered with Royal Free in London
THE Department of Health has confirmed Basildon Hospital will be partnered with London's Royal Free Hospital. Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt has paired up failing hospital trusts with successful ones as part of a bid to turn around the fortunes of
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Last-ditch pleas fail to save kids’ centres
THREE children’s centres will close after desperate last-ditch calls to save them were rejected. Southend Council’s cabinet on Tuesday agreed to go ahead with the closure of Hamstel Children’s Centre, in Hamstel Road, Southchurch, Leigh children
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Stuart Bingham gutted at opening round exit at the Shanghai Masters
STUART Bingham suffered a shock first-round defeat at the Shanghai Masters as 21-year-old rookie Kyren Wilson secured the best win of his career. Kettering’s Wilson claimed a 5-1 victory to reach the last 16 as Vange’s world number eight Bingham
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Cop's evidence just a 'convenient story', jury hears
AN UNDERCOVER cop’s evidence has been called into question and branded “a convenient story”. Basildon Crown Court heard yesterday an officer, known as Deano, had posed as a drug addict to infiltrate a gang called the Bush Boys, who are accused
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Southend United manager Phil Brown mulls over striker shake-up for Bury clash
SOUTHEND United manager Phil Brown is considering shaking up his strike-force for Saturday’s game at Bury. On-loan Fulham striker Cauley Woodrow has partnered Freddy Eastwood in attack for Blues’ last two matches. But, with the Shrimpers looking
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Ankle sprain delays court case
A COURT case was delayed yesterday...after the defendant sprained an ankle. Vikki Cherry, 29, was due at Southend Magistrates’ Court yesterday accused of assaulting a policeman, in Leigh, on September 1. Cherry, of Valkyrie Road, Westcliff,
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CCTV released of woman suspected of stealing 80-year-old woman's purse in Shoebury
AN 80-YEAR-OLD woman had her purse stolen while she shopped in Shoebury. Police are trying to identify a woman who was caught on CCTV at the tiome of the offence on Wednesday, September 11. The victim, who is in her 80s, was shopping in Asda
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Doomed care homes headed for closure
CAMPAIGNERS trying to save two Southend care homes were dealt a bitter blow after councillors rejected their calls to scrap the public consultation. It now looks as though the remaining two council-run care homes, Priory House, Southend, and Delaware
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UPDATED: Long delays as lorry wedged underneath railway bridge in Rochford
DRIVERS were stuck in long delays after a lorry became wedged under a railway bridge in Rochford. The lorry got stuck under the low bridge in Hall Road at 8.40am. Traffic is delayed along the busy stretch of road near to the junction with
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Mum's plea for return of ring containing son’s ashes
A GRIEVING mother is pleading with burglars to return a ruby ring that contains some of her late son’s ashes. Elizabeth Methven, 41, has been left devastated after thieves ransacked her home in Waalwyk Drive, Canvey, on Saturday night in the same
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Red Dwarf star Norman on being funny in your 60s and his secret Clacton past
COMEDIAN Norman Lovett, best known for his role in Red Dwarf, has a bit of a secret he wants to share. “I’ve always told people I am from Windsor,” he begins, “and to be fair that’s where I was born. I suppose I thought it would give me an air
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Top NHS managers to be drafted in to turn around failing hospitals
MANAGERS from top performing hospitals look set to be twinned failing ones, including Basildon, in a bid to bring about changes. Health secretary Jeremy Hunt is expected to announce how 11 hospital trusts placed in special measures earlier this
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Tributes for first editor of Echo
TRIBUTES have been paid to the Echo’s first editor, who has died aged 81. David Williams was in charge when the paper was launched to great acclaim in 1969 and went on to hold a number of key roles in the regional and national press. Echo editor
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Boys steal woman's purse as she struggled with shopping bags
A MUM says she is “utterly disgusted” with the schoolboys who snatched her purse as she struggled with shopping bags. Kelly Paul, 34, was walking in Whitmore Way, Basildon, when her plastic shopping bag burst, and a group of teenagers began kicking
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My hubby left me for a man... and fled with three of our kids
A WOMAN’S life spiralled into a drug addicted hell after her husband left her for a man and then fled abroad with three of her children. Michaela Tothova, 32, became hooked on Class A drugs after her life fell apart following the devastating split
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No longer so young...but Britpop darlings Suede are back to their best
WE want to make the first proper, post break-up record.” Suede, the darlings of Britpop, are back, older, but no less ambitious and sure of themselves. Bassist Mat Osman is talking about Bloodsports, the band’s new album, and it’s clear the
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New baby, new start for the Harrison family
NEW baby, new beginning as the saying goes, but never has this been truer than for the Harrison family. A year ago, Simon and Mary-Jayne’s baby girl Jessica tragically died just eight hours after being born. This was due to complications during
