MORE big names have joined the ranks of shops which have pledged their future to Basingstoke by taking up space in the flagship Festival Place shopping complex. Popular high street retailer JD Sports, Faith and Gadget Shop have announced they will all
BASINGSTOKE has already hit the recycling target it was set to achieve by the end of next year. Cllr George Hood, Cabinet member for community well-being, told the latest council meeting: "We are now achieving a 17.4 per cent recycling rate with our roadside
BASINGSTOKE council has taken the first step towards taking over the policing of parking in the borough. The council's Cabinet this week asked Hampshire County Council - as the local transport authority - to request that the Secretary of State for Transport
DEFENDER Chris Honor returns to the Basingstoke Town squad tomorrow after missing the last two games due to a two-game suspension. The Camrose Blues side travel to Bedford to face a side they drew 1-1 with earlier in the season. Last Saturday, Bedford
HARTLEY WINTNEY travel to Chalfont St Peter tomorrow to play Southall, with Stan Holloway returning to the visitors' midfield while David Howells and David Shephard are unavailable. Last Saturday, Jon Charman (pictured) stepped back into the Hartley side
POACHERS are shooting deer in some of Gosport's most scenic woodland, it has been revealed. Two carcasses have been found in as many months in The Alver Valley. But police and Gosport council countryside officers fear the death toll could be higher. "
IT'S the dramatic facelift that will change the heart of Eastleigh for ever. Offices and processing units that have dominated the vista for up to seven decades are biting the dust in a huge demolition exercise at the giant former Pirelli General factory
Emma Richards returned to the Volvo Ocean Race in Rio de Janeiro this week after a frantic visit home to announce her involvement in Tracy Edwards' high-profile campaign for the Jules Verne Trophy. Shell-shocked after her first taste of Volvo Ocean Racing
Dan Petrescu is in the Saints squad to face Ipswich tomorrow - but will consider his future in the summer. Romanian international Petrescu has only started nine games since Glenn Hoddle signed him for £100,000 from Bradford 14 months ago. And he has not
THE CAST and crew of A Beautiful Mind will be clearing mantelpieces and preparing acceptance speeches for the Oscars on March 24. Ron Howard's biopic of mathematics genius John Forbes Nash Jr is a powerful film, with an intelligent screenplay and searing
KIND stonemasons have stepped in to help a widower put a headstone on his wife's grave after he was targeted by cruel thieves. William Dent, 89, this week expressed his gratitude to Steve Vanhinsbergh from B&V Masonry Ltd who came forward after reading
CAMPAIGNERS are feeling confident that arson-hit Beech Down Primary School will be rebuilt on the same site after receiving the results of a public consultation. The findings of a week-long consultation looking at the future provision of primary education
BASINGSTOKE hospital chiefs are to step up the battle against breast cancer. Last Friday, The Gazette revealed that breast cancer survival rates in the North and Mid Hampshire Health Authority area - which Basingstoke and Deane is part of - had decreased
JOBS are to go and prices are to rise at Basingstoke's landmark Milestones museum. Three staff have already gone and a further four are to be made redundant. Some full-time posts will also be made part-time. The job cuts follow a fall in the number of
OUTRAGED ambulance crews in Hampshire could soon be rushing to emergencies in jeans and T-shirts. The threat follows growing concern among staff over a shortage of uniforms. Staff representatives have now told Hampshire ambulance service bosses to either
Today's Principal Arrivings: Asian Chorus, ro/ro, 0030, 43; River Tyne, general, AM, 36S; Dealer, general, 1200, 47S; Autotransporter, ro/ro, 1400, 201 link; Nedlloyd America, container, 1500, 207; Laola, general, 1900, 36; Lady linda, general, PM, 47N
PHIL Della-Savina returns to the Basingstoke line-up on Sunday as the FX-backed side travel to Gosport and Fareham for a Hampshire Cup semi-final. The Down Grange club's former captain has missed the last two games due to a club suspension for picking
IT'S hot-flush Barbie - possibly more rancid than ever before. That's how comedienne Jenny Eclair bills her latest show, subtitled Middle-Aged Bimbo - and who are we to argue? Sixty minutes of showing off from the mistress of stand-up are promised in
ATOMIC KITTEN are maintaining their reputation as the hardest-working girls in pop by embarking on their first ever UK tour tomorrow night. Since the girls (Liz McClarnon, Natasha Hamilton and Jenny Frost) burst onto the pop scene in November 1999 they
A HAMPSHIRE school is to be prosecuted over the death of nine-year-old Elizabeth Bee who drowned on a school outing. After a two-year investigation, the Crown Prosecution Service has decided Boundary Oak school in Fareham and teacher Paul Dove should
RAIDERS grabbed thousands of pounds worth of property from two firms on Hedge End's Herald Industrial Estate - putting the future of a fledgling saddlery business in doubt. Horse-mad 19-year-old Debbie Bulpit launched her own business, Horse Style, on
Graham Rix goes into tomorrow's crunch clash with second-from -bottom Walsall knowing only another win will do if he is to save his job. Despite Milan Mandaric's backing, Rix made it clear after Tuesday's 1-0 win over Coventry that he believed a defeat
A NEW litter blitz programme has been drawn up by civic leaders in Basingstoke - without spending any extra money. The street cleansing programme - which aims to make better use of manpower, identify cost savings, and recruit more sweepers - was approved
HAMPSHIRE police officers are to stage a mass protest in London after they voted overwhelmingly to reject Government proposals on pay and allowances. The officers will join others from around the country at a rally day on March 13 to lobby MPs against
A PET owner who watched in horror as a vicious bull terrier tore his cat apart has called for the dog to be destroyed. Michael Brown, 61, of Cleve-land Road, Buckskin, Basing-stoke, said he is devastated that his 15-year-old family pet was killed in such
YOUNG people in the Winklebury suburb of Basingstoke have received a major boost with the provision of a drop-in centre to keep them off the streets. The borough council has provided £30,000 over a period of two years to run the centre in the car park
TAGGING could be an answer to Basingstoke's young offenders problem, says a top Hampshire policeman. Home Secretary David Blunkett this week unveiled plans to electronically tag people as young as 12 while they are out on bail awaiting trial for serious
SOCIAL services bosses are under fire for refusing to explain why a persistent teenage offender was let loose in Basingstoke when he was supposed to be in their care. The father of the 15-year-old and Basingstoke MP Andrew Hunter are demanding to know
NICK MOLONEY sets out on his third attempt on the Jules Verne record tomorrow after the broken mast on Bruno Peyron's maxi-catamaran Orange was fixed in record time. Just 20 minutes after crossing the Ushant start line 12 days' ago, the attempt was brought
BADMINTON: ANDOVER regained top place in women's division two of the Castlegate Investments-sponsored Basingstoke and District League with a 6-3 win over Waverley at Harriett Costello. Karen Causley/Sue Clarke and Ann Viney/Helen Li scored trebles for
ROBERT Tobin has been chosen to make his senior British debut in a five-way indoor international at Kelvin Hall, Glasgow tomorrow week. The step-up to the senior ranks follows an outstanding run by the 18-year-old from Old Basing at the under-20 national
THE LARGEST gathering of local sporting talent for a year takes place next Friday. Gazette Sports Awards night is again hosted by the Apollo Hotel and eight major trophies will be presented , including the Gazette Sports Personality of the Year, chosen
CAN anyone break the Basingstoke Bison stranglehold on the Gazette Sports Personality of the Year? Today we are asking Gazette readers to vote for the sportsman or woman who deserves the most prestigious award in local sport, which will be presented a
THEY lost to Farnborough in the Plate final of 1995 and to Romsey two years ago in the Bowl. So Millbrook will be searching to make it third time lucky when they receive Guernsey in the Hampshire Caffrey's Bowl showpiece on Sunday. On both previous occasions
MICHAEL Messent, partner at Trethowans solicitors of Southampton, has been elected and crowned "Master of the Worshipful Company of Cooks of London". He was made a member of this Livery Company 25 years ago and followed in the footsteps of his father,
SOME actors make the business of acting seem terribly serious. With Su Pollard, though, you know it's just one big laugh all the way. Her latest role, as Ruth in The Pirates of Penzance at the Mayflower, is no exception. The actress, famous as chalet-cleaner
AGAINST a backdrop of clear blue Middle Eastern skies, HMS Southampton has been powering her way through the sea, leading a war convoy on high security alert. After leaving Dubai, she rendezvoused with aircraft carrier HMS Illustrious and assault vessel
A JUDGE branded a Southampton pensioner as extremely eccentric and a nuisance to his neighbours and said only his age and his mental state had saved him from prison. Bill Sandey, 80, frequently clashed with Judge Christopher Leigh QC during a case at
SELF-STYLED "Monkey Boy" Ian Brown should be in jubilant mood when he brings his UK tour to Southampton Guildhall on Sunday night. Despite his current single, Whispers, bombing out of the charts, the singer must be in high spirits after beating Kylie
MUSIC stars including Ash and The Charlatans are set to appear at the Isle of Wight Festival - the Island's first for 32 years. But David Bowie - previously rumoured to be topping the bill at the Island's annual pop music celebration - will not be there
SAINTS boss Gordon Strachan has dismissed any lingering relegation fears and instead targeted winning the 'ought to beat' league. After last week's 0-0 draw with Bolton, Saints' Premiership run-in sees them face Ipswich, Sunderland, Blackburn, Charlton
IN DECEMBER 1967, the town of Point Pleasance, West Virginia, made headlines around the world when a tragedy claimed the lives of dozens of its residents. Mark Pellington's psychological thriller portrays these events through the eyes of reporter John
