Archive

  • THE COWHERDS INN, SOUTHAMPTON

    WHEN we decided to go for Sunday lunch at one of Southampton's best known pubs, our first thought was to ring ahead and book a table. As I soon discovered that's completely out of the question when you want to dine at The Cowherds Inn at their busiest

  • ADR launches new Executive division

    ADR Network, an award-winning market leader in the supply of temporary drivers, has launched a new specialist division - ADR Executive. Geoff Rehr, director of ADR Network's Southampton office, explained: "ADR Resources has three operating divisions -

  • A taxing new role

    SOLICITOR Victoria Fairley has joined Hampshire law firm White & Bowker to strengthen further its tax and trusts team. Qualifying in 1999, Victoria formerly worked in the London firm of RadcliffesLeBrasseur. She is a member of the Society of Trust

  • Romsey runners put up a good show at Lordshill

    THERE were some excellent individual performances at the Lordshill 10-mile road race last Sunday, and Romsey showed up well in the team results. The women's team were second while the men were placed fifth on a hard course with a climb up Toothill at

  • Former Bison man's triumphant return

    Former Bison man's triumphant return Basingstoke Bison 0, Nottingham Panthers 3 FORMER Basingstoke hero Curtis Cruickshank had a triumphant return to his old stomping ground on Sunday night. He recorded a shut-out for his new team the Nottingham Panthers

  • Could this be Harry's last derby?

    HARRY Redknapp has threatened to quit Pompey if Milan Mandaric brings in a director of football. Redknapp was furious with the Pompey chairman following reports that Croat Velimir Zajec is set to become director of football at Fratton Park, after leaving

  • Transfer-listed Elm still set to play

    DAVID Elm has become the area's second Ryman League goalkeeper to have been placed on the transfer list. Days after Eastleigh announced that Colin Matthews had been listed at his own request, Bashley have decided former Dorchester man Elm needs a change

  • Shaw is ready to step in for Matthews

    EASTLEIGH have had no hesitation elevating Wayne Shaw to the rank of first-choice goalkeeper following a shock transfer request from Colin Matthews. With Matthews having been granted a week off after informing the club on Monday that he wanted to leave

  • Anaconda: The Hunt for the Blood Orchid (12a)

    A SCIENTIFIC expedition sets out for Borneo to seek a flower called the Blood Orchid, which could grant longer life. Meanwhile, the crew fall foul of snakes and each other. Laughably grim.

  • Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason (15)

    THE first Bridget Jones film was a delicious surprise. Not only did it take a slight and highly-overrated book and turn it into a wonderfully charming movie, but it also showcased a perfect performance from American Renee Zellweger as the hapless British

  • Truly scrumptious!

    BASINGSTOKE RFC players have proved they are good sports by baring all to support their club's Stand Up 4 'Stoke appeal. The Down Grange-based club is currently trying to raise £250,000 for a series of wide-ranging improvements, including building a 290

  • Alfa's sporty Spider

    THE final edition of Alfa Romeo's classic two-seater sports car is now available in three striking exterior colours, featuring unique 17 inch spoked alloy wheels teamed with black leather trim. The special version Alfa Spiders are available in Alfa red

  • In Port

    Today's Principal Arrivals: Auto Atlas, ro/ro, 0100, 40; Dart 2, ro/ro, container, 0530, 30; MOL Precision, container, 0600, 206; Simone J, cargo, 1500, 204W; Le Castellet, ro/ro, 1700, 201 link; Meraklis, bulk, 2130, 107 Today's Principal Sailings: Cap

  • BAT row resolved as pay deal is agreed

    THE first industrial dispute at Southampton's British American Tobacco factory in 22 years is over. As reported in later editions of the Daily Echo yesterday, a majority of production workers belonging to the union Amicus voted to accept a revised pay

  • Shaw is ready to step in for Matthews

    EASTLEIGH have had no hesitation elevating Wayne Shaw to the rank of first-choice goalkeeper following a shock transfer request from Colin Matthews. With Matthews having been granted a week off after informing the club on Monday that he wanted to leave

  • Rolls goes topless

    ROLLS-Royce Motor Cars have confirmed that a new model is to be built at the company's manufacturing plant at Goodwood. The new car, a two-door, four-seat convertible, is expected to be unveiled in 2007. Codenamed RR02, the new model will be based on

  • Big cat sighting

    A DUNBRIDGE couple had an encounter with Hampshire's elusive big cat while dog walking. Michael and Jackie Horne saw the black panther-like animal with a large tail in a meadow near a large private garden at Butts Green - close to the footpath linking

  • Woman fights off knifeman

    DETECTIVES are hunting a man who attacked a woman with a craft knife at her West Tytherley home. The man struck as the 25-year-old was putting the key into her outdoor electricity meter near the front door. He attacked his victim from behind. She suffered

  • Mast protesters left on tenterhooks

    PROTESTERS fighting plans for a mobile phone mast close to a Winchester school have been left on tenterhooks following the latest round of legal action. Yesterday at the Royal Courts of Justice in London, Law Lords heard the final appeal against Orange's

  • HIT-AND-RUN: PENSIONER ARRESTED

    POLICE hunting a hit-and-run driver that left a New Forest cyclist for dead have arrested a pensioner in connection with the inquiry. The 71-year-old was arrested following the collision near Cadnam, which left pedal cyclist John Morris fatally injured

  • Fireworks are such a blasted nuisance

    A WATERSIDE man is demanding tighter controls on fireworks after a giant rocket damaged the roof of his house. The four-ounce rocket smashed a tile on Chris Aldhous' roof and the force of the impact caused three more tiles to shatter beneath it. Mr Aldhous

  • Managing to raise standards

    NEW national occupational standards for management and leadership have been launched. The move has been made by the Management Standards Centre (MSC), in response to the announcement that poor management is holding back the UK economy at the present time

  • Oklahoma!

    ONE of Rodgers and Hammerstein's timeless classics Oklahoma! is being brought to the Theatre Royal Winchester next week by Winchester Amateur Operatic Society with sponsorship by local car dealer Hendy Ford. Based on the play Green Grow the Lilies by

  • Three Men in a Boat Titchfield Festival Theatre

    FORGET the wet, windy days of November and join the cast of Titchfield Festival Theatre in a delightful journey up the river Thames evoking balmy summer days messing about on the river. Written by Jerome K Jerome Three Men in a Boat was denounced as vulgar

  • Ebenezer, Copythorne Amateur Theatrical Society

    CHARLES Dickens' famous tale A Christmas Carol gets a musical makeover courtesy of Copythorne Amateur Theatrical Society. After 20 years of treading the boards with the group, long-serving member Mike Bailey makes his first attempt at directing this musical

  • OAP arrested after hit-and-run death

    POLICE investigating a hit-and-run accident in which a former Fareham police officer was killed have arrested a pensioner. The 71-year-old was questioned yesterday in connection with the inquiry that was launched following the collision in the New Forest

  • WE'RE DYING FOR A SMOKE...

    SMOKING is responsible for one-third of all deaths in Southampton, the Daily Echo can reveal. A shocking new government-commissioned report shows that 35 per cent of people in the city - 42 per cent of men and 27 per cent of women - die from smoking-related

  • Don't be a mug... give your cups to hospital

    AS a regular visitor to Southampton General Hospital, mum Diane Pratt knows the benefit of a humble cuppa. The 42-year-old has spent many anxious hours waiting on the children's cardiac ward, where her ten-year-old daughter Victoria has undergone numerous

  • Esther waltzes way to weight loss

    SPARKLING Esther Rantzen has prompted a renaissance on the dance floor following her success in TV's Strictly Come Dancing. She may have been voted off the show but she has won plaudits aplenty for her nifty footwork - and the weight she lost in the process

  • They cut the jewson lot!

    ENTHUSIASTIC staff at Jewson's in Mylen Road, Andover, have come top of the South West branches chart for banking the most amount of money in their latest fundraising event for Cancer Research UK. After their manager Chris West suggested shaving off their

  • Ford Cottage move raises expansion scheme doubts

    A QUESTION mark hangs over Andover's Chantry Centre expansion scheme because of the listed Ford Cottage. Kailash Estates Limited submitted a planning application to Test Valley Borough Council for a mixed scheme, which would link directly into the existing

  • Checking stray leaves pass the council test

    ANYONE who wants to take advantage of Test Valley Borough Council's offer to collect leaves which have fallen into their garden from street trees must contact the council first to make arrangements for collection. Where requested during November and into

  • Toilet closure threat

    PUBLIC toilets across the Kennet district area could be closed or handed over to parish councils to run as part of a shake-up brought about by the need to contain council spending. Parish council representatives from across the district have been invited

  • BEACH BOYS

    GOOD vibrations will be felt in Portsmouth this week, courtesy of the Beach Boys. The band doesn't quite feature the same line-up as in the 60s when the Californian family band dominated the charts with such hits as Surfin' USA, I Get Around, God Only

  • Poignant moment as newest county green opened

    NETHER Wallop is the proud home to Hampshire's newest village green. The Mayor of Test Valley, Councillor Neville Whiteley, officially opened the new green on Saturday. The green is named Mouland's Meadow after the family who owns the meadow which is

  • GIG GUIDE

    Who's playing in the South this week.. SATURDAY night sees Keane play at Southampton Guildhall. The rock band, who are releasing their new single, This is the Last Time, on Novemeber 22 are currently touring the UK after much success with record sales

  • Midfielder leaves club

    STUART Tanfield has left Basingstoke Town after being told by manager Ernie Howe he is not the man to fill the troublesome left midfield spot. As Howe bids to respond positively to Town's woeful FA Trophy exit on Saturday, he has told the 23-year-old

  • Black Watch is remembered

    SOLDIERS of the Black Watch who have been killed in the conflict in Iraq were remembered at Eastleigh when members of the public joined ex-servicemen and women to observe a two-minute silence. Seventy-year-old Gordon Vickers, who served in the REME for

  • Recycling plant blaze bill almost £3,000

    NEARLY £3,000 of damage was caused at Eastleigh's Wood-side Avenue recycling centre in a blaze believed to have been started by arsonists. As reported by the Daily Echo, firefighters from Eastleigh and Romsey were called to tackle the blaze in three skips

  • Precinct plan can't come soon enough

    IT JUST can't come quick enough. That's the reaction from shopkeepers and residents to moves to redevelop Chandler's Ford's ageing Central Precinct. Two years ago Eastleigh civic chiefs earmarked the site for major improvements in the borough's Local

  • QE2 smashes a company record

    CUNARD'S Queen Elizabeth 2 has become the longest serving express liner in the company's history after 35 years, six months and three days afloat. QE2, pictured, took the record from the company's Aquitania, which served Cunard Line, in peace and war,

  • Last six months has been OUR fault

    RORY DELAP insists the players must take the blame for Saints' downward spiral over the past six months. The Republic of Ireland international midfielder was brutally honest in his assessment of the club's current situation but believes it is wrong to

  • Wigley to unleash J-Force on Pompey

    STEVE WIGLEY is set to place faith in the Saints establishment for tomorrow's crunch derby clash - with both James Beattie and Jason Dodd ready for a return to first-team action. Both are the sort of big personalities that Wigley wants for what is the

  • If Saints want my help, they know exactly where to find me ...

    Many fans have urged Saints to call on the expertise of legendary manager Lawrie McMenemy as they struggle to regain their Premiership status. Today, in a special pre-derby column, Big Mac confesses for the first time that if the call came from St Mary's

  • Kasey to make debut tomorrow?

    TOTTENHAM keeper Kasey Keller was today expected to seal a loan move to Saints. The American international has fallen down the pecking order at Spurs. He would provide vital short-term cover with Antti Niemi out for at least three weeks after a knee op

  • Just how keen is Rupert on stability?

    STEVE WIGLEY has conducted himself well in the face of adversity. But after Saturday's draw with West Brom, he admitted he would rather not have the extra game at Watford to worry about this week. You knew what he meant. And he was not suggesting Saints

  • FR-V MPV is GR8!

    SEEN a Honda Stream recently? No, neither have I. At a time when you can't move for MPVs, the Japanese firm's compact people carrier has never really left the showrooms in the same numbers as those from European manufacturers. Sure it does a fine job,

  • Ruffy is back

    FORMER Basingstoke RFC director of rugby Ian Calder has been welcomed back into the first team - just a month after 'Stoke bosses ruled out his return. On October 8, The Gazette reported how 'Stoke's five-strong playing committee had rejected an offer

  • Putting the spark back into Marks

    STUART Rose, the chief executive of Marks & Spencer, was in Basingstoke yesterday to launch the retail giant's new-look store after an investment of nearly £8million. The launch marked a positive move for Mr Rose, whose visit came just two days after

  • Richard heads up Leepeck new media

    Marketing agency LeepeckGreenfield has strengthened its new media division by appointing Richard Smith as new media manager. He is heading up the LPGF3 division, working with clients on all aspects of Web design, programming, information technology and

  • How railway put the 'New' in New Milton

    NEXT year sees the 100th anniversary of an ambitious project that would have changed the face of public transport in the Solent area. The soaring number of passengers catching trains to Lymington and then boarding ferries to the Isle of Wight sparked

  • An agency with good Prospects

    EVER since the launch of their Southampton branch more than four months ago, staff at Recruitment Prospects have not had a chance to sit back and relax. Specialists in supplying quality temporary and permanent staff to the driving, warehouse and industrial

  • RUGBY: Gritty Romsey win re-played match

    A gritty team performance and a sparkling all-round display from fly-half Graham Noble ensured a Romsey victory in this replayed match at the Sports Centre last Saturday. Although the two sides fielded multiple changes, the game followed a very similar

  • Romsey pull of cup upset

    RISING stars Romsey played some of their best football yet in dispatching higher-ranked opponents in a seven-goal Bypass Ground thriller, but it wasn't all plain sailing for Trevor Holmes' boys, especially off the pitch. Defender Danny Belbin, who's made

  • Clarke in debt to Hampshire

    SHANE WARNE returned from India as Test cricket's greatest wicket-taker-after passing Muthiah Muralitharan's mark of 532 wickets last month. But according to the Hampshire captain, watching Michael Clarke's remarkable emergence was even more rewarding

  • Seasons greetings in Azzabat Braille

    A BLIND Southampton man is bringing the Christmas message to the visually impaired by launching a range of Braille Christmas cards. Fed up at the poor choice of cards for the blind, Simon Highsmith, who runs local Braille translating firm Azzabat a play

  • Top sides ready for battle

    FOR THE third time this season there is a first against second clash in Hampshire Division One but, unlike the previous encounters, this one has a little bit of needle about it. Unbeaten leaders Trojans visit progressive Fareham Heathens for a match the

  • Tottonians facing a make or break period

    TOTTONIANS head into a make-or-break pre-Christmas round of fixtures that will go a long way to pointing whether they will be still be in the promotion shake-up come the end of the season. The surprise package of the season, Totts, who sit second four

  • Transfer-listed Elm still set to play

    DAVID Elm has become the area's second Ryman League goalkeeper to have been placed on the transfer list. Days after Eastleigh announced that Colin Matthews had been listed at his own request, Bashley have decided former Dorchester man Elm needs a change

  • Choral concert dedicated to memory of Karen Hobbs

    Romsey Choral Society's concert in Romsey Abbey this Saturday (November 13th) is dedicated to the memory of popular estate agent Karen Hobbs, who was killed in car crash in September The concert, which features Mozart's Requiem, will also include the

  • Hillier chief calls for tree screen

    AN impassioned plea to the public to do everything possible to protect the Hillier Arboretum against the threat of major housing and sports ground developments has been made by its top man. The Test Valley Borough local plan proposals include allocating

  • Petition calls for HGV route to bypass town

    NEW calls backed by over 100 signatures on a petition have been made for designated lorry routes around Romsey. The petition has been raised in the Greatbridge Road area amid concerns that lorries are not encouraged by Hampshire County Council's highways

  • TIME TO BOOK A DATE!

    THIS is the first picture of what the £7m super-library will look like in Winchester. Now people are being offered the chance to give their feedback on the plans for the cultural centre. It would provide a landmark lending and reference library, an exhibition

  • Are we really 'any old city'?

    A GLANCE along Winchester High Street says it all. HMV, Debenhams, Sainsbury's, Next, River Island, Clarks - the list of chain shops goes on. Some people fear it is a sign that Winchester has become an identikit city, no different from Southampton, Basingstoke

  • Last gasp for smokers?

    The days when Hampshire smokers can light up at work or in the pub will be a thing of the past if a public smoking ban is introduced throughout the United Kingdom. Sarah Cole and Ian Drury report on a move likely to leave many of the county's estimated327,000

  • BLOOD BROTHERS

    THEY say blood runs thicker than water and that is certainly true in Willy Russell's multi-award winning musical, Blood Brothers, which returns to The Mayflower next week. Set in Russell's native Liverpool, the emotional tale of twin boys separated at

  • On Stage

    Who's treading the boards this week... HYNOTIST Paul McKenna brings his show to Salisbury City Hall on Saturday and to the Pavilion Theatre, Bournemouth on Thursday. Salisbury City Hall tickets: £15. Box office: 01722 327676. Pavilion Theatre tickets:

  • Students queue for mumps vaccinations

    DOZENS of students at Southampton University queued for vaccines yesterday following an outbreak of mumps across the city. About 90 students booked to be immunised while scores more attended three drop-in sessions, which had been hastily arranged across

  • Brian registers an amazing discovery

    IT WAS a shot that echoed round the world. When Archduke Franz Ferdinand - heir to the Austro-Hungarian Empire - was assassinated in the Balkan city of Sarajevo more than 90 years ago it heralded the beginning of the most brutal conflict the world has

  • Art gallery withdraws Al-Qaida training video

    SENIOR staff at Southampton Institute's prestigious Millais Gallery have axed a controversial artwork from an exhibition on terrorism after fears it would cause offence. The artwork, entitled Someone Else's Everyday Reality, shows a training video for

  • Late licence pours on misery for residents

    A CITY bar has been handed a controversial late licence - despite residents' pleas that it would make their lives a misery. Apartment 26 in Carlton Place has been granted an extension to its midnight music and dancing licence for seven days a week. It

  • City unites for Diwali festival

    CELEBRATIONS were under way across Hampshire today to mark the Hindu festival of Diwali. Thousands of people are expected to watch colourful firework displays and take part in the annual festivities tonight. The event, which commemorates the triumph of

  • Lucky to be alive

    HURSTBOURNE Tarrant student Paul Griffiths has spoken of his terrifying ride on the high-speed train which crashed on Saturday - killing seven. Paul was travelling from Reading to Newbury with three student friends including Ben Simpson from Tadley, when

  • Ex-boxing champ opens home

    FORMER boxing champion Michael Watson will visit Andover on Thursday for the official opening of Testway Housing's WISE home. The show house in Blake Court, Artists Way, is equipped with the latest technology enabling disabled, elderly or other vulnerable

  • Olympic star Kate set for lights switch on

    ANDOVER'S festive preparations are due to go live in two weeks' time when the town's own Olympic star Kate Howey throws the switch to turn on the Christmas lights. And this year the event will have an added sparkle thanks to a firework display which will

  • Vitacress told fresh report needed

    VITACRESS in St Mary Bourne has been told by the Government that it will have to carry out another environmental impact report on its rationalisation plans for the site. The company had won planning permission for its plans, but earlier this year a judicial

  • All for Chilldren in Need

    ANDOVER'S very own troupe of belly dancing exponents will be displaying their charms in support of BBC Children in Need on 19 November. Yallah, which is Arabic for 'let's do it', will be shimmying away at the Anton Arms public house from 7.30pm onwards

  • JOOLS HOLLAND

    THERE'S no denying that Jools Holland is one of the most important people in British music today - just look at his credentials. He received an OBE from the Queen for his services to music in 2003, he has hosted his own music programme, Later With Jools

  • PERFECT ALIBI

    SOME tribute bands are happy to live their lives in the shadow of the group they imitate. But others - like Bjorn Again and The Bootleg Beatles - step into the limelight themselves and are respected and followed as a band in their own right. Perfect Alibi

  • Sorry for train delays

    SOUTH West Trains has apologised for delays in some of its early morning services but says there will be improvements soon following train upgrades, the end of autumn leaves and the start of new winter timetables. Commuter Donna Marie Atkins, of London

  • SAM RIVERS TRIO AND RIVBEA ORCHESTRA UK

    BORN in Oklahoma in 1923, Sam Rivers is still going strong in the music world. The 81 year-old American is on tour again, this time as part of a trio and headed straight for Southampton. The virtuoso saxophonist and flautist has decided that it is time

  • Homes plan triggers traffic chaos fears

    BULLDOZING countryside to build thousands of new homes would bring traffic chaos to Andover, claim residents objecting to major developments proposed in the area. The residents have raised concerns at the Test Valley Borough Local Plan Inquiry about cars

  • Scheme for tram still not ruled out

    AMBITIOUS plans to build a "supertram" in south Hampshire have a 70 per cent chance of being given a green light, according to the government's tram supremo. David Rowlands, top civil servant in the Department of Transport, rejected claims the troubled

  • Vans targeted for power tool thefts

    AN organised gang has stolen thousands of pounds of power tools by targeting vans across Segensworth and Park Gate, police believe. Now officers are stepping up their efforts to catch the thieves, who they think are stealing the goods to sell on. Police

  • Wigley: Ample time to survive

    STEVE WIGLEY believes the derby represents the perfect opportunity to kick-start Saints' season. Some are predicting Wigley will lose his job if Saints are beaten by their fiercest rivals, but the St Mary's head coach is still determined to relish the

  • Dave Merrington's BIG MATCH preview

    Ex-Saints boss lays it on the line... IT is hard to forget what happened on Tuesday at Watford. Having not played particularly well in the league against West Brom, and having not capitalised on the excellent display at Arsenal, the Carling Cup should

  • BRIDGET JONES: THE EDGE OF REASON (15)

    BRIDGET Jones is a love pariah no more! Thirty-something, career-minded, neurotic, cigarette-puffing singleton Bridget (Renee Zellweger) has finally snagged the man of her dreams: the dashing and impeccably refined lawyer Mark Darcy (Colin Firth). Her

  • LADIES IN LAVENDER (12A)

    RICHARD Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II were right: there is nothing like a dame. Those magnificent doyennes of British stage and screen, Dame Judi Dench and Dame Maggie Smith, add a golden lustre to Charles Dance's directorial debut, adapted from William

  • ANACONDA: THE HUNT FOR THE BLOOD ORCHID (12A)

    DESPITE its ludicrous plotting, clunky dialogue and overblown thrills, the 1997 schlock horror Anaconda became something of a cult classic. Where else can you see a bedraggled Jennifer Lopez squealing as she tries to outrun a laughably plastic, animatronic

  • SHAOLIN SOCCER (12A)

    THIS is a belated release for Stephen Chow's feel-good 2001 sports comedy. One-time soccer golden boy Fung (Man Tat Ng) hopes to coach a team to championship status, if only to wipe the smug grin off his former employer Hung (Yin Tse), coach of the dreaded

  • CINEMA LISTINGS

    Films showing in the Hampshire region until 18th November. ALFIE (15): Jude Law steps into the role made famous by Michael Caine, playing a philandering chauffeur who finds himself in trouble when one of his conquests falls pregnant. ALIEN VS PREDATOR

  • Noodle bar offers a fresh approach

    OISHII is a word that should be on your lips after dining at a new Japanese-style noodle bar in Basingstoke. The Japanese word for delicious is certainly something Wagamama wants customers to say, after the London-based company invested around £1million

  • BATS the way to do it

    Calamity Jane, Basingstoke Amateur Theatrical Society, Haymarket Theatre , Until November 20 A BUSTLING and busy audience in the Haymarket were treated to a lovely performance of one of MGM's most delightful musicals, with the first showing this week

  • Couple's labour of love is up for sale

    AN UNUSUAL village home was once a chapel for the Plymouth Brethren Christian movement. It was then used as a hall - and, more recently, has been visited by people from all over the world. The converted chapel of Goddards Hall in Sherfield-on-Loddon has

  • Georgian-style home boasts six bedrooms

    A BRAND-new Georgian-style country house is modelled on the archetypal English Old Rectory and is ready to move into. Glebe House, in Wootton St Lawrence, near Basingstoke, is being sold with a price guide of £925,000 for 4,500sqft of accommodation and