COLLAPSING when he got out of a chair and struggling to get through the day because of constant pain in his body David Bissett knew something was wrong. But for years he struggled to understand the myriad of symptoms he would experience ranging from
A MILKMAN driving a float emblazoned with the logo "delivering milk and much more" caused a hoo-ha when he smashed through a resident's garden wall - leaving a trail of semi-skimmed behind him. They say it's no use crying over spilt milk, but the Dairy
A COLLEGE, library and health centre will be built on the new multi-million pound Craylands and Fryerns estate. Basildon is set for a £30million windfall following the sale of the former Fryerns School site. The bulk of the county council cash will
FORMER Southend United striker Freddy Eastwood has set his sights on toppling Germany after making a "dream" debut against Bulgaria. The forward, who hails from Basildon, scored the winner in Bourgas on Wednesday. And he hopes his performance has
AMBULANCE crews were called to Miles Gray Road in Basildon this afternoon following an accident. It's believed a person was hit by a car about 4.30pm. Exact injuries are unknown.
A BILLERICAY singing duo still think they've got the X Factor - even though Simon Cowell told them they were no good. Millions of viewers tuning into the X Factor tomorrow night will see Ben Cook and Robert Morgan auditioning in front of the show's judges
A DOCTOR wept as she admitted making mistakes and wasting time as a baby died during labour. The mother needed an urgent caesarian but Dr Avanti Patil tried to deliver her with a suction cup and forceps 12 times, the General Medical Council heard. The
A FED-up resident is calling for more street lighting to help clean up a secluded alleyway plagued by late night anti-social behaviour. Allan Taylor, 66, said the dark pathway leading from Hardy's Way to Castle Point Golf Course on Canvey Island, had
A QUICK- thinking resident captured the moment a builder's van went up in flames. Les Thorington, 73, photographed this dramatic scene in Hadleigh Road, Leigh. The pensioner was sat at his computer when he suddenly smelt burning and reached for his
A TEENAGER is preparing to climb to the top of one of the tallest mountains in the world to raise money for charity. Claire Lloyd, 19, will be trekking to the peak of Mount Kilimanjaro, in Tanzania, early next year to raise funds for the Anthony Nolan
A TEACHING assistant wept as she was locked up for 21 months for causing the death of a young father. Chantal Gourde, 20, lost control of her car overtaking at 95mph, near the junction of Childerditch Lane, on the Southend-bound carriageway of the A127
THE BNP is set to try and win a place on Southend Borough Council for the second time this year. Five candidates - including one member of the British National Party - will be standing in the Shoeburyness ward by-election to be held on Thursday, September
ESSEX Police has just published a selection of the more ridiculous calls made to the 999 service. It includes callers such as the one who was worried a bird was stuck up a tree. Much as it might raise a smile, the list is supposed to carry a serious
ONE broad conclusion can be drawn from the thousands of excellent GCSE exam grades chalked up by south Essex students - little by little, year by year, the standard is rising. Of course there are inconsistencies across the board, good and bad. Schools
SOUTHEND Rugby Club's players will have their last chance to impress coach Kevin Harman ahead of the new National League Two season tomorrow. For the Seasiders will complete their pre-season schedule with a trip to Havant. And Harman is demanding
GREENSWARD College student Rickey Grice has won the German Junior Karting Championship. His latest triumph came at Hahn-Hunsruck, near Frankfurt. Grice only needed to finish in the top five in the first "sprint" race to win the title. When he found
I must agree with D Peters (Aug 17), saying the days when charity shops will take anything are over. I have walked away more than once from Oxfam and other charity shops, being told my old clothes or books wereunwanted. If charity shops become too fussy
The long awaited new Somerfield in Rochford was certainly not long awaited by the local shop owners in Rochford square. Yes, 75 new jobs will be created, but how many will be lost when the small buisnesses have to close being unable to complete with
I share the concerns of many that first-time buyers are being squeezed out in Southend by the university and other factors. The other primary factor is that Southend Council has allowed greedy developers to overrun the town with buy-to-let estates. Housing
Why is there an obsession for building so many apartments in Rayleigh? A reasonable number we could take and still keep the family feeling of the town, but not on the scale that is being built now. At this rate we will drive families out of the town
A 16th-Century proverb says: "A fool and his money are soon parted". Five centuries later, the writer would probably ask: "What kind of citizen are we breeding to pay more than £2million for a flat with a view over the mudflats and, on a clear day, sight
Everywhere you go today you see flats springing up or should I say apartments as developers like to call them? We have a housing shortage. Instead of bleating about over-development let's think outside the box. I can think of thousands of green
I'M not a gambling woman but there is something exciting and sexy about casinos. If you've ever watched the gorgeous George Clooney and Brad Pitt in Oceans Eleven then you'll know what I am talking about. Having been recommended the Elements restaurant
GREAT Wakering Rovers boss Iain O'Connell knows his side face a difficult task in trying to recover from their bad start over the Bank Holiday weekend. They follow tomorrow''s trip to Bury Town by hosting newly-promoted Essex Senior League champions
THE time: the mid-80s. The setting: a theatre in Reno, Nevada. Holding the stage is a striking young Englishwoman with blonde hair and eyes that can slay spectators 200 feet back in the stalls. She climbs into a kiosk. She has a dancer's agility and slenderness
BILLERICAY Town boss Matt Jones knows that his table-topping side face two very different challenges over the next four days. Tomorrow they go to Surrey to take on Carshalton before hosting near neighbours and former tenants Chelmsford City on Monday
OLD friendships will be put to one side when Wigan Athletic arrive at Upton Park tomorrow. Latics manager Chris Hutchings became close pals with former team-mate of West Ham boss Alan Curbishley during the pair's playing days at Brighton and Hove Albion
A NEW £850,000 Comet superstore is opening in Southend tomorrow. The store - next door to the newly opened B&Q store and garden centre - will be unveiled at 9am in Fossetts Way. Throughout the weekend there will be a variety of family fun taking place
The horticultural society autumn show will take place at Leigh Road Baptist Church Hall in Marguerite Drive on Saturday September 8 at 2pm. The third show of the year should see a colourful display of autumn flowers including dahlias, pelargoniums and
CANVEY Island go into their two-match Bank Holiday programme with a "stay focused" warning from manager John Batch. Gulls have made a great start to the Ryman One North campaign and stand top of the table on goal difference following wins at Northwood
JUBILANT students have proved they are first class achievers by notching up a string of top grade GCSE results. Across the country delighted pupils have been celebrating success with more youngsters than ever before achieving the top grades of A* or
A BUDDING accountant is totting up his successful GCSE passes. David Church, 16, from Westcliff, gained 3A*s and 12As and is now planning to study accountancy, maths, business studies and geography at South East Essex College in Southend. David, who
OLIVER Pepper is hoping his GCSE results will help him to get a place at either Oxford or Cambridge University. The 16-year-old is celebrating achieving 7A*s and 5As in his exams. Oliver, of Eastwood, said: "We've all worked really hard and I've put
NOT everyone got the results for which they'd hoped yesterday - but in some cases at least, it was still enough for them to pursue their chosen careers. Starr Cullen, 16, had been hoping for better grades, but was happy with what she got, as it meant
KATIE Fawcett was another star achiever for Beauchamps High School, picking up no fewer than eight A grades. Katie, 16, of Ulting Way, Wickford, scored six A* grades and two As. Katie studied English literature, French, geography, maths, biology, physics
WHEN Greg Fedden nervously unfolded his GCSE exam results yesterday, a broad grin broke across his face as he realised he had done better than he dreamed he would. The 16-year-old Beauchamps High School student picked up an impressive 10 A grades, including
SOPHIE Kell is looking forward to a peaceful night's sleep - after finally discovering her GCSE results. The Mayflower School student admitted she had been having nightmares about getting bad results. So she was relieved to discover in reality, she'd
AN 80-YEAR-OLD woman is to stand trial after pleading not guilty to defrauding Basildon Council out of more than £22,000 in benefits. Amelia Farulli, of Mapleford Sweep, Vange, appeared at Basildon Magistrates' Court and denied 12 counts of making dishonest
SOUTHEND United have reverted to video evidence in a bid to banish their defensive blues. Steve Tilson's side have already let in seven goals in three games this season. But, according to centre back Peter Clarke, they have been analysing their
A POPULAR charity broadcasting round-the-clock radio shows into elderly people's homes is launching a £40,000 campaign to rebuild its crumbling studios. Volunteers at Link Radio in Hadleigh hope thousands can be raised to help construct a brand new building
THE SOUTHEND-bound carriageway of the A13 was closed following a two-car crash. The accident happened between the Five Bells and Pitsea junction and left oil across the road. One person was put on a stretcher and taken to hospital by ambulance. It
SOUTHEND United's assistant manager Paul Brush is hoping the Shrimpers can avoid setting an unwanted club record this weekend. For should his side lose against Millwall at Roots Hall it would be their seventh straight league defeat. And that would
CASTLE Point MP Bob Spink is spearheading plans for a series of rallies across the country to call on the Government to hold a referendum on the new EU Treaty. As chairman of the Campaign for an Independent Britain, Dr Spink said the British people needed
PROPOSALS for householders to be charged according to the amount of waste they produce have been rejected by councils across south Essex. The scheme, suggested by the Local Government Association, would offer council tax payers a discount on their bills
PARENTS will be getting top tips on how to get their children the best school places by a best-selling author. Francis Gilbert, who wrote I'm A Teacher, Get Me Out Of Here, and Teacher On the Run, will be giving a talk to parents at Waterstone's bookshop
AWAY at Leeds last weekend several of the new boys were forced to stand up and perform in front of the whole squad. It is now traditional for any newcomer to do it and it certainly does make us all laugh. They have to stand up on their chair at
PARENTS can pick up potentially lifesaving tips on car seat safety at a new centre in Rayleigh. The facility, run by Essex County Council, is set to open its doors Friday, August 24, at Lubbards Farm, in Hullbridge Road, Rayleigh, after moving from its
A MEMORIAL concert will be held for the co-founder of one of Southend's best known fish and chip shops. The event will be staged in honour of Derek Oldham, who opened the Quality Fayre fish and chip shop on the seafront, followed by another in Queens
A CAMPAIGN to highlight the decline in the number of petrol stations has won support from a fuel industry body.p> David Norman, Labour councillor for Victoria ward, Southend, has been voicing concerns about a dramatic decline in filling stations in the
A CARE home in Westcliff is marking its 60th birthday with an awareness day on Sunday, September 2. St Martin's residential care home, in Imperial Avenue, will open its doors from 2.30pm to 5.30pm to show the work it does. There have been several fundraising
AGE is proving to be no obstacle for people planning to take part in a high-rise challenge for the Courage for Cancer event. People aged from 12 to 75 have been asking Thorpe Bay Rotary Club if they can take part in its abseil event, down the Civic
KARIN Nicholas from Hullbridge is taking on a huge taske when she sets out on Breast Cancer Care's Ben Nevis Challenge in October. Karin, 43, who works for the East of England Ambulance Service, is aiming to raise funds for Breast Cancer Care, which
The allotment society is staging a horticultural show in the community centre in the old school, High Street between 1pm and 4pm on Sunday. Refreshments and ploughman's lunches will be available and admission is 50p.
PARENTS took a trip down memory lane during their search to find TV favourites from the past and present in the Maize Maze. Youngsters were challenged to collect autographs from all the costumed characters hiding along the pathways at the popular
CHILDREN seized the chance to take a closer look at nature during an action-packed wildlife fun day. Despite the drizzly summer downpours, more than 300 people flocked the RSPB event at the Salvation Army Farm in Hadleigh. Kids were challenged to find
GETTING teenagers out of bed isn't in the job description for a police officer, yet a mum decided to call 999 when her son refused to get up. This is one of the bizarre calls made to Essex Police as the 999 service celebrates its 70th birthday this year
BASILDON Council is urging residents to recycle as much rubbish as possible from their bank holiday weekend barbecues. The appeal comes as experts predict a long overdue upturn in this summer's miserable weather. The council's recycling team has also
CALLS for tougher punishments for yobs have received backing. Tory leader David Cameron said magistrates should be given powers to jail offenders for a year, instead of the current six-month limit, as they deal with most low-level antisocial crime.
SHOPPERS will no longer have to worry about getting caught short when public toilets and baby changing facilities are opened at Victoria Plaza. The centre will have a state-of-the-art facility, featuring 18 ladies' toilets, five men's cubicles and nine
