WE all love a good story, but which do you favour – fact or fiction? When Rachel Harrington is faced with this literary quandary, she comes down firmly on the side of true stories as opposed to tall ones. This may sound like a strange question for the
Three of Southend AC’s under-20s competed at the Southern Age Group Championships. James McLean, currently ranked seventh on the Power of 10 ranking list, is now well under the UK 10 Target of 14.3secs. He recorded a much improved 14.22 when gaining
BAKERS is celebrating the end of an era, as the club closes its doors for a £2million makeover. The bar and nightclub, in Alexandra Street, Southend, will host one last party this weekend, before it shuts until mid-September when the major refurbishment
TWO talented young singers are hoping to win over the crowds in their quest for stardom tomorrow. Oliver Fox, 13, and Amy Colyer, 14, are just two of the 18 acts who have been chosen to perform in the first Southend Festival Stars, a free talent contest
IT SEEMS somewhat strange to be revisiting the Eighties, with all its shoulder pads, big hair and general excess, in the middle of a recession. But who said pop music ever had to make sense? Flavour of the month, La Roux, are at the
A BREATH of fresh air is coming to Southend’s art scene with a new exhibition showcasing the work of emerging and established artists. Under the banner of Southend Young Creatives, the display, upstairs in the newly-refurbished Railway Hotel, Clifftown
A DRUG dealer who rammed a police car in a failed getaway has been jailed for two years. Mahomoud Ali, 23, was parked up in Whitmore Way, Basildon, when he was noticed by three PCSOs – Ryan Tullett, Gary Newton and Darren Weeks – who suspected
A NURSE has been cautioned for causing chaos during an operation. Sushila Nagrani’s incompetence at the Nuffield Hospital, Brentwood, could have led to swabs being sewn into the patient’s body, the Nursing and Midwifery Council heard.
A TEENAGER snapped his heel bone after he got his foot wedged in an uncovered drain. Sports student Alan Ingram, 18, suffered the nasty injury on a grass verge in Third Avenue, Canvey, and fears it will wreck his studies. He said: “This injury has stopped
WANNABE Chantelle Houghton lived up to her airhead reputation when she admitted she thought David Cameron was leader of the Liberal Democrats. The 2006 winner of Celebrity Big Brother, 25, from Wickford, made the comments about the Conservative Party
A £700,000 cash boost is hoped to turn a Pitsea country park into one of the biggest days out for families across south Essex. Wat Tyler Country Park can now look forward to a host of improvements, including landscape gardening and new paths. Stephen
RAYLEIGH MP Mark Francois has been told to pay back £200 he claimed on expenses. Mr Francois is one of several Tory MPs who will pay back a total of £125,000 in Commons expenses announ-ced by party leader David Cameron yesterday. The sum paid back
PLANS to convert the former Prudential Insurance building in Southend into a 119-bedroom budget hotel, have been submitted to Southend Council. The 1960s office block, in Elmer Approach, just off the High Street, has been out of use for more than ten
MP John Baron spoke in a Commons debate over the proposed Iraq inquiry. He commented in support of a Conservative motion calling for the new probe to be held in public, with a wider membership than suggested by the Government. Mr Baron, MP for Billericay
STRUGGLING residents who are feeling the full force of the recession are being offered help by Basildon Council. New measures include using more staff to help cash-strapped residents access benefits and opening new credit union collection points across
POLICE swooped on Westcliff after reports of a man carrying a knife. The police helicopter assisted dozens of officers to search the areas around Ailsa Road, Satanita Road, Valkyrie Road and Palmerston Road, about 4.30pm on Wednesday. Residents living
A WHEELCHAIR user has demanded the county council repairs “lethal” damage to pavements outside a parade of shops in Billericay. Muscular-dystrophy sufferer Lynda Kelly, 53, of Noak Hill Road, Billericay, says it is only a matter of time before
STUDENTS could hold the trump card in a last-ditch bid by travellers to stay on illegal sites. A team has been put together at the University of Essex to help prepare a case against eviction to go to the European Court of Human Rights. Leticia Osorio
NEWLY-RELEASED figures from the county’s health trusts reveal for the first time the number of Essex women who have had abortions. The figures have been published in response to pressure from Southend West MP David Amess, a prominent Roman Catholic,
A SCHOOL has been praised for its outstanding sixth form. The Mayflower School, in Billericay, impressed Ofsted inspector Stephen Abbott, who said the school was good overall and rated several aspects as outstanding. Mr Abbott said: “Students’ attendance
A DRUG addict who was found with a stash of cocaine and a knuckle-duster in his car has walked free from court. Mark Spooner, 37, was given a 40-week prison sentence, suspended for 18 months, when he appeared for sentencing at Basildon Crown Court yesterday
WHEN troubled teenager Gwynneth Rees moved to Canvey from her home in South Wales back in 1957, no doubt she was hoping for a better life. But tragically she soon found herself working in London as a prostitute and less than six years later
Michael Jackson has died after suffering a suspected cardiac arrest. His brother Jermaine Jackson said he believed the 50-year-old singer fell ill at his Holmby Hills home in Los Angeles on Thursday afternoon. He was taken to the UCLA
MIXED martial arts is booming and Southend is fast becoming a hotbed of the sport. Brothers Dan and Alex Burzotta have been staging Ultimate Warrior Challenge events at Southend Leisure and Tennis Centre for the past four years. And now Dan has opened
Full-back Neil Marron will not be staying with Billericay Town. The player has confirmed he’s rejoining previous club Essex Senior League Bowers and Pitsea and said his decision was because he wanted “regular first team football and not to just be a squad
Young Basildon golfer Daniel Brooks continued his great recent form by leading the field in the regional qualifying round of the Open Championship at Old Ford Manor. He now goes to Scotland to play in the 36-hole final qualifying competition on Monday
THE last time I flew in a light aircraft my nerves were more in anticipation of jumping out of it at 12,000ft than its small dimensions. But wriggling into a tiny Cessna C152 ahead of a flight around Southend, I realised there was still a significant
CANVEY schoolgirl Jessica Judd has continued her superb season on the track with more record-breaking performances. In the Essex Schools’ Championships the 14-year-old Thurrock Harrier won the junior 1,500 in a new record time of 4.31.88. And she carried
Alastair Cook may not play very much for Essex again this season, but England’s Ashes opener signed off from county duty in spectacular style with a brilliant Twenty20 Cup hundred against shell-shocked Surrey at the Oval. Cook and Mark Pettini
Stacey Ward was Basildon AC’s golden girl at the South of England under-20 and seniors championship at Watford. She used a devastating kick finish over the last 300 metres to take victory in the senior 3,000 to win in a personal best of 9mins. 31.53secs
Essex will learn their Twenty20 fate this weekend. They travel to Lord’s this evening to face Middlesex, and then host Hampshire at the Ford County Ground on Sunday in what is their final group match in the competition. They will be without England
SOUTHEND United chairman Ron Martin today said he had no plans to stand down as Blues boss. Several fans had suggested over the past few weeks that Martin should make way for someone else to take the League One club forward. They were
Grays Athletic CEO Mick Woodward has announced a series of changes at the Bridge Road club. He said: "As documented at the end of last season I am stepping down as Chairman of Grays Athletic Football Club as I feel that the club needs to move in a
A HEALTH-CONSCIOUS woman is cooking up a storm on the nation’s TV screens – alongside celebrity chef Jamie Oliver. Liz Comben is one of 12 community and health advisors appearing in the latest ad for supermarket chain Sainsbury’s. Known
FA Charter Standard development club Benfleet Villa are looking to build their boys’ teams and set up girls’ sides for the 2009/10 season. Boys in current school years five and six are needed for next term’s under-11 and under-12 teams. And girls in
A MAN with a passion for Southend’s past has started a petition demanding the new owners of the Palace Hotel do not change its name. The landmark building is owned by the Brussels-based Rezidor Hotels group, which plans to reopen it later this
A 70-YEAR-OLD woman who was reported missing in Hullbridge yesterday afternoon has been found safe and well. Hemel Hempstead woman Margaret Cobden was reported missing by her partner at 5pm yesterday after he returned from an outing to find her missing
A 25-year-old man from Westcliff will appear before magistrates in Southend today following a stabbing on Monday. Idris Hill, of Britannia Road, will appear at Southend Magistrates' Court charged with wounding with intent after an incident
POLICE say they are still unsure if an administrative blunder could lead to thousands of motorists’ speeding convictions being overturned. Essex Police have confirmed an investigation is being carried out in conjunction with the Essex Crown Prosecution
A STROKE survivors’ club is determined to modernise to meet the challenges of one of the 21st century’s most feared afflictions. The number of people suffering strokes in the UK is soaring as younger people fall victim to the brain injury. Despite these
HUNDREDS of shoppers headed to the new Waitrose in London Road, Leigh, yesterday. Long queues built up at the tills in the store, but there were plenty of staff on hand to help. The upmarket chain has offered jobs to all staff at the
BOXERCISE, dodgeball, trampolining and karate are just some of the activities everyone can try out on Canvey for just 50p. Waterside Farm Sports Centre, in Somnes Avenue, is running a Come and Try Day, giving residents an opportunity to try new ways
AN MP has thrown his weight behind a campaign to cut crime on the railways. John Baron, Tory MP for Billericay, is backing Network Rail’s No Messin’ campaign which aims to warn youngsters about the dangers of trespassing on railtracks, as well
SOUTHEND United has not yet finalised its deal to buy the Prospects College site in Fairfax Drive – a major part of the Roots Hall redevelopment scheme. The club’s plan to move to a new stadium at Fossetts Farm are dependent on the redevelopment of the
SOUTHEND’S first community art wall project will invite people of all ages to paint their own vision of the town for 2020. This weekend a ten-metre wall will be the canvas after Southend Festival organisers South East Essex College and Renaissance Southend
YOUNG people on Canvey have a new hang-out after an old bungalow was converted into a youth centre. The Legacy Cafe, next to the skate park at Waterside, is a partnership between Legacy XS, Castle Point Council and the town council and has just been
SUMMER may be here, but one group of people are already thinking about Christmas. The Light Up Wickford Committee is promising to make this year’s celebrations better than ever and it has gained permission to close the High Street on December 11 for
