A strong and determined Guernsey were too good for a much changed Romsey side that crashed to their second league defeat of the season at The Sports Centre on Saturday. Adam Coe, Romsey's bulwark number 8, lasted only six minutes on his return from injury
NEIL Hards has praised his Winchester City wide boys for helping the champions reclaim their place at the top of the Sydenhams Wessex League. The manager's instructions to feed the flanks early have sharpened the appetite of hungry wing-backs Shaun Dyke
THEY say the old ones are the best ones and that certainly seems to be the case where Brockenhurst's frontline warrior Jason Lovell is concerned. Despite all the young talent on show, it was the 37-year-old marksman that Badgers' FA Cup opponents Lewes
A BRAVE pensioner hit a bogus police officer with her walking stick before locking herself in the porch while he ransacked her home. The 96-year-old woman's ordeal began as she was watching television in her home, in Winston Avenue, Tadley, just after
A COMMUNITY hall in Basingstoke has been given a stay of execution from bulldozers after a ward councillor pleaded for further public consultation. Tony Jones, a Buckskin ward councillor for the South Ham Extension, accused Basingstoke council's Cabinet
PARKING charges will rise and up to 200 spaces face the axe if radical proposals for Basingstoke's council-owned town centre car parks get the go-ahead. The plans are included in a newly-published parking blueprint, which also suggests that disabled people
Today's Principal Arrivals: Oriental Highway, vehicle carrier, 0300, 202; CFF Seine, ro/ro, 0530, 30; Autoprestige, ro/ro, 1000, 203; Le Castellet, ro/ro, 1030, 201; Bladerunner One, barge, AM, 25; Autosky, ro/ro, 1400, 43; CMA CGM Berlioz, container,
WHO said accountants are a staid bunch? These corporate finance experts from business advisers Smith & Williamson are proof that times are-a-changing! Pictured outside the company's office at Town Quay, Southampton, are three members of staff taking
Romsey MP Sandra Gidley could face a concerted effort by hunt supporters to unseat her at the next general election. Campaigners plan to target the Romsey constituency as part of a bid to unseat anti-hunting MPs in marginal seats across England and Wales
TWO independent schools have announced plans to merge. Embley Park School, near Romsey, and the The Atherley Girls School, at Nursling, are to consult parents on the best ways of bringing the two together "to form a strong independent school of about
ROMSEY'S estate agency community was stunned this week by the tragic death of a highly-respected agent who had returned to run an office in the town where she had gone to school. Karen Hobbs died in a road accident on the northern edge of the town at
WINCHESTER planners have blitzed a plan to convert the historic Royal Observer Corps base into homes. Southampton based Bayview Developments wanted to turn the Second World War building into four homes and build 18 other houses around it. After inititial
INSPIRED by the illustrations, life and nonsense poems of Victorian poet Edward Lear My Uncle Arly is a stage show like no other. The show takes its name from Lear's poem of the same name. Lear's poems are characterised by his irreverent view of the world
STAND by for a roller-coaster ride as Malcolm and Kate get ready for their housewarming party. You'd think this would be happy occasion but Alan Ayckbourn's comedy manages to wheedle out all those little human foibles that come to the fore in moments
COMMUNITY leaders today called on residents to fight to save a dozen Hamp-shire post offices facing the axe. They want people to rally round to persuade bosses to reverse their decision to close the 12 post offices across the county. Yesterday's announcement
MAINTENANCE workers at Fawley refinery staged a 24-hour walkout today after a bitter row over security passes escalated into strike action. Three trade unions are in dispute with companies that employ contractors at the huge refinery, which processes
MOST of them were recruited through a Daily Echo advert which asked if they wanted to change their lives. Now, the latest batch of young people on the Prince's Trust Team Programme in the Southampton area - sponsored and administered by Hampshire Fire
NEW routes for Southampton's night-time bus services are being introduced from today. The changes will mean there are no longer any more Nightlink route services along Carlton Road and Archers Road. This is because the previous Nightlink route N2 Service
A MEMENTO of the biggest day in Southampton Football Club's history was today due to be sold at auction. Peter Rodrigues' treasured FA Cup winner's medal was due under the hammer after it was put up for auction by his daughter Amanda behind his back.
HOW does your garden grow? A garden at a Southampton play centre will grow with a little help from The Daily Echo Combined Insurance Make it Happen awards. The Newtown adventure playground in Graham Road, Southampton, provides after-school and holiday
FALLEN autumn leaves could be a safety hazard for Andover residents who aren't signed up to the council's green waste scheme, warn opposition councillors. Lib Dem councillors say Test Valley Borough Cou-ncil's composting scheme will fail those who can't
MOTHERS in Andover's King Arthur's Way are up in arms about an alcohol and drugs and information service due to open in Atholl Court in a former video shop. Sam Oakley, a mother of three, has collected an 800-name petition against the opening. Deep concern
THE Co-op Welcome Store in Andover's Kingsway Gardens is playing classical music outside the store - not to attract customers but to deter youngsters from hanging around. In a trial run, Co-op bosses are targeting youngsters who hang around outside the
ONE of the most exciting and original emerging bands around is coming to The Joiner's Arms in St Mary's on Monday. Two-piece band Nizlopi perform beautiful and catchy indie/folk songs with the unusual twist that double-bassist John Parker also beat boxes
AN osprey which was has been painstakingly nursed back to health after being shot has been released back into the wild in the Romsey area. His release coincided with a £250 reward being offered for information on his shooting. He was found at Alderbury
AN Andover couple's faith in humanity has been restored after two honest New Yorkers played detective to return their lost camcorder. London Road residents Jill and Len Nobbs feared they would never see their £500 camcorder again when they left it in
LEGENDARY DJ Mr Scruff is spinning the discs in Southampton this week. Mr Scruff, who is famed for his sense of humour, six-hour sets and hip-hop sound is coming to The Nexus nightclub in Southampton on Thursday. During the course of his sets, Mr Scruff
ROCK band, Winnebago Deal, are coming to The Joiner's Arms, Southampton, on Thursday with their take own style of rock music, including tracks from their debut album Dead Gone. Noted by the music press as one of the most invigorating and primal rock experiences
THE quality of life in Test Valley could be made better by improving the area's cultural opportunities, says a report to the borough council's executive. Making improvements to the cultural life of the community is one of six priorities the council has
THE Turner Sims Concert Hall's 30th anniversary season gets under way on Tuesday with the opening concert from John Williams. Guitarist John Williams first appeared at the Highfield concert hall in 1975 and has been a regular performer there ever since
THE private members' club that went into administration earlier this year is to be awash with glitz and glamour once again for its re-launch. The invite-only relaunch will mark the start of a new era for The Radcliffe in Whiteley Lane, Titchfield, which
A NEW scheme aimed at showing the red card to teenage boredom in the Valley Park area of Chandler's Ford is to kick-off tonight. Friday Night Kick-Off will offer sports and other activities to boys and girls aged 13 to 17 at Knightwood Leisure Centre.
EMILE Gaudreault's pink-tinged romantic comedy, adapted from Steve Galluccio's stage play, could be crudely dubbed My Big Fat Gay Wedding. However, such easy and favourable comparisons with Nia Vardalos' culture clash confection would be unfair. Mambo
MISERY loves company and traditionally, in Ken Loach's films, it's spoilt for choice: emotional crises, domestic violence and self-loathing are the director's stock-in-trade. So it comes as a pleasant surprise to find Loach and screenwriter Paul Laverty
THE loudest thing in this pub is the happy hum of conversation. And that's just how the owner and licensee of The Queen's Head in Titchfield likes it. Warren Stocker,pictured, refuses to introduce atmosphere-stifling games machines to the pub in the High
After a somewhat disappointing start to their league programme, Mottisfont got back on the winning track with a solitary goal victory away to Durley. A second half strike by Dave Kemp was enough to capture three welcome points for Font against their old
A SIMON DE'ATH hat-trick propelled Romsey Town to the top of the league in a four-star demolition of Shaftesbury at the Bypass Ground last Saturday. Town reached the summit without playing their very best football; but they did enough to record an emphatic
PORTSMOUTH have given up on their attempts to sign French star defender Marcel Desailly. Pompey boss Harry Redknapp confirmed to the press yesterday that his attempt to bring the World Cup winner to Fratton Park was now 'dead'. Redknapp said: "I spoke
PRECISE details about the controversial planning development at Manydown have been agreed by Basingstoke council chiefs. Scope for up to 8,000 homes, a new link road, a train station, four new schools and a country park are just some of the proposals
STUDENTS at a Basingstoke college are gearing themselves up to show off their catering skills at the launch of the prestigious A Place to be Proud of Awards this month. The Robert Newman restaurant at BCOT is hosting the event on Monday, October 18. Guests
PLANS for a new Salvation Army church and meeting hall have had a setback after revelations of a £9.6million black hole in the national organisation's finances. The funding crisis means the Basingstoke branch is having to rethink its plans to build the
TWO local history enthusiasts took a step back in time when they were part of an 80-mile march to re-enact the First World War's Retreat from Mons. David Whithorn and Lee Gristwood, who both work at AWE Aldermaston, travelled to Mons, in Belgium, in August
THE growing problem of childhood obesity is being tackled by a new campaign in Basingstoke. The aim of the project is to raise people's awareness of the health risks that go hand-in-hand with being severely overweight. It is also warning that health problems
SCORES of staff with a famous high street travel agency in Hampshire are today sweating over their jobs. Giant holiday company Thomson is to axe 800 jobs in a major streamlining operation because more holidaymakers are booking through the Internet. The
Sir Jackie Stewart has warned Bernie Ecclestone he may have caused "irrecoverable" damage to Britain's motorsport future. Ecclestone has dropped the British Grand Prix from Formula One's provisional 2005 calendar after Silverstone owners the British Racing
Winchester face the first major test of their title qualifications tomorrow. They put their three-match unbeaten record on the line against Tottonians, who also have three wins under their belts in London Three South-West. At least one record will go
The return of key players to the Gosport & Fareham ranks will offset some of the damage caused by last weekend's defeat as they welcome Beckenham to the peninsular tomorrow for their London Two South clash. Scrum-half Gareth Slade-Jones is fit again
Three swimmers from the City of Southampton Swimming Club have made it through to the national school finals in Coventry later this year. Alex Reeves, from Thornden School, has qualified for three events - but waited until almost the last event to deliver
Having won their opening two fixtures in the south-west regional league, Solent Stars Women's first team will be looking to maintain their 100 per cent start tomorrow. They play Exeter Eagles at Hamble Community Sports College (tip off 2pm). "We have
AN Osprey which has been painstakingly nursed back to health after being shot has been released back into the wild in the Romsey area. And his release coincided with a police announcement that a £250 reward is being offered for information on his shooting
DOCTORS in Southampton were this week keeping a close eye on Romsey schoolboy Joshua Hartley who is recovering from a bone marrow transplant. Joshua, 12, has been making steady progress since the transplant in June, when his mother Allison was the donor
COUNCIL tax protesters were determined to make their voices heard as councillors arrived for an important meeting in Winchester. They waved placards and shouted chants outside Hampshire County Council's head- quarters as members arrived for a full council
TIME is running out for Totton. That was the grim warning from a councillor during a debate on the latest attempt to secure government funding for plans to give Totton a £22m facelift. George Dart, pictured below, a lifelong Totton resident and former
A SENSORY garden destroyed by vandals has been reopened to pupils at a New Forest school thanks to a generous donation. Charity trustees at John Lewis department store in Southampton's WestQuay shopping centre have replaced garden ornaments at Abbotswood
Hamble Players are promising authenticity with their latest production. Jeffrey Archer's courtroom drama Beyond Reasonable Doubt is set in the Old Bailey and the local group went to extraordinary lengths to capture the atmosphere of London's most famous
BIG BROTHER winner Nadia Almada brought traffic to a standstill in Southampton when she came to the city to promote this year's Mayflower Theatre pantomime, Peter Pan. The glamorous Portuguese transsexual, who wore a green sequinned dress and diamante
SAINTS chairman Rupert Lowe has been appointed as the new chairman of the south-east region of The Prince's Trust. The three-year post will see him providing high-level support to south-east regional director Dr Terry Ryall. He will take up a broad role
OVERRUNNING roadworks caused traffic chaos on one of Southampton's busiest roads. Rush hour motorists were caught in tailbacks stretching back into the city centre after engineers were forced to close the westbound Millbrook flyover to make emergency
ANGRY parents are calling for John Hanson School to overturn a ruling banning pupils from wearing coats in the playground. The school's headteacher, Steve Evatt, says all coats should be banished to lockers during the school day so that pupils can maintain
CAMPAIGNERS hoping for the removal of a police communications mast near to their homes in Ludgershall have had their hopes dashed by Wiltshire Police Authority. At a meeting of the authority in Devizes it was revealed that neither the police authority
SALISBURY College decided to relinquish its lease on Tidworth College after it found it was losing money running the centre. The college's newly- appointed principal, Gill Thompson, told concerned members of Tidworth's community area partnership that
THE highly acclaimed and accomplished Wallop Artists staged their annual two-day exhibition over the weekend. The event took place in the Wallops parish hall and as usual attracted a wide range of artistic endeavour to the attractive village location.
GIVEN the traditional nature of folk music it seems appropriate that for one of its biggest stars, Kate Rusby, it's something of a cottage industry. Kate's husband and fellow musician, John McCusker, is also her producer. "He is in constant producer mode
RISING stars Biffy Clyro come to the Wedgewood Rooms in Portsmouth this week. The band, who are appearing at the venue on Tuesday, release their third album, Infinity Land, on Monday. Said to be one of the most exciting emerging bands in Britain, the
LUDGERSHALL in Bloom proved to be a resounding success this year and organisers are already looking forward to next year's event. This year was the first ever such competition in the village. "There are a lot of keen gardeners in Ludgershall so we were
Starring Georgie Fame, From Basin Street to Broadway, at The Anvil, Basingstke tonight, is a new jazz show with seven of the finest middle of the road jazz musicians to be found today. Georgie Fame had a string of hits including Yeh, Yeh, Getaway and
TROUBLED teens in the Tidworth and Ludgershall area now have a confidential counselling service they can access to help them overcome their problems - possibly without their parents knowing. The new service, based at the Elm House surgery in Tidworth,
TEENAGERS from a Hampshire village have been left devastated after plans for a community skateboard park were thrown out by the very people who set the whole thing in motion. In October last year jubilant youngsters cheered every time a Whiteley parish
ARTS and crafts, board games, computers and sport - there is plenty on offer for youngsters who want to stay on after lessons at one Eastleigh school. Now organisers of the after-school club at Crestwood Community School are looking for more children
Kevin Phillips has warned his side they need to get a win now to avoid being sucked into a season-long relegation battle. The £3.25m hitman says the team has not slipped into the realms of a relegation scrap yet but is acutely aware that getting another
Speculation was growing today that Saints might look to David Platt to solve their managerial coaching badge problems that are threatening to force head coach Steve Wigley out by December 15. Premier League rules state managers in the top flight must
Steve Wigley has warned his Saints stars he will make changes if results don't start to improve. Since taking over as head coach, Wigley has developed a settled line-up with nine players having started all five of Wigley's Premiership games in charge
IT'S chocks away and tally ho! in Kerry Conran's ground-breaking pulp fiction fantasy, which has been more than six years in the making. Using virtually no sets and no locations, Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow is brought vividly to life with more
IT'S been at least a week since the latest gang of dodgy, double-dealing, East End geezers swaggered into our multiplexes. So it comes as no surprise that Matthew Vaughn, producer of Lock, Stock & Two Smoking Barrels - the film that ignited the trend
IRWIN Winkler's handsome musical biopic of legendary American composer Cole Porter doesn't quite live up to its effusive title. Part fact, part imagined, the film paints a colourful portrait of one of the world's greatest songwriters, including more than
DOCTOR Gordon (Elwes) and photographer Adam (Whannell) wake to find themselves chained to opposite sides of a darkened derelict bathroom, in the middle of which lies the decaying body of a man who appears to have shot himself. The two strangers soon realise
WIMBLEDON (12A): British romantic comedy about a struggling British tennis player whose game picks up after he begins a relationship with an American tennis star. THE PUNISHER (18): Comic book adaptation about a man who goes in search of revenge after
