A prodigious musical talent has died of ovarian cancer, aged 45. Pianist Alison Baker, from Clacton, hit the headlines when she became the youngest pupil of the Royal Academy of Music in 1972, when she was just nine. She had first climbed on to a piano
A prolific shoplifter promised "I won't do it again" after a court heard she was trying to turn her life around. Drug-user Jemma Newman, 25, admitted stealing booze and perfume from shops in Clacton and Colchester to feed her addiction. Newman, of Wellesley
Police are launching a zero-tolerance crackdown on yobs who are blighting the lives of people in Frinton. Angry residents called for action to be taken against the youths, who congregate most evenings in Wittonwood Road, close to Frinton's gates. Sgt
A new open-air festival which organisers hope will be the next Glastonbury is expected to rock the village of Bradfield next month. The three-day Fulo Festival will be held in the fields surrounding The Strangers Home pub, in The Street, on the weekend
Fears were raised for two youngsters in a dinghy who were in difficulty in the sea off Holland-on-Sea. Coastguards, along with two police boats and Clacton beach patrol, were called to help the boys. Simon Milnes, Thames Coastguard watch manager, said
Villagers are calling for the resignation of a parish council clerk after she was cautioned for a public order offence. Melanie Wilkes, 45, of Barrack Street, Bradfield, received a caution after being arrested last Thursday evening. Ms Wilkes, who has
A WOMAN has escaped a jail sentence for bigamy with her childhood sweetheart, after getting back in touch with him via website Friends Reunited. Sally Bailey got married to another man at a Clacton hotel while she was still married to her second husband
MORE than 100 jobs have been lost as a firm which manufactures office furniture has gone into administration. On Monday JF Nott, on Witham's Eastways industrial estate was handed over to Kroll - an international risk consulting company. Alastair Beveridge
SCHOOLS could close and vital services could face an "enormous impact" during two days of strikes planned for next month, union bosses have warned. Teaching assistants, cooks, cleaners, social workers and other staff at Essex County Council could walk
LESS than two years ago, ME sufferer Cathy Pollendine would throw up with exhaustion if she so much as climbed the stairs. Now, however, the 19-year-old is preparing for the trip of a lifetime, to study orang-utans in the rainforests of Borneo. Cathy
Another soldier from Colchester-based 2 Para has been killed in action in Afghanistan. The Ministry of Defence said the soldier was killed during a firefight with the Taliban in Helmand province. His next of kin have been informed but his identity has
A DRUNKEN man who walked out of a restaurant without paying was traced after showing off his tattoos. Edward Allen, 32, of Berefield Way, Colchester, ate a two-course meal and drank vodka at a restaurant in Colchester - and left without paying. He admitted
A teacher heard a sound like the "creaking of a heavy door in a scary movie" before a tree branch fell on four schoolchildren. Daniel Mullinger, a pupil at Heathlands Primary School in West Bergholt, was killed in the incident which happened during a
Colchester United skipper Karl Duguid has joined Plymouth Argyle. The long-serving star had spent 14 years with the U's, making 442 appearances in total - 385 in the league - and scoring 45 goals. He captained the side for the last four seasons and
AN attacker who grabbed his victim by the throat and then kissed her, claimed he had suffered a blackout. Christopher Bird, 21, turned up at a house in Colchester as a party was finishing. Bird, of Timber Hill, Colchester, admitted sexual assault and
NORTH Essex businesses strapped for cash can save money by going green. The Essex Resource Efficiency Club, an event organised by Colchester Council and the Environment Agency, will offer tips on how simple changes can make a difference to a company's
COLCHESTER bosses have joined calls to exempt small businesses from paying a licence fee to play music at work. Under the Design, Copyright and Patent Act 1988, anyone broadcasting music for anything other than personal use must pay a fee. But a national
Children are dispelling the blues while their dads are away fighting in Afghanistan by writing them special air mail letters, called blueys. Montgomery Junior School, on Baronswood Way, has set up a writing club to help children write letters to relatives
DEFIANT villagers are to swim across the River Colne in protest at plans to shut their doctor's dispensary. An application has been made for a new pharmacy in Station Road, Wivenhoe, which puts the dispensary at Rowhedge doctors' surgery under threat
THE parents of a motorcyclist who died in a road accident paid tribute to their sporting son who they said "lived life to the full". Niall Cutts, of Hobbs Drive, Boxted, was killed after his Suzuki motorcycle was involved in a collision with a silver
CLACTON'S fountain had to be turned off after it was sabotaged with a bottle of bubble bath. Foam spouted from the £137,000 water feature and covered the town square and part of Pier Avenue. Bosses had to turn it off on Sunday to get half of the water
Essex go into tonight's Twenty20 Cup showdown with Sussex Sharks knowing history is on their side. The Eagles have beaten the south coast county on each oftheir last four visits to the Ford County Ground in Twenty20 cricket. The Sharks' only win at
Braintree Town striker James Baker has left Cressing Road. Baker, who turned down a new contract from Braintree, has been snapped up by fellow Blue Square South side Eastleigh. Iron will now be due compensation, as Baker is under the age of 24. His
Tiptree United have moved to strengthen their squad ahead of their assault on the Ridgeons League premier division. With the ambitious Jam-makers keen to take the premier division by storm, they have signed defender Mark Gaisford and utility man Lee
A big overhaul of the playing staff is taking place at Heybridge Swifts. The Scraley Road side managed to finish in mid-table in the Ryman League premier division last season, having flirted with relegation for much of the campaign, as financial constraints
Gigawave MotorSport's excellent start to the FIA GT Championship continued with a top-six finish and three more points. In extreme heat and deteriorating light conditions, drivers Philipp Peter and Allan Simonsen brought the team's Aston Martin DBR9
The Ipswich Rhinos' poor mid-season run of results continued against the Portsmouth Seahawks. Already forced to reorganise due to injuries and England Lionheart duties, the Rhinos lost scrum half Dan Kerr with a broken nose in the opening minutes and
THREE young robbers are behind bars today for their part in two separate robberies in Clacton. A court heard how three men were assaulted and one stabbed in the buttock in the incidents last October. Shane Fenton, 18, of Lake Walk, Clacton, and Michael
FOOTBALL fans have been told to get on the buses to go to matches at Colchester's new community stadium. There may even be coaches laid on for U's fans from the coast. Colchester United have unveiled details of a shuttle bus scheme for fans, drawn up
THE Testicle Tour is making an unplanned stop - the studios of ITV's This Morning. Darren Couchman and Richard Miller, of Clacton, are travelling to places with genitalia-related names, such as Cocks Clark in Essex and Prickwillow in Cambridge. The
Buy today's Gazette and enter our contest to win a Nintendo DS Lite and a sat nav find out about our Party in the Park tickets giveaway, and discover how to claim a mini-pizza, thanks to Pizza Express and the Gazette. There are three ways to
DETECTIVES are urging three groups of friends seen walking near the site where a teenager was allegedly raped to come forward. An 18-year-old said she was attacked by a man in William's Walk, off East Stockwell Street in Colchester's Dutch Quarter, between
BUDDING barristers scooped a top prize in a courtroom showdown between hundreds of schools. Youngsters from Colchester County High School for Girls came second in the national final of the Magistrates' Court Mock Trial Competition, held in Leeds. More
