Archive

  • Opera troupe to sing for charity

    THOSE pining for some Colchester Operatic action following their successful January production of Fiddler on the Roof, need look no further than the troupe’s summer fundraising concerts. After last year’s concert entitled Make ’Em Laugh, Make ’Em Cry

  • We're selling our houseboat

    APIECE of maritime history is for sale in West Mersea. The 60-tonne vessel Hotspur, first launched in 1874, and moored at its current location since 1914, is so jam-packed with period features it gives any listed country cottage a run for its money.

  • London Eye firm gets arts facility contract

    COUNCIL chiefs have agreed to hire the firm behind the London Eye to help get Colchester’s Visual Arts Facility underway. Colchester Council’s cabinet rubber-stamped plans to hire Mace, one of the country’s biggest consultancy and construction groups

  • Rodney is back on his feet seven weeks after a stroke

    HE may have suffered a stroke just seven weeks ago but Rodney Partington is already a picture of health. The 65-year-old was lucky enough to be suitable for treatment with clot-busting drugs when he was admitted to Colchester Hospital.

  • Teen faces life for murder of dad-to-be in drugs row

    A TEENAGER faces a life jail term after he was found guilty of murdering a father-to-be in a drugs row. The 17-year-old drug dealer, who cannot be named because he is under 18, was convicted of murdering Alan Reilly, 25, at Chelmsford Crown Court yesterday

  • Council staff pocket £50k for election work

    COUNCIL staff have earned thousands of extra pounds by working in town halls and polling stations during county and European elections. Figures obtained by the Gazette show, in north Essex, staff were able to rake in more than £50,000 on top

  • Our soldiers in Helmand ‘let down by a lack of funding’

    THE officer who led Colchester’s paratroopers on their first mission to southern Afghanistan has blasted a Treasury-imposed cap on resources the Army could deploy. Brigadier Ed Butler told the Defence Select Committee his soldiers could “just

  • Forty years of fighting to main town's heritage

    A SOCIETY charged with preserving the past is committed to securing its future as it celebrates its 40th anniversary. The Witham and Countryside Society formed in 1969 to save the former home of renowned British author Dorothy L Sayers, and has gone

  • Market hope to revive town

    A FARMERS’ market is being launched in a bid to prevent Clacton becoming a ghost town. Shopkeepers hope the move will breath new life into the once bustling Jackson Road which has seen a string of businesses close in recent years. Sally Barnard and

  • Children petition council to improve play facilities

    TWO nine-years-olds are campaigning for a better play area in Slough Farm Road, Halstead. Katie Greengrass, of Beridge Road, and Kieran Bugbee, of Acorn Avenue, plan to start a petition. The Holy Trinity Primary School pupils have complained about graffiti

  • Last-minute planning U-turn saves Maldon Council £50k

    TAXPAYERS were saved from a £50,000 bill after a council abandoned a planning inquiry it had just a “5 per cent chance of winning”. An internal investigation has now been launched by Maldon Council after they dropped an enforcement notice appeal on the

  • Can air museum dream still take off?

    THE dream of bringing a First World War airfield back to life is hanging in the balance. Russell Savory, co-owner of Stow Maries airfield, said he will need to do some “soul searching” about whether he can pursue his plans for the aerodrome, after planning

  • Laid bare: The huge burden placed on unpaid carers

    UNPAID carers looking after loved ones are desperately in need of some free time to recuperate, according to new research. Figures released this week revealed two thirds of carers in the east of England are at breaking point because of the pressures

  • Packed meeting to discuss U’s training pitches

    CONCERNED villagers are continuing to voice their fears over plans to build Colchester United training pitches nearby. More than 100 residents packed out a meeting of Tiptree Parish Council to discuss a revised bid to create five training

  • Intrepid commuters beat the Tube strike

    NORTH Essex commuters battled their way to work in London in defiance of the Tube strike. Millions have been hit by travel disruption during the 48-hour strike by London Underground staff, which is due to continue until 7pm tonight.

  • Debate over mobile mast was ’denied’

    A COUNCILLOR says a mobile phone company has been allowed to put up a phone mast without a debate. Vodafone UK has been given permission to put up the mast near Tesco in Coggeshall Road, Braintree. Eric Lynch, who represents Braintree

  • Nicky’s walk to raise cash to battle cancer

    A WOMAN is determined to do her bit to raise money for cancer research. Nicky Withycombe missed out on a place in this year’s London Moonwalk which raises cancer fighting cash, so she decided to organise her own walk in Colchester. Nicky will be joined

  • Couple's woodland tribute marks golden anniversary

    A COUPLE celebrated their golden wedding anniversary by supporting an environmental cause. Elizabeth and David Robinson, of Bullock Wood Close, Colchester, gathered family and friends as they planted an oak tree at the Woodland Trust’s new