PEOPLE in Colchester are being invited to nominate their favourite local businesses as part of a national awards scheme. The Swift Awards, run by online insurance company swiftcover.com aims to highlight the role played by local firms in a community,
H&M, NEXT and Zara are some of the names in the frame to open a huge new store in Colchester. Lion Walk shopping centre is in negotiations with several fashion retailers to purchase a 20,000 sq ft outlet in Culver Street East. Four
youngsters from the area will be raising awareness of World Aids Day tonight. Schools and community groups will come together at the Mercury Theatre to stage the town’s 13th annual World Aids Day Arts Festival. HIV and sexual health charity, Terrence
IT’S one of the last carnivals of the year and one of the county’s most historic. And up until a few weeks ago the unthinkable was set to take place with the cancellation of this year’s Harwich Guy Carnival due to repair works. The carnival has been
COLCHESTER Council says taxpayers will benefit after spending £37,530 on updating its website. The colchester.gov.uk address has been overhauled in a bid to get more people to use it. Council staff at its customer service centre, at Angel Court, in
A BRITISH Army bomb disposal expert from Braintree, killed by an improvised explosive device in Afghanistan, was remembered by his wife today as a "true hero". Corporal Loren Marlton-Thomas, 28, from 33 Engineer Regiment, died while clearing
A MAKESHIFT cinema housed in a shipping container is offering film fans a chance to watch an internationally-acclaimed arthouse movie. The film, Dial H-I-S-T-O-R-Y, by film-maker Johan Grimonprez, is showing to students and members of the public
MANNINGTREE’S muddled clock has now won international fame. The town centre ticker hit the headlines last week after the Gazette revealed the new clock’s numbers seven and eight were the wrong way around. News of the blunder, which went unnoticed for
FIRE crews in Colchester were rushed off their feet after two fires broke out in just a few hours. Colchester firefighters were called to a house fire about 10.20am in Byron Avenue, Lexden. The fire is believed to have started by a faulty
Yet again, Colchester Council pretends the Visual Arts Facility has no more problems and is ahead of schedule. Unfortunately, there are unresolved problems and after the May elections you will hear of the latest cost increases. The Mace group
I write supporting Coppins Green Primary School, after events concerning a “cupboard”. Example A: A 32-year-old man was sentenced to two years in prison after he verbally and physically abused a 70-year-old lady, leaving her shaken and needing
Does Harwich really need the Mayflower Project, at a cost of nearly £4million? I am sure the majority of people from Harwich and Dovercourt would much rather have something practical for the town, such as a new community centre. This, of course
COLCHESTER’S car parks have won a top award for safety and cleanliness. Eleven of the town centre’s car parks achieved the British Parking Association’s “park mark” award. Assessors judged them on a range of criteria, including levels
RELATIVES of a man who died in a car crash broke down in court as the driver who caused the accident was sentenced to eight years in jail. Gurpreet Dhillon was driving a green Jaguar XK convertible, when he drove across a roundabout, off Centenary Way
A MAN charged with murder, who was released from prison by mistake, has given himself up. Jason Bethell, 31, of Broadway, Jaywick, was remanded in custody to Chelmsford Prison after being charged last week with the murder of John Smith.
A SERVING soldier being held in Colchester’s military prison will find out on Wednesday if he has to remain in custody. Lance Corporal Joe Glenton spoke out against the war in Afghanistan at a demonstration in London last month. He faces up
Clacton and Harwich’s Tory MP has been singled out for a political award. Readers of the political magazine, the Spectator, have named MP Douglas Carswell, left, as their Parliamentarian of the Year. Mr Carswell has been presented with his award by
ESSEX University students have staged a protest – against their own student union’s actions in making nine staff redundant. The job cuts have been made at the University of Essex Students’ Union, because officials say it is short of money. A group
IT was short but sweet, but it was all shoppers in Witham were talking about. Yesterday, X Factor contestant Olly Murs paid a visit to his home town, stopping for almost two hours in his local, the George in Newland Street. The singer, was followed
A PENSIONER became a rebel with a cause when she saddled up for her first ride on a motorbike – at the age of 86. Jessie White, of Greenhurst Road, Brightlingsea, whizzed through the town on the back of former mayor Alan Goggins’s powerful Yamaha bike
FUNDING of about £200,000 is set to go towards building a town square in front of Colchester’s new magistrates’ court. Work on the feature, on part of the St Botolph’s car park, is expected to start soon. Lyn Barton, councillor responsible for regeneration
A JUDGE branded a police community support officer who lied about his insurance after a car crash as “stupid” and “a complete idiot”. A jury found Daniel Le Moine guilty of using an insurance certificate with intent to deceive. Chelmsford Crown Court
MERCURY Theatre boss Dee Evans has paid tribute to actor Edward Woodward, right, who died yesterday. Woodward, famous for his roles in movie the Wicker Man, and as Callan and the Equalizer on TV, was 79. Woodward and actress wife, Michele Dotrice
A CHRISTMAS show has been saved, thanks to a donation by a Colchester charity. Children on the town’s Greenstead estate have now started rehearsals for their festive performance, which this year is Charles Dickens’s A Christmas Carol. But just a few
A CLASSROOM assistant has won “substantial” compensation, after she suffered a slipped disc while carrying lunches. Yvonne Macklin was helping a colleague lift a heavy, insulated box, filled with food, when she felt a sudden pain in her back
EMERGENCY services have been given access to a fenced-off quayside. Trent Wharfage, owners of Mistley Quay, handed over keys to police and the coastguard. The move comes after the coastguard was forced to remove part of the fence during a rescue operation
EDUCATION bosses are taking a softer approach to tackling truancy. The Tendring Behaviour and Attendance Partnership, which comprises all secondary schools in the district, is launching a campaign to encourage children to attend school. The district
COLCHESTER Magistrates’ Court does not quite hark back to the days of Charles Dickens, but it could be better. That’s the view of Mike Littlewood, eastern area director for Her Majesty’s Court Service, who believes the listed building is not
ALLOTMENT HOLDERS could get a reprieve after a developer scaled down housing plans for the site where they grow their veg. Landowner Sandor Glausius had planned to build a sports complex and 40 detached houses in Harwich Road, Mistley. He issued allotment
A YOUNG chef fighting extradition to Cyprus and a three-year jail sentence, says he wants his sentence to be over, so he can put the ordeal behind him. Michael Binnington and cousin, Luke Atkinson, are facing three years in jail for their involvement
IT is often said moving home can be one of life’s most stressful experiences. Christine Mabbitt seems to have taken that to heart. She has lived at the same house, in Colchester High Street, for 62 years. She and her late husband snapped up their six-bedroom
TENDRING Council is finally to go ahead and install new ventilation units at Dovercourt Swimming Pool, three years after a problem was first due to be fixed. Senior councillors have approved £150,000 of work at the Wick Lane pool and it is expected to
Head groundsman David Blacknall feared the U’s home clash with Exeter City would be rained off. Blacknall, along with his assistant Steve Parker, worked tirelessly in the hours leading up to last weekend’s game, in order to make the Weston Homes Community
WHEN his wife suggested they open a creperie, Simon Godfrey wasn’t so sure. Apart from not being a huge fan of crepes, the former IT project manager had been entertaining hopes of finding a similar job since he was made redundant 18 months earlier.
Colchester United legend Karl Duguid has backed Aidy Boothroyd to emulate Phil Parkinson and lead the U’s to promotion. The Plymouth Argyle midfielder watched his first U’s game at the Weston Homes Community Stadium last weekend, the 2-2 draw with Exeter
A RESIDENTS’ group is spending £1,000 to “deep clean” a road in the hope of attracting funding to clear up surrounding streets, too. The work, in Humber Avenue, Jaywick, is being organised by the Brooklands Forum and the Friends of Brooklands. Dirt
A MAN whose cherished car was practically written off when he hit a raised manhole cover is suing Essex County Council for compensation. Kevin Bowen, of Plains Road, Little Totham, wants the county council to accept liability for the damage
A TASTE of France came to Wivenhoe when the town held a big fundraising flea market. Stalls were set up outside 44 homes around the town and also in the Station pub’s car park, with bric-a-brac, collectables and antiques offered for sale.
BADLY-behaved soldiers helped to clear up a churchyard in Colchester. Soldiers serving sentences at the Military Corrective Training Centre, in Berechurch Road, Colchester, joined the British Trust of Community Volunteers to spruce up the grounds of
A MAN who started using cannabis to ease the pain of a sport injury, and went on to become a drug dealer, has been jailed for four-and-a-half years. Abdi Hagar, of Beach Road, Clacton, dropped out of his media studies course at Middlesex University when
GRANDMOTHER Debbie Amos has just become a mum again...13 years after being sterilised. The shocked 43-year-old didn’t realise she was expecting her fourth child until she was six months pregnant. Mrs Amos, of Sycamore Road, Greenstead
SPORTS fans queued to meet former England cricketer and Essex captain Ronnie Irani at a book signing in Colchester. He was at High Street store Waterstone’s to sign copies of his autobiography, No Boundaries. Lancashire-born Irani, who
BUS passengers in Colchester agree a level crossing is causing congestion and delays by remaining closed for too long. Colchester Bus Users’ Support Group has backed shopkeepers, who complained Network Rail was closing the Eastgates crossing too early
GOLD award-winning volunteers in Halstead will represent East Anglia in a national horticultural competition. Halstead in Bloom will be up against five other towns of between 6,000 and 12,000 residents in the Britain in Bloom contest.
