Archive

MURDER squad detectives are working round the clock hunting the killer of Widnes gran Agnes Hanrahan. Six months after her savage death, the incident room is still fully staffed and offering a £20,000 reward. Using the latest police Homes Two computer

VALE Royal Athletics Club have broken all records after an excellent showing at the Cheshire Track and Field Championships. The club had their most successful championships to date, bringing home 23 gold medals, 19 individual county champions and breaking

NORTHWICH Vics fans will have to wait until November to see their team at Victoria Stadium after cash flow problems put the brakes on development work. The club confirmed many supporters' fears last week when it announced that a delay to building works

Knutsford's new town mayor wants the public to demand more from their local councillors. Liberal Democrat Barbara Austin, who has attended almost 340 town council meetings over the past 16 years, said she wanted to see some new faces asking questions.

DEVELOPERS who are to demolish part of the Royal George Hotel now want to knock down a Knutsford shop. Gaskell Estates have unveiled plans to demolish the building at the corner of the Royal George Yard and Princess Street. "We think it tidies the street

I WOULD like to let you know that on May 18 it will be my mother-in-law's first anniversary since she died suddenly in Halton hospital. I'm informing you because Agnes Mainwaring put quite a lot into helping me relating the campaign I led from 1984 and

TWO weeks ago everybody in Runcorn received a letter from Royal Mail, regarding the way in which the mail was to be delivered, big changes, more efficient, etc. It did explain that you might receive your mail a little later than you have in the past,

ON Saturday May 1, I visited relatives in Middlewich with the purpose of attending the revived Middlewich Rose Fete. Two of my young relatives, Amy and Lucy Aldridge, were taking part in the fete as fairies. I was very impressed with the whole event and

RESIDENTS in Middlewich are still one councillor's top priority even though he is stepping down in the borough. Clr Dave Sutton will not be standing for re-election in the Congleton Borough Council elections in June as his wife Sue is expecting their

COMMUNITY spirit and imagination has earned the Roman Middlewich project a prestigious national award. And the town could be invaded by Normans next if project funding is approved. Middlewich Mayor Clr Alison Roylance-White and town clerk Jonathan Williams

A SITE in Middlewich that has been earmarked for a waste dump by two separate bodies has come under the spotlight this week. Yesterday, Tuesday, The Banks Group's plans for a waste dump in Kinderton Lodge were discussed by Cheshire County Council's development

THE Middlewich base of a vehicle manufacturing company is still waiting to hear whether jobs will be created through a multi-million-pound contract with the Ministry of Defence. European truck maker MAN ERF is bidding, through its UK subsidiary MAN ERF

SPORTING youngsters in Middlewich will be given the chance to shine in the sixth Cheshire Youth Games. Congleton Borough Council, along with every other local authority in the county, is organising trials, inter-school competitions and coaching sessions

KINGS and queens from five decades held court at the annual Whitegate village fair on Saturday. And for the first time in three years the sun shone brightly as hundreds of revellers turned out to celebrate the fair's 50th anniversary. The event, which

WINSFORD United plan to keep the home fires burning when it comes to unearthing a new generation of footballing talent. Manager Dave Twite announced last week that the Blues are close to forging an alliance with youth side Winsford Diamonds to make sure

BAGS of laughs are promised as The Comedy Store comes to Warrington's Pyramid at 7.30pm on Saturday, June 5. Stephen K Amos, Simon Evans, Rainer Hersch and Michael Mee are just some of the stars on stage. Offering the very best in stand up comedy, improvisation

SHOCKED residents at Knights Grange in Winsford have expressed their horror at the 'sickening' attack which left a teenage girl battered and unconscious. And councillors have said it was only a matter of time before something as serious as this happened

A RESIDENTS' association in Winsford fears a long, hot summer of discontent if warm weather like that experienced last weekend continues. Mike Kennedy, chairman of the Grange Residents' Association, believes that there is a link between raised temperatures

A MAN brandishing a six-inch steak knife carried out a frightening armed robbery at a shop in Winsford. And police believe the same suspect was responsible for an incident on Monday, May 17, where cash was grabbed straight from the till at a hairdressers

MOTORBIKE accidents are on their way up with the return of the better weather. Police are warning riders to keep the speed down - and reminding car and lorry drivers to keep their eyes open. Motorcyclists have been caught doing more than 100mph on the

WITH Kestrels champions in group one the fight for second spot was between Crows and Falcons. Falcons lost 1-0 to Hawks and beat a depleted Kestrels 1-0 but Crows won 4-0 against Gulls and drew 2-2 with Robins. These results gave Crows runner-up spot,

Appleton: Edward David Jones, (Lab); John Anthony Littler, (Con); Desmond Peter McDermott, (Con); Francis Nyland, (Lab); Emma Louise O'Neill, (LCA); Gerald Philbin, (Lab); Andrew Anthony Taylor, (BNP). Beechwood: Maurice Craig, (Lab); Martha Lloyd Jones

ALL 56 seats in Halton Council are up for grabs as it's an all-out election this year - usually only one third go to the polls on a rota basis. Mayor elect Cllr Dennis Middlemass, council leader Tony McDermott and the entire executive board will be waiting

WIDNES Albion Bulls ARLFC will hold their annual presentation night on Friday, May 28 at Moorfield Sports & Social Club. The awards for the season will be presented and all players and partners are asked to attend for a 7.30pm start. It has been a

I AM writing following a recent article in the Knutsford Guardian about the morale decline in our society. I ask: Would you take two prostitutes to your church? I would. In fact when my husband Sidney and I were in the Samaritans years ago we often took

Widnes 196 for nine Hyde 129 for eight After losing in the final over to Oxton, Widnes over compensated and batted on too long against Hyde. Consequently they drew a game, which ought to have been a victory. Opening the batting for Widnes, James McCoy

THE PAINSTAKING search for victims trapped in the Glasgow plastics factory blast was carried out by experts, including two Halton firefighters. Martin Walsh, of Widnes and Ian West, of Runcorn joined four colleagues from Cheshire Fire Service Urban Search

THE second in the series of Service Area (SA) representative matches took place last Saturday against West Cumbria at Widnes Recreation Club, home of Whitehaven RFLC in Cumbria. The Halton U15s drew at home and the U14s won 24-12. At Whitehaven, the U12s

WE may not have scooped Britain's biggest Gulbenkian arts prize of £100,000, but we still feel like winners! That's the heartening message Norton Priory museum director Steve Miller gave a packed audience, last Friday, celebrating their achievement in

THE £335m new Mersey crossing creating 5,000 jobs, could get the go ahead this year, claims MP Mike Hall. His confidence follows Transport Minister Tony McNulty's support for the scheme during a debate in the House of Commons. "I am confident that the

SPORTY pupils battled it out to find out who was the top-notch team when it came to athletics recently. Schoolchildren competed in the Halton athletics competition at the Kingsway leisure centre in a bid to become one of 28 chosen for the Merseyside youth

WADE Deacon proudly lifted the cup for Halton at Cardiff's Millenium Stadium after beating Whitchurch 32-10 to win the Powergen champion schools final. The Year 7 boys' team took the title, in an exciting curtain-raiser to the Challenge Cup Final between

TRIBUTES have been paid following the death of a dedicated teacher who taught English at Sir John Deane's College for more than a generation. John Sumner, who died after a battle with cancer at the age of 67, devoted 36 years to teaching at Sir John Deanes's

THE final meeting of the 2003-4 season of the society was a presentation by member Ken Hayes, on Film Music - a subject not covered before in the society's 18 years. The music was either especially written for the film concerned, or an item from the standard

THE director of a Northwich architectural site to be featured in BBC2's Restoration series has been delighted by the public's response to its inclusion. The Lion Salt Works in Marston is one of three regional finalists for the north of England in the

CAMPAIGNERS are stepping up their fight against a possible 'thermal treatment' centre in Lostock after learning that it would be used to deal mainly with industrial waste. The former RAIN (Residents Against Incineration in Northwich) group has changed

EVERY year the May meeting of the Women's Institute is set aside to discuss resolutions which are sent from London headquarters. If a majority throughout the country agree with them and vote for them at the Women's Institute annual meeting, they are sent

AT a meeting of Sandiway and Cuddington Royal British Legion Women's Section on April 27, members received a full and detailed report of the national conference held in Blackpool, when national president HRH The Princess Royal was present on the second

BOROUGH councillor Michael Fellows has resigned after being arrested over allegations that indecent images of children were discovered on his computer. Mr Fellows, of Lostock Green, who has not been charged, has been bailed to return to Northwich Police

A TELEGRAM from the Queen came as a big surprise for a Runcorn golden wedding couple. Alfred Ashworth, 83, and his wife, Joan, 81, had no idea their family had arranged the royal greeting. "They were totally unaware we had asked for it," said their son

RECKLESS children setting fire to woods are dicing with danger, fire chiefs have warned. Parents are being urged to check their kids' bedrooms and pockets for matches and lighters, following a spate of arson attacks in Nortonwood Lane, Windmill Hill.

A DETERMINED pair of Runcorn walkers are set to trek through Cheshire's foothills and forests in aid of a local charity. Thomas and Sheila Whitfield, of Sutton Park, are lacing up their hiking boots this Saturday in preparation for the 34-mile 'Sandstone

AS the county councillor for Winsford South, I would like to publicly thank the county highways team which has, over the past two years, been working on the Swanlow Lane Over roundabout improvements. Meetings were held initially to discuss the improvements

THE Boundary Committee for England would like to clear up any confusion regarding its latest MORI research, published on April 14 as reported in the Guardian on April 21. The MORI research was the second of two pieces of research commissioned by the Boundary

I WAS gladdened to read the letter from a pensioner regarding corporal punishment. We senior citizens remember the days when self-discipline was taken for granted and girls were reminded: "Bring no trouble to the house, young lady." A landlord would say

I CONSIDER the blue and silver fencing erected near Town Bridge is a design disaster that has been forced upon the town with little regard to its preferences. This particular area by the river, and close to the Bull Ring, is particularly architecturally

THE wedding has taken place of Raymond Anthony Dalton and Rebecca Jane Lewis. Ray, 32, is the middle son of Raymond snr of Barnton and the late Susan Dalton, and Rebecca, 32, is the youngest daughter of Robert and Kay Lewis, of Lower Whitley. The ceremony

THE wedding has taken place in Sri Lanka of 26-year-old John Vincent Grange and 24-year-old Elizabeth Shaw. The groom is the only son of Edward William Grange and Pamela Grange and the bride is the only daughter of George Shaw and Susan Shaw. The bride

A MULTI-million pound bridge across the Mersey, which would help cut traffic jams in Warrington, could be given the go-ahead by Christmas. Parliament discussed plans for the crossing, which would run from the Central Expressway in Runcorn to the Eastern

IT'S a case of the prince and the pauper this Sunday as a threadbare Vikings side face the rampaging might of the mega bucks Bradford Bulls. The world club champions lie second-placed in Super League behind rival pacesetters Leeds Rhinos, and it will

IT'S a case of the prince and the pauper this Sunday as a threadbare Vikings side face the rampaging might of the mega bucks Bradford Bulls. The world club champions lie second-placed in Super League behind rival pacesetters Leeds Rhinos, and it will

BAGS of laughs are promised as The Comedy Store comes to Warrington's Pyramid at 7.30pm on Saturday, June 5. Stephen K Amos, Simon Evans, Rainer Hersch and Michael Mee are just some of the stars on stage. Offering the very best in stand up comedy, improvisation

THE funeral has taken place of Raymond Day, who died suddenly on May 5, aged 77. He was born and brought up in Manley. On leaving school he served his apprenticeship as a motor mechanic at Stamford Bridge. He joined the Army in 1945 attached to tank transport

THE funeral has taken place of Albert Edward Charles Williams, who died suddenly on April 26 at home in Lostock Gralam, aged 75. The service was held at Walton Crematorium and the Rev Harry Stratton officiated. One of two children, Albert was born in

THE funeral has taken place of Emma Jane Hardman, of Northwich, who died on April 19, aged 24. She was born in Crewe, the daughter of Barbara and Mervyn Hardman. She was brought up in Northwich and attended Church Walk School and St Nicholas High School

THE funeral has taken place of Jack Brown of Barnton, who died on April 29, at Warrington General Hospital, aged 73. He was born in Manchester, lived in Wythenshawe for 18 years, Knutsford for 27 years and Barnton for six years. Jack was educated at St

THE funeral has taken place of Joan Lowe, of Northwich, who died on April 23, aged 83. She was born in Renshaw Street, Lostock Gralam to the late Bill and Lucy Dimelow, and was the second youngest of two boys and three girls. She was brought up in Lostock

THE funeral has taken place of Peter Tierney of London Road, Northwich, who died peacefully on April 11 in Leighton Hospital aged 66. Peter was born in Glasgow and was a beloved husband and father of two daughters Loraine and Pauline. The funeral service

SEARCHING for hidden gems led inquisitive children on an exciting treasure hunt. Sailing on their very own ship, the Jolly Roger, St Gerard's nursery pupils had lots of fun, in an action packed history lesson. They dressed up in authentic pirate costumes

FRESH fruit and carrot and pineapple cake was given free to schoolchildren and parents last week. The fun event was part of the world cancer research fund's cancer prevention week. "Eating at least five portions of fruit and vegetables each day can help

BOWLING and dancing enthusiast Peter Jeffers has become the new chairman of Hough Green Probus Club, a club for retired and professional businessmen. A retired personnel and training officer at a Yorkshire engineering company, he has now returned to live

YOBS broke into a self-built house and covered it in paint leaving a husband distraught. They broke into the unfinished home in Upton Lane on Friday. Jane Collins said: "They also came back on the Saturday night but didn't do any noticeable damage - I

CRUCIAL new evidence in the hunt for gran Agnes Hanrahan's brutal killer has emerged - from her distraught daughter. Ann Johnson has identified vital clues after being shown photographs of the murder scene at her mum's Halebank home for the first time

WHEN consultants diagnosed my breast cancer I told them I was too busy for that. My doctor must have thought I was a paranoid woman who did not understand all the implications. But when experts first told me the lump was cancerous I explained I had just

SOME swear by them; others view it as just another passing fad. But magnets have been used in all sorts of ways over the years - and have brought us luck. This week reporter SHELLEY SMITH asked Roger Flaherty how he became attracted to their powerful

AS well as shopping at high street shops I like to hunt for a bargain in the many charity shops in Widnes. The other day whilst in Barnardos I was going to purchase a top but on looking at the price tag it was £8.50. I thought I was mistaken and that

PLEASE can someone tell me why strange purple strobe-like lighting has been fitted in the ladies loo at Widnes market? It really strains my eyes and feels very uncomfortable. Every time I have been in there, women are complaining about it. There is a

I AM a very old friend of Kelly Hudson's family. I no longer live by them but I would like to say how thrilled I was when I heard that Kelly had won the World's brilliant Win a Dream Wedding competition. She, above all others, really deserves this prize

FIRST class post is an absolute joke! In the past week, I have received several letters that have taken two days or more to reach me - from London! Each item had first class stamps on. A letter I posted on April 7 took a month to reach London! Furthermore

HIGH demand for tickets for this year's annual folk and boat festival is keeping organisers on their toes. And there is less than a month to go before Middlewich comes alive for the festival. Festival finance director Alison Roylance-White said: "Demand

and the living isn't always easy MIDDLEWICH residents are being advised to take extra care during the summer and safeguard their homes. The advice follows a number of residential burglaries in the Congleton borough and police say they are working to combat

LIVES will no longer have to be put at risk on one of Middlewich's dangerous roads as calls for action have finally been answered after years of pressure from residents. A campaign led by county councillor Dave Sutton has finally paid off as the wheels

RESCUE specialists from Cheshire Fire Service dashed to the scene of the Glasgow plastics factory last week following an explosion that killed nine people. Six experienced firefighters from the county's urban search and rescue team helped the Scottish

PROPOSALS have been made to extend Winsford's successful Pubwatch scheme to include shops and retail outlets in an attempt to cut down on under age drinking and anti-social behaviour. The plans were discussed at a Safer Winsford meeting between representatives

THE fate of this year's Winsford Carnival hangs in the balance as it is on the verge of being cancelled. The carnival committee claims the popular event is struggling to survive and may have to be called off due to a lack of support from local businesses

THE Cheshire regiment has faced a busy and dangerous time in Iraq. In the aftermath of the abuse scandal, they have endured militia attacks and a grenade attack. One officer said the troops have been trying to 'keep the Iraqis onside' as the details of

A TOILET roll holder was set on fire in an arson attack inside the New York bar in Runcorn's High Street. Firefighters put out the blaze in a toilet at 11.30pm on Bank Holiday Monday. Sub officer Ken Sharratt, said: "There is potential for something more

A SPECTACULAR event, full of fun, vim and vigour! That's how 1,000 children performing their musical skills in a giant celebration were described by a spellbound audience. Children of Halton Sing 2004 won standing ovations at each of their six evening

RUNCORN Boys Club are holding a six-a-side junior football tournament for teams of players, U9s on Saturday, June 26, U10s and U11s on Sunday, June 27 and U12s on Saturday, July 3. For further details contact 01928 771904, email runcornboys.jfc@ntlworld.com

WIDNES and Runcorn Sixth Form College rugby league team tasted more success last Wednesday with a hard fought victory over Hopwood Hall College from Rochdale. Tries from Sean Stacey and Scott Potter set up a thrilling finale in which captain, Ian Wilkinson

VIOLENT assaults against the region's ambulance workers are down by 15 per cent, a new report has revealed. There have been 10 fewer incidents in the last year compared to 67 in 2002/03. The success comes after a high-profile campaign to raise awareness

Halton 1st 53 Warrington 1st 26 THE premiership champions won again with an easy victory over Warrington. A few changes each quarter meant the whole squad got a chance to play. Andrea Gumbs held firm the centre court with support from wing attack Denise

ST Michael's AFC bagged a brand new telly by sharing their thoughts on sports in a recent questionnaire. Halton council and Halton sports partnership recently asked local sports clubs for their views on how they can all work as a team to make sure local

THANKS to the Knutsford Guardian, our borough council has at last begun to make available for public inspection details of Section 106 planning agreements. As they have managed to record so far only 105 out of some 730 agreements, and have already found

DEAN Ratcliffe and Steven Roberts, both of Runcorn Rowing Club, won the Ball cup, southern event, at Dorney Lake, Windsor on Sunday, May 9 over 1000 metres. They also won the J13 2x, northern event, which was held at Warrington Rowing Club on Wednesday

THE 2003/04 winter league finished at the War Memorial Club last Friday. The main trophy winners were Ian White (Wilsons) who won the individual competition and Navvy who won the Town Championship. The evening started with a play-off in the highest score

HALTON Hospital is to get Warrington Hospital's old bed linen. Warrington's bed sheets will be provided by a private cleaning contractor. The trust that runs the hospitals decided this was the most cost effective way forward. Halton's linen is washed

AN INCENSED stroke victim has blasted Halton Hospital for failing to provide specialist care health chiefs promised - only a month ago. Bob Bryant, chairman of Britain's biggest stroke club, Let's Go, suffered a mini stroke - yet says he did not have

for zero tolerance A NEW scheme to encourage the public to pass on information about crime and anti-social behaviour along the River Weaver has been launched. Waterways Watch has been set up by Cheshire Police, British Waterways (BW) and the Vale Royal

LETTERS from a love struck Northwich resident have turned up 34 years after they were first written. And a curious woman from Cuddington is hoping to learn more about the story behind the two love notes. Sheila Cross, 73 from Grange Road received the

MID Cheshire Animal Welfare in Northwich will continue its work, despite a fire that gutted the home of founder Pat Emerson, claiming the lives of eight of her beloved pets. But Jo Malone, animal welfare trustee, has spoken of the charity's determination

MARION Horsburgh, vice president Crowton WI, welcomed members, including a new member, to the May meeting. She then introduced Chris Thomas, senior regional policy advisor to Cheshire County Council. Mrs Thomas told members about some of the effects a

WHEN Pauline Humphries was turned away from hospital because she was too heavy to undergo surgery, she knew she had to do something. But she would never have imagined that just one year later she would be 10 stone lighter. In only 12 months, Pauline,

AT the May meeting of Whitley WI, president Helen Carey introduced the facilitators who would outline the three WI resolutions under consideration. Gill Alcock briefed members on the resolution to lobby the Government regarding the legislation to stop

THIS year's Mayor of Vale Royal was installed at the council's annual meeting on Thursday, and she has placed tourism at the top of her agenda. Clr Anne Hooker will promote the borough at all events she attends and hopes to encourage more people to visit

THE main business at the May meeting of Kingsley WI was to listen to the resolutions and to vote on them. These three resolutions will be discussed again at the annual meeting in Sheffield in June when representatives from all the WIs will meet to vote

A BRAVE sub-postmaster confronted a thief as he attempted to rob the Post Office in Lostock on Monday. The incident happened between 2.05pm and 2.10pm on May 17, when the would-be thief entered the Post Office on Manchester Road just after it opened and

A THRIVING Scout group could be forced to close because of a dispute with the Scout Association. Owley Wood Scout Group in Weaverham, which was formed 80 years ago, is in danger of losing its hut and other assets because of the clash with the association

THE Town Mayor of Northwich believes there are good times ahead after she was officially inducted to the position at the council's annual meeting on Monday. Catherine Slater, pictured above, has taken up the position for the second time and believes she

TWO mothers claim the children of convicted drug dealers have been left with them after Cheshire social services failed to make other arrangements for them. Ruth Higgin and Paula Mather, of Danefield Road, Northwich, have attacked the council after taking

INFANTRY guns, warrior tanks and battle trucks rolled out in a mighty show of strength. Not in action but to show 12 Runcorn army cadets the Royal Artillery's latest hardware - during a five day visit to the Bovington base in Dorset. "Each cadet was given

MERE 1st XI 150 for 8 Lymm OP 1st XI 155 for 3 Winning draw to Lymm CC THESE rivals have had closely fought matches before and this game was no exception. Mere won the toss and put the visitors into bat. Lymm started slowly and lost the wicket of Melia

AN EXCITING £38,000 multi sports ball court is being created at a former eyesore - underneath the giant Runcorn Widnes bridge. It follows complaints from Dukesfield residents, claiming their children had nowhere to play. "We are absolutely delighted that

TOFT CC travelled to Upton on Saturday to find the ground awash with sunshine and a pitch in good condition. Despite the conditions the Upton captain put Toft into bat. Simon Hardstaff began despatching the home bowling attack with consummate ease and

A HOAX caller who rang 999 could face prosecution. Crews set off to an alleged bin fire at Coronation House in Boston Avenue - only to discover it was a bogus call. "We treat hoax calls very seriously," said sub officer Ken Sharratt. "It gives us great

AN EXPLOSION under a car bonnet startled a businessman as he drove along the M56 through Runcorn. He immediately pulled in and raised the alarm. "We could see large amounts of smoke as we approached," said sub officer Ken Sharratt, who tackled the blaze

HYPOTHETICALLY (and tongue in cheek), what would be the legal position if the residents of the Kingsmead estate unanimously agreed to close their un-adopted roads to all but their own and service vehicles? After all, why should they allow all and sundry

YOUR issue of May 5 carries a letter in favour of a North West Regional Assembly. That would introduce another layer of administrative costs, and the interests of big cities like Manchester and Liverpool would inevitably outweigh ours. I hope the local

THE wedding has taken place at Rookery Hall, Worleston, of 54-year-old David I Blackburn and 39-year-old Jane E Mansell, of Lach Dennis. David is the son of the late Raymond and Dorothy Blackburn, of Marston and Jane is the only daughter of Timothy and

WADE Deacon proudly lifted the cup for Halton at Cardiff's Millenium Stadium after beating Whitchurch 32-10 to win the Powergen champion schools final. The Year 7 boys' team took the title, in an exciting curtain-raiser to the Challenge Cup Final between

A PE teacher has climbed the highest mountain in Africa to raise nearly £800 for charity. Sue Jones, from Penketh High School, took on Mount Kilimanjaro last August to boost funds for The Cystic Fibrosis Trust. She said: "It was very hard. It was filthy

A POLICE watchdog says it will conduct a robust investigation into allegations that two police officers raped a woman in Warrington two years ago. The Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) is to investigate the allegation of rape against two

MY Mother Said I Never Should opens at Knutsford Little Theatre next week. Rehearsals are now well under way for the play by Charlotte Keatley, which explores the interesting and sometimes unusual bond between mother and daughter. The superb cast of just

FOSTER & Allen celebrate the last date of their UK tour at the Liverpool Olympia after nearly 30 years in the business tomorrow (Thursday). These two Irish legends make a welcome return to Liverpool to celebrate the final date of their UK tour at

GET set for the summer with a trip down memory lane when the UK's most sensational open-air 70s concert comes to town. Tatton Park, Knutsford becomes the country's biggest disco party in the park on Saturday, June 19 when More Sounds of the 70s hits the