Archive
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District's schools need more places
ST ALBANS' schools have become victims of their own success. Their constant high marks in government league tables mean that they are oversubscribed, leaving parents and children disappointed and angry when they are forced to travel out of the area to
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Chile set to produce quality not quantity as growth slows T HE 1999 vintage in Chile was a small one. After several years of spectacular growth in the UK market, the Chilean wine sales are set to slow down. The good news is that the latest harvest, while
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The swallowtail butterfly. ONE of the benefits of France as a holiday destination is its proximity. It also supports a marvellous, varied wildlife - representing the north western corner of the European land mass which, including Asia and Africa, constitutes
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JAZZ: An adventurous Beowulf Mayfield set off in search of surprises and discovered the great Bill Le Sage JAZZ always has surprises up its sleeve and I had a very pleasant one last week when I wandered in to the Southern Cross hotel in Watford to take
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POP: Liz Ford says let's hear it for two hard-working bands who write their own material and go touring as they try to to find a record deal A TOP night of entertainment from two of Watford's finest bands is on the cards at The Flag and Firkin tonight
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Modernisation scrutinised first in-house
WATFORD councillors have agreed to set up a special committee to examine its local government modernisation plans. Under legislation currently going through the House of Commons, local authorities are going to have to abandon decision-making committees
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The Colosseum saved by 11th hour cash injection
DEBT-RIDDEN The Colosseum has been saved from closure by a £200,000 loan from Watford Council. The loan for the Rickmansworth Road entertainment venue could pave the way for the hall's managers, Mr John Wallis and Mr Paul Scarbrow, to buy out the The
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Tories deny complacency over sex gang warnings
ACCUSATIONS of complacency have been levelled at Conservative county councillors over the handling of the South Oxhey sexual abuse saga. Police and social services are investigating allegations a gang of about 20 men, aged between their late teens and
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Loveless act as birds and eggs stolen
CAGED birds and eggs worth about £1,000 were stolen from the Lincolnsfields Centre in Bushey last week. Fifteen pairs of love birds - including four pairs of the rare blue mask variety - a cockatoo, a budgie and the birds' eggs were stolen from an aviary
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Police investigate rape in town's park
DETECTIVES in Watford are appealing for witnesses, following an alleged rape in Cassiobury Park on Monday. A 17-year-old girl said she was raped in the park, close to the Rickmansworth Road entrance in Watford, by a man she met earlier that day. Officers
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New strategy devised to improve road signage
ONE man's mission to reduce traffic on St Albans Road has prompted Hertfordshire County Council to devise a Signing Strategy designed to get motorists off residential highways. Mr Nic Fergusson, 45, who lives on the corner of St Albans Road and Garston
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Teenage mum who broke her baby's arm needs 'help'
A TEENAGE mother with learning difficulties who broke her seven-week-old baby's arm needed help rather than punishment, an Old Bailey judge said on Monday. The court heard the girl battered the seven-week-old baby, now living with grandparents in Watford
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Carol gets her IT sums right for Hornets Ward
CHILDREN admitted to the Hornets Ward at Watford General Hospital will now have access to the latest educational information technology (IT) equipment as a result of mathematics wizard Carol Vorderman's £125,000 win on ITV's Who Wants to be a Millionaire
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Motion to stop Green Route work
WATFORD councillors agreed to urge County Hall to halt the next phase of the town's Green Route scheme in Clarendon Road and the town centre ring road, pending the outcome of a review. Conservative councillor Tim Williams tabled a motion at the full council
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'The best event in the village...ever' PARISHIONERS of Aldenham rallied round to supply food for the parish's millennium party at the weekend, after a last minute hitch. A mobile medieval kitchen was due to cook food - including a hog roast - during the
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Danceathon raises funds for ill child
A TERMINALLY ill three-year-old from Watford is set to receive a £1,000 boost, following a sponsored danceathon at the weekend. The two-hour event, organised annually by Ruislip's theatrical agency for children - Sole File - at Whiteheath Junior School
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Residents kept in dark over pollution
RESIDENTS in Sandridge at the centre of a water pollution scare have hit out at council chiefs for not warning them earlier about a nearby private well which may be contaminated. Sixty-six households in St Leonard's Court were sent a letter by St Albans
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CALL FOR MORE SCHOOL PLACES
A SEVERE lack of secondary school places in Harpenden and St Albans has led to calls for a change in the system. St Albans MP Kerry Pollard has joined disillusioned parents in calling for more places to be found to keep up with growing demand. He said
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CONSERVATIVES ATTACK TRANSPORT SPENDING PLANS
CONSERVATIVES in St Albans have criticised the Government's much-heralded transport spending review as 'not adding up to a row of beans' for the city. The review, announced last Thursday, brought together all the possible and planned transport schemes
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ROYAL VISITOR CALLS IN AT NEW PRIMARY SCHOOL
THE Royal seal of approval was given to the Joy and Stanley Cohen Hertsmere Jewish Primary School in Watling Street, Radlett, on Monday when the Duke of Edinburgh attended its official opening. The school - Hertfordshire's first state-funded Jewish primary
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Road rage attCK
A MOTORIST was set upon by two men on the A405 North Orbital Road, St Albans, last Wednesday in what is believed to be a road rage attack. The victim was driving his blue Volkswagen Golf along the M10 towards St Albans between 9am and 9.10am when his
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Woman wakes as shed becomes engulfed in flames
25 firefighters save luxury flats as fire destroys music studio HOMELESS WOMAN FLEES BLAZE by Shannon Price A HOMELESS woman is recovering after a terrifying ordeal in which a shed she was sleeping in became engulfed by flames. Smoke from the fire, which
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CALL FOR ACTION OVER CITY WASTE DEPOT
FUMING residents are calling for action to be taken against the owners of the recycling depot in St Albans which, last week, caused mayhem with a massive fire. Before the fire had even been put out, angry neighbours of the composting centre had resumed
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HIGH-FLYING TEENAGER SOARS TO FIRST PLACE
A ST ALBANS teenager is flying high after winning a national microlighting competition that took him to 78 airfields around Britain in just four days. Mr Robert Grimwood, 19, of Oysterfields, completed the staggering journey on his way to winning the
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Homes bid goes on hold
PLANS to transform an industrial workshop into four new city centre homes have been put on hold because councillors fear access would be a 'nightmare'. The proposal to partially demolish a two-storey workshop on Church Street and re-develop it into four
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Retiring caretaker faces homelessness
A CARETAKER who devoted 25 years to a London Colney school is facing homelessness after being told he must leave his on-site house. Instead of celebrating his retirement last Friday, Mr George Leach faces the prospect of moving into temporary accommodation
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Pensioners warned of conmen
ELDERLY people are being warned to be vigilant following a wave of bogus officials trying to con their way into homes. St Albans Police are warning that since the beginning of the month there have been at least six reported incidents of distraction burglaries
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Market-day thieves target elderly shoppers
FOUR elderly shoppers in St Albans had their purses stolen from their handbags in the space of two hours last Saturday lunchtime. A 79-year-old woman had her purse stolen from her handbag in Woolworth's in St Peter's Street between 11.25am and 11.35am
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Film listings for Friday, July 28 to Friday, August 4
Warner Village, Woodside Leisure Park (01923 682222) The Perfect Storm (12); The Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas (PG); Titan AE (PG); High Fidelity (15); Stuart Little (U); The Patriot (15); Thomas and the Magic Railroad (U); Mission: Impossible 2 (15)
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Reaping the fruits of your hard work
THERE is never a time when a keen gardener can't find something to do but now, when our gardens are at their best and full of summer colour, we should take a little time to relax and sit down and enjoy the results of months of hard work and planning even
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£3.5 million cost of hijack THE hijack standoff at Stansted Airport and the subsequent criminal trial could end up costing Essex Police more than £3.5m. Essex Police have already received £2m for the police operation surrounding the February hijack, on
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Car clampers need to be controlled
UNAUTHORISED parking has been a problem for companies in Watford for sometime and many have resorted to private clamping firms to solve the issue. But the activities of these clampers has now come to the attention of the police and it may be that some
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Make holidays a spiritual pilgrimage
WHILE on holiday in Northern Spain recently, I visited the cathedral at Santiago de Compostela. Since the Middle Age the burial place of St James has been a place of pilgrimage. The cathedral was crowded with tourists but there were also many genuine
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Harpenden Railway Museum and Garden is open next week for visitors to enjoy railway memorabilia. as the museum cel 21st year. Today July 28 Friday night live music; sounds from funk to indie, hip hop and dance on every week; Philanthropist and Firkin,
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Metal monsters battle for survival
THEY stalk the battle arena with a menacing glare. The combatants, with names like Sir Killalot, Matilda, Sergeant Bash, Dead Metal and Shunt, eye their evil-looking metallic opponents, eagerly waiting for their next kill. Their inventors have spent months
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Readers questions from yesteryear QMR A.E. Whiting of 63 Berry Avenue, Watford asks: Does anyone recall The Old Dell on the Harebreaks? QWHEN did Rousebarn Lane become so called? People in that area used to refer to it, and may still do, as Rosebarn Lane
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Can you help me find my friend?
MRS LINDA MILLER, 28 Hillcrest, Middle Herrington, Sunderland, SR3 3NL, telephone 0191 528 3315, writes: THE lady I am looking for is Elizabeth Elliot, who possibly became a Mrs Mackenzie. She is a cousin of mine, and my mother, who is poorly, would like
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CPZ may ease bank holidays
ENFORCEMENT of controlled parking zones (CPZ) in Watford on bank holidays will be reviewed in a few months time, councillors agreed last week. Liberal Democrat councillor Rabi Martins urged in a motion to council on Wednesday, July 19, that parking restrictions
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Lost shipmates may be found
DURING the past couple of years, I have often included appeals for Lost Shipmates, and a magazine for Royal Navy Shipmates has now grown to eight pages. If you were in the Royal Navy and are interested in what became of your old mates, then I recommend
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Taylor's top Spitting Image in head-to-head
HORNETS manager Graham Taylor proved more valuable than his boss, club chairman Sir Elton John, in a recent auction of Spitting Image puppets. Taylor may not care to be reminded of the ridicule he received at the hands of the satirical puppeteers while
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Clampers could be unlawful
CAR-CLAMPERS cracking down on unauthorised parking in Watford town centre could themselves be breaking the law by operating without a licence. Lloyds Parking Services, of Westcliff-on-Sea in Essex, patrols the private car parks of a number of town centre
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Second major leak causes domestic havoc
A TORRENT of water swept into homes, gardens and garages wreaking havoc in the early hours of Wednesday morning following a major leak from Three Valleys Water's treatment plant in Bushey. This was the second serious leak from the Clay Lane Water Treatment
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Prince Philip opens county's first state Jewish primary school A WARM welcome was extended to the Duke of Edinburgh from Hertsmere's Jewish community at the official opening of Hertfordshire's first state Jewish primary school on Monday. The Joy and Stanley
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Couple jailed for £20,000 swindle
AN anonymous tip-off led to the conviction of a couple from Maple Cross, who swindled Three Rivers District Council out of almost £20,000. Julie and Trevor Lee, of Oakhill Close, were sentenced to eight months in prison at St Albans Crown Court on Monday
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Smokey gets into a hot spot in fireplace
A CAT nearly lived up to its name when it got stuck behind an open fire in Watford. Smokey the cat disappeared up a chimney in Bradshaw Road and failed to reappear. The fire brigade was called by its owners and officers from Watford Fire Station arrived
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SURVEY HAILS CPZ SCHEME
THE controversial controlled parking zone (CPZ) scheme in St Albans celebrated its first anniversary with positive feedback in a council survey this week, based on a sample of only 25 residents and 33 businesses. The survey's results were reported to
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Blackspot work starts
MOTORISTS are being warned of severe traffic delays in St Albans when long-awaited work starts at the Ancient Briton accident blackspot. Alterations to change phasing of traffic signals at the junction of Harpenden Road with Beech Road and Batchwood Drive
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CALL TO CURB DISRUPTION AS STATION IS BUILT
CONSERVATIVES in St Albans and Harpenden have urged developers to make sure disruption to Thameslink services is kept to a minimum when a new station is built. Plans are under way to build a new station underneath the St Pancras station to replace the
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Councillor helps hostel
A MARATHON effort from Liberal Democrat Councillor Anthony Rowlands has resulted in a cash boost for the St Albans Open Door Project. Councillor Rowlands, who almost made his target time of three hours 30 minutes in this year's London Marathon, collected
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PLAYING FIELD CAR PARK PLAN REJECTED
PLANS to convert a disused school playing field into an additional car park for a health club have been turned down. Cannons Club in Nightingale Lane, St Albans, had applied to St Albans District Council to build a 65-space overflow car park on a plot
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BREAST CANCER DEATH RATES SHOCK
BREAST cancer death rates in west Hertfordshire are among the worst in the country, with one woman dying every three days from the killer disease. Of the 46,000 women aged between 50 and 64 invited for screening over a three-year period, seven every month
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£6,000 raised to help tot
A FUNDRAISING appeal to to pay for pioneering therapy for a St Albans youngster has already topped the £6,000 mark. Donna and Gary Blow from Beverley Gardens, Jersey Farm, refused to accept medical advice which wrote off their baby daughter as a 'vegetable
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THOUSANDS PAY THEIR RESPECTS
THE sorrowful and sobering tones of a lone piper from the Scots Guards was the only sound to be heard as Robert Runcie's coffin was taken outside to be buried in the north churchyard at St Albans Abbey on Saturday. A deafening silence engulfed the Abbey
