Archive
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What's on at the cinema
Warner Village, Woodside Leisure Park (01923 682222) Gone in 60 Seconds (15); The Road to El Dorado (U); 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
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Top taste now comes from vines once thought poor
THE Languedoc and Roussillon regions of southern France were once known only for their bulk wine production. This area was once a major contributor to the European wine lake but things have changed. On my first visit to the region back in 1978, there
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FILM REVIEW: Nasser Hashmi reviews Gone in 60 Seconds (15)
NEXT time you return to your car and find it smashed up and violated, think of the scally that did it and it's unlikely that Nicolas Cage's stylish good looks will come to mind as the potential thief. Yet in Gone in 60 Seconds, he is exactly that - and
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Pop Pourri: Stoneblue hoping to reclaim Watford in the name of rock n' roll. A BAND from Watford is hoping to relaunch itself on home turf after a three-year absence from the town. Stoneblue was a regular on the local circuit, playing the likes of The
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A love of nature is the greatest gift to give a child THE school holidays are well under way. It's a time I used to love when I was a boy. As my knowledge of wildlife grew, so the opportunities afforded by the long, summer days were, seemingly, endless
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Nature abhors a vauum, so fill it
IN our modern society, where everything seems to be done in a rush, we tend to think carpeting the ground with dense planting is an up-to-date idea for helping to save time spent working in the garden. In actual fact, by doing this we are following a
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In search of Deeping fans
WE are a small group of people very interested in the delightful books written by Warwick Deeping (1877-1950), probably the best-known being Sorrel and Son written in 1925 (which went into at least 41 editions and was still in print in the 1970s) and
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This photo shows a party gathering in St Albans. Where was it taken and what were people celebrating? Can you name anyone? This picture was lent to us by reader Cliff White, and comes from his dad's collection. He thinks it shows an old St Albans character
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Can you help with these history mysteries?
QCAN anyone recall any noteworthy events at Chipperfield Manor House? QDOES 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, spelt Rowsbarn
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Millennium date 'was celebrated too soon'
AN Oxhey man's campaign to show we were all a year too early with our millennium celebrations has received official confirmation. Eight months after most people celebrated Millennium Eve, Mr Leslie Church, 67, of King Edward Road, has finally proved his
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Fire crews called to same site twice in three days
THE station commander at Watford Fire Station has hit out at arsonist attacks which endanger lives and waste fire service resources. Station Officer Roger Parker was prompted to speak on the issue after crews were called out to the same site in Cardiff
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Osmond's a hit with worshipping fans
MORE than 300 people heard former pop star Merrill Osmond speak at a Mormon service in Watford last Friday. Religious and pop music enthusiasts from all over the country packed out the hall in The Church of Jesus Christ and the Latter Day Saints in Hempstead
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First turf cut at new children's centre
BUILDING work on a new children's centre in Watford began on Tuesday with a symbolic turf-cutting ceremony. Watford MP Claire Ward and Watford Mayor Ian Brown dug spades into the one-and-a-half acre site off Rickmansworth Road where the new £2.1 million
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Parents 'livid' at changes in CLAPA care
A SUPPORT group for patients treated at Mount Vernon's cleft lip and palate unit are still angry with NHS bosses for what they view as poor consultation on radical changes to the service. The Government plans to axe 42 of the UK's 57 units for children
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Mum raises health fears over dogs fouling children's play area DOG fouling enforcement notices have finally been posted up in the Abbots Langley area, following a series of phone calls made to the council by a mother concerned for the safety of her child
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Violence rages night of in high street
POLICE used batons to break up a massed brawl and a teenager was left needing emergency eye surgery as violence raged at both ends of Watford high street at the weekend. The trouble started outside Destiny nightclub and led to a fight among about 100
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Firefighters save farmhouse
A FIRE service commander has praised firefighters who prevented a Watford farmhouse from being gutted on Tuesday. Officers from Watford, Garston and Rickmansworth were called to Brightwell Farm in Vicarage Road at 5pm. When they arrived, a first-floor
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Speed bumps end burglar's trolley run
A HAPLESS burglar is being hunted by Watford police after a failed attempt to steal a safe from a school in Garston. Bemused workman at Parmiters School in High Elms Lane saw the would-be thief trying to tow away the safe in an upright, two-wheeled trolley
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Health watchdog boss wants CHCs recognised
THE boss of Watford's health watchdog has criticised the Government for planning the abolition of organisations such as his while failing publicly to recognise the work they do. Mr Barrie Taylor, chief officer for South West Herts Community Health Council
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Blind Matthew, 3, just wants to play
PARENTS of a three-year old who has suffered a series of serious illnesses are appealing for funds to enable their son to do what every child is born to do - play. Matthew Goode, of Balmoral Road, Watford, has suffered a series of infant illness - which
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'Responsible man' joined riot mob
A FOOTBALL steward usually trusted to help control crowds turned hooligan during the rioting that rocked the City of London last year, a court heard on Wednesday. Former Watford Grammar School pupil and dedicated community worker Daniel Martindale regularly
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Joyriders dump car in canal
A CAR was dumped in the Grand Union Canal on Monday after joyriders stole it and drove it across a golf course. Police were called to West Herts Golf Club in Rousebarn Lane after a witness heard a car being driven across the course and into the canal
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Crops destroyed as fire spreads through field
MORE than 30 firefighters were called to tackle a blaze at a farm in Sandridge on Wednesday. Six fire engines attended the fire at Hill End Farm that devastated more than 20 hectares of standing crops and stubble. The fire was ignited when a combine harvester
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Man punched answering door
A MAN was subjected to what police have described as a 'vicious and random attack', after he opened his door to a stranger. The 31-year-old victim was punched in the face several times after a man barged past him and into the house in Half Moon Mews,
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Hospitals campaign gets cash injection
HOSPITAL superbugs will be targeted in a new clean-up campaign, announced this week. More than £200,000 of the £31m Department of Health handout announced on Monday will go to hospitals and health services in St Albans. The NHS Hospital Clean-Up initiative
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City centre cinema a step closer
PLANS for a new eight-screen cinema and leisure complex in St Albans are expected to given the green light by councillors next week. The cinema complex, including restaurants, bars, an art gallery and a multi-storey car park, is expected to be built in
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Residents rally to save village
A SECOND battle is under way to stop Redbourn being 'turned into a town' with the building of a motorway service station. Residents are being urged to turn out in force on Monday night when St Albans District council's plans north sub-committee will consider
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League tablesare 'garbage' says university
LEAGUE tables that put the University of Hertfordshire in the fourth division have been dismissed as 'garbage'. A spokesman for the university, which has its law faculty based in St Albans, is ranked at 81 out of 99 universities in the UK - a drop of
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U-turn on school admissions rules agreed
CHANGES in primary and nursery school admission rules were formally agreed this week, after the Government's adjudicator rubber-stamped the U-turn by Hertfordshire County Council last month. The council's education committee reinstated priority for siblings
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Health chiefs act on shock figures
HEALTH chiefs in St Albans have been stung into action following figures showing the death rate following hip operations to be among the highest in the country. Recent NHS performance statistics showed one in six patients died within 30 days of being
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Special day for market
SHOPPERS looking for bargains, street entertainment and the chance meet a friendly lion should get along to St Albans Market as it marks Great British Market Week tomorrow (Saturday). Victor the Lion, the market week mascot, will be handing out sweets
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Villagers gear up for M-way services fight
THE residents of Redbourn are preparing once again to fight plans to build a motorway service station in their village. Just two years after they saw off an almost identical proposal, residents must gear up for yet another battle. Many are rightly asking
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A playful Beowulf Mayfield says how about joining him in his newly invented game designed to reveal your top five music favourites? THERE'S a new game for everyone - you know the classic radio programme Desert Island Discs, which asks people to select
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Trust gets more nursing cash
THE Princess Alexandra Hospital Trust has been granted funding for a second consultant nurse by Health Secretary Alan Milburn. The nursing posts have been introduced to provide experienced nurses with positions of responsibility in patient care, after
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Jim's hoping to catch the bus
A BISHOP'S Stortford man could land a starring role on prime time television if he is selected to go on a trip of a lifetime. Jim Tanfield, 26, is one of 24 hopefuls waiting to hear if they have been selected to travel across 18 countries in a 1958 double-decker
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College plans new pool
BISHOP'S Stortford College has received planning permission for a £1.8m indoor pool, to be built on the site of its existing outdoor pool. Headteacher Ian McCulloch said the existing pool, which was built in 1928, was no longer sufficient for the school's
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New campaign to reduce accidents
HERTFORDSHIRE Police are stepping up their campaign to reduce the number of accidents on the county's roads now that school holiday season has started. In a bid to keep children safe on the streets, the force is to link with the Government's 'Think' campaign
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Looking for war comrades
RONNIE MACINTYRE, from Glasgow, on 0141 942 2466, writes: I AM trying to trace my flight engineer from during the war when we were a crew. Is he living in Watford? His name is Johnnie Walker. He was a flight sergeant, and served with number 218 Gold Host
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Health report bad news for town residents
THERE is a 'north-south divide' in the treatment of heart disease within west Hertfordshire, a new health report declares. Despite higher rates of heart disease among people under 75 in Watford and Three Rivers districts, they have been given less treatment
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MP slams plans to build 130 houses on 20-acre sports field
SOUTH West Hertfordshire MP Richard Page has hit out at plans to build 130 houses on the Old Merchant Taylor's playing fields in Croxley Green. The 20-acre sports ground was earmarked for housing development in August last year to help fulfill Three Rivers
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Matthew, 3.5, takes gold in transplant Olympics THREE-YEAR-OLD Matthew Reynolds, of Garston, who was born with a heart defect, has won two medals in transplant patients' equivalent of the Olympic Games. Matthew, of The Gossamers, won gold in the under-fives
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Man run over on M1 after being thrown from crash
A MAN died and another was left seriously injured after an accident on the M1 near Watford during the early hours of Sunday. Five people were travelling north in a white Ford Fiesta when it hit the central crash barrier one mile north of Junction 4. Three
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Admission rules: 'Could do better'
CHILDREN facing separation from their siblings under new primary school admission rules which looked set to divide families won a reprieve this week. On Tuesday the Government's adjudicator announced that children joining nursery and primary school in
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Cloughie - the Sun's No 1, dies
FORMER chief soccer writer and golf correspondent for The Sun newspaper Mr Frank Clough, of Bushey Heath, died on Monday at the age of 65. (Mike Ellis of The Sun writes). Born in Dewsbury, West Yorkshire, 'Cloughie', as he was known in the sporting world
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Two charities receive foundation grants
GRANTS totalling £5,000 have been awarded to two Watford-based charities by the Hertfordshire Community Foundation. The Disability Recreation Unity Movement (DRUM) will receive £1,000 a year for the next three years and the South West Hertfordshire Community
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Abbey Flyer service rapped
TRAIN operator Silverlink has this week been accused of running a deteriorating service between St Albans Abbey station and Watford Junction. St Albans county councillor Chris White said there is no-one to collect fares on the Abbey Flyer, forcing passengers
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All aboard for new sightseeing tour
GUIDED tours of St Albans using open-top double decker buses are running throughout the summer, taking in many of the delights the city has to offer. Views of Verulamium takes passengers on a circuit of St Albans, beginning and ending in St Peter's Street
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Bomb hoaxer jailed
A HOAXER who claimed IRA bombs had been planted in St Albans is this week beginning a two-and-a-half-year jail sentence. Stephen Torrance, of Lemsford Road, St Albans, twice used an IRA code word and sparked major alerts. In the first call he said a bomb
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Petrol pump apathy
DUMP THE PUMP day kicked off this week, but instead of receiving a rally of support from motorists, the event fell foul of widespread apathy. It was hoped that millions of drivers would grab this well publicised opportunity to make a stand against spiralling
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Businesses set to get help with parking
AFTER a year of suffering from the effects of the controlled parking zone (CPZ) scheme in St Albans, businesses in the city will now be given a helping hand by the district council. Council officers will be looking at areas in the city where residents
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Pathway protest grows
PROTESTERS fighting the controversial development of Cock Alley have won more than 300 pledges of support, including backing from St Albans MP Kerry Pollard, in their battle against the loss of the ancient pathway. They say plans to build six houses and
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Pub's future safe
PLANS to save a Frogmore pub from closure were given the go-ahead this week, after planners approved an expansion scheme. The Red Cow pub in Radlett Road has seen three landlords give up and leave since 1992 due to crippling financial difficulties. In
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Gardens marquee decision on hold
THE on-going saga of a controversial temporary marquee at the Gardens of the Rose in Chiswell Green rumbled on this week, with councillors still no closer to a decision. The Royal National Rose Society failed on Monday to get planning permission for a
