Archive
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Writtle: Baby Sophie weighed just 1lb
Tiny baby Sophie Richardson, whose weight dropped to just one pound, has proved that she is a real fighter. Sophie was born 13 weeks early, weighing only one and a half pounds. Now her parents, Lee and Jacqueline, both 27, of Writtle, are looking forward
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Maldon's Victorian evenings under threat
More support from Maldon traders is needed to safeguard the future of the town's popular Victorian Evenings. For the past 14 years the late night shopping events have been a hit with visitors, but response from traders themselves has been less enthusiastic
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Jobs bonanza at Stansted
Increased routes at Stansted are creating extra jobs at the airport. Managing director John Stent said 100 more staff will be taken on by BAA this year and Irish airline Ryanair will be adding another 200 to its payroll as more services are introduced
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Essex speeding blitz 'a success'
A crackdown described as the toughest ever by traffic police in Essex -- in which "whining excuses" were not accepted -- will result in 11,619 drivers being prosecuted for exceeding the 30 and 40mph limits in the county. An Essex Police spokesman said
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Bulldozing vandals wreck Colchester woodland
Bluebells and trees in Colchester woodland have been decimated by mystery vandals. Machinery has been brought in to bulldoze a wooded area off Layer Road in the town - but no-one knows who is responsible. Worried neighbours raised the alarm after they
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£1m award to cut Essex class sizes
More than £1 million has been awarded to Essex schools to reduce infant class sizes. The biggest award was given to John Ray County Infant School, in Braintree, which scooped £130, 532 to build two new classrooms. The school is one of the fastest-growing
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New backer gives Rayleigh firm a warm glow
When staff at a long established Rayleigh radiator firm returned to work after their Christmas break, things were bleak. All 14 were told they were going to lose their jobs as the company had gone bust. But as EMMA THOMAS found out, thanks to a mystery
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Great Baddow: Woman robbed at knifepoint
A woman in Great Baddow has been robbed at knifepoint by a man who called at her flat. The attack happened at about 2.45pm on Saturday at the flat in Vicarage Lane, according to an Essex Police spokesman. The 40-year-old woman answered her door to be
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'Grant' boost for Southend's Palace
Tough-talking EastEnders' star Ross Kemp has waded into the battle over the Palace Theatre, Westcliff, with an impassioned plea for its future. Ross, who plays Grant Mitchell, returned to his roots to try and safeguard the London Road theatre, where he
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How Cool Hand Luke, 7, had those silos beet
Seven-year-old Luke Taylor set off the blast that brought down Felsted's twin sugar silos at high noon last Sunday. The Felsted County Primary school pupil was chosen by Berisford Developments after winning a painting contest which secured a £1,000 first
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Two dead after A12 crashes
Two people have been killed in separate car crashes on the Essex stretch of the A12 during the course of the weekend. The first smash happened at around 5.30pm on Saturday on the Colchester-bound track of the A12, just north of Witham. A Ford Fiesta XR2
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A12 chaos... and this is just the start
Ten-mile tailbacks today marked the start of three weeks of roadworks on the A12. Drivers faced early-morning chaos after roadworks began on the A12 Witham bypass. Motorists were delayed as tailbacks up to ten miles long developed on the London-bound
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Westcliff teacher flees with pupil
Relatives of a teenager who has gone on holiday with her married teacher today remained tight-lipped about the scandal which has rocked a Westcliff catholic school. Father-of-two Paul Hillen, 36, was today understood to still be in Spain with blonde 18
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Soccer: Chelmsford seek a sound ground solution
Chelmsford City chairman Peter Stroud has admitted that unless the club finds a new ground back within the borough 'sooner than later' they will be forced out of top non-league professional football for good. "It's quite simple that unless we get the
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Southend homeowner's smash shock
A shocked householder today told how he awoke to find a car had ploughed into his home. Paul Johnson said it was like a "scene from hell" after the car slammed into the front of his house. Miraculously the driver and three passengers walked away from
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Canvey meningitis scare
A creche has been given the all-clear after a baby was rushed to hospital suffering from meningitis. Medical chiefs said children were not in danger at the nursery at Waterside Farm Sports Centre, Somnes Avenue, Canvey, after a 17-month-old boy was taken
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Calling Essex waste protesters
Protesters are hoping for a huge turnout to descend on Essex County Hall in opposition to the council's plans for dealing with its waste in the future. Residents of Stanway and Old Heath will be attending the rally in Chelmsford to voice their concerns
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Black Notley burglar gets three years
Burglar Colin Evans was caught red-handed after he broke into a house in Black Notley. A court heard how 19-year-old Evans was stopped on the drive of the house in London Road after a neighbour became suspicious and called police. Evans, of no fixed address
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Soccer: Crowd trouble at Billericay game
Billericay Town's weekend soccer match was halted for three minutes as players, officials and managers of both sides tried to stop fighting on the terraces. Trouble started in the closing stages as the hugely-supported home side battled to save a Ryman
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Soccer: Southend to sell Roots Hall
Roots Hall is to be sold to pay off Southend United's £3.87 million debts, the Blues confirmed today. Chairman John Main revealed that Southend's home will be sold for £4 million in an effort to refinance the club. Once the ground is sold it will be leased
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Rugby: Second-half Billericay blitz shows title style
Newly-crowned Eastern Counties Two champions Billericay rattled up 47 second-half points without reply - after leading only 8-5 at the interval - as winger Mike Coxford grabbed three tries and replacement Andy White two. Billericay began brightly, gaining
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Toughen up bans to stop the yobs
Brighton deserve credit for moving quickly to ban four supporters who allegedly caused trouble during a recent match at Roots Hall, but I question whether their decision can be successful. The four were allegedly at the forefront of some pretty ugly and
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Soccer: Southend's Conlon is off the mark
Barry Conlon finally ended his six-month Roots Hall goal drought on Saturday during Blues' impressive 2-0 win over Swansea City. The Republic of Ireland under-21 hitman, who joined the Shrimpers from Manchester City for £90,000 in September, had failed
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Halstead: Time for a close shave for Lesley
Family and friends have put their heads together to support cancer sufferer Lesley Cook - and had them shaved. Lesley Cook, of The Clovers, Halstead, discovered she had breast cancer last year and underwent a mastectomy. She is now undergoing treatment
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Colchester: Boots plan for Turner Rise
Proposals for an out-of-town Boots superstore are on the table for the Turner Rise development in Colchester. But planners are reluctant to give the chemist giant permission to build as they fear the store will encourage shoppers to move out of the town
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Parcel bomb: Man remanded
A man accused of trying to blow up his niece with a bomb has appeared before Basildon magistrates. Martin Diggines, 37, of North Weald, is charged with the attempted murder of Kelly Diggines, 18. Kelly's home in Delhi Road, Pitsea, was badly damaged last
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Curing by counselling...
JANE O'CONNELL speaks to art teacher turned counsellor Joyce Stableford Joyce Stableford has an aura of calm. I pulled up on her drive, got out of my car and left the handbrake off. As I fumbled with keys and bag, the vehicle rolled slowly but inexorably
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Neighbours save Rayne family
Brave neighbours staged a daring rescue in order to save the lives of a mum and her two young sons from their blazing Rayne home. A fire broke out in the Rayne home of Suzanne Kardhordo at around 2am on Friday due to an electrical fault on a tumble dryer
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Stanford Le Hope: PC rescues asthmatic
A police constable rushed a 15-year-boy to hospital after he suffered an asthma attack on his way home from a party in Stanford-Le-Hope. An Essex Police spokesman said the boy began experiencing breathing difficulties as he walked home with friends just
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Vandals target vehicles in Colchester
Damage with an estimated value of £1,000 has been caused by car vandals who went on the rampage in a Colchester street. An Essex Police spokesman said five vehicles were targeted in Egret Close between 12am and 9am yesterday, and officers are appealing
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Cricket: County wait on Aussie squad
Essex are waiting with bated breath to see if their overseas star Stuart Law will be selected in Australia's final World Cup squad. The dashing Queensland run machine and useful medium pace bowler was named in the Aussie's original party of 19 earlier
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Man killed on Basildon railway line
A man has died after he was involved in a collision with a train at Basildon. The incident happened at 7.10am on the LTS line in the Five Bells area of Basildon, according to an Essex Police spokesman. The man, who comes from the south Essex area, has
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Rayleigh burglars' £5,000 haul
Police believe burglars who stole £5,000-worth of porcelain from a Rayleigh home knew exactly what they were looking for. An Essex Police spokesman said the valuable porcelain was stolen from a home in Highfield Crescent between 12pm and 9pm on Saturday
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Canvey: Teams rally round racist attack victim
A promising young footballer has vowed not to let racist thugs stop him playing his favourite sport. Concord Rangers striker Manny Williams was kicked in the face and had his watch stolen at Benfleet station by two robbers who bombarded him with racist
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Basildon burger van man jailed for year
Burger van owner Stuart Whellen became worried when his once-thriving business began to decline. So he jumped at the chance of buying smuggled vodka, wine, tobacco and cigarettes to sell from his six vans throughout Basildon. But he failed to pay customs
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A12 chaos... and this is just the start
Ten-mile tailbacks today marked the start of three weeks of roadworks on the A12. Drivers faced early-morning chaos after roadworks began on the A12 Witham bypass. Motorists were delayed as tailbacks up to ten miles long developed on the London-bound
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Soccer: Wadworth shock at FA decision
Colchester United manager Mick Wadsworth has been stunned by the news that Gillingham striker Carl Asaba has been let off a four match ban. The former United loan player was sent off along with U's defender David Greene after the pair clashed during the
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Laindon groom's DIY bridal gown
Hard-up groom Edward King wooed his bride to the altar - after hand-making her beautiful white gown in just 14 days! Romantic Edward followed a book he borrowed from the library to make his step-by-step creation. The last touches were made to the gown
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Ice Hockey: Chelmsford beaten by the Blaze
Chelmsford Chieftains were unable to repeat their fine home victory over Solihull Blaze earlier this month as they went down 11-5 in the Midlands last Sunday. Still without captain Jake French and with Karl Rogers out through injury, Jon Cotton captained
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Soccer: Bramble to sign for Spurs
Chelmsford City's prolific young goal scorer Tesfaye Bramble was expected to sign for Premier Division Tottenham Hotspur on Friday. The news meant the young striker could have played his last game for City in Saturday's home league match against Folkestone
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Chelmsford Council opposes factory proposal
Chelmsford Council is set to object to proposals to turn a former post office depot into a roadstone coating factory. And MP Simon Burns has written to Essex County Council, which will decide on the plans, to urge them to reject the scheme. Hundreds of
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Bowls: Young Burgess is best
The best short-mat bowler in Essex is aged just 16. Craig Burgess has won the Essex Championships singles title after a gruelling five-month tournament. The Brentwood teenager, who plays for East Hanningfield bowls club, beat Alan Jones from Canvey's
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Canvey Island adventure
Drenched fund-raisers faced monsoon conditions when they walked around the edge of Canvey. The sponsored walk threatened to become a sponsored swim as rain and high winds battered the 43 brave volunteers. However, the poor conditions only made them more
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Basildon: Inquest on track man
An inquest was to be held today after a 53-year-old Basildon man was killed when he laid in the path of a train. Emergency services were called to the Fobbing / Five Bells level crossing on Saturday. A passer-by claimed to have seen the man, believed
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Assault victim in fear of crucifixes
A man has been left scared of crucifixes after he was subjected to a series of indecent assaults when he was a young boy by a man who wore one. Christopher Hill kept a wooden cross around his neck when he carried out the assaults in church premises in
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Ice hockey: Derek gets his skates on
Schoolboy Derek Whitbread only took up ice hockey two years ago - because there was nothing good on TV on a boring Sunday afternoon. Now he is playing for south-east England, dreaming of a professional career in the USA, and is on a rigorous diet and
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Soccer: Southend's Conlon leaves fans as happy as Barry!
Young Southend United striker Barry Conlon came of age on Saturday as he finally justified his £90,000 price tag. Cup fighters Swansea City, who knocked Blues' east London rivals West Ham out of the FA Cup earlier in the season, arrived in Southend desperate
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Soccer: Rovers are the top dogs again
Great Wakering Rovers are back on top of the Schweppes Essex Senior League. The village side gave their hopes of taking the title, and winning elevation to the Ryman League for next season, a major boost when they triumphed 6-2 at East Ham. Despite recent
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Soccer: Billericay tame Shots with Adekola strike
Billericay chose the perfect time to end a goal drought which lasted for more than eight hours. For the superb effort which top scorer David Adekola converted after 36 minutes of this Ryman League Premier Division clash was enough to win the game and
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Vandals target Clacton surgery
Vandals have attacked a doctor's surgery four times in a week causing hundreds of pounds of damage. Windows were smashed at the building in Nayland Drive, Clacton, which was saved from closure two years ago. The latest attack happened over the weekend
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MP backs Frinton pub plan
MP Ivan Henderson has stepped in the row over plans for Frinton's first town centre pub. Mr Henderson said he supported the moves for a pub in the tranquil resort, despite protests. And he said he believes it will prove to be "a popular amenity which
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Jaywick: Scouts' hard work pays off
A thriving Scout group has a completely revamped centre and improved facilities after six years of hard work and fundraising. The final phase of refurbishments costing £26,000 has been completed at the building in Golf Green Road, Jaywick, which belongs
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Colchester: Fraudster's prison appeal upheld
A benefit fraudster has won her appeal against a prison sentence. Sally Brivent-Barnes was jailed for three months by Colchester magistrates last week after she admitted making fake benefit claims totalling more than £8,000. She spent a night in Holloway
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Clacton: School traffic chaos angers residents
Residents living close to an infants school today claimed they have been let down over promises to solve traffic problems in the area. And they fear there will be a serious accident if measures are not taken to ease the congestion. It was more than year
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Chelmsford: New driving centre
Get your motors running! A new driving test centre has opened in Chelmsford to help thousands of learner drivers hit the road. Driving Standards Agency chief executive Bernard Herdan and Chelmsford West MP Simon Burns were special guests at the official
