Archive

Date

An asparagus ballet?

Strange things are afoot at Pump House Gallery, writes Paul Fleckney. Whereas one normally goes to an exhibition to see the fruits of the artists' labour, the gallery has made the process the art instead, by putting five artists inside to work and be

Date

Vines pledges his future as Terrors hit top form

Tooting & Mitcham moved up to ninth in Ryman League Division One South after claiming two wins in four days. The Terrors followed their 3-1 victory at home to Maidstone United on Saturday by thrashing Croydon Athletic 4-0 on Tuesday night. Four second

Date

Nervy Hamlet still top

Dulwich Hamlet hotshot Chris Dickson has called on his team-mates to stand up and be counted as their patchy form threatens their automatic promotion chase. Hamlet are top of Ryman Division One South by one point despite only managing a 1-1 draw with

Date

Robins not yet clear of danger zone, says Garland

Carshalton Athletic manager Dave Garland fears his young side could still be dragged into a relegation dogfight. Despite taking an early lead through Mark Marshall, the Robins suffered a 2-1 defeat to Ramsgate on Saturday, on a miserable afternoon when

Date

Hazel still has high hopes for Zak

Sutton United manager Ian Hazel insists young striker Zak Graham is still very much part of his plans after he let the striker go out on loan. Graham has joined Ryman Division One outfit Croydon Athletic on a month's loan. United chief Hazel insists

Date

Chaaban strikes again to keep run going

Prolific duo Ali Chaaban and Mark Nwokeji have triggered a Staines Town revival but it remains to be seen if they can continue carrying the team after scoring 31 of the Swans' 48 goals this season. Chaaban's 17th goal of a roller-coaster campaign earned

Date

Bowling booking driving us spare

A seven-year-old girl's dream of a birthday bowling party was shattered when staff booked the event on the same day as a major tournament. Chloe Moore, whose birthday is on February 11, asked her parents for a bowling party after attending a friend's

Date

Hal hoping to book World Cup spot

NEC Harlequins centre Hal Luscombe believes his switch to the Guinness Premiership has put him in pole position to win a starting slot for his country at this year's World Cup. The 26-year-old has bounced back from the hamstring injury that ruled him

Date

British star Belding slams dragon boat shortfall

Kingston-based dragon boat racing international Tamsin Belding has hit out at the lack of funding the sport receives from Sport England, writes Tom Abbott. Belding, a 32-year-old teacher, races for national champions Kingston Royals and the Great Britain

Date

Tanners can be champions, insists Harlow

Leatherhead boss Dave Harlow admits he has an eye on gaining automatic promotion after his team stretched their unbeaten run to five games. Tuesday night's 0-0 draw with high-flying Dover Athletic, coming on the back of Saturday's 2-0 victory over Burgess

Date

Vote Conservative, not New Labour slavery

I have read Harold Trace's letter and noted that he thinks the ombudsman will recommend no action against Spelthorne Borough Council because their action was legal. Before this was chosen for a political attack, I visited the centre and found it was

Date

England isn’t what it used to be

Now the truth is out as Downing Street says there will be no referendum on the EU. Let it be clear we are not talking common market. Just the EU where the unelected bureaucrats decide what our elected representatives and Parliament can or cannot do.

Date

Putting developers first and residents last: Spelthorne Council’s new policy?

I have to congratulate Spelthorne's Mayor, Councillor Malcolm Royer, for condemning his fellow political colleagues over the sale of Bridge Street car park. Is he the only councillor who would uphold the common-sense rights of residents and their visitors

Date

England lacks an assembly to deal with issues

I have read the letter Proud Scot happy with the Union' and appreciate Andrew McLuskey must be laughing up his sleeve at his suggestion of a state of the south-east of England. Is there any truth to the rumour that Scotland is to be sold to a German

Date

Residents facing rough justice because of laws

The main problem that residents face in Stanwell and most of Spelthorne is antisocial behaviour. I do not have to tell Stanwellians about the slow response to calls to the police for help, or what residents perceive as a lack of interest on behalf of

Date

Bumpy ride for BA

The three day strike planned by BA cabin crew (which has now been called off) is just the most recent event in a chapter of accidents. Last year, a walkout by workers at Gate Gourmet and airline ground crew led to many cancelled flights and cost the

Date

FA Cup dream shattered again

Yes, I know it was only the fourth round. Yes I know it was only a faint hope that we would get to the new Wembley and play the first cup final there and I know that the FA Cup Winners have come from the top three or four in the Premiership in recent

Date

Your local events

The renowned English Mozart Ensemble is performing in Cobham for one night only. Cobham Parish Church is hosting the candle-lit classical concert, on Saturday, February 17, at 7.30pm. The concert will include music by Mendelssohn, Vaughan Williams, Shostakovich

Date

Thank you for making the public more aware

Congratulations on your excellent front page article in last week's Guardian, drawing the attention of your readers to the opposing views on the proposed hostel for active drug users, at 5 Ember Lane. My view is that there is a considerable difference

Date

Can you help me revive the story of Frank Shaw’ s bomber crash?

I am researching the crash of a Vickers Wellington bomber which came down near Swindon, Wiltshire, during April 1941. The co-pilot was a Sgt Francis (Frank) Elliot Shaw RAFVR, aged 24, of Surbiton, who was the only fatality and is buried in Swindon.

Date

Trying to find old friends

I am Alma Tanquay (nee Thurgood) and have been living in the USA since 1946. I lived in Church Grove, Warwick Road and Cedars Road and went to Hampton Wick Public School and St Marks in Teddington. I worked at Sands Millinery in Kingston before entering

Date

Why is that?

Does no one in your organisation know that wherefore' means why?' The answer to the question which you pose in your January 11 issue, Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou, Romeo?' about a missing cat is because the present or past owners of this cat so named

Date

“A much needed evening out”

I felt the need to write tonight - although it’s late (1.00am) & I’ve had a few (bevy’s for those that don’t know me well). LOL Female friends are a godsend - I have come to realise they can be relied on to pick you up when you are down, laugh with

Date

Put an end to bull fighting

As Labour's spokesperson on animal welfare I have just tabled a written declaration in the European Parliament, calling for a ban on bull fighting. I also want an end to the anomaly, whereby some European farm subsidies find their way into the pockets

Date

“A much needed evening out”

I felt the need to write tonight - although it’s late (1.00am) & I’ve had a few (bevy’s for those that don’t know me well). LOL Female friends are a godsend - I have come to realise they can be relied on to pick you up when you are down, laugh with

Date

Insolvency issue is clarified

With 110,000 people falling into insolvency last year, the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW) has clarified the debate over the merits of individual voluntary arrangements (IVAs) as an alternative to bankruptcy. Enquirers

Date

Training success rewarded

The 2007 National Training Awards is a chance for organisations and individuals from London to champion a business achievement or personal success gained through training. Last year's winners included an organisation which trained medics across the country

Date

Offices make for easy business

The newly-relocated Easy Offices firm in Walton is offering a free service to businesses in need of new premises. Founded in 1999, it acts on behalf of 1,100 companies in 60 countries and recently received the Investors in People accreditation.

Date

Bombay dreams at home

Enjoy hosting dinner parties but dread the hassle of cooking? A Kingston company is offering Indian cuisine, cooked and prepared in your home. Nila's Kitchen offers an extensive menu of chicken, lamb, seafood and vegetarian dishes from £25 per head.

Date

Liz is the ‘perfect’ choice

Surbiton based PR company, Livewire has appointed Liz Walkling as human resources and general manager. The agency, which lists the BBC, HarperCollins and Hitachi as clients, decided Ms Walkling's former position as HR manager at consultancy firm Pleon

Date

Walton woman tries to overcome phobia on TV

A Walton woman is showing her struggle to get over her fear of eating fruit and vegetables in a new television programme. Kate Blenkinsop, 20, is appearing on UKTV Style programme, The Farm of Fussy Eaters, on February 5, to try and confront her phobia

Date

Schoolchildren from the 1940s gather to reminisce about the good old times

Fifty Esher school children from the 1940s enjoyed a nostalgic reunion. The get-together was held at the Oakley Institute Sports and Social Club in West End, on January 12. Angela Stockbridge said it was wonderful to see so many friends brought together

Date

Picture of perfection

An 11-year-old pupil of St James C of E Primary School, in Weybridge, collected his prize for winning a drawing competition to mark the 150th anniversary of Weybridge's Oatlands Park Hotel. Joe Niederer was presented his award by the hotel's sales and

Date

School’s fun festival of skills

TV's DIY expert Handy Andy Kane and Olympic 400m silver medallist, Jamie Baulch, appeared at Surrey's fourth annual Skills Festival at Sandown Park, in Esher, yesterday. A special school-only festival will be held today, February 1, to help year nine

Date

Solving the mysteries

Over 60 students from six local secondary schools competed against each other at the murder mystery Brooklands College Science Challenge this month. In an event based on the Cluedo board game, students had to solve a crime scene scenario using various

Date

The next Pavarotti?

A year 13 pupil at Rydens School, in Walton-on-Thames, is hoping to become Britain's answer to Pavarotti, after winning the final of the Vocal Section at Kingston Musician of the Year competition, which was held on Saturday, January 20. Joseph Smith,

Date

Praise for ACS Cobham

ACS Cobham International School was due to host a visit from the Mayor of Elmbridge, Councillor Victor Eldridge, yesterday (January 31) to collect a £3,000 donation from the students for his chosen charities. The money will go to two local charities:

Date

My loved one died and all I got was this lousy $50m

If you pay attention to the showbiz headlines, especially those pertaining to R'n'B artists who haven't done a damn thing in years, you may have noticed a story about American singer Brandy Norwood, better known as just Brandy. On December 30th last

Date

Firefighters turn ‘fire preventers’

Firefighters from Walton manned a stand to give information and advice to people on how to keep their homes safe from fire. Members of the fire brigade were at the Excel centre in Waterside Drive on Saturday, to answer questions and book visits to carry

Date

Hospital looks to increase parking space available

Ashford and St Peter's Hospitals NHS Trust has announced a planning application for a car park "deck" to alleviate its notorious parking problems. The deck would constitute two new car parks with barrier-controlled ticketing - one for staff and one for

Date

Ice scraper wins award for hotel

Guests at Oatlands Park Hotel in Weybridge are being spared the early-morning hassle of clearing ice off their cars during winter. Recognition Express Mid Surrey, a Cobham-based specialist in corporate recognition goods, has supplied staff with customised

Date

Air freshener explodes near candle

Vapours from an air freshener sprayed near a candle caused a minor explosion in a bathroom in Weybridge. Some lighted T-light candles had been left unattended in the house in Brooklands Road, at 8.30pm, on Thursday, January 18, while the woman who lit

Date

Burglar used day job to pick riches

A burglar who used his job as a painter and decorator to help him choose his victims was jailed for three years for car theft and burglary in Molesey and Weybridge. Colin Varley, 53, from Stanwell, pleaded guilty to 15 offences including burglary, theft

Date

Andre prepares for life-saving neurosurgery

A 14-year-old Moldovan boy left with a hole in his head after an accident will next week arrive in England for life-saving surgery part-funded by an Esher surgery. Andre Zarusneak received an electric shock while passing an electricity station in Moldova

Date

Chief looking to move north

The out-going chief executive of Elmbridge Council is set to move to a new post in north London. Michael Lockwood, 47, who started as chief executive at Elmbridge in 1999, put the borough on the map as one of the best performing councils in the country

Date

Appeal after bank robbery

Surrey Police want to trace a man in connection with a bank robbery for which three people from West Molesey have been arrested. During the raid at Barclays bank, Lightwater near Camberley, just before 2.30pm on Friday, December 29, last year, two female

Date

It’s a winter wonderland

Last week's snowfall had people all over the area grabbing the opportunity for a little winter fun. Pictured in Richmond Park is Kassia Unwin with her dad Matthew. Deadlinepix MM5304

Date

‘Go at dusk to see artwork shine’

Artworks submitted for an open competition to design banners for a successful new development, The Heart of Walton, are on public display in Esher. Submissions for the competition, which promoted The Heart last year, are in the foyer of Elmbridge Civic

Date

£4million boost for over 85s

Surrey County Council (SCC) claims the county's most vulnerable adults will benefit from increased social care services. SCC leader, Nick Skellet, said its cost-cutting programme - the Business Delivery Review (BDR) - had saved £30million gross in the

Date

Mother and baby robbed at knifepoint

A 30-year-old Walton woman had her handbag stolen while out with her baby. The woman was walking in an alleyway at the rear of houses on Fisher Close with her one-year-old baby in a pushchair at about 6.30pm on Monday, January 29. She was approached

Date

Women join in prayer

St Mary Oatlands has been chosen to host the annual Women's World Day of Prayer for the Weybridge area. During the inter-denominational global event on Friday, March 2, more than three million people will join in prayer, from when the sun rises over

Date

Best village in Surrey comp

Elmbridge villages could be in with a winning chance in Surrey Village of the Year 2007. Surrey Community Action (SCA) are looking for the best village in Surrey with a population of 5,000. The Villages will be assessed on various aspects of rural village

Date

Walk-in for fast health treatment

Four out of five people queuing for A&E services can get a better service at their local walk-in centre, it was claimed this week. Sara McMullen is lead nurse at Weybridge walk-in centre, which had 45,000 visitors last year. "With the addition of x-ray

Date

Worker pays for 'breach of trust'

A warehouse worker at Kingston's John Lewis store has admitted trying to steal two satellite navigation systems as he left work a fortnight ago. Matthew Davidson, 21, from Cobham, pleaded guilty at Kingston Magistrates' Court on Thursday to stealing

Date

Druggie burglar told to kick his habit

A druggie burglar who used a stolen car to carry out two shop raids in one night has walked free from court. Get the full story. Posted by: TrueLies, Post Office on 12:59pm today Luckily for he Judge, he doesn't own an Off Licence or Post Office and

Date

Sex crime fears over hostel

Residents have voiced concerns that offenders who have committed sexual or violent crimes could be among the drug addicts housed in a hostel in Esher. The planning application for change of use at 5 Ember Lane, from a six-person to nine-person unit -

Date

Showing a bit of SAVI: Young people enjoy football day out

Youngsters from a Surrey charity for the visually-impaired thoroughly enjoyed themselves when they were invited to see Chelsea FC. The young people, aged five to 12, visited the club through the charity, SAVI, (Surrey Association for the Visually-Impaired

Date

Donation for air ambulance

Surrey Air Ambulance has received a £5,000 boost to its funds. The donation has been made by Farnborough Air Science. Its chairman, Peter Trotter - along with directors Neil and Christina Hallett - has long believed that Surrey should have its own dedicated

Date

New restaurant for town’s Heart

Hungry shoppers at The Heart of Walton will soon be able to satisfy their appetites at a Portuguese-style restaurant chain. Nando's restaurant has signed up to open a branch in the state-of-the-art development, in March. The new store will be located

Date

Lift off for new air ambulance

A life-saving air ambulance service will soon be available to Surrey residents after the campaign's £250,000 target was reached. Surrey had been one of the few counties in the UK which did not have its own service, instead relying on Kent in emergencies

Date

Memorabilia of the fast lady of the 20s

Back in the 1920s Gwenda Hawkes made her name in the traditionally male-dominated world of racing driving. Now memorabilia belonging to her is on display at Brooklands Museum, recalling the heyday of the famous racing circuit during the 1920s and 30s

Date

Twins triumph in cross country run

Cross country running fans were forgiven for seeing double at Richmond Park this weekend when identical twins Layla and Mae Thompson crossed the finishing line side-by-side, writes Stuart Amos. The 10-year-old runners, born within an hour of each other

Date

Traffic island bears strange fruit in form of unusual clock

Busy roads and cars gave one artist the inspiration for a new Selsdon landmark. Metalwork artist Jon Mills created a clock sculpture for a traffic island in Addington Road. Influenced by Selsdon Woods, the clock's structure resembles a tree and contains

Date

Concern about council's cuts

Dear Sir I am writing to tell your readers about a most depressing Council meeting last night. The Labour Councillors tried to initiate a full debate about all the proposed cuts, which the people of Wandsworth have expressed so much concern about,

Date

Off the couch and outdoors

The real challenge of marathon training is not the distances you have to run but getting yourself out there to cover them. It’s really not so hard to pound down the Thames Bank and strand yourself somewhere in central London without an Oyster card with

Date

Police crackdown on alleged unlicensed sex shops

Two alleged illegal sex shops were raided by police yesterday afternoon. Officers from the Met Police's obscene publications unit raided what they believed were two unlicensed sex shop - one in Norbury and the second in Wandsworth. The raid was part

Date

Terrorist suspects in court

An Upper Norwood man was among eight terror suspects who appeared at the Old Bailey last week. Yassin Mutegombwa, 22, appeared via video link from Belmarsh Prison, charged with three counts of attendance at a place used for terrorist training. He was

Date

Swim for care

Croydon residents are being urged to take part in a swimathon in aid of Marie Curie Cancer Care. A series of five kilometre swims is taking place from March 25 to 27 in 600 swimming pools across the country. A spokesman for Marie Curie said: "Swimathon

Date

Parking enforcement times tidied up

The council has altered its parking regulations for Croydon town centre to make it easier for drivers to understand the rules. Croydon Council is now proposing to start bays and yellow-line enforcement at 8am, a move which would bring Croydon into line

Date

Druggie burglar told to kick his habit

A druggie burglar who used a stolen car to carry out two shop raids in one night has walked free from court. James Good, who has 22 previous convictions, was given a suspended sentence and another chance to kick his addiction when he appeared at Croydon

Date

Special nursery to shut

A Croydon couple fear the planned closure of a special needs nursery will leave their severely disabled son with nowhere to go. Philip Rawes and Sharon Samuels spent 18 months trying to get three-year-old Tarell into St Giles Nursery in South Croydon