Hotels and pubs in the Ledbury area have had a bumper week, thanks to the Cheltenham Gold Cup festival. It was a far cry from last year when the three days of racing, described by fans as the Olympics of the sport, had to be cancelled because of foot
THE Friends of the Dymock Poets will be strolling, lunching and listening during their Dymock Walk Day, on Saturday, March 23, to celebrate the launch of the group's new literary journal. Festivities start at 10.30am with a four-mile walk from Ketford
A NEW charity has been formed to raise funds for the group of churches in the Frome Valley. Friends of Frome Churches 2002 has replaced the previous friends group to raise money for the upkeep of seven churches in the area. Rev Jane Davies said: "This
A farming family hit by losses resulting from last year's foot and mouth crisis have taken their first steps towards diversification and turkey production. The proposed venture by the Harrington family, of Blackway Farm, Eggleton, could even provide a
THE £559 raised by Brownies, Guides and Rainbows for Ledbury Community Hospital Appeal with a concert at St Michael and All Angels' Church has been handed over at a special presentation. Appeal co-ordinator Spencer Lane expressed his thanks to the hardworking
COMPLETION of Ledbury's new Community Hospital means there is no longer a through road for traffic along Market Street, between Bye Street and New Street. While the hospital was being built, a one-way system was in place. Barriers have now been put up
A SPECIAL family service is being held at Christ Church, Wellington Health, on July 14, where the theme is Captain Scarlet. Young and old alike are being urged to come along dressed as a favourite character from the TV cartoon series.
Ledbury Round Table is to give a cheque for £3,000 to the Special Care Baby Unit at Hereford County Hospital, following a fund-raising campaign. The money has been raised though a variety of events including the annual bonfire at Ledbury Park, a sportsmen's
CHEQUES totalling £300 were due to be handed over to the Newent Local History Society last night (Thursday), to help fund the group's new book, Chapters in the History of Newent. Edward Wood, chairman of the Newent Onion Fayre Committee, was to hand over
A former lecturer in embroidery is organising the conservation and repair of vestments, kneelers and other cloth-based items at Ledbury parish church. Laura Raybould learnt the skills of gold embroidery at the Doncaster School of Art and later taught
CANON Frome farmer Gordon Gilbert has returned from another mercy trip to Nicaragua, where he helped set up a skills centre. Mr Gilbert, of Lower House Farm, has now made several trips to the country with Ross-based charity the Peace and Hope Trust. This
Much Marcle will be a one horse village over the Easter weekend, thanks to a special promotion by local cider makers Weston's. The firm's horse and dray will be taking visitors around the hamlet, including the traditional cider orchards and historical
Pool Hill Historical Society has raised £1,750 to Pauntley Primary School. The money comes from the sale of its book, They Didn't Walk Far, a history of Pool Hill. Headteacher Mary Francis said: "I'm delighted by the support of the Pool Hill Historical
A HAT-TRICK from midfielder Rodney Hathaway helped in-form Swifts secure an emphatic victory over Leominster in this Herefordshire Junior League U15s game. LEDBURY SWIFTS 5, LEOMINSTER MINORS 1 There was little to choose between the teams during a goalless
SWIFTS travelled to Kington for this U14s league game, which was played in strong winds with driving rain. KINGTON TOWN 1, LEDBURY SWIFTS 8 Within a minute of kick off the wind helped Dan Herbert's cross shot over the goalie to give Swifts the lead. After
LEDBURY & District ASC swimmer Thomas Stokes became the Worcester County Champion in the 9yrs 200m individual medley when he swam a fantastic 16 second pb at the County Championships held at Wolverhampton. Leading from the outset on butterfly he was
LEDBURY travelled away to Dunlop in Coventry and knew it would be a hard Midlands West Four (South) game. DUNLOP 15pts, LEDBURY 31pts Ledbury came out in their usual workmanlike fashion defending solidly against a huge Dunlop pack who, for some reason
MALVERN College pupil Charlie Daffern, aged 16, was selected for the French junior cricket team and played in a triangular indoor competition last week against the French senior side and a Kent County cricket side at St Omer in northern France. Playing
A LATE try from Jason Evans earned Bromyard a share of the spoils in an exciting North Midlands One away clash. FIVE WAYS OE 17pts, BROMYARD 17pts Evans crashed over for an unconverted touchdown in the dying minutes to secure an unlikely point for the
SATURDAY FOOTBALL EXPRESS & STAR WEST MIDLAND LEAGUE Premier Division: Malvern Town v Walsall Wood, Bromyard Town v Causeway United, Gornal Athletic v Ledbury Town. Division One South: Chaddesley Corbett v Malvern Rangers, Leominster Town v Malvern
IMPORTANT occasions warrant a fanfare and that is just what will happen at the launch of the Elgar statue fund in Hereford's Courtyard Arts Centre on Saturday, March 23. It will be played by four young brass players who are the pupils of John Pooley.
AN Old Road resident has pledged to get a skateboard park closed down if it is built at Bromyard's York Road playing fields. Objecting to a planning application submitted by Bromyard and Winslow Town Council, which owns the land, for a skateboard ramp
BROMYARD ladies helped raise £86 for the town's spring festival by eating scones and drinking tea last weekend. Dressed in hats and finery fit for a royal wedding, the ladies were served cucumber and salmon sandwiches, tea, cakes and scones by two penguin-suited
A FASHION Show at Bredenbury's St Richard's School on Tuesday, April 2, at 7.30pm, will help raise money for the Bredenbury Church Roof Fund. Clothes are being donated by Sarah Handley, proprietor of Sez boutiques in Bromyard and Ledbury. Tickets cost
A COFFEE morning at Bromyard's Falcon Hotel on Saturday, March 23, will help raise money for the Friends of Guiding. In the ballroom between 10am and noon, visitors will be able to explore bring and buy and plant stalls and enjoy an Easter bonnet parade
THIEVES bit off more than they could chew when they tried to steal a £15,000 caravan from a Ledbury street. They had not bargained on a group of have-a-go Neighbourhood Watch members when they hitched up the van in Biddulph Way and sparked a dramatic
AGE Concern in Ledbury says it has seen requests for assistance rise by 48 per cent since last summer. Colette Williams, office manager of Hereford Age Concern, said the demand was down to an increasingly elderly population, the success of projects such
A new 80-space car park at Weston's in Much Marcle has been approved by Herefordshire Council. The car park, which will also provide space for two coaches, was given the go-ahead this week. Design conditions were imposed, with the county's archaeological
The finishing touches are being put to Ledbury's new £4.3m hospital which will take the town's health care into the new millennium when it opens on Thursday (March 21). St Katherine's GP practice has already transferred over from the Masters' House and
The Ledbury Town Bus will make regular stops at the new Community Hospital from April 8. David Morris, of DRM coaches, which operates the 600 service, said that trips around town would start and end in Bye Street, with the bus pulling up five or six times
A PLAN to build a new storage shed with a veranda at Ledbury Bowling Club has won the backing of the town council. The planning and economic development committee recommended the application for approval after hearing the new structure was to replace
Dymock Parish Hall Spring Fayre will take place on Saturday and Sunday, March 16 and 17. Highlights will include short walks to the daffodil meadows on both days, from 2.30pm. There will be a table-top sale at the hall on the Saturday, from 2pm to 5pm
THE humble sparrow failed to make the top ten of the most common birds in the Ledbury area in a comprehensive survey. Twenty members of the Ledbury Naturalist's Field Club carried out the garden survey last year to see what birds, beasts and insects there
AN overstretched Ring and Ride service has made an urgent appeal for volunteer drivers as it struggles to meet demand from Ledbury's elderly. Volunteers were clocking up 30,000 miles a year four years ago but increased demand has now pushed that figure
A Liberal Democrat agent who helped to set up the Welsh Assembly visited John Masefield High School, in Ledbury, on Monday to give sixth formers the benefit of his political experience. Paul Hinge explained to the 16 and 17 year olds, as part of their
A Ceilidh with Ringerike will raise money for St Michael and All Angels' Church, Ledbury, tomorrow (Saturday), at St Katherine's Hall, from 7.30pm. Admission is £5, to include hot pork rolls. For further details, ring 01531 634813.
PLANS to establish an annual four-day music festival in Ledbury have been shelved because of a lack of sponsorship offers from the town's business community. John Nash, of John Nash Antiques in the High Street, had hoped to set the ball rolling this year
A Ledbury newsagent is up in arms over what he sees as new restrictions that prevent him parking near his shop. Barrie Shaw, of C.B.S. News in New Street, said he was "amazed" to find a limited parking sign by his favourite parking spot, outside the Talbot
THE number of people registered unemployed Bromyard is down to 39, compared to 53 in January. Herefordshire Council's quarterly economic report shows that 32 of those are men and only seven women. Compared to other Herefordshire market towns Bromyard's
A WHITBOURNE barn full of hay and farming equipment went up in flames on Tuesday night. Fire crews from Bromyard and Hereford fought the blaze at Poswick Farm, from 8.30pm to midnight.
Ledbury Youth First is offering certificated training for young people, aged under 25, who want to learn how to run effective meetings. The session will take place at the Ledbury Youth First offices off The Homend, on Wednesday, March 20, from 7pm to
St Mary's Church in Dymock has appointed two new ringers, bringing the team up to a full strength of six. The new ringers are Tony Reese and David Coombs. New ringers would still be made welcome, to provide holiday and emergency cover. A bell-ringing
THE blustery windy conditions made for some close finishes in the Malvern Football League as Bull Allstars continue to set the pace at the top of the Division. Old Bush Willie Thornes held the league leaders until the final minute of the game last Sunday
LEDBURY Town collected three good Express & Star West Midlands Premier Division points away at Tipton on Saturday to maintain their sixth position in the table. TIPTON TOWN 2, LEDBURY TOWN 3 This was Ledbury's 20th victory of the season from 33 starts
TEAMS from all over the area joined together for their annual round robin indoor bowling charity competition. The participants included teams from Ledbury, Hereford, Cinderford, Ross-on-Wye, Monmouth, Weobley and the Forest of Dean. This event has been
HEREFORD United aim to rub some sea salt into the wounds of Dover Athletic who sacked manager Neville Southall this week. The Nationwide Conference basement dwellers called last orders on the former Everton legend just a week after he claimed the club
HAT-TRICK hero Luke Willetts was man of the match as twice behind Bromyard Town rattled in seven Express & Star Premier Division goals on Saturday. DARLASTON TOWN 3, BROMYARD TOWN 7 On a very windy afternoon, Bromyard lost the toss and had to play
COLWALL women's hockey team were always expecting to win this West Premier League Division One (Ladies) game versus bottom of the table opposition. COLWALL 6, SWINDON 0 Swindon, however, were no push over and their goalkeeper was outstanding through the
MALVERN & District Pool League has taken on a new concept for the summer. Changing from the winter game of six singles and three doubles to just 11 singles with a team of five players and two reserves. Interest is already high as teams from Bosbury
LEDBURY DUPLICATE BRIDGE CLUB IN the monthly teams competition held at the Club on March 6, the winners were Janet Holder & Brian Kingsley with Keith Berry & Bill Hoare with a score of 51. The other successful teams were: Ann & Rowland Clayton
ALMOST 2,000 people have expressed their anger over recent parking fines in Bromyard by signing a petition calling for restrictions to be changed. Following concerns that parking tickets will keep shoppers away, the petition sent to Herefordshire Council
POLICE are appealing to shed owners to lock up their equipment and fit alarms after four burglaries were reported last week in one area of Bromyard. Although the burglaries in the Stourport Road area were reported during one week, PC John Meek said it
A PROCESSION through Bromyard on Good Friday (March 29) will incorporate projected images by local artists. Beginning at St Joseph's Roman Catholic Church on Old Road at 10.15am, those gathered will walk through the town, stopping for contemplation at
AN open meeting hosted by the Bromyard branch of the Herefordshire Nature Trust will feature talks on London Wetlands Centre and nature issues in Nepal. At the Methodist Hall, New Road, at 7.30pm on Friday, March 22, the meet-ing will feature contributions
St Michael's Hospice fundraisers made over £2,500 at a racing evening held at the Falcon Hotel, Bromyard.
A WELSH Valleys comedy, Very Annie Mary, will be the last film screened in this season's Flicks in the Sticks in Pencombe Parish Hall. The film will be shown on Wednesday, March 20, at 7.30pm.
STOKE Lacy Village Hall is the venue for a race night on Saturday, March 23. Tickets are £3, including a light supper. First race starts at 8pm. Contact Peter Libetta on 01885 490478 for details.
POLICE say a Herefordshire man has been arrested in relation to recent break-ins at the Alldays store on Bromyard's High Street. The man has been bailed pending further enquiries.
BREDENBURY Primary School pupils will be washing cars from 3.30pm to 5pm today (Friday, March 15) at the school. They will charge £3 per vehicle, which includes a cup of tea while owners wait.
LEDBURY welcomed back Ben Gaunt, Lee Fisher and captain Kevin Clunie to strengthen the squad on the back of a heavy defeat against Old Cryptians. DUNLOP II 10pts, LEDBURY II 18pts The trip to Dunlop offered the chance for a double over this typically
WITH Third team captain Chris Davies away in Coventry with the Seconds (only to have a star performance for the opposition!), Ledbury Thirds were led by Justin Emery hoping to extend their unbeaten run. LEDBURY THIRDS 34pts, WIDDEN OB SECONDS 14pts From
