Archive

  • Garner's going for gold in Spain

    Linda Garner is glad she went to Specsavers. Otherwise the 44-year-old, who is an optical assistant at the company's Five Lane Ends store in Bradford, would not have been able to afford her place in the Great Britain archery team for the European Indoor

  • Bulls' giant sizes up the opposition

    Joe Vagana expects the Bulls' renowned forward power to douse the fire of Catalans Dragons. The giant Kiwi realises his side must pack a powerful punch if they are going to come away from France with two more Super League points on Saturday night. The

  • Silver Cross plan approved despite parking debate

    DEMOLITION work at Guiseley's former Silver Cross pram factory will begin this spring after planners finally approved a redevelopment. The Woodford Group, which has been trying to get permission for its housing and office scheme for 18 months, says the

  • Chinese links celebrated

    LINKS between the Far East and West Yorkshire that were pioneered by an Otley school will be celebrated in China this year. Prince Henry's Grammar School, a specialist language college whose students have been learning Chinese for the last six years,

  • Rights of way work under way on Chevin

    FORESTRY work and improvements to rights of way are under way on Otley Chevin. As part of a programme of works aimed at encouraging more visitors, including disabled people, to the park, hedge cutting and the relaying of paths is under way. At the first

  • Villagers say farewell to the man known as 'Mr Burley'

    A Wharfedale village says farewell on Saturday to one of its best known characters. Burley-in-Wharfedale historian Frank Newbould died peacefully last Friday, ten days after suffering a stroke at his home in Burley Hall nursing home. Friends have been

  • Village on the lookout for a new parish clerk

    BRAMHOPE Parish Council is on the lookout for a new clerk. Councillor Clive Fox (Con, Adel and Wharfedale) thanked Sandra Reed at the last parish council meeting for all the work and support she had given as clerk over the last four years. She was presented

  • Building society's pledge to stay local

    The chief executive of Skipton Building Society has pledged to develop its district employment as part of a plan to build on the company's national success. John Goodfellow said his predictions for the coming year, following a hugely profitable 2005,

  • It's your chance to join the skills race!

    Bradford businesses wanting to race ahead with skills for life are being invited to call in at York Racecourse later this month to find out more. The Learning and Skills Council Yorkshire and Humberside is organising its fourth information day on Tuesday

  • Residents make vow to fight factory plan

    RESIDENTS living close to the site of a proposed new factory have vowed to fight plans 'to the bitter end' - despite expected alterations to the scheme. People living on Wharfedale Drive have got together and are organising a petition against the plan

  • Upstagers make TV appearance on their visit to New York

    A GROUP of 38 teenagers and adult leaders from Ilkley's Upstagers Theatre Group visited New York in the half term holiday. Their trip was ostensibly to take in some of the new Broadway musicals and to take in the sights. They visited the Empire State

  • Debt forces patients to wait for an operation

    WHARFEDALE patients waiting for a non-urgent operation at Airedale Hospital may not be treated until April. Wharfedale Newspapers understands that Airedale Primary Care Trust has asked the hospital to "review" any operations without a date until the new

  • Letters to the Editor

    Station pigeons ' a health hazard' SIR, - Over recent weeks I have noticed, as I am sure thousands of other residents and commuters have spotted, the concourse of Ilkley Railway Station has potentially become a breeding ground for disease. Pigeons are

  • Staff to act as 'smoke police'

    Staff must set an example when a hospital becomes a no-smoking zone and even act as 'smoke police', the chairman of Airedale NHS Trust told board members. Colin Millar wants to see staff stopping people who break the rules by smoking anywhere in the hospital

  • Guiseley draw with leaders

    North Ferriby 2 Guiseley 2 An action-packed contest saw Guiseley come away from the league leaders with a hard-earned point that could so easily have been three. Sam Denton's suspension provided a return for Chris Clarke - an effective striker early season

  • Care is named in England squad for Commonwealth Games

    RISING young rugby star Danny Care has been named in the 15-man Team England rugby sevens squad for the Commonwealth Games in melbourne. The 19 year-old former Prince Henry's Grammar School pupil is finding honours coming thick and fast at the moment.

  • Guiseley's Jekyll and Hyde league form continues

    Guiseley 0 Ossett Town 2 On a bitterly cold night and with a rock hard pitch where the collective sound of the players studs sounded like the charge of the Light Brigade, it was a credit to both sides that they tried to play something resembling football

  • 'Torch attack' driver is jailed

    A Bradford minicab driver has been jailed for eight months after he attacked a passenger with a torch. Andrew Tye needed 15 stitches in five wounds to his head and only escaped by driving off in his attacker's car, a court heard yesterday. Mohammed Raja

  • 'Now bring in the bulldozers'

    Residents living near a derelict clubhouse want Bradford Council bosses to bring in the bulldozers. They say the Old Vets' (Veterans) Hut in Ainsbury Avenue, Thackley, once a popular haunt for domino players, has not been used for years. Their campaign

  • 'No plans for water meters'

    Yorkshire Water has reassured its Bradford customers that it will not follow moves by a Kent company to install compulsory water meters in homes. The supplier said water-efficiency measures were not needed in Yorkshire as levels were stable. The assurance

  • Police open up on race-hate inquiries

    Special meetings examining how police deal with race-hate crimes are being opened up to the community in a bid to improve transparency. The Bradford South Hate Crime Scrutiny Panel, which meets monthly at police headquarters in the Tyrls, was held in

  • Over-charge cabbie loses taxi licence

    A taxi driver who overcharged an elderly shopper after taking her the long way home has lost his appeal against a decision to revoke his licence. June Haley, who is in her 70s and walks with the aid of a stick, had to use taxis because of her mobility

  • Get on trail of the arts in city

    Artists, societies and clubs are being urged to open up their work places, houses and studios to the public as part of this year's Bradford Arts Trail. Organisers are looking for artists who work in a range of forms including textiles, jewellery, ceramics

  • Poor playing surface puts an end to Ilkley's game

    Ilkley's first fifteen and Wharfedale's seconds were left without a match on Saturday. The decision was taken to preserve the playing surface of the first fifteen pitch for the rest of season. Whilst a match of some sorts could have taken place it would

  • Sian claims six Yorkshire Age Group titles

    CITY of Bradford's World Class Age Group swimmer and National finalist Sian Morgan opened her Yorkshire Swimming account in fine style when she claimed no less than six titles at the recent championships. Swimming in the 11 years age group she swam to

  • Ilkley's run comes to an end

    Robin Hood 3 Ilkley AFC 1 Ilkley's recent impressive run of results came to a stuttering end against Robin Hood Athletic as they bowed to a 3-1 defeat to their rivals for a fourth place league position. Ilkley can take plenty of positives from the match

  • Rhydding slam in six against Timperley

    Timperley 1 Ben Rhydding 6 RAMPANT Ben Rhydding hit Timperley for six in this North Premier League fixture. The Cheshire outfit had no answer to a second-half blitz. In a disciplined team effort Ben Rhydding performed with confidence, verve and no little

  • Social justice

    THE story behind why one of Bradford's most famous former citizens was quietly removed from making wartime broadcasts to the nation on BBC radio makes fascinating reading. But it is hardly surprising that the underlying message espoused by J B Priestley

  • Phoenix Park in ashes after row

    Phoenix Park Golf Club are disbanding after more than 80 years. Angry members claim they are being forced to close their club after the owners of the football-golf complex - Soccer Zone - informed them they could no longer have seven-day memberships.

  • Muirhead told to go and make an impact

    Colin Todd predicts Ben Muirhead will burst out of the blocks in City's crunch clash with Blackpool. Muirhead, pictured, is expected to be thrown straight into battle at Valley Parade after missing the last five weeks following a groin operation. The

  • Nick proves to be King as he moves into musicals

    NICK Green, who plays the part of the King in Yeadon Amateur Operatic and Dramatic Society's forthcoming production of the musical 'The King and I' will be making a double debut. Not only will it be Nick's first time with the Yeadon society but it will

  • Success is in the air for businessman who had the bottle

    A businessman has won a bet 16 years after shaking hands on the wager - by successfully selling fresh air to the world. Andrew Ainge, the managing director of Bottled Atmosphere Ltd in Guiseley, bet a friend that the power of branding and marketing was

  • Councillors set for re-election battle

    COUNCILLORS John Bale, Ryk Downes, Clive Fox and Brian Cleasby will be seeking re-election at the forthcoming Leeds City Council elections. Coun Bale (Con, Guiseley and Rawdon); Coun Downes (Lib Dem, Otley and Yeadon); Coun Fox (Con, Adel and Wharfedale

  • Karen off to America for flower show

    FLORIST Karen Barnes flew to the United States yesterday - to take part in the country's largest flower show. But the Guiseley florist will be returning home early - in time for her busiest time of the year, Mothering Sunday. Karen, who has been invited

  • 'People power' knocks back housing plan

    PEOPLE power has helped knock back a housing scheme that would have threatened the character of one of Guiseley's most distinctive areas. Leeds Plans Panel (West) had been recommended to accept proposals to knock down a large, detached bungalow at 40

  • Armed gang traumatises Bramhope family

    A BRAMHOPE family is still recovering from the trauma of being threatened by a masked armed gang. The attack happened at 8.30pm on Tuesday when a family visiting the Singhs, on Leeds Road, was preparing to leave in a BMW car. As the car started to move

  • Orchard Gate sold for £44m to property developer

    AN OTLEY shopping precinct has been sold to the country's largest privately owned property developer. The Miller Group, which also deals in housebuilding and business construction, bought Orchard Gate as part of a £44.1 million property portfolio. Sold

  • Otley police help desk earmarked for closure

    A CAMPAIGN has been launched to save Otley Police Station's already downgraded help desk. West Yorkshire Police has earmarked the town's facility, along with 12 other station front counters, for closure in a bid to save hundreds of thousands of pounds

  • Welcome vision for the future

    There is plenty to get excited about in the proposals for what the Will Alsop plan identifies as the Markets Neighbourhood of Bradford which were unveiled today. The area around Westgate, John Street and the Rawson Quarter particularly needs the sort

  • Making use of the French connection

    A lingerie designer, a compost specialist and a cycle shop owner will be going to France to take part in an international conference next week. The three will travel as part of a group of 15 business women from across Yorkshire and the Humber to attend

  • Kwik Save jobs safe despite the store's sale

    STAFF at the Kwik Save store at Station Plaza Ilkley have been re-assured that their jobs are safe despite the company being sold by owners Somerfield. In a shock move this week, Somerfield sold the Kwik Save brand leading to the sale of 248 stores. Of

  • Family doctor signs off after 25 years at Ilkley practice

    A FAMILY doctor who has looked after the well-being of Ilkley people for more than 25 years is about to retire from his role in the community. Dr Graham Rawling, 58, is to retire at the end of March, although as a long-serving GP, he is still expecting

  • Villagers say farewell to the man known as 'Mr Burley'

    A Wharfedale village says farewell on Saturday to one of its best known characters. Burley-in-Wharfedale historian Frank Newbould died peacefully last Friday, ten days after suffering a stroke at his home in Burley Hall nursing home. Friends have been

  • Letters to the Editor

    Getting the political facts right SIR, - I am writing in response to the letter in last week's Wharfedale Observer from former Liberal Democrat town councillor, Betty Hustler, in which she urges Coun Clive Fox and myself not to 'play politics'. Had she

  • England ladies stars on view in cup tie

    A NUMBER of players who star for England's various age group teams will be on view when Leeds United Ladies take on Liverpool at Guiseley AFC's Nethermoor Park ground on Sunday, March 12 (3pm). The Leeds squad for this Women's FA Cup sem-final will include

  • Crime-fighters are in business

    Businesses in Baildon have joined forces under a new crime-fighting initiative to tackle shoplifters, tricksters and yobs. The new Business Watch scheme launched in the village last night is aimed at reducing crime, the fear of crime and anti-social behaviour

  • Keda helps inmates onto the write lines

    Prisoners at 100 jails across the country are being taught to read, thanks to an 80-year-old Baildon pensioner. Keda Cowling first developed her own technique to support dyslexic pupils while she was teaching at Sandal School, Baildon, more than 30 years

  • New music venue is gonna be a gas!

    With the regeneration of Bradford under way, the city can look forward to new buildings, new shops and possibly a lake, coming into the city centre. And one Bradford music fan is hoping to deliver what he considers to be an essential missing ingredient

  • So what's the best pub Bar None?

    Pubs and clubs are being urged to call time on alcohol-related disorder through a prestigious awards scheme. The Best Bar None project sets a minimum standard of operation for pubs, clubs and bars and rewards high standards. The scheme was unveiled by

  • 'I lost my job and girlfriend to the booze'

    Alcoholic John lost his job and his girlfriend to alcohol. His drink problem was so bad he would not know whether it was morning or night. Now, after more than two months without a drink, John, 37, knows what time of day it is. Alcohol is not always considered

  • Tenants to face hike in rents

    Bradford Community Housing Trust tenants are facing an above- inflation rent rise. From April 3 the Trust's newest tenants will see their weekly rents increase by inflation plus £2.17. Those who were already tenants when the Trust took over Council housing

  • Jury out in torso on moors death trial

    The jury was today considering its verdicts in the torso on the moors murder trial. Mrs Justice Cox sent out the six men and six women to begin their deliberations at 12.03pm yesterday. They are deciding if lovers Tracey Cameron and Graham Haylett lured

  • Tragic soldier's mum fails to get answers

    The mother of a soldier killed during the conflict in Iraq condemned Prime Minister Tony Blair after he refused to meet her and other bereaved parents to discuss a campaign for troops to be withdrawn. Families of soldiers killed in the conflict, including

  • Holly helps out with pioneering US tests

    Terminally-ill Holly Clarke is heading to New York to help with vital research into her killer disease. The six-year-old is in the final stages of crippling Batten's disease which has already robbed her of most of her sight and ability to walk and talk

  • Women terrified by armed robber

    Police are hunting an armed robber who left two women in terror in separate attacks on consecutive days. One woman had her car stolen by a man who threatened her with an axe on Tuesday night. And yesterday evening the same car was used by a raider who

  • I ripped out tooth with pair of pliers

    A desperate Bradford woman got a friend to pull out her tooth with a pair of pliers after failing to find a dentist prepared to treat her. Forty-five-year-old Diane Hunter said she was plagued with tooth ache for two years before taking the drastic measure

  • Have your say on master plan

    The first detailed plans based on Will Alsop's vision for the re-development of Bradford city centre were unveiled today. The proposals for the Markets Neighbourhood, the first to go out to public consultation, include an iconic footbridge and a World

  • Residents make vow to fight factory plan

    RESIDENTS living close to the site of a proposed new factory have vowed to fight plans 'to the bitter end' - despite expected alterations to the scheme. People living on Wharfedale Drive have got together and are organising a petition against the plan

  • Letters to the Editor

    Vital to attract the bigger airlines SIR - Inadvertently, Councillor Greenwood's opposition to privatising Leeds-Bradford Airport (T&A, February 17) serves to reinforce exactly why the airport should be sold. His concern that "scheduled flights, which

  • Benefits to be shared

    SCHOOLS are facing a major change - and the benefits are set to be shared by the whole community. In just four years' time, the Government is calling for all schools to become children centres, where all needs will be catered for at a type of one-stop

  • Kirkstall Abbey

    Kirkstall Abbey is cleaner than it used to be, I swear. When I was a child it was a great black hulk of a ruin, its stone darkened by the soot that used to fill the Aire Valley from thousands of coal fires. When you visited Fountains Abbey, set in the

  • Low Moor

    The Low Moor and Oakenshaw area isn’t one of the prettiest parts of Bradford. The people who live there would be among the first to admit that. It’s a place which in the past was the city’s main workshop, with its ironworks and foundries producing the

  • Five Rise Locks, Bingley

    Still barred from much of the countryside, but no longer from long stretches of the canal towpath, we set off the other weekend for a suburban stroll around Bingley and its environs. This is the sort of outing that offers plenty to interest those who

  • Skipton Town

    It’s something of a challenge going for a walk when most of the places you want to walk are closed off. As the foot-and-mouth crisis has deepened and the access ban has been extended to cover much of the canal towpath as well as all rights of way, it

  • Holmfirth

    They’re strong on “thongs” in Summer Wine country. Before you blanch at the thought of Nora Batty in one, I hasten to add that these “thongs” are in place names: Upperthong, Netherthong, Thongbridge. It was Upperthong that was the first port of call

  • Bardsey

    You come across some pleasant surprises when you walk around the countryside - tucked-away places that only the locals know about. Places like Pompocali. I would never have known about this secret spot if I hadn’t been browsing through the excellent

  • Ogden Clough

    Ogden Reservoir - and the woods and moors around it - is one of my favourite places for short walks. It has everything: an attractive stretch of water with a woodland backdrop; newly-created forest trails; wide-open views from the track leading up

  • Grassington

    We headed up to Wharfedale last Saturday fully expecting to find the snow spread deep and crisp and even. We were really looking forward to exploring a winter wonderland after all the mild weather which has in recent years made snow a rarity. It was

  • Wyke

    It isn't encouraging to park your car, pull on your boots, and stride out to start your walk to be confronted, within a couple of paces, by a sign warning "CAR THEFT AREA". That was the situation I found myself in, though, as I entered Judy Woods at

  • Green Hammerton, Harrogate

    Here’s a request for farmers. When you’re ploughing up your fields, leave a narrow margin along the edge of them. That way ramblers might be persuaded to make a detour around a field instead of following the right of way directly across it and trampling

  • Embsay

    Embsay, the other side of Skipton, is more than just the home of the wonderful steam railway which now runs all the way to Bolton Abbey (a very pleasant ride if you get the chance). It’s a pretty village in a fine setting. Ignore the quarry to the south

  • West Witton

    It had been a nerve-wracking drive up lovely Coverdale, following the undulating, winding road from Kettlewell towards Leyburn and dodging tiny rabbits along much of the way. I've never seen so many baby bunnies strung out along the verges, nibbling

  • Eldwick and Shipley Glen

    It only takes a little thing to mar an otherwise perfect walk: like a rusty nail, a stile requiring the agility of an acrobat, a patch of nettles, or a dead sheep. This walk turned out to have all four of these, but as they came together in the space

  • Scarborough

    Once upon a time, a journey to Scarborough seemed to take forever through the bottlenecks of Tadcaster, York and Malton. Then came the by-passes. Now, apart from on certain holiday weekends when the few stretches of the route which aren’t dual carriageway

  • Calverley

    If you feel the need to mark the millennium for your village, what better way of doing it than by creating a special walk around the place. That’s what some of the people of Calverley decided to do at a meeting in 1996 to discuss ideas for the millennium

  • Trough of Bowland

    The Trough of Bowland isn’t in Yorkshire at all; it’s over the Lancashire border. But I make no excuses for venturing into Red Rose country to walk its hills and lanes and write about it because it’s a glorious part of the world. And, what’s more, it

  • Baildon Moor

    If you go for a walk in autumn, take a polythene bag with you. That's a lesson we should have learned years ago. Yet each year we get taken by surprise, chancing upon fields dotted with mushrooms or bushes heavy with blackberries and having nothing to

  • East Bierley

    This short outing starts and finished at a village which is only four miles from the centre of Bradford but could be in the heart of the country. East Bierley is a delight, a well-kept secret tucked away between Tong Street and Birkenshaw. How could

  • Haworth

    Haworth is a busy village, even midweek. Go there any afternoon and the coach park will be packed and Main Street full of tourists. But if you put on your boots and head out of the village in any direction but Top Withens, then there is a strong chance

  • East Marton

    One of the nice things about walking is that it takes you into the back streets and by-ways of towns and village you've only ever seen from a car before, driving along their main through road. You get a false impression from the driving seat that what

  • Huddersfield

    It was yet another grey day in a winter which seemed to have more than its fair share of them. When the mist is down, there's no point heading for high places and being disappointed when you can't see the views. Far better to stay down in the valley and

  • Jackson Bridge

    There they were, Compo and Clegg, sitting at a table in the sunshine across the road from the White Horse pub while Wesley in his oil-stained overalls chatted to them. What a surprising sight to come across, this bunch of actors and the TV crew who were

  • Silsden

    Silsden is a village which, at the time of writing, was fearful for its future. Bradford Council's Unitary Development Plan had it earmarked for a substantial amount of house building which, those who lived there feared, would change its nature for the

  • Skipton

    This walk was a bit of a test for me. Only a month earlier I'd done a double dose of damage to my feet. First of all I'd blistered them badly, going too hard and too fast on a 21-mile charity walk. And just as the blisters were becoming manageable my

  • West Burton

    Total silence is a rare and precious thing. We found it on this outing, if only briefly, in a conifer forest high on a hill above Bishopdale. We had begun our walk at West Burton, that sloping village with its long, broad green alongside Walden Beck,

  • Bordley

    There was plenty of mellow fruitfulness about during this fine walk, undertaken on a glorious autumn day that took us all by surprise in the middle of the last week of October. The massed berries on the leafless hawthorns on the moor edge glowed richly