A CHARITY which supports people with alcohol and drug problems has launched a new website to help it reach out to more potential users. SWADS (Swindon and Wiltshire Alcohol and Drugs Service), hopes the site’s new images, text and other facilities conveys
AN ELDERLY couple have pleaded for their beloved pet’s safe return after it was scared off by a group of youngsters. Dorothy and Charles David, of Westminster Road, Toothill, were heartbroken when their dog Katy, a rescue animal who suffered
A LARGE crowd braved freezing temperatures and gathered at Swindon’s war memorial to mark Holocaust Memorial Day. Coun Rex Barnett, the mayor, laid a wreath at the end of a ceremony on behalf of the people of the town to remember those who
ADEN Flint will be eligible to play for Town this weekend after Football League clearance was received this afternoon. Flint had signed on at the County Ground last weekend, but intricate details within the deal between Swindon and his former club
SERVICES for children in Wiltshire have been praised by Ofsted. In 2010, Wiltshire’s children’s services were classed as ‘performing well’ by the education and childcare inspectors. The report said the council’s children’s home is outstanding and
A PAIR of youths have been warned they could be jailed after admitting a charge of robbery. Luke Jackel and Jake Bell pleaded guilty to taking cash, tobacco and a kitchen knife during the offence on Friday September 17 last year. The pair, both aged
After my last article on Jimmy Edwards, of Whacko fame, I was contacted by Alan Hartley, aged 87 from Coventry. Alan was born in Barrow-in-Furnace, Cumberland (Cumbria). And in June 1943 he reported to RAF Padgate Warrington, for basic training,
FOR the first time in 50,000 years, visitors to the Cotswold Water Park will be able to come face to face with a woolly mammoth – well, a model of one. The two-metre high model mini mammoth, complete with tusks and fur, will appear at the Time Travel
A “MARMITE-LIKE” water feature in the centre of the town has been defended as a boost to business. The metal sculpture, between Regent Street and Canal Walk, was blasted as a “failure” by Lib Dem leader Stan Pajak (Eastcott) during a meeting discussing
One less than stealthy burglar had a cat to thank for his ill gotten gains. The Hyde family of 11 Burford Avenue claimed to have heard nothing when a burglar broke into their home, ransacked their downstairs rooms and smashed open a metal cash box
WITH just a week left to complete his term of office as Mayor, HR Hustings died suddenly at the Victoria Hospital on Sunday, October 27. A tough talking, no nonsense politician, Henry Russell Hustings, pictured, was well known as a champion
“A COMPREHENSIVE tour of inspection of the educational and billeting facilities in Swindon and district for Barking evacuees is being carried out by the mayor and mayoress of Barking,” reported the Advertiser. During a three-day visit the dignitaries
“I have been amazed and humbled by what I have seen as I have gone about the poorest parts of Bristol, which have been hardest hit in these savage raids of the last few weeks.” The Bishop of Bristol spoke of the devastation caused to the city during
CORSHAM Police Court had their hands full this week when some feisty females appeared before the magistrates. “There is nothing I want to say, I am not sorry for what I did. She asked for it and she got it,” Mrs Maud Young, of Lanhill, Chippenham
“CHURCHES, art galleries, museums, cinemas, the homes of the poor – all these were hit but each city ‘carries on’ today and the Germans would be bitterly disappointed if they could walk among the people they tried to terrorise,” reported the
AS local firms considered moving their pay day forward to Thursday instead of Friday the GWR revealed some amazing facts and figures about pay day at the Swindon works. On Friday morning a large, fourwheeled iron safe, drawn by a mechanical tractor
PLANS for Swindon’s War Weapon week gathered momentum as details of the forthcoming events were released. Publicity was well in hand and 27 poster sites had been selected in Swindon with one each in Wroughton, Highworth and Stratton. “The GWR
SWINDON was rocked this week when two bombs fell during an air raid on Sunday, October 20, killing 10 and injuring several others. Houses in Rosebery Street took a direct hit, while a second bomb dropped in the middle of an adjoining road. Gas
THE scarcity of turkeys this Christmas saw those sold at Swindon market reaching a top price of £3 6s as Lord Woolton, the Minister for Food, announced a price control on this yuletide favourite. Prices for turkeys bred and reared in Scotland,
“FIVE houses were demolished and others damaged, but there were few casualties when a lone raider dropped bombs on a town in the south,” reported the Advertiser, following a raid on Swindon during the evening of Thursday, December 19. Among those
“WHAT is the position when a person goes to the fishmonger and pays 2s 2d for haddock, and later finds she is sold conger eel?” When this question was raised by Coun Mrs EM Simpkins at a meeting of the Swindon Food Control Committee she was
TIPS to help the hard pressed housewife were regularly published in the Advertiser and this week’s recipe was for a fish and celery casserole. The dish, cooked with potatoes and milk, was described as a light nourishing meal. To save fuel housewives
AUDREY Godsell, a 19-year-old Swindon born nurse was reported killed when the Surrey hospital to which she had been evacuated was bombed. The daughter of Mr and Mrs HB Godsell, of 29 County Road, Audrey was a former pupil of Clifton Street Schools
WITH the winter equinox fast approaching, Swindon residents struggled to comply with lighting regulations during the long, 15-hour blackout period. Among those who appeared before Swindon magistrates this week was Mrs Maud Hutton of the Bell Hotel
IN a week when Swindon suffered yet another devastating air raid, the corporation reported that offers of advice and practical assistance in the event of further attacks were being rejected by householders. Local government officials had been
TRIBUTE was paid to the late mayor at a church service to celebrate the inauguration of the new one, Alderman F E Allen. The Rev Joseph Coombs, the minister of the Wesley Church, in Faringdon Road, recalled the great humanity the late Henry
SERIOUS epidemics of diphtheria and scarlet fever in Swindon saw staff at the Isolation Hospital working flat out. With an additional 28 beds in use, the hospital was functioning under considerable pressure and the toll on the laundry was considerable
“I’VE been rationed all my life,” 78-year-old Mrs Sarah Ann Hunt told an Advertiser reporter who interviewed an elderly couple when they celebrated their diamond wedding anniversary this week in 1940. The couple, from Stratton St Margaret, who
FOLLOWING urgent appeals by Fire Chief WR Howells, Swindonians were at last making efforts to safeguard their homes and businesses during an incendiary bomb attack. The Swindon ARP authority organised a number of talks and demonstrations across
"HIS effort is not for a Spitfire fund or the Red Cross, it is something nearer at home,” said Syd Walker when he opened one of two fundraising events on behalf of the Victoria Hospital this week. Swindon Town Hall was transformed for the October
AS housewives prepared to collect their extra tea and sugar Christmas rations, the Ministry of Food announced time saving changes to the rationing procedure. Tiresome paperwork had been removed and it was no longer necessary to fill in the counterfoils
TWO spies posing as refugees were executed at Pentonville Prison, London. “This was the first announcement of the execution of enemy agents in England since the war began,” reported the Advertiser. Jose Waldberg, a German born subject, and Karl
WAR Weapons Week kicked off with a procession through the town and Swindon announced the savings target had been raised to a whopping £400,000. By Tuesday the town hall indictor stood at £92,316. Three heavyweights had got the fund going, with
As the Food Ministry announced a rise in the price of chocolate, women and children queued outside an Old Town sweet shop for twopenny bars of chocolate while retailers warned they might be forced to close if they were denied supplies. Mr JG
THE Minister Of Agriculture, Mr RS Hudson and Lord Woolton, the Minister Of Food, declared war on rats. Millions of the rodents were said to be losing the country an estimated £25,000,000 a year. In the Lindsey division of Lincolnshire alone the
ALDERMAN F E Allen, representative for the East Ward, was elected Swindon’s 40th mayor this week in 1940. Alderman Allen, pictured left, with his wife, was a former GWR oil gas chargeman, had served on the watch and pleasure grounds committee
SWINDONIANS were advised to dig deep and get their gardens in order for 1941 as the Food Is A Munition Of War campaign continued. Lord Woolton, the Minister Of Food, reminded the British public that half their food supplies came from overseas
FOLLOWING the success of the fitter’s training course, Swindon College opened the scheme to women this week in 1940. Mr W Blacklock, the principal at the college, made the announcement at a talk to Swindon Rotarians following a forecast made
WINTER woollies and boots by the baleful made a timely arrival in Swindon this week courtesy of the Red Cross Society of the USA for the relief of evacuees. “Our American friends are far seeing and organise well ahead,” Mr TH Fessey, the secretary
WITH just two days until the launch of Swindon’s War Weapons Week, messages of encouragement were published in a full page advertisement paid for by the Kingsdown brewer, J Arkell and Sons. “It does not matter how much we women detest war, we
MORE than 60 young actors, dancers and singers have been pulling out all the stops since the autumn for their spring show. The pantomime, Zinders, is written by Gina Musty – chairwoman of the Dorcan Performing Arts Group. The actors
A REUNION for former members of the Penhill Swan Majorettes will be held at the Deer’s Leap pub in Penhill on Saturday, March 12 from 2pm to 4pm. The event at the venue in Penhill Drive is a chance for people to share memories and old photos with their
A DOG lover is distraught after the remains of her beloved pooch were lost in a pile of ashes following a case of parvovirus. Rose Smith, 18, of Liden, was told her family pet, Nipper, was suffering from the disease when she took him to Eastcott Veterinary
EMERGENCY services were called after two cars crashed at a busy junction in Liden on Wednesday, January 26 just after 10am. A green Peugeot 307 and a gold Fiat Punto collided on the junction of Faraday Road and Edison Road. Police officers,
A distraught cat lover is offering £50 reward for the return of her pet, Middy, who went missing last Thursday. The half tabby, half Siamese cat with blue eyes disappeared from his home in Glevum Road, Coleview. He answers to the name of Middy and
TWO men from Swindon have been found guilty of keeping a woman prisoner in a Pinehurst house for eleven days and making her work as a prostitute. On the morning of Saturday June 13 2009, Wiltshire Police received a call from a distressed woman
AS I wobbled across the Greendown Community School sports hall it was hard to believe that most of the people whizzing around me had only been skating for a few months. On Tuesday, I donned appropriate headgear and laced up a pair of rollerskates for
IT is quite correct for local people to be suspicious of the local Conservative controlled Swindon Borough Council when it makes such moves as imposing a 30p charge to reserve library books online. As Sue Cozens wrote (January 14, Your Views
Today I realised just how much time that I spend on Facebook...a lot! I found it so easy to navigate around. I also found many relatives and friends that I had lost touch with. It is great to just jump on there to chat and catch up on their
LECSINEL Jean-Francois has been the subject of interest from Swansea City, the Swindon Advertiser understands. No bid has yet been lodged for the defender by the Championship club, but the Adver believes Brendan Rogers' side have alerted Town to
SEXUAL offences soared by 40 per cent in Wiltshire last year but recorded crime fell overall, the Home Office has revealed. The latest official figures show Wiltshire’s jump in sexual offences in the year to September 2010 was the largest for any force
New working practices due to be introduced at Honda have caused unrest among some workers. Honda management had wanted to increase the variable working week from the present 25 to 42 hours to 25 to 44 by the end of the year, in time for a new car to
INDUSTRIAL action due to start today by ambulance workers has been called off but could still take place next week. Unison members were due to start working to rule at noon today over the long running row over changes to shift patterns. But yesterday
THE sorrow shows in Belinda Cox’s face as she lays flowers at the scene where her partner was found dead in a freezing stream. Four days ago the body of her long-time soulmate Tony Cox was discovered by a passer-by near the Asda supermarket
Penhill ABC took two boxers to Exeter to face opponents from host club Lympstone. Schoolboy Jake Knowles was first up for Penhill against Harry Webb. Knowles dominated the first round with solid punches and continued to pressure his opponent
A SENIOR policeman who had an affair with a top City lawyer's wife yesterday denied setting up the husband to take the blame for an arson attack that destroyed his car. Chief Supt Jim Trotman, 45, was at Swindon Crown Court yesterday accused
WALCOT boxer Kieran O’Donoghue stormed into the Western Counties Schoolboy Final with an impressive stoppage win in his final eliminator at Frome Football Club, writes DAVE VEYSEY. The 12-year-old faced the stocky John Coffey from Broad Plain ABC in
A BORN and bred Swindonian, who resided in Elmina Road, I have fond thoughts of the Gorse Hill I knew. My working life started at the age of 14 and a few months when I began as the errand boy at what was then the Co-op shop situated on the corner
SWINDON boxing promoter Keith Mayo has won the race to sign England international and double ABA champion Danny Bharj. The 22-year-old Walcot amateur had been tracked by several of the fight game’s main players ever since he won a national schoolboy
DID you go to Bradon Forest School in Purton and leave in the summer of 1981? If so we are having a 30 year school reunion on Friday, May 13 2011, 7.30pm at The Old Bank Brassiere, Old Town, Swindon. Please try to attend and invite anyone
TO my great regret, I have never previously given much thought to the plight of nursing and other medical staff with regard to the parking facilities available to them at the Great Western Hospital. However, having recently undergone life-saving
SINCE the resumption after the Christmas break Nalgo have been in sparkling form in Division One of the Indoor Cricket League. A three-wicket win over Wootton Bassett was followed by a five-wicket win against Asians with Faheem making 25 not out on
IT WILL be announced in the summer whether or not RAF Lyneham will be home to thousands of returning soldiers from Germany. Armed Forces Minister Nick Harvey insisted no decision had been made but said accepted Lyneham in a “strong position” and the
SWINDON Council could be stuck with a bill for almost £400,000 after saving a privately-owned building from collapse. The full cost of the council’s emergency repairs to the historic Mechanics’ Institute, pictured, in the Railway Village is
LAWN saw off the challenge of Elmdon as they beat their Birmingham-based opponents 45-37 in National Premier League 3. Hosts Elmdon showed great speed and ability early on, and they took a six-goal lead into the second quarter. But Lawn regrouped and
THE indoor green at Cowley proved to be a graveyard for Westlecot bowlers twice in the space of eight days. The mixed team were beaten there 10-6 in the rearranged match in the National Top Club competition and then a week later the two away Wessex League
WESTLECOT have qualified for the latter stages in the National Mixed Fours Championship. The quartet of Ellen Bolland, Sylvia Wells, Kevin Embling and Ian Jefferies booked their place in the final stages of the competition at Northampton from
WHEN his beloved wife Beryl died last year, Graham Spyer decided he wanted to do something in her memory. Former school cook Beryl, 72, of Rookery Park in Calne, was taken in to Great Western Hospital on Christmas Eve in 2009 following a fall
RONNIE Russell appears to have been the victim of his own enthusiasm. The Blunsdon chief took it upon himself to arrange the Robins’ fixtures for the upcoming campaign, only to find the Polish Ekstraliga had brought its season forward by
SWINDON boss Ronnie Russell cannot wait to see his favourite Polish double act team up again at Blunsdon. With Maciej Janowski already a confirmed starter for 2011, Grzegorz Zengota looks set to join his fellow countryman, having agreed contract
LEAHA Micklewright scored her first ever possible (60 point-maximum) to help her team Lambourn B to a 559-517 victory over Woodshaw in the Swindon and District Air Rifle League. Other possible scorers this week were Robert Ellis and Martyn Hince (both
SWINDON’S Neil Craycraft was denied victory in the fourth leg of the Cuestars South of England Championship Tour at Jesters by the red-hot Ben Harrison. The 147 Club member was beaten 2-0 in the final by Hawkeridge-based ace Harrison, who knocked in
DAVID Howell will be hoping to continue his recent good form when he tees off at the Volvo Golf Champions event this morning. The Swindon pro finished in a tie for 23rd at last week’s Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship so is in good shape ahead
JACOB Erskine scored on his debut but it was not enough to prevent a 2-1 home defeat for Swindon Supermarine at the hands of Southern Premier high-flyers Salisbury City last night. Erskine, who recently arrived on loan from Forest Green Rovers, opened
