HUSH have sealed their lips and silenced their speakers. The Kendal band are sitting on a six-month-old secret. What It's All About - the group's all-original debut album - is due to be launched next month at the Brewery Arts Centre, Kendal, on May 4.
KEEN bird watcher Nicholas Almond spotted his first swallow of the year in the yard outside his home in Milnthorpe on April 15. He said the birds are not usually seen until around St George's Day, later in April. A week earlier Mr Almond saw a bright
ALL 22 of Cumbria Wildlife Trust's nature reserves are open to the public again with the lifting of the last foot-and-mouth restrictions on Dubbs Moss, near Cockermouth. Senior reserves officer Kerry Milligan thanked visitors and members for respecting
FOUR trees worth £200 have been stolen from a woodland outside Ambleside - just 15 months after they were planted to replace other trees removed from the same location. An ash, oak, rowan and European silver fir went missing from Fox Ghyll, a small woodland
The fight to preserve hunting foxes with dogs in South Lakeland and Cumbria has begun with supporters petitioning the Government about the issue from the steps of Defra in Carlisle, reports Ellis Butcher. Members of the county's Countryside Alliance along
At the time of writing, the damson blossom of south Westmorland is in full and furious bloom. So is the blackthorn, crowding some of the hedges like a diminutive cousin of the larger berried tree. Once again I wonder at the origin of the damson. Is it
Choral Chillout is a double CD collection featuring more than two hours of some of the most beautiful vocal music ever composed. The perfect accompaniment to the longer, lighter days of Spring, this new release from BBC Music rises above other chillout
Greenbanks, Kendal: New season English salad - cucumbers - 45p each. A Taste of Lakeland, Ambleside: New from the Snowdonia Cheese Company - Purple Passion - guest cheese of mild cheddar & chocolate chips "tantalising addition to the cheese board"
MEMBERS of the M6 Link Committee have given unanimous support to Lancaster City Council's modification of the Local Plan. The modification will ensure that completion of the Heysham-M6 Link Road remains a priority and will forbid any development that
GOALKEEPER Gordon Banks, one of the heroes of England's victorious 1966 World Cup squad, threw his support behind efforts to create a safe play haven for children with special needs this week, reports Rachel Kitchen. Banks was the guest of honour at a
AS CONVENIENCE foods go, the potted shrimp would certainly rank in my top ten. Simply buy from the shop, take home, and warm through in the microwave or in a pan on top of the stove; serve with a green salad and bags of brown bread. Not an E number in
LISTEN out for the talented young voices of Stagecoach Theatre School on Granada Television's My Favourite Hymns between now and Christmas. Broadcast at 11am on Sunday mornings, the show invites celebrities including Falklands War veteran Simon Weston
POLISH-BORN artist Sonia Rolak, who now lives and works in Venice, has created a series of works exploring John Ruskin's love of blue and the symbolism attached to the colour. She spent a week at Ruskin's home Brantwood, overlooking Coniston Water, last
BLOOD Red Roses, the history of Lancaster Castle in words and music - devised by actress, singer and writer Sue McCormick - runs at the castle's Shire Hall from Monday to Saturday next week. The specially commissioned story is Demi-Paradise Productions
THE doors of Green Door Studios in Kendal will be thrown open to the public this weekend. Artists who will be displaying their work at the open studios event will include Karen Lloyd, Fiona Clucas, Catherine McDiarmid and Rosie Waites, and there will
MORECAMBE'S pre-season schedule is beginning to take shape with three attractive friendlies already lined up. Wigan Athletic are first up on Tuesday, July 24. Paul Jewell's side spent more than £1 million on striker Dave Whelan and are set to have other
THE country's finest orienteers visit Lancaster on Saturday April 20 to compete in the British Sprint Championships at Williamson Park. Supported by Lancaster City Council, the event kicks off at 12 noon when competitors will be set off at one-minute
TO HAVE your gigs included FREE of charge in the Gig Guide, telephone Beth Broomby on 01539-720555, or send a fax on 01539-720990, or drop a line to the Gig Guide, The Westmorland Gazette, 22 Stricklandgate, Kendal, LA9 4NE, at least TWO WEEKS before
A DOUBLE whammy of top-quality performers is booked in at The Brewery Arts Centre, Kendal, this weekend. The Blue Shoes with Snake Davis and Jim Diamond is first up up tomorrow (Satuirday). Jim Diamond, famed for the likes of Hi Ho Silver and Shoulda
WHO needs Berlin when you can have cabaret closer to home? Tonight, (Friday, April 19) singer Sue Parish and guitarist Jon Moore aim to send the rain clouds scuttling when they present Blue Skies Over the Rainbow at Lancaster's Gregson Centre. The cabaret-style
FIVE of the hottest young contemporary fiddle players from the Highlands and Islands of Scotland, making up the musical phenomenon Blazin' Fiddles, will be setting Penrith's Ullswater Community College alight next Tuesday night. The band was formed in
A MAJOR long-distance route is to run through parts of rural Cumbria, after the Government approved controversial plans to extend the Pennine Bridleway. Rural affairs minister Alun Michael has backed Countryside Agency proposals for a 141-mile extension
A bid to bring out the bookworm in children is being launched with the start of a new reading group for nine to 11-year-olds. 'Orange Chatterbooks', a new national initiative for youngsters, has got under way at Ormsgill Library, Middlefield, Ormsgill
THE Rossetti Piano Trio will give a recital at the Percival Theatre, St Martin's College, Ambleside, on Thursday, May 2. The trio, featuring violinist Philippa Jeffery, cellist Nicolas Trygstad and pianist Alice Turner, was formed in 1998 by students
Kendal could help disadvantaged producers from some of the world's poorer countries by becoming one of the first Fairtrade towns in the country. Garstang in Lancashire has been declared the country's first Fairtrade town and Kendal has been invited to
A YOUNG motorist who was involved in a death crash the day after he passed his driving test was yesterday jailed for four and a half years. Peter Storey, 20, of Scotforth Road, Lancaster had earlier pleaded guilty to a charge of causing death by dangerous
LANCASTER rail passengers look set to face another day of disruption as the rail union plans more one-day strikes. Next Monday, April 22, has been pencilled in for the next one-day stoppage in the continuing dispute over the company's disciplinary procedures
THE High Court is to be asked to overturn Lancashire County Council's policy on care for the elderly. The Lancashire Care Association revealed last week that it is to challenge the council's policy of reducing placements and offering what they argue is
THE most visited exhibition in the world, telling the story of Jewish girl Anne Frank who went into hiding with her family during World War Two, is to visit Cumbria in October. Cumbria County Council is to give £6,000 towards the cost of the exhibition
A BEAUTIFULLY crafted sculpture of birch and mahogany inspired by shapes from the natural world has earned Kendal-born artist Lully Pattinson a prestigious award, writes Rachel Kitchen. At this year's Royal Scottish Academy Students Exhibition, Lully's
THERE is still chance to see Elspeth Edmondson's exhibition of prints exploring the nature of the flower at Abbot Hall Coffee Shop, Kendal. Currently lecturing in graphic design at Lancaster and Morecambe College's School of Art and Design, the artist
As the nation prepares to celebrate the Queen' s 50 years on the throne this summer, Burneside Choral Society is looking ahead to its very own Golden Jubilee. Choir members will be celebrating half-a-century of music and friendship at their anniversary
LOVE on the Dole, the latest presentation from Warton Drama Group, is a compelling love story set in 1930s Manchester. Through creative set design, the audience is drawn into the lives of the Hardcastle family and friends, and offered a glimpse of how
FURNESS Youth Theatre presents Oliver, Lionel Bart's classic musical of the boy who asked for more, at Barrow's Forum 28 from Wednesday to Saturday next week. Seventy young people aged eight to 18 play the orphans and low-life characters of Charles Dickens's
- Mulch shrub beds with a thick covering of compost, manure or bark to cut down on summer weeding and water loss. - Sow parsley in the garden, or in pots to stand by the kitchen door. Sow chives and spring onions too. - If, like mine, you lawn has soggy
TV GARDENER Peter Howarth was passing on his top tips for creating lush hanging baskets at a workshop. At the Heaves Hotel demonstration, a group of enthusiasts went back to the basket basics as Mr Howarth stressed the importance of good compost, profuse
Herbaceous perennials are the mainstay of many a garden throughout the summer. Non-woody, flowering plants that die down in winter and come up afresh each spring, they are tough, reliable, and easy to look after, requiring only a moderately fertile soil
