Archive

  • South London incinerator granted planning permission

    Planning permission to build a giant incinerator for the area's rubbish has tonight been granted. An audience of several hundred people greeted Sutton Council's development control committee's decision to grant permission for the incinerator to

  • Tree crushes car in high winds in Thames Ditton

    This was the wreckage left behind after a tree crashed down in Thames Ditton during high winds this morning. The shell and smashed windows of the blue Nissan Primera startled passersby when they discovered the carnage as they made their way to

  • Musical medicine eases the memory gap

    Margaret Torrance often plays the piano for a rapt audience, reeling off one note-perfect tune after another without so much as a glance at a sheet of music. She also has trouble remembering her daughter's name, does not know she has grandchildren

  • Living on the edge in Toronto

    The wind is whistling around me, snatching away the words I'm muttering again and again under my breath: "Don't look down. Just don't look down." I look down. A small plane is coming in to land across the still body of blue water below me.

  • South London Incinerator decision expected tonight

    A decision on plans to build a controversial incinerator is due to be made tonight amid accusations the council has pre-empted the outcome. Members of Sutton Council's development control committee are set to approve plans to build an energy recovery

  • Four people arrested in Kingston

    Four people have been arrested in Kingston this afternoon by police "acting on information about a vehicle". A number of police cars and a dog unit were called to High Street at about 5.30pm, close to Nando's and Pizza Express restaurants.

  • Police appeal after sexual assault in Streatham

    Police are hunting a man in connection with a sex attack on a woman as she walked home from a bus on Streatham High Road last month. Lambeth police are appealing for the help of the public in identifying a man in connection with the incident, near

  • Police apologise after bungled search for Tia Sharp

    Police have apologised again to Tia Sharp’s parents after a catalogue of errors led to a delay in the schoolgirl’s body being discovered. The Met's specialist search officers searched the home in the Lindens four times, before finding the 12-year-old

  • Head denies child's 'gay' jibe about shoes

    A headteacher has denied reports that a gay rights group were called in to her school after a child called a fellow pupil’s shoes "gay". St Mary’s Catholic Primary School, in Russell Road, Wimbledon, denied a playground jibe had led to Headteacher

  • Tia Sharp mum: 'I blame myself for her death'

    Tia Sharp’s mother is wracked with guilt for not preventing her daughter’s death at the hands of her former boyfriend, she revealed this week. Natalie Sharp, 31, briefly dated Stuart Hazell before his relationship with her mum Christine Bicknell

  • Tia Sharp gran: 'I had no idea I was living with a monster'

    Tia Sharp’s grandmother has spoken of the devastating realisation she was “living with a monster” who had hidden the girl’s dead body in their house. Christine Bicknell, who spent five-and-a-half years as Stuart Hazell’s partner, insisted she had

  • Man charged after Bounce Bar double stabbing

    A man has been charged after a double knife attack in a late-night bar. Jack Kiron Kenny Smith, 22, of Glastonbury Road, Morden, faces two counts of grievous bodily harm following an incident in Bounce Bar on the High Street on February 1.

  • Do you recognise these men?

    Police have released images of three men wanted in connection with an incident in which a woman was racially abused on a train. The victim a 30-year-old Asian woman, was travelling alone on the 3.55pm West Croydon to London Bridge service on Saturday

  • 'Artful Dodger' appears in court accused of murdering partner

    The former partner of a Croydon man found dead in his flat has appeared in court charged with his murder.  Ricardo Pisano - nicknamed the 'Artful Dodger' -  was arrested last week after an international manhunt following the death of 62-year-old

  • Three arrested after victim pursues muggers in car chase

    Three suspected muggers were arrested at a train station after a dramatic chase. A 24-year-old man was robbed of his mobile phone and wallet as he walked along Mulgrave road in Sutton at about 2.45pm on Thursday, May 9. The victim and a witness

  • Promotion chance is a fairytale for Palace's owners

    Crystal Palace's journey to the brink of the Premier League is a fairytale even Stephen Browett can scarcely believe. The Eagles co-owner watched on at Brighton's Amex Stadium on Monday night as a Wilfried Zaha inspired Palace side claimed a 2-

  • Falling concrete from building narrowly misses passerby below

    A shocked pedestrian had a lucky escape last night when a piece of concrete narrowly missed them after it fell from a high rise building. The lump of concrete, almost the size of a brick, from somewhere between the sixth and ninth floors of Chaucer

  • Six people sent to hospital after Earlsfield fire

    Six people needed hospital treatment after a fire broke out in a terraced house. Firefighters were called to the blaze in Earlsfield Road, Earlsfield, just before 9pm last night. The house is split into two flats, with the fire starting in

  • Animals killed for 'target practice' with air rifle

    A fox cub, several crows and even a pet cat have been shot by someone wielding an air-rifle in recent weeks. The fox cub was injured so badly it had to be put down while two crows also died and the cat was left needing extensive treatment.

  • Bruce Lee martial art coming to Walton

    An optician will bring Bruce Lee-style martial arts to Walton next month. Mital Patel took up kamon wing chun 10 years ago and has since become a qualified instructor. He will run classes at St Andrew’s Church on Thursdays from June 13. Mr

  • Bookshop owner blames rise in business rates for closure

    A bookshop owner has condemned the massive inflation of business rates as his store looks set to close after more than 20 years. Douglas Jeffers, who runs My Back Pages in Station Road, Balham, claims rates have doubled from £8,000 to £16,000 in

  • Jolly Boatman travel plan deadline extended

    The consultation period for the travel plan condition linked to the Jolly Boatman site has been extended. The condition was refused by Elmbridge Council earlier this year and an appeal hearing was heard on May 8 and 9. The planning inspector

  • Girl dies after being hit by lorry in Streatham Place

    An 11-year-old girl died in hospital last night after being hit by a lorry. Hane Haji Hassan, a pupil at Harris Academy Merton, was hit by a lorry on her way home from school near her home in Streatham Place at 3.20pm yesterday. She was

  • Evicted market traders consider legal action

    Two traders booted out of Kingston Market Place because their stalls didn’t fit in with redevelopment plans are considering legal action against their eviction. David Wilson and Angela Lassiter were left in tears at the end of trading on Monday

  • Warning after doorstep scam targets Teddington man

    People are being warned of bogus callers after an attempted scam. The alarm was raised after men claiming to be from Lewisham Council Trading Standards tried to trick a Teddington resident into handing over bank details on Friday, May 10. The

  • Tia Sharp murder house to be bulldozed 'as soon as possible'

    The house in which murdered Tia Sharp's decomposing body lay undiscovered for a week is to be bulldozed as soon as possible, Croydon Council has confirmed. Two neighbouring homes in The Lindens, New Addington, will also be demolished and replaced

  • Shaun the Sheep scales Everest for Cobham school

    A Feltonfleet School mascot has been enjoying the views of Mount Everest, while pupils, safely on terra-firma, track his progress. David Tait, a parent at the school, took class 4SB’s Shaun the Sheep mascot as a good luck charm on his latest expedition

  • Modesty shines bright from Palace hero

    Julian Speroni pulled off a moment of heroism at Brighton on Monday night but, as usual, refused to take the credit for Crystal Palace's success. The Eagles' goalkeeper, who turns 34 on Saturday, pulled off a stunning save to deny Brighton's Ashley

  • "No plans" to move Surbiton needle exchange

    There are no plans to move a needle exchange from Surbiton Health Centre despite criticism from the chief executive of a drugs charity. Parents at Lime Tree Primary School, which shares the site, have expressed surprise upon learning about the

  • Taste of Thai on the Thames

    Residents stepped into the sights and smells of the East at the opening of the Thai on Thames festival. The event, combining Thai food, beer, massages and dances, took place in Kingston town centre on Friday and Saturday. It will return for

  • Working households offered cost priced family-sized homes

    Working housholds will soon have the chance to buy family-sized homes at cost price under a new housing scheme. The proposals, developed by Wandsworth Council, would see a typical three-bedroom home costing £400,000 on the open market for just

  • Mum finds hair in expensive baby food

    A mum who diligently researched the best food for her baby was shocked when she found hair in hair son's dinner. Sutton mum Navita Thomas bought expensive Ella's Kitchen food for her baby son Caleb, now nine-months-old, on the grounds that it is

  • Claremont shines in Young Enterprise competition

    Claremont Fan Court School enjoyed another successful evening at the Young Enterprise programme, held at the University of Surrey. The highly competitive event saw nine companies compete for prizes and a place in the south-east finals next month

  • VIDEO: Children learn how to make prints in Tooting Library

    Children learned how to make prints from leaves and plants. The craft session took part in Tooting Library, in Mitcham Road, Tooting, as part of a day celebrating storytelling on Saturday, May 11. Springtime leaves were collected in advance

  • Residents unite for Big Tidy Up in Leatherhead

    Residents of all ages united to clean up their streets in Leatherhead on Saturday. People collected 100 bin bags of rubbish, painted garage doors, removed wooden pallets and a bath which had been dumped as part of the Big Tidy Up. Led by the