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NE Wales on ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ Radio Wales - podcast
This week: Chief Constable Richard Brunstrom is in the headlines again after an attack on a North Wales MP; a school choir is given its marching orders by shopkeepers for singing Christmas carols too loudly and a pair of newts get a new £140,000 home. We also hear how a Wrexham school is adapting to an influx of children from abroad and there's a happy ending for the Father Christmas without any reindeer.
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Concerns are again being raised today about Tesco's dominance on the High Street, this time with Denbigh being earmarked as a possible new store location.
To consider the possible effects on Denbigh you need only look to Ruthin and Mold where Tesco is already a strong presence. [I see the old deli on Wrexham Street, Mold, has now closed.]
And watching the sprawling Tesco store being built in Holywell, you can't help but wonder about its effects on the already quiet town centre just a stone's throw away. What are your thoughts?
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Blimey, the flak's flying again and, guess what, the Chief Constable is at the centre of it all.
Last night, the ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ One Wales TV programme, The Chief, [repeated 9.45pm tonight, ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ2W] went out with our very own love-or-loathe-him and Richard Brunstrom giving us an insight as to the man in the Chief Constable's hat.
He confessed to that "" in which he showed Press pictures of a dead man to prove a point - without the permission of the victim's family.
And then he went and did what he does best; he gave today's Press more fodder for today's headlines, ''.
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The Union Jack should be combined with the Welsh flag, according to an MP who wants the change to be made to reflect Wales's status within the UK. What do you reckon - a good idea?
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The so-called Flintshire 14-19 Learning Pathways Network have teamed up with to secure a £500,000 Welsh Assembly Government grant to build a shared, purpose built learning resources centre to promote extended learning opportunities to all post 16 students in schools and colleges in Flintshire.
The blurb continues, once constructed, the centre will look to ensure that every 16-19 year old has the opportunity to engage in a learning programme or activity which aids their personal development.
Housing and communities pressure group has called on the to respond to comments made by Sir William Proby, chairman of the , who believes that the Trust should defend green spaces against developers.
At the same time, the Trust is pushing on with unpopular plans to get planning permission for 223 houses on green spaces by the village of Rhostyllen, in Wrexham, where a local campaign has formed to fight against the proposals.
What makes one more expensive than the other? The Welsh-English border. Helen Parker reports from Wrexham:
The pretty villages of Holt and Farndon are separated by a narrow stone bridge over the River Dee. Both have a healthy mix of character properties and newbuilds, two or three pubs apiece and their own church and primary school. Yet property in Farndon has always been more expensive - £100,000 more in one example of two similar houses!
Read some of the fascinating entries in the log book of Ysgol Sychdyn, Mold, which were made during the Great War and have been compiled on a dedicated to the memories of soldiers who died.
Nov 25th 1914. This morning I received from Mrs Ivor Davies, 4lbs of wool and 12 sets of needles from the Soughton Committee in order that the upper standard girls should knit scarves for the troops.
Oct 21st 1915. All the children brought potatoes this morning. These are to be sent as a gift to the Leeswood Hall Hospital for wounded soldiers.
March 21st 1916. The Attendance Officer called here this am. He informed me he was leaving to join the army.
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Wrexham Assembly Member, Lesley Griffiths has welcomed news that Wrexham is to be a major beneficiary of a new superfast network, funded by the Welsh Assembly Government.
Wrexham Industrial Estate and Wrexham Technology Park have both been named in the First Phase of multi-million pound project - called "FibreSpeed".
The £30 million investment by the Welsh Assembly Government in the "FibreSpeed" project will provide a regional fibre-optic trunk network in North Wales linking up 14 strategic business parks across the region with advanced, high-speed broadband services at greatly reduced prices for local companies and businesses.
There will be a public meeting with a representative of the new train operator, Wrexham, Shropshire & Marylebone Railway (WSMR), who plan to start offering a direct train link to London Marylebone from Wrexham from next spring. The has further information on the meeting.
Wrexham Council is operating a park and ride to serve the town centre every Saturday from December 1-22 from the council's housing department car park on Ruthin Road to Wrexham Bus Station.
It will be operated from 8:30am every 15 minutes with the last departure from Stand 8 at Wrexham Bus Station at 5:37pm. Parking is free and the adult return bus fare is 60p with children and OAPs travelling free. Timetable and more details at .
Debate: Easing congestion in Wrexham
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- via
Boss Brian Little is relishing being pitted straight into a derby clash with Chester as he prepares for his first game in charge of Wrexham.
- via
Watch the oldest boy band in town perform at the launch of their second album
- via
The Welsh Assembly's Standards' Committee is meeting on Wednesday evening to discuss, amongst other things, the use of blog sites by members.
Residents living in the path of the proposed A494 road widening scheme are being evicted despite the fact the results of a public inquiry have not been released, says .
Talk about the evictions and the road widening
³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ - North East Wales - History - Shotton Steelworks
I wanted to share with you a funny story which came in overnight about a character from Shotton Steelworks known as Billy Bang Bang. Thanks to Tom for submitting this to our page about Shotton Steelworks:
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Our blog is being spammed quite heavily at the moment which causes a delay when genuine contributors try to submit comments - please bear with us as we are fixing the problem.
A royal 'touch-piece' - a gold coin-like object - used by monarchs to cure disease more than 300 years ago has been discovered on Bryn Aber Farm, Overton, near Wrexham, writes Carl Butler.
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A police marksman put a bullet through an office window while trying to shoot an escaped bull. North Wales Police are investigating how the stray bullet smashed through an upstairs office window of AGS Securities in Mold, while staff were in a meeting next door.
Police marksmen were called after a male calf escaped from the Mold livestock market and ran through the town on Friday afternoon.
Eight staff at CCTV specialists AGS were in an upstairs conference room when bullet smashed through the window in the room next door. Director Jonathan Turner described how staff heard a loud bang, and jumped up to see police had shot the animal in fields across the road from their premises.
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Is there ever a day that the Chief Constable doesn't make the headlines?
Tomorrow the Police Authority meet to discuss issues raised in the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) report after he showed pictures of a decapitated motorcyclist to prove a point.
Ahead of the meeting there have been calls for his resignation, according to . But not everyone agrees after taking a quick trawl of our .
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Children in Need
The ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ Children in Need Appeal show kicks off at 7pm on ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ One tonight. Find out how to get involved online.
Your thoughts on the appointment of new manager Brian Little.
Your photos
Sunrise photos - David submits a photo of a stunning sunrise.
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We're just uploading this week's podcast - and you'll be able to listen shortly to stories about NE Wales aired on this week's ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ Radio Wales:
Celebrations at Wrexham's Remploy factory after a decision to close it is overturned, the appointment of a new man in charge at Wrexham Football Club, and the vicar of Llangollen pays tribute to Ray Gravel. Plus, it's a dog's life for scruffy pet Tess in Prestatyn, and the girls' football team in Kinmel Bay benefit from Children in Need.
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Written by ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ Cymru Wales Press Office
THE CHIEF
Tuesday, November 27, ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ One Wales, 10.35pm
North Wales Chief Constable is currently one of the most controversial senior police officers in the UK. Brunstrom has, without doubt, caused his fair share of controversy over the years, frequently appearing in the headlines of both the Welsh and national media.
Most recently, his calls on the government to legalise all drugs has once again whipped the press into frenzy and put him directly in the firing line.
³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ Wales’s cameras have been given exclusive access to the top cop and in The Chief viewers will get a rare insight into the man behind the public image of the so-called ‘Mad Mullah of the Traffic Taliban’.
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Old boys Fron Choir are currently ranked third on online retailer Amazon's classic music bestseller list - even though their follow-up album, Voices Of The Valley Encore, isn't released until Monday. By the way, their first album is fifth.
Are you a fan of their music or is it something else about the boys that is giving them a huge following?
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I was one of a dozen people [just three were women] invited to spend three hours attending a [in our own time] yesterday for drivers caught by police speeding at up to 6mph over the 30mph limit- instead of getting three points on our driving licences.
I've just uploaded a via mobile phone to give you an insight to the course which is organised by and run from Greenfield Business Centre, near Holywell.
There's a lot of publicity about how efficient [or over-zealous] North Wales Police are at catching speeders but what I gleaned yesterday was worthwhile. The main thing I have taken away from the course which refreshed our understanding of the was this:
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Police inquires are underway after a lorry driver, who parked just off the A55 near to the Bistro 55 café in Caerwys, was forced from his cab and bundled into the back of a car before being released unharmed in Skermersdale, Lancashire, in the early hours of Tuesday.
Now, I've heard of strange and peculiar habits bordering on the obsessive compulsive but to be terrified of scotch eggs [Ricky Gervais explains the scotch egg] has to be the strangest yet.
But what I'm not sure about is what's weirdest; the fact that Wrexham painter and decorator Gareth Jones is reduced to a tearful wreck every time he sees the savoury snack or that he and girlfriend Laura can be seen on TV on Friday discussing the problem.
Laura nominated Gareth for the show about phobias because, says the , the "problem came to crisis point" when the couple started talking about marriage and Gareth was adamant there should be no scotch eggs at the buffet! [Either the eggs go - or I go!] Some ultimatum.
An independent tourism consultant reckons that Wrexham and Flintshire could benefit from the fact that more people are opting to holiday in this country, rather than increasing their 'carbon footprint' by flying abroad, according to a report in the . What would you recommend for visitors to the area to see and do?
A "teen horror movie" filmed in Wrexham has been released on DVD. The film was shot at Trevor Hall and Yale College and was directed by Karen Bird, a lecturer at .
We've just received a press release about the saying that PC Judith McCulloch, based in Rhyl, has been nominated for the Community Police Officer of the Year Award after she helped to plan and carry out Operation Avalanche which led to a 25 per cent drop in retail related crime on her beat.
Other nominees from up for an award later this month include the team which has been nominated for the Diversity in Action Award for their work in creating a 'virtual' help centre, providing translation services to the Polish community.
What's this?
Use the link to read stories, blogs and comments attracting our attention this morning. Among the headlines:
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Here are some more comments staff in the ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ Wrexham office have overheard people saying.
Sorry, you're talking to the ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ newsroom. You need a TV dealer.
Sorry I'm late, I've been stroking a penguin.
And then he did a moonwalk - but it doesn't really work on the radio.
That's quite a ladder in the tights of the universe.
I think she's built up a lot of hard skin in that area.
Here's a link to watch again last night's ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ Wales political programme, Dragon's Eye, [view from 16 mins] which put the case for and against the National Trust's plans to build houses on land at Rhostyllen, part of its Erddig estate.
The have already put a forceful case but last night Iwan Huws for the trust defended their plan to sell the land to raise funds for the upkeep of Erddig because a condition meant none of the NT's £1billion in investments could be used.
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LATEST UPDATES - Bull runs amok - Knickers in the window - Listen: NE Wales podcast - Watch: Llangollen - Rants and Raves - What a tasty dish! - Hospital sued - Relegation fears, Wrexham FC and Fergie - Beast of Brymbo sighted again - Ghost caught on camera? - and much more
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What's this?
Use the link to read stories, blogs and comments attracting our attention this morning. Among the headlines:
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Police marksmen have been praised after a runaway bull escaped from a slaughterhouse and almost ran down a woman in Rhos, Wrexham, on Monday afternoon, reports the Leader.
Contributor Susan Jones mailed us to say the new Owain Glyndwr statue is being unveiled tomorrow night in a special lighting ceremony with a celebration in Welsh and English with free refreshments and entertainment in the pubs in town.
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Denbighshire Council has deferred a decision on controversial plans for 51 new homes at Prestatyn. The deferral came after around 20 people living near the field at Tip Lane lobbied councillors before yesterday's meeting.
So says former Wrexham player , now Peterborough's manager, in an interview on TV tonight [2200 on ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ 2W and ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ TWO Wales] ahead of this weekend's FA Cup clash against his former team.
He says: "If I was there, I don't think they would be in the position they are in. It's not being disrespectful to Brian, it's just my belief."
Ferguson was a long-serving Wrexham midfielder, but Brian Carey got the job as manager when Denis Smith was dismissed at the beginning of the year.
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A conference in Llandudno today highlighting the 'urgent need' for a North Wales prison, will also hear claims a prison would actually reduce crime in its vicinity, reports .
Four sites have been earmarked as a possible location, including the former Firestone factory on . Research commissioned by the , who are holding today’s conference, has shown a prison could bring millions to the North Wales economy.
Once the prison is up and running, it would create more than 1,000 jobs - 480 people in the prison itself, with another 560 people in the wider region. As a result, the prison would pump £17m into the North Wales economy every year.
So, it would seem to be a good financial idea to site a prison in North Wales. What do you reckon?
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By Adrian Browne
³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ Wales political reporter
Once the top-ranking woman police officer in the UK, Alison Halford is "the bit of grit in the oyster" every political party needs. That was Conservative assembly group leader Nick Bourne's take on the former Labour AM - who is now a Tory - as he helped her launch her memoirs.
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This is a link and headline taken from the blog of local Lib Dem AM Eleanor Burnham. She writes:
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Here's a link to watch again last night's ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ Wales consumer programme, X-Ray, which featured the "good people of Llangollen" [view from 17mins] who are pledging to make theirs the first town in Wales to give up using plastic bags.
The programme gave the Found family a video camera to see how they got on without using pastics [like taking a trowel with them on dog walks so they could get rid of the mess the dogs left, rather than carrying it home].
Presenter Rhodri travelled into the town centre to find out more. He heard from Annie Pearce at the Wholefood Co-operative that they have joined forces with Friends of the Earth to provide re-usable cotton, jute and string bags for sale in the town.
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Another Wenglish entry as dwi'n dysgu Cymraeg [I'm learning Welsh]
Hwre, ffindies i rywun arall sydd ddim yn medru dallt opera sebon Pobl y Cwm ar y teledu.
[Hurrah, I've found someone else unable to understand soap opera Pobl y Cwm on the TV]
I thought it was just me achos maen nhw'n siarad yn rhy gyflym i mi dallt [because they speak so fast]. I get caught up trying to understand each sentence that I miss the sense, the plot, everything.
I am determined to crack this problem which is due to trying to understand a different Welsh dialect [Valleys], and due to the speed at which fluent speakers speak their language.
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Contributors to our debate about the NT's plans to build 200 houses on land owned by their Erddig estate have been quick to pick up on a statement made by trust chairman who told his that the organisation would fight the government to protect the countryside from housing development.
That's right, it's the same National Trust that wants to build homes on fields at Wrexham! Explain that...
Cue outrage from protesters in Wrexham who agree with his views but who also oppose his own organisation's plans for Wrexham. Can you make sense of it?
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Today sees the launch of the first NE Wales podcast. It's a weekly round-up of stories from NE Wales that have aired on ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ Radio Wales. This week's stories include the opening of a park in memory of a seven year old boy, the views of protesters from Rhostyllen who are opposing the building of houses on National Trust land and a live science experiment. Download it and let us know what you think!
I was passing through Buckley this morning and saw that the town centre clock was being put back in place after being removed a few months ago to be restored. The clock was erected over the old baths and library to mark the Silver Jubilee of King George V in 1935.
Plans for a massive shopping development on Nant Hall Road, Prestatyn, creating 400 jobs, looks set to get the go-ahead next week, says .
Residents made a stand against a drug dealer on their housing estate in Hightown - and now he has been evicted, says .
But, as it appears the police have been unable to take action, does it mean the problem has only been moved on to the doorstep of another community?
Congratulations to Ysgol Bodnant Junior School, Prestatyn, who have been named 'School of the Year' in the Your Champions award, run by Trinity Mirror Newspapers and ScottishPower. The school's "hard work in caring for the environment in school grounds and in the community" was what won it the award, as reported in the .
| 13:48 UK time, Friday, 30 November 2007
