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Fans of The Beautiful South can catch up with former members of the much-loved band when they headline at the newly-named Gallagher Park Live Music Festival in Bedlington this summer.
The South - featuring Alison Wheeler and Gaz Birtles - will be heading north to get the party going at the free family-friendly festival - formerly part of Northumberland Live - on Saturday, July 27.
Besides having a new title - named after its town location - the festival will have a new look too, while the Blyth leg of Northumberland Live is set to continue as usual.
Also on its line-up for the day will be rising teen star Chloe Rose - a singer-songwriter who has performed at the likes of  Old Trafford for Wayne Rooney’s testimonial and - one bound to delight young ones - CBeebies presenter Sid Sloane.
Older music lovers will no doubt welcome a chance to hear favourite songs played live, courtesy of Wheeler and Birtle who front The South, which grew from the ashes of The Beautiful South - following its split-up in 2007 - and is now celebrating its 10-year anniversary.
Sax player Birtles now joins Wheeler in singing duties since Dave Hemingway left at the end of 2016 and the nine-piece band continue to keep alive all those original hits such as Song For Whoever - now a remarkable 30 years old - plus the likes of Perfect 10; Rotterdam and number one hit A Little Time.
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A Newcastle illustrator has been left in disbelief after one of his designs was used to mock Piers Morgan.
The outspoken TV presenter has not been shy in sharing his disdain for Greggs' popular vegan sausage roll.
So one viewer settled on the perfect wind-up for the Good Morning host - sending him a vegan-inspired birthday card.
The early birthday card reads "I love Greggs vegan sausage rolls more than you", and even includes a fake coupon for a free vegan treat.
Newcastle illustrator James Dixon - known under the business name Lines Behind - designed the card as part of his "I love you more than" card range to feature at Greggs festive bake exhibition last year.
The 30-year-old, from Bedlington , was woken by friends tagging him in the Instagram post.
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The Northumberland Labour leader has responded to the recent airing of concerns about council-owned Arch , again describing it as a "witch-hunt".
Coun Grant Davey, who will be standing down as the group's leader in May , also said that he has answered questions on these matters and "the ratepayers have already covered the huge costs of having me interviewed on three occasions".
It followed Friday's two-hour meeting of Northumberland County Council's audit committee to discuss a 98-page report into arrangements at the wholly council-owned development company under the previous Labour administration. Arch has since been replaced by Advance Northumberland.
This report was commissioned after the Conservatives took over at County Hall in May 2017 and completed in October that year, but has not been released until now at the request of Northumbria Police .
The force has since confirmed to the council that it would not object to the report's disclosure and have now said "no criminal offences have been identified".
However, having discussed a number of the issues in the report, which raised concerns around nepotism, collusion and a "culture of entitlement", as jobs and perks were handed out to "the chaps", the committee members still had questions.
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Cemetery-walking dog owners who allow their animals to foul graves and headstones are to be targeted by enforcement officers.
Northumberland County Council is stepping up patrols to combat an increase in reported incidents of dog fouling and owners failing to keep dogs on leads in cemeteries.
Enforcement Officers will be on patrol in cemeteries where dog owners have been sighted allowing their dogs to roam around cemetery grounds.
Council cemeteries are subject to dog control orders which require dogs to be kept on a short lead, not more than 1.5 metres in length, at all times and must be under control. An extendable lead is not permitted.
As in all other public places, it is an offence to allow a dog to foul and not clean up. Signs at all the entrances to the cemetery instruct dog owners to keep their dogs on leads.
The council has received an increasing number of complaints of dogs fouling in cemeteries, especially in the Bedlington and Blyth area and say this is particularly distressing for those visiting the graves of loved ones.
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It's been almost a year since Miss Newcastle took us on a magic carpet ride for its Arabian Nights themed final and now we know the identities of the first nine girls in the running for this year's title.
Over 300 girls from across the region applied to be Miss Newcastle 2019 , which is a record for the competition, and now the first nine finalists have been announced for the annual event which will once again raise money for The Chronicle's Sunshine Fund.
The theme for this year's glittering final, hosted by the Gainford Group at The County Hotel, is Aphrodite and the goddesses already in the running for the Miss Newcastle crown are:
Amy Conway, 21, Wallsend
Charlotte Moore, 23, Newcastle
Chelsea Simpkin, 19, Cramlington
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Angry and disappointed residents remain unconvinced about the future of Bedlington town centre, after its redevelopment stalled earlier this year.
The latest time-scale for the regeneration project focused around the town's former Tesco site, which is being led by the county council-owned company Advance Northumberland, is aiming for the 12-month construction of the new shops to start in the autumn.
But this would still mean the scheme would not be completed until the back end of 2020 at the earliest.
And, as Advance's managing director Ken Dunbar told a lively Cramlington, Bedlington and Seaton Valley Local Area Council meeting last night (Wednesday, March 20), this all hinges on getting the anchor tenant - a major supermarket - to sign on the dotted line.
This key store was lined up, but chose to review its options around the time the enabling works to prepare the site got under way, meaning the project stalled when these preparations were completed in January.
Mr Dunbar said that nine other retailers - eight of which would be new to the town - are 'very interested' in taking on some of the other units, but that they needed the anchor store in place to guarantee the footfall.
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A prolific thief has been banned from all Sunderland's main shopping outlets.
Samuel Metcalf, 35, is forbidden from setting foot in The Bridges Shopping Centre, Hylton Riverside Retail Park, Roker Retail Park and Pallion Retail Park for the next two years.
The restrictions are set out in a Criminal Behaviour Order which came into effect last month (February) as a result of theft offences he has committed across the city.
Metcalf, of Norfolk Street, Sunderland , has had four shoplifting convictions since August 2018 and was also convicted of a public order offence after becoming aggressive and threatening a shop worker when confronted about his behaviour.
He is now no longer permitted to enter any of the city’s prime shopping outlets until 2021, and faces prison if he fails to comply or ignores any of the order’s strict conditions.
Metcalf must also leave any other shop or commercial premises if asked by staff.
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A new home at Cambois has been given the go-ahead after councillors rejected the planners' view that the site was in the open countryside.
Plans for the construction of a two-storey house and detached garage, between Berristock and Debdon House, were recommended for refusal at Wednesday night's (March 13) Ashington and Blyth Local Area Council.
But members unanimously backed the scheme, as they did not consider it was in the open countryside, that it was on previously developed brownfield land and that a refusal - saying development was unsuitable in this area - would essentially split Cambois in two.
The ward councillor, Jeff Gobin, and East Bedlington Parish Council had both supported the application as well.
Coun Brian Gallacher said: "If this applicant didn't build his house there, what else is going to go there? You are going to end up with a patch of wasteland."
Coun Grant Davey added: "I would like to see Cambois rebuilt as a very lively village."
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A teenager is due to appear in court charged with arson and explosive offences following an incident in Northumberland.
The 17-year-old, who cannot be named for legal reasons, will appear before magistrates sitting at Newcastle Crown Court on Saturday following the incident in Glanton.
Shortly before 9pm on Tuesday, the Northumberland Fire and Rescue Service called police to a blaze at an address on South View.
Officers attended and say a number of potentially hazardous substances were found inside the property.
A cordon was put in place and four nearby homes were evacuated as a precaution.
A 17-year-old male was arrested and an investigation was launched.


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