10 YEARS AGO

LAWLESS LAND: There was shock and anger across Tynedale when the Ministry of Justice confirmed that Tynedale Magistrate would close, despite a petition backed by Britain's most senior judge.

SMALL SQUEEZE: The verdict on the dreaded financial cuts imposed on Northumberland County Council was that they were "not as bad as expected" - but the five per cent cut still amounted to around £22 million.

CRAFTY COCKNEY: Punters at Hexham's Betfred betting shop were in dreamland when they shared the oche with five-time former world darts champion Eric Bristow - nick-named the Crafty Cockney.

STEPPING IN: Bellingham's old folk's Christmas party would go ahead as usual, it was announced, after the parish council stepped in with a cash donation.

25 YEARS AGO

FIRE DAMAGE: More than £40,000 worth of damage was caused when a fire ripped through the roof of Hexham building merchants Matthew Charltons - but the fire could have been much worse had Hexham Methodist Minister David Perkins not raised the alarm.

CASH BOOST: Voluntary organisations in Tynedale were given a £150,000 Christmas box courtesy of the National Lottery Charities Board.

MIRACLE ESCAPE: Gardener Alan Moy was flung ten feet in the air after hitting a power cable with a road drill - but escaped with his life thanks to the rubber soles of his boots.

ALLOTMENT ROW: Gardeners and Corbridge residents won their lengthy campaign to save The Chains allotments from being turned into a luxury housing estate.

50 YEARS AGO

CLOSURE OUTCRY: Wall residents urged the Government to block the county education authority's plans to close their village school. There was one of three local first schools threatened with closure, the others being at Bingfield and Matfen.

FINAL BELL: Edward Waite retired as headteacher of Haydon Bridge Technical School after nine years in that post, bringing to an end a teaching career of more than 35 years.

SURCHARGE MOOTED: Prudhoe Urban Council discussed charging council house tenants whose gardens were untidy more than their less messy counterparts.

USE CHANGED: The Forestry Commission announced plans to covert a house at Otterburn Green, Byrness, into an information centre.

75 YEARS AGO

FESTIVE FOWL: Turkeys were reported to be in scare supply at Hexham's butchers, although a few had been imported from Argentina.

WINNIE OUT: At a Tory rally held in Hexham, Parliamentary candidate Viscount Lambton called on Winston Churchill to stand down as leader of the Conservative Party to make way for a younger man.

CHOIR REVIVAL: The Rev. T.W Byrne, the vicar of Humshaugh, revived the parish choir, which had been disbanded some years previously.

100 YEARS AGO

RE-OPENING EVENT: A fancy dress ball was held at St Cuthbert's Church Hall, Allendale, to mark its re-opening after a period of closure for refurbishment.

PUB PURCHASE: The Comrades of the Great War's Tynedale Branch bought the Queen's Arms pub in Hexham's Market Place so that it ould convert it into an ex-serviceman's club.

125 YEARS AGO

CEMETERY PROPOSALS: Plans were drawn up for the creation of a second cemetery at Bellingham, the first one having been filled almost to capacity. Potential sites were discussed by parish councillors and other interested parties.

BAZAAR HELD: A bazaar, held at Corbridge Town Hall by the village's methodists, raised £240 for their renovation fund.

PARISH PLANS: Whitfield was the venue for an inquiry into the plans to split the then Allendale parish in two, creating a new parish based around Ninebanks.

150 YEARS AGO

BAD NEWS: The Courant reported that there was every probability of an early application made for an adjudication of bankruptcy against the so-called Countess of Derwentwater, at the insistence of the Lords of the Admiralty.

BIGGER, BETTER: A meeting of the Wark Steeplechase Committee, held at the Chipchase Arms Inn at Wark Station, unanimously resolved to "use every endeavour to continue these races on a more extensive scale than that of the previous year."

WHITE WEDDING: A wedding at a Hexham Chapel almost didn't' go ahead because there was no bridesmaid present. After a little time, the official returned accompanied by a "blooming servant maid, with a white apron for a wedding dress and blushes acting as a substitute for a more artistic colouring of the face."