E-fits released after distraction burglary in Herne Bay

Kent Police has issued e-fits of two people they would like to speak to in connection with a distraction burglary in Herne Bay. Detectives are investigating after a small amount of cash was stolen from the home of a 90-year-old man at about 3pm onSunday 4 December 2011.

Detective Constable Leigh Woolnough said:

'At about 3pm the previous afternoon, Saturday 3 December, a young woman knocked on the door of the pensioner’s home, which is in the West Bay area of Herne Bay, and asked if he wanted to buy some raffle tickets for a children’s charity.

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Classes to help you breathe easy again

Mandy BridgewaterEx-smoker Mandy Bridgewater suffers from chronic lung disease. But a special course has helped to breathe new life into her. Former community carer Mandy, 43, can only use 28 per cent of her lungs because of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. The disease affects more than 13,000 people across east Kent.

But Mandy says sessions run by the NHS have given her a new lease of life. The mum from Herne Bay had the disease diagnosed 11 years ago and immediately gave up smoking. But she said:

"The cold weather makes it much more difficult to breathe. As I have just 28 per cent lung capacity, getting up and down stairs can be difficult and I suffer with panic attacks. But the NHS course was brilliant.

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KCC - prize-winningly rotten

Kent County Council managed to scoop two titles in Private Eye's Rotten Boroughs Awards 2011.

The column, which lists authorities' municipal wrongdoing, named council leader Paul Carter as Mr Toad of the Year and former managing director Katherine Kerswell as Goldenballs of the Year.

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Paul Carter crows and bleats

It simply beggars belief that Paul Carter should round on the local press and suggest that they are responsible for the falling staff morale at KCC. We will find out in June, if not before, how much Katherine Kerswell was paid leave quietly. What is clear now, and has been for some time, is that her recruitment and departure revealed serious shortcomings at the very top of KCC. Poor staff morale at the Council is more likely to be a result of working for rubbish bosses than simply reading about them.

It's also pretty rich for Paul Carter to criticise the press for not playing a "straight bat" after the stream of misleading and mealy-mouthed press releases that accompanied the confused and confusing departure of the Council's MD.

Paul Carter's request for sponsorship from his staff was quite simply breath-takingly crass.

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Plea for a free parking

He is the "mattress king" with a commitment to a traditional town centre. She's the "queen of shops" trying to revive the country's high streets. Now Herne Bay's Dylan Hampshire says town bosses need to take the words of Mary Portas to heart and make parking free across central shopping areas.

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Local Archbishop needles acquisitive bankers

It always tickles me to see how twitchy politicians get when anyone with an ounce of moral credibilty starts to edge into what they regard as their territory.

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The Archbishop of Canterbury Dr Rowan Williams raised eyebrows during his Christmas Day sermon.

He suggested the rioters who tore Britain's cities apart during the summer were no worse than bankers and that the "bonds of trust" had been broken throughout society. He told the congregation at Canterbury Cathedral:

"Whether it is an urban rioter mindlessly burning down a small shop that serves his community, or a speculator turning his back on the question of who bears the ultimate cost for his acquisitive adventures in the virtual reality of today's financial world, the picture is of atoms spinning apart in the dark."

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Bob Holness

Bob Holness, who died today aged 83, was part of the furniture in many homes in the 1980s thanks to his legendary Blockbusters show.

But there was a lot more to the broadcaster than people realise. Born in Natal, South Africa, Holness grew up in Kent after his family moved back to England. He later returned to South Africa as a younger man where he started a career in the media and acting and even played the role of James Bond in a radio play.

In 1961 he returned to the UK and gradually became a recognised face on TV as chairman on BBC1's Call My Bluff, long before Blockbusters became a huge hit

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"Free" parking for Herne Bay

A free parking scheme could be launched in Herne Bay to compete with out-of-town shopping centres like Westwood Cross. Town boss Chris West wants businesses to refund parking tickets to people who spend £10 or more in their shops.

He hopes to convince at least 20 traders to sign up to the proposal, which he says could be introduced by the spring.

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Pat Butcher bows out of limelight

As her namesake left our TV screens this week, Barnums owner Pat Butcher also said farewell after 30 years in the town. She and husband Mike packed up at the William Street school outfitters for the last time, handing over the reins to Mark Winham and Helen Bennett.

It brings to an end almost 30 years of the couple providing uniforms for children in Herne Bay and the surrounding towns.

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May Lodge to close

The May Lodge Club on Herne Bay seafront will close today (5th Jan) for the last time, the HB Gazette revealed. Owner Dick Eldridge says the building — the headquarters of the town's Royal British Legon branch — will be handed back to its owners tonight.

The decision was made after the club's accountant said it would struggle to survive. Mr Eldridge — who has run the club for 15 years and been a member since 1985 — described it as a "very very sad day".

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