Singer-songwriter Brendan Benson has threatened to be a massive success after two blinding albums. Of course, hes not the first power pop act to be overlooked by the mainstream Big Star, Jellyfish and Teenage Fanclub all spring to mind and Bensons output
I am always suspicious of letters which begin "As a football supporter", and Charles Brewerton (Letters, October 14) confirmed my fears. We are currently awaiting the result of the public inquiry into the sites for a stadium and yet Mr Brewerton thinks
Roger Lee asks "what has Falmer got to do with Michael Foot?" (Letters, October 14). Michael Foot is a respected former leader of the Labour Party, a committed Plymouth Argyle fan and has no doubt experienced the inadequate facilities of Withdean Stadium
I agree with the sentiments of Geoffrey Wells, writing about schoolboy boxing (Letters, August 30). In the late Forties, when I started junior school at St Johns, Carlton Hill, I was lucky enough to be selected for the boxing team. All the boys wanted
A former firefighter saved the life of a pensioner buried alive in the Asian earthquake. Geoff Parkinson, 38, from Battle, had flown out to Pakistan-administered Kashmir with the Search and Rescue Assistance in Disasters (SARAID) charity. The 12-strong
Fatboy Slim is going down under for a musical tribute to a woman who is famous for her love of shoes - just as his wife is learning to dance in hers. Norman Cook, who lives in Hove, is taking part in a new musical about the footwear-loving multi-millionairess
A Kosovar couple with a 13-week-old baby are fighting deportation from the UK. Fred Gurraj and his wife Donina Lunaj, who have been living in St Leonards for six years, have been ordered to return to the region they fled in 1999. Fred, from Klina in the
I took issue with the sentiments expressed by the writer (name and address supplied) from Mile Oak, about the vandalism of his or her son's car (Shame on you, Letters, October 11). I don't condone vandalism but equating the actions of a "mindless vandal
One in three East Sussex primary school pupils is being taught in a class of more than 30, Government figures show. The county has the worst rate in the country for crowded classrooms, despite an overall decline in average class sizes. Hundreds more pupils
A Macedonian-born woman was subjected to racist comments about Eastern Europeans before being accused of poor performance and fired from her job, a tribunal heard. Viloeta Belogastka is taking her former bosses at Friday Ad Ltd, based in Sayers Common
My Daughter and I have just returned from a very pleasant few days in Blackpool. I had not realised how cheap it is up there. For example, petrol cost 91p per litre. The cheapest beer we found was £1.70 a pint. A full English breakfast cost £2.95 (the
It must be difficult for many of the Albion players to appreciate what a derby against Crystal Palace is really all about. The vast majority of the side playing at Selhurst Park tonight are not from Sussex and have never been involved in a match between
Sussex paceman James Kirtley has been suspended by the England and Wales Cricket Board after scientific analysis of his bowling action determined it to be illegal. The former England Test bowler, who won four caps in 2003 and also played in 11 one-day
A car mechanic has been given one month's notice to quit the site he has occupied for more than 30 years. Phil Darby, 50, has run the Rectory Service Station workshop in Rectory Road, Worthing, since he was a teenager. Seven months ago Worthing Borough
A tiny publishing company which makes audio study aids was a winner at the Spoken Word Awards for its version of one of Shakespeare's best-loved plays. SmartPass, run by sister and brother team Jools and Phil Viner, won silver awards for Henry V, read
Former Granada boss Sir Gerry Robinson has ruled out a full-scale takeover of Rentokil Initial, the East Grinstead-based rat catcher, but continues to pursue the top job. Sir Gerry's investment vehicle Raphoe said it continued to hold discussions with
Not having previously heard of Dara O'Briain, I wondered what the balding, slightly tubby, middle-aged man could possibly say to make me chuckle. But laugh out loud I did as, with his speedy Oirish banter and impressive improv style, O'Briain rattled
From baggage-handlers to Gurkhas to terrorists armed with eyebrow-tweezers, there are few things in life which have escaped Ed Byrne's fiercely observant eyes. And there is little the skinny Irishman has not taken the time to see the funny side of. Like
One in three East Sussex primary school pupils is being taught in a class of more than 30, Government figures show. The county has the worst rate in the country for crowded classrooms, despite an overall decline in average class sizes. Hundreds more pupils
A group which was created to protect an historic park is appealing to people to oppose the planned introduction of parking charges. The Friends of Stanmer Park (FoSP) will attend Brighton and Hove City Council's environment committee meeting on Thursday
Signatures are urgently needed for a new petition which could help Guantanamo detainee Omar Deghayes. Jackie Chase, a leading campaigner for Mr Deghayes, and Caroline Lucas, Green Party national speaker and MEP, have secured a meeting with the US ambassador
An historic square was once the scene of a soldiers' station in Jane Austen's most famous novel. Belle Vue Field - where Regency Square now stands in Brighton - was, in the 18th Century, the location of military encampments described by the novelist in
"On October 13 2001 I was looking in my microscope in the lab and come Monday I was diving off the stage singing Chitty Chitty Bang Bang Jerry St Clair off his tits on Co-codomol. It was as simple as that really." A biomedical scientist turned standup
The chairman of the busiest hospital trust in Sussex has admitted it has considered closing wards as part of a drive to save money. Glynn Jones from Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals NHS Trust was speaking at a West Sussex County Council health
I'm sick and tired of pensioners moaning about their council tax. The poorest pensioners can apply for council-tax benefit. My income is just above the benefit cut-off point, by about £2 a week. I get along fine financially and have a reasonable standard
At this time of year, we are advised to dig up outdoor tomato plants and ripen the remaining green fruit on the window sill. But why? Are fried green tomatoes considered too American for our tastes? -Mrs S M Barkley, Hove
It was sad to read about the possible closure of the Co-op in Brighton's London Road. One aspect not mentioned in your report concerns the Post Office counter which is based in the store. This is very busy and it would not be feasible for customers simply
A pensioner was given the wrong medication and his finger broken during a hospital stay. Ron Richardson said he was appalled at the standard of care his 76-year-old father Peter had received. He said the severely diabetic pensioner had been given pills
What a shock it was to read the only proper store in Brighton - namely, the Co-op, may close next year (The Argus, October 15). London Road will become another eyesore and will be less inviting to shoppers, now the only real store, plus Sainsbury's, is
A boxer's family have today spoken of their devastation after the promising amateur was killed in a motorbike accident. Danny Hall, 26, was taking a bend on his Suzuki GSXR 600 when it collided with a car on the A284 at Arundel and burst into flames on
should anyone care to seek it out, there is a place in Brighton where your breath is taken away and where the glorious sights before you surpass any other in the area. That special place is Whitehawk Hill. Should you take a stroll there, you will be greeted
It was with horror that I read patients' notes are being sent to South Africa to be typed up because there are too few medical secretaries here (The Argus, October 11). How can this save Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals NHS Trust £150,000 per
Although I don't own a car, I haven't been able to exclude them from my life. I live on a rat run in Patcham. Church Hill is a narrow lane between the A27 and London Road, which vehicles struggle to negotiate. It is usually cluttered with cars and vans
Albion manager Mark McGhee has delivered a vote of confidence to Jake Robinson ahead of tonight's trip to arch rivals Crystal Palace. McGhee is poised to keep faith with the teenage striker at Selhurst Park, despite criticising him and the rest of the
When Toby Peirce was opening batsman for a struggling Sussex side six or seven years ago he often said it felt like the hardest job in the world. Now he has opened his own business - an independent fine wine merchants in Hove called Quaff - he just might
Have you ever had the pleasure of witnessing a musical autopsy? If the answer is yes then you must have been among the audience at the Dome on Sunday afternoon, treated to a true comedy first courtesy of Paul Merton and his impro chums. Ably assisted
A mother who survived a car crash which killed her partner and two daughters was last night being consoled. Amanda Hassell and her 17-year-old daughter walked away from the horrific head-on smash on the A264 at Bewbush, near Crawley, on Saturday. But
City-dwellers will be saved the inconveniences of parking and maintenance by a new car hire club. Streetcar, which already operates 40 car depots across London, is extending its operation to Brighton. Under the scheme drivers can pick up a car from a
