Top dog enjoyed spoils of victory
●●10 YEARS AGO:
APRIZE-WINNING pooch was celebrating after wowing the judges and scooping a prestigious title at Crufts.
Roblore Halle Bop, a twoyear-old Doberman, strutted her stuff at the top dog show held at Birmingham’s NEC and picked up first place in the limit bitch category.
Her owners – Kate Nailor and Steve Roberts – were delighted with her success and couldn’t wait to spoil her rotten at their home in Smithy Bridge.
Kate, aged 49, said: “She’s done well throughout her showing career but this was brilliant. This was her second time at Crufts. The first time she came fourth and we knew she had the ability to do even better so we decided to enter her again.
“She proved at the right weekend that we made the right decision and proved she’s a real star.
“It’s a huge honour to win a category at Crufts, even though she didn’t win the overall title.
“I suppose we will spoil her a little bit now at home because she’s done so well.” FIVE inspirational teenagers believed ‘the sky is the limit’ after achieving the bronze Duke of Edinburgh Award.
Majid Bashir, Azhar Iqbal, Imam-Ul Ali, Omar Junaid and Awais Sharif were among a young group of youngsters who were disillusioned because they felt there was nothing for them to do around their homes in the Castlemere, Newbold, Deeplish and Freehold areas.
But far from complaining, the best friends decided to bring some ‘get-up-andgo’ into their lives.
The fabulous five, who regularly meet at the Ronald Gorton Centre and other community venues with their 14-strong Star youth club, won £3,000 after producing a three-minute film which highlighted problems with the former Sparrow Hill kick-pitch.
They said the kick-pitch was littered with needles and broken bottles.
They decided to spend the money, awarded by the Camelot Foundation 4Front Awards development programme for young people, on completing the Duke of Edinburgh Award.
This scheme took them hiking and kayaking in the Lake District, the Pennines and Hollingworth Lake over 16 months.
They also helped to care for elderly people at the Khubsuret residential home and provided them with a trip to Saffron restaurant in Manchester. MANCHESTER radio star and former TV presenter Terry Christian helped to inspire pupils at Balderstone Technology College.
The former host of the cult 1990s Channel 4 youth show The Word visited the school for its book week with Zahid Hussain, the author of The Curry Mile and poet and stand-up comic Julian Daniel, the coauthor of the tongue-incheek book How To Dump Your Girlfriend.
The opinionated Talk Sport and BBC Radio Manchester presenter told a group of 16-year-old GCSE pupils that books give us a ‘window to a brighter and more glamorous world.’
Terry, Zahid and Julian were invited to Balderstone by their friend professional poet Mike Gary, who was helping the kids with their literacy studies. IN 2007 church organist Sarah Gall caused a stir when she revealed that her cure for crippling arthritis was cider vinegar.
Mrs Gall, of Hawthorne Road, Bamford, found the surprising tonic after reading Margaret Hill’s book ‘Treating Arthritis: The Drug Free Way.’
And Mrs Gall, who said she was now pain free, welcomed a special guest to Norden - the daughter of the woman who helped her return to good health.
Christie Horner, who runs the Margaret Hill Clinic, travelled from Warwickshire to give a talk about the natural cure to an audience of 100 people at St Paul’s Church Hall. ENERGETIC dancers worked up a sweat during a new community fitness class.
Young and old took part in the session at Hebron Church and enjoyed it so much that they promised to keep coming back.
Jackie Robinson, from Rochdale Federation of Tenants’ and Residents’ Association, helped to organise the women-only dance sessions, which were led by Catherine Farrar.
She said: “We had 22 women taking part from different backgrounds and we were very pleased with the attendance.
“This is just the start for us and we will be working with the Heywood, Middleton and Rochdale Primary Care Trust to provide support and advice to women.” PUPILS at St Cuthbert’s RC High School switched on their business brains for a special enterprise fair.
Teams were formed out of 240 Year 8 students who had the task of coming up with their own business venture.
Product advertisements, business cards and letters to school staff asking for planning permission complemented the imaginative side of the project.
Teacher Catherine Armstrong said: “It was a really successful day and all the students worked well together as a team.
“Hopefully it improved their financial awareness as they had to think about what they were spending and earning.”