Local News Friday 26th November

Friday, 26 November 2021 06:00

A driver has been jailed for taking police on a 100 mph car chase through South Somerset. Independent retailers in Somerset are calling on shoppers to remember them on Black Friday today and support "Indie Friday" instead. A Chard man has appeared in court charged with assault and being the owner of a dangerous dog that was out of control. A man who handed a purse into Chard police station is being asked to contact the police. Yeovil’s open-air market in Middle Street tomorrow has been cancelled...and more

A driver has been jailed for taking police on a 100 mph car chase through South Somerset. Taunton Crown Court was told that Lee McGinty drove so fast that police saw his BMW leap two feet off the ground in Ilminster before escaping. Ten days later he led police on another high-speed pursuit driving along Reckleford in Yeovil at 90 mph then through Chilthorne Dormer before reaching a top speed of 100mph on the A37 at Ilchester where he crashed his car and was arrested. McGinty of Puddletown in Dorset was jailed for 3-years and disqualified from driving for three years.

Independent retailers in Somerset are calling on shoppers to remember them on Black Friday today and support "Indie Friday" instead. They say they can't afford to match the same discounts and promotions offered by most online businesses but still need people to buy from local shops.

A former employee at Westland Helicopters in Yeovil, now Leonardo, is trying to locate former colleagues he worked with in the 1970s after being diagnosed with the lung disease, mesothelioma, an incurable cancer that can be caused by exposure to asbestos. Ian Ebdon believes he might have contracted the disease while working at the Leonardo factory in Yeovil 40-years ago. Leonardo says they’re unable to comment as Mr. Ebdon has lodged a claim against the company.

A Chard man has appeared in court charged with assault and being the owner of a dangerous dog that was out of control. Wayne Brewer of Montague Way in Chard pleaded guilty to both offences at Taunton Magistrates Court and was fined £120 with £85 costs.

A man who handed a purse into Chard police station is being asked to contact the police. The black purse was dropped through the letterbox at Chard's Police Station at about 9 am on Friday, November 12th. Police want to talk to the man to find out where he found the purse. You can view a photo of the man on the Avon and Somerset Police website. If you can help, you’re asked to call the non-emergency number 101.

Yeovil’s open-air market in Middle Street tomorrow has been cancelled. Organisers say following a yellow weather issued by the Met Office, the market won’t be held for safety reasons.

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Yeovil Town FC have sent a strongly worded letter to the Football Association asking for plans to end FA Cup replays to be dropped. A Somerset woman who's spent the last 32 years living with Hepatitis C, says better support is needed for those affected by the contaminated blood scandal. A new school of musical theatre has opened in Chard...and more.
Tuesday 23rd April

Two teenage boys have admitted animal cruelty after filming themselves throwing a lamb down a stone staircase at Montacute. Somerset Council could lose around £5 million by selling the Marks and Spencer building in Yeovil. Chard, Wincanton, Castle Cary and Ansford are on a list of fifteen places in Somerset where new 20 mph speed limits could soon be introduced...and more.
Monday 22nd April

The parents of a two-week-old baby boy, accused of his murder at Yeovil Hospital, are to stand trial. Protesters have splashed red paint across the front of County Hall in Taunton for a second time. A comedy film about the world of competitive marrow-growing and made in Shepton Mallet has opened in cinemas across the UK...and more.
Friday 19th April

Work starts today building a new eastbound carriageway as part of dualling the A303 between Sparkford and Podimore. A childhood obesity clinic in Somerset has revealed that it is treating children as young as eight months old. Somerset Wildlife Trust has launched a campaign to recruit an army of young people to act as conservation champions...and more.
Thursday 18th April

A Martock man has been jailed after admitting to shining lasers at aircraft flying over Yeovil. Police are investigating an attempted break-in at the TK Maxx store at Babylon Hill. Nearly four hundred people have put their names forward for redundancy at Somerset Council...and more.
Wednesday 17 April

Three local primary schools have been named on a list of England's top five hundred primary schools. A new co-working space for businesswomen has opened in Wincanton. Urgent repairs are being carried out to Ilminster's new public clock after it started showing the wrong time...and more
Tuesday 16th April

A new operator has been found to run a Chard care home that has been at risk of closure. A licence has been granted to run a new music festival in West Dorset. People have until midnight tonight to register for a vote in the election for a Police and Crime Commissioner for Avon and Somerset...and more.
Monday 15th April

Four people have been arrested as part of an investigation into the illegal supply of prescription-only drugs in Yeovil. A Yeovil man has appeared in court in connection with two burglaries in Langport. A well-known farm and restaurant business in South Petherton has been put up for sale. New figures have shown a further decline in the number of House Sparrows in Somerset...and more.