Thursday 29th January

Thursday, 29 January 2026 06:00

By Steve Haigh

Somerset Council has warned that more homes are likely to flood with further heavy rain forecast to end the week. Discount retailer, The Original Factory Shop, which has an outlet in Crewkerne, has gone into administration. A Barista at Costa Coffee in Ilminster has won a place in the finals of a national competition...and more

Somerset Council has warned that more homes are likely to flood with further heavy rain forecast to end the week. The Council has declared a major incident for Somerset, with homes still underwater, schools closed, and roads and rail lines impacted.

Homeowners who missed having their waste collected for recycling on Tuesday due to the bad weather are being asked to put out their boxes and blue bags for collection today. Somerset Council says crews will be working as normal today and on Saturday to help clear the backlog. They say homeowners should also leave their garden waste out for collection as normal.

Discount retailer, The Original Factory Shop, which has an outlet in Crewkerne, has gone into administration. It’s put all 137 Original Factory shops and 1800 staff at risk. The business, founded in 1969, was sold to Modella Capital last year.

This year marks 20-years since the cult classic film ‘Hot Fuzz’ was filmed in Somerset. The comedy, starring Simon Pegg and directed by local filmmaker Edgar Wright, has attracted thousands of tourists to the city of Wells since its release in 2007.

Plans have been approved to build a single dwelling on part of the beer garden at the Podymore Inn at Podimore. Somerset Council has given the go-ahead to build a four-bedroom house next to the pub, despite concerns that it could add to localised flooding.

A Barista at Costa Coffee in Ilminster has won a place in the finals of a national competition. Connie Robins, who works at the Costa Coffee Drive Through by the Southfields Roundabout, will compete as one of 12 finalists in the Costa Coffee UK and Ireland Barista of the Year competition, which takes place in early February.

More from News

Friday 13th March

The first of the new medium lift helicopters being built by Leonardo in Yeovil for the RAF will be delivered in 2031. Somerset Council has launched a public consultation on planned new charges at its two hundred public car parks. More women in Somerset are said to be taking up walking football... and more
Thursday 12th March

A Yeovil headteacher says he’s concerned about plans to stop giving school holiday food vouchers to families on low incomes. The owner of Yeovil Town is calling on fans to be patient as he continues his overhaul of the National League side. A high voltage fault is being blamed for plunging 1700 homes into darkness in the Ilminster area... and more
Wednesday 11th March

Plans have been submitted to convert two properties in Yeovil into houses of multiple occupation. A new court date has been announced for a Yeovil man charged with attempted murder. An engineer who has worked at the Leonardo factory in Yeovil for 40-years has won a top industry award... and more
Tuesday 10th March

Police say a fire at the former Oscar Mayer food factory in Chard was started deliberately. Yeovil College says it would have been adversely affected had Leonardo not won the contract to build new medium-lift helicopters. A seven-foot dragon will be visiting towns and villages in our area during the next few weeks to promote Somerset Day... and more
Monday 9th March

Two Wildcat helicopters from 815 Squadron at RNAS Yeovilton have arrived in Cyprus to help protect RAF Akrotiri from further Iranian drone strikes. New figures show that 40 people were killed on Avon and Somerset’s roads in the last 12-months. A Somerset man has been recalling the day 60-years ago when he was a passenger on the last train on the Somerset and Dorset Railway... and more
Friday 6th March

Defence Minister Luke Pollard has been explaining why it took the government so long to confirm a contract for the Leonardo in Yeovil to build new medium lift helicopters for the RAF. Police are investigating a break in at a pet shop in Ilminster. Somerset Council is to stop using red ink on council tax reminder letters... and more
Thursday 5th March

Two military helicopters from RNAS Yeovilton are being sent to Cyprus to help bolster UK’s defences amid the US-Israel war with Iran. Yeovil Town Council is seeking legal advice over the closure of the hyper acute stroke unit at Yeovil Hospital. Flood warnings have been lifted on the Somerset Levels... and more
Wednesday 4th March

A man has died in a fire in Wincanton. Somerset Council is planning further cuts of twenty-one million pounds to help balance its books. A campaign to raise £30,000 for a minibus has been launched in Chard... and more