One of the best ever British thrillers is staged at Ormskirk's Civic Hall this evening. The Ormskirk Theatre Company is presenting John Buchan's thriller until Saturday; tickets are from £6 and available from Brighouse Wolff on Aughton St. in the town centre.

Photos by Matthew Wright Burscough's Hop Vine was full last night as it staged a successful fundraising meal for the Mayor and Mayoress's charity. The event raised £192 which pushes the amount raised to date to a magnificent £10,000 - money which is for the local first responders to buy...

QLocal is proud to announce a new, unique media collaboration with local man Matthew Wright. He's recently re-launched his Ormskirk blog - lifeinanothertownblogspot.com - on which he interviews various local personalties about local matters of the moment. This is the first video is a series...

After a long lay-off due to abandoned matches and frozen pitches, Tarleton First XV were raring to go on Saturday against Birchfield RUFC. However, it was Birchfield who started the better and they penned Tarleton into their own 22 for the first 15 minutes of the game. Resolute defence saw Tarleton...

by Mike Downey Next Friday, 2nd March over 3 million people worldwide will be praying and worshipping together during an annual day of prayer, using a form of service prepared by Christian women in Malaysia. This year's Women's World Day of Prayer will focus on the theme 'Let Justice...

Rookie cops brought traffic to a halt in Ormskirk this weekend. They were stopping motorists on County Road at random to practice their interview skills.

Forgetfulness or simply falling asleep when a meal’s cooking is still a major cause of domestic house fires. And yesterday, fire fighters and the Red Cross combined forces to promote fire safety - and invite people to consider becoming a Red Cross Fire and Emergency Support Service (FESS)...

Aughton based Silver Birch Lodge has become the first nursing home in West Lancashire to receive both the Investors in People ‘Gold’ and the Health and Wellbeing awards. Investors in People (IIP) is the national standard for best practice in people management, with a focus on management...

The Lancashire Enterprise Partnership (LEP) has today announced investment in economic development schemes that could deliver 3,000 new jobs as part of a £190m public/private investment package This investment will boost a range of schemes using Lancashire's £13m allocation from the Growing...

Pictured at Ormskirk bus station is one of the South Lancs Travel fleet which now runs regular University services in the town. The firm recently won a contract from Cumfybus of Southport. SLT is locally based bus company operating an extensive network of services from the west side of Wigan,...

by Alan Lenton We, the undersigned residents of West Lancashire, draw the attention of West Lancashire Borough Council (WLBC) to the plight of disabled residents of the Borough whose rights to be socially included in the life of the Borough on the same terms as able bodied residents have been...

Spring is here - and Rufford Old Hall's opening its doors for the new season on Saturday 25 February at 11am. Catherine Davies, the Hall’s Visitor Experience Officer, told QLocal: “It’s a really busy time for our staff and volunteers at this time of year. “We’re gearing up for the new...

A new Burscough bakery rose to the occasion when it took part in Burscough Wharf's first birthday celebrations. John Mercer and his wife Rebecca sold out of their tasty home made bread and pastries at the food festival on Sunday. Said John, 26, who's opened the village's new Lancashire...

by Suzy Walker Ormskirk's Cottage Lane Mission is launching new craft evenings for ladies. They'll be evenings of coffee, craftiness and conversation, and held on the first Friday of every month. Why not come along and try turning your hand to some different exciting crafts? The first...

Talented youngsters from St Bede's took centre stage at a very successful West Lancs Children’s Trust event recently. It showcased successes from what the pupils have been doing over the last year. There were also activities for young people to take part in, and presentations from young...

Over 100 visitors attended the Apprenticeship Event hosted by West Lancashire College on 7 February, to promote the latest Apprenticeship opportunities. Employers and members of the public were invited along to discover the benefits that an Apprenticeship can bring to business. They are...

Anyone caught speeding through Rufford will only have themselves to blame... The County Council's spent £10,000 to erect three new signs warning of the limits on the A59 near Rufford Old Hall. A spokesman told QLocal that it's invested in them to reinforce the 30mph speed limit through...

Who'll remember Richard Dawkins in 150 years time? That was the provocative question posed by Pastor Billy McCurrie at a ladies outreach meal hosted by Aughton Park Baptist Church. For the first time, men of the church planned the event, cooked and served the food - and washed up...

Scouting has always aimed to help develop young people into becoming the leaders of tomorrow and last weekend saw 87 Patrol leaders from Lancashire come together to share ideas and learn some new skills themselves. Waddecar Scout Activity Centre hosted the day and offered activities from the...

An Edge Hill journalism student's won a dream opportunity to work in the Olympics Press Office. Emma Murphy has beat off many hopefuls to join the busy office in the summer to help them welcome the anticipated 5,600 members of the international press. It was her energy, expertise and flair...

An Aughton businessman has explained why he had to remove a large tree off his land after his decision was criticised at Aughton Parish Council. And Ian Mercer, MD of NW Turf on Mickering Lane has denied acting vindictively after Neil Jones of Middlewood Drive complained about his actions. Mr...

Photo by Matthew Wright Big hearted staff at Tesco, Burscough raised £690.86 last weekend as they made the final push on behalf of their nationally nominated charity, Alzheimer's Society. In all, they have made a magnificent £6003.86; pictured with Craig Smith, customer services manager...

Dig out your walking boots! ‘Men Alive’ will be welcoming Canon Michael Smout to our meeting this month. He is probably known to most people in Aughton as Rector of St. Michael’s from 1979 to 2002; he was also Area Dean of Ormskirk from 1989 until he retired in 2002. Michael is a keen rambler...

Darrell Tunningley grew up on a sink council estate in Hull, an area abandoned at night by the social services and the police. It was no surprise that he became a drug dealer - but when he was arrested for armed robbery, his life really began to come apart. While serving five and half years...

by Ross Moughtin, Christ Church, Aughton SINCE visiting Greece last May I have been following the euro crisis with growing alarm. I recall having lunch in the picturesque Cretan hillside town of Kritsa. Facing us was an upmarket souvenir shop and inside its young proprietor, just sitting...

With the Government planning to begin a consultation on changing the definition of marriage to introduce same-sex marriage, a Christian charity is backing new moves to retain the current definition of the institution. Christian Concern says traditional marriage has benefited societies across the...

by Elva Marsh The annual dinner dance of the Wine Circle was held on Saturday the 18th February at the Civic Hall , Ormskirk. Members and their guests enjoyed punch and wine made by members, with food by 'Martin the caterer' and music for dancing by 'Panache'. The Wine Circle meets on...

A prospective local councillor has successfully lobbied highways chiefs over repairs to an Ormskirk service road. Scott ward Tory hopeful Edward McCarthy was contacted by residents on County Road concerned about the service road which allows access to properties between The Fiveways and...

Almost a quarter of all the people who died on Lancashire's roads in the last two years were not wearing their seatbelts, according to figures released today by Safer Lancashire. That is the shocking truth behind a new road safety campaign aimed at ...

A local organisation providing support for young families received a welcome boost this month. Peter Lathom’s charity trustee, Adrian Owens called into HomeStart’s weekly drop-in session for parents and toddlers at West End school and presented a cheque for £970 to Ruth Melling, with the funds...

by Barry Adlington Division 1 This week saw Champions elect, Southport SC sit out their free week in the First Division of the Ormskirk & District Amateur Snooker League, and as a result they had their commanding advantage cut to a staggering fourteen points with a match in hand over their...

An Ormskirk councillor is calling on local landlords to attend the launch of a new landlord accreditation scheme, claiming it will give them 'a competitive edge'. Cllr Adrian Owens told QLocal: “There are many residential landlords in my Derby ward, most of them housing students from Edge Hill....

by Phil Wakefield, Ormskirk School Last week, secondary schools in West Lancs were invited to take part in the Lords Taverners U13 Indoor Schools’ Cricket Competition. The event was extremely competitive with three schools (Ormskirk School, St. Bedes and Our Lady’s, Skem.) still in with a...

Children’s toy and gift company Kiddiroo of Tarleton has signed an exclusive agreement with well known book artist Penny Dale. An internationally known, best-selling artist and author, she's sold more than 4 million books, with editions in over 20 languages. Now, for the first time,...

The emergency services were called to Heathy Lane, Scarisbrick, at approximately 2:30pm this afternoon (Friday 17th February 2012) following reports of a RTC. A motorbike was involved in an accident on the sharp bend at the bottom of Shirdley Hill Bridge. Fire-fighters sprayed the road...

A new FA campaign's being launched to tackle bad language and dissent. Aimed at grassroots footballers, 'Use Your Head' includes an animated video, voiced by Shameless actor, Dean Lennox Kelly, to help management, players and fans see the impact that foul language can have on funding and...

Asda have been criticised for promoting the use of chip pans in the February edition of their monthly magazine. As part of a promotion for national chip week (Feb 20-26) the supermarket giant placed an ad encouraging readers to buy its £12 chip pan. The fire service pointed to figures showing...

West Lancs Borough Council has partnered with Cyclescheme Ltd to provide a bike to work tax free initiative for all employees and councillors. Cycling to work offers many benefits. It's an excellent way to get fit and lose weight, can save money on fuel bills and avoid traffic jams. Using less...

It was billed as a chance for local traders to engage in a frank dialogue with the council - and it lived up to its name... A meeting called to re launch the Ormskirk Town Centre Business Forum was held at The Chapel Gallery on Wednesday night. And despite some 250 letters being distributed...

by Ben Lawrence Bretherton's magnificent Bank Hall could be saved for future generations The Grade ll listed building is to receive at £1.69m Heritage Lottery Fund after a 16 year battle to save it. The Jacobean mansion will be converted for residential use, with the entrance hall and...

Ormskirk Civic Hall was alive with the sound of laughter as the National Clown Theatre visited the town for the first time this week. Around 100 people were in the audience for a laugh a minute show which had the children in the audience shouting for more on Tuesday afternoon. ...

ALMOST a quarter of all the people who died on Lancashire's roads in the last two years were not wearing their seatbelts, according to figures released today by Safer Lancashire. That's the shocking truth behind a new road safety campaign aimed at reminding people in Lancashire about the...