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Site (C) 2006 John Rogers Media Services
Every effort is made to ensure information is up-to-date and correct, but we can not be held responsible for errors.
In the news this week...
FOOTBALL: ROYALS RELEGATED BUT IT'S AGONISINGLY CLOSE
11/05/2008 TWO years after their magnificent climb into the Premier League Reading will be back playing their football in the Coca-Cola Championship again next season - but they came within an agonising 14 minutes of safety. On a dramatic final day, the Royals did all they could to preserve their top flight status with a super show which brought a 4-0 win at Derby. And until 14 minutes from the end that was enough to keep them up. Then the only thing which could spoil the party happened - the crushing blow of Fulham going 1-0 up at Portsmouth. The Cottagers hung on for grim death and that's how it finished. And after ending one of the longest goal-less runs in the club's history in such emphatic style, the only conclusion could be...if only the Royals had played like this a few weeks ago.

All of the Royals' misfiring strikers, Dave Kitson, Kevin Doyle and Leroy Lita were on the scoresheet at last along with James Harper - but it was, sadly, too little, too late.

Now it remains to see whether manager Steve Coppell will tender his resignation, and if he does, whether chairman John Madejski will accept it - which would be doubtful.

Read the manager's comments about the future from the club website:

http://www.readingfc.premiumtv.co.uk/page/NewsDetail/0,,10306~1310263,00.html

And this is what he thought of the performance at Derby:

http://www.readingfc.premiumtv.co.uk/page/NewsDetail/0,,10306~1310247,00.html

And this is the match report from Pride Park, where, ironically, the Royals rediscovered their pride fractionally too late.

http://www.readingfc.premiumtv.co.uk/page/NewsDetail/0,,10306~1310099,00.html

 

 

POLITICS: FORMER MAYOR QUITS THE LABOUR PARTY
10/05/2008 TONY JONES, Reading's most popular mayor of the past decade, has quit the Labour party in the wake of last week's election losses and will remain on the council as an independent. His action, brushed aside as unimportant by the Labour elders who have ruled Reading virtually unhindered in recent years, means that Labour's numerical advantage in single party terms is down to one, 19 to the 18 of the Conservatives. With eight Lib-Dems, it means the council will be completely democratic and "hung" until 2010. more...
FOOTBALL: WILL IT BE A WAKE OR A WAKE-UP FOR ROYALS?
09/05/2008 IT looks horribly as though the Premier League adventure will end for the Royals this weekend, with their survival resting only partly in their own hands, and mainly in the hands of a Portsmouth side a week away from the much more interesting prospect of an FA Cup final. If Wembley-dreaming Pompey, as is likely, capitulate to in-form Fulham, then it doesn't matter if the Royals win their final game at Derby on Sunday 25-0, Reading will still return to the Championship. However, every cloud, they say, has a silver lining, and whilst we will miss Ronaldo, Gerrard, Drogba, Fabregas and the other glitterati, there is no doubt the Premier League has stagnated into three very clear-cut, almost boring, sub-divisions of four, seven, and nine clubs each, while the Championship is an excitingly even contest. more...
INTERNET: TRAGIC JANE'S MOTHER WINS FIGHT AGAINST PORN
08/05/2008 THE mother of the Reading schoolteacher murdered by a man who was addicted to viewing violent porn sites on the internet, has won her fight for better policing of the worldwide web. Jane Longhurst was murdered at Hove in 2004 by Graham Coutts, who admitted his obsession with internet porn. Since then her mother Liz, with the help of Reading West MP Martin Salter, has campaigned for a change to the law - which has now been delivered. more...
MURDER: HEAD TEACHER REMEMBERS DEAD BOY'S QUALITIES
07/05/2008 THE former head teacher of tragic Robert Spence, stabbed to death in Reading town centre in the early hours of Friday morning, has spoken of Robert's qualities - and has made an impassioned plea for local youngsters to stop carrying knives. That said, the first two people arrested in connection with the case, are both in their late 20's and both from High Wycombe. more...
SHOOTING: MAN GUNNED DOWN IN CAVERSHAM FLAT
06/05/2008 AN HORRIFIC bank holiday weekend in Reading started with the stabbing murder of a 17-year-old in St Mary's Butts, and ended with a man being shot in the head, gangland style, at a flat in Lower Caversham. The victim, not yet named by police, is said to have answered his door to a man wearing motor cycling gear at around 9.30pm yesterday (Monday) evening. The flat, only recently built, is situated at Mead Close, in the now notorious Amersham Road area, where the council have in recent years experimented with a "social engineering" project, transplanting troubled families from other parts of town into what was once a peaceful area of Caversham. more...
FOOTBALL: ROYALS' SULKING RECORD BUY WANTS TO LEAVE
05/05/2008 EMERSE FAE, one of two Reading players suspended for two weeks for refusing to play in a reserve match last week, has launched a tirade of abuse against the club and manager Steve Coppell, and says he will not play for the Royals again. The £2.5million Ivory Coast midfielder, signed from Nantes last summer, has made only 11 appearances, and hardly impressed in any of them. The other player suspended, fans' favourite Ibrahima Sonko, has accepted his punishment in much better grace, and says he has no problem about staying with the club if they want him to. more...
04/05/2008MURDER: STAB VICTIM WAS A 17-YEAR-OLD FROM BURGHFIELD
03/05/2008STABBING: TEEN DIES IN LATE-NIGHT TOWN CENTRE FRACAS
03/05/2008FOOTBALL: PREM PARTY SEEMS OVER AS ROYALS STUMBLE AGAIN
02/05/2008ELECTION: AGAINST THE ODDS LABOUR STILL READING TOP-DOGS
01/05/2008FIRE: WEST STREET BLAZE GUTS CHINESE RESTAURANT
01/05/2008FOOTBALL: 'SUPERMAN' GOES AWOL AND IS BANNED BY ROYALS
30/04/2008SURVEY: "SMALL PERCENT" OF BERKS WORKERS EAST EUROPEAN
29/04/2008SPEEDING: COUNCIL GUNS FOR BACK STREET ROGUE DRIVERS
28/04/2008IINCIDENT: FIVE CHARGED OVER BALCONY PLUNGE WOMEN
27/04/2008TRAGEDY: POLICE INVESTIGATE DOYLE FAMILY DEATH FIRE
26/04/2008FOOTBALL: DOYLE TRAGEDY OVERSHADOWS ROYALS POINT
25/04/2008INCIDENT: FIVE ARRESTED AFTER WOMEN FALL FROM BALCONY
24/04/2008EDUCATION: MANY READING SCHOOLS CLOSED FOR THE DAY
23/04/2008DRUGS: VIETNAMESE "CANNABIS FACTORIES" COUPLE JAILED
22/04/2008FOOTBALL: ROYALS FANS FURIOUS OVER POLICE SEARCHES
21/04/2008SHOWBIZ: PROUD RICKY PUTS READING IN THE SPOTLIGHT
20/04/2008SPORT: GREEN PARK TO HOST INTERNATIONAL TRIATHLON
19/04/2008FOOTBALL: AS EXPECTED, BATTLING ROYALS GUNNED DOWN
18/04/2008FOOTBALL: ROYALS SUPREMO'S "TIGHT SHIP" SINKING
17/04/2008BUSES: READING TO HAVE ENVIRONMENTAL TREND-SETTERS
16/04/2008FOOTBALL: BLUNDERING ROYALS COPP BOSS'S THREAT
15/04/2008TOWN CENTRE: NEW MAN COMES IN FROM COLD TO KEEP THINGS TIDY
14/04/2008KNIFE CRIME: NEW POLICE KIT TO COMAT 'BLADE RUNNERS'
13/04/2008SURVEY: A.W.E. RATED AMONG BRITAIN'S BEST TO WORK FOR
12/04/2008ROBBERY: DISTRACTION BURGLARS ARE BACK IN TOWN
12/04/2008FOOTBALL: ROYALS IN DISGRACE - STARE RELEGATION IN FACE
11/04/2008ELECTIONS: CAMERON IS CONFIDENT OF READING SUCCESS
10/04/2008PLANNING: COUNCIL AND NEIGHBOURS MEET OVER CIVIC CENTRE
09/04/2008AIR AMBULANCE: NEW HELICOPTER WILL BOOST SERVICE
08/04/2008UNIVERSITY: DEBUNKING THAT EXASPERATING SMALL PRINT
07/04/2008PRISON: MAN HAPPY TO GET JAIL ROOF OVER HIS HEAD
06/04/2008WEATHER: SUDDENLY IT'S ALL WHITE ON THE NIGHT
05/04/2008FOOTBALL: A SLOG ON THE TYNE AS ROYALS STUMBLE
04/04/2008COURT: THUG RELEASED THREE TIMES BY POLICE FINALLY JAILED
03/04/2008FOOTBALL: TIME TO IMPROVE REFEREEING STANDARDS?
02/04/2008ROADS: MOTORWAY TEXTER COMES A RIGHT ROYAL CROPPER
01/04/2008APRIL 1: DON'T BELIEVE WHAT YOU READ IN THE PAPERS!
31/03/2008FOOTBALL: MURTS TO GET HIS TESTIMONIAL AFTER ALL
30/03/2008NUTRITION: EASY AS ABC FOR READING KIDS TO GET 'JUNK' FOOD
29/03/2008FOOTBALL: ROYALS HOLD ON AFTER YET ANOTHER REFFING FIASCO
28/03/2008CROWN COURT: 71-YEAR-OLD MAN JAILED FOR ALLOWING WIFE TO DIE
27/03/2008RAILWAYS: MILITANT DRIVERS DELAY STRIKE - FOR NOW
26/03/2008RAILWAYS: DRIVERS' STRIKE TO GO AHEAD NEXT WEEK
25/03/2008MOTORING: CALLS TO CLAMP DOWN ON "COWBOY CLAMPERS"
24/03/2008FOOTBALL: STEVE STRESSES ROYALS IN CHARGE OF OWN DESTINY
23/03/2008LEISURE: NO LAUGHING MATTER AS THE OLD HA-HA CLOSES
22/03/2008FOOTBALL: BIKEY DOUBLE LIFTS ROYALS TO VITAL WIN
21/03/2008NEWS UPDATES: CHECK OUT YOUR FAVOURITE LOCAL LINKS
19/03/2008POLITICS: MARTIN SAYS HE'S SALTER THE EARTH, NOT GREEDY!
18/03/2008RELIGION: READING'S MOSQUE PLAN GETS THE GO-AHEAD
17/03/2008ESCAPE: CROWN COURT RUNAWAY IS STILL AT LARGE
15/03/2008FOOTBALL: ROYALS ROBBED OF A POINT AT ANFIELD
14/03/2008CRIME: ATTEMPTED MURDER SUSPECT FLEES CROWN COURT
13/03/2008RUGBY: RECORD ST PAT'S DAY BONANZA FOR IRISH
12/03/2008HEALTH: "DROP-IN" CENTRE FOR 2009 BUT GPs OBJECT
11/03/2008WOODLEY: HUGE DEVELOPMENT PLAN STRONGLY OPPOSED
10/03/2008WEATHER: FORECAST - MORE STRONG WIND, MORE HEAVY RAIN
09/03/2008COMMUNITY: PLANS UNDER WAY FOR NEW £4m MOSQUE
08/03/2008FOOTBALL: ROYALS BACK IN THE WINNING GROOVE
06/03/2008STATION HILL: COUNCIL GIVES SKYSCRAPER PLANS THE NOD
05/03/2008READING: POST SURVEY SAYS THE FUTURE IS BRIGHT
04/03/2008FOOTBALL: LEROY OUT ON LOAN - HOT SCOTT LIFTS THE SHOTS
03/03/2008STATION HILL: IT'S THUMBS DOWN TO JOHN'S TALL STOREYS
02/03/2008HALF-MARATHON: READING'S A WINNER IN THE LONG RUN
01/03/2008FOOTBALL: AT LAST THE ROYALS GET A LUCKY BREAK
29/02/2008HEALTH: RBH FORCED TO CLOSE WARDS OVER SUPERBUG
28/02/2008REPORT: READING HAS "SECOND HIGHEST" ROUGH SLEEPERS
27/02/2008QUAKE: TREMOR MAKES THE EARTH MOVE IN READING
26/02/2008FOOTBALL: AT LEAST VILLA CAN'T BEAT ROYALS RESERVES!
25/02/2008PROPERTY: READING "ONE OF THE SAFEST PLACES TO BUY"
24/02/2008FOOTBALL: MORE MISERY AS ROYALS' LUCK RUNS ON EMPTY
22/02/2008POST OFFICES: READING LOSES SEVEN IN CLOSURES PLAN
21/02/2008COUNCIL TAX: LABOUR ACCUSED OF ELECTION GIMMICK
20/02/2008FOOTBALL: ROYALS HEDGE THEIR BETS ON STAD EXPANSION
19/02/2008SHOOTING: MIDNIGHT ATTACK ON WEST READING CAR DRIVER
18/02/2008VIOLENCE: FOUR HELD AFTER BRUTAL UNPROVOKED ATTACK
17/02/2008ROBBERY: CRUEL ATTACK ON VETERAN TRAINSPOTTER
16/02/2008VANDALISM: BIZARRE CAR TORCHING SPREE IN TOWN CENTRE
15/02/2008ENVIRONMENT: PLAN FOR SIX WIND TURBINES AT SHINFIELD
14/02/2008TRAFFIC: A STUNNING COMEBACK FOR THE ONE-WAY IDR!
13/02/2008DRUGS: POLICE WARN OF HAZARDS TO "FACTORY" NEIGHBOURS
12/02/2008OUR TOWN: NO BISCUITS, NO BULBS - AND NOW NO BEER!
11/02/2008HOSPITAL: RBH ADMITS UNPAID BILLS FROM 'HEALTH TOURISTS'
10/02/2008FOOTBALL: SUSPENDED BIKEY DESERVEDLY GETS HIS MEDAL
09/02/2008FOOTBALL: WHEN, OH WHEN, WILL ROYALS GET SOME LUCK?
08/02/2008TRAVEL: CROSSRAIL NONSENSE MAY END...EVENTUALLY
07/02/2008FOOTBALL: RED-CARD BIKEY COULD BE HEADING HOME
05/02/2008HOSPITAL: RBH DENIES £120 PER HOUR NURSE STORY
04/02/2008COMMUNITY: POLISH DRINKERS GET THEIR OWN PUB
03/02/2008CRIME: REPAIRING THE DAMAGE OF ROGUE TRADERS
02/02/2008FOOTBALL: SAME-OLD SAME-OLD FOR GROUNDHOG DAY ROYALS
31/01/2008FOOTBALL: ROYALS LEAVE IT TOO LATE AT THE BRIDGE
31/01/2008FOOTBALL: NO ENGLAND PLACE FOR KITS BUT NICKY'S IN
30/01/2008BERKSHIRE: THE ROYAL COUNTY CAN RULE THE WORLD!
29/01/2008FOOTBALL: ROYALS SIGN MALI INTERNATIONAL MIDFIELDER
28/01/2008ENTERTAINMENT: LAST NIGHT AT THE FEZ WON'T BE A 'SHAMBLES'
27/01/2008PLANNING: MP JOINS PROTEST AGAINST MASSIVE NEW TOWN
25/01/2008RAILWAYS: NOT SO GREAT FOR FIRST GREAT WESTERN
24/01/2008PLANNING: THE LOOK OF TOMORROW FOR STATION HILL
22/01/2008FOOTBALL: FA SAY IT'S ALRIGHT ON THE KNIGHT!
21/01/2008TRAFFIC: HUNDREDS CONTACT THE COMMISSION
19/01/2008FOOTBALL: ROYALS RIGHT OUT OF LUCK - YET AGAIN!
18/01/2008FOOTBALL: READING STAR GETS 18-MONTH DRIVING BAN
17/01/2008WEATHER: LOCAL RIVERS STILL ON FLOOD WATCH
16/01/2008FOOTBALL: ONE SCRUFFY CUP GOAL ENOUGH TO FOIL ROYALS
15/01/2008FOOTBALL: LEROY IN SHOP WINDOW AS ROYALS CHASE CUP GLORY
14/01/2008HEALTH: RBH ASKS TUMMY BUG VICTIMS TO STAY AWAY
13/01/2008RECYCLING: NEW SUPER CENTRE GETS GREEN FOR GO
12/01/2008FOOTBALL: ROYALS STILL HAVE TRAVEL SICKNESS
11/01/2008MAD STAD: LONDON IRISH SIGN UP FOR NEXT 18 YEARS!
10/01/2008FOOTBALL: NOW KITS IN TROUBLE IN TOUGH WEEK FOR ROYALS
09/01/2008HOSPITAL: RBH HAS BUSIEST NEW YEAR EVER IN A&E
08/01/2008ENTERTAINMENT: CHECK WHAT'S ON, WHERE AND WHEN
07/01/2008FOOTBALL: ROYALS MAKE SIGNING - AND MAN U AWAY IN CUP!
06/01/2008INFERNO: HUGE FIRE DESTROYS CAVERSHAM WAREHOUSE
05/01/2008FOOTBALL: ROYALS RESERVES HOLD NOT-SO-HOT SPURS
05/01/2008SPORTS UPDATES: ROYALS, RACERS, IRISH AND MUCH MORE!
01/01/2008FOOTBALL: UNHAPPY NEW YEAR STARTS WITH MORE REFFING HELL
31/12/2007ROYALS: BID FOR HUNT, LEROY MAY GO - AND "NO GOAL" POLL
29/12/2007FOOTBALL: ROYALS REFFED OUT OF IT IN 10-GOAL THRILLER
28/12/2007COUNCIL: NEW OFFICES "WILL NOT BURDEN TAXPAYERS"
27/12/2007DRUGS: POLICE CONCERN OVER CANNABIS FACTORIES
26/12/2007FOOTBALL: TEN-MAN ROYALS MAKE THEIR FESTIVE POINT
22/12/2007FOOTBALL: THIS TIME BBC VIEW IS PIE IN THE SKY!
21/12/2007CONTROVERSY: SHOULD NEW HOTEL HASSLE EXISTING BAR?
20/12/2007FOOTBALL: BIG-HEARTED ROYALS COMFORT BEREAVED KIDS
19/12/2007LIGHTS: CHARITIES ARE MISSING OUT THIS YEAR
18/12/2007DEVELOPMENT: CONCERN OVER THAMES WATER INTENTIONS
17/12/2007FOOTBALL: ROYALS SIGN YOUNG BULGARIAN STRIKER
16/12/2007DRIVING: TIPS FOR A BREAKDOWN-FREE POST-HOLIDAY
15/12/2007FOOTBALL: ANOTHER POINT IN THE BAG FOR ROYALS
14/12/2007FOOTBALL: FAREWELL TO BOMBER RAY, A TRUE LEGEND
13/12/2007SPORTS AWARDS: ROYALS CELEBRATE AMONG LOCAL STARS
12/12/2007TRAFFIC: COMMISSION WILL "STEER CLEAR OF POLITICS"
11/12/2007POST OFFICE: CLOSURE PLANS UNITE LOCAL MPs IN ANGER
10/12/2007HOSPITAL: RBH HALVES MRSA BUGS BUT AIMS HIGHER
09/12/2007FOOTBALL: DON'T BELIEVE WHAT YOU READ IN THE PAPERS!
08/12/2007FOOTBALL: MIGHTY ROYALS SINK WHINGEING RAFA'S REDS
07/12/2007FOOTBALL: STEVE IS NOT READY TO COPP OUT YET
06/12/2007POLICING: NEIGHBOURHOOD TEAM OUT TO BEAT THE BURGLAR
06/12/2007EDUCATION: JOHN MADEJSKI ENDORSES THE BLAIR TEACH PROJECT!
05/12/2007PLANNING: A SECOND SCHEME FOR NEW CIVIC CENTRE
04/12/2007ENVIRONMENT: READING KEEN TO MEET GREEN TARGETS
04/12/2007FOOTBALL: STEVE COPPELL SAYS HE WILL QUIT ROYALS!
03/12/2007ENVIRONMENT: TOWN TO BE LIT IN ENERGY-EFFICIENT WAY
02/12/2007FOOTBALL: ROYALS AWAY TO SPURS IN FA CUP
01/12/2007FOOTBALL: NERVOUS ROYALS FLUFF ANOTHER SIX-POINTER
30/11/2007FOOTBALL: ROYALS BOSS WARNS IT'S LOYALTY OR BUST
29/11/2007RAILWAYS: MAINTENANCE WORKER KILLED IN TRACK INCIDENT
28/11/2007ROAD SAFETY: ROGUE CYCLISTS FACING AN INSTANT £30 FINE
27/11/2007TOURISM: FOBNEY ISLAND COULD BE BIRD-WATCHERS' PARADISE
26/11/2007CIVIC CENTRE: PUBLIC EXHIBITION DISPLAYS £50m PROJECT
25/11/2007SECURITY: STATION EVACUATED AGAIN AFTER BOMB HOAX
24/11/2007FOOTBALL: LUCKY SVEN MEN FOIL ROYALS WITH LAST KICK
23/11/2007FOOTBALL: "ENGLAND EXPECTS - BUT I DON'T," SAYS STEVE
22/11/2007AIR AMBULANCE: THAMES VALLEY'S TWO HIGH FLIERS QUIT
21/11/2007FOOTBALL: ROYALS READY TO JUMP WHEN WINDOW OPENS
20/11/2007CHARITY: STOLEN MONEY IS REPLACED POST HASTE
19/11/2007STATION: UPGRADE COULD STUNT ALLOTMENT HOLDERS' GROWTH
17/11/2007SECURITY: INQUIRY AFTER STATION EVACUATED TWICE IN 11 HOURS
16/11/2007FOOTBALL: CHIEF EXEC SAYS ROYALS "CAN BE TOP TEN CLUB"
15/11/2007DRUGS: FOUR HELD AS POLICE RAID TWO READING PROPERTIES
14/11/2007PLANNING: IDR COULD BE PART OF CHATHAM STREET FACELIFT
13/11/2007FOOTBALL: BATTLING ROYALS OUT-GUNNED BY ARSENAL
12/11/2007FOOTBALL: BRYN'S MISSION TO MAKE SURE CESC IS NOT FAB!
11/11/2007FOOTBALL: SUPERMAN SONKS IS GUNNER MEET HIS COUSIN!
10/11/2007PLANNING: ALL BETS ARE OFF FOR CAVERSHAM ROAD CASINO
09/11/2007CHARITY: ANOTHER RIGHT-ROYAL EFFORT BY THE WAGS
08/11/2007UFTON NERVET: FAMILIES REMEMBER AT CANDLELIT VIGIL
07/11/2007FOOTBALL: ROYALS RESERVES LAND NARROW WIN OVER CHELSEA
06/11/2007POLICE: TACKLING BURGLARY IS NOVEMBER PRIORITY
05/11/2007CAR SALES: ROGUE 'MR ALIAS' NAMED, SHAMED AND JAILED
04/11/2007RAILWAYS: READING STATION RE-VAMP IN NETWORK BOOST
03/11/2007FOOTBALL: TRAVEL-SICK ROYALS LOSE ANOTHER 'SIX-POINTER'
02/11/2007UFTON NERVET: CRASH CAR DRIVER COMMITTED SUICIDE
01/11/2007DRINK SALES: SHOP LOSES APPEAL AGAINST LOSS OF LICENCE
31/10/2007HALLOWEEN: LET'S SEE MORE TREATS THAN TRICKS!
30/10/2007TRAINS: UFTON NERVET TRAGEDY PROMPTS SAFETY MOVE
29/10/2007ENVIRONMENT: READING BUSES SWEET ON SUGAR BEET FUEL
28/10/2007FOOTBALL: STEVE'S DELIGHTED TO "MEET AN OLD FRIEND"
27/10/2007FOOTBALL: HAPPY ROYALS ARE OVER THE TOON
26/10/2007CAT-NAPPING: MOGGIE STEALING SPREE IN LOWER EARLEY
25/10/2007GANGS: TILEHURST YOBS AND SLOBS FEEL FORCE OF THE LAW
24/10/2007VIOLENCE: DOOR STAFF GET NEW EDGE ON DRUNKEN IDIOTS
22/10/2007HOSPITAL: WAIT A MOMENT - RBH HAS THE COUNTRY'S BEST A&E!
21/10/2007FOOTBALL: ROYALS STILL SUFFERING TRAVEL SICKNESS
19/10/2007MOTORING: 6,130 CARS SEIZED IN 'NO INSURANCE' CRACKDOWN
18/10/2007FOOTBALL: EURO MISERY FOR ROYALS' INTERNATIONAL STARS
17/10/2007GRAFFITI: TOO MUCH WRITING ON THE WALL IN WEST READING
16/10/2007FOOTBALL: ROYALS' DEFENDERS IN LINE FOR EURO CALLS
16/10/2007ACCIDENT: WOODCOTE ROAD CLOSED AFTER SERIOUS CRASH
15/10/2007POLLUTION: COUNCILS TELL STUDENTS - ON YOUR BIKE!
14/10/2007FIREWORKS: AT LAST POLICE PLAN ACTION AGAINST NOISE
12/10/2007CLAMPING: NOW MOTORIST VICTIMS PLAN A CLAMP DOWN
11/10/2007POLICE: HELLO, HELLO - LOCAL FORCE AMONG BRITAIN'S WORST
10/10/2007TRAFFIC: CHAIRMAN OF INDEPENDENT COMMISSION NAMED
09/10/2007CHASE: TWO HELD AFTER STOLEN SPORTS CAR ABANDONED
08/10/2007SHOPLIFTING: OFF-LICENCE BOSS NAMES AND FRAMES THIEVES
07/10/2007FOOTBALL: ROYALS BOUNCE BACK TO GO "TOP OF THE LEAGUE"
06/10/2007CROSSRAIL: FINALLY THE GREEN LIGHT - BUT NOT FROM READING
05/10/2007CAR PARKS: HOPE ROUND THE CORNER FOR SUFFERING MOTORISTS
04/10/2007SMOKING: PUB LANDLORDS SAY BAN IS KILLING BUSINESS
03/10/2007ATTACK: EIGHT IN COURT OVER TILEHURST INCIDENT
01/10/2007POLITICS: TRUE BLUE FRED HITCHES A SPECIAL RED RIDE
29/09/2007FOOTBALL: ROYALS IN RECORD BOOKS - FOR WRONG REASONS
27/09/2007OLYMPICS: READING LOOKS FORWARD TO 2012 GAMES
26/09/2007ATTACK: TV CRIME PROGRAMME HIGHLIGHTS READING RAPE
25/09/2007FOOTBALL: MAD STAD CUP THRILLER BUT ROYALS GO OUT
24/09/2007TECHNOLOGY: READING NIGHTSPOT GOING CASHLESS
23/09/2007THAMES: KEEPING ANGLERS AND BOATERS FLOWING LEGALLY
22/09/2007FOOTBALL: AT LAST ROYALS GET A FEW LUCKY BREAKS
21/09/2007MAIL: U-TURN WILL NOT SAVE READING SORTING CENTRE
20/09/2007ENVIRONMENT: GREEN COUNCIL LEFT WITH RED FACES
19/09/2007BUS LANES: COUNCIL TAKES MOTORISTS FOR £600,000 RIDE
18/09/2007IDR CROSSINGS: MAN'S DEATH COULD LEAD TO ROAD CHANGES
17/09/2007POLICE: CALLING TIME ON WEST READING STREET BOOZING
15/09/2007FOOTBALL: ROYALS OUT OF FORM, CONFIDENCE - AND LUCK!
12/09/2007DRINK-DRIVE: POLICE DISAPPOINTED AS FIGURES EDGE UPWARDS
12/09/2007ROADS: COUNCIL BACKS DOWN AT LAST FROM ONE-WAY I.D.R.
11/09/2007SHOOTINGS: WEST READING IN FEAR OF BB-GUN SNIPER
10/09/2007CYCLING: TOUR BRINGS BERKSHIRE FANS OUT IN FORCE
09/09/2007CYCLE RACE: TOUR OF BRITAIN STARTS FROM READING
08/09/2007POLICING: TOWN CENTRE TEAM HEARS PUBLIC CONCERNS
07/09/2007ARREST: MAN HELD AFTER WOMAN'S BODY FOUND
06/09/2007FOOTBALL: LINEKER RATES ROYALS' CHANCES OF STAYING UP
05/09/2007POLICING: NEW 'NEIGHBOURHOOD' TEAM FOR TOWN CENTRE
04/09/2007YOB PROB: CLASSIC SOLUTION BY A THEALE STORE
03/09/2007ACCIDENT: MOTORIST DIES IN A33 MYSTERY HORROR SMASH
02/09/2007ASSAULT: MAN BEATEN UNCONSCIOUS IN TOWN CENTRE
01/09/2007FOOTBALL: DISASTER DAY AS HAMMERS NAIL WOEFUL ROYALS
31/08/2007FOOTBALL: ROSIE JOINS ROYALS AS SEOL MAN GOES
30/08/2007FOOTBALL: ROYALS LIKELY TO LOSE SHOREY AND SEOL
29/08/2007FOOTBALL: ROYALS SURVIVE TRIGGER-HAPPY REF FOR CUP WIN
29/08/2007PRISON: CRISIS AS OFFICERS STAGE NO-WARNING STRIKE
29/08/2007COW LANE: LIZARD FAMILY MAY SCUPPER NEW ROAD PLAN
28/08/2007FOOTBALL: ROYALS ON THE CUP TRAIL AT SWANSEA TONIGHT
27/08/2007FESTIVAL: MONDAY UPDATE - FIREWORK FOOLS TAKE THE EDGE OFF
26/08/2007FESTIVAL: SUNDAY UPDATE - ARRESTS RISE TO 66
25/08/2007FESTIVAL: POLICE SAY CRIME RATE IS LOWER SO FAR
25/08/2007FOOTBALL: HALF-STRENGTH ROYALS LEFT WANDERING
22/08/2007FESTIVAL: ROCKING AND ROLLING TOWARDS SHEER CHAOS
21/08/2007FOOTBALL: COULD ONE OF ROYALS' STRIKERS BE LURED AWAY?
20/08/2007ORACLE: TRAFFIC CHAOS CAUSED BY SUICIDE THREAT
18/08/2007FOOTBALL: AT LAST A CHANGE OF LUCK FOR THE ROYALS
17/08/2007ROYALS: SWANS AGAIN IN CUP - BUT FIRST AN INJURY CRISIS
16/08/2007FOOTBALL: MORE REFFING HELL FOR LUCKLESS ROYALS
15/08/2007RAIL BOOST: AMBER LIGHT FOR A GREEN PARK STATION
14/08/2007ROAD DEATH: ADAM WAS A RUGBY ACE - AND "REAL TOP GUN"
13/08/2007POLICING: READING TO HAVE 16-YEAR-OLDS ON THE BEAT
12/08/2007FOOTBALL: SUPERB ROYALS BEAT THE ODDS TO DRAW AT MAN U
11/08/2007ROYALS: COPP 'NOT WORRIED' BY RIDICULOUS START SCHEDULE
10/08/2007CRIME: ROBBERS COULD BE CAUGHT IN A WEB OF INTRIGUE
09/08/2007ROYALS: LITTLE INJURY COULD BE A BIG PROBLEM
08/08/2007ROBBERY: TILEHURST BANK BRANCH RAIDED AGAIN
07/08/2007DEATH: MAN'S BODY IN BUSHES WAS FOUND BY A FRIEND
06/08/2007FOOTBALL: ROYALS PLAY POKER WITH LEROY AND NICKY
03/08/2007MYSTERY: POLICE SAY DEATH OF MAN "UNEXPLAINED"
02/08/2007FOOTBALL: ROYALS MAKE THEIR NEW RECORD SIGNING
01/08/2007SCRAP IRON: BERKSHIRE'S GREAT DRAIN ROBBERY - PART 2
31/07/2007RAPE: DO YOU RECOGNISE MAN IN CCTV PICTURE?
30/07/2007RAVERS: CENTRE OF READING ROCKS ONE MONTH EARLY
27/07/2007GUN CRIME: POLICE SEEK INFORMATION AFTER WEAPONS FIND
26/07/2007FLOOD ALERT: IT LOOKS AS THOUGH WE GOT AWAY WITH IT
25/07/2007RAILWAYS: MASSIVE READING EXPANSION GETS GREEN LIGHT
24/07/2007FLOOD ALERT: IT'S OUR TURN NOW - NEXT 24HRS CRUCIAL
23/07/2007FLOOD ALERT: READING COULD BE HIT BY THAMES TORRENT
22/07/2007TERRORISM: PARKING BANNED OUTSIDE READING CLUBS
21/07/2007RUGBY UNION: IRISH TO HAVE PLENTY OF MAD STAD ACTION
20/07/2007WEATHER: FLASH FLOODS SWAMP THAMES VALLEY TOWNS
19/07/2007FOOTBALL: ROYALS TAKE THE PULSE BUT IT'S NOT ENOUGH
18/07/2007POLICE: WE'RE POLES APART ON PHONE LANGUAGE
17/07/2007HOSPITAL: RBH CLAIMS 'NO CRISIS' IN ITS MATERNITY UNIT
16/07/2007FOOTBALL: SACRE BLEU(S) - ROYALS ROCK FRENCH CHAMPS!
15/07/2007RAPE INQUIRY: CCTV PICTURES RELEASED OF THREE MEN
14/07/2007DRUGS: MORE MAJOR SWOOPS BY POLICE "FALCON" TEAM
13/07/2007FOOTBALL: ROYALS HAVE A LOT ON THEIR PLATE IN KOREA!
12/07/2007UNIVERSITY: MADEJSKI TO BE THE NEW UNI CHANCELLOR
11/07/2007ASSAULT: ATTACKED MAN SAVED BY CYCLE HELMET
10/07/2007RAILWAYS: VIRGIN LOSES CROSS-COUNTRY FRANCHISE
07/07/2007HYGIENE: COUNCIL CONCERN OVER BUTTS RODENTS
06/07/2007SPEEDWAY: MORE CHANGES AS SUGAR RETURNS AS BOSS
05/07/2007DRUGS: CANNABIS FACTORY IN A WINNERSH BUNGALOW
04/07/2007ROADS: IT COULD BE A SUMMER OF (MORE) TRAFFIC CHAOS
03/07/2007ROBBERY: THIRD VICIOUS RAID AT A CAVERSHAM PUB
02/07/2007BOOZE: POLICE TO CRACK DOWN ON UNDER-AGE DRINKERS
01/07/2007PARKING: GOOD NEWS AS CLAMPERS ARE DRIVEN OUT
30/06/2007WATER: THAMES AIMS TO PUT ITS HOUSE IN ORDER
29/06/2007KNIFE CRIME: SCHOOL TAKES A STAND AFTER TRAGEDY
28/06/2007STREET ATTACKS: CONCERN OVER SERIES OF VIOLENT MUGGINGS
27/06/2007FOOTBALL: BRYLCREEM TAKES A SHINE TO ROYALS' FANS
17/06/2007HONOURS: SUNNY OUTLOOK AS WEATHER MAN GETS A GONG
16/06/2007ASSAULT: IDIOTS PUSH MIDDLE-AGED COUPLE INTO CANAL
15/06/2007FOOTBALL: AN UNHOLY MUDDLE SENDS "READING" UP THE POLE!
14/06/2007ROYALS 2007/08: FIXTURES COMPUTER IS TAKING THE MICKEY!
13/06/2007LOCAL ENVIRONMENT: CAVERSHAM COURT TO GET 1.6m FACELIFT
12/06/2007ARCHITECTURE: BACK TO DRAWING BOARD FOR STATION HILL
11/06/2007FOOTBALL: AMAZING TWIST AS ROYALS SELL TOP BUY HALFORD
10/06/2007TALKING CCTV: SEARCH IS ON FOR KID TO RAP OUT MESSAGE
09/06/2007ASSAULT: WITNESSES SOUGHT AFTER FUNFAIR ATTACK
08/06/2007RAILWAYS: TRANSPORT POLICE WARN TEEN TRACK IDIOTS
07/06/2007LAW AND ORDER: POLICE CRACKDOWN ON ANTI-SOCIAL GANGS
06/06/2007IDR RUMPUS: COUNCIL FINDS ONE WAY TO WIN BACK PUBLIC
06/06/2007SPEEDWAY: SECOND SAMPLE CONFIRMS READING STAR'S GUILT
05/06/2007BURGLARIES: SEVERAL ARRESTS IN CAVERSHAM DRAMA
04/06/2007POLLUTION: COUNCIL WILL MONITOR READING'S AIR QUALITY
03/06/2007BURGLARY: READING NAMED AND SHAMED IN NATIONAL SURVEY
02/06/2007FOOTBALL: BIG MATCH LAST NIGHT, BIG MATCH TODAY FOR NICKY
01/06/2007EDUCATION: FINAL BELL IS TOLLING FOR RYEISH GREEN
31/05/2007CONVICTION: ROAD DEATH BROTHERS ARE BOTH JAILED
30/05/2007ROBBERY: ARMED RAIDERS HIT TOP CAVERSHAM PUB
29/05/2007FOOTBALL: ROYALS' KOREA ADVENTURE FIT FOR A KINGSLEY
28/05/2007ROBBERY: ARMED TEEN RAIDER ADMITS HIS GUILT
27/05/2007ATTACK: LOWER EARLEY MAN FACING AFFRAY CHARGE
26/05/2007FOOTBALL: NICKY'S A SHOREY THING FOR ENGLAND!
25/05/2007AWARD: READING COMMUNITY OFFICER IS TOP OF THE COPS
24/05/2007HENLEY DEATH: TWO ACCUSED CLEARED BY LONDON COURT
24/05/2007FOOTBALL: STADIUM EXPANSION PLANS GET GO-AHEAD
23/05/2007FOOTBALL: IT'S OFFICIAL - SIDDY GOES FROM A-TEAM TO C-TEAM!
22/05/2007ATTACK: WITNESS APPEAL AS TEEN'S CONDITION WORSENS
21/05/2007RAILWAYS: NEW FARES, NEW TIMETABLES, NEW CRITICISMS
18/05/2007ROYAL BERKS: THE SCANDAL OF "MIXED WARDS" CONTINUES
17/05/2007RAIL CRASH: AT LAST THE GOVERNMENT GETS IT RIGHT
16/05/2007FOOTBALL: ROYALS SWOOP FOR FIRST SUMMER SIGNING
15/05/2007BURGLARY: CAN YOU PLACE THE FACE OF DISTRACTION CROOK?
14/05/2007FOOTBALL: SOME SADNESS AMONGST ALL THE ROYALS' PRIDE
14/05/2007ANTISOCIAL: POLICE READY TO SHOP SAVACENTRE LURKERS
13/05/2007FOOTBALL: WILEY OLD REF ROBS ROYALS OF EURO CHANCE
 
News from other Reading Guide sections...
In news...
FOOTBALL: WILEY OLD REF ROBS ROYALS OF EURO CHANCE
13/05/2007 IF there's one man who will not be on the Christmas card list of anyone from Reading this year it will be referee Alan Wiley who presided over this afternoon's exciting 3-3 draw at Blackburn. It was the last game of a brilliant first Premiership season for the Royals - and they would surely have won it but for a couple of contentious decisions by Mr Wiley, who already cost them two points with a controversial penalty decision at Spurs six weeks ago. So Reading finish eighth, missing a UEFA Cup place by one of the three points Mr Wiley's decisions have denied them.
ANTISOCIAL: POLICE READY TO SHOP SAVACENTRE LURKERS
14/05/2007 POLICE are cracking down on the groups of custom car enthusiasts and layabouts they accuse of general antisocial behaviour in the vast Sainsbury Savacentre car park at Calcot.
FOOTBALL: SOME SADNESS AMONGST ALL THE ROYALS' PRIDE
14/05/2007 READING finished their first-ever Premiership season with a magnificent flourish, yet again underlining their reputation as most people's "second favourite team" with a 3-3 draw at Blackburn. However, that left them stranded one irritating point off a UEFA Cup place, with manager Steve Coppell revealing wryly that despite all his talk about "not wanting to play in Europe", secretly he was actually hoping all along that they would qualify. He also confirmed that midfield dynamo Steve Sidwell is definitely leaving the club - and revealed that goalkeeper Marcus Hahnemann broke his hand in three places yesterday and may now miss a summer tournament with the USA national team.
BURGLARY: CAN YOU PLACE THE FACE OF DISTRACTION CROOK?
15/05/2007 POLICE have released an e-fit of a man they would like to speak to in connection with a distraction burglary in Reading on Tuesday (May 8). At around 5pm two men knocked on an elderly woman’s door, at an address off Eldon Road, claiming to be from the Water Board. They gained entry to the house and one of the men held the woman while the other searched the house and stole cash. Read on for e-fit.
FOOTBALL: ROYALS SWOOP FOR FIRST SUMMER SIGNING
16/05/2007 THE Royals have underlined their determination to avoid the "second-season blues" by announcing their first signing of the summer just three days after their first, brilliant season in the Premiership. Keen to disprove the theory that promoted teams struggle second time around, they have paid Portuguese giants Boavista "just under 1m Euros" for the 22-year-old French midfielder Kalifa Cisse - and with typical thoroughness they have researched his personality and family background to ensure he fits with the tightly-knit Royals squad.
RAIL CRASH: AT LAST THE GOVERNMENT GETS IT RIGHT
17/05/2007 AFTER a typical display of stubborness in the face of public opinion, the government has done a U-turn and agreed that David Main, the Berkshire man whose partner and daughter died in the 2004 Ufton Nervet rail disaster, can be granted legal aid so that he can be represented at the inquest. When the then-Minister for legal aid, Bridget Prentice, refused legal aid on its first application in 2005, Mr Main and his eight-year-old son Toby appealed to the High Court and quite rightly won. Then, in a PR-disaster move, the government said it would take them on in a legal appeal of its own, from which it has now wisely backed off.
ROYAL BERKS: THE SCANDAL OF "MIXED WARDS" CONTINUES
18/05/2007 THE Royal Berkshire Hospital reportedly still has a significant proportion of patients in the highly-undignified situation of sharing a ward with members of the opposite sex - despite claims the practice is being rapidly phased out. Figures from the Healthcare Commission indicate that 27percent of new admissions at the RBH are placed in mixed wards, while 40 percent of all patients share the same bathroom as members of the opposite sex.
RAILWAYS: NEW FARES, NEW TIMETABLES, NEW CRITICISMS
21/05/2007 FIRST Great Western, and South West Trains, who control most of the rail services to and through Reading, are again under fire. New off-peak fares came into operation yesterday which have been widely criticised by the group of local MPs who have given the rail companies a bumpy ride in recent months over fare-levels, over-crowding and poor timetable configuration. The summer timetable came into force today, but one Cotswold MP has already called called on the givernment to terminate the FGW franchise and put the service back under State control.
ATTACK: WITNESS APPEAL AS TEEN'S CONDITION WORSENS
22/05/2007 ONE week on, police in Reading are renewing their appeal for witnesses to a vicious attack which has left a 17-year-old boy in a critical and "deteriorating" condition in hospital.
FOOTBALL: IT'S OFFICIAL - SIDDY GOES FROM A-TEAM TO C-TEAM!
23/05/2007 THE opportunity for Steve Sidwell to fill his boots with at least twice the £25,000 a week Reading offered him to stay has proved too much for the carrot-topped midfield maestro to turn down. Free agent Siddy has decided to join Chelsea when his contract runs out on June 30, even though he could spend much of the next phase of his career warming the Stamford Bridge substitutes' bench.
FOOTBALL: STADIUM EXPANSION PLANS GET GO-AHEAD
24/05/2007 THE application to expand the Madejski Stadium from its present 24,500 capacity to nearer 38,000 was approved last night by Reading Borough Council's planning committee. Objections from neighbouring Wokingham Borough Council and some local residents because the scheme does not include additional parking were brushed aside, and the work will start in August 2008 on extending the East and South stands.
HENLEY DEATH: TWO ACCUSED CLEARED BY LONDON COURT
24/05/2007 THE two teenagers charged with the murder of Henley businessman Stephen Langford have been found not guilty after their trial at Inner London Crown Court. The jury upheld the claims of James Diggins, aged 19, of Devon Drive, Caversham, and 18-year-old Kes Ingoldsby, of Wargrave Road, Henley that they acted in self-defence, despite Diggins' admission that he punched and kicked Mr Langford, who died almost immediately. The verdict "saddened" Mr Langford's family, who said in a statement: "We live in a diseased society."
AWARD: READING COMMUNITY OFFICER IS TOP OF THE COPS
25/05/2007 READING-based PC Tristan Khezrzadeh has been named Thames Valley’s Community Officer of the Year. Known to everyone on his patch as ‘Buzz’, he received dozens of nominations for his work in the Newtown area of Reading, where he has successfully launched a number of sports-related schemes which have helped foster relations between the police and residents of one of the town's most-troubled corners.
FOOTBALL: NICKY'S A SHOREY THING FOR ENGLAND!
26/05/2007 READING'S Nicky Shorey made his debut in an England shirt in the B team's 3-1 defeat of the Albanian first team at Burnley - and he did well enough to earn a call up to the full England squad for the prestige friendly against Brazil at Wembley on Friday and the Euro 2008 qualifier in Estonia on June 6. And between the two games he has another major fixture - he's getting married on Saturday!
ATTACK: LOWER EARLEY MAN FACING AFFRAY CHARGE
27/05/2007 THAMES Valley Police have begun making charges in connection with what they describe as an attempted murder attack on a 17-year-old in an East Reading street on Tuesday 15 May. The victim, as yet unnamed, was critically injured and is being treated in a specialist unit at the JR2 Hospital in Oxford.
ROBBERY: ARMED TEEN RAIDER ADMITS HIS GUILT
28/05/2007 A MAN who admitted carrying out five armed robberies in Reading earlier this year has been remanded in custody for sentencing. Aaron O’Neil, of Bedford Road, Reading, pleaded guilty to five counts of robbery and associated firearms offences when he appeared at Reading Crown Court.
FOOTBALL: ROYALS' KOREA ADVENTURE FIT FOR A KINGSLEY
29/05/2007 THE Royals, and mascot Kingsley, will be in suitably regal company when they arrive at the 2007 Peace Cup in South Korea in July. Premier League (it's not the "Premiership" any more) rivals Bolton Wanderers are also included in the eight teams taking part, along with French champions Olympique Lyon, Argentine giants River Plate, crack Japanese side Shimizu S-Pulse, Italian Serie A side Udinese, Chivas Guadalahara of Mexico and Sungnam Ilhwa representing the hosts. And this morning's group draw gave Reading the toughest possible task, matched with the three strongest teams, Lyon, River Plate and Shimuzu.
ROBBERY: ARMED RAIDERS HIT TOP CAVERSHAM PUB
30/05/2007 POLICE are appealing for witnesses following an armed robbery in Caversham on Monday when four armed raiders forced their way into The Baron Cadogan bar/restaurant in Prospect Street, threatening staff with a gun. The bandits escaped with more than £2,000 of takings and police are now warning other entertainment venues in Reading about the possibility of similar incidents.
CONVICTION: ROAD DEATH BROTHERS ARE BOTH JAILED
31/05/2007 TWO brothers from the Midlands, who pleaded guilty to causing the horrific road crash death of Carol Tegg on the A4074 Woodcote Road just outside of Reading in July last year were last night jailed for a total of 15 years at Oxford Crown Court.
EDUCATION: FINAL BELL IS TOLLING FOR RYEISH GREEN
01/06/2007 THE long battle by parents and teachers to try to keep the ailing Ryeish Green School School at Spencers Wood open appears to have been lost. The executive committee of Wokingham Borough Council - which controls the Spencers Wood area, even though it's closer to Reading - decided last night that the school will close its doors for the last time in 2010.
FOOTBALL: BIG MATCH LAST NIGHT, BIG MATCH TODAY FOR NICKY
02/06/2007 ROYALS defender Nicky Shorey pulled the Three Lions onto his chest to become the club's first England international in exactly 100 years in the 1-1 draw with Brazil at Wembley last night. Nicky gave a thoroughly competent performance against the world's best attackers in front of the millions of BBC's Match of the Day viewers - and today he will be starring again in his own Match of the Day, as he gets married to his partner Emily Bailey.
BURGLARY: READING NAMED AND SHAMED IN NATIONAL SURVEY
03/06/2007 JUST a few weeks after it was branded by a survey as the worst place in Britain to bring up a family, Reading's corporate pride has suffered a new blow. A survey by a leading insurance company reveals that amongst every town and city in the country Reading is the seventh most likely place for residents to be burgled. The only faint glimmer of satisfaction is that neighbouring Oxford is fifth worst - the two factors together making disappointing reading for Thames Valley Police, who cover both areas.
POLLUTION: COUNCIL WILL MONITOR READING'S AIR QUALITY
04/06/2007 READING Borough Council, urgently needing to pull a few popular rabbits out of its hat after the recent elections disaster, will find few people arguing against its latest initiative, to monitor pollution levels in the town more closely. To help people with asthma and other breathing-related problems, the council will set up a website link showing a Pollution Index with information gathered from three places in the town - and next month there are plans for a public consultation to discover attitudes to air quality and climate change.
BURGLARIES: SEVERAL ARRESTS IN CAVERSHAM DRAMA
05/06/2007 THE usual peace and quiet of Caversham Heights was shattered for more than an hour yesterday afternoon when police launched a dramatic full-scale man-hunt after reports of a series of break-ins at houses in Buxton Avenue, Wincroft Road and Woodford Close. Onlookers say two men were quickly  arrested as they walked along nearby Highmoor Road. Then, with the police helicopter hovering continuously overhead, a full scale ground operation involving plain-clothes officers and several car loads of uniformed police ended with at least one further arrest.
SPEEDWAY: SECOND SAMPLE CONFIRMS READING STAR'S GUILT
06/06/2007 READING Bulldogs Speedway team, who are having an indifferent season by the high standards they set last year, learned tonight that they are almost certain to be without key rider Danny Bird for the rest of the 2007 campaign. Bird, who failed a drugs test after the match against Ipswich on April 20, has been told that the "B Sample" confirms the findings of the original.
IDR RUMPUS: COUNCIL FINDS ONE WAY TO WIN BACK PUBLIC
06/06/2007 READING Borough Council's new Transport and Traffic supremo, Cllr Tom Crisp, has made a popular start to his tenancy in the town's "poisoned challice" role by announcing that the radical, and highly-contentious plan to make the Inner Distribution Road one-way has been put on hold. The ruling Labour group has evidently heeded the message from their recent election disaster, where the IDR plan was widely considered to have swung voters against them, and say that nothing will be done to the IDR until a much wider public consultation is held under an independent chairperson.
LAW AND ORDER: POLICE CRACKDOWN ON ANTI-SOCIAL GANGS
07/06/2007 THAMES Valley Police have unveiled new powers to break up the groups of youths who carry out varying degrees of petty and often more serious crimes in seven "hot spots" across Reading in night-time. On threat of arrest, they can disperse any group, and anyone under 16 causing potential problems on the street between 9pm and 6am is liable to be returned home by officers.
RAILWAYS: TRANSPORT POLICE WARN TEEN TRACK IDIOTS
08/06/2007 AFTER two dramatic incidents in the past few days, British Transport Police have warned local youths not to push their luck by playing the potentially suicidal "chicken" game of running in front of oncoming trains. A 15-year-old pillock was caught on CCTV narrowly escaping death not only from a train but from the live electric rail while dodging across tracks at Winnersh - and on Monday two of a group of five teen twits were seen racing across the tracks moments before a train hurtled through Tilehurst Station.
ASSAULT: WITNESSES SOUGHT AFTER FUNFAIR ATTACK
09/06/2007 POLICE are appealing for witnesses after a 17-year-old girl was attacked by a group of hooligans - including at least two other girls - near the funfair in Woodford Park, Woodley last night. The victim, from Wokingham, was punched and kicked to the ground by a group of up to 12 people. She suffered a fractured nose, cuts and bruising to her face and body, and had to receive hospital treatment.
TALKING CCTV: SEARCH IS ON FOR KID TO RAP OUT MESSAGE
10/06/2007 BUDDING young Reading rappers have been offered a £100 challenge to use their skills to promote a new form of CCTV that tells off yobs and litterbugs when it catches them in the act. The Safer Reading Campaign is teaming up with local radio station Reading 107fm to run a special prize competition for young people, aimed at finding the best rap to promote a new 'Talking CCTV' initiative.
FOOTBALL: AMAZING TWIST AS ROYALS SELL TOP BUY HALFORD
11/06/2007 READING have sold their recent record signing Greg Halford after he made only one start for the club in his five months at the Mad Stad. Halford, signed for £2.5m from Colchester in January, has joined newly-promoted Premier League rivals Sunderland in a deal which landed the Royals a handy £500,000 profit on a player they say did not quite reach their expectations.
ARCHITECTURE: BACK TO DRAWING BOARD FOR STATION HILL
12/06/2007 JOHN Madejski is not used to setbacks - a happy situation which is more down to good judgement than good luck. But the great Reading benefactor of the modern era has temporarily come unstuck with his plans for a massive redevelopment of the Station Hill area in the centre of town - an influential Government body has branded the £400m project lacking in architectural quality, and with too many tall buildings in its first phase.
LOCAL ENVIRONMENT: CAVERSHAM COURT TO GET 1.6m FACELIFT
13/06/2007 LOCAL residents will tonight (Wednesday) get their first chance to inspect Reading Borough Council's plans for a £1.6m restoration project at one of the town's quietest, most beautiful corners, Caversham Court. The buildings, and gardens, running down to the Thames from the back of St Peter's Church still get many visitors - but in recent years the partly-wooded setting has also proved a night-time haven for yobs and drug dealers.
ROYALS 2007/08: FIXTURES COMPUTER IS TAKING THE MICKEY!
14/06/2007 THOSE who say the 2007/08 season will be tougher for Reading than the last one might just be congratulating the Premier League fixtures computer which today handed the Royals a truly ludicrous start to the new campaign. Steve Coppell's men go away to champions Manchester United on the opening day, August 11, then on Tuesday August 14, the second game is a nice gentle affair with the C-Team - when old motormouth Jose and mega-millions Chelsea, including Reading exile Steve Sidwell, come to the Mad Stad.
FOOTBALL: AN UNHOLY MUDDLE SENDS "READING" UP THE POLE!
15/06/2007 A TEAM representing "Reading" will take the field in Poland tonight for a friendly match against a professional Fourth Division League team - but it won't actually be the Royals as we know them defending the pride of our town. Because although KKS Kolbuszowianka thought when they arranged the match at their smart little stadium they would be facing Steve Coppell's Premiership side, this "Reading" team is actually called Bethel United, from the Thames Valley Churches League!
ASSAULT: IDIOTS PUSH MIDDLE-AGED COUPLE INTO CANAL
16/06/2007 POLICE are appealing for witnesses to a bizarre incident in Reading on Thursday afternoon where an innocent couple were pushed into the Kennet and Avon Canal, close to Elgar Road South, at around 3.45pm. Luckily they escaped with a soaking but the attack could have had much more serious consequences.
HONOURS: SUNNY OUTLOOK AS WEATHER MAN GETS A GONG
17/06/2007 BERKSHIRE was well represented in the Queen's Birthday Honours List - although the recipients were virtually all lesser known, though clearly worthy candidates. Brian Hoskins, a Professor of Meteorology at the University of Reading, has been knighted for services to environmental science - the second time he has appeared in the honours list, having previously received the CBE.
FOOTBALL: BRYLCREEM TAKES A SHINE TO ROYALS' FANS
27/06/2007 THE team is fantastic - runaway Championship Champions in 2005/06 and honoured as Team of the Season in several polls for 2006/07 - now Reading's fans have come out as top of the league as well. In a survey of 5,000 fans carried out by hair accessory Brylcreem, Royals fans were voted Britain's most stylish supporters!
STREET ATTACKS: CONCERN OVER SERIES OF VIOLENT MUGGINGS
28/06/2007 ALTHOUGH they are not yet officially linking a spate of street attacks in Reading in the past week, police are showing increased concern about muggings which have left at least two people with broken jaws. Descriptions of two black men are consistent in at least two of the incidents.
KNIFE CRIME: SCHOOL TAKES A STAND AFTER TRAGEDY
29/06/2007 THE crazy culture of schoolchildren carrying knives has been addressed with a new initiative by teachers at the school in Emmbrook which last year had two of its pupils fatally stabbed by another youngster.
WATER: THAMES AIMS TO PUT ITS HOUSE IN ORDER
30/06/2007 AFTER it's widely-criticised performance under German ownership, Thames Water, now somewhat bizarrely owned by an Australian investment company (!), says it will fight to restore the company's tarnished reputation by investing heavily in halting the horrendous flow of wasted water which attracted so much hostility from customers and the official government watchdog Ofwat.
PARKING: GOOD NEWS AS CLAMPERS ARE DRIVEN OUT
01/07/2007 AT least one of the many nightmares about car parking in Reading has been removed after people power led to clampers being withdrawn from one of the main town centre sites.
BOOZE: POLICE TO CRACK DOWN ON UNDER-AGE DRINKERS
02/07/2007 POLICE in Reading say they are making a determined effort to curtail a "deteriorating" problem of under-age drinking in the town.
ROBBERY: THIRD VICIOUS RAID AT A CAVERSHAM PUB
03/07/2007 FOR the third time in as many weeks, a Caversham pub has been the victim of a vicious gang of robbers. Following similar raids at the Flowing Spring in Henley Road, and Baron Cadogan in Prospect Street, this time the target, just after opening on Sunday lunchtime, was The Star in South View Avenue, where the manager was slashed with a knife despite being wise enough to offer no resistance.
ROADS: IT COULD BE A SUMMER OF (MORE) TRAFFIC CHAOS
04/07/2007 THE Evening Post reports that Reading's already hard-pressed motorists could be in for an even tougher time over the summer. Starting next Monday, will be seven weeks of major road surface improvements involving 20 routes through the town.
DRUGS: CANNABIS FACTORY IN A WINNERSH BUNGALOW
05/07/2007 THE criminals who set up an amazing cannabis-growing operation in a three-bed bungalow on the main Reading Road through Winnersh clearly forgot how easy it now is for the police to spot such places at night through a thermal imaging camera which picks out the vast electricity use needed to light and heat these plants.
SPEEDWAY: MORE CHANGES AS SUGAR RETURNS AS BOSS
06/07/2007 IT'S been a roller-coaster season for Reading Speedway fans who have seen their team start the season as the "Bulldogs" with title dreams, go to the brink of extinction, and then be resurrected with a former rider as their promoter under the old name of "Racers". And the new "old" look has taken another twist with the team's most successful-ever manager, Tim Sugar, returning to his old job.
HYGIENE: COUNCIL CONCERN OVER BUTTS RODENTS
07/07/2007 THE gardens around the Church in St Mary's Butts are a favourite spot for picnics - but the scraps of food people leave behind are attracting a dangerous number of rats. Now the council has cordoned off parts of the churchyard while the area is baited and the menace dealt with.
RAILWAYS: VIRGIN LOSES CROSS-COUNTRY FRANCHISE
10/07/2007 VIRGIN, which was due to hold the franchise for Cross Country railway routes in England, Scotland and Wales until 2012, has had the licence taken away by the Department of Transport. The services, with bizarre routes such as Aberdeen to Penzance - most of which come through Reading - will be taken over from November this year by Arriva.
ASSAULT: ATTACKED MAN SAVED BY CYCLE HELMET
11/07/2007 ONE of the most pathetic - and consistent - reasons put forward by thugs as an excuse for attacking an innocent passer-by is: "Who are you looking at?" That was exactly the fate which befell a middle-aged cyclist who was attacked by a young white moron in the early hours of this morning on the footbridge between Kenavon Drive and Cumberland Road in East Reading. Luckily the cyclist was wearing a helmet which saved him after he was repeatedly kicked in the head.
UNIVERSITY: MADEJSKI TO BE THE NEW UNI CHANCELLOR
12/07/2007 READING FC chairman and general town benefactor John Madejski, has been elected as the new Chancellor of Reading University. He will be inducted in December and is only the seventh person to hold the position, which has been vacated by the holder of the past 15 years, Lord Carrington.
FOOTBALL: ROYALS HAVE A LOT ON THEIR PLATE IN KOREA!
13/07/2007 READING FC made a first appearance in world club football this morning - and quickly found out just how high the standard is in other parts of the globe. The Royals played their first match in the Peace Cup in Korea, against the crack Argentinian side River Plate, and it proved very hard work in humid conditions more suited to the opposition. After a torrid first half, when they might have been more than 1-0 down the Royals improved considerably. They didn't concede again, and several times came close to an elusive equaliser, but in the end suffered an honourable narrow defeat.
DRUGS: MORE MAJOR SWOOPS BY POLICE "FALCON" TEAM
14/07/2007 LIKE all towns and cities its size Reading has a considerable problem regarding drugs - not only the actual substances themselves but the robberies by junkies  desperate for money to buy them. The local police force is - some would say belatedly - trying to reduce the problem with its 'Operation Falcon', which, slowly but surely, is making an impact, as in a series of raids mounted this week.
RAPE INQUIRY: CCTV PICTURES RELEASED OF THREE MEN
15/07/2007 THAMES Valley Police have released CCTV pictures of three men they believe can help their inquiries into a rape incident which happened in London Street, Reading, on Monday 18 June. The men were seen on camera at Brannigans Bar on the nearby Oracle Riverside just before the time the woman was attacked.
FOOTBALL: SACRE BLEU(S) - ROYALS ROCK FRENCH CHAMPS!
16/07/2007 READING'S hopes of reaching the final of the Peace Cup in Korea were boosted this morning when they beat French champions Lyon 1-0. Despite having an experimental side, missing a fifth minute penalty and losing playmaker James Harper injured inside half an hour, the Royals won it with a goal by rookie teenager Simon Cox after 63 minutes.
HOSPITAL: RBH CLAIMS 'NO CRISIS' IN ITS MATERNITY UNIT
17/07/2007 DESPITE concern over the fact that in the last six months nine mothers in labour were refused admission to its Maternity Unit because it was full, the Royal Berkshire Hospital claims that scary statistic does not indicate a crisis. A spokesperson has told the Evening Post that there is nothing irregular about that situation which has apparently been caused by