TYPICAL bank holiday weather decimated the Wellstream NTSL programme on Saturday, with not a single top-flight game able to reach a conclusion.

With rain sweeping across the region in mid-afternoon it was left to teams to scrabble around for any bonus points going with the result there was very little movement in the league table.

IT will be a summer of celebration as a community marks 150 years of the landmark Matfen Spire.

All of the stops are being pulled out for the occasion with a series of events officially launched at the weekend.

The Bishop of Newcastle, the Rt Rev Martin Wharton, attended the festivities at Holy Trinity Church in Matfen, near Hexham, Northumberland, yesterday for a special service of Choral Evensong.

The musical service was the first in a string of events planned over the coming months to celebrate the spire standing tall for 150 years.

The anniversary marks the end of a year of restoration work at the church which cost £42,000.

AN award-winning North East restaurant has invented a new curry it hopes will propel the North into the Indian food premier league - and help raise thousands of pounds to save the lives of sick children.

The Newcastle Curry is the brainchild of chefs at up-market Raval Indian restaurant in Gateshead. Made using lamb, potatoes, carrots and asparagus, it is far removed from traditional British curry house fare. But restaurant owner Avi Malik hopes Tynesiders will develop a taste for the modern-day curry.

The dish - which Mr Malik describes as a "meeting of east and west" and brings together culinary influences from across India - is to go on the menu at the Barrasford Arms, Barrasford, between June 6-12.

MATT Wells rows for Britain in today's World Cup semi-finals in Slovenia after a comfortable victory in the heats of the men's double sculls.

The Olympic bronze medallist from Hexham and partner Marcus Bateman led all the way, winning in a time of 6:21.75. Middlesbrough's Benjamin Rowe also reached the semi-finals by finishing third in heat two with Peter Chambers.

Churches are places traditionally associated with praying and celebration.

And there could be plenty of both at one Northumberland church over the coming weeks after it announced plans to show England's World Cup matches in a bid to get footie fans into its pews.

Trinity Methodist Church at Hexham will be showing games on a big screen, taking the opportunity to also hold a number of World Cup-themed services and also to raise money for a charity in South Africa, where the tournament is being staged.

Post Office services are to be restored to two villages in Northumberland through changes to a mobile operation.

Branches at Mickley Square and Simonburn closed in 2008 in what Post Office Ltd called a temporary move. Now post offices bosses have announced plans to include both villages in the mobile service run by the subpostmaster at Stocksfield. But services at Colwell and Newton will be halved to allow the visits to take place.

Young farmers are aiming to pull a 4.5-tonne tractor for three and a half miles to raise funds for the Great North Air Ambulance and their YFC as part of this year's Northumberland County Show.

The Shaftoe Young Farmers, based around Haydon Bridge, will be attempting their feat on Sunday prior to Monday's show. They have been training to drag the tractor from Hexham to the showground in Corbridge.

The team will also be demonstrating their skills in the show's main ring on Monday afternoon. The club chose the air ambulance as its main beneficiary because a number of members' relatives have been saved by the service.

More on the Northumberland County Show »

A glimmer of hope remains for two well-known North East stores facing closure, with buyers still showing an interest.

Negotiations are continuing over the future of Robbs in Hexham and Joplings in Sunderland with potential buyers still negotiating with parent company Vergo Retail Limited.

But unless a definite offer comes forward, both stores will most probably close within the month, administrators say.

People who relish the delights of al fresco eating during the summer months in England's most northerly county can now draw inspiration from a definitive new guide.

The Great Northumberland Picnic has been drawn up after enthusiasts across the county voted for their favourite open air eating spots, together with their choice of the best local food and drink to enjoy in the great outdoors.

Five chosen locations feature the county's renowned coastline, castles and countryside, while the fare includes Northumberland favourites such as stottie cakes, ham and pease pudding, Lindisfarne oysters, Seahouses salmon and Craster kipper pate.

The most popular choices from the public vote, which was launched earlier this year, were revealed at the official unveiling of the Great Northumberland Picnic on Wooler Common yesterday.

The beef farming industry is arriving in force in Northumberland today for the annual exhibition of what's new in the sector.

The National Beef Association (NBA)-organised Beef Expo 2010 event at Hexham Mart is aiming to attract more than 5,000 visitors to see the latest developments in technical, political and marketing issues affecting the industry.

Delegations of visitors from France, Romania, Czech Republic, Germany, Poland and Portugal will also be at the showcase, which this year has the theme The Way Forward.