Two motorcyclists killed in Masham collision

North Yorkshire Police is appealing for witnesses after two men died in a collision near Masham yesterday.

The two men, a 57-year-old and a 59-year-old, were travelling in opposite directions on the A6108 when their motorbikes collided.

Both men were certified dead at the scene.

Police were called to the incident at about 11.50am yesterday.

One of the men was driving a blue BMW R1200RT motorbike from the direction of Leyburn.

The other man was on a red Moto Guzzi motorbike travelling towards Leyburn when the two vehicles collided.

Police are appealing for any witnesses or drivers with dashcam footage of the collision of either of the bikes on the A6108 prior to the accident.

If you have information that could help with the police’s investigation, call 101 or email Matthew Tanfield on Matthew.Tanfield@northyorkshire.pnn.police.uk with reference number 12210105606.

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Three covid cases in Harrogate district today

A further three cases of coronavirus have been reported in the Harrogate district, according to today’s figures from Public Health England.

Cases have remained low in recent days. The total in the district since the start of the pandemic is now 7,654.

The district’s seven-day covid rate has fallen again to 12 per 100,000.

Starbeck has recorded the most infections in the last seven days, with eight.

The North Yorkshire average is now above England’s average – North Yorkshire is 32 and England is 25.

This is mainly because Selby’s rate has exploded to 112.

No further covid deaths have been reported at Harrogate District Hospital. The total since the pandemic began stands at 179.

According the NHS England figures, the most recent covid death at the hospital was April 11.

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Man admits holding up Summerbridge Stores with knife and hammer

A man carrying a knife and hammer is facing jail for holding up a convenience store in Summerbridge.

Munashe Chikomba, 22, appeared at York Crown Court via video link today and admitted to attempted robbery, possessing an offensive weapon and carrying a knife.

The raid occurred at Summerbridge Stores, a village shop on Main Street, on March 27.

Khadmin Al’Hassan, for Chikomba, said it was “very bizarre” that his “softly-spoken” client should commit such an act and asked for the case to be adjourned for a pre-sentence report.

Judge Sean Morris, the Recorder of York, said:

“He’s never been in trouble before – it’s a bizarre thing to do.”

The judge agreed to adjourn sentence for a probation report but warned Chikomba “not to read (anything) into this adjournment” because “this is a serious matter”.

Chikomba, of Cardigan Road, Headingley, Leeds, was remanded in custody until sentence on June 2 after pleading guilty to attempting to rob a male shop worker, two counts of carrying an offensive weapon and one count of having a bladed article in a public place.

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Knaresborough train station bar is a ‘labour of love’

The owners of a new bar arriving at Knaresborough’s train station next month say the project has become a “labour of love”.

Jason White and Phil Paling of Gorilla Brothers Ltd already own a brewery and bar near Doncaster that focuses on craft ales.

The Track & Sleeper will open on platform two by the last week of May, serving a selection of real ales, ciders and gins.

Its two large rooms allow for plenty of seating, 20 outside and 70 inside.

The owners have made the most of the generous space and installed a large bar, made out of sleepers, to hold 12 pumps. They are hoping to use four of these for guest ales from local breweries.

Mr White said:

“We want to be part of the bar scene in Knaresborough and hopefully people will buy into it. It’s been a labour of love for us.

“We have fallen in love with the town and who’s to say we wouldn’t open another bar locally.”

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It has taken the men more than a year to get to this point after originally submitting their business plan to Northern in January 2020 and only getting into the building to start renovations three weeks ago.

The Grade II listed station dates back to Victorian times. The Track & Sleeper’s design is said to be in keeping with its history by using period colours and maintaining some original features.

Mr White added:

“We’re trying to go along the lines of how things would have looked 100 years ago.”

King’s Cross weekend closure causes disruption for Harrogate trains

No trains will run to or from London King’s Cross today, tomorrow or Sunday April 25 due to upgrade works.

If you have any trains booked for the weekend it may be best to check before leaving the house. The weekend upgrade to the signalling system is expected to cause changes or cancellations to a number of trains.

For today, any LNER trains to and from the north of England and Scotland will now start and end at Peterborough or Stevenage, where passengers can go on to the Thameslink train service or St Pancras.

Any Hull trains have been cancelled today.

Tomorrow and Sunday changes have been made so any LNER trains to and from the North of England and Scotland will start and end at Peterborough or St Neots.

A replacement bus service is in place between St Neots ad Bedford to get to the Thameslink train services and St Pancras.

Any Grand Central and Hull trains will not run.

Railway company Network Rail is asking passengers to check with their train operator before they travel.

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Will Grigg’s on fire, 92 miles per hour

A Sunderland A.F.C player has received a six month driving ban and a fine after he was caught speeding on the A1 (M) in 2019.

William Grigg was driving at speeds of up to 92 mph on the motorway in November 2019 near Ingmanthorpe.

North Yorkshire Police stopped Mr Grigg in his Audi A6 after he exceeded the 70mph speed limit.

He previously pleaded not guilty to the charge but later changed this to guilty .

Sentenced at North Yorkshire Magistrates’ Court last week, he was given a six month driving ban, four penalty points and a fine of £1,000.

The Magistrates’ Court deemed a disqualification necessary as it was a repeat offence for Mr Grigg.

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As well as the £1,000 fine he must also pay £100 surcharge to victim services and pay costs of £85.

The 29-year-old currently lives in Stratford-Upon-Avon and has been ordered to pay the £1,185 by May 12.

The striker is currently on loan at League One side Milton Keynes Dons.

Knaresborough deliberate fire becomes one of many in recent weeks

A fire started by youths last night in Knaresborough joins a list of numerous others in recent weeks.

North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service was called to the fire on Hay-a-Park Lane around 9pm last night.

The Knaresborough crew used a hose reel jet to extinguish the fire in the woods and gave advice to the the group.

This incident is amongst numerous others recorded in recent weeks. The fire service had already put out a plea on its social media recently in an attempt to combat the rise.

It asked parents and guardians to ensure they know what their children are up to now groups can meet outdoors.

The plea, later published of the fire service website, gave this advice:

“Please remind children that:

Deliberately starting fires is usually a criminal offence and even small fires can endanger lives

Fire spreads quickly and can be unpredictable

Playing with fire in the home or garden can have serious unintended consequences

Fires outside can easily get out of control and cause damage to woodland, moorland and wildlife.”

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The fire service says this issue is repeated every year around Easter as the evenings become lighter.

Earlier this month a picnic bench was set alight near the Pinewoods, the fire service also believed this was started deliberately.

Last year The Stray Ferret found the number of deliberate fires, in June, July and August, had actually halved from those in 2019.

Live: Harrogate district traffic and travel

Good morning everyone, traffic is getting busier on the district’s roads now so make sure to keep an eye on our morning blogs.

It’s Suzannah here with you for the last time this week. Please give me a call on 01423 276197 or get in touch on social media if you have any updates for me.

This blog, brought to you by The HACS Group, brings you updates every 15 minutes on the road and rail links near you.

Have a lovely day.

9am – Full Update 

That’s it from me today, time to jump over to the newsdesk. It’ll be Leah with you bright and early tomorrow.

Have a great day.

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Error spotted on Harrogate brown plaque two years after unveiling

It seems we are a pretty unobservant bunch in Harrogate – except for resident Alex Pemberton.

A brown plaque installed on Regent Parade two years ago has a glaring error on it yet until this week no one had spotted it.

The plaque on Library House was placed on the property by Harrogate Civic Society due to its historically important connection to author Ely Hargrove.

Hargrove was an 18th century author and publisher who wrote Harrogate’s first guide book. He moved his shop to Library House before turning it into the town’s first subscription library.

Unveiled in December 2018, the inscription on the plaque reads that Hargrove “moved his shop from Church Square to this newly built Regent Regent Parade location“.

A Stray Ferret reader, Alex Pemberton, got in touch after spotting the error yesterday. He said:

“I was walking past and saw the plaque and just thought I’d give it a read. I had to read it a few times to check I wasn’t mis-reading it and even got my wife to check it too. I think it should be left as is and the Society should save the money. It adds to the interest of it.”

Plaques are expensive, each normally costs between £500 and £800 to manufacture and install.

At its unveiling, the current owner of the house and founder of Springfield Healthcare stood alongside the Mayor of the time, cllr Bernard Bateman, as he cut the red ribbon.

Harrogate Civic Society’s co-chair Stuart Holland said:

“We hadn’t realised there was a mistake. We’re very grateful for Alex for getting in touch and making us aware. We appreciate him being so observant. The Civic Society will speak to the manufacturer and see if there is a way of correcting the mistake.”

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The Library House is said to have been very popular with tourists in the 19th century and managed to find its way into Sir Walter Scott’s 1823 novel St Ronan’s Wall.

In 1819 the building was bought by William Langdale who continued the subscription business, issuing from September 1820 a ‘Weekly List’ of visitors’ names and their hotels.

This inspired a rival Pickersgill Palliser in 1834 who added a Stage Coach timetable, later expanding in 1836 to the ‘Harrogate Advertiser’.

The library closed in 1857 and was then converted into residential use.

Live: Harrogate district traffic and travel

Good morning everyone, I’m back again today with traffic and travel updates for you to make your journey easier.

Our 15 minute updates, brought to you by The HACS Group, aim to keep the Harrogate district moving.

We have now opened our phone lines earlier to allow you to give us a call if you see anything near you. Please only call if it is safe on 01423 276197.

Remember, you can still get in touch via social media and our email contact@thestrayferret.co.uk.

Have a great day.

9am – Full Update 

That’s it from me today, thanks for getting involved I will be here again tomorrow.

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Roads looks to be clear so far this morning, no traffic hotspots top report yet.

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