Author: Benjamin

A leopard who became popular with visitors at a wild animal park in Kent has died aged 19.Tingting, a North Chinese leopard, arrived at Howletts Wild Animal Park in 2008 when she was just three years old.Keepers at Howletts say Tingting had a “huge personality”. Picture: Daz TakesPhotosShe came to the UK from Karlsruhe in Germany as part of a worldwide breeding programme and was joined by two-year-old male Saian who arrived from Thoiry near Paris.A couple of years later she gave birth to two cubs, one of whom stayed with her until the day she died.Announcing the sad news…

Closures will primarily affect the A282 northbound West Tunnel, with diversions in place via National Highways. Motorists are advised to plan their journeys accordingly. The Dartford Crossing is a vital road link over the River Thames in England, connecting Dartford in Kent to Thurrock in Essex via the A282. This information is accurate at the time of publication, but may be subject to change, particularly in adverse weather conditions. Monday, December 9 – Tuesday, December 10 A282-Northbound A282 Northbound West Tunnel closure Carriageway and slip road closure for tunnel works 9pm – 5.30am Diversion via National Highways roads Tuesday, December…

Bromley Council has received an application to allow the store to sell alcohol during the extended hours. The store is part of a Shell petrol station on Queensway in Petts Wood, Orpington. It is currently open from 7am to 11pm each day while also selling alcohol during these times. The new submission would extend these times to 24 hours a day seven days a week. It also requests for hot food and drinks to be served at the store from 11pm to 5am daily. The proposal has received 20 objections, including two from ward councillors. Conservative Councillor Tony Owen expressed…

Plans to hike parking charges across several towns and villages have been met with fury from worried residents who fear it will “kill off the high street”.Sevenoaks council is proposing increasing both its on and off-street parking costs from next year.Concerns were raised over the upkeep of Bligh’s Meadow car park in Sevenoaks. Photo: GoogleThis will impact several car parks in Sevenoaks town centre, including Bligh’s Meadow, The Stag Theatre, Bradbourne, St Johns & St James, as well as Bevan Place, Park Road and Station Road car parks in Swanley, and Darent, Quebec Avenue and Vicarage Hill car parks in…

A former boxer who sent a Facebook message to a woman threatening to kill her after he was dumped by his latest partner, has narrowly avoided jail.Wesley Hammell, from Medway, became aggressive and abusive towards the woman despite her doing nothing wrong after a drinking session.Wesley Hammell also abused the woman as well as threatening to kill herThe 45-year-old, who has a long history of violence and domestic violence convictions, sent the distressing message after his latest girlfriend finished their relationship.It comes after a conviction in September last year for an assault on a woman and at the time, a…

Plans to expand a village primary school are being opposed over fears it could put the future of others “at risk”.Kent County Council has ambitions to add a new classroom block to Coxheath Primary School, near Maidstone, so as to turn it from a two-form entry into a three-form entry.Coxheath Primary School could be set for an expansion to accommodate more pupilsThe education authority said that there was a large increase in the number of pre-school age children living in Coxheath that warranted the expansion, if they were to be educated locally.They plan to add a third block to the…

Adapted by the sitcom’s original co-creator John Cleese, the play will run at the Churchill Theatre from Tuesday, September 30, to Saturday, October 4, 2025. Described as “the funniest show in town” by the Daily Express, the production will kick off its 10-month UK tour in Bromley, running from September 30, 2025, to July 2026. Tickets for the tour will be available from December 2, 2024, at FawltyTowersTour.co.uk. The play is based on three of the original BBC TV episodes of the “greatest British sitcom of all time” (Radio Times). John Cleese has adapted these episodes into a two-hour stage play,…

Southeastern is reporting “major disruption” to train services in Kent this morning.The rail operator says a “fault with the signalling system” is impacting journeys in the west of the county.There is ‘major disruption’ to Southeastern services. Picture: Stock image/SoutheasternTrains between Dartford and London Victoria are being diverted to Cannon Street, while services between Sevenoaks and London Victoria will only run between Sevenoaks and Orpington.At the same time, engineering works tmean there are no trains running from Ramsgate today, and only buses between Tunbridge Wells and Battle.Passengers have been urged to check Southeastern’s journey planner before travelling. Source link

The strong winds have caused the A282 southbound QEII Bridge to close today (December 7). It is not clear whether the bridge will reopen today yet.  All traffic wishing to travel southbound/clockwise on the M25 is diverted through the east bore tunnel. Northbound traffic must use only the west-bore Dartford Tunnel, which has a height limit of 4.8m (15’9″). Vehicles taller than 4.8m (15’9″) must take an alternative route via the clockwise M25. Drivers have been warned to allow extra journey time and plan ahead. Drivers may wish to take an alternative route or even delay their journey. A statement…

In court, Tesco Stores Ltd pleaded guilty to five charges for failing to comply with the council’s planning enforcement notice between November 11, 2023 and March 6, 2024. This was after Tesco Express in Beckenham failed to comply with a notice issued by the council to stop taking deliveries in South Eden Park Road. A planning condition by Bromley Council, after planning permission was granted in 2016, specified that deliveries should only be made via Stone Park Avenue, which would cause less disturbance to residents. However, Bromley Council says this notice was “seemingly ignored”, leading to the company facing prosecution. As…