LOOKING BACK: Much-needed clinical centre declared open

HOSPITAL bosses hailed the opening of Darlington Memorial Hospital's first clinical research unit as an important milestone, ten years ago.

The £285,000 unit on the fifth floor of the hospital's main block was financed by income generated by the huge increase in clinical trials which took place in recent years.

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Since County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust decided to turn itself into a centre for research in 2010, when the number of clinical trials increased from four to 30.

The trust became the second largest in the North-East for clinical trials.

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England cricket legend Sir Ian Botham cut a ribbon and declared the new Centre for Clinical Research and Innovation open.

A teaching assistant with a penchant for crisps saved a packet on her wedding dress after a colleague made one from wrappers of her favourite snack.

Jane Gettings, who was tying the knot in March 2014, could get through three of four bags a day and was known for her fondness for the savoury treat.

The 47-year-old learning support assistant was given a surprise wedding party at Harelaw School at Harelaw, near Stanley, County Durham, where she had worked for eight years.

Staff had asked Consett-based snack-maker Phileas Fogg for empty packets and art teacher Louise Oliver fashioned 75 of them into a wedding dress, complete with train.

Ms Gettings said: "It is amazing. I cried when I first saw it. I am not wearing it for the actual ceremony, but I will wear it for a bit on the night time."

A military artist commemorated the centenary of the First World War with his biggest and most important painting to date.

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Ex-serviceman John Palliser, of Newton Aycliffe, County Durham, planned to unveil an oil painting on Armed Forces Day 2014, before it embarked on a four-year tour of galleries and museums around the UK.

The unveiling was the culmination of more than six months of painting, sketching and historical research to ensure every detail of life in the trenches is accurately portrayed.

"This is something I have wanted to do for years and the timing is perfect, with it being the centenary of the First World War,” said Mr Palliser."