TWO drunken louts who gatecrashed a Colne party and dished out violence to several innocent people have both been jailed for 16 months.

Burnley Crown Court was told how Nikki East and Jobi Varey, both now 21, had attacked Daniel Helm, booting him and allegedly stamping on his head. The victim was left with a tear to his eardrum after the trouble at a flat in the early hours of February 11th.

The hearing was told how Mr Helm was said to have been kicked “viciously” by both defendants after they were asked to leave the gathering and forced their way back into the property. Before they had set on Mr Helm, a woman had been punched and knocked to the floor by one of them, and was said to have been kicked by both. A male party-goer had a glass smashed over his head and Varey broke a bottle and held it up against a man’s neck. Mr Helm went to intervene and was floored and assaulted.

Both defendants have been breaking the law since they were children - East since he was 12 or 13 and his accomplice since he was 14, have been given anti-social behaviour orders in the past and have repeatedly flouted them.

East, of Windsor Street, and Varey, of Duke Street, both Colne, each admitted affray and assault causing actual bodily harm.

Mr Stuart McCracken (prosecuting) said after he was attacked, Mr Helm tried to put Varey in a headlock, but ended up on the floor, being kicked. East punched him in the face, knocked him to the floor and kicked him. Both defendants were said to have stamped on Mr Helm’s head.

East and Varey were arrested nearby and questioned. East made no comment and Varey accepted being present but denied assaulting anybody. He claimed he smashed a bottle to ward people off.

Mr McCracken said East had 38 offences on his record, going back to 2003. Varey had committed 63 offences, over seven years.

For East, Mr Richard Taylor said: “He had had too much to drink and he behaved in this unpleasant, he concedes, way. This will be his first adult sentence and the longest sentence he will have received.”

Miss Kathryn Johnson, defending Varey, said he wasn’t the instigator of the trouble. She continued: “Having said that, he has to accept responsibility for joining in the incident and of course it rapidly escalated.” Miss Johnson urged the judge to spare the defendant immediate custody and give him one last chance.

Sentencing the defendants, Judge Beverley Lunt told them: “You were both violently out of control on this evening fuelled, as you were both were, by alcohol. “

The judge said it was lucky for the pair Mr Helm’s injuries were not far more serious, She continued: “You have both got dreadful records and you have both got dreadful histories of completely ignoring court orders.”

VOTE now ... and have your say.

The heavens opened across East Lancashie in late June, leaving summer events cancelled, roads flooded and the ground floor of some homes under feet of water.

Everyone has a story to tell of Friday, June 22nd, whether it was getting soaked dashing to and from your car; watching a local river break its banks; diverting a domestic flood disater or starting a mopping up operation.

But could more have been done by the authorities to prevent this misery? Should those at most risk have been issued with sandbags; should adequate river defences and suitable drianage measures already have been in place?

Or do you think it was just an act of nature that could not haveb been avoided and people living near a river should simply accept the possible risks involved?

IT’S the 1980`s again wide shoulder pads, big hair, loads of makeup and that’s just the men!

Yes some of us remember that period of excess only to vividly, that was a time when you could spend money! Of course who could forget one of the biggest movies of that period, yes folks I am talking about TOP GUN (in case you were thinking of something else)

Yes TOP GUN starring the grinning jack Russell himself, TOM CRUISE, poncing around on his motor bike (without a helmet) chasing horses and generally pretending he was taller, whilst flying around in expensive war planes, bucking the system and generally being the best there is (as usual)disobeying orders and winning the respect of his superiors and peers , a place where they all have funny nicknames like GOOSE ( you don`t want to drop the soap in front of that guy)ICEMAN, and WOLF (no it isn`t the guy off GLADIATORS) of course TOM is called MAVERICK ( SHORTY or SMILEY would have been more appropriate).

I personally hated TOP GUN the movie, it was typical of that period of excess and shallowness, the theme tune is one of the lamest tunes of the 80`s and I cannot get all misty eyed over it, in fact I agree with SID (Quentin Tarantino`s character in 1994 movie SLEEP WITH ME) regarding the true meaning of TOP GUN, the best explanation of the film ever!

OK fair enough the bits without TOM CRUISE in, are fine (the flying sequences that is) apart from the annoying radio chatter, and the fact that they are hinting at TOP GUN 2 has highlighted the genre again.

So we come to the game TOP GUN: HARDLOCK by 505 GAMES, well to start with there are no shower/locker room levels in this game, or in fact anything to do with riding motorbikes against horses (which might have been fun) instead its good old fashioned flying and air to air combat, I say old fashioned because that’s the kind of feeling I felt when playing TOP GUN: HARDLOCKED, more of an early noughties game than something of today,.

The controls can be very irritating at times and I found I couldn`t make my mind up whether I wanted to use a controller, or my CYBORG joystick, neither gave me a satisfying feeling, mainly because the joystick didn`t feel comfortable with all the different commands the game demanded, the game is obviously developed with the controller in mind, so I eventually stuck to that.

TOP GUN: HARDLOCK is a standard flight simulator and not the best around, the fact that there was no in cockpit camera view to start with was off putting, and the constant in game control prompts kept breaking my concentration.

The action is simple just lock onto an enemy press X and the computer takes over, you then just have to keep on the bad guys tail until you can shoot him down which is great for the first few times , but then this soon becomes tedious when I realised that its exactly the same for all opponents.

Now if you are after a real shoot `em up dog fight, flying game then please look elsewhere , TOP GUN: HARDLOCK isn`t really bad, it’s just dated and not very inspiring, the missions are the same as you would find in any similar game , you know the stuff avoiding radar, bombing missions and protecting other air craft.

So really TOP GUN: HARDLOCK hasn`t much to offer I am afraid; it’s all been done before and in a majority of cases better.

With 15 levels to plod through, it’s not exactly an afternoons gaming and the action is quite intense if somewhat repetitive , I mean just how many MIG`s can you shoot down in one session without getting bored .

The graphics are very nice with realistic aircraft and nice environments so it’s not all bad and it all looks nice and grainy.

There is an on-line element with up to 16 players but unfortunately I couldn`t find many gamers on line, but there are quite a few options like team deathmatch, carrier strike and aircraft escort , so the game is not short of content.

Summary

TOP GUN: HARDLOCK isn`t a bad game, it`s just nothing new, the game play is no different than half a dozen other flight games out there, OK it’s not boring action wise, I just found it repetitive and the controls somewhat frustrating, It’s a fun action packed game at its core, just don`t expect too much from it.

I give TOP GUN: HARDLOCK 7 out of 10 as it’s not a dreadful game, just not very original

• Top Gun: hard lock

• Developer : Headstrong Games

• Publisher : 505 Games

• Genre : Flight/Action

• Release date : 6th April 2012

• Xbox 360®

• Playstation 3®

• {http://www.topgungame.com.topgungame.com}

{http://plus.google.com/108216529008755708133?rel=author|By Dayvid Ryan}

PARTS of Clitheroe are set for two-and-a-half weeks of heavier than usual overnight traffic as a section of the A59 bypass is closed for essential resurfacing work.

Lancashire County Council is alerting motorists to the overnight closure of part of the A59 from Thursday, July 5th, to Sunday, July 22nd. It affects the A59 between its junction with Whalley Road (A671) and Pimlico Link Road (also A61). That section will be closed nightly from 7 p.m. to 7 a.m., but fully reopen during the day to keep disruption to a minimum. Access to Pendleton and The Wellsprings restaurant will be kept open throughout, with a 30mph speed restriction in force for safety.

A signed diversion will take overninght traffic through Clitheroe to avoid the closed section of the A59. A further diversion will be in place from Sabden as traffic from the village will not be able to access the A59 via Clitheroe Road.

Daniel Herbert, highways manager for East Lancashire, said: “We’re carrying out this essential resurfacing work overnight to minimise disruption as far as we possibly can.

“The A59 is a very busy route and closing it when traffic is at a minimum is the best option as it allows us to complete the work quickly and safely.

“The diversion will mean that other roads nearby will be much quieter than usual and we’ll be using it as an opportunity to carry out some more minor works on these roads to avoid causing more disruption in future.

“I’m sorry for any disruption these works will cause and would like to thank people for their patience.”

Highways teams will be working seven days-a-week on the A59 to get the work completed as quickly as possible.

As traffic will not be able to use Shawbridge Street and Pendle Road to access the A59 from Clitheroe, a full-time diversion will also be in place at the junction with Waterloo Road. Pendle Road will be closed except for access between July 13th and 27th from 9 a.m. to 4-30 p.m. from its junction with Highmoor Park to allow work to junctions and the surface on Pendle Road, which will take place during the day.

PUB-goers will be able to enjoy a range of ciders at a Colne pub’s cider festival.

The festival will take place at the Wallace Hartley in Church Street from Wednesday, July 11th, to Sunday, July 29th.

The pub will offer up to 16 draught and bottled ciders over the 19 days from cider makers in England and Wales.

The selection will include traditional ciders, fruit ciders and perries (pear cider).

Among those on offer will be Mr Whitehead’s Plum Cider, Thatchers Cheddar Valley, Sheppy’s Farmhouse Draught, Weston’s Cider Twist Blackcurrant, Gwynt y Ddraig’s Welsh Gold Perry and Sandford Orchards’ Devon Scrumpy.

Pub manager Rebekah Walker  said: “Cider is the perfect summer drink and I am certain people will enjoy our fantastic selection, a number of which are not usually available in the area.”

All the ciders will be available at £2.20 a pint.

Tasting notes on all of the ciders will be available at the pub.

BURNLEY are close to tying up a deal for Australian keeper Daniel Nizic - and remain keen to extend Brian Jensen’s stay at the club into a testimonial year.

Nizic, 17, had a spell on trial with Portsmouth last term, but Pompey were unable to sign him due to a transfer embargo forced on them after entering administration for the second time in as many years.

And it is thought the former Sydney youngster has elected to move north instead.

While he is one for the future, boss Eddie Howe still hopes to persuade the club’s longest-serving player Jensen to move into a 10th season at Turf Moor.

The Danish keeper was offered fresh terms at the end of last season, but would have to accept a reduced package should he stay.

Howe said: “We hope to come to agreement with Brian.

“He has been such a fantastic servant to the football club for such a long time.

“He is still a very good goalkeeper and a big personality.

“He is someone we have enjoyed working with and we would like to keep him.”

He added: “Things have dragged on throughout the summer, through no fault of Brian’s.

“It’s been a tough one for us because despite the transfer fee we got for Jay (Rodriguez) we have to be very careful with the money we spend.

“I know Brian wants to stay and we are desperate for him to stay, so hopefully we can come to an agreement.”

Another player Howe is keen to keep hold of is forward Alex MacDonald, who furthered his experience at the end of last season with a successful loan spell with Plymouth Argyle.

Howe admitted: “We would like him to stay.

“I think he probably needs, another loan spell this year to aid his development, and I have spoken to Alex on this.

“We would like him to stay but the ball is very much in his court on that one.”

Meanwhile, with the Clarets due in for the start of pre-season training next Friday, Howe could be without his first-choice central defensive duo.

Michael Duff is likely to be absent after picking up an injury with Northern Ireland in their 6-0 defeat against Holland in Amsterdam at the start of the month.

And David Edgar will be given extra time to recover from a punishing international schedule with Canada.

Howe explained that Duff “rolled his ankle and tweaked his knee” against the Dutch, and he said: “He has been for a scan. We don’t envisage there being too many problems.

“We hope he can start pre-season training but if not it will be just after the rest of the lads.

“He did tweak his knee slightly and I think he would have been out for a period time in the middle of the season.

“But hopefully with the break he will be okay.

“We are going to wrap him up in cotton wool I think and hopefully get him through pre-season and the early games of the season injury-free because he proved last season what a big player he is for us.”

Edgar will have an extra 10 days’ rest after featuring in three international games this month, against United States, Cuba and Honduras.

Howe said: “David will be given an extended break.

“He has been travelling and playing really throughout the break so will give him an extra ten days.

“He will report back on Monday, July 16th.

“You also have to remember while the other players were enjoying the international breaks he was flying all over the world so he deserves a little bit of extended rest.”

• The Burnley Express has launched a FREE football app which is now available to download on {http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/burnley-express-football-app/id525013890?ls=1&mt=8|iPhone} and {http://www.bsmwap.com/Download/BurnleyExpress.apk|Android} devices.

A TEAM from a Burnley care home are taking part in this year’s Pendleside Hospice Midnight Walk.

Louise Carrington, Tracy McKnight, Mary McKnight, Susan Bradbury and Siavonne Lord spend their working life caring for residents of Abiden Rest Care Home, in Rosehill Road, but on July 7th they will be taking part in the fund-raising walk.

The Midnight Walk starts at midnight from Burnley Football Club. The ladies follow a fully marshalled route of five or eight miles before returning to the football club. At the end of the walk, ladies are rewarded with a medal, certificate and choice of a bacon butty, vegetarian alternative or fruit salad.

Cost of entry to the walk is £10 per lady, if you register by Friday, June 29th, but ladies who turn up and register on the night pay £20. Everybody that registers gets a Midnight Walk t-shirt.

Local radio station 2BR will be on hand on the night to entertain the ladies before the start of the walk, along with Queen tribute band HRH, featuring Steve Littlewood as Freddie Mercury, who will get ladies in the party spirit.

If you would like to take part, register online at {http://www.pendleside.org.uk|www.pendleside.org.uk} or over the phone on 01282 440120.

As old rail lines are transformed into cycleways and the designated Cycling Cities and Towns project takes off, it comes as no surprise that cycling is now officially one of Britain’s favourite pastimes.

Nothing could be finer than saddling up for a family outing and heading for the country lanes and tracks, so where do you start if you are a cycling novice and want to make sure that you have the right bikes and know how to keep them in safe working order?

Haynes Publishing knows all about bikes and cycling and, now in its 17th year of publication, The Bike Book continues to be a bestseller.

The sixth edition, which has recently hit the shelves, is a major update to this invaluable manual and includes all new developments in the cycling world along with a thorough check and revision of all existing material.

As well as being compiled by a new author, excellent photography gives clear and helpful close-ups and the first page redesign in the book’s history offers readers the perfect user-friendly and contemporary manual.

The clear step-by-step approach for which Haynes is famous remains intact and with sections from choosing a bike, routine maintenance and advice on braking systems through to safety checks, helmets, clothing and lights, every aspect of cycling is covered.

While amateurs can pick up tips on setting the bike’s riding position or teaching a child to ride a bike, professionals and instructors can find everything they need from wheel truing and spoke replacement to setting up a suspension bike and repairing brake systems.

The section on routine maintenance and repairs helps with the most basic of tasks like removing a wheel, repairing punctures, caring for chains and gears and even cleaning your bike.

In a special Troubleshooting section, there are suggestions on what to do if you hit problems like your saddle is too uncomfortable, the bike rattles, pedalling is too stiff, the brake levers creak or gear shifting requires a lot of effort.

So whether you have been cycling the highways and byways for decades or are contemplating the first steps to becoming a leisure time cyclist, The Bike Book could prove to be your ideal travelling companion.

(Haynes Publishing, hardback, £16.99)

CLARETS boss Eddie Howe continues to play a waiting game as he looks to add to his squad.

Howe is prepared to be patient as he tries to add to the signing of right-back Luke O’Neill, snapped up for £80,000 earlier this month.

And while there is a clamour to bring players in among supporters, Howe doesn’t want to scrimp on quality and move down his list of targets just yet.

He tried to play a similar game last summer, particularly over the loan signing of Stoke City utility man Ryan Shotton, but ultimately lost out on his signature.

And he will again bide his time, within reason, while he retains hope of landing the players he wants most of all.

Howe has reignited his interest in centre-back Jason Shackell this summer, having failed to lure him from Barnsley last year.

Derby have turned down four bids for the former Norwich man already, with two believed to be from Burnley – but it appears the Rams have had a rethink over their skipper’s future.

Leeds United midfielder Adam Clayton is another player Howe would like to bring to Turf Moor, but he faces stiff competition for his signature – with his former Leeds boss Simon Grayson hoping to take him to newly-promoted Huddersfield Town.

And Howe said: “The difficulty we have is we want players who are better than what we have, and that’s incredibly difficult because we’ve got a good squad.

“We’ll try to bring in the best players possible with the money we’ve been given.

“You give your top targets every chance of coming off.

“If they don’t, you have to reassess and we will do accordingly, but while we still feel we’ve got an opportunity and a chance we’ll endeavour to bring them in.”

O’Neill arrived from non-league, and while supporters would like to see some Championship experience brought in, Howe is looking at all markets as he tries to spend what budget he has wisely.

He said: “There has to be a balance, we’ve definitely got one eye on the Conference market, lower Football League, because we certainly believe from our time and experience lower down there are some good players down there.

“You only have to look at other clubs, and our own players, to see how well some have done when they’ve come up.

“By and large, ours have all done really well.

“But we have to have an eye on other avenues, Premier League loans, players released by Premier League clubs, the Rangers scenario, clubs maybe struggling financially, and maybe foreign players as well.

“It’s trying to pick the best players with the money we have.”

Howe has cast an eye over the players set to leave Rangers, and he has been linked with a move for former Clarets forward Kyle Lafferty, although I understand that is unlikely.

The player is believed to be attracting interest from other SPL clubs, as well as clubs on the continent.

As Howe looks to keep the rest of his squad together, following the club record sale of Jay Rodriguez to Southampton, as revealed last week, the door remains open for winger Keith Treacy to impress at Turf Moor, following his loan spell at Sheffield Wednesday at the end of last season, although Burnley have had enquiries for for the one-time Republic of Ireland wideman – with Wednesday and Barnsley believed to have expressed an interest.

There is also interest in captain Chris McCann, who has one year remaining on his contract.

Swansea were keen on the 24-year-old, before Brendan Rodgers took up the reins at Liverpool.

But I understand Premier League rivals Norwich and Stoke have also weighed up the prospect of making a move for the Dubliner.

• The Burnley Express has launched a FREE football app which is now available to download on {http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/burnley-express-football-app/id525013890?ls=1&mt=8|iPhone} and {http://www.bsmwap.com/Download/BurnleyExpress.apk|Android} devices.

NELSON is celebrating the success of its new two top national awards - one of which was presented by Princess Anne!

The stone-based work which recreated the heart of town and brought traffic back through had already been given a 2012 National Stone Sustainability Awards landscape title in April.

The town centre had been named one of Mary Portas’s national Portas Pilot project, too, providing £100,000 funding to come up with new ideas to boost the shopping centre.

But Nelson centre has won two more national awards. It has scooped the top award in the Highways Category of the 2012 Street Design Awards. And it has come top in the Mouchel Streets Category at the 7th Annual Chartered Institution of Highways and Transportation Awards.

This week, Pendle Council’s engineering and special projects manager Mr Peter Atkinson went down to London to collect the CIHT award and was given it by Princess Anne. He said: “It was a great evening It was a real surprise when they announced we had won it at the presentation.”

Council leader Coun. Joe Cooney is delighted, too. He said: “These awards prove that we are on the right track to transforming and regenerating Nelson Town Centre.”

Coun. David Whipp, who is responsible for Pendle Council’s engineering team, added: “It’s great that the quality scheme carried out in Nelson has been recognised nationally. The council’s design team did a good job working with local craftsmen, using mainly local natural materials to create a pleasing thoroughfare for people on foot and in cars. The result is a much livelier space than previously.”

And Mr Brian Cookson, the council’s executive director (regeneration), said: “To win three awards in such close succession is a real thrill and I’d like to congratulate everyone involved. The challenge now is to breathe life back into the town.

“Our first step will be to tackle the number of empty shops and involve more young people in their town centre, through our work with Mary Portas. It’s a challenge, but we have a team of people who are passionate about Nelson Town Centre and committed to creating a positive future for the town.”

Coun. Nadeem Younis, chairman of the council’s Nelson Committee, added: “I’m delighted to hear the town is award-winning again! After the substantial investments of recent years, Nelson Town Centre is now a much more pleasant place to shop and to visit. The town is now well-placed to take advantage of all the new initiatives and I urge people to shop locally and support our retailers.”

A WOMAN who smashed her car into an antiques shop before careering down the road while a man clung to her bonnet for dear life has walked free from court.

Mandy McGuigan avoided jail despite admitting charges of GBH, dangerous driving and failing to stop after an accident following the incident on June 22nd last year.

The incident happened when McGuigan went into Heathcote Antiques, Keighley, to try to sell a picture.

When she was refused, she left the store and accidentally reversed her car into the shop.

Staff member Simon Webster (46) then stood in front of her car but she drove straight into him, carrying him along and forcing him to launch himself from the bonnet of the vehicle 100 metres later.

He was taken to hospital with serious injuries.

McGuigan (42), of Tennyson Road, Colne, then carried on driving without knowing whether or not she had killed him.

Mr Webster, who was in court, said of McGuigan’s 12-month sentence, suspended for two years: “She should have gone to jail. I really feel lucky to be alive and suffer pain even now. It was a very serious crime which warranted custody.

“It was horrendous at the time. I just put myself in front of the car as I didn’t want her driving. I was screaming at her to stop.

“I’m not sure if I’d do that again now.”

Speaking about the £750 compensation McGuigan was ordered to pay, Mr Webster added: “It’s a drop in the ocean really.

“I was left with a broken shoulder, cuts to the back of my head, part of my knee is missing and I had cuts and bruises all over my body. I’ve no medical bills but I did miss a lot of work, so that really doesn’t cover it.

“I’m just glad she was going down the wrong side of the road as I would have been flung into a wall if she was on the right side, and that definitely would have killed me.”

Bradford Crown Court heard McGuigan has mental health problems which have been brought about by years of abusing amphetamines and drink. She also has previous criminal damage offences.

Judge Jonathan Durham Hall said: “This is a very unusual case and if I had been sentencing you immediately, I would have put you in prison for at least 15 months.

“Because of your crass stupidity and selfishness, your victim suffered a broken shoulder and was lucky to not be more seriously injured.”

CCTV captured the moment McGuigan drove at Mr Webster, propelling him on to the bonnet, and heading along the road with him clinging on.

McGuigan drove off from the scene, but was caught as the registration number on her Peugeot 307 car led police to her address, where she was arrested.

The court heard how she is on medication and, although she had drank a can of lager on the day of the accident, she was not over the drink-drive limit.

McGuigan was also given 300 hours’ unpaid work, two years’ supervision and a three-month curfew from 7 p.m. to 7 a.m.

She was also ordered to take an extended driving test after serving a two-year ban.

POLICE are urging dog owners to keep their pets under control after a spate of attacks on livestock.

PC Tony Walsh, of Clitheroe Police, has received a number of complaints from farmers after a series of incidents in which livestock was harassed, attacked and even killed by dogs. In the latest incident, a sheep and lamb were killed over the weekend near Pendle Hill.

Now police are stepping up patrols in and around the Pendle Hill area, West Bradford and Bolton-By-Bowland, where the majority of attacks have been reported, and will be working with local farmers in order to improve signage near entrances.

Police are also warning dog owners they could face a substantial fine if they are prosecuted and convicted.

PC Tony Walsh, who is one of the rural Community Beat Managers in the Ribble Valley, says it is particularly important that dogs are kept on a lead when they are in fields where livestock is kept.

He said: “Unfortunately, a number of sheep and lambs are killed each year by dogs which have been let off their leads in fields that contain livestock. Owners may believe that their pets will not harm the animals, but a loose dog is distressing for the sheep and on occasion dogs do attack, and these attacks can be fatal.

“This can be a traumatic experience, not just for the sheep and the other animals in the field, but also for the farmer, whose livelihood is intrinsically tied to these animals and the dog owner, who is often taken completely by surprise by their pet’s behaviour.”

PC Walsh added: “Owners can be fined if their dogs are worrying livestock, but there is also the risk that their pet may be shot by a farmer trying to protect his livestock. I would like to remind all dog walkers to ensure that their pets remain on their leads where required.

“It is important that they remain obedient and under control at all times to ensure there is no potential for them to chase or worry livestock. We will be taking positive action against irresponsible owners. Livestock are an important part of farmers’ livelihood and they would appreciate the public’s assistance in protecting their animals.”

READERS of East Lancashire Newspapers are being given the opportunity to become Twitter-style reviewers.

This week sees the launch of Tweet Reviews, an exciting new project that gives you the chance to have your say in 140 characters or less.

Whether you have watched a film that you loved, read a book that you hated, or saw a piece of theatre that inspired you, we want to hear from you.

Maybe you’ve got an opinion on a new TV show or album, or are dying to let people know about an impressive local restaurant or club. Let us know, and you will have the chance to be appear in the Burnley Express, the Clitheroe Advertiser and The Nelson Leader.

All the best reviews will be published in the paper, and all reviews, so long as they are appropriate, will be retweeted to our followers. Our Express account currently has over 2,600 followers, our Nelson account has nearly 800 followers, and our Clitheroe account has over 1,500 followers.

This will be an ongoing project, so there is no limit to how many reviews you can send us.

The format is straight forward - all we need to know is who you are tweeting to, what it is you are tweeting about, where you saw it, and what your opinion of it was. And, of course, don’t forget to use the hashtag #tweetreview.

For example: @BurnleyExpress Theatre/Blood Brothers/Manchester Opera House/A rollercoaster of a musical that is truly one of Willy Russell’s finest works #tweetreview

@pendlenews Book/Birdsong/Sebastian Faulks/Couldn’t put it down. A highly recommended read that gives a heartbreaking insight into the war. #tweetreview

@clithadvertiser TV/The Exclusives/ITV 2/A bit of a guilty pleasure. Ellie definitely deserved to win #tweetreview

If you don’t have Twitter, but would still like to #tweetreview, then send an e-mail to Rebecca.Cohen@jpress.co.uk, putting #tweetreview in the subject line.

Keep following @BurnleyExpress, @pendlenews, and @clithadvertiser for more details.

STRANGE to think that such a diverse game like FABLE should have an off shoot like FABLE HEROES and yet here it is, created by LIONHEAD studios, on what they refer to as their CREATIVE day an annual event, allowing members of staff to showcase an idea, and this is the result.

FABLE HEROES available on XBOX LIVE®, is a basic hack and slash co-op game involving up to 4 players, on-line and locally, set within the FABLE universe, and that is it really.

The objective of the game is to hack and slash your way through each level with your 3 buddies who are the FABLE HERO dolls (who are dressed as FABLE characters) and collect as many gold coins as possible, you then reach a fork in the road at the end, and you can choose either a boss battle, or a mini game.

After defeating the boss, or mini game, your gold count is totted up, and each player is awarded accordingly, usually with a place on the podium, unless you come last of course, then it’s the bowed head of shame, with the obligatory trombone noise.

OK, so you have all this gold burning a hole in your puppet pocket, what do you do with it? Buy upgrades of course! This process I found to be a little tedious, you have to throw a dice and then choose what upgrade you want from that square (each character has 39 upgrades) which is a fine and dandy to start with, but as you progress you find it takes ages to land on the right square, to get the upgrade you are missing, these can be, additional power, or weapons, weapon upgrades and even movement and attack enhancements.

So what do you do when you’ve upgraded to the max and you still have loads of gold left? Well you can donate it to your fellow players, so they can upgrade quicker, or keep it and transfer it over to FABLE: THE JOURNEY (which launches soon).

To be honest the game is so easy you don`t really need all these upgrades, defeating packs of HOBBES, BEETLES, and other assorted baddies isn`t the hardest thing to do, and you are given the opportunity to gain temporary upgrades at the beginning of each battle , by pressing button A next to a treasure chest, resulting in a variety of different changes, there is of course a moral choice as well during the game, when you occasionally come across “good and evil” chests giving you the opportunity to bestow a temporary power on one of your buddies ,or inflict a curse which that player can transfer to another on contact, or suffer the consequences.

Gameplay is pretty straight forward, as are the controls, the one thing that puzzles me is what age group are they aiming at here? I mean the look of the game is childlike, yet the content is very violent.

The whole point of FABLE HEROES is co-operation, this is a multi-player game and should be seen as that, it’s definitely not a single player that’s for sure, and it can be fun to play, the graphics are bright and cheerful and the controls simple and undemanding.

FABLE fans will love the attention to detail as you get to visit some of the more well-known places from the original FABLE series.

Summary

FABLE HEROES is a no nonsense, straight forward co-op game that’s easy to play and has its moments of irritation, it is more for fans of the FABLE UNIVERSE to be honest, and I can`t imagine many non-FABLE fans showing an interest, I still think it is somewhat confusing as to which age group it is aimed at, but at least there is no bad language in this so it must be aimed at kids!

I give FABLE HEROES 7 out of 10 it does have some nice moments but it’s hardly a challenge.

• Fable Heroes

• Publisher: Microsoft Game Studios

• Developer: Lionhead Studios

• Xbox Live Arcade®

• Genre: Action

• Release Date: 2nd May 2012

• {http://www.lionhead.com/fable-heroes|www.lionhead.com/fable-heroes}

{http://plus.google.com/108216529008755708133?rel=author|By Dayvid Ryan}

AFTER beating the torrential rain, Nelson suffered defeat in league and cup at the weekend.

Following the deluge in the previous 48 hours, it was amazing a cricket match was played at all on Saturday against Haslingden, but another 44-over affair was started, just 45 minutes later than scheduled.

A lot depended on the toss and, whereas Nelson benefitted last week, Haslingden won it.

Haslingden asked Nelson to bat and were delighted to have half of Nelson’s side out by the 13th over.

Sean Lemon was caught in the gully for a duck, James Lickess was bowled for eight and professional Shahzaib Hasan was caught, driving uppishly, at mid-on for five.

Skipper Neil Thompson (3) was also caught at mid-on, and Chris Heap (3) went to a lbw decision, putting Nelson on 37-5.

David Crotty came to the rescue with a determined 32 but he was bowled by visiting professional, Harry Boam, just as Nelson seemed to be recovering.

Crotty had hit four boundaries. Lewis Bradley went for three but younger brother, Russell, held firm for 50 minutes as he contributed a very useful 22.

He was caught on the square-leg boundary after hitting three fours.

Tom Bradshaw (11) and Toqir Hussain (20 not out) added valuable runs at the death and Nelson closed on 127-9.

Two rain showers had reduced Nelson’s over allocation and the match became a 40-over affair.

Nelson’s opening attack was depleted with Richard Meade away and Waqas Tahir injured.

Thompson decided to open with Hasan, but the visitors progressed to 34 without loss from the first 10 overs.

Hasan’s off-breaks were not effective on the slow, dead pitch but Thompson gave his side some hope by claiming a couple of wickets.

Lee Ingham was caught behind for 13 and Graham Knowles was stopped in his tracks after making 26, caught by Lemon.

Toqir Hussain replaced Hasan and immediately bowled Boam for nine, but was unable to make any further inroads as Haslingden cantered towards victory.

Thompson did bowl Jack Taylor for six but Lewis McIntosh and Sam Kershaw put on 46 to see their side home with six wickets and five overs to spare.

McIntosh hit an unbeaten 44 on including three sixes and four fours.

The Worsley Cup tie between Nelson and Accrington got underway on Sunday at the third time of asking.

Accrington won the toss and elected to bat first, but it was Nelson who got the better of the early exchanges.

Nelson opened their bowling attack with Thompson and 14-year-old Harrison Phelan and it was the youngster who gained success with his very first ball in senior cricket.

Matt Wilson misjudged the delivery and gave a relatively simple catch to Lickess at mid-on.

Unfortunately, Phelan didn’t make any further breakthroughs but he can be pleased with his first spell of bowling with the first eleven.

Thompson bowled extremely tightly, taking 1-12 from his 10 overs - and that is despite conceding seven in wides!

With regular bowlers missing from the attack, Crotty stepped up to bowl his quota of 10 overs and he too bowled economically. He took 1-26, claiming the important wicket of Ashar Zaidi, the Accrington professional, who he bowled for 23.

Aijaz Shah, batting at number three for the visitors, was slow to start, recording just six runs from the initial 57 balls he received.

His patience reaped rich dividends later though as he went on to score 55 from a total of 120 balls.

He and Stuart Crabtree (35) were the backbone of the Accrington innings, putting on 84 for the 4th wicket.

Shahzaib Hasan took 2-50 but his figures would have looked better if it wasn’t for the fact that at least two catches were dropped off his bowling.

Nelson faced a daunting target of 183 to win and a big innings was required from someone.

However, despite several batsmen getting starts, none were able to go on and build a winning innings. Lickess (17), Lemon (12) and Thompson (12) all helped to keep Nelson in the picture but it was a minor disaster when Crotty was run out for five.

Hasan was playing a very responsible innings, picking off singles with ease but, when he edged Shah to slip, he was out for 19 and Nelson’s hopes were dashed.

Some of the younger batsmen in the lower order did not disgrace themselves with Russell Bradley making 15 and Tom Bradshaw gathering 25 from only 26 balls before he was last out with Nelson still 48 runs short of victory.

Nelson are at Todmorden tomorrow.

Colne gained sweet revenge for last week’s defeat at Accrington when they achieved a comfortable victory against the same opponents on the Horsfield on Saturday.

The ground’s drainage was tested to the full by the deluge on Friday, but even with a brief downpour just after 1 p.m., the game started half an hour late.

Accrington won the toss, and put Colne in to bat on a very wet wicket.

With Justin Nutter away, 15-year-old Joel Duerden opened with Sam Tillotson, and acquitted himself well.

He played with a straight bat and did not take risks, and although his score of nine will not make headlines, it was encouraging.

By the time he was caught at slip, Tillotson had departed for nine and Khurram Nazir for seven.

Professional Shadley van Schalkwyk (pictured) followed for six, and Colne were in trouble at 55-4.

Nathan Whitehead (42) and Matthew Wilson (41) made the best stand of the day, putting on 57.

Paradoxically the wet wicket may have helped, because it made it clear to the batsmen that playing straight was the safe way to get runs.

Wilson played several of his trademark drives, two which avoided the problem of a slow outfield by sailing past the sightscreen for six.

Whitehead kept pace with the type of innings we have not often seen for Colne recently, pushing the singles, not risking too many big hits, but finding the gaps in the field and keeping the score moving.

In spite of three brief rain delays, Colne moved the score along to 161-8 from 42 overs.

Van Schalkwyk opened the bowling from the Grange End, and bowled unchanged through the innings.

His first two wickets were caught behind, then lbw, bowled, and another caught behind to leave Accrington 44-5.

The only dangerous partnership of the innings, between Stuart Crabtree (26) and Simon Hanson (31), was worth 39 before Hanson slipped turning for a second and sent Crabtree back, but too late – Crabtree was run out.

Van Schalkwyk bowled Greenwood, then gave Tillotson behind the stumps his fourth catch of the day.

Nazir took the other two wickets, and Accrington crashed to 101 all out, 60 runs in arrears, with eight overs left.

Van Schalkwyk produced his best figures this season, 7-37 from 17 overs.

The first XI travel to Bacup on Sunday.

Strong winds may have veered volunteers away from Barnoldswick in Bloom’s mass planting on Saturday, but organisers are hoping that July’s judges will be equally blown away by the kaleidoscope of colour across the town.

Friday’s rain failed to dampen the spirits of many who turned out to help with planting the thousands of flowers but much more is required to brighten up all areas.

After securing the newcomer award in the Britain in Bloom competition last year, the Barnoldswick in Bloom Group are hoping to go one better in 2012 and win the best in the North West.

Primarily, however, it is about making the town look more attractive, but winning the top prize would be the “icing on the cake”.

Barnoldswick in Bloom volunteer Coun. David Whipp said: “A small number of hardy individuals braved the elements to help plant the thousands of flowers we have to brighten up Barnoldswick.

“Two areas were planted on Fernlea Avenue; outside the library and across the road, but the bad weather put most people off from helping. It seems bloom volunteers were blown away by the strong winds. We still have thousands of flowers to plant out and it’s now a race against time to get them in and established before the judges visit on July 30th.

“We’re holding more Community Action Days this coming weekend (Saturday, June 30th, and Sunday, July 1st) and are also appealing for anyone who has spare time during the week to help with the planting.”

Bloom volunteers also constructed two new raised beds for wheelchair bound gardeners at the Rainhall Centre, as well as planting out summer bedding.

On top of the 4,000 plants grown by the bloom group and local schoolchildren, Pendle Council has donated some from their surplus supply, and organisers are calling for more volunteers of all ages to help create even more colour around the town.

Barnoldswick in Bloom is having a bring and buy plant stall at the Rainhall Centre’s monthly market tomorrow.

People can volunteer at the stall, contact David Whipp on 666777, or email david.whipp@dsl.pipex.com.

FOR the next week, you can take the opportunity to have a good look round the Titanic in Colne - without risk of it sinking!

A super exhibition showing many parts of the ship which sank 100 years ago - costing Colne-born Titanic bandmaster Wallace Hartley his life along with hundreds more - is at The Muni.

It has opened now and runs until next Friday as part of Pendle’s Titanic Festival.

When you go in, there are lots of boards of information on show, but you also come across items which are typical of things which would have been on the ship itself.

For instance, there is a huge ship wheel, a deck chair, blanket and real doors which were on Titanic’s twin - the Olympic.

There are realistic samples of first class and third class cabins, a radio station and a dining room.

It does make you feel like you are on the Titanic. There are clothes from the 1997 film “Titanic” - and even a genuine officer’s uniform.

There are examples, too, of White Star Line plates, tea cups and egg cups, and in some cases they are genuine ones from the Titanic.

There is even a name plate from one of its lifeboats which survived the tragedy.

Mr Nigel Hampson, who runs the Titanic in Lancashire Museum in Colne, is supervising the exhibition on behalf of White Star Memories which has put the collection together.

He said: “I’m here every day every day as one of the volunteers. And I will be giving talks each day about the Titanic in the Lesser Muni. Our museum will remain open while this is here.”

A TV documentary created by his museum is on show at the Muni during the exhibition.

White Star Memories members David Scott-Beddard and John White have joined Nigel at the exhibition.

David said: “We are pleased with the opportunity to bring out collection where it can go on display.” And John added: “I think this is a good venue. It’s a privilege to come to Colne.”

And Nigel pointed out that - as a past member of Colne Orchestra - Wallace would have played in the Muni.

Coun. Paul White, who leads on tourism for Pendle Council, said: “I urge everyone to go to this poignant exhibition which helps to bring to life what it was like on Titanic. It’s an amazing opportunity to see a world class exhibition on our doorstep, giving insights to what Wallace Hartley would have seen. Visitors will be coming to Pendle from far and wide to see Titanic 100.”

The exhibition is open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. each day, and Nigel will be giving his fascinating talks on the sinking from 1 to 2-30 p.m. Admission is £5 and £2.50 for concessions. You don’t need to book in advance.

THE Burnley and Pendle Grand Prix carried on last weekend with the Trawden Trail Race.

A 7 -mile route around Trawden and Wycollar,the course was changed from previous years so runners could enjoy traffic-free bridleways and footpaths in the area.

There were 109 runners that took part, with local clubs Trawden and Clayton making up the bulk of the numbers.

However, it was Nick Leigh (38.56) from Altrincham that won the race by just one second from Wharfedale’s Stephen Chew (38.57), although second place was enough for Chew to maintain his current lead in the overall race series.

First lady home was Trawden’s former champion Molly Ralphson (48.07), followed by Clayton’s Laura Hesketh (48.19), although the current series leader is Nicola Nuttall of Trawden.

Local runners in the veteran categories included V45 Glen Goodwin of Accrington Road Runners (43.10), Roger Brewster, V55 of Clayton (45.36), David Scott, V65 of Claytoin (51.51) and Ted Orrell, V70 of Clayton (61.11).

Irene Roche (54.28), Linda Bostock (58.29) and Jean Rawlinson (59.36), all Clayton ladies, won the V50, 55 and 60 categories respectively.

The under 20 prizes went to Harry Kaye of Trawden (52.35) and Helena Leathley of Clayton (50.50).

A FINAL decision on plans to build more than 100 homes on a disused Nelson sports field is expected to be made on Monday night.

Pendle Council’s Nelson Committee will decide whether or not to give the go-ahead to an application from Gleeson Homes to build 104 homes on the former James Nelson’s sports field off Priory Chase.

The latest application follows the refusal by the council of earlier plans to build 106 properties on the site on the grounds there was no open space in the development.

A report to Monday’s meeting says Gleeson has amended these to remove two properties and replace them with a play area with five pieces of equipment.

Members are recommended to approve the application.