East Lothian Courier
All geared up for the arrival of on-street parking charges in the county
TWO significant steps towards the introduction of on-street parking charges in East Lothian have taken place. On Tuesday, East Lothian Council announced the start date for parking charges in North Berwick – the first county town to introduce the...
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Caring five-year-old’s donations leave foodbank volunteers in tears
A KIND-HEARTED five-year-old who wanted to make sure that no one missed out at Christmas gave an amazing boost to East Lothian Foodbank’s efforts in helping out those in need across the county over the festive period. The generosity shown gave a...
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We’ve lost our ‘light in the dark’
TRIBUTES have been paid to “a light in the dark” after her “sudden and very unexpected” death just days before Christmas. Tattoo artist and Dunbar RNLI crew member Kerry Gentle, 34, was found dead in her home on Dunbar’s High Street; a post mortem is...
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An express delivery from Santa!
SANTA Claus left his sleigh behind but was still able to spread some Christmas cheer on a visit to East Links Family Park. The festive VIP (pictured by Gordon Bell) took the train to visit the popular family attraction in the lead-up to the big...
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‘Perfect gentleman’ honoured
IT WAS a special moment for Haddington stalwart Rab Moran when he received his British Empire Medal. Mr Moran was awarded the honour earlier this year and received it from Lord Lieutenant of East Lothian Roderick Urquhart at a special ceremony at...
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Green light for parking charges
PLANS to move forward with parking charges in four East Lothian town centres have been approved by councillors, despite significant public opposition. At a meeting of East Lothian Council on Tuesday which began with noisy protests outside Haddington...
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Controversial plans for town centre parking charges set to be approved
PARKING charges look set to be introduced in four more towns in East Lothian. The proposals for Dunbar, Haddington, Musselburgh and Tranent have been widely condemned by residents and businesses since they were revealed earlier this year, amid fears...
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Beachside dining and sauna bid
PLANS to build a restaurant beside the beach at Longniddry Bents have been revealed. The scenic spot, which welcomes thousands of visitors every year, could become home to the new restaurant, as well as beach huts and a sauna, if the plans get the...
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Christmas delight for brave Kobi
BABY Kobi Crolla is certainly no stranger to Edinburgh’s Royal Hospital for Children and Young People. The one-year-old, from Prestonpans, has gone through 16 operations after being born prematurely, weighing just 3.3lbs. But on Sunday, he and his...
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Wife killer jailed for life for ‘utterly despicable’ murder
A MAN who murdered his wife after believing she had been cheating on him has been jailed for life for the “utterly despicable” attack. Mompati Dodo Isaacs stabbed Keotshepile Naso Isaacs, known as Naso, to death at the family home in North Berwick on...
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Piece of East Lothian’s history goes up in flames
THOUSANDS of pounds’ worth of damage has been caused to a historic building at Dunbar Harbour following a “devastating” fire. Firefighters from throughout East Lothian and beyond spent more than 12 hours tackling the blaze at Mcarthur’s Store on...
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Slamming the brakes on parking charges decision
A DECISION on bringing in controversial parking charges in three East Lothian towns has been pushed back to December – just days before councillors had been due to vote on them. Councillors were set to discuss the possibility of charges and various...
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Forty more years of work on the horizon at Blindwells
WORK at East Lothian’s newest town could go on for another four decades, into the 2060s. Already, about 400 homes have been built at Blindwells, with a primary school opening to 73 pupils earlier this year, and plans being drawn up for a town...
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County set to have highest rate of net migration in Scotland
EAST Lothian is projected to have the highest net rate of migration in Scotland over the next decade, new figures have shown. New projection figures from the National Records of Scotland (NRS) forecast that East Lothian will have the highest increase...
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Scottish Ministers given final say on flood scheme
EAST Lothian councillors have passed on responsibility for making the final decision on a hugely controversial £54 million flood scheme for Musselburgh to Scottish Ministers, as they were told that the final cost of the project was unknown. A report...
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Fergie’s a stage star!
AM U S I C A L theatre star from Tranent has described being nominated for two West End awards for her performance in the production Mean Girls as “absolutely crazy”. Fergie Fraser, 26, landed her “big break” in June last year when she was cast in the...
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Murder trial hears claim man shouted at wife: ‘Did you sleep with him?’
A WOMAN has told a court of how she heard a recording of a man shouting “did you sleep with him?” to the wife he is accused of murdering. Rusila Ventanbula, 49, said that she heard Mompati Dodo Isaacs, 39, make the allegations to his partner...
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‘Heartbroken’ mum takes action after son suffers horror burns at party
A MUM has launched a campaign calling for legislation concerning the serving of hot drinks in children’s venues. Marina Diotaiuti’s son Nico (pictured), who was three at the time, suffered second-degree burns on the majority of his back after a hot...
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Council calls for Torness study
Torness Power Station is due to stop generating power in 2030.
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Schools’ first pupils settle in
EAST Lothian’s two newest schools have welcomed their first ever pupils through their doors. Both Blindwells Primary School and Craighall Primary School opened to pupils for the first time when the new school year began across East Lothian last...
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Fringe by the Sea is best ever!
A STAR-STUDDED Fringe by the Sea was declared the best ever by organisers after coming to a close on Sunday. Big names including Air, Sir Chris Hoy and fitness hero Joe Wicks (pictured right, by Lewspics) took to the stage over the course of 10 packed...
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Bin lorry driver admits causing death of boy cycling to school
A BIN lorry driver from East Lothian has admitted causing the death of a child, who was cycling to school, by failing to carry out proper checks as he pulled out of a golf club car park. Ross Wallace struck 11-year-old Thomas Wong as he drove the NWH...
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County hero Josh bows out the ring a history-maker
FORMER undisputed world champion Josh Taylor has been celebrated as one of boxing’s alltime greats after he announced his immediate retirement on medical advice. The 34-year-old, from Prestonpans, is the only British boxer in the four-belt era to have...
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Mum issues warning after baby suffers severe burns
A MUM has told of her horror after her baby daughter suffered severe burns despite wearing factor 50 sun cream. Lauren Leishman, 22, took 12-month-old tot Rhegan on a family day out to the Haddington Show at the end of last month. They were only...
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Scottish Open’s £7.8 million boost to the local economy
SCOTLAND’S largest golf tournament is expected to be worth more than £7 million to the East Lothian economy. Most of the sport’s top stars will tee off at The Renaissance Club, by Dirleton, today (Thursday) as the Genesis Scottish Open returns to the...
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‘Significant changes’ must be made at council, says watchdog
EAST Lothian Council’s delivery of local services has come at an “unsustainable cost” and it must make “significant changes”. That is the view of the Accounts Commission in a new report published this morning (Thursday). The local authority is...
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INSIDE OUR 32-PAGE PICTURE TRIBUTE TO THE COUNTY’S PRIMARY 7 PUPILS
With no plans to replace it, and the Scottish Government staunchly opposed to any new nuclear, its closure after 40 years of generating electricity will mark the end of nuclear power in Scotland. Even as, in England, investment in new nuclear power is...
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Loving dad gives son a second chance at life
A FATHER has given his son the ultimate gift — a second chance at life. Brian Innes, 63, from Prestonpans, donated a kidney to his son Kieran, 27, after he was diagnosed with stage 5 kidney disease in July 2022. Kieran was living in Livingston at the...
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Champion night was had by all
EAST Lothian’s community heroes were crowned at a glitzy awards evening held last Thursday at Marine North Berwick. The second annual East Lothian Courier Community Champion Awards were a celebration of the men, women and children who make our county...
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Call to slam the brakes on parking charges
HADDINGTON traders are banding together in their bid to stop parking charges being introduced in the town centre. A petition against the East Lothian Council proposals has been started and has already gathered hundreds of signatures, while many...
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All hail the marathon runners!
GALE-FORCE winds, torrential downpours and even a hail storm were not enough to stop thousands of runners from reaching the finish line of Sunday’s Edinburgh Marathon. Despite the lessthan-friendly weather conditions in East Lothian on the day (see...
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Police officer struck by car is overwhelmed by support from community
A POLICE officer struck by a car in Haddington has thanked the people of East Lothian “for their support and kind messages”. On Tuesday, May 6, PC Dermott Maughan, a school link officer, was taken to hospital after being hit by a car on Haddington...
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Big-hearted Stuart, 26, would ‘light up a room’
THE brother of Tranent man Stuart Brandon Donald, who tragically died in a motorcycle crash, has told how he would “light up a room”. Stuart was a loving dad, son, brother and uncle who lost his life in a road accident in the Scottish Borders on...
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Man in court after police officer ‘hit by car’ in town
A MAN arrested following an incident on Haddington High Street which left a police officer injured was due to appear in court yesterday (Wednesday). It has been alleged that the officer was struck by a car on the town’s main street at about 3.55pm. A...
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ON THE CATWALK TO FIGHT CANCER
BREAST cancer survivor Rachael Ross is getting ready to show off her gothic style and tattoos on the catwalk. Turn to Page 16 for the full story
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Hard-up Citizens Advice worker stole £35,000 to pay her debts
A CITIZENS Advice worker has admitted embezzling more than £30,000 from the charity over four years because of her own mounting debts. Carole Ferguson, 60, was employed as a financial officer with the Citizens Advice Bureau in Musselburgh when she...
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Miraculous escape
AN OUT-OF-CONTROL lorry, carrying two shipping containers, smashed into three front gardens on a residential street on Tuesday morning. Incredibly, no-one was hurt in the incident at around 11am on Gardiner Road, Prestonpans, but there was extensive...
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‘I want to live long enough so my children remember me’
A MUM diagnosed with stage four lung cancer has told of her “overriding aim” of living long enough for her young children to remember her, as she prepares to take on a marathon. Emma Philp and her family – husband Alastair and sons Harris, three, and...
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ON THE RUN FOR MY SON
A DAD who previously rowed across the Atlantic Ocean is taking on a new challenge... running a marathon for his young son. Robbie Laidlaw is taking on the London Marathon to help raise awareness of Down syndrome, which his one-yearold son Gray was born...
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‘I’ve been completely cleared’
MUSSELBURGH MSP Colin Beattie has welcomed being “completely cleared” after a two-year police investigation came to an end. Former First Minister Nicola Sturgeon and Mr BECONTROVERSIAL attie, the SNP’S former treasurer, were arrested in 2023 in...
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Forty jobs at risk at Tarmac
A CALL has been made for Scottish Ministers to step in as more than 40 jobs could be cut at a major East Lothian employer. GMB Scotland has sounded the alarm over 41 jobs threata ened at the Tarmac plant, near Dunbar. The union has already written to...
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MUCH-MISSED
RESIDENTS of two adjoining homes in Musselburgh were forced to flee to safety on Tuesday evening after a fire broke out. The incident on the town’s Edenhall Bank caused extensive damage to a fence and hedge, as well as visible damage to the outside of...
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Councillors’ pay boost
SENIOR councillors in East Lothian will receive a pay rise of more than 40 per cent, just weeks after approving a 10 per cent council tax rise for residents. The move comes after a REMAJOR view of national wages for elected members. East Lothian...
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Police station closures trigger concerns
CONCERNS of a “creeping reduction of police services in East Lothian have been raised” after the closure of three county police stations was confirmed this week. Last August, Police Scotland launched public consultations on the potential disposal of...
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FAREWELL TO STILL GAME STAR JAMES
MUSSELBURGH actor James Martin, best known for his role as Eric in the hit TV comedy series Still Game, has passed away at the age of 93. He is pictured last November with the British Empire Medal he received for services to military veterans and to...
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Council tax rises for next five years
in East Lothian are set to approve a 10 per cent council tax rise next week, despite additional funding from the Scottish Government. A cross-party budget paper due to go to elected members for final approval includes the increase for the year ahead –...
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Residents ‘scared and disheartened’ amid spate of car fires
RESIDENTS of a Tranent street are “feart to leave the house” following “a spate of car fires” which has seen three vehicles destroyed in the space of just four days. Firefighters were called to Meetinghouse Drive last Thursday morning and again on...
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County reels from storm
EAST Lothian is recovering after being battered by hurricane-force winds as Storm Éowyn tore through the county on Friday. Residents hunkered down indoors to escape the worst of the wild weather and thankfully no serious injuries were...
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Oh boy!and girl! Meet Scotland’s ‘first twins of 2025’
A MUSSELBURGH family enjoyed a double New Year celebration after welcoming the first East Lothian babies of 2025 – believed to be the only twins born in Scotland on New Year’s Day. Lynsey Boyd, of Windsor Park Terrace, was not expecting the twins...
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TV star hides in train toilets to escape cruel abuse
A TELEVISION star has revealed how she was forced to hide in a train toilet after being subjected to cruel abuse. Meryl Williams, who was one of three winners of the first series of BBC TV’S The Traitors, had the horrible experience while travelling...
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A tonne of support for the foodbank thanks to Johnnie
BIG-HEARTED fundraiser Johnnie Meechan and his team of helpers have given East Lothian Foodbank a massive boost after dropping off over a tonne of food items. For the fifth year in a row, Johnnie held the fundraiser over the festive season, which saw...
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Neighbours run into burning home on Christmas morning
BRAVE neighbours ran into a burning house in Prestonpans on Christmas Day to rescue a woman they thought was inside. At about 11am, Craig Sheridan heard a commotion outside his home on Longdykes Road and saw smoke “billowing out of the house” across...
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Our hearts are shattered after Flora’s sad passing
PARENTS of a youngster with cancer have been left with “shattered hearts” after their daughter passed away. Flora Gentleman was diagnosed with neuroblastoma after a large tumour was found next to one of her kidneys as well as cancer in her skull,...
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Spreading Christmas cheer
KIND-HEARTED East Lothian residents are coming forward in their droves to help those in need this Christmas. Hundreds of county families are struggling to put food on the table this festive season, and hard-working volunteers at various food...
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Man to go on trial for murder
MAN is to stand trial charged with the murder of his wife in East Lothian on New Year’s Day. Mompati Isaacs, 38, allegedly killed Keotshepile Isaacs at a property on North Berwick’s Craigleith Avenue on January 1 this year. It is alleged that Isaacs...
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A WOMAN stood barefoot in the snow while helplessly watching her home go up in flames. Tricia Hayes was alerted to the blaze at 9.30am after her neighbour banged on the door of her property on Tranent’s Windygoul Crescent. Fortunately, the mum of two...
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Parents tell of panic after children evacuated at school
CHILDREN were evacuated from school and nursery after a gas leak forced residents out of their homes. Parents of children at St Gabriel’s Primary School and Nursery in Prestonpans described how they “panicked” at the “terrifying” news of a gas leak...
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Concern library cuts will never be reversed
FIVE East Lothian libraries are having their hours slashed for the winter, as one councillor expressed doubt that the cuts would ever be reversed. In September, East Lothian Council announced that Dunbar, East Linton, Gullane, Haddington, Musselburgh,...
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‘Sounding emergency klaxon’ for affordable county homes
AN ‘AFFORDABLE housing emergency’ has been declared in East Lothian, amid claims that the local authority is just days away from losing land at new housing developments which had been allocated for affordable properties. A special meeting of East...
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WELL-DESERVED ACT
STILL Game actor James Martin had something extra special to celebrate this week after being presented with a British Empire Medal (photo: Alan Simpson). Turn to Page 22-23 to find out more
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County to say yes to M&S?
MARKS & Spencer could join Lidl, B&M and Costa in opening its doors in Dunbar. The four national retail chains are being eyed up as potential additions to the land to the rear of the town’s Asda. Revamped plans for the area, previously known as...
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Bulldozing The Brunton is best option, says council
COUNCILLORS are to be asked to approve the closure and mothballing of the Brunton Hall in Musselburgh, as plans to demolish the much-loved centre of the arts in East Lothian have been revealed. A crunch debate will take place next week over a proposal...
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Police shut off street after assault
A “SERIOUSLY injured” man was taken to hospital after emergency services were called out to Musselburgh on Monday. Links View, Fisherrow, was cordoned off, with police in attendance. A spokesperson for Police Scotland told the Courier: “Around 3.50am...
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Helicopter rescues pair
A COASTGUARD helicopter lifted two teenagers to safety after they became stuck on North Berwick Law on Monday evening. The alarm was raised at 8.35pm and Coastguard rescue teams from North Berwick, Dunbar and Fisherrow headed to the scene as well as...
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Bid for 9,000 more homes
BATTLE lines are being drawn over how many thousands of new houses will be built in East Lothian in the next decade, as housebuilders eye up another 9,000 homes. A row is on the cards to dea termine the exact number of new homes required, with East...
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Car park tragedy claims life of 86-year-old woman
TRIBUTES have been paid to an 86-year-old woman who died after being struck by a van in a holiday village car park. At about 10.40am on Sunday, police, an ambulance and an air ambulance were called to Seton Sands Holiday Park, by Port Seton. The...
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