Easter Sunday - April 11th
12 Noon - the end

Including:
BANDS, JAM SESSIONS, BBQ, RAFFLE, COMPETITIONS & FUN

In aid of the Wiltshire Times 150 Fund

The Twelve Bells, Seymour Road, Trowbridge.

The holiday resort in the Longleat Forest plans to extend the existing restaurant and refurbish its interior.
If successful, the application will also see the kitchen and toilets repositioned.

The firm, which has gone into receivership, is still paying its remaining staff, but those who lost their jobs also lost their final wage packet for Christmas, and they will not receive their redundancy for months.

As a result, the Elliots had to tell their five children, aged between 22 months to 18, that they would not be able to afford the Christmas they had planned.

Mrs Elliot said: "My husband has been at the company for 23 years. We are receiving a crisis loan for food and electric but we still have no money for more Christmas presents.

"To make matters worse, we've been told that it could take months to get the money we are still owed."

Hearing of their plight, mother-of-one, Mrs Aust, 40, of Malmesbury Road, Chippenham, contacted the Gazette offering to help.

"It's only a small gesture, but I have given Mrs Elliot some toys. The family must have been heartbroken to receive such a blow so near to Christmas."

Michael's name was drawn from hundreds of entries in the competition organised by North Wiltshire Leisure, which asked people to complete a questionnaire about what they wanted to see at the pool.

The adult winner was Fiona Iliffe-Moon, from Luckington, who won a mountain bike.

Michael was the first to try out the pool at a special session earlier this month, and he was joined by invited guests.

Although the new pool does not open until January 12, a programme has already been drawn up.

Work began on the £3 million four-lane pool at the Activity Zone Leisure Centre at Bremilham Road in October last year.

The pool is 25m long and 8.5m wide and the foundations required 50 tonnes of steel to reinforce the concrete.

For environmental reasons the structure has a wooden frame. There is also a state of the art movable floor that will allow both toddlers and adults to use the pool.

The town's swimming club, the Malmesbury Marlins, will use the new pool for training and for galas.

Plans for an indoor pool to replace the open air pool on Old Alexander Road have been in the pipeline for 20 years.

The project was resurrected in the mid 1990s when an anonymous benefactor put up £300,000.

The scheme was given the go-ahead in August last year when North Wiltshire District Council received a £1.2m lottery grant, half the cost of the pool. The district council put in £865,000 and £15,000 came from Malmesbury Town Council and other parish councils.

This year, the national theme continues to tackle the assumption that it is safe to drive having had only a couple of drinks and the excuses drivers give, in attempting to justify this action.

The objective of the campaign remains the same as in previous years ­ to reduce the number of drink-drive related road casualties.

National advertising will feature a series of Think! commercials on television, showing scenes illustrating the consequences of drink-driving featuring this year's theme.

Wiltshire Constabulary's road safety officer, Sergeant Dave Melvin, said: "All too often, after someone has been seriously injured or killed, drivers fail breath tests and upon being arrested, say `I only had a couple ­ I thought I'd be OK.'

"They find little sympathy from anyone else after the event and clearly regret their actions ­ but by then of course, it is too late. Even for those who are fortunate enough not to injure or kill anyone, a conviction for drink-driving can result in the driver losing his or her job, quite apart from the tough penalties handed down by the courts.

"It just isn't worth it and our plea is ­ don't risk it."

Sgt Melvin feels that it is imp-ortant to dispel the idea that with one or two drinks drivers will still be able to drive safely and stay within the legal limit.

"The point about the drink-drive limit is that there really is no fail-safe guide as to how much you can drink and stay under the limit," he said.

"The amount and type of alcoholic drink, a person's weight, sex, age and metabolism are all variable factors in individual cases. The safest amount of alcohol to drink if you are driving is nothing at all."

The man who does not wish to disclose his name, is to give up his family Christmas Day for the seventh year running in order to play Santa, delivering gifts to patients at Salisbury District Hospital.

An insurance broker for 51 weeks of the year, the volunteer Santa, who keeps his identity a closely guarded secret to protect the magic of Christmas, now devotes much of the festive season to preparing for the big day, which last year saw him spend an incredible 11 hours working his way around the wards.

He said: "Christmas is now held on Boxing Day in our house, although I'm usually too exhausted to do anything!"

All this is on top of being a husband and father to two small children.

Santa explains that it all started when he and his wife could not decide where to spend Christmas.

He said: "We were arguing over whose parents to visit, so in the end we decided to do some voluntary work instead. That year I went round four wards, but the hospital only had £25 to spend per ward on gifts and food, which I thought wasn't good enough so I decided I wanted to do more to help."

Every year since then he has undertaken a growing operation to gather gifts donated from local businesses. This year he will be delivering an amazing £5,000 worth of presents to patients on 23 wards, which he does with the use of a specially adapted motorised hospital tug, for which he even had to get a licence to use.

"I couldn't do it without the help of the local business community - they've been excellent," he adds. One firm is even donating a van for the week so he can collect the gifts and ferry them to the hospital.

The kind-hearted volunteer says that the reason he does it is "probably because I'm mad", but ultimately he feels it is the right thing to do.

He said: "I have the choice to be there at Christmas that the patients don't, so anything to brighten up their Christmas is worth doing. It is far from a one-man effort though - there are lots of people involved and I would like to thank them all for their help."

The couple have decorated their house and garden in Burn Road, Corsham, in thousands of lights to celebrate the Christmas season while raising money for a good cause.

They have been doing a light display for six years and each year ask for contributions for a charity. After supporting the NSPCC for six years they decided to collect money for a local charity instead. This year they are hoping to raise more than £100 for Wiltshire Air Ambulance.

"They need a lot of support as they rely on contributions. And nobody can say when they are going to need it," said Mrs Wootten, 58.

Their property is covered in 2,400 light bulbs including rope lights and blow mouldings. There is a collection tin and last year they collected £128 even though the house is in a cul-de-sac.

Mrs Wootten said the neighbours loved the lights and looked forward to them each year.

"The grandchildren love it, we do it for them really and to help a good cause," said Mrs Wootten. The lights were switched on on November 30 after Mr Wootten spent a day preparing and putting them up.

Bright sparks Rebekah and Tara-Marie Arnold decided to light up their house this Christmas in memory of their brother.

The girls asked their parents if they could put up lights and raise money for Bristol Children's Hospital, which tried to save their brother's life.

The family, who live in Pockeridge Road, Corsham, has collected more than £50 in just a week. Parents Paul and Tracey have always been honest about baby Mark's death at the hospital when he was four days old.

Mr Arnold said he was really pleased when Rebekah, ten, and Tara-Marie, five, came up with the idea.

"We always had lights on the front of the house and they have built up as the years go on. They came to us with the idea and we thought it was really good. We have a milk churn outside the house to collect the contributions," said Mr Arnold.

He and the family hope to raise £200 for the hospital and are confident they will reach their target. "We are getting a lot of good comments about it. We have even had donations through the post," he said.

If you want to support the family please contact (01225) 810276 or write to them at 52a Pockeridge Road, Corsham, Wiltshire, SN13 9SA.

Kay King and Trevor Wild were among warm-hearted Devizes people putting on a feast for the eyes as well as raising money for charity by turning their house in Downs Close, Devizes, into a festive display of light.

The couple, who have three sons, have decorated the front of their house and their roof with all manner of lights and novelty items. They are raising money for Kennet Gateway Club which provides a social outlet for people with disabilities.

Mrs King said: "We chose the club because Trevor's cousin is a member and we know the kind of good work that it does.

"Our display is bigger and better than last year, with lots more lights and novelties. "We are planning to do it again next year, too, and hopefully will make it even bigger again."

After all their efforts on creating the display, the couple and their children are looking forward to a relatively quiet Christmas.

We are bringing the 2004 Premier Snooker League to the Civic Hall in February as part of our 150th anniversary celebrations.

World number one Mark Williams, five-times league champion Stephen Hendry, and veteran Steve Davis are in the star-packed line-up.

Snooker's pin-up boy Paul Hunter, Hong Kong star Marco Fu, Scotland's John Higgins and crowd favourite Jimmy White MBE have also confirmed their places.

As well as bringing top-drawer snooker talent to the county town we will be offering one lucky reader the chance of playing a frame against one of the competitors. Plans for an amateur competition are in the early stages and full details will be announced soon. The league is one of the most prestigious competitions in snooker, with Marco Fu hoping to reclaim the crown he snatched from the hands of top-seeded Mark Williams last year.

Civic Hall manager and Pubwatch chairman Bill Austin said the event ­ being shown on Sky Sports ­ would put Trowbridge on the map.

"It is the most exciting televised event for years," he said.

"I have had a huge amount of interest already. To have seven of the world's best players under one roof is amazing."

Five league matches will be spread over two days, with Scottish dynamo Stephen Hendry taking on reigning champion Marco Fu for the opening bout on Valentine's Day at 4pm. In other mouthwatering ties crowd-pleaser Jimmy White will take on Mark Williams while Paul Hunter, dubbed the David Beckham of snooker, will face John Higgins. Altogether 21 league matches will be held at four venues across the country, with the final stages played at the Colwyn Bay Centre in north Wales. Each of the seven stars will play each other once, with each match played over the best of eight frames. Two points are awarded for a win and one point for a four-set-all draw. Only four players will go through to the final stages.

The overall winner will scoop a £45,000 prize but £500 cash prizes are awarded for every frame won, meaning any player could potentially finish the league section without earning a single penny.

Steve Davis scooped the first Premier Snooker League title back in 1987.

Wiltshire Times editor Toby Granville said: "To see seven of the world's greatest snooker players competing at the Civic Hall will be a momentous occasion. This is a once-in-a-lifetime event and an amazing opportunity for an amateur player to take on one of the world's best."

Tickets are available from Civic Hall, Trowbridge. To book ring 01225 762439, anytime. Only 400 tickets are available for each show so first come first served basis. Prices are: Single Match £10; Saturday two match ticket £18; Sunday three match ticket £27; five match ticket for whole weekend £40; children £7 per match.

Kiribati is making its debut in the prestigious games next summer - and for Dave Savage, who was born in the islands, it is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

Each new Olympic nation may enter the track and pool events, irrespective of whether they meet the qualifying times and, as the fastest swimmer from the remote country, Dave will be competing in Athens against the world's best.

The swimmer, who moved to England when he was two years old, has embarked on an intensive training programme at Salisbury's LA Fitness and Five Rivers leisure centre.

"It will be such an honour - to compete in the Olympics is every sportsman's dream," said Dave. "It's a wonderful opportunity to increase awareness of Kiribati and its sporting talent."

The 32-year-old, who lives in Jubilee Drive, is more used to competing in triathlons, and he represented Kiribati in the Commonwealth Games in Manchester last year.

"Unfortunately, I got a puncture in both tyres in the cycling stage and it ruined my race," he said. "But I got a real taste for the big events, and going to Athens, the home of the Olympics, will be fantastic."

Dave is training for the 1,500m freestyle and, although he expects to finish several minutes after the world best time of 14min 30sec, he said just taking part will make him feel like a winner.

"I'm swimming 16 hours a week and doing weights, so I'm taking it seriously, but I know I haven't got a hope of winning," he said. "But it's important that I do my best to represent my country."

Most famed for being the nation where the sun first rose at the new millennium, Kiribati comprises 30 islands, including Tarawa and Christmas Island.

Dave visits his homeland as often as possible and says the islanders will be racing to get behind their Olympic heroes.

"They don't have televisions, so they won't be able to watch us, but they've just got the internet, so they can keep up to date on that," he said.

"I might have spent most of my life here but I still feel Kiribati is my home and I'll be very proud to represent them."

The Return of the King, the third instalment of the hugely successful trilogy based on the Lord of the Rings book by JRR Tolkien, goes on general release at cinemas today.

Cineworld in Greenbridge is planning to show it no fewer than 19 times a day, with the first screening at 11am and the last ending at nearly 3am tomorrow.

Nearly 500 Highworth Warneford pupils from years nine, 10 and 11 are being taken in 10 coaches to the first screenings as part of their end-of-term Christmas celebrations.

Headteacher John Saunders said: "We always have special activities at the end of the Christmas term and for the past couple of years we have taken the pupils to the first two parts of the Lord of the Rings. This is part three, and we are expecting the majority of them to go ­ 13 to 16-year-olds."

Mr Saunders said the day out to the movies was always popular, and even though the Return of the King is more than three hours long he was confident the pupils would have no problem keeping their concentration.

"It's full of action and special effects so I'm sure it will hold their attention," he said.

Many of the tickets for the day's first screenings have been booked in advance, and Cineworld, which has acquired an unprecedented seven prints of the film so it can show it in more theatres, predicted it was going to be one of its biggest draws ever.

Cineworld manager Paul Bezzant said: "Demand for tickets has been pretty constant, and everyone's starting to realise they will have to book tickets. Return of the King is even bigger than last year's Two Towers film, which filled every performance.

"This is the best thing since the original Star Wars trilogy and everyone knows what to expect from the first two parts.

"Without a doubt it will be one of the biggest films in history."

The Lord of the Rings is enjoying a rise in popularity since the first instalment, The Fellowship of the Ring, opened in December 2001. On Saturday the book won the BBC's Big Read competition, and the Return of the King film is expected to pick up several Oscars next year.

Their anxious wait has come to an end as West Wiltshire district councilors have endorsed the project to establish a skate park in Melksham.

The dedicated skateboarders have been fund-raising to prove their commitment to the campaign - and they are already more than £93,000 towards their £112,000 target.

It will take two weeks to dig out and surface the skate park and then the ramps will be put in place. Fencing and lighting will then go in, followed by painting and landscaping.

A site has been identified for the skate park in King George V playing field, on a grass slope that would otherwise have been unused!