Tuesday 2nd July

    A prolific shoplifter has been banned from entering a number of stores in Yeovil. Motorway users faced a second weekday of problems on the M5 yesterday. The organisers of the Somerset Comedy Festival have had to cancel more shows...and more

    A prolific shoplifter has been banned from entering a number of stores in Yeovil after being issued with a two-year Criminal Behaviour Order. Liam Allen, 35, of no fixed address, was given a one-year prison sentence at Taunton Crown Court after pleading guilty to 10 counts of theft between December 2023 and March 2024. The court also granted the order which prohibits him from entering Tesco Express, Tesco Extra, Boots, WH Smith, Superdrug and the Co-Op in the town.

    Motorway users faced a second weekday of problems on the M5 yesterday. The road was closed around 10 am in both directions between junctions 23 and 24 after a serious incident, a short distance from Friday’s lorry crash. Although the motorway reopened shortly after midday, the delays remained for some time. Somerset Council is warning of disruption to waste collections for the rest of the week as a result. The crews use the M5 to access the depot where vehicles are emptied.

    The organisers of the Somerset Comedy Festival have had to cancel more shows, following poor ticket sales. We told you last week that sets from big names like Sean Walsh and Simon Brodkin had been cancelled. But it has been announced that a further twelve performances have been axed. The organisers are urging the public to support the remaining shows if they possibly can.

    And the cleanup operation is underway at Worthy Farm after festival goers left the Glastonbury site yesterday morning. An army of volunteers are now collecting huge amounts of rubbish strewn across the 800-acre site. Meanwhile, it has been confirmed that conversations are already underway with acts for the 2025 event, with 2026 set to be a so-called ‘fallow year’.

    More from News

    • Friday 13th March

      The first of the new medium lift helicopters being built by Leonardo in Yeovil for the RAF will be delivered in 2031. Somerset Council has launched a public consultation on planned new charges at its two hundred public car parks. More women in Somerset are said to be taking up walking football... and more

    • Thursday 12th March

      A Yeovil headteacher says he’s concerned about plans to stop giving school holiday food vouchers to families on low incomes. The owner of Yeovil Town is calling on fans to be patient as he continues his overhaul of the National League side. A high voltage fault is being blamed for plunging 1700 homes into darkness in the Ilminster area... and more

    • Wednesday 11th March

      Plans have been submitted to convert two properties in Yeovil into houses of multiple occupation. A new court date has been announced for a Yeovil man charged with attempted murder. An engineer who has worked at the Leonardo factory in Yeovil for 40-years has won a top industry award... and more

    • Tuesday 10th March

      Police say a fire at the former Oscar Mayer food factory in Chard was started deliberately. Yeovil College says it would have been adversely affected had Leonardo not won the contract to build new medium-lift helicopters. A seven-foot dragon will be visiting towns and villages in our area during the next few weeks to promote Somerset Day... and more

    • Monday 9th March 

      Two Wildcat helicopters from 815 Squadron at RNAS Yeovilton have arrived in Cyprus to help protect RAF Akrotiri from further Iranian drone strikes. New figures show that 40 people were killed on Avon and Somerset’s roads in the last 12-months. A Somerset man has been recalling the day 60-years ago when he was a passenger on the last train on the Somerset and Dorset Railway... and more

    • Friday 6th March

      Defence Minister Luke Pollard has been explaining why it took the government so long to confirm a contract for the Leonardo in Yeovil to build new medium lift helicopters for the RAF. Police are investigating a break in at a pet shop in Ilminster. Somerset Council is to stop using red ink on council tax reminder letters... and more

    • Thursday 5th March

      Two military helicopters from RNAS Yeovilton are being sent to Cyprus to help bolster UK’s defences amid the US-Israel war with Iran. Yeovil Town Council is seeking legal advice over the closure of the hyper acute stroke unit at Yeovil Hospital. Flood warnings have been lifted on the Somerset Levels... and more

    • Wednesday 4th March

      A man has died in a fire in Wincanton. Somerset Council is planning further cuts of twenty-one million pounds to help balance its books. A campaign to raise £30,000 for a minibus has been launched in Chard... and more

    Today's Weather

    • Yeovil

      Light rain

      High: 12°C | Low: 5°C

    • Chard

      Sunny intervals

      High: 11°C | Low: 4°C

    • Crewkerne

      Sunny intervals

      High: 11°C | Low: 4°C

    • Somerton

      Light rain shower

      High: 11°C | Low: 5°C

    • Wincanton

      Light rain

      High: 12°C | Low: 4°C

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