Exeter

The Cowick Street Christmas Lights Switch-On will be taking place on Wednesday 4 December at 6pm - but the fun begins at 5pm! The Christmas Lights are organised and funded by local traders it's a fabulous community event for all the family young and old!

So come and join in the festive fun and you may even meet Santa......

Highlights include carol singing, Christmas hat competition, face painting, hog roast, ice creams, drinks stall, balloon modeler, Santa's Grotto, open top bus, tombola and a Surprise Attraction! A Radio Exe Live presenter will also be there.

A new range of luxury student apartments in Exeter has sold out in less than seven weeks due to an unprecedented demand from investors Private investors from both the UK and overseas have bought into the £17 million scheme on Longbrook Street in Exeter city centre guaranteeing them a potion of the rental costs on the properties.

The main contractor Create Construction, has begun work on the site and expect the project to be completed for the 2014/15 student intake Vita Student at Portland House is just off the high street in Exeter and is a short walk to the main university campus...

Exeter singing star Adam Isaac helped the people of Barnstaple begin their festive celebrations by performing at their Christmas lights switch on.

Adam, who was mentored by Sir Tom Jones in the 2012 series of The Voice, performed material from his own album Train Tracks and also covered tracks by artists such as Lenny Kravitz and Eurythmics. Girl band Stooshe and Britain’s Got Talent stars The Luminites also performed.

Adam will next be performing at Timepiece on Saturday 30th November. Please visit Timepiece at Little Castle Street for more information.

Update: The 43 year-old who died after being severely injured at a house on Alphington Road has been named as Stephen Michael Crook.

Ryan Singleton, 25, appeared in court today and will begin preliminary hearings on December 12.

Singleton will also return to court for a bail hearing tomorrow.

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A 25 year-old man charged with murder has been named as Ryan Singleton from Coventry.

Mr Singleton is appearing in Exeter Magistrate’s court this morning to begin initial hearings.

Mr Singleton is being charged...

Energy consumers in the South West are better off than elsewhere in the UK according to the energy watchdog, Ofgem.

A report by Ofgem shows that five of the ‘Big Six’ energy companies were not sufficently demonstrating value for money.

The report however praises Western Power Distribution’s (WPD) for putting in place a plan to reduce costs for customers.

WPD only operates in the South West, The Midlands and South Wales meaning that those elsewhere in the country must use another provider.

Ofgem’s Head of Distribution, Hannah Dixon said: “Western Power...

John Bidmead a 65 year-old former lorry driver has been sentenced to a 19 year prison sentence for child sex offences in Exeter Crown court today.

Bidmead from Cullompton was found with over a million images and videos of child pornography on his computer.

Police began investigating Bidmead after Interpol alerted them that Bidmead had been downloading the images.

A raid on his house caught Bidmead in the act of watching child pornography.

Officers at the Child Exploitation Unit forensically catalogued Bidmead’s collection of child pornography but had to stop...

Business secretary Vince Cable has passed a report that claims RBS has put some “good and viable” businesses into default financial regulators. Government advisor, Lawrence Tomlinson has released a report today which focuses on the way that RBS has been operating its Global Restructuring group (GRG).

The GRG is the ‘turnaround’ division of RBS which takes loans viewed as risky. The GRG is understood to have the power to scrap loan deals and charge penalties.

This has proven to be a profitable system as the fees bring in further money to the bank and if the business goes...

The government has announced plans to give police powers to disclose certain details of people’s criminal pasts to forces across England and Wales next year.

The Home Office led scheme gives people the ‘right to ask’ police if their partner has ever had convictions for domestic abuse and allow police to disclose details of a criminal in certain circumstances.

All requests must go through a panel of Police, Probation services and other agencies to ensure that the information is only passed on where appropriate.

The scheme also offers support to victims to help during...

A special ceremony will be held tomorrow to mark the completion of the eastern side of the Exe Estuary Trail.

The £2.6 million Clyst Bridge and connecting route through Goosemoor RSPB Nature Reserve has filled the missing link of the Trail. Together with the Ebford Link and Fishers Mill Bridge, this new section over the River Clyst completes the route between Exeter and Exmouth and connects with the local cycle network to Ebford and Clyst St George.

The new route forms part of the National Cycle Network. From Bowling Green Road in Topsham, it runs through the nature reserve...