11 stories which made the Hartlepool news in 1995 - from karting to Teddy Bear selling

It certainly was a jam-packed itinerary of quirky tales so let’s re-live some great memories.

l A former empty warehouse on Brenda Road was echoing to the sounds of revving engines.

Top Gun Karting was launched in December 1995 and people were travelling from all over the North-East to have a go.

The go-karting site covers 40,000 sq ft and is believed to be the biggest in the North-East, and one of the biggest in the country. The track is open seven days a week

l The musical Hart family was back in the news with the baton passing to the next generation in 1995.

Stephen Hart, 14, and his brother Paul, 10,were following in their father John’s footsteps and performing at venues all over Hartlepool with their band Backbeat. Did you get to see them?

l Youngsters from the Oxford Road Baptist Church Girls Fellowship were so moved by the plight of children in a Sao Paolo shanty town, and by the tireless work done there by Hartlepool woman Julia McNaught, they decided they could help.

They organised a coffee morning at their church hall, baking cakes and making crafts to sell.

After counting their hard-earned cash, the girls, aged ten to 14, came up with an amazing £130. Later, through donations from church members and friends, their fund was boosted to a massive £400.

l Brian Walker and his wife Winsome’s old Morris 10 car, built in 1935 was being prepared to join other pre-war Morrises for a drive over Hardknott and Wrynose Pass in the Lake District in aid of cystic fibrosis research.

l Language students at Manor School had just one day to put an eight-page newspaper together, from creating the stories and writing the headlines to inventing the title – and they did it all in German.

l An ambitious housing development to create 119 houses and bungalows got under way at the Middle Warren development. It was identified as the main area for growth in Hartlepool and there were plans to eventually build up to 2,000 homes on the site.

l Cuddly teddy bears proved a winner when Year 10 pupils at High Tunstall sold £332 worth of them to raise money for Hartlepool Hospice at a pound a go.

l The Clansman trebled its takings after slashing the prices of brand-name spirits. Customers were queuing up to take advantage of treble shorts at an amazing £1.50 a go.

l Jean Northey got a very special treat when David Relton, retiring head at English Martyrs School, promised the long serving secretary a day out,

Mrs Northey thought she was going for a walk on the Yorkshire Moors and dinner inHarrogate. But she ended up enjoying a flight to London, an unexpected

meeting with her children and tea at the Ritz.

l Brierton School pupils were learning routines as part of a dance project which was sweeping the country.

l A new trampoline club was going down a storm at the Mill House Leisure Centre, and the Tardis made an appearance at Hartlepool Sixth Form College as part of Adult Learners Week. Did you get to see it?

What are your memories of 1995? Tell us more by emailing chris.cordner@jpimedia.co.uk