NewsBank (Evening Chronicle)

WILL this rain ever stop? I feel I've probably started this column in the same way already this year.

¦ Plant summer-flowering bulbs, corms and tubers such as gladioli into pots but keep them sheltered from frost until next month. Lilies can be planted directly outside if the soil isn't saturated.

QI've a number of bamboo (Phyllostachys) that all started to flower last year. I cut out the flowering canes and they seemed fine but this year a number of canes are dying back.

SWIMMING Tom Dean insists he has no regrets about making public the extent of his Paris 2024 ambitions despite a setback at this month's British Championship that left his quest to claim five medals in the French capital hanging by a thread.

RUGBY UNION Former Wales captain Ken Owens has announced his retirement from the game after failing to recover from a back problem.

CAPTAIN BECHER THE MARQUIS

NEWCASTLE Vikings men's team fought back for a brilliant 24-32 away win over Tryst 77 in Sunday's Scottish Development League encounter in Glasgow.

TWO leading Tyneside hospice charities have shared "grave concerns" about a national funding squeeze.

¦ The dopamine-delivering Colour Crush collection from GHD will put a smile on your face. Five of their top tools are now available in lime, blue, red and apricot. We love the Chronos Styler in cyber lime, £299 (ghdhair.com), a super fast, gentle straightener and curler, now with added zing. ¦ Get glowing with multitasking complexion booster L'Oreal Paris Paradise Lumi Glotion, £11.99 (Superdrug).

If we have published anything that is factually inaccurate, please contact the editor, Helen Dalby on 0191 204 3364, via email at helen.dalbyreachplc.com or post to: The Editor, The Chronicle, ncjMedia, 2nd Floor, INTU Eldon Square, Eldon Court, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, NE1 7JB and, once verified, we will correct it as soon as possible.

NEWCASTLE United may have broken the bank with a £63m outlay for his services but with each passing day Alexander Isak looks more and more like a bargain for the ages.

FULHAM boss Marco Silva has previously outlined the importance Tosin Adarabioyo has to his plans amid links with Newcastle United.

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JARROD Bowen looks set to be fit for West Ham's bid for an unlikely Europa League comeback against new Bundesliga champions Bayer Leverkusen.

A GATESHEAD woman who was diagnosed with breast cancer in her 20s said returning to "normal life" after being ill is incredibly difficult.

LEADING Labour figures in the North East have criticised the Government over delays to planned changes on the East Coast Mainline.

LABOUR'S Shadow Chancellor has been campaigning in Prudhoe ahead of the general election.

A WOMAN told a court her boyfriend "just snapped" when he punched her in the face before allegedly killing her brother.

ARSENAL legend Ian Wright believes Newcastle United winger Anthony Gordon is deservedly in the conversation for Gareth Southgate's England squad thanks to his consistency this season.

EDDIE Howe has revealed that he shed a 'very small' tear on his first victory lap as Newcastle United boss.

NEWCASTLE United boss Eddie Howe has been boosted by the return of Callum Wilson in training.

NORTHUMBERLAND County Council need to be honest about job creation at the proposed data centre on the Cambois site.

HUGH Grant has settled a High Court claim against the publisher of The Sun newspaper after being advised he risked being liable for £10 million in legal costs if his case proceeded to a trial.

PRIME Minister Rishi Sunak has hit out at Labour-run councils across the country, with local election polls predicting widespread defeats for Conservative candidates.

JEREMY Hunt said the "feelgood factor" of interest rate cuts would be stronger in the autumn, in an apparent hint at the timing of the general election.

UK inflation dropped to a fresh twoand-a-half year low in March on the back of a further easing in food prices, official figures have shown.

APPLICATIONS to vote jumped sharply yesterday, the last day people were able to register ahead of next month's local, mayoral and police elections.

SECURITY will be tight during next month's Eurovision Song Contest in Malmo in southern Sweden, police said, citing demonstrations that could lead to unrest and a heightened threat of terrorism.

A "concerned" friend was pulled over by police after he decided to get behind the wheel of a car and look for his missing flatmate after a night of drinking.

A FIVE-month old baby was taken to hospital after their pram fell from a grass embankment to the ground below in North Tyneside.