Blaming the council anger

Yorkshire Evening Post: Head of maintenance company blames "complicated" council for work backlog

You don't often see big chiefs mixing it with the plebs and posing angrily in local newspapers. Clearly a man of the people.

Spotter's Badge: Paul

Swimming lessons anger

Essex Chronicle: Swimming classes shut down due to health and safety fears at local pool

"I'd dive into her deep end" (To retrive a rubber brick in my pyjamas)

Spotter's Badge: Barry

Expensive pork chop anger

Bournemouth Echo: Woman charged £527 for two pork chops

"I'd show her my por.....waaaaaait"

Spotter's Badge: Kevin

Smelly pensioners anger

Bromley News Shopper: OAPS barred from pub until they get a wash

And before you ask, bloke on the right IS a bloke

Spotter's Badge: Martin, Christina, Rob

Late train diary of anger

Sevenoaks Chronicle: Commuter keeps two-year diary chronicling late trains

The long winter evenings in his household must absolutely *fly* by

Spotter's Badge: Rob

School academy plans anger

Manchester Evening News: Parents angry as school plans to become academy despite objections

Somebody in this photo is decidedly off-message

Spotter's Badge: Christian

Slow broadband anger

Sussex Courier: Residents dismayed to find that 'superfast' broadband isn't very fast at all

Come on, smile, I'm on 50Megs and loving it.

Spotter's Badge: Skuds

Ambulance station anger

Northants Telegraph: Fury over ambulance station closure plans

If you look at the full-size photo, you will note the triple exclamation marks. *shudders*

Spotter's Badge: Victor

Kicked off bus anger

Huddersfield Examiner: Boy, 10, thrown off bus after being 1p short

Naughty bus driver.

You will be amazed to learn that Colby Regis is also the name of a small village in Dorset*

Spotter's Badge: Sav

*Lie

Cattery back-of-the-head anger

Bromley News Shopper: Residents upset at end-of-the-garden cattery

At least, we think they're angry. Those are some pretty clenched buttocks

Spotter's Badge: Rob

Old people's home legal fight anger

Gloucestershire Echo: Old people in legal battle against care home

And I don't blame them, all those senile delinquents living on their doorstep. Crime through the roof.

Also, I have no idea why they are both holding photos of a bungalow.

Spotter's Badge: Pete

Walked home from hospital anger

Bournemouth Echo: Mum 'forced' to walk home from hospital at 3am

I wouldn't normally do a story like this, but when even the commenters are demanding folded-arms as well as the dressing gown, you know that this is one too good to miss

Pub football flag anger

Sunderland Echo: Football club sets the law on pub landlord for displaying flags in pub windows

I could give you a lengthy opinion on why they are so very, very wrong, but instead: *Head-desk*

Spotter's Badge: Anthony

Law abiding citizen anger

Wales Online: Dad furious after getting Asbo for driving quad bike on road without insurance

“I was almost speechless with anger when the police pulled us over – surely the police have got bigger crimes to solve..."

Such as uninsured drivers who cost legal road users in hugely inflated premiums? 

Spotter's Badge: Twm

Party shop crash anger

Dorset Echo: Car crashes into local party shop
 
As the first commenter notes, the shop owner is a regular in the Echo, usually in the pose as seen above

Church graffiti anger ...err... forgiveness

Blackpool Gazette: Vicar forgives vandals who spray-painted church

Forgive them. Forgive them TO DEATH.

Weird News in Local Newspapers

I've been mulling adding a Weird News blog to go with my Angry News and Dull News offerings, but found myself with far too much on my plate to find the time.

Never fear - for here comes a different person called Al with a brand new site: WEIRD NEWS IN LOCAL NEWSPAPERS, starting off - much like this blog - with a story about sausages.

I'm not sure if he's accepting contributions yet, but I must stress this one's got nothing to do with me.

Too happy to get a new hall anger

Sussex Courier: Residents told they are 'too happy' to get funding for new village hall

And flashing your wad won't help, even if the place is built of the side of a mountain

Spotter's Badge: Skuds

Plumbing bill anger

Halifax Courier: Woman faces huge bill after finding bath under her floorboards

"I’d hide some plumbing under her floorboards" (To ensure that all waste water is carried away safely)

Spotter's Badge: Ross

Garden wall anger

Sevenoaks Chronicle: Anger as lorry damages garden wall

"DONE A POO"

Spotter's Badge: Rob

Deadly trip hazard anger

Essex Echo: Grass pushing through crack in pavement 'is a trip hazard'

Another of our regular studies in "Do It Yourself, then"

Spotter's Badge: Frank

Dangerous phone box anger

Coventry Telegraph: Residents demand removal of dangerous phone box

Wow. An *actual* phone box. I assumed they were just public toilets these days

Spotter's Badge: Rob

Failed pothole repair anger

Yellow Advertiser: Complaints over pothole repair scheme

For one beautiful moment I thought the chap was called Councillor Alan Partridge

School sports anger

Essex Echo: Simple island folk dismayed at school's sporting facilities

As one of the commenters puts it: Why not extend the net to go round the entire island?

Spotter's Badge: Barry

Gran's rooftop protest anger

Bournemouth Echo: Woman stages rooftop protest after falling out with daughter

"I'd blow her fuse" (By plugging in too many appliances)

Spotter's Badge: Niki

Fake baby products anger

Stuff.nz: Dad-to-be buys counterfeit baby gear

Also, a counterfeit baby.

Spotter's Badge: Clare

Dog down a hole anger

Essex Echo: Man claims dogs could fall down holes in playing field

This is, as you might imagine, the opening scene from the British remake of Tremors

Spotter's Badge: Barry

Pothole apostrophe disaster anger

Yellow Advertiser: (Actual headline) ‘Pothole’s are a health hazard’ claims jogger

"I'd 'fila'" (For eg, Buy her some new sports kit)

Dog bites postie anger

Essex Echo: Postie bitten by lion-hunting dog

HUGELY disappointed to learn that this is nothing to do with the infamous Essex Lion.

Spotter's Badge: Barry

Estate Agent phone theft anger

Wolverhampton Express and Star: Anger as estate agents targeted by mobile phone thieves

Our spotter says: Morticia Addams' eye's follow me everywhere

Spotter's Badge: Nick

School phone theft anger

Brentwood Gazette: Mum puts up reward for return of son's phone

"...had his £450 Blackberry Bold 9900 stolen, but also missing were three or four other mobile phones, an iPod and some cash worth hundreds of pounds."

Bloody hell - does he go to school at Eton?

Spotter's Badge: Barry

Vandalised cricket pitch anger

Bournemouth Echo : Fury as vandals burn all-weather cricket pitch 

And, of course, calls for the death penalty in the comments

Royal Mail anger

Warrington Guardian: Royal Mail refuses to hand over parcel to man with broken vacuum cleaner

"Suckers!!!!!"

Spotter's Badge: Nick

Bus paint anger

Brighton Argus: Man banned from bus for carrying tin of paint

It's a real thing which we have chronicled before

Spotter's Badge: Richard

Bin petition anger

York Press: Hundreds sign petition to bring back litter bins

"I'd willingly give her my name and address" (Because I am entirely opposed to council cuts)

Spotter's Badge: York Dweller John

Ironically-name night club rumble anger

Essex Echo: Club owner claims police raid was 'too heavy handed'

IRONY ALERT: The night club is called 'Mayhem'

Spotter's Badge: Barry

Doesn't want to appear in his own angry story anger

Bit of a weird one this, bear with us*

Reading Post: Man banned from McDonalds after continual complaints, gets family to pose for photo, which then mysteriously disappears from the page later in the day, along with all the comments
 
But a little bit of digging from our spotter turns up an earlier story...

Reading Post: Council sick of man who keeps calling about rubbish bins

BINGO!

Spotter's Badge: Graham, Andrew

* Really, he's very angry and wants honey

Pay for your own bins anger

Lancashire Telegraph: Local councillor on the case as residents of new estate told to pay for their wheelie bins

Third time on these pages for this chap: Mole-man is angry and Mole-man is still angry. Still, pleasing to see that he doesn't actually resemble a mole.

Spotter's Badge (and Gold Star): Karen

Banned Yoga Class Church Fail Anger

Southampton Daily Echo: Church bans 'Unchristian' yoga class

"I'd put her in a number of exciting positions" (For example, on a roller coaster at Alton Park)

Charity box theft anger

 

Brighton Argus: Anger as thieves steal charity tin

Had to put the commentards straight on the correct punishment for these curs: Push them bodily through a sieve, turn them into soup, feed the soup to baboons, and fire the baboons out of a cannon straight into the heart of the sun. And no jury would dare convict you.

Spotter's Badge: Christopher

Living in squalor anger

Waltham Forest Guardian: Family of seven still living in squalid two-bed house

Spotter and I are both agreed. Following their previous appearance, both our inner Richard Littlejohn was engaged in a full-scale battle with our inner Guardian reader over this one

Spotter's Badge: Beth

Mini-skirt ban anger

Teeside Gazette Live: Doctor furious after being told not to wear mini-skirt at the gym

First comment nails it: "Gym enforces dress code" is pretty much the complete story here.

Spotter's Badge: Charlotte

Tesco noise anger

Burnham-on-Sea.com: Fury as noise from expanded supermarket disturbs residents

Why's he in uniform? Is he going to call in an airstrike?

HEALTH AND SAFETY GONE MAD anger

Bracknell Forest Standard: Housing association 'obsessed with health and safety' says mum who keeps her stuff in communal stairwell where people can trip over it, steal it or set fire to it 

But other that, well played.

Sacked from McDonald's anger

 

Wales Online: Worker sacked from McDonald's for serving too many sprinkles on a McFlurry

 
 "I'd show her a Whopper" (By offering her a job in Burger King)

Axed bus route anger

Ipswich Star: Passengers left high-and-dry after bus route is cut

Was about to say that the pics accompanying this story were a big fail, as the rules clearly state that 'axed bus route stories' should be photographed at a nearby bus stop, preferably in the pouring rain. Then I saw the picture above, clearly another one for my scare-the-kiddiewinks Hallowe'en display

Spotter's Badge: Jon

Football parking anger

Reading Evening Post: Council increases car park charges for Sunday footballers by 600%  

That'll be the Olympic Legacy we've all heard about

Spotter's Badge: Andrew

Bad Efit

Hampshire Chronicle: Search for Winchester laptop thief

I know what you're thinking. Sheldon Cooper from The Big Bang Theory better get his alibi lined up

Don't have nightmares