Another McDonalds Opening in Darwen?

Rumour has it that McDonalds are going to open another restaraunt in Darwen town centre.

The speculation is that the "golden arches" will replace the old Global Video Shop / Burtons (featured in the picture).

If this rumour turns out to be true it will mean Darwen will have two McDonalds and a Subway. There has been demand for "top brand" shops to open in the town centre to try and attract people to shop in the town following the new road layout. Whether or not Darwen needs more food outlets remains to be seen, but at least they are recognisable brands and may help increase the foot flow in and around the town centre.

The building, which is located alongside the new road layout, is in an ideal position for passing motorists but presumably the restaraunt won't feature any additional parking or drive-thru facilities.

It may be used by people walking in the town centre but will passing cars be tempted to find a parking space and walk to the front door? If so, it may just help provide a shot in the arm for town centre shops.

No official word has been received by Darwen Online News on this matter but we will keep the site updated as a when possible. In the meantime feel free to post your own comments and/or updates by clicking on the "comments" link at the top of the post.

Soul Night - Friday 1st August

Eileen Connell has just announced the first date for the new Soul Night, sponsored by Darwen Online. The event, starring two local vocalists and DJ Crazzy Chris, will be held on the 1st August 2008 at the ICI Club in Bridge Street.

A limited number of tickets are available for just £3.50 each and can be purchased from Cue Music, Duckworth Street or the ICI Club itself.

The night will feature LIVE music from local singers Jack Miller and Charlie with the patrty running from 8pm until 1am.

A raffle will also take place on the night and prizes up for grabs include a recording session at Zig Zag studios, tickets for the soul night at King Georges Hall and CD's. Tickets for the raffle costs just £1.00 each and can be purchased on the night.

Together with the Salsa Parties, the Soul Night makes up a new form of monthly music entertainment organised by Eileen Connell. These new events started with two Salsa Parties which proved to be a huge success, enjoyed by all who attended. The Soul Night promises to be just as good so get yourself some tickets and enjoy something a bit different on Friday 1st August.

The events are sposnsored by Darwen Online who advertise on the leaflets and tickets, however, we don't actually organise the events. If you have any questions please contact Eileen through the forum topic she has set-up on the website where she'll be happy to answer any questions you may have. In the meantime look out for the leaflets being distributed throughout the town over the next couple of weeks for more information (or see the image attached).

* As with the Salsa Nights pictures may be taken and posted on the website after the event.

The address for the event is: ICI Club, Bridge St, Darwen, BB3 2AA (see map below)


View Larger Map

Darwen TSB Bank Machete Raid

Masked robbers yesterday broke their way into TSB Bank, Darwen before forcing staff to hand over a substancial amount of cash. The incident, in which nobody was injured, happened just after the bank closed at 4.30pm on Thursday 5th June 2008.

Witnesses describe hearing a loud bang as the robbers broke through the glass door to gain entry to the bank which had closed for business just minutes before the raid.

The two robbers, branding machestes, were wearing balaclavas and escaped with a number of cash boxes in an Audi A3 get away car which had reportedly been stolen from Manchester last week. The car was later found abandoned less than a mile away on Robin Bank Street. It is presumed that the robbers had a second car waiting for them there.

Although nobody was physically hurt it has left staff and some onlookers very disturbed. The incident happened at a very busy time with many people walking down Duckworth Street on their way home from work or school.

The police are asking for any witnesses to get in touch as soon as possible after an initial search of the area failed to find the suspects in their get away vehicle.

Did you witness the incident? Were you near Robin Bank Street around 4.30pm? Maybe you saw the eventual get away car parked up? If you think you have any information please contact the local police station on 01254 353841.

Have your say - visit the forum

Salsa Party Pictures

Salsa Night - Feb '08

Firstly, we'd like to thank all those who attended our first Salsa event at th ICI club on Saturday night, we hope you enjoyed it as much as we did!

Everyone seemed to have fun and by the end of the night it looked like the room was full of professional Salsa dancers.

Thanks also go out to Salsa Northwest (Phil, Karren, Leah) and DJ Barry G for making the night possible.

We plan to hold the night every two months so watch this space for details of the next event. For those who wish to have lessons between now then can attend Ewood Working Mens Club on Tuesday nights where Salsa Northwest (Phil) holds weekly lessons, from 7.30pm (Price: £5.00). You can visit their website: http://www.salsanorthwest.co.uk/ for more information.

Before we confirm the dates for the next Darwen Online salsa night we are going to sit down and discuss how we can make the night even better. Your feedback is welcome by email if you wish to put forward any suggestions.

There were 120 tickets on sale for Saturday night but we may look at reducing that number for the next event because it was a little crowded on the dancefloor at times. We were pleased with the number of people who turned up on the night and hope to see some of you at the next salsa night in a couple of months time!

We will be making the prize draw on Monday and will inform the winner by email. Good luck to all those who entered.

In the meantime you can view more pictures here:






Or view the video clip here:

Please contribute to the forum here: http://www.myuktown.co.uk/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=42&t=76&p=97#p97. You can upload your own photos or share your feedback through discussions.

Our First Salsa Party

Salsa Party in Darwen!

Have you ever wanted to improve your dancing skills? Looking for something a bit different to do on a Saturday night?

Keep fit, meet new people, have fun and learn Salsa with Darwen Online's Salsa party.

Tickets are priced at just £8.00 each and everyone is welcome to come along - beginners and experienced dancers.

The night starts at 8pm with a one hour Salsa workshop where you will learn how to dance with tuition from a professional tutuors - Phil and Leah of Salsa Northwest.

Top Salsa DJ Barry G will then take over when you can practice your new moves on the dancefloor as the party gains momentum (and with the help of some dutch courage!)

You don't have to worry about how good (or bad) you are at dancing or how old you are - people of all ages can learn how to improve. (18+ only)

Held at the ICI Club, Bridge St on the 2nd February this promises to be a great night and there are just 120 tickets on sale so be sure to order early to avoid disappointment. Tickets are available from Clive in the 3 day market, the ICI club, via the website or through Salsa Northwest's local classes.

For more information please get in touch with us via our contact form on the main website. We look forward to seeing you there! Be sure to tell your friends about it and try to rally up a group of you to attend.

** As a bonus Phil and Leah, the Salsa tutors, will be performing a small show mid-way through the night. **

December Chart Positions

#1: Red & Blue Birds by Silent Dog

Silent Dog topped our very first local song chart with their song Red & Blue birds which, despite receiving the least amount of 'airplays', shot to the top due to the number of downloads it received.

Each 'airplay' (streaming plays direct from the site which are free) count as one chart point whereas downloads (which cost approximately 50p per song) count as 10 chart points. The downloads generate additional revenue for the bands who receive 20p of every download.

The company behind the site, Project Opus take 25p per download and Darwen Online retain just 5p per song to cover admin costs.

Bands can submit their own songs directly to Project Opus and keep the full 25p but there are advantages to using Darwen Online:

* No minimum withdrawal
* Monthly payout
* We take care of uploading songs
* Feature in the Darwen Online charts
* Benefit from local promotion of Darwen Online
* Low cost - just 75p per song upload.

Bands interested in featuring in future charts by having their songs featured on the site please contact Craig or Eileen.

Note: The monthly charts are updated regularly throughout the month so you can track progress of your favourite song. The final chart positions are based on downloads/airplay within each calendar month and are updated on the last day of the month.

Darwen Online Music

Attention Local Bands:

Have you always wanted to get your song in the charts? Well now you can with Darwen Online's very own download chart. Our monthly chart features local bands and is collated by the number of downloads and plays via the online Music Player provided by Opus Project.

Once uploaded your songs can be played or downloaded by anyone with Internet access around the world. One Darwen band, Silent Dog, has already seen there first EP being played by people from across the globe. They have been receiving some positive reviews and as a result of song plays they can see which songs are most popular. At the time of writing this article their song Red and Blue Birds has shot to number 1 following their first download, proving that people are willing to pay for music created by local bands over the Internet.

We can upload your songs for just 75p per song. This nominal fee simply covers administration fees. If you are interested simply post a copy of your music to us and provide some information about your band and your songs. We can the take care of converting your music into the correct MP3 format for uploading and put your songs on the world stage.

You also have the opportunity to earn money for any downloads. Downloads are charged at approximately 50p per download of which Opus Player keep 25p, you receive 20p and we retain 5p to cover costs.

Of course, bands can upload their own songs directly to Opus to keep the full 25p per download but there are advantages to using Darwen Online:

- We take care of converting and uploading your music (save time)
- No need to sign up and maintain an account with Project Opus
- Receive monthly payouts (only quarterly payouts with Opus)
- No minimum payout (£25 minimum payout with Project Opus)
- Your songs will feature in the Darwen Online charts (there is no way for us to easily compile charts of songs not uploaded via us)

Although the charts are monthly, they will be updated regularly so you can see how your songs are performing throughout the month, giving you opportunity to promote your song in order to increase the overall chart position by the end of the month - and perhaps achieve top spot!

For more information please reply to this forum post or contact us by email.

Local Music Fans:

Help support your local bands by playing and downloading their songs via our site at Project Opus. Be sure to check our playlists for our choice of the best music (both local and from around the world).

More importantly check our MONTHLY DOWNLOAD CHART to see where your favourite bands are!

St Cuthbert's Church Fundraising

St Cuthberts Ladies Evening was held on the 30th November to help raise the £48,000 needed for the Church on Earnsdale Road, Darwen. This was supported by various businesses who managed stalls in the beautiful Church. Natasha Lee Jones also added to the atmosphere of the evening with her relaxing performance of songs from her new album "The Morning After".

Jane Cardingley, who helped organised this event said she would like to thank everyone who supported the event however it was a dissapointing turn out, but the terrible weather may have been a contributing factor. " Although we didn't raise as much money as anticipated we are looking forward to the future events".

Ticket for the Xmas raffle can still be purchased at St. Cuthberts Church 1st Prize £100, all proceeds to go towards the £48,000 target.

The evening included stalls from local business such as Angelic Beauty, Retail Therapy Shop, darwenonline.co.uk, The Body Shop and Partylite. Guests included parisheners Mavis Murphy and Doreen Cooper who has been attending St.Cuthberts for over 70 years.

Brian Townsend who is involved with the fund raising efforts is pictured above next to a stained glass plaque he desilgned and made, dedicated to his wife Helene who died on the 14th July 2006.