JULY

THE troubled Molly’s Den vintage emporium chain went bust with 26 people losing their jobs.

The Winchester branch in Easton Lane - where independent traders rented stalls to sell vintage, retro and antique goods – was shuttered and empty, less than 24 hours after traders started to receive the news.

Molly’s Den went bust shortly after director, John East-Rigby, died at his New Forest home of a gunshot wound to his head.

Two Winchester schoolboys raised nearly £2,000 after taking on a 24-hour music challenge.

Mike Wimbush and Nathan Man, pupils at The Pilgrims’ School, raised money for the Key Changes charity through a ‘Musicathon’ as their Year 8 Leavers’ Project.

A man who was found dead in a car in Corhampton died as a result of shotgun wounds.

The body of Gurinderjit Rai, from Eastleigh, was discovered in Shepherds Farm Lane, and several people have been arrested since.

Investigations are still ongoing.

Heritage Open Days celebrated its 25th anniversary with a party at the City Mill in Winchester.

Guests included the Mayor Eleanor Bell and Annie Reilly, national manager for Heritage Open Days.

Members of the public gathered outside the Great Hall as the first Hampshire Day ceremony unfurled.

The inaugural event, held in Castle Yard, is part of a Government campaign to celebrate the historic counties of England, and was hosted by Lord Lieutenant, Nigel Atkinson.

Before raising a new flag, which has been designed to highlight the “specialness and unity” of the area, the Lord-Lieutenant said: “I’m delighted Hampshire is taking part in this spectacular national initiative. It is important to come together as one and remember the people of past and present.”

AUGUST

WINCHESTER City Council extended its controversial waste collection contract – despite receiving dozens of complaints in the last few months.

National company Biffa is still responsible for disposing of household rubbish from 47,000 households across the district, despite a collection crisis spanning most of the summer.

To add to controversy, civic chiefs allowed the biggest music festival in Hampshire to expand its capacity by thousands.

Boomtown now has permission to host a maximum of 76,999 people, including staff and security, after a application was approved at a Winchester City Council licensing sub-committee.

This will increase the current maximum capacity by 10,000 and will in effect next year.

Plans to build 90 homes in Otterbourne, which had been submitted for the second time, were refused.

Development company Gladman first sought permission in August 2016, but withdrew the application in May 2017 after a long battle with residents, who filed a total of 315 objections.

One of the biggest names in Hollywood visited Naomi House and Jacksplace.

Kiefer Sutherland spared some of his time during the Wickham Festival to visit children and young adults.

Winchester’s MP Steve Brine signed a letter to the Prime Minister urging him to avoid a no-deal Brexit.

He joined 20 other senior Conservative MPs to say demands to abolish the backstop “set the bar so high that there is no realistic probability of a deal being done”.

Dozens of green campaigners staged a protest in Winchester to oppose a £100 million scheme for the M3.

Members of the local branch of Extinction Rebellion took to the High Street on Saturday, urging passers by to object the plans for Junction 9, Winnall.

More than 30 people joined in, with some handing out leaflets and talking to spectators, a few giving speeches, and the rest creating a ‘die-in’ – a technique in which climate change rebels lay on the ground and pretend to be dead.

SEPTEMBER

TV star and developer Kevin McCloud came under fire from city councillor Jackie Porter over broken promises at the Lovedon Fields development in Kings Worthy.

The Happiness Architecture Beauty (HAB) housing venture, launched by Grand Designs host Mr McCloud, was months behind with work on the site that was due to double the size of Eversley Park, with with a new allotment, cycle rack, play area, orchard and car park.

Cllr Porter said: “[Mr McCloud] had good intentions but it was naive. This project was much more complicated than it was meant to be.”

A village home was “completely destroyed” after a fire tore through its thatched roof.

Around 50 firefighters from across the county rushed to battle the blaze at a home in Beauworth Road, Beauworth, near Alresford.

New Canon Precentor and Sacrist Rev Andrew Trenier has been installed at Winchester Cathedral.

Speaking of the appointment, Andrew said: “I am enormously humbled to be asked to take on this important role.

Downpours throughout the morning did not deter thousands from taking part in the fourth Winchester Half Marathon.

A stream of 1,634 runners ploughed their way around the 13-mile route, setting off and finishing in front of the Guildhall.

OCTOBER

A BIN lorry crashed into two parked cars before ending up wedged into the front of a house while carrying out collections.

Shocked residents found the Biffa waste vehicle lodged into a property in Drayton Street, Stanmore, shortly before 8.30am while children were walking to school.

The lorry left the property with giant cracks and structurally unsafe due to the damage and came to rest across two driveways.

Thousands of Winchester University students graduated at the cathedral.

During nine individual ceremonies, each attended by chancellor of the university, Alan Titchmarsh, a number of Honorary Doctorates and Fellowships have also been handed to prominent public figures – including actors such as Hugh Bonneville and Dame Judi Dench, along with sports sensations and authors.

The future of River Park Leisure Centre site hangs in the balance as legal restrictions are expected to make any use more challenging when it closes.

The council-owned facility is the subject of a report to civic leaders which revealed there are historical restrictions, which relate back to the original site purchase.

A Winchester convenience store closed after being in competition with a national supermarket for ten years.

Martin’s in Stoney Lane shut for good. The owning company, McColls, decided that it sees ‘nothing else’ for the store’s future.

Manager Simon Lambell said: “It’s the end of an era, and I’m going to miss it. But things move on.”

NOVEMBER

THE innovator behind Marwell Zoo – one of Hampshire’s most popular tourist attractions – has died after a short illness.

Dr John Knowles, 90, opened the attraction in Colden Common in 1972, specifically to breed endangered animal species.

Two members of an organised gang who attempted to smuggle drugs, SIM cards and a mobile phone into Winchester prison using drones have been jailed.

The gang tried to transport cannabis and spice worth more than £8,000 into the city jail, but they were spotted by prison staff.

Staff at Peter Symonds College went on strike this week to demand more funding for their students and colleges.

Members of the National Education Union (NEU) took to the picket line to air their concerns over severe cuts to further education, joining other colleges around the country calling for action.

“You’re my favourite player,” 12-year-old Ellie told Saints captain James Ward-Prowse as they walked hand-in-hand onto the pitch at a packed St Mary’s stadium.

Standing in the circle of the pitch as the crowd revved up for the recent match against Everton to begin, all Ellie Wheatley’s childhood dreams unfurled into reality. Born with Congenital CMV, the football-dotty Kings Worthy youngster collapsed giggling the next day when she spotted herself on Match of the Day.

DECEMBER

A CANCER charity which has been supporting people for nearly 40 years issued an emergency appeal to raise £600,000 - or face a bleak future.

Time and money could be running out for Wessex Cancer Trust, with patients and their families looking at nowhere to turn.

The self-funded charity launched a crisis appeal to raise £600,000 by January 31 2020 or it risks having to close.

Campaigners hit out at £300,000 of taxpayers’ money being spent on rusty-looking signs.

The South Downs National Park has agreed to spend £10,000 each on 31 signs across the borders of the park. But critics, including the Taxpayers’ Alliance, claim the bill is nearly ten times the cost of those at the nearby New Forest National Park.

The Liberal Democrats came close to snatching Winchester and Chandler’s Ford in what would have been a stunning victory in the General Election.

Steve Brine held the seat but his majority of 9,999 from 2017 was slashed to less than a thousand by the Liberal Democrats’ Paula Ferguson.