Olympians lift spirits dampened by soggy summer and economy

OLYMPIC fever hit the country and Devon had its fair share of success in Team GB's outstanding haul of medals at the Beijing Games.

Exmouth's Joe Glanfield, 29, won a silver medal with his crew mate Nick Rogers in the Men's 470 class sailing event.

And equestrian star Mary King, of Exminster, won a bronze medal as part of the eventing team.

Other Devon Olympians included Exeter Harrier Jo Pavey, 34, who produced a personal best time of 31-12-30 to finish 12th in the 10,000 metres final.

And Exeter swimmer Liam Tancock, 23, also returned without a medal but still had reason to be proud after he set a British record in the 100m backstroke, where he finished sixth.

Being summer, the other hot topic of conversation was the weather.

Devon was the wettest place in the UK in July, the Met Office revealed.

The county was inundated with almost three times its average rainfall for July, when 187mm fell.

A Met Office spokesman said the figure was two and a half times the UK's average rainfall figure for the month, based on readings taken between 1971 and 2000.

Then one of the worst storms of the year struck in September. More than two inches of torrential rain brought a soaking as 50mph gales lashed Exeter and other parts of Devon in a major washout.

It left a trail of damage with major flooding, trees uprooted and drains unable to cope.

But heavy rain didn't stop thousands of people enjoying the Beautiful Days festival at Escot Park, near Ottery St Mary — even those who had to have their cars dragged out of the mud.

Highlights included the Levellers, Seth Lakeman and Supergrass.

The sound of music also filled the air when Powderham Castle hosted a weekend of three major concerts featuring Boyzone, Katie Melua and bands from the '80s, including Bananarama and Paul Young.

Celebrities arrived in Exeter when writer and comedian Rik Mayall, broadcaster Sir David Attenborough and author Ken Follett became honorary graduates.

Wannabe stars from Exeter hit our television screens. Exeter theatre director Belinda Harris-Reid joined the Big Brother house and was the fifth contestant to be evicted from the Channel 4 show.

Singing mum Shelley Lewis made it through to the bootcamp stage in ITV talent show X-Factor. The 29-year-old, from Exminster, beat more than 200,000 other contestants.

The third quarter of the year also brought tragic news.

Brave Exeter soldier Jason Barnes was killed in Afghanistan after saving the life of a comrade. Corporal Barnes, 25, a former St James School student, died when a bomb exploded as he drove an ambulance back to his Helmand base in July.

And two city teenagers were killed in a motorbike accident.

David McDonald, 16, of Whipton, and Shaun Vowden, 15, of Wonford, crashed into the central reservation of the Rydon Lane dual carriageway.

In other tragic news, an Exeter mother charged with the murder of her four-year-old son was found dead.

Emma Manser, 24, a paranoid schizophrenic, was found hanged by her T-shirt in a West Sussex mental health facility.

Fears of a recession continued as house sale prices continued to plummet and plans to create a major new town, Cranbrook, east of Exeter were put on hold because of the credit crunch.

Exeter City Council admitted it could be facing up to a £30m deficit over the next five years. Cutbacks included axing plans for a new £7m swimming pool to replace Pyramids.

The same pool was the subject of a series of controversial stories which reached a dramatic conclusion, thanks to the Echo.

An independent report was commissioned by Exeter City Council after Exeter City Swimming Club complained that the water at the Heavitree Road pool was causing health problems for its members.

The council insisted there was no problem with the water and commissioned tests to be carried out, but it refused to make the findings public — despite repeated requests from the Echo.

The report, eventually obtained by the Echo under the Freedom of Information Act, revealed criticisms including inaccurate water test readings by staff, and fears that chlorine may have been allowed to remain at unacceptable levels, which some research suggests could affect asthmatics.

City councillors formally voted to reject a proposal for a unitary Devon authority which would create a "super council" in place of the current county and district structure.

Devon County Council came under fire when leader Brian Greenslade created uproar over his mileage claims. The Echo revealed he clocks up around 500 miles in his car every week for official duties, and covered 15,670 miles in 2007-08, claiming more than £5,000 in fuel costs. Cllr Greenslade, who lives in North Devon and has to visit Exeter regularly, said poor public transport means he had little alternative.

Also on the political front, Broadclyst Village Hall became the centre of much debate when a secret BNP political rally was held there.

The party later announced it will be targeting Devon in the run-up to next year's European elections.

There were reasons to celebrate in Exeter when GCSE results came out and the city broke out of the education doldrums with candidates doing as well as their neighbouring rural contemporaries.

The record results across the city were a relief for school staff and education bosses.

It wasn't such good news for campaigners fighting against a £70,000 sculpture in Heavitree after a narrow council decision gave it the go-ahead.

In Branscombe, the massive anchor from the container ship MSC Napoli that was deliberately beached just off shore went on permanent display in the village.

It will act as a reminder of the chaos that befell the village as looters and debris descended on their beach in January 2007.

One of the longest-running stories, the disappearance of schoolgirl Genette Tate, who vanished from her home village of Aylesbeare 30 years ago, appeared in the papers again.

Prosecutors said there was "insufficient evidence" to take convicted child killer Robert Black to court, leaving Genette's dying dad, John, "heartbroken".

The 13-year-old's body has never been found but Black has been the central focus of the police investigation.

Mr Tate, who has prostate cancer and lives in the Manchester area, said: "It seems to me now that we will never find out what happened to Genette."

A top Devon cop was accused of being "distasteful" and "offensive" after dressing as Osama bin Laden for charity at a village carnival.

Chief Superintendent Colin Terry, a former commander of policing in North and East Devon, attended Ground Zero in New York on behalf of Devon & Cornwall Constabulary on the fifth anniversary of the infamous 2001 attack by suicide hijackers on the World Trade Center.