Marra News
The Real Cumbrian Crack.
Road closures, council notices, sport, and what's on — the stuff that's usually buried on official sites. We'll cover the rest of Cumbria when it matters here. Toggle Marra Mode on any story for how we'd tell you in the Co-op.
Cumberland Council's highways and transport staff are wearing pink on Friday 23 October for Breast Cancer Now's Wear It Pink day, and the council is buying an 18-tonne pink gritter that will join its fleet in 2027.
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The Met Office has upgraded its Storm Boelo warning for Cumbria to amber, from 9pm on Saturday to 9pm on Sunday, with gusts of 60 to 70mph and up to 80mph on exposed coasts. A wider yellow warning starts at midday on Saturday.
The Reds face Cleethorpes Town in the FA Trophy first round proper on Saturday, while Whitehaven AFC and Cleator Moor Celtic are away in the West Lancashire League. The rugby league seasons are over for the area's clubs.
Workington AFC have signed 18-year-old Morecambe defender Adam Fairclough on an initial 28-day loan, subject to league and FA approval, ahead of Saturday's FA Trophy tie at home to Cleethorpes Town.
Mapping Glances: Painting Faces Through the Autistic Lens, a show of oil portraits by Cumbrian painter Ophelia Appleby, opens with a preview at 6pm on Friday 6 November at Gallery 9 on King Street and runs through November.
Morgan Sindall Infrastructure degree apprentices Lyla Chandler and Ellie Telford, both former students, led the building of a teaching structure inside a workshop at Energy Coast UTC in Lillyhall, finishing on time and under budget.
The Cumbrian charity Every Life Matters has appointed a specialist practitioner to support four to 21-year-olds in Cumberland affected by suicide, expanding a service it already runs in Westmorland and Furness.
Workington marked the start of the Royal British Legion's poppy appeal with a two-minute silence in the town centre on Thursday, attended by the mayor, Councillor Sue Fryer. The town's Remembrance parade is on Sunday 8 November.
The Met Office has a yellow wind warning for all of Cumbria from 6pm on Saturday 24 October to 9pm on Sunday 25 October, with gusts of 55 to 65mph and possibly 70 to 80mph on exposed coasts.
Workington AFC's new club shop at the Workington Innovation Centre on Central Way opens on Saturday morning before the Cleethorpes Town game, as the club names Connor Mason its first commercial development officer.
Ben and Carmina started selling bakes at the TEG Markets in 2022 and opened the Howling Wolf café under the Beacon in 2023; its cinnamon buns are now a local favourite, but rising costs make winter a worry.
Cumberland Council has extended its Call for Sites, which asks people to put forward land for development or protection in the new Cumberland Local Plan, to 30 November 2026.
The 11-team Copeland Netball League, which has played at Whitehaven Sports Centre for more than 30 years, has been told the refurbished hall no longer meets netball court size rules and it will move to Cleator Moor.
Story Homes has asked Cumberland Council about a scheme of up to 160 homes on grazing land north-east of Main Road in High Harrington, starting with 145, and the council says a full environmental assessment is not needed.
UCU members at Lakes College in Workington have voted to enter a formal dispute over workload, stress and timetable changes, warning industrial action could follow; the college says talks are ongoing.
A community owl box project that started at Longlands Lake near Cleator Moor has now put up more than 50 boxes across Cumbria, after a West Cumbria Rivers Trust post about craftsman Robert Stephenson.
All of Muncaster Castle's 'escaped' boggles have been found, and its nine-day Halloween Family Festival near Ravenglass runs from Saturday 24 October to Sunday 1 November.
Cumbria's Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner David Allen has put forward temporary chief Ben Ryder as his preferred candidate for Chief Fire Officer, with a confirmation hearing on Tuesday 3 November.
Copeland Police say the speed camera van has been to Distington 11 times this year, leading to 22 Notices of Intended Prosecution, and enforcement will continue.
Thomas Armstrong Construction Ltd has applied to build 51 houses and bungalows at Flosh Meadows, Cleator, on land where three schemes totalling 47 homes were already approved.
Joan Kirkwood McDowell, 84, of the Workington and Whitehaven RNLI fundraising branch, has received a 50-year Long Service Award for supporting lifeboat crews since 1975.
The Natural History Museum's touring Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibition opens at The Beacon Museum in Whitehaven on Saturday 24 October and runs until 31 January 2027.
Australian prop Lucas Castle, 26, has agreed to stay at Workington Town for 2027, joining Bear Williams in committing to new head coach Brad Singleton's squad.
Two men have been charged with attempted murder after a man in his 30s was seriously injured at Ewanrigg Lonning, Maryport, on 16 October. Police are appealing for witnesses and doorbell or dashcam footage.
A free Level 2 course in support work in schools and colleges starts on Monday 9 November, with sessions online or at System People's offices in Workington and Carlisle and a route on to its supply register.
Workington AFC have cancelled Tuesday's training to protect struggling players after an injury and concussion crisis forced a last-minute goalkeeper loan, ahead of Saturday's FA Trophy first round tie against Cleethorpes Town at Borough Park.
Cumberland Council will start installing 30 fingerposts, five map boards and six community notice boards across Workington town centre in late October.
Florence Arts Centre in Egremont is holding a free open day on Thursday 29 October for its Ground 5 exhibition, which celebrates the paints its Florence Paintmakers business makes from Cumbrian minerals.
Cumberland Council has scheduled a five-day full closure of Central Way in Workington from Monday 19 October so the road can be resurfaced as part of the Central Way Active Travel Scheme.
Indigo Moon Theatre brings Gaby Gulliver's Travels, a shadow puppetry reimagining of Jonathan Swift's novel, to Rosehill Theatre in Whitehaven on Monday 26 October at 2pm.
A member of the public will ask Cumberland Council's highways and transport strategic board on Thursday 22 October to commit to a significantly lower, enforceable speed limit on the A596 through Crosby, near Maryport.
Women Who Cumbria is holding Mooch, a clothes swap evening for women, at The Carlton in Maryport on Saturday 24 October from 6pm to 9pm. Tickets are £7 and guests can bring up to 10 items.
Cumbrian-raised artist Jade Melany is exhibiting her oil paintings at the Whitehaven Town Council Gallery on Queen Street from Monday 19 October, with a meet-the-artist session on Thursday 22 October.
Workington Royal British Legion is holding a veterans' café on Tuesday 20 October from 10.30am, with free breakfast and coffee, housing and benefits advice, and activities for children.
Rosehill Theatre at Moresby, near Whitehaven, is adding evening film screenings with every ticket at £6. The first is the D-Day drama Pressure on Wednesday 21 October at 7pm.
Martin Birch, Cumberland Council's director of children and family wellbeing, has left the council. Chris Jones-King is taking on the responsibility on an interim basis.
Days after Calder Hall's 70th anniversary, Sellafield Ltd has asked Cumberland Council about demolishing Turbine Hall B, a redundant building at the old power station, in work expected to run from November 2026 to November 2031.
The Office for Nuclear Regulation says lessons from a 2022 overexposure were not properly put in place before the same Magnox Reprocessing Plant worker took in a further 9.8mSv dose in October 2025, though it ruled out enforcement action.
The Office for Nuclear Regulation is considering further action after Sellafield wrongly sent a small amount of plutonium oxide in an unsuitable package to a National Nuclear Laboratory site in Workington in February.
The Rack Shack snooker and pool venue on Quay Street, Whitehaven, has applied to Cumberland Council for a change of use so it can add six to eight full-size ten-pin bowling lanes, aiming to open them in March 2027.
PRODA, the American protein soda company co-founded by Egremont-born Peaky Blinders actor Matthew Postlethwaite, has brought in Justin Timberlake and Jessica Biel as co-founders. He says the idea began with his grandmother back home in Egremont.
Cumberland Council is consulting on replacing council-arranged taxis and minibuses for eligible post-16 SEND students with a payment based on the cost of a bus pass. Nothing has been decided, and the consultation closes on 20 November.
A Cumberland Council report says funding will not stretch to every bus service it supported this year. Councillors meet on Thursday 22 October and are being asked to find up to £235,000 to keep three routes, including the MD1 between Maryport and Dearham.
Seventy years after the Queen opened Calder Hall at Sellafield, the Beacon Museum in Whitehaven is holding a free exhibition from 19 to 25 October and asking people to bring photographs, memorabilia and memories.
The discount department store TJ Hughes is opening its first Egremont branch in the former Original Factory Shop unit. It is due to open before the end of November and is recruiting up to 15 staff.
More than 60 people joined a 5K run in Whitehaven on Thursday 15 October to celebrate the first anniversary of the free 180 Run Club, its biggest turnout so far.
St John's Church on Washington Street, Workington, has been awarded £708,310 from the government's Places of Worship Renewal Fund to repair its stone tower after chunks of masonry fell into the churchyard. Work is due to start later this year.
Enabling works have started at Borough Park in Workington, the site of the planned shared stadium for Workington AFC and Workington Town. The works should take about three months.
A 480-metre stretch of the C4017 near Cleator Moor will close from Monday 19 October, expected until 13 November, for United Utilities water works, with a signed diversion via Cold Fell, Rowrah and Frizington.
Aldi says its new store on the former East Road Esso garage site in Egremont is due to open in early December, creating up to 40 jobs.
Cumberland Council is replacing worn-out play equipment at Kells in Whitehaven and Orgill in Egremont, and wants residents' views by Thursday 5 November.
Hensingham Amateur Rugby League Club in Whitehaven has applied to Cumberland Council for a new building with four team changing rooms, saying its current facilities are outdated and too small after strong growth in junior and girls' rugby.
Cumberland Council has been shortlisted for Campaign of the Year at the 2026 MRW National Recycling Awards, for a February-to-June digital campaign made with local agency Quokka. Winners are announced in London on 1 December.
Cumbria Fostering has launched a recruitment campaign for foster carers, including for siblings, teenagers and children who need a long-term home. Information events run from 13 to 22 October. Details are at cumbriafostering.org.uk.
Cumberland Council and Westmorland and Furness Council have opened a public questionnaire on local bus services, as part of the Cumbria Bus Reform Pilot Study. It runs until midnight on Sunday 25 October. Remaining drop-ins include Penrith, Carlisle, Keswick and Workington.
The Environment Agency has approved a permit change for Recycling Lives on Isabella Road, Workington, raising its hazardous waste storage limit to 5,000 tonnes so it can sort waste batteries, while cutting the total waste it can take each year.
Cumberland's family hubs in Workington, Whitehaven, Maryport, Egremont and Flimby are running free Halloween stay and play, family fun and youth sessions during the October half-term, from Monday 26 to Friday 30 October.
Viberoptix, part of the Fibrus Group, has been named Infrastructure Builder of the Year for connecting more than 146,000 homes and businesses across Cumbria to full fibre. The award was given at Connected Britain in London.
People across Cumbria are being asked to nominate outstanding volunteer groups for the King's Award for Voluntary Service. Nominate at kavs.dcms.gov.uk, or contact the Lord-Lieutenant's Office.
Members of the British and Irish Bryological Society surveyed high ground around Helvellyn and Fairfield, hosted by the Lake District National Park. They recorded a moss new to England, and several species not seen in Westmorland for more than fifty years.
Cumberland Council's Highways Team is checking and refilling around 2,000 grit bins. Each bin now has a unique sticker number. Report a low one at cumberland.gov.uk/roads or on 0300 373 3736.
Cumberland Council has submitted a planning application to replace floodlighting at Workington Hall in Curwen Park with low-level, ground-mounted uplighters.
Danny Rodgers lost 300 pigeons in a fire at a Cleator Moor allotment on 17 July. A fundraiser to rebuild the loft he keeps with his father has raised £17,000.
Wasdale Mountain Rescue Team is recruiting volunteer rescuers. Applications close on 15 September 2026. Details are on wmrt.org.uk, or email recruitment@wmrt.org.uk.
The Carlisle International Market is in the pedestrianised city centre from Thursday 27 August to Monday 31 August 2026, with food, crafts and a civic proclamation at the Market Cross.
Cumberland Council will replace the deck on the U2093 at Bridekirk Bridge, Bridekirk, near Cockermouth, from Tuesday 1 September 2026. The road will be closed throughout, for about three weeks.
The former cinema on Senhouse Street will begin opening to the public from September 2026, with seven first-floor offices to rent from £344 a month. Performances are planned later in the year.
Cumberland Council will resurface the U4106 Hinnings Road, Distington, from Tuesday 1 September, under a road closure for up to 14 days. The scheme is part of a £27.3 million highways programme.
Stage one of the Lloyds Tour of Britain Women started and finished in Cockermouth on 19 August, running 158.9km through Whitehaven, Workington, Maryport and the Solway.
Cumberland Council has revised Workington Gateway and A66 dates after bad weather — Washington Street, Hall Park View, Hall Brow, Stainburn, Harrington Road and Central Way.
Cumberland Council has appointed Morgan Sindall to build Units 9 and 12 at Leconfield Industrial Estate — available from late 2027, aimed at robotics, manufacturing and digital firms.
Young people across Cumberland collected GCSE results on 20 August. The figures are provisional; council-maintained schools show gains in English and maths, and for disadvantaged pupils.
Community Rail Cumbria, Northern and three day-service groups have put display panels and a leaflet at Coast Line stations after £2,450 from Community Panels.
From 18 August, a national AI system will redirect non-police 101 calls — councils, NHS, power cuts — before they reach Cumbria's queue. Callers can reject the suggestion; doubt goes to the police.
Cumbria Police have received several courier-fraud reports in the past week, including one victim who lost £50,000. They want people to warn older relatives and neighbours.
Antouel Margariti, 38, was jailed for 32 months at Carlisle Crown Court on 11 August after admitting possession with intent to supply cocaine valued at more than £27,000.
West Cumbria will see around 88% of the Sun covered at peak around 7.06pm on 12 August — local times, where to stand, and how to watch safely.
Cumbria Police have published today's mobile speed camera van locations — including Salterbeck, the A596 between Workington and Aspatria, and the B5300 between Maryport and Silloth.
Urgent structural repairs have forced an overnight closure of a section of the M6 southbound in Cumbria. Motorists are advised to follow designated diversion routes.
Mountain Rescue teams were deployed in the early hours to assist an exhausted walker stranded on a fell. The individual was safely located without serious injuries.
Manager Billy Barr has been actively scouting young talent at a recent showcase event in Chorley as the club prepares for a highly anticipated friendly against Carlisle United.
The Carnegie Singers entertained Saturday shoppers with an impromptu performance featuring songs from Fishermen's Friends and Abba ahead of their summer concert.
Workington Town RLFC secured a decisive 40-14 win over Hunslet at the Fibrus Community Stadium, with Jake Carter earning Man of the Match honours.
Saturday Night at the Movies at Moorclose Theatre, 4 July — Sethera Brass, Teth3ra Strings, soloists and raffle prizes. £12 on the door, kids free.
The real story behind the Workington boiler snake — local testimony, evidence files, and the extraction BBC left out.
Murray Road and Central Way works enter their final stage — with ENWL utility closures from 29 June, overnight resurfacing 6–11 July, and the new Innovation Centre opening Thursday 2 July.
Cumberland Council and Connect Roads will close sections of the A595 and A596 overnight through July — full details on dates, locations, and diversion routes below.
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