Lancashire's most read stories in 2022 - month by month

From pictures of ‘sharks’ to the success of new businesses, it’s been far from a quiet 12 months in the region, with plenty of good news, along with a fair bit of bad, taking place throughout 2022.

As we reach the end of the year, we’ve taken a look back at our top stories from each month in 2022, to remember the stories which have mattered most to you this year.

January

'Legend' of Darwen music scene, Jonathan Lindley, dies aged 32

It was a sad start to the year as ‘local legend’ and champion of the East Lancashire music scene Jonathan Lindley died aged 32.

Jonathan was the chief executive and owner of Sunbird Records in Darwen, a business that he started in his apartment, and he also lectured in music at Huddersfield University.

He died in Royal Blackburn Hospital after several months of struggling with auto-immune hepatitis.

He was well known for his efforts to help emerging acts, giving them a platform to record and play.

February

Blackpool: Photographer snaps picture of ‘shark’ on the coast

Many people were fooled in February when an amateur photographer captured what looked to be a shark fin in the sea at Blackpool during stormy weather.

Chris August took the snap near the Gynn Wall on the town’s seafront and posted it on Facebook with the caption: “Is that a shark I captured in today’s waves?”

To the left side of the image, it certainly looks as though a huge shark fin can be seen – but alas, it was, instead, just a perfectly-timed photo of the rough waters and high tide.

It certainly captured the public’s attention with one person commenting: “Wonder how many people like me zoomed in just to check.”

March

Businesswoman who makes £2m a year to open first shop in East Lancs home town

March saw a Burnley entrepreneur go back to her roots after she opened her first physical shop in her hometown.

Briony Gorton, owner of Talliah Rose, opened her first permanent clothing store in The Mall in Burnley town centre late in the month.

At the time, she said it was “important to me that we launch our first store in the town where my love for fashion and retail all began when I was just 16.”

Plans may also be afoot to open more high street stores in the future, with a snipped of the company’s website saying, “we may just be coming soon to a High Street near you.”

April

Owners of demolished Punch Bowl Inn ordered to rebuild site

People were left astonished when the Grade II listed Punch Bowl Inn was reduced to a pile of rubble back in April.

It transpired the owners of the building had demolished it without planning permission – and they were ordered by Ribble Valley Borough Council to rebuild it “to its former state”.

A number of planning applications were submitted by Wilpshire-based Donelan Trading Ltd, with the intention of converting the pub into holiday lets and adding pitches for 20 static caravans.

Five people have since been found guilty of illegally demolishing the building, which is yet to be rebuilt.

May

Anger after bottles of ‘fake’ Zamzam holy water flood the market

In May, bottles of ‘fake’ Zamzam holy water were discovered to have been sold in Lancashire after arriving on a shipment believed to have been from Turkey.

The bottles came in just after Ramadan, during a time “when it was apparent no water had been leaving Saudi Arabia”.

Zamzam water hails from a well located within the Masjid al-Haram in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, the holiest site in Islam.

Discrepancies with the labels and poor engravings on the bottle caps were the giveaways to the ‘fake’ water, of which more than 4,000 bottles were believed to have found their way onto the market having originally arrived in Southampton.

June

Muslims hold silent protest against ‘provocative’ film

A silent protest was held back in June outside the Vue cinema in Blackburn after the arrival of a film which was said to provoke ‘Shia and Sunni tensions.’

The Lady of Heaven, a British-made film directed by Eli King and written by cleric Yasser Al-Habib, was released in towns with high Muslim populations such as Blackburn, Bradford and Manchester, despite concerns that the storyline ‘negatively depicts’ Islamic religious figures and goes against historic beliefs.

Around 25 people turned up outside Vue to hold a silent protest – no banners were held.

Managers at the cinema initially refused to say whether the film had been pulled – although did say it had been removed from their website – but later a spokesperson for the demonstrators said the film would not be showing and ‘had been pulled’.

July

GALLERY: Blackburn Central High School year 11 leavers prom

July saw the start of prom season for those finishing their exams, and that meant that there were some flashy cars on show.

It’s become a staple of proms across the country for fancy supercars to take kids to the events, with Blackburn Central High School’s being held at Foxfield’s Country Hotel in Billington.

This year saw pupils arrive in a purple McLaren P1, a yellow Lamborghini Gallardo Spyder, a white Rolls Royce and a yellow Mercedes AMG A35 amongst others.

Even Mr Chinery, the head of year 11, couldn’t resist a sit behind the wheel.

August

Billionaire Issa brothers Blackburn 'McMansions' row erupts again

A row over a group of mansions branded ‘the five ugly sisters’ from back in 2018 resurfaced in August when brothers Mohsin and Zuber Issa sought authorisation for changes made to the conditions imposed on the development.

The residences, also nicknamed the ‘McMansions’, replaced a group of eight houses and the changes concerned were: increasing the size of the homes; revising the landscaping scheme; relocating driveways; and amending the tree protection measures.

At a Blackburn with Darwen Council planning meeting, the family’s attitude towards planning rules was branded “an absolute joke” and a “shambles” by Livesey with Pleasington’s Cllr Derek Hardman.

The changes were approved by six Labour votes to three Conservative votes, and committee chairman Cllr Dave Smith said after: “We are going to end up with five very impressive buildings.”

September

Three of county's five most dangerous towns in East Lancashire

Data found by the Crime Rate website in September revealed three of the county’s five ‘most dangerous’ towns were in East Lancashire.

Accrington was found to be the ‘most dangerous medium-sized town in Lancashire’ and was among the top 10 most dangerous overall out of all 236 Lancashire towns, villages and cities.

Nelson and Darwen also featured in the top five most dangerous medium-sized towns.

The most common crimes in Accrington were violent and sexual offences, with 1,789 offences during 2021, a six per cent increase from 2020.

The least common crime in Accrington was bicycle theft, with 15 offences recorded in 2021, but still an increase of 47 per cent from 2020.

October

Brothers make dream a reality by opening new fish and chip shop

Four brothers fulfilled their lifelong dream in October as they opened a new fish and chip shop in Hyndburn.

Hussain Rashid and his three brothers Mahmoon, Haroon and Mahfooz opened the aptly named Rish ‘n’ Chips on Rishton High Street, with Hussain having worked in hospitality for over 20 years.

The brothers also own the Balti House restaurant in Rishton and Zazz takeaway on Columbia Way, Blackburn.

At the time, Hussain said: “Believe it or not, 25 years ago I said, ‘I’m going to open a chippy one day’.

“And my father, God bless his soul, he loved fish and chips as well, so it was just a personal dream to open one up.”

November

Blackburn couple celebrate as side hustle rakes in the cash

A couple celebrated a business milestone in November as their campervan rental business reached nearly £60,000 in turnover.

Eleanor Sinclair-Murray and Andy Murray, from Blackburn, turned their passion for interior design into a lucrative side hustle by converting the vehicles and renting them out.

They listed their first campervan with Camplify just over two years ago.

The pair began their first van conversion back in 2019 and have gradually built a business that is expected to have a turnover in excess of £60,000 after their third year.

December

Evri driver caught ‘pretending’ to deliver parcel in Accrington

Our final top story saw a delivery driver caught out by a Ring doorbell when he was videoed “pretending to attempt a delivery.”

The Evri driver did not even leave his van when he took a photo of the customer’s front door, and Josh, who asked for his surname to be removed, was left shocked when he got an ‘attempted delivery’ notification on his phone and then found the footage on the doorbell.

Evri said that the driver had assumed nobody was home and that there was not a safe place to leave the parcel.

The parcel was eventually delivered by a different driver two days after it was supposed to have arrived.