Nick Lister believes he's only the second person to run the route along the north coast of Scotland.

Business owners on the Lincolnshire coast say the government's Eat Out to Help Out scheme has made a "tremendous difference" to trade in August so far.

The scheme, which has been used more than 35m times across the UK in its first two weeks, offers customers in restaurants, pubs and cafes 50% off their meal up to a maximum of £10.

It runs every Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday in August to encourage support for the hospitality sector.

There had been concern that the tourism industry would struggle as lockdown restrictions continue to ease, but some hotels, caravan sites and holiday parks say they're already seeing more trade than last August.

Robert Gooderson, owner of the Half Moon Hotel, in Alford, says "weekends have been excellent for people going to the coast" but he has been even more surprised by the midweek trade.

"[It's been] excellent. We have been very busy with bookings," he said.

Meanwhile, caravan park owners on the coast, and further inland, have reported a surge in demand as hot weather continues.

David Honman, who operates a number of leisure parks on the coast, says all parts of his business have been "very busy".

He says the rush is "certainly helping now to make up for lost time and to recuperate some of the earnings we lost during lockdown".

A driver from Lincoln who knocked down and killed an RAF officer after failing to see his bike in the dark has been spared jail.

Image source, RAF Cranwell

Michael Bohan was talking to his daughter on a hands-free phone when he hit 43-year-old Flt Lt Barrie-John Doherty (pictured), who was cycling home from RAF Cranwell.

The father-of-two died on 7 January 2019 after being hit by Bohan's BMW on the A607 at Leadenham.

Bohan, 38, from Shannon Avenue in Lincoln, told Lincoln Crown Court he didn't see the cyclist, despite the fact he was wearing bright clothes and had lights.

He admitted causing death by careless driving and has today been given a 12-month community order with 300 hours of unpaid work.

The judge at Lincoln Crown Court said he was not putting a value on Mr Doherty's life, but he "could not be sure" the use of a mobile phone was the reason he failed to see the cyclist.

The court heard Bohan had been wracked with remorse following Flt Lt Doherty's death and had been referred for counselling.

Spalding United football club has been bought by a fashion businessman better known for plus-size clothing than football kits.

Image source, Spalding United

It's been announced, external that Andrew Killingsworth, who owns fashion brand Yours, is the club's new owner.

Mr Killingsworth has already put in a new chairman of the club, who will be Leigh Porter, while Andrew Gay, the current chairman, will become vice chairman.

The club had recently said the coronavirus pandemic had been a "difficult period" and thad put out an appeal for extra funds to help during lockdown, external.

New chairman Leigh Porter says it was "obvious from where the club was, and considering the current climate, the club needed additional help. We are very pleased to be able to offer that."

It comes on a day that football fans are expected to be given the go-ahead to return to watching games in lower leagues from the sidelines.

Around 25 mental health patients are having to travel out of Lincolnshire for treatment - sometimes as far as 120 miles - because there aren't enough beds in the county, it's been revealed.

Some patients say that increased journey times from home to hospital make the recovery process harder because they have less face-to-face support from family.

Laura Nuttall, from Sleaford, had to travel to Manchester when she needed help and she says it "was a lot more difficult" struggling with mental health problems away from home.

She says she felt lucky because her family could make the 120-mile trip to visit her, but some people on the ward didn't get to see their families because they were "so far from home".

Lincolnshire Partnership NHS Foundation Trust, which tackles mental health problems in the county, says it's working to address the issue.

A new ward in Greylees, near Sleaford, which has 15 beds, is due to be finished in March next year.

Andy Rix, from the NHS Lincolnshire Clinical Commissioning Group, which buys in medical treatment for the county, says there is likely to be "increasing demand for mental health services following the coronavirus pandemic" so they're working quickly to cope with demand closer to home as soon as possible.

More than 400 cannabis plants have been discovered by police during a raid on a property in Boston.

Image source, Lincolnshire Police

The plants were found when officers executed a warrant at an address in Whitehorse Lane.

Lincolnshire Police say a man has been arrested in connection with the discovery.

The phenomenon can be prompted by the intense thundery weather seen across parts of the UK recently.

Pizza Express is to close 73 of its UK restaurants, including its branch in Grantham, with the potential loss of 1,100 jobs.

Image source, Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire

The chain, which at the moment has 454 UK outlets, said it had cut a deal to reduce rent costs.

It said although most of its restaurants have been profitable over the past three years, earnings had been declining.

Pizza Express also confirmed it had hired advisers from Lazard to lead a sale process for the business.

It is currently majority owned by Chinese firm Hony Capital.

Zoe Bowley, Pizza Express's managing director for the UK and Ireland, said: "Unfortunately, the impact of the global pandemic has meant that we have had to make some incredibly tough decisions to safeguard Pizza Express for the long term."

Ms Bowley said that in most cases, the stores selected for closure are near to another Pizza Express that has already reopened or will be reopening soon.

She added that the process "will protect the jobs of over 9,000 of our colleagues".

Police have issued a warning about scammers in Boston Market Place after a woman in her 70s had a necklace stolen.

The victim was walking through the market place on 8 August when she was approached by an unknown female suspect.

The suspect approached the victim and placed a necklace around her neck telling her ‘it would look nice’. The victim told the suspect to remove it which she did and the suspect then left.

But a short while later, the victim noticed her gold necklace with a pendant locket that she had around her neck had gone.

The suspect is described as a woman with dark skin, 5ft 5in tall, black hair in a ponytail and was wearing all black.

Thousands of students across Lincolnshire are now trying to secure university places after a U-turn on A-level grades.

Image source, Google

Ministers in England, Northern Ireland and Wales all decided on Monday - four days after A-level results were issued - to revert to teacher assessed grades rather than an algorithm designed to moderate them.

It followed an outcry after 40% of A-level results were downgraded by exams regulator Ofqual, which used a formula based on schools' prior grades.

A spokesman for the University of Lincoln spokesperson said: ​​​​​​​“We recognise this is a really stressful time for students who are unsure as to the best way forward.

“At Lincoln, we are calling thousands of applicants to reassure them that they are now part of the Lincoln family. We have experienced staff from across the university available to offer advice and support. We would encourage any student with queries or concerns to contact us directly.

“We’ve got some really exciting things planned for our students during October and beyond including themed tepees, outdoor cinema screenings, exercise classes and street food vendors, as well as exciting plans for online and face-to-face teaching, and we can’t wait for them to be a part of it.”

The Typhoons were meant to land in Kinloss in Moray but flew to Coningsby in Lincolnshire and Stornoway in Lewis.

The opening of a new cocktail bar and cinema in Lincoln this week marks the completion of works in the regeneration of the city's Cornhill Quarter.

Image source, Google

The project, headed by Lincolnshire Co-Op, has taken five years to complete and this week will see the opening of The Botanist bar the Everyman cinema.

The CEO of Lincolnshire Co-Op, Ursula Lidbetter, says today's opening of the The Botanist bar and restaurant is an important milestone.

"It looks incredible.It's full of plants, it's full of life and it's olde worlde which fits very well with the Victorian street," she said.

"The whole feeling here is very much in keeping with Victoriana."

Lincoln Drill Hall bosses say they could be forced to close the site if they lose vital funding.

Image source, Google

A decision is expected next week on the contribution City of Lincoln Council makes towards the theatre and arts centre and a petition has been started to lobby councillors not to cut it.

The chief executive of the venue, Chris Kirkwood, says any cut could have terrible consequences.

"For that amount of money to be pulled from our business, it would be devastating. I think the most likely outcome is that it would lead to our closure.

"It's a complicated jigsaw piece, they've been huge supporters and the Drill Hall wouldn't exist if it wasn't for City of Lincoln Council. We recognise fully they are in a really difficult position."

The International Bomber Command Centre (IBCC) in Lincoln has won a major tourism award.

Image source, Richard Croft/Geograph

Visit England chose the centre for its International Tourism Award at a virtual awards evening last night.

It beat competition from Blenheim Palace in Oxfordshire - and The Roman Baths and Pump Room in Somerset.

The awards celebrate and champion innovation, quality and best practice across the industry.

Nicky Van Der Drift, the Chief Executive at the IBCC, said: "We've only been open just over two years and the project has faced a number of challenges all the way along and this is just such a huge bonus for the team who with dedication and passion have worked so hard. It's amazing."

Lincoln City will face fellow League One side Crewe in the first round of the Carabao Cup.

Image source, PA Media

The Imps will travel to Gresty Road to face David Artell's side on 5 September.

Meanwhile, Grimsby will host Morecambe and Scunthorpe will face Port Vale.

Elsewhere, Norwich City will start their 2020-21 season with an all-Championship tie against Luton Town, while Barrow, promoted from the National League as title winners, face Derby County.

Harrogate Town, promoted to the English Football League for the first time after beating Notts County in the National League play-off final, face Tranmere in their first ever League Cup fixture.

Click here for the full first round fixture list.

A husband and wife who ran a prostitution ring from flats they rented in Lincolnshire have been given suspended jail sentences.

Philip Godfrey, 47, and Lamlaiman Godfrey, 52, from Bingham, in Nottinghamshire, operated the racket from flats on the Carlton Estate, in Lincoln, and in North Hykeham.

Lincoln Crown Court heard the couple recruited Chinese women to work for them, installing them in properties they rented under false names and paid for with cash or pre-paid credit cards.

Prosecutor Andrew Howarth said police began investigating in July 2017 when officers noticed Oriental or Asian prostitutes were being offered on websites operating in the Lincoln area.

Sentencing them, Judge John Pini QC told them that only the three year delay in bringing the case to court had spared them from immediate jail sentences.

“This was a well-planned and organised operation. If you had come to court early in 2018 you would both have gone off to prison.

"However the reality is that it is now almost three years since these offences were committed. You have not committed any further offences and you are both of previous good character.”

They were each given an 18-month jail sentence, suspended for two years.

Heavy rain caused flooding in Market Rasen last night, causing problems on a number of roads in the town.

Image source, Rui Vera/PA Wire

Those affected included Waterloo Street, Oxford Street and John Street.

A small number of properties were affected, including the cricket club, according to Lincolnshire Fire and Rescue Service.

The fire service is urging people to prepare for more rain as the weather remains unsettled.

Stephen Bunney, Market Rasen's deputy mayor, says local residents came together to help each other.

"There was a lot of positive support - neighbours helping each other, making sure the water didn't get in. It was very cooperative," he said.

"In other areas, people were just saying, 'Oh, not again'. This is not the first time this has happened.

Some don't know if the rule change means their original university offers still stand.

A Lincolnshire MP has welcomed the decision to award A-level students the grades estimated by their teachers, rather than by an algorithm, after a government U-turn.

Image source, REUTERS/Peter Nicholls

It follows uproar after about 40% of A-level results were downgraded by exams regulator Ofqual, which used a formula based on schools' prior grades.

Ofqual chair Roger Taylor and Education Secretary Gavin Williamson apologised for the "distress" caused.

Gainsborough Conservative MP Sir Edward Leigh, who earlier called for the change, told the BBC: “I’m very pleased. This is a vitally important issue. A lot of headteachers and the students who worked so hard and had been messed up by this algorithm. I’m delighted the government has done a u-turn."

Farmer Nigel Wright is accused of deliberately contaminating baby food in a plot to blackmail Tesco.