2000 (23 Jan) Helen Flanagan, from Bolton, Lancashire joined the soap Coronation Street as Rosie Webster

2000 (17 Apr) Ruth Higham (born 1978) first appeared on Page 3 of The Sun on April 17, 2000

2000 (15 Jun) Fashion store group C&A announced it is to close all 113 of its UK stores with the loss of 4,800 jobs.

2000 (15-16 Jul) Oasis’ Standing On the Shoulders of Giants tour at Reebok stadium.

2000 (15-16 Jul) 15th & 16th July 2000 Oasis played 2 nights at the Reebok Stadium, Bolton with special guests Happy Mondays and Johnny Marr.

2000 (30 Jul) Radio One’s Sara Cox presented One Big Sunday at Moss Bank Park in front of 80,000 people. Appearance by David Gray, Craig David, Emma B and Louise

2000 (Jul) First Division side Bolton Wanderers signed Michael Ricketts for £400,000.

2000 (17 Nov) The first Quality Bus Corridor in Greater Manchester, from Leigh to Bolton, is opened (17 November).

2000 (Dec) Dame Janet Smith DBE, a High Court judge, was invited to become Chairman of the Shipman Inquiry.

2000 Whitehead’s closes.

2000 Softys, 68b Bridge Street, Bolton, Lancashire. The shop had a brief appearance in Peter Kay's first TV series in 2000 on Channel 4, "That Peter Kay Thing". It was in the episode of the series called "The Ice Cream Man Cometh". It's closed and gone now though.

2000-2001 Dean Holdsworth scored 15 goals from 29 starts in 2000–01, including a hat-trick past Scunthorpe United in a 5–1 win at the Reebok Stadium. The "Trotters" reached the play-off final, and beat Preston North End 3–0 at the Millennium Stadium to regain their top-flight status.

2001 (Apr) William Robertson, 75, and his wife, Margaret, 81, were both killed in a blaze at the Moathouse Hotel, in Bolton, Greater Manchester, in April 2001. The couple, who had travelled from their Blackpool home for a short holiday, became trapped on the third floor of the 183-room hotel. They were overcome by lethal fumes and died together in the corridor.

Lee Carson, a night porter who started the fire, was later found guilty of their manslaughter.

2001 (6 May) Wingates Independent Methodist Chapel closed

2001 (28 May) The 2001 Football League First Division Play-off Final was contested by Bolton Wanderers and Preston North End. Bolton won the match 3–0, taking them back to the Premier League. Bolton would remain in the top flight for the next eleven seasons.

2001 (8 Jul) Neil Midgley, English football referee, died in Kearsley, Bolton.

2001 (18 Aug) Bolton Wanderers record Premier League Win 5-0 v Leicester City

Away

2001 (Nov) The murder of teenage prostitute Carly Bateman, aged 17, strangled by a client.

2001 Marsden Road Fire station is demolished, gone

Religion in Bolton 2001 UK Census 2001

Bolton(borough) /Greater Manchester /England

Christian 74.56% 78.01% 71.74%

No religion 8.75% 10.48% 14.59%

Muslim 7.07% 3.04% 3.1%

Buddhist 0.10% 0.18% 0.28%

Hindu 2.00% 0.40% 1.11%

Jewish 0.06% 0.42% 0.52%

Sikh 0.03% 0.10% 0.67%

Other religions 0.15% 0.16% 0.29%

Religion not stated 7.28% 7.23% 7.69%

2001 Horwich has a population of 19,312

2001 Farnworth has a population of 25, 264

2001 The last UK Census in 2001, gives the population of Little Lever as 11505, with a population density of 25 persons per hectare. This figure is significantly higher than Bolton (18.7 per hectare) and is almost six times the average population density of England and Wales (3.5 per hectare). The Census also shows that the population has a population split of almost equal numbers of males and females which is uncommon in the area.

2001 Bolton Arena opens in Horwich.

2001 BRASS (Befriending Refugees and Asylum Seekers) is a charity based in Bolton. It was set up in 2001 with the purpose of supporting refugees and asylum seekers living in the borough.

2001 The Farmer’s Arms, 251 Derby Street on the corner of Haslam Street, closed in 2001. It was converted into offices.

2001 Horwich celebration benches installed outside of Public Hall

2001 The rugby league football world club challenge took place at the Reebok stadium between the National Rugby League (NRL) Grand Final premiers Brisbane Broncos and the Super League grand final premiers St Helens.

2001-2002 Dean Holdsworth was restricted to nine league starts and 22 substitute appearances in 2001–02, scoring once each against Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur.

2002 (Feb) Michael Ricketts played 45 minutes in England's friendly against The Netherlands but failed to score. He subsequently did not score for Bolton again all season.

2002 (18 Jul) The Bellhouse Hartwell factory closed.

2002 (17 Aug) Sat: Augustine “Jay Jay” Okocha Bolton Wanderers league debut in a 4-1 defeat at Fulham (Aged: 29)

2002 (4 Dec) Geoffrey Porter, 41, was found guilty at Manchester crown court of the murder of Carly Bateman, 17. He strangled her following an argument in Bolton's red-light district in November 2001.

2002 (Dec) Dean Holdsworth joined Coventry City on loan in December 2002, making six goalless appearances, before he signed permanently for the club the following month

2002 Sir Ian McAllister was appointed chairman of Network Rail.

2002 In 2002 the English Heritage organisation considered Tonge cemetery to be of sufficient historical interest to be placed on the Register of Parks and Gardens as a Grade II listed site. Its architect William Henderson also designed Corporation Park in Blackburn, Alexandra park in Oldham and Bolton’s Queens park.

2002 Commonwealth Games – Cycling and badminton events held in Horwich

2002 The Water Place was finally closed, with debts of £750,000, leaving the town centre without any public swimming facilities. (>2005)

2002 Nat Lofthouse was an Inaugural Inductee into the English Football Hall of Fame in 2002.

2002 Yuri Djorkaeff turned many heads when signing with English club Bolton Wanderers in 2002, but added a lot of class to the team during his three seasons there, resulting in the creation of an international "dream-team" alongside the tricky Nigerian Jay-Jay Okocha, and former Real Madrid midfielder Iván Campo.

2002-2003 Dean Holdsworth made 10 goalless appearances in

2002–03, though was briefly joined in Lancashire by his brother David for the first time since leaving Watford.

2000–2003 Michael Ricketts scored a total of 46 goals in 112 appearances for Bolton Wanderers, of which 37 goals were in 98 League appearances.

2002–2004 Youri Djorkaeff (Bolton Wanderers) scored 20 goals in 75 appearances.

2003 (Jan) Middlesbrough spent £3.5 million to sign Michael Ricketts from Bolton.

2003 (28 Dec) Record FA Premier League attendance at Reebok stadium: 28,353 v Leicester City.

2003 Monica Ali’s debut novel, Brick Lane was short listed for the Man Booker Prize for Fiction.

2003 Barry Goldin (born 1978) won the BriSCA Formula 2 Stock Cars World Championship in 2003

2003 At the BDA Brick Awards – The Best Landscape Project award went to The Living Room, Dunbar Drive, Great Lever, Bolton. Artist Isabella Lockett

Brick armchairs and sofas with names on them

2003 Dunbar Drive Living Room

An area of land was transformed into an innovative play area for a new (Portico Housing Association) housing development in Great Lever. Residents were involved in the design and fabrication of the artwork entitled ‘The Living Room’ - a brick re-creation of a sitting room with brick sofas and armchairs, complete with hopscotch and basketball hoops integrated into the scheme.

2004 Fred Dibnah awarded the MBE (Member of the British Empire) in the Queen’s New Year’s Eve Honours List for his services to heritage and broadcasting

2004 (13 Mar) First Manchester closes Bolton Garage and opens the replacement Weston Street Garage (13 March).

2004 (29 Mar) “5 Colours in her Hair” the debut single by McFly released.

It was also their first number one single and stayed at the top for two weeks

2004 (May) Fred Dibnah felled his last chimney at Royton

2004 (Jul) Gary Speed moved to Bolton Wanderers on a two-year deal in a £750,000 switch from Newcastle United.

2004 (Jul) Sheila accompanied Fred Dibnah to Buckingham Palace with Jack and Roger to receive the MBE

2004 (27 Oct) Record League Cup Attendance at Reebok Stadium: 18,037 v Tottenham Hotspur, 3rd round

2004 (6 Nov) Fred Dibnah died in Bolton Hospice, Bolton

Following a three-year battle with prostate cancer

Fred Dibnah’s grave - Tonge Cemetery, Bolton, Lancashire

2004 (15 Dec) In the reshuffle following the resignation of David Blunkett, Ruth Kelly entered the Cabinet (also becoming a member of the Privy Council) with the position of Secretary of State for Education and Skills. She became the youngest woman ever to sit in the Cabinet.

2004 Amir Khan (born 1986) became the youngest British Olympic boxing medallist when he won silver at the Athens Olympics at the age of 17

He lost in the final to the Cuban Mario Kindelan

2004 Opening of the new police station at Middlebrook

2004 Opening of the Pathway Centre: Rivington and Blackrod High School and Lord Street Primary School.

2004 Bradley Fold Railway Station served Bradley Fold on the now closed line between Bury and Bolton. The route was lost to a housing development at Bradley Fold in 2004.

2005 (27 Jan) The Sixth and final Report of the Shipman Inquiry published

2005 (12 Mar) Record FA Cup attendance at Reebok stadium : 23,523 v Arsenal, quarter finals

2005 (24 Mar) The Shipman Inquiry was officially closed

2005 (Apr-May) Ian McKellen played the role Mel Hutchwright in Coronation Street

2005 (5 Jun) Elton John performed at the Reebok Stadium

2005 (5 Jul) Tues Coldplay performed at the Reebok Stadium

2005 (16 Jul) Matt Skelton retained his BBB of C Heavyweight Title when he beat Mark Krence at the Bolton Arena

2005 (16 Jul) Amir Khan won his professional debut against David Bailey via first round technical knockout, at the Bolton Arena, in Bolton

2005 (15 Sep) Lokomotiv Plovdiv were the visitors in the first UEFA Cup match at the Reebok stadium. Boban Janchevski scored first for the visitors, but two late goals from El Hadji Diouf and Jared Borgetti secured a 2–1 home victory in Bolton's first European match. It was also the first European competitive game that the club had played in its history.

2005 (Sep) Sammy Lee went to Bolton Wanderers in September 2005, as assistant to Sam Allardyce

2005 General Election

2005 Marcus Tillotson dies at the age of 89

2005 The Water Place was demolished.

2005 Sammy Lee became assistant manager to Sam Allardyce at Bolton Wanderers in 2005

2005 Opening of the new Heritage Centre at Horwich Resource Centre

2005 Paul Fireman sold Reebok to Adidas in 2005 for $3.8 billion; Fireman himself made $800 million from the deal

2005 The Anchor Inn was situated on the corner of Eagle Street and Bury Old Road closed in 2005.

2005 Ken Anderson was disqualified from being a company director in 2005 for transgressions relating to eight companies including diverting or seeking to divert company funds into a personal account, VAT discrepancies and failing to co-operate with…

2006 (26 Feb) Manchester United beat Wigan 4-0 in the Football League Cup Final.

Wigan goalkeeper Tim Pollitt was substituted in the 14th minute with a hamstring injury

2006 (4 Mar) Sat: The Horwich Heritage Centre was officially opened with the Mayor of Horwich, Stephen Rock, hosting the opening ceremony.

2006 (Apr) Lido Cinema/Theatre in Bradshawgate demolished to make way for an apartment block.

2006 (Jun) Illusions opened.

2006 (11 Sep) On September 11, 2006, the Bolton Evening News became The Bolton News, which saw the newspaper being sold from the morning onwards.

2006 (Sep) The Bolton Evening News became the Bolton News, which saw the paper being sold from the morning onwards.

2006 (28 Oct) Johann Smith made his Premier League debut against Manchester United on October 28, 2006, as an 85th-minute substitute for Kevin Davies.

2006 (Oct) Johann Smith made his first team debut for Bolton in their League Cup defeat at Charlton Athletic..

2006 (9 Dec) Amir Khan won a 10-round decision at Light Welterweight over Frenchman Rachid Drilzane.

Khan experienced the first knockdown of his career when his opponent caught him with a good left.

2006 (Dec) Gary Speed became the first player to make 500 Premier League appearances when he played in Bolton's 4–0 victory over West Ham United.

2006 The Jolly Waggoner closed.

2006 Bolton: The Borough was demolished around 2006 and is now used as a car park for a nearby motor dealer.

2006 Spirit of Sport officially unveiled

2006 Bolton Wanderers Player of the Year -Ricardo Gardner.

2006-2007 Johann Smith was named as a Bolton substitute for games against Tottenham Hotspur and Charlton Athletic during the early part of the 2006-07 season.

2007 (Feb) The rugby league football world club challenge took place at the Reebok stadium, on this occasion St Helens were the eventual winners

2007 (Feb) The Odeon was demolished in February 2007 with proposals be replaced by a mixed-use office space, residential accommodation and a hotel.

2007 (Apr) Sam Allardyce left Bolton and Sammy Lee was confirmed as his replacement shortly afterwards

2007 (1 May) Gary Speed was named as the first-team coach for Bolton after Sam Allardyce stepped down from his job as manager.

2007 (Jun) A Bolton Bank £1 note sold for £864.

2007 (25 Aug) Gary Speed scored a header for Bolton against Reading on 25 August 2007, making him, at the time, the only player to have scored in every Premiership season to date. Ryan Giggs later matched this achievement on 20 October 2007, and passed it on 8 February 2009

2007 (28 Oct) The first Premier League crowd of under 20,000 at the Reebok Stadium was recorded against Aston Villa

2007 (Oct) In October 2007, Bolton police started a campaign to stop prostitution. A total of 574 people have been arrested. Officers believe the number of women working as prostitutes has fallen from 20 per night to one or two.

2007 (Oct) In October Gary Speed left the coaching job and returned to being just a player with the club. Conflicting reports of the incident claimed then manager Sammy Lee relieved him of his duties to concentrate on playing but Speed, in an interview with the Bolton News, claimed he chose to step down.

2007 (Oct) After only winning one league game from eleven matches, he was sacked in October 2007, becoming the second Premier League manager to be sacked in that season.[6] He was known for regularly citing the 'positives' in post-match interviews despite numerous defeats.

2007 (Nov) Ricardo Gardner scored his first goal at club level in nearly five years when he opened the scoring in Bolton's 2–2 draw against German giants Bayern Munich at the Allianz Arena in the UEFA Cup group stage

2007 In 2007, there were roughly 141 known prostitutes regularly walking the streets of Bolton’s red-light district.

2007 Sammy Lee became manager of Bolton Wanderers in 2007

2007 The Anchor Inn, situated at 14 Union Buildings, was closed in 2007.

2007 The Mark of Cain, a BAFTA Award winning television film, was filmed on the premises of Bolton School.

2007 Clarence Street School, Bolton had many uses until it finally closed its doors in 2007. This Victorian building was designed by architect Jonathan Simpson.

2007 All Saints Church, Moses Gate demolished

(<1897)

2007 Sharples Wrestling club located in Bolton was formed in 2007 and is one of the biggest and most successful wrestling clubs in the UK.

2008 (2 Jan) Lowest Premier League attendance at Reebok stadium: 17,014 v Derby County

2008 (14 Feb) Record UEFA Cup attendance at Reebok Stadium : 26,163 v Atletico Madrid, Last 32 1st leg

2008 (Mar) Rose Hill Tannery demolished.

2008 (29 Apr) Fred Dibnah was sculpted by Jane Robbins and unveiled on what would have been his 70th birthday (29th April 2008).

2008 (8 May) Nevada Roller Rink opened.

2008 (May) Johann Smith was one of a number of young players released by Bolton manager Gary Megson.

2008 (27 Jun) Johan Elmander completed a move to Premier League club Bolton Wanderers for an £8.2 million fee, the club's record signing, with the deal including Daniel Braaten moving to Toulouse. Elmander signed a three-year deal, wearing the number 9 shirt by manager Gary Megson.

2008 (Jun) Bolton Wanderers record fee paid £11,000,000 to Toulouse (France) for Johan Elmander (June 2008)

Mid-2008 The Church Hotel in Crook Street in Bolton was forced to close in mid-2008 due to falling trade.

2008 (2 Aug) Paul Nicholls married his girlfriend of three years, model Chantal Brown, in an intimate ceremony near their home in Hampstead, north London.

2008 (16 Aug) Johan Elmander's first Premier League goal, a header, came on his competitive debut, against Stoke City on 16 August 2008 in a 3–1 win.

2008 (6 Sep) Amir Khan lost to Colombia’s Breidis Prescott in 54 seconds of his WBO intercontinental lightweight title defence at the Manchester Evening News Arena on his Sky Box Office debut

2008 (8 Nov) Teen model Amy Leigh Barnes, 19, died in hospital hours after being discovered with knife wounds at her home in Farnworth, Bolton.

2008 (Dec) – 2009 (Sep) From December 2008 to September 2009, Johan Elmander went on a nine-month goal drought, which ended during the League Cup fixture against West Ham United as he scored in extra-time. His first league goal in 11 months came in a 5–1 defeat to Aston Villa.

2008 Jason Kenny (born 1988) 1st Team Sprint and 2nd Individual Sprint, competing for Great Britain in the Summer Olympics in Beijing.

2008 Tom Lancashire (born 1985) competed at the Olympics in the 1500 metres. He did not make it out of his heats, finishing 2 seconds behind the winner of the heat and eventual champion Asbel Kiprop.

2008 The end for the Gibraltar Rock came in 2008 by which time it was owned by Enterprise Inns. The pub closed and was put up for sale. The pub was bought by a Spar franchise. The new owners have left the pub’s lettering on the outside of the building.

2008 Asons Solicitors was a family run firm which was founded in 2008 by brothers, Imran and Kamran Akram, working from a converted terrace house with just three employees to approximately 300 in five years.

2008-2009 Johan Elmander played 30 games in the 2008–09 season, scoring five goals and creating two assists.

2008-2011 In total, Johan Elmander made 92 appearances in the Premier League, scoring 18 goals; 11 appearances in the FA Cup, scoring three goals; and five appearances in the League Cup, scoring once.

2008–2011 Johan Elmander (Bolton Wanderers) scored 18 goals in 92 appearances.

2009 (9 Jan) Slumdog Millionaire had a nationwide release in the United Kingdom on 9 January 2009.

2009 (Jan) Bolton’s Woolies final customers.

2009 (22 Feb) The 81st Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), honoured the best films of 2008 and took place on February 22, 2009, at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles beginning at 5:30 p.m. PST / 8:30 p.m. EST. Slumdog Millionaire won eight awards, the most of the evening, including Best Picture and Best Director for Danny Boyle

2009 (Apr) In April 2009 the body of rough sleeper Alan Bennett was found in the cellar of the Church Hotel, Crook Street, Bolton following a blaze.

Manchester-born Mr Bennett, aged 47, was believed to have been dead for at least a month before he was discovered.

2009 (21 May) Queen Elizabeth II visits Warburton's Bakery in Bolton, England.

2009 (1 Jun) Infants (boys and girls aged 4-7) moved into their brand-new school, Beech House, built alongside Bolton School’s Nursery.

2009 (9 Jul) On 9 July 2009, Howard Devoto was awarded an honorary doctorate from the University of Bolton for his contribution to music.

2009 (18 Jul) Amir Khan won a unanimous decision (120-108, 118-111, 118-111) over Andreas Kotelnik at the MEN Arena in Manchester to win the WBA World Light Welterweight Title. He became the third youngest Briton to win a world title

2009 Danny Boyle won the 2009 Best Director Academy Award for Slumdog Millionaire.

2009 The Lilian Hamer old people’s home closed in 2009 (<1973)