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8.50am: Need something to do on March 7? Jason Owen will be performing at the Dubbo RSL and tickets are selling fast.

We caught up with Jason in Dubbo on Monday - keep an eye out on Thursday's Daily Liberal for our interview with Jason in the Entertainment section. 

8.40am: For anyone looking to play for the South Dubbo Wanderers Football Club this message was on their Facebook wall this morning. 

'Registrations are coming along nicely, but we just need everyone to get the word around to any returning players or new players wanting to play they need to register ASAP.

With the season sneaking closer teams need to be finalised so we can get the ball rolling.

Seniors squads will be selected in the next week or so, players wanting to be considered for squads need to be at least registered on my football club.'

8.35am: The Wellington Vintage Fair and Swap Meet are on again on Sunday, March 1. 

Antique cars, Motorcycles, Trucks, Tractors, Swappers, Jumping Dog Competition, Reptile display, Children's Rides, Live Music, Market Stalls and a Helicopter. 

Admission is $10 for adults, $5 for children and under 5-years-old free. 

8.26am: It's about time! That's what Meryl Streep and Jennifer Lopez seemed to indicate with their responses to an impassioned plea for wage equality for women by Patricia Arquette during her Oscars acceptance speech. Streep applauded loudly, and even US President Barack Obama gave the speech a thumbs up.

But comments which Arquette made backstage about the need of "people of colour" to fight for women soured the positive reception she had received earlier in the evening, at a ceremony already under fire for its notable lack of racial diversity.

8.20am: Eighty per cent of crimes coming before the court at Dubbo are drug-and-alcohol related, highlighting the need for a drug and alcohol rehabilitation facility, according to Orana Law Society president Andrew Boog.

Mr Boog is calling on all candidates for the seat of Dubbo to commit to funding a facility for the city and the wider region. At present there are only three such centres west of the Blue Mountains, at Canowindra, Brewarrina and Cowra.

Take part in today's survey ... Should candidates make a firm commitment to a drug and alcohol rehabilitation centre at Dubbo?

8.10am: The Dubbo Bridal and Event Expo is on again this year and there is a call for stall holders to booik their exhibition site now. 

Supporting the Cancer Council NSW the expo will take place on Sunday, August 2 at the Dubbo Convention Centre. It will be the 37th year the expo has run. 

The Bride of the Year Quest Parade will also be held once again at the expo. 

For enquiries call Jan Grady on 6882 1425 or on 0429 821 425. You can also visit the website www.dubbobridaleventexpo.com.au. 

7.50am: Now let's take a look at your regional and national news this morning. 

► BATHURST: A man charged in relation to a fatal motorbike crash on Mount Panorama has pleaded not guilty to all charges against him.

► ORANGE: Stephen George Freeman, 66, will stand trial charged with the assault of his former friend in the car park at Duntryleague, a fight triggered by an alleged affair with the victim’s wife.

► LAKE MACQUARIE: Land is being acquired to protect one of Lake Macquarie’s most scenic backdrops – the Coal Point ridgeline. This ridge can be seen from across the lake, most prominently from places like the Belmont shore. The ridge stands tall on a peninsula that juts into the lake’s centre.

► WAGGA: A 100-YEAR-OLD World War II veteran will reignite Wagga's eternal flame of remembrance today. Colin Bell, Wagga's oldest surviving war veteran and a member of the RSL sub-branch, will light the flame in the Victory Memorial Gardens during a service starting at 10.30am. The flame will be in a reflection pond that has replaced a smaller memorial installed about 25 years ago.

► WOLLONGONG: A former Australian Defence Force soldier accused of murdering a Wollongong man in 2011 later claimed to police his girlfriend was responsible for the crime, but he had kept quiet about her involvement as he was prepared to "take the rap". Jason Hiroki and his first cousin, and former lover, Aroha Hiroki, are on trial in the NSW Supreme Court after both pleaded not guilty to murdering Nicholas Katopodis at their Mount St Thomas home on the night of July 27, 2011. Read more.

7.35am: The fight against locusts is drawing closer to home as authorities continue to monitor a large swarm of the insects just north of Dubbo.

The low to medium density locust swarm is the largest in the area and is located across 15 kilometres between the Macquarie River and Kickabil Creek, according to Central West Local Land Services (LLS) team leader Lisa Thomas.

"Our biggest concern is the impact they will have on winter cereals," Ms Thomas said.

"We have seen before that crops are eaten out and people have had to resow."

7.22am: A quick look at your major news headlines this morning from around the local area

► A man driving a B-Double truck on the Newell Highway near Coonabarabran on Saturday afternoon was issued an infringement notice after a highway patrol officer estimated he exceeded the speed limit by more than 10 kilometres per-hour. The man has claimed the officer wrongly accused him of speeding, as the radar speedometer was not used.

► A father accused of indecently and sexually assaulting his daughter has appeared before Dubbo Local Court on Monday where he was refused bail. The man is charged with a total of 10 offences allegedly taking place between 2004 and 2006.

► Wellington Council's $2 million gamble to shut down of one its badly decaying old bridges has paid off. The state government has handed over the money to give long-suffering residents, motorists, tourists and freight operators a brand spanking new bridge at Dripstone. 

► The Wellington Amateur Theatrical Society have received $20,000 under the Community Building Partnerships program. Member for Dubbo Troy Grant visited the society, saying they were a great organisation and he was glad the government were able to assist in providing funding for the construction of a shed to house props, backdrops and electrical equipment.

► Eighty per cent of crimes coming before the court at Dubbo are drug-and-alcohol related, highlighting the need for a drug and alcohol rehabilitation facility, according to Orana Law Society president Andrew Boog.

7.13am: And taking a look at today's weather - here in Dubbo I see we received just a few spots of rain this morning around East Dubbo. Did you get any where you live? 

DUBBO/ WELLINGTON/ NARROMINE:  Hot. Sunny morning. Medium (50%) chance of showers and thunderstorms, mainly during this afternoon and early evening. Light winds becoming SE/SW 15 to 25 km/h in the early afternoon then tending NE/SE in the late evening. Daytime maximum temperatures 33 to 38.

COBAR/ BOURKE: Hot and mostly sunny. Medium (40%) chance of showers and thunderstorms in the southeast and the north during this afternoon and early evening. Near zero chance of rain elsewhere. Winds S/SE 25 to 35 km/h. Daytime maximum temperatures 35 to 40.

7am: Good morning and welcome to Tuesday. 

You are here this morning in Dubbo with Lynn Pinkerton to take you through the next two hours.

If you have anything you would like to contribute to our Morning Grill just email me at lpinkerton@fairfaxmedia.com.au. 

Have a great day everyone!