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1963

Social History 1963 #63

Saturday 28 December 1963

Sixteen people were taken to hospital last night after twelve vehicles crashed in thick fog on the M1, near Hemel Hempstead. One ambulance-man said later, “It was shocking to see the disregard passing motorists were showing. Some were doing quite 50 mph.” Mr Gordon Wilcox, a motorist, said, “It was like something from an ‘X’ film. People were groaning from their injuries and vehicles were ablaze.”

The mystery of the snakes that are terrorising the town of Maidstone, Kent, deepened last night. The remains of pythons or boa constrictors have been found in eight Maidstone homes. Now people fear that other snakes may be hibernating in the area.

Mr and Mrs Jack Smith were driving home from a party in Exmouth, Devon when they saw a penguin. They turned around to double-check and discovered that the penguin was accompanied by a cat.

The Duke of Edinburgh and five other “guns” killed 200 pheasants yesterday on the Royal Estate at Sandringham. There will be another shoot today.

Kalanag, the last of the great stage illusionists, has died. He was a professional magician for 42 years. His magic library of 20,000 books is the largest in the world. Mr Francis White, President of the Magic Circle, said, “His death marks the end of an era.”

Mrs Barbara Daly, wife of John Thomas Daly, one of the accused in the Great Train Robbery case, has given birth to a baby boy.

Football. Forty-eight hours after the Boxing Day games, the fixtures will be reversed and the teams will play each other again. There are fears that some players will be out for “revenge” and will deliberately injure their opponents. There is a suggestion that these reverse fixtures at Christmas should be scrapped because they have a history of causing trouble.

Television highlights: Dr Who – The Survivors. That Was The Year That Was – final fling with David Frost and Co. The Avengers – Dressed to Kill.

Radio highlights: Association Football Summaries. Take Your Partners.

Weather: mostly cloudy with coastal and hill fog. Outlook – rain or drizzle. 9c, 48f.

Sunday 29 December 1963

Where did The Beat come from? In racing terms you might say it was skiffle out of jazz. It surged up out of the art colleges and was grabbed by the kids who were lost and lonely. They heard The Beat and suddenly they belonged. They were welded into a great freemasonry that had no barriers of class, money or speech. And people in the know say that it has not even reached its peak.

Women in Stroud, Gloucestershire have been invited to visit the local police station and claim the 186 items of women’s clothing that are on display – bras, panties, petticoats and nightdresses. The items were all stolen from washing lines in the district.

“Who is the greatest menace on the roads today? The safety-belt car driver. Eighty percent of them think that when they are strapped behind their wheels nothing can happen to them. How false!” – G Gooday, Enfield, Middlesex.

An engineer, Mr Robinson, inspected a hole in Normandy, Surrey, and drove into it. He was unhurt, but it took four men to get him and his car back on the road.

Doctors are warning of outbreaks of typhoid in South-East Essex.

More was spent on records in Britain in 1963 than ever before. The figure – £33,000,000, up £5,500,000 on last year. Some 80,000,000 discs were pressed, a quarter of them long-players. And the ten number one hits of 1963 were all home-grown.

Listen out for the Aces. They might do for Hull what the Beatles have done for Liverpool.

Football Results: First Division – Aston Villa 2 Wolves 2, Birmingham 1 Arsenal 4, Blackburn 1 West Ham 3, Ipswich 4 Fulham 2, Manchester United 5 Burnley 1, Spurs 0 West Bromwich Albion 2. Top three – Blackburn, Spurs, Liverpool.

Television highlights: No Star on the Way Back – Contemporary Nativity. Sunday Night at the London Palladium – all-star show organised by the Stars Organisation for Spastics. Play – One Night of the Year with Kenneth Cope and Warren Mitchell.

Radio highlights: The Countryside in December. The Trigger – serial.

Weather: fog patches, sunny spells later.

Monday 30 December 1963

An inquiry into the Christmas road death toll of 120 is anticipated. It’s suspected that many of these deaths were due to drivers being incapacitated by alcohol. The use of “breathalyser” drunkenness detectors is a popular proposal. However, Transport Minister Ernest Marples has been reluctant to implement road safety measures in the past.

Charlie Ashby, 73, was trying to remove a jackdaw’s nest from a neighbour’s chimney when he got stuck. Neighbours pulled Mr Ashby’s ankles, but they could not free him, so they called the fire brigade. The Bromley brigade arrived, dismantled part of the chimney and freed Mr Ashby. The jackdaw’s nest remains in place.

A family was covered in soot in Oldham, Lancashire when a balloon got stuck in a chimney pot. A fireman climbed on to the roof and burst the balloon.

At a restaurant in Reading, a man placed his thumb in a radiator and it got stuck. After an hour, police and firemen freed him.

A prediction for 1964: bedrooms will become more feminine with four-poster beds and brass bedsteads. Also for 1964, loose covers in flecked stretch fabric that will fit any armchair.

Hip words for 1964. Thread – dress. Short – car. Boss short – big car. Crumb-crusher – child. To be put down – to be insulted. To be shot through the grease – to be made a fool of. To jump salty – to get angry.

Football: In Division Two, the top of the table clash between Sunderland and Leeds United was a brutal affair. Two forwards kicked each other while another kicked an opponent in the back. A Sunderland player punched a Leeds forward. Two rugby scrimmages broke out in midfield. A Sunderland forward was kicked to the floor by a Leeds defender. A Leeds forward was punched in the face. Sunderland won the match 2 – 0.

Television highlights: The Hoot’nanny Show. Goldenhair – film from Czechoslovakia. Play of the Week – Three Roads to Rome with Deborah Kerr.

Radio highlights: Let’s Get Away From it All. The Pop Art of Soccer.

Weather: sunny then rain. Outlook – rain then sunny. 8c, 46f

Tuesday 31 December 1963

The gayest New Year Ball in London tonight will be at the Royal Albert Hall where stars of stage, screen and television will join thousands of revellers in a six hour non-stop greeting to 1964. The stars include Billy J Kramer, Kathy Kirby and Sid Phillips and his band. Tickets from 30s each.

1963 was a year of industrial peace. In the first eleven months just over 1,500,000 working days were lost because of stoppages – the lowest total for ten years. Over the same period last year 5,750,000 working days were lost. The lost time equates to only 29 minutes per worker in Britain.

Mr and Mrs Average Briton are spending more and more. The weekly budget stands at £18 7s 6d a week. The previous budget stood at £17 0s 6 1/2d. The biggest single item – £1 2s 3 1/2d is spent on cigarettes and tobacco.

A study of 90,000 patients who were first taken into mental hospitals in England and Wales during 1954 and 1955 shows that bachelors had the highest admission rate.

An outbreak of typhoid has been traced to a 93 year old woman who has been carrying the infection since 1917. Experts believe that between two and five percent of people who catch the disease become carriers. Medical checks are complicated because not all carriers develop typhoid.

“Giant rats” – coypus – are on the run in London. Hooligans released them from London Zoo. The coypus have been spotted in Regents Canal, where conditions are ideal for them to breed.

Nona Gaprindashvili, 21 from Georgia, is the first woman ever to qualify to compete with men at the Hastings International Chess Congress. Nona, the world’s woman chess champion, said, “Oh, I love chess. It is the most important thing in my life. Far more important than boyfriends and romance. Chess is my life. I shan’t be thinking about husbands and babies for a long time yet.”

Television highlights: This Wonderful World. A New Year Party from Scotland with Andy Stewart. Last Programme: At the Turn of the Year – Hope.

Radio highlights: Big Ben – Welcome to the New Year. Music For Your Party.

Weather: sunny periods. Outlook – changeable. 7c, 45f.

Wednesday 1 January 1964

Screenshot

Using a sack and an umbrella, John Watson and Ken Brightwell captured two of the coypus that had escaped from London Zoo. They captured the coypus when someone spotted the 2 foot long rat-like animal running along a girder 20 feet above a canal at Maida Vale. A third coypus is still on the loose.

Racing driver Roy John James’ fingerprints were found on a cat’s food dish at the Great Train Robbers’ hideout, Leatherslade Farm, a court was told yesterday. The fingerprints of antiques dealer John Thomas Daly were also found, on a Monopoly game. Eighteen other men and women will also face trial in connection with the robbery.

Police have warned that a highly poisonous Indian plant has been found growing in Canterbury, Kent.

Cricket captain Frank Worrell, whose West Indies team brought verve and gaiety to last summer’s Test matches in England, was knighted in the New Year’s Honours List. Frank, his men and their supporters lifted cricket out of the doldrums with their gay performances in 1963.

Ron Grainer, the Australian composer who has written theme music for a number of television programmes, is leaving Britain for a villa in Lisbon. Working under artificial light has affected his eyes and a specialist has recommended that he should work in bright sunlight.

The Beatles won Melody Maker’s best LP of the year award with Please, Please Me. They also won the single of the year with From Me to You.

Charlie Chaplin’s 38 year old film The Gold Rush won Christmas’ biggest TV audience the BBC claimed last night. The film – the first Chaplin has allowed to be shown in full on TV – was seen by 20,600,000 viewers. The BBC also claimed that during 11am and 11pm on Christmas Day 80 out of 100 viewers watched their programmes, the highest number since the start of the ITV network.

Television highlights: International Ski Jumping from Bavaria. New Year’s Day Concert from Vienna. Top of the Pops – new pop music show.

Radio highlights: Revolution, Change and Marxism. Old Prison Letters. 

Weather: mainly dry, sunny intervals, mild. Outlook – mild, showery, sunny intervals. 9c, 48f.

Thursday 2 January 1964

A firebug is on the loose in the West Country. Over the past eighteen months he has raided at least twenty-four top floor flats, robbed them and set them ablaze. The raids have been in Exeter, Newton Abbot, Plymouth, Weymouth, Dorchester, Gloucester, Exmouth and Clevedon. The firebug is about 5 foot 8 inches tall, between 45 and 50, has receding brown hair and wears horn-rimmed glasses.

Hopes of a breakthrough in the dispute that has closed the giant Port Talbot steelworks crashed last night. A union official said, “The company has rebuffed our gesture. We are back where we started.” The union wants a pay increase, justified by the company’s profits.

Cadbury’s chocolate is to cost more from Monday. General increases include an extra penny for the quarter-pound bar (now 1s 2d), and 3d on a box of Milk Tray (now 3s 6d). A spokesman for Cadbury’s said, “Practically everything you can think of has gone up. We staved off putting up our prices for as long as we could.”

After a bumper 1963 in Discland, what will happen in 1964? We asked Parlophone boss George Martin, the man who produces all the Beatles’ hits. He said, “I don’t think there will be much of a change. The Beat mood will continue and spread more widely. The trend towards Beat will become part and parcel of the music scene. At the same time, there will still be the good ballads. There will be more groups too, but only the good ones will break through.”

Everton, the “soccer millionaires”, whose fans are often accused of unruly conduct, have had their headquarters smashed up – by a gang of hooligans. In the New Year’s Eve raid, the hooligans wrecked the players’ and trainers’ rooms causing £1,000 worth of damage. Everton, in an effort to beat the hooligans, made British soccer history by putting up special barriers behind each goal.

Football Results: Scottish First Division – Celtic 0 Rangers 1, Dundee 1 Aberdeen 4, Hibernian 1 Hearts 1, St Johnstone 2 Dundee United 2, St Mirren 1 Kilmarnock 3.

In the 3.15 at Liverpool, Tear Gas beat Saucy Song by a short head.

Television highlights: Tonight with Cliff Michelmore. Canada Playdate – The Looking Glass World, science drama. Road Works Report.

Radio highlights: The Authorship of Shakespeare. The Novel Today.

Weather: cloudy and mild. Outlook – no change. 9c, 48f

Friday 3 January 1964

A team of psychologists will be employed by Associated TeleVision to answer questions such as: should TV heroes have mistresses? Should heroines be blondes or brunettes? The answers will help programme makers to give viewers what they really want.

Scientists have been trying out plastic bags that can be used to take a sample of breath from drivers suspected of having had too much to drink. Drivers would be asked to breathe into one of the bags. The breath would then be analysed by a breathalyser – an instrument that measures the amount of alcohol in the breath.

The Rev Anthony Hart-Synnot, an Old Etonian, has been accused of removing lead from the vicarage roof, thus causing wilful and malicious damage. The vicar explained that he turned his vicarage into a refuge for homeless families. Later, he wanted to evict them, but they refused to move out, so he instructed builders to remove the lead from the roof.

Best buys this week: apricots, plumbs, peaches and indoor rhubarb. Tomatoes, cucumbers and lettuce are also good value. Vegetables are cheap. New Zealand lamb is currently cheaper than English. Best fish buys are cod, haddock, plaice and sprats.

Ranks, who run the Odeon and Gaumont cinemas, are to raise their admission prices. The increases will affect 190 out of 390 Rank cinemas. Granada are also putting up their prices to 2s 9d, 3s 9d and 4s 9d. A spokesman for ABC (280 cinemas) said, “We have no plans to raise our prices.”

Exhibitions: camping at Olympia, 3 – 11 January.

More than 46,000 people bought television licences last November, bringing the total to 12,777,635.

Television highlights: Gala Performance – music, opera and ballet. It’s Dark Outside – new thriller series. Comedy Playhouse – The Mate Market with Lance Percival.

Radio highlights: German for Beginners. Readings on Record.

Weather: cloudy, dry. Outlook – cloudy, mainly dry. 4c, 39f.

Available for order and pre-order, my Swinging Sixties Mystery Series

https://books2read.com/u/bMqNPG

Categories
1963

Social History 1963 #59

Saturday 30 November 1963

How to identify a “with it” girl. She wears white fishnet stockings, knickerbockers and heavy round spectacles, does the Shake instead of the Twist, uses glycerine on her nose, and only makes up one half of her face. She also eats pickled onions.

Fascinate the girls! The “Beetle Wig” – only 15/11, post etc 1/7. Genuinely lifelike. It can be combed into the authentic style. Jet black. So realistic, it looks like real hair. No special haircut needed – just put on your Beetle Wig. Two or more post free.

“In June, our tortoise laid four eggs. We are thrilled because these have now hatched out and the babies are thriving well. We have named them after the Beatles.” – Mrs I Patching, London.

105 toys for 17/6. Ideal for parties. Toys include: hilarious jumping spider, running mouse, jumping crabs, parachutes, cap bombs, bow and arrow, handcuffs, conjuring tricks, catapult and genuine flying saucer.

Roast chicken is challenging roast beef for first place on the nation’s Sunday dinner tables. Mutton and lamb, one time favourites, are losing their appeal. Beef and veal are in demand, but the call is for chicken. Rapid expansion in the broiler industry means that chicken is no longer in the “luxury” class of meat.

The Air Ministry begin their long-range weather forecasting service today. The forecast for the month of December will be broadcast at 11.10 pm after That Was The Week That Was on BBC television. Mr Howarth Freeman, assistant director of the Met Office, will present the forecast.

Television highlights: Dr Who – science fiction series, episodes one and two. The Avengers – The Grandeur That Was Rome. The Sentimental Agent – adventure series.

Radio highlights: Motoring and the Motorist. Pop Track.

Weather: sunshine, showers, drizzle. Rather cold. Outlook – rain at times. 6c, 43f.

Sunday 1 December 1963

Britain’s first long-range weather forecast: no White Christmas; instead, freezing fog and severe cold. The very wet weather in November is expected to give way to drier weather in December with rainfall below average. Severe cold spells will alternate with milder interludes.

Colin Jordan’s British Nazi Party is receiving secret funds from abroad. They are also receiving Nazi propaganda publications. It is believed that cash is sent instead of cheques. Colin Jordan believes that his views are popular in England and not subversive.

Beatlemania has infiltrated into trad jazz. Bob Wallis has a new record out – Pavanne – on which he defies tradition by including an electric guitar! This will offend purists, no doubt, and could put a nail into the trad jazz coffin. But it should be a hit for this popular young trumpeter.

Number one with a new entry – I Want to Hold Your Hand by the Beatles. Number two – She Loves You by the Beatles.The Beatles are also at number fourteen with The Beatles Hits EP and number seventeen with their Twist and Shout EP.

“Wednesday night and millions of soccer-loving working men were looking forward to the tele-recording of the Spurs-Manchester United European Cup game. Alas, it was postponed. Never mind, the BBC will show us a consolation. But what did we get? A documentary on work!” – John Griffiths, Bridgend, Glamorgan.

Football Results: First Division – Blackburn 4 Arsenal 1, Blackpool 3 Leicester 3, Liverpool 2 Burnley 0, Sheffield United 1 Manchester United 2, Spurs 1 Sheffield Wednesday 1. Top three – Liverpool, Blackburn, Spurs.

Television highlights: Memorial Service for President Kennedy from St Paul’s Cathedral. Fireball XL5. The Saint – The King of Beggars.

Radio highlights: The Rum ‘Um – Portrait of Hawker of Morwenstow. Family Favourites.

Weather: dull, misty and rather cold.

Monday 2 December 1963

Mrs Rosina Lewis, the blonde wife of the licencee of The Bull at Hornchurch, Essex, has a broomstick hung on the wall in the saloon bar. She claims that the broomstick helps to cure customers’ hangovers through witchcraft. “My great-grandmother was a witch in Essex,” she said. “And she passed many of her secrets on to me.”

Britain is the world’s largest exporter of farm tractors. We export three times as many as Western Germany and five times as many as the United States.

The Royal National Institute for the Deaf are once again holding their Deaf Children’s Party at the Seymour Hall on January 7th. Can you please spare a toy or donation? RNID, Gower Street, London.

A rescue team used a new type of inflatable plastic splint when they brought down an injured climber on Snowdonia yesterday. He was Peter Leyshon of Tonypandy, Glamorgan, who broke an ankle when he fell ten feet.

“Your assertion that Wales is musically illiterate is rubbish. Haven’t you heard of Ivor Novello, Harry Secombe, Ivor Emmanuel and Shirley Bassey?” – Dai the Pencil, Salop.

Commercials will be added to records played on Juke Boxes in 300 of London’s coffee bars. A spokesman explained, “Teenagers are an elusive and difficult market, even though they spend nearly £1,000,000,000 a year. They don’t really watch tv or read the newspapers. This way we can catch them in their own environment.”

Television highlights: Come Dancing with Peter West. The Royal Smithfield Show. Discovering Japanese Art.

Radio highlights: Paul Temple and the Jonathan Mystery. Screwballs and Iron Bars.

Weather: cloudy, rain in places. Outlook – dry and rather cold. 9c, 48f.

Tuesday 3 December 1963

It is estimated that there are 40,000 fruit machines in Britain’s 24,000 social clubs. And between them they are gobbling up sixpences to the merry tune of £200,000,000 annually. This is nearly a quarter of the nation’s gambling bill. When the machines leave the factories, they have been adjusted to return four-fifths of the takings in prizes to the players. However, it is possible for an operator to rig a machine so that the jackpot never comes up.

Mirror Newspapers fundraising for Christmas 1963: Sunshine Homes for Blind Babies, Fireside Fund (a sack of coal) for old folks, Dr Barnardo’s Homes and the Muscular Dystrophy Group of Great Britain.

At the Kinross by-election, won by the Tories, once again the opinion polls were wrong. They over-estimated the Labour vote and under-estimated the Liberal vote. Substantially. They forecast Labour second and the Liberals third, but it was the other way around. This begs the question: is there a deliberate distortion of opinion to influence the voters?

Drivers of Post Office supply vans have been awarded pay rises of between eight and ten percent.

“As a milkman, I was grateful for the suggestion that milkmen should be given Christmas Day off. However, how can we let the cows know that we want a “double issue” for Christmas Eve delivery.” – G.A Hulme, Leicester.

Football: Everton drew 1 – 1 with Glasgow Rangers last night and won the “Unofficial British Championship” 4 – 2 on aggregate. However, the game was marred when a bottle was thrown at a linesman. Both Everton and Glasgow Rangers have been troubled by crowd violence this season 

Television highlights: World in Action – Dallas, city of violence. Here and Now – London’s fashion scene. Fascinating Facts with Kenneth Kendall.

Radio highlights: Bristol Fashion. Keep Up Your French.

Weather: cloudy with sunny intervals. Outlook – mostly dry with night frost. 7c, 45f.

Wednesday 4 December 1963

Detectives have arrested John Thomas Daly, who is wanted for questioning in connection with the Great Train Robbery. The police found Daly and his wife Barbara, who is expecting a baby, in a lavishly furnished basement flat in Belgravia. Members of Parliament, peers and privy councillors also live in the area. This is the twentieth arrest in the Great Train Robbery case.

In connection with the Great Train Robbery, police are still seeking to interview Bruce Reynolds, Roy “The Weasel” James, Ronald “Buster” Edwards and his wife June, James Edward White and his wife Sheree. 

Mr Hugh Carleton Greene, the BBC Director General, denied that the satirical show That Was The Week That Was was ever censored. However, he admitted that when asked for advice, he sometimes said “no” to an item.

Women motorists have been told, if you want to drive well and safely don’t wear tight bras or girdles. Turn-back cuffs, dangling jewellery and high-heeled shoes are also hazards. To lose their bad reputation on the road, women should dress to drive, and should feel comfortable.

Trading stamps with petrol: to get enough stamps to claim a television set, a motorist would have to drive from the Earth to the Moon. Five times around the world would win him a watch, and twice around the world a road atlas of Europe.

Agony Aunt: “Can you put me in touch with a man who does not drink, smoke or swear, and who is thrifty, kind and sensible, and has no bad habits.” Jane Adams’ reply, “Come off it.”

Football: European Cup Winners’ Cup, Second Round First Leg – Tottenham Hotspur 2 Manchester United 0. 

Television highlights: Stalingrad – epic German war play. 14-18 – the story of the First World War. Sportsview – soccer and rugby.

Radio highlights: Parade of the Pops with Dusty Springfield. A Book at Bedtime.

Weather: cloudy, rain at times. Outlook – rain at times. 7c, 45f.

Thursday 5 December 1963

Extra police will be on duty today to control crowds outside the Old Bailey, where Christine Keeler will face trial with two other women and a man. All four are accused of conspiring to obstruct the course of justice. The three women are also charged with perjury. 

Tory MP Henry Price told women Tories at Sydenham, “We have got to beat the Beatles.” He added that the Beatles’ music is hypnotising teenagers and that these teenagers are “being sent”. They are becoming “addicts”, but Mr Price hoped that they would grow out of it.

Two people in Bedford have typhoid fever. The cases are linked to an outbreak six weeks ago.

Rebels attacked the home of the British Ambassador in Venezuela. No one was hurt.

Historic Woolwich Arsenal Royal Ordinance Factory is to close in 1966. The Arsenal produced the shot for the Battle of Waterloo, turned out 20,000,000 shells to beat the Kaiser and 5,000,000 bombs to smash the Nazis. Future guns manufacture will be concentrated at the Royal Ordinance Factory in Nottingham.

An incident in Gloucester resulted in a mini car being written off. Mr T Poole of Worcester was driving along a country road when a horse ran out from behind a gate. As if in play, the horse sat on his car, shattering the windscreen and crumpling the roof. The horse did not appear hurt.

Housewives may be paying as much for potatoes this winter as they did last winter, but there will be no shortage. Crop acreage is up 28,000 and unless there is a series of sharp frosts, current supplies should see us through.

Television highlights: Gallery – the public ownership of steel. It’s a Square World with Michael Bentine. Weather and road works report. 

Radio highlights: Dylan Thomas Recollections. The Beat Show.

Weather: sunny spells, rather cold. Outlook – little change. 5c, 41f.

Friday 6 December 1963

Britain is set for its biggest ever spending spree. The Bank of England revealed a £40,000,000 jump in banknote circulation to £2,495,000,000. This is £124,000,000 more than Britons had in their purses and pockets a year ago. There is a big demand for £5 notes. They account for about half the value of notes now in circulation.

Debates in the House of Commons will not be televised. Prime Minister Alec Douglas-Home dismissed the idea of an experimental period to see if debates were suitable for public transmission.

A bus shelter in Ash, Kent has become a “cesspool of iniquity”. Parish Councillor Frank Jenner said that people are using the shelter as a “lust shelter” and that a police sergeant and two constables are urgently needed to restore order. Mr Sidney Gilby, who manages a nearby cafe, said, “There are all sorts of goings on in the shelter.” The bus shelter is in the centre of the village and is capable of accommodating fifty people.

A turkey weighing 60lbs 13oz won the Heaviest Turkey of 1963 at the International Poultry Show at London’s Olympia. The turkey came from a farm in Cheshire and contains enough meat for 200 Christmas dinners.

Can television cope in an emergency? Since President Kennedy’s death the obsession with Dallas has lingered too long. Many of the original views and comments are merely being repeated. Furthermore, caught by a major tragic event, television showed that the straitjacket of planned programmes is its master, and was thrown right off balance.

“Surely your reader from Salop cannot be really serious when he describes Harry Secombe and Shirley Bassey as singers. They are no more than music hall turns. But Wales has certainly produced more singers of world class than has England.” – J Ahearne, Swansea.

Television highlights: A Hundred Years Underground – London’s Tube. Friday Night Drama – Plastic Mac in Winter. Ready, Steady, Go! with Marty Wilde, Adam Faith and Ted Heath.

Radio highlights: New Names Making News. La Traviata. 

Weather: cloudy, mainly dry. Outlook – colder, cloudy. 4c, 39f.

Available for order and pre-order, my Swinging Sixties Mystery Series

https://books2read.com/u/bMqNPG

Categories
Maid Marian and Robin Hood

Maid Marian and Robin Hood #8

The Adventures of Robin Hood

Episode 6: A Guest for the Gallows

Introductory minstrel song: “Old Will Stuteley cannot pay, and into prison he is cast; the Sheriff is the very one, who turns him loose at last!”

Regular Cast

Sir Robin of Locksley – Richard Greene

*Maid Marian – Bernadette O’Farrell

The Sheriff of Nottingham – Alan Wheatley

Little John – Archie Duncan

Friar Tuck – Alexander Gauge 

*Joan of the Blue Bull Inn – Simone Lovell

*Didn’t feature in this episode 

Original air date: 25 December 1955

Screenplay: Eric Heath (pseudonym of Ring Lardner Jr.)

Director: Ralph Smart

Plot: The poor people can’t pay their taxes. The Sheriff’s solution – let’s hang one of them.

Health and Safety was clearly not a thing in Sherwood Forest to judge from the number of arrows flying around, bearing messages. To be fair to the television series, many of the Robin Hood films used this communication system as well.

Maid Marian doesn’t feature in this episode and Robin has an enjoyable time kissing “Lass”, played by Jan Miller. Although she appeared previously, Maid Marian is yet to make her mark on the series.

To save Will Stutely, Robin goes incognito as a market trader. The Sheriff of Nottingham meets him and fails to recognise him, a scene that requires the audience to suspend a fair amount of disbelief.

Standout scene: the exchange of Will Stutely for the Sheriff of Nottingham, followed by the Sheriff’s inevitable betrayal, and Friar Tuck’s cunning intervention.

Sword fights – 1. Bow fights/bow skills – 1.

Running total: Sword fights – 6. Bow fights/bow skills – 6.

Robert Desmond, pictured, played Will Stutely. He appeared opposite Richard Attenborough three times in his career, most notably as Griffith the Tailor in The Great Escape. Later, he established roles in soaps such as Compact and Crossroads, plus the obligatory appearance in The Avengers. 

Robert Desmond’s final film role, in 1967, is one for trivia fans. He appeared as Auctioneer in Calamity the Cow, which featured a young Phil Collins of Genesis fame.

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Will Scarlet – Fact or Fiction?

🖼️ Will Scarlet by Louis Rhead, 1912

In a later ballad, Robin Hood and the Newly Revived, Will appears as a finely dressed young man shooting deer in Sherwood Forest. He offers his name as Young Gamwell and is renamed Will Scarlet by Robin Hood when he accepts an invitation to join the outlaw band.

Traditionally, Will is depicted as being younger than the other outlaws. A skilled swordsman, he loves fine clothes, particularly garments made from red silk. 

There is nothing in the historical record to suggest that Will Scarlet was based on a real person. His character has evolved as balladeers and writers have developed the Robin Hood legends over time.

Using red as the signature colour for Will Scarlet, my character will have Welsh origins, and go by the name Gwilym Goch. Also, because as we all know Welshmen can sing, my character will be Robin Hood’s musician, taking on aspects of Alan-a-Dale character from the legends.

Numerous actors have portrayed Will Scarlet in films and on television. This list is far from exhaustive – it merely offers my personal highlights.

Anthony Forwood in The Story of Robin Hood and His Merrie Men, 1952

Ronald Howard and Paul Eddington in the television series The Adventures of Robin Hood, 1955-59

Douglas Mitchell in A Challenge for Robin Hood, 1967

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Coming soon, my Adventures of Maid Marian series

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Categories
1963

Social History 1963 #44

Sunday 18 August 1963

Police are hoping that people throughout Britain will go on a massive treasure hunt today. They feel sure that the train gang have hidden some of their loot in woods and fields. If someone finds £100,000 they will receive £10,000 reward. Meanwhile, after a tip-off, teams of Flying Squad officers are searching the Chiswick-Isleworth area for the gang’s headquarters.

Australia wants 45,000 Britons, tradesmen as well as professional people, in the next twelve months. Prospects for migrants look good – the Australian government have announced tax concessions and big housing plans.

Strait-laced laws restricting entertainment on a Sunday look like remaining in place for some years to come. A committee looking into the matter is making extremely slow progress. The seven men and one woman on the committee hope to report next spring.

Three months ago the Hollies were earning £2 a night in the Manchester area. Tonight, they are cruising down the River Thames from Margate on a jazz junket. Their fee – £200, their usual wages these days. Also listen out for the Hollies’ new disc, Searchin’, which should go spinning into the charts.

Football: Charity Shield. Everton gave Manchester United a footballing lesson and emerged 4 – 0 winners. Everton opened the scoring on 37 minutes and their defence remained untroubled throughout the match. Attendance – 50,000.

Television highlights: Lorna Doone – part ten. Play – Living Image. Summer Spectacular with Robert Morley.

Radio highlights: In Pursuit of Neptune. Top Twenty.

Weather: sunshine and showers.

Monday 19 August 1963

Scotland Yard detectives hunting for the £2,600,000 train gang believe they have found the headquarters where the great ambush was planned. The house is in West London, but the address is being kept secret. The detectives found twelve chairs, cigarette butts, tins, bottles, glasses and teacups.

Police are encouraging people to go out and find the £2,400,000 that is still missing. Police want to receive reports of any big spending, especially in fivers, and any strangers seen in the countryside. Some of the gang are likely to be mingling with seaside holidaymakers.

There is still two weeks to go in the Daily Mirror Treasure Hunt. Treasure chests and medallions by the hundred have been buried in the sands by Mirror Pirates at leading holiday resorts. Keep an eye open too for the Mirror Girl. There’s a £50 prize for the holidaymaker who can guess her age, height and weight.

Footballers from Lincoln City, Oldham Athletic, Scunthorpe Town and Sheffield Wednesday have been named in association with an investigation into match fixing. However, currently there is no plan to further investigate these allegations.

Snow fell on the Pyrenees yesterday, a fortnight earlier than usual.

Personal advertisements: Ronnie, come home quickly – telephone George. Rube, phone Farnboro 1390, Wednesday, 8pm.

Television highlights: Outlook Europe – Germany. Genius in Barcelona – Picasso and Gaudi. A Journey Through Wales.

Radio highlights: In a Sentimental Mood. Desert Island Discs – Graham Hill.

Weather: sunny intervals. Outlook – changeable. 20c, 68f.

Tuesday 20 August 1963

Mr Bernard Rixon, owner of “Banknote Farm”, the train robbers’ hideout, plans to open the building to the public – at 5s a look. He said, “I want to get whatever I can out of it. I’ve had a very unfortunate time trying to sell it.” Meanwhile, detectives believe the stolen loot from the train robbery is still in Britain.

The BBC will extend its current closedown from 11.15pm until midnight. BBC studio productions are restricted by the Postmaster General to 50 broadcast hours a week. The daytime programmes for women will be scrapped to allow the evening viewing to be extended. A new science fiction serial, to run for a year, will be screened at peak-viewing time.

A gang got away with £13,000 after spending eighteen hours to cut through a six-inch steel strongroom door. The raid took place in Sheerness, Kent. Evidence suggests that the gang camped on the premises and ate meals while they worked.

Five people were injured in a car accident at Mirfield, Yorkshire. Satan, a crocodile, and Peter, a monkey, were also involved in the accident. Peter went to hospital, but was not detained. Satan continued his journey to the mountain zoo at Colwyn Bay.

At 2s 3d each, wooden parquet panels are now available. They interlock and do not require nails or glue. A flooring specialist who makes the panels said, “More than one woman has succeeded in laying the floor herself.”

Television highlights: Chips With Everything – scenes from the Arnold Wesker play. Compact – serial. No Hiding Place.

Radio highlights: The Canterbury Tales. The Beggar Student.

Weather: sunny periods, showers. Outlook – similar. 17c, 63f.

Wednesday 21 August 1963

Detectives hunting the £2,600,000 train robbers are now looking for an attractive woman, aged between 30 and 40, who played a big part in the planning of the raid. She is a natural brunette, but often wears a blonde wig. The woman is known to detectives, and Scotland Yard hope to locate her in the next 48 hours.

Here’s what the robbers left behind at Banknote Farm: 100 tins of food – baked beans, corned beef, tomato soup, pork luncheon meat – condensed milk, tea, sugar, coffee, sleeping bags, a first aid kit, eating utensils, and 17 packets of Ozo toilet paper. The police also found a tea strainer, which makes them believe that a woman was involved.

Following a tip-off, police have pounced on a caravan at Dorking. Scientific and fingerprint experts have searched the caravan thoroughly. Detective-Superintendent Malcolm Fewtrell, head of Bucks CID said, “We have found something in the caravan that convinces us that it is connected with the mail train robbery.”

Brunette Sally Alford, one of three girl tv announcers banned from reading the news because they distracted viewers, was back last night – reading the news. A male announcer is ill and has been sent to bed, and other announcers are on holiday, so Sally has been recalled. Sally said, “I will do my best not to distract the viewers. I’ll wear a quiet beige suit and simple hairstyle.”

Five long-serving prisoners at Nottingham jail joined a session of cricket coaching. During the coaching, they scurried through a hole in the wire fence, ran into a nearby housing estate and, it’s believed, escaped in a blue Austin Cambridge car.

Television highlights: Sportsview – preview of the Fifth Test Match, England v West Indies, and the forthcoming football season. Fascinating Facts. Here and Now – a man, his dog and his village.

Radio highlights: The Changing Face of Soccer. Topical Tunes.

Weather: sunny spells, showers. Outlook – Cool, rain at times. 19c, 66f.

Thursday 22 August 1963

Another £30,000 of the stolen train loot turned up yesterday. The money – in fivers – was found hidden in the panelling of an empty caravan in Box Hill, Surrey. The caravan site’s owner reported that a woman was with the man who bought the caravan. She had a six-month-old baby girl and a poodle. The woman was attractive with short dark hair. She wore a brown jumper and tight blue slacks. Meanwhile, more than 1,000 clues have been found at “Banknote Farm”, the robbers’ roost.

Four of London’s most hardened criminals are top-of-the-list suspects in the Great Train Robbery hunt. The four men have been missing from their usual West End haunts for two weeks. Two are brothers, a third is a safe-breaker and the fourth just came out of prison. 

Meat condemned months ago by food inspectors has found its way into butchers’ shops in Surrey, Kent, East Anglia, Sussex, Hampshire and the Isle of Wight. More than 6,000 cartons of condemned meat were made into sausages and pies. A spokesman said that butchers involved in this practice had not committed an offence.

Mrs Erika Finger of St John’s Wood, London is suing the owner of a restaurant in Nice. During a mock bull fight, she was attacked by a cow. Mrs Finger said, “They prodded the cow with sticks. It got mad and charged through the restaurant. Everyone started to run, but I was trapped. The cow tossed me, but there wasn’t enough room, so it kicked me. My husband dragged me away and the cow escaped.” The cow was recaptured three days later.

Exhibitions: Thrale’s Japanese Ex-Prisoner of War story presented by War on Want at St Paul’s Churchyard.

Sam Cooke’s updated version of Frankie and Johnny mentions a famous British car, which means it’s likely to receive a BBC ban.

Television highlights: Rag, Tag and Bobtail. Boxing from Liverpool. Don’t Say a Word – mime game with Sheila Hancock and Clive Dunn.

Radio highlights: Swinging UK. World of Song.

Weather: cloudy with rain and drizzle. Outlook – little change. 18c, 64f.

Friday 23 August 1963

Just before midnight last night dozens of teams of detectives in London and the Home Counties were given special stand-by orders. They were told: move in on all train robbery suspects. Police are also looking for a young woman named Sheree who has a six-month-old baby and a poodle called Gigi. The woman was recently seen in Dunfermline, Fife.

A cricket match at Alexandra Park, Wood Green was stopped yesterday when twelve sticks of gelignite were found in a nearby river. The players sheltered behind the pavilion while army experts exploded the gelignite. Then the players resumed their game.

Manufacturers are producing double beds with separate mattresses, zipped together. One of the mattresses will have a built-in board. The design has developed to aid double-bed devotees, one of whom has a slipped disc.

Bad debts have soared since high street betting shops opened. A study found that £1,000,000,000 is gambled on horse racing each year and that the total Britons spend annually on betting is equal to 65% of the country’s defence budget.

The Automobile Association dealt with 1,422 breakdowns on the M1 during July.

In the Fifth Test Match at the Oval, the West Indies dismissed England for 275 with Charlie Griffith taking 6 for 71. Did Griffith bowl too many bumpers? Umpire Syd Buller thought so because he had a word with captain Frank Worrell. Tony Lock was dismissed when he dropped his bat on to his wicket while trying to avoid a bouncer. Now, England’s bowlers must show some offensive spirt. 

Television highlights: Bowls – Amateur National Championship from Mortlake. Ivor the Engine. Ready, Steady, Go! with the Rolling Stones and Hayley Mills.

Radio highlights: Arthur Haynes Show. The Organisation of Crime – an investigation.

Weather: mainly dry with sunny periods. Outlook – cloudy with rain. 21c, 70f.

Saturday 24 August 1963

Scotland Yard detectives are on the lookout for a racing driver – Roy John James, aka The Weasel. Detectives believe that Weasel James can help them with their inquiries into the Great Train Robbery. Meanwhile, Yard men raided 61 houses, warehouses and factories in London. They are also looking for a blonde woman, her baby and her poodle, Gigi.

Great Train Robbery slang: poppy = money, ricket = mistake, blagger = a thief, nark = an informer, stoppo driver = getaway driver, blag = to rob.

The Edinburgh Festival is in danger because of a lack of cash support. In the seventeen years that the Festival has been going it has never showed a penny profit. Last year’s loss was £115,000. Yet, Edinburgh is packed with tourists. Hotels and restaurants are full. An estimated £3,000,000 is made in trade, but only £18,000 of that money is donated to the Festival fund.

The Conservatives, worried about their prospects at the next General Election, may call in the help of a fantastic brain machine. The machine will predict the public’s reaction to any situation – provided it is fed the right information. Other parties have been offered the machine, but they haven’t showed any interest.

Agony Aunt: “When I kiss my boyfriend, should I keep my eyes open, or shut them?” Jane Adams’ reply, “Depends on whether you like what you see.”

Fifth Test, the Oval. The West Indies have thrown this match away. In reply to England’s 275 they were 165 for 3. But they closed on 231 for 8. England are now favourites to level the series. Conrad Hunte top-scored with 80, while the wickets included two run outs.

Television highlights: Grandstand. Francis Durbridge Presents. Dick Emery Show.

Radio highlights: Saturday Club. Play – The King of Soho.

Weather: showers. Outlook – continuing changeable. 19c, 66f.

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Categories
1963

Social History 1963 #40

Sunday 21 July 1963

Screaming Lord Sutch, pictured, says he is to stand as an independent candidate in the forthcoming Stratford-on-Avon by-election. Screaming Lord Sutch, who often wears horns and a leopard skin, said, “It’s time the young people of this country had a say in the government.” Mr Sutch is single.

Put some zip into your sausages! A sausage manufacturer is experimenting with a new type of banger. He explained, “Some people like to eat sausages with the skin on, some don’t, so we are experimenting with a sausage skin with a thin gut zip on the side.”

A Paris fashion designer is working on “hostess gowns for the capsule.” This means that when your turn comes to be shot into space, and find yourself upside down, you’ll still be impeccably dressed.

Because of freak weather conditions, television pictures from Czechoslovakia and Hungary were available in Whitby, Yorkshire yesterday.

The Drop Dead Company of Montebello, California has changed its name to the Paramount Chemical Co.

Latest on the football match-fixing scandal. Three players have been accused of receiving inducements to play badly. The summonses concern players from Mansfield Town and Bristol Rovers.

A new 45 – the theme music to Sid James’ new TV series Taxi! This disc could go places.

Television highlights: Circus from Great Yarmouth. Land of Song with Ivor Emmanuel. The Scarlet Pimpernel.

Radio highlights: How to Like Americans. Top Twenty.

Weather: dry, mostly sunny and warm, some showers.

Monday 22 July 1963 

Haircuts are to increase in price. The National Hairdressers’ Association announced that men’s 3s 6d haircuts will go up by 6d and women’s 6s 6d hairdos by one shilling.

Clearer labelling is being urged for aerosols to avoid the confusion of fly spray being used for hair lacquer.

Ieda Vargas from Brazil won the Miss Universe contest. Miss England, Susan Pratt, withdrew from the contest after a car accident. She was cheered as she was pushed on to the stage in a wheelchair.

Loose false teeth? Poli-Grip is a cream fixative, three-ways better than any powder. It’s so firm, you can eat foods you haven’t tried for years. It’s so firm, you can laugh and sneeze without fear of any embarrassing accidents.

Another horse has been named in the doping scandal. At 5 – 1, Parnear won the Swafftham Handicap at Newmarket in April.

Personal advertisements: Lil, please come home. The children and I miss you – Teddy.

Music: look out Liverpool, the Brummies are on your tail. EMI have signed seven groups from Birmingham. No discs are available yet. Decca have also signed The Redcaps from Birmingham. Their first record, Shout, will enter Discville soon.

Television highlights: Panorama – London’s nightlife. Tennis – Inter-County week. University Challenge.

Radio highlights: The Archers. Meet Yourself.

Weather: dry, sunny and warm. Outlook – similar. 20c, 68f.

Tuesday 23 July 1963 

Tory and Labour MPs clashed in the House of Commons last night over the Labour claim that South Paddington is Europe’s “biggest brothel” run by racketeers and “slum emperors”. Thugs were on the rampage, extorting money from renters who had already paid, and beating up people, including elderly women. The Tories questioned Labour’s sources and insisted that only they could rectify the problem.

Princess Alexandra’s husband, Angus Ogilvy, was elected a director of the Guardian Assurance Company. Mr Ogilvy now has over fifty directorships. Meanwhile, London’s bus drivers have been offered a pay rise of 6s a week.

Christine Keeler gave evidence at the Stephen Ward trial today and spoke of the occasion when Ward introduced her to “reefers”. Miss Keeler was asked about numerous men and payment for her favours. She admitted that, under Mr Ward’s arrangement, such events took place, but she said angrily, “I am not a prostitute. I never have been.” Mr Ward is accused of living off immoral earnings. The case continues.

Swiss beauty expert Micheline Lugeon, 26, was arrested by Flying Squad officers in connection with the horse doping scandal. She will appear before Brighton Magistrates in the morning.

A vulture escaped from Belle Vue Zoo and spent three hours perched on a Manchester chimney pot. The bird tried to settle on a television aerial, but the aerial would not support its weight. Last night, the vulture was still free.

Television highlights: Watch With Mother. On Safari – frogs and lizards. Royal International Horse Show.

Radio highlights: Listen With Mother. Pop Go The Beatles.

Weather: dry and particularly warm. Outlook – cooler with rain likely. 25c, 77f.

Wednesday 24 July 1963 

ITV was flooded with complaints last night after the broadcast of End of Conflict, a play about soldiering set in the Far East. The play contained such expletives as “bloody”, “bleeding” and “bastard”. Mr George More O’Ferrall, who directed the play, said, ‘The words were used in context. I did, however, cut out a great number of “bloodies”.’

Ninety thousand teenagers a year are now fitted with false teeth. Only 29,000,000 toothbrushes, out of a population of 52,000,000, were sold in 1962. Toothbrushes only last three months, so the conclusion reached is that not many people in Britain use a toothbrush.

Swiss beauty expert Micheline Lugeon, 26, arrested in connection with the horse doping scandal, said yesterday, “I’m innocent.” Her father is a cemetery keeper in Switzerland. Six men have been sent for trial in connection with the scandal.

If Christine Keeler’s entrance into the Stephen Ward trial yesterday had been dramatic, Mandy Rice-Davies’ entrance today was atomic. Mandy was asked about having sexual relations with Lord Astor while Stephen Ward looked on. There were gasps from the public gallery when she replied, “Oh yes, it is quite normal, isn’t it. There is nothing wrong with it.” The case continues.

Gadzooks, “The Provok’d Wife” is a lusty and high-speed romp at the Vaudeville Theatre. This Vanbrugh play, 266 years old, is well worth its present-day airing in the West End. Many of the lines are a joy, well delivered by an excellent cast. Slap me vitals, I enjoyed it.

Television highlights: Talking Sport – Cricket with Brian Rix, Charlie Drake and Ian Carmichael. Take a Letter – crossword game with Robert Holness. Professional Wrestling from Bradford.

Radio highlights: Honour Your Partners. Protest USA – a report on the race riots.

Weather: cloudy with rain or drizzle. Outlook – changeable. 20c, 68f.

Thursday 25 July 1963 

In the Stephen Ward trial, Mr Ward’s solicitors are looking for model Sylvia Parker whom they believe could be a vital defence witness. Meanwhile, hundreds of people are queuing for a seat in the public gallery every day. One of the people queuing, singer Julie Gulliver, a friend of Mr Ward, fainted. The trial continues. (The trial was receiving four to six pages of newspaper coverage daily).

Shock news that Dumbarton shipbuilding and hovercraft firm William Denny and Sons is to go into voluntary liquidation. Over the past three years the company invested £300,000 in developing a passenger hovercraft. Its hoverbus is now in service on the Thames in London. However, last night a spokesman said, “It did not reach the commercial stage soon enough.”

A plan to standardise the size markings on women’s clothes was agreed yesterday. Size 14, for instance, will mean a 37 1/2 to 39 inch hip size, with a bust size of 35 1/2 to 37 inches. The letter S will indicate garments for short women, and the letter T for tall.

Mr Brian Epstein said, “This time last year, I was trying to get the Beatles off the ground.” He succeeded. They are now one of the biggest disc properties in Britain. This week, their extended-play record Twist and Shout entered the top thirty at number 14, after an advance order of 100,000 copies.

Television highlights: The Good Old Days – old time music hall. Promenade Concert with the BBC Symphony Orchestra. Here and Now – home brew.

Radio highlights: D-Day With the Stars. Ballads.

Weather: sunny spells and showers. Outlook – dry, sunny at times. 22c, 72f.

Friday 26 July 1963 

The strange crater in Roy Blanchard’s potato and barley patch was caused by a Thing From Outer Space. The Thing was as big as a cricket ball and weighed half a pound. The Thing was a meteorite, and it was discovered buried eight feet in the ground. (Update on the “meteorite” tomorrow).

Anti-smoking films will be shown on television. However, there is a big fear that tobacco revenue will decline if the smoking habit falls off sharply. Therefore, cigarette advertisements will continue.

Agony Aunt: H.T. and M.T. from Guildford write, “How can I stop my wife from painting her nails in bed?” “How can I stop my husband from smoking his pipe in bed?” Jane Adams’ reply, “Are you two husband and wife? Let me know before his pipe sets fire to your inflammable nail varnish and you both go up in flames.”

The House of Dior has spoken – hemlines will remain as they are this season. Skirts will still be worn short. Legs will be displayed. Common sense has won the day.

Cricket: despite a septic finger, Gary Sobers scored 102 for the West Indies against England in the Fourth Test Match at Headingley, yesterday. Sobers was well supported by Rohan Kanhai, who scored 92. The West Indies closed on 294 – 5. England entered the match as favourites, but now they have their work cut out.

Television highlights: Giants of Steam. Miss Universe 1963. Dad, You’re a Square.

Radio highlights: Round Europe in Song. The Lost Letter – satirical comedy.

Weather: sunny and warm. Outlook – sunny and warm. 21c, 70f.

Saturday 27 July 1963 

In an outburst during his evidence at the Old Bailey yesterday, Stephen Ward said, “If Vicky Barrett is telling the truth, then I am guilty.” However, he denied Miss Barrett’s claim that whipping and caning took place involving numerous men at his flat. He added that Christine Keeler had not told the truth and that Mandy Rice-Davies had also lied. Fashion model Sylvia Parker said that Miss Barrett’s evidence was “a complete load of rubbish.” The trial continues on Monday.

The mystery of the crater in Mr Roy Blanchard’s potato and barley patch deepened yesterday. The Thing recovered from the crater was not a meteorite, as initially thought. The Thing has trident markings on it, and is made of ironstone. Experts are investigating.

Mr Angus Ogilvy, husband of Princess Alexandra, has become a director of yet another company – Provincial and Suburban Investments. Mr Ogilvy now has well over fifty directorships. 

Threepenny Lucky Bags are not so lucky these days. My friend’s son came home with a Lucky Bag that contained a balloon with a hole in it, a racing car with one wheel, a sweet and a card.

Cricket: the Fourth Test at Headingley and England are on the ropes. In reply to the West Indies’ 397 all out, England were teetering on 93 – 8. Charlie Griffith was the chief destroyer. In one spell he took four wickets for only six runs. A West Indies victory within three days now looks like the most likely result.

Television highlights: Summer Grandstand. Big Night Out with Gerry and the Pacemakers, and Vera Lynn. Supercar.

Radio highlights: Polish Music. It’s Latin.

Weather: sunny and warmer. Outlook – similar. 23c, 73f.

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