Tag: Sport

Categories
1963

Social History 1963 #10

Friday 15 February 1963

Harold Wilson is the new leader of the Labour Party. He was elected last night with a decisive majority of 41 over George Brown. Mr Wilson said that he would carry on the policies of Hugh Gaitskell, whose death last month caused the leadership election.

Big Tony Mella, 37 year old king of the Soho clip joints, was murdered by his best friend Alvin Melvin who put three bullets into him. Melvin then shot himself. It would appear that Melvin tired of Big Tony’s insults and abuse. His friendship turned to hatred.

Surgeons have taken a kidney from a dead body and transplanted it into a living man. The operation, which lasted six hours, is the first of its kind in the world. It took place in Leeds General Infirmary 67 days ago. The recipient is doing well, but surgeons say it is too early to say if the operation has been a complete success.

The Tower of London’s 38 Beefeaters threatened to go on strike unless the War Office makes a move to settle their pay claim. The Beefeaters want 1s 9d more a day for carrying out special duties. The War Office has offered 6d.

The Third Round FA Cup tie between Charlton Athletic and Cardiff City has been postponed for the tenth time. Watford and Rotherham’s third round tie was also postponed last night.

Television highlights: The Woodentops, Captain Pugwash, Tales of the Riverbank.

Radio highlights: Piano Party, My Favourite Husband.

Weather: bright with showers. Outlook – similar. Maximum temperature 2c or 3c, 36f.

Saturday 16 February 1963

Three girl tv announcers (see below) have been taken off news reading because they become emotionally involved when giving details of tragedies. Also, they get thousands of fan letters and requests for photographs. This indicates that they are a distraction and reduce the impact of news items.

A third plot to assassinate President de Gaulle has been foiled in three years. The alleged ringleader of the latest assassination plot is Georges-Marcel Watin, nicknamed Limpy because of an infirmity. He escaped the police dragnet by minutes.

When Leslie Hopkin’s car stalled outside his home he asked his wife Beatrice to sit in the driving seat while he pushed the car to restart it. Leslie shoved and the car shot down the street leaving him standing. Beatrice steered safely past twenty-three parked cars. But her car hit a twenty-fourth. She suffered a broken leg, had four teeth knocked out, and received cuts. Leslie was fined £1 for allowing his wife to drive uninsured.

In a pop poll in Holland, Cliff Richard was voted the World’s top singer, receiving 50.5% of the vote. His idols, Elvis Presley and Ray Charles, received 20% and 3.25% respectively.

Little change in the grim vegetable situation and the Covent Garden men refuse to forecast any improvement for several weeks. Potatoes are 5d lb, tomatoes 2s, cucumbers 2s 6d each, and oranges 1s 9d.

Television highlights: The Rag Trade – an American tycoon, Thick Wilson, has take-over thoughts. That Was The Week That Was. The Braden Beat.

Radio highlights: Stephane Grappelly. Polka Party.

Weather: sleet or snow. Temperatures near freezing. Outlook – little change. 

Sunday 17 February 1963

Coming soon – canned cakes. You will be able to store them for two years. Handbags that grow as you let out the strap handles are all the rage in Paris. For £56 you will soon be able to have garage doors that open when car headlights shine on them.

Thousands of Frenchwomen took from their mailboxes this week plain wrapped packages containing large tubes simply marked “Soothing Cream”, apparently a beauty product. In the tubes was a contraceptive preparation. In France it is illegal to possess, sell, buy, advertise or advise on contraception and contraceptive materials.

A 1951 penny might be worth pounds. A coin collector in America has pointed out that the US catalogue prices for British 1951 pennies is as high as £3 8d, and market prices might be higher. The bulk of the 1951 issue went to Bermuda, where people are now afraid to spend a penny in case they lose a small fortune.

This week, only five people complained about the BBC’s satirical show That Was The Week That Was. Normally, hundreds of people complain every week.

Television highlights: His Soul Goes Marching On – discussion on race relations in America. Mr Magoo. Z Cars.

Radio highlights: Top Twenty. Let’s Put Out the Lights.

Only thirteen matches were played in the English and Scottish football leagues this weekend. The rest were postponed because of the weather.

Weather: very cold with snow.

Monday 18 February 1963

The president bends, breaks or ignores laws that stand in his way. People are arrested on a whim. Magistrates are corrupt. Radio and television are now propaganda instruments. This is the situation in France under dictator de Gaulle.

Railwaymen will join the fight for a 40 hour working week. Currently, they work 42 hours a week. Builders, plumbers and heating engineers will switch to a 40 hour working week in two years.

Real-life spacemen are catching up with the puppet stars of Fireball XL5. As every one of the 3,500,000 regular viewers knows, when the XL5 crew want to investigate some far-off planet, they first put Fireball XL5 into orbit around it. Then they make the final descent to the planet from the Mothership on a kind of space taxi, called Fireball Junior. And that is the way American astronauts will descend to the surface of the Moon sometime around the end of 1967.

Rector William Winfield has suggested that people should give up watching tv for Lent. Mr Winfield is giving up his favourites…boxing, travel films and Westerns.

Television highlights: World in Action – focus on supermarkets. The Plane Makers – factory series. Leave it to Beaver.

Radio highlights: Swoon Club. The Jazz Scene with Spike Milligan.

Classified Advertisement: Johnny D. Thanks for phone call. Arrange your pal visits us – Mam.

Weather: sunny spells, snow showers. Very cold. Outlook – similar. Maximum temperature 1c 34f.

Tuesday 19 February 1963

Motorists in London will soon be given “space flight” heart checks to measure the strain of rush-hour driving. Recorders will monitor heart rates as motorists fume in traffic jams, jockey for lane positions, and rage at other drivers.

A doctor died after using himself as a guinea pig for experiments with a drug, a coroner said yesterday. Dr Samuel Leff took LSD, lysergic acid diethylamide, a drug linked to hypnotism and exploration of the memory cells.

The widow of Big Tony Mella, the Soho club boss, sent a wreath to the funeral of the man who murdered him, and the widow of the killer, Alvin Melvin, sent a wreath to the graveside of Big Tony. The hostesses of the nightclub split into two groups and went to each funeral. “Both of the boys were good to us,” said one of the hostesses. “They were good to work for.”

Billy Cotton has been voted Show Business Personality of 1962. The Most Promising Newcomers are Sarah Miles and Tom Courtenay. Film Actor of the Year – Peter O’Toole. Film Actress of the Year – Leslie Caron. Stage Actress of the Year – Sheila Hancock. Stage Actor of the Year – Paul Scofield. BBC Television Personality of the Year – Harry Worth. ITV Personality of the Year – Violet Carson. Radio Personality of the Year – Eamonn Andrews.

Television highlights: The Sledge – Hungarian film. No Hiding Place. Emergency Ward Ten – Dick Moone assists in a crisis.

Radio highlights: Music While You Work. Casting Out Devils.

At the eleventh attempt, Charlton Athletic’s Third Round FA Cup tie with Cardiff City went ahead last night. Len Glover’s goal in the eightieth minute sent Charlton through to meet Chelsea in the next round.

Weather: cold easterly winds, snow. Outlook – unchanged. Maximum temperature 2c, 36f.

Available for pre-order, Songbird, my novel set in the winter of 1962-63

https://books2read.com/u/bMqNPG

For Authors

#1 for value with 565,000 readers, The Fussy Librarian has helped my books to reach #1 on over thirty occasions.

A special offer from my publisher and the Fussy Librarian. https://authors.thefussylibrarian.com/?ref=goylake

Don’t forget to use the code goylake20 to claim your discount 🙂

Categories
1963

Social History 1963 #2

Sunday 6 January 1963

We may have coloured roads one day. A reflecting surface, which can be coloured, has been developed in America. The road surface shows up with the same brightness at night as during the day.

National Savings were up 13% on 1961 at £247,000,000. But they fell well short of the 1960 record of £343,400,000.

Dr Adenauer, the West German Chancellor, was 87 yesterday.

The top-selling hat of the season, say the milliners, is the bowler, in soft felts and furs. Women can add a spray of feathers for the “Wicked Lady” look.

The Light and Home Service of the BBC have forty-seven disc programmes this week – that’s 1,937 minutes of records and the essential chat before and after. However, columnist Bernard McElwaine is not happy. “The gramophone record is the most irritating invention since the telephone and the dentist’s drill,” he said.

DIY advice. If you have a door that sticks or won’t stay closed, just tighten the hinge screws. This is often sufficient. When an outside door sticks, it might be necessary to plane the edge or the bottom. But don’t do this in damp weather.

My young daughter was given a large dolls’ house for Christmas. After peering in every room, looking for the people, she asked, “Well, where are they all – watching television?”

Television highlights: Land of Song, Rejoice and Sing, Motor Cycle Scrambling.

Radio highlights: Melody on Strings, Richard Attenborough.

Football: FA Cup Third Round – only three games out of thirty-two played because of the snow: Preston 1 Sunderland 4, Plymouth 1 West Bromwich Albion 5, Tranmere 2 Chelsea 2.

Weather: very cold, snow, frost.

Monday 7 January 1963

Over a thousand trapped and starving animals were rescued from the snow yesterday. More than 100 people took part in the rescue on Dartmoor, Devon. And a new hazard – potholes. The Big Freeze has cracked many roads. A very slow thaw is expected to continue. But there may be more snow tomorrow.

Dozens of families in Hornchurch, Essex only get a two-and-a-half-inch picture. This has been going on for two years and it’s driving the locals crazy. There is insufficient voltage to power their television sets.

Hoover announced that the cost of their Hoovermatic combined washing-machine and spin-dryer was being cut by £6 6s to £82 19s.

Television highlights: University Challenge – Nottingham v Swansea. Discs-A-Go-Go. Leave it to Beaver.

Radio highlights: Folk Songs. A Book at Bedtime.

Two television sketches that drew scores of protest are to go on long-playing record today. The sketches are from That Was The Week That Was. They include an Army officer issuing instructions to his men by mixing Bible quotations with battle orders. And a woman telling his boyfriend that his fly buttons are undone.

Football: So far, 135 matches need to be rearranged. And the League are budgeting for at least one more bad weekend before the end of the season. An extension to the season is planned, but this will not affect the FA Cup Final.

Weather: continuing cold with frost. Outlook – similar.

Tuesday 8 January 1963

Because of the snow, only Sunderland and West Bromwich Albion cleared the FA Cup Third Round hurdle. Nevertheless, the Fourth Round draw went ahead as scheduled.

Safety belts will be compulsory in all cars in France, possibly next year. All the belts must be tested by the French Works Ministry and carry its seal of approval.

A thief stole skis, value £10, from outside the back door of Miss Phyllis Iles’ home in Ashstead, Surrey.

Girdles and bras of man-made elastic will sell at more realistic prices this year. One advantage of this elastic is that it gives light-weight control. Another advantage is that it wears longer.

In furniture, 1963 will bring an ever-increasing swing to the Scandinavian Look, with its stark lines and unpolished woods. Teak will be the mainstay of the Scandinavian Look, and varnished finishes are out.

In the kitchen, non-stick pans will become more popular, now that their special finishes have been perfected.

Eighty-year-old Christopher Stone, the first-ever BBC disc jockey, slipped and cut his face on an icy footpath in Eton, Bucks, high street yesterday.

Television highlights: Bookstand, Tonight with Cliff Michelmore, Treasure Hunt.

Radio highlights: Family Favourites, Big Ben Banjo Band.

Weather: snow showers, very cold. 0c, 32f.

Wednesday 9 January 1963

The threat of power station strikes is still on. If the strikes go ahead, many regions can expect blackouts.

Labour leader Hugh Gaitskell’s condition was improving, the Middlesex Hospital said last night. His four doctors said that he had a more restful day. Mr Gaitskell is suffering from pleurisy and pericarditis.

The bosom is about to make a comeback. designer Marc Bohan of Dior said, “The accent on the bust will be the strongest impact of my line.” The new look will also feature deep necklines and more emphasis on the legs, although hemlines will remain the same – just below the knee. Lipsticks will be bright red and the top fashion colour will be white.

To meet the need for television dinners, furniture manufacturers will be making supper tables 20 inches high. Coffee tables are usually 16 to 18 inches high.

Television highlights: Les Comediens-Mimes de Paris, Look – wildlife series, Cubism and After – modern art.

Radio highlights: Come into the Parlour, The Big ‘O’ Show.

Football: 145 out of 211 fixtures have now been postponed. Sunderland are the only club who have not experienced a postponement.

Weather: scattered snow showers. Outlook – very cold with further snow at times. Maximum temperature 1c, 34f.

Thursday 10 January 1963

The first transatlantic telecast by Relay – the telecommunications satellite that is four-times stronger than Telstar – was a success yesterday. Mr Martin Pulling, the BBC’s assistant director of engineering, predicted around-the-world live TV via satellites within the next five years.

Fiction and Fact. Fiction: “He awoke to find her still asleep beside him, her shining dark hair tousled…her skin soft and gently flushed…a little smile curving her mouth. He leaned over and kissed her and she opened her eyes in renewed wonderment of their love.” Fact: “He awoke to find her still asleep beside him, her dark hair screwed into rollers and tied up in a net…her skin still sploshed with last night’s beauty cream…her mouth wide open. He leaned over and dug her in the ribs and she unglued her eyes and said, ‘S’your turn to make the tea’.”

A father of eight who fell “terribly in love” married his mistress, thus committing bigamy. He was jailed for six months after a hearing at the Old Bailey.

Fights over the blankets, open and closed windows, and where to place the hot-water bottle – couples are being advised to think carefully before taking the marital plunge.

Television highlights: Criss Cross Quiz, Hancock, Amateur Boxing – Scotland v England.

Radio highlights: Have a Go! Railway Roundup.

In the Top Thirty this week: Guitar Man – Duane Eddy, He’s a Rebel – The Crystals, Globetrotter – The Tornados.

Weather: very cold, snow showers. Outlook – no change. 0c, 32f.

Coming soon, Songbird, my novel set in the winter of 1962-63

https://books2read.com/u/bMqNPG

For Authors

#1 for value with 565,000 readers, The Fussy Librarian has helped my books to reach #1 on over thirty occasions.

A special offer from my publisher and the Fussy Librarian. https://authors.thefussylibrarian.com/?ref=goylake

Don’t forget to use the code goylake20 to claim your discount 🙂

Categories
1963

Social History 1963 #1

Tuesday 1 January 1963

Welcome to 1963! The Daily Mirror’s Man of the Year – John Fitzgerald Kennedy.

The Helicopter Heroes of the White Death battled through raging blizzards on mercy missions yesterday. An airlift rescued seventy coach passengers stranded at a Dorset cafe. They rescued twenty elderly people and dropped fodder for thousands of trapped animals.

Thousands of milk bottles are buried under the snow leading to a milk bottle shortage and crisis. Roads and railways are blocked, and villages in the West Country are running out of food.

Hide your braces, Britain’s middle-aged men were told yesterday, and Britain will regain the respect of the world. Mr M K Reid, secretary of the Clothing Manufacturers’ Association, advised older men to ask their teenaged sons for hints on how to build up a wardrobe.

Television sets, radios, gramophones, discs, and cosmetics are about 2s in the pound cheaper this morning because of a cut in purchase tax. Television sets £64 down to £58, radios £15 down to £13 10s, long-player discs at £2 will drop by 4s, cosmetics – 6d off a 5s 6d lipstick and 2s off a 19s 6d bottle of perfume.

Television highlights: International Ski-Jumping from Bavaria, New Year’s Day Concert from Vienna, The 625 Show – talent show featuring The Belltones, The Sunrays, The Honeys and The Eagles.

Radio highlights: Chubby Checker Time, Mystery Playhouse.

Soccer: George Eastham, Arsenal’s £47,500 inside-forward said, “Wage freedom must stay if players are to have incentives to play at the top, even if it means creating a Super League.”

Weather: snow or sleet, strong winds reaching gale force. Outlook – very cold with frost and snow. Maximum temperature 2c, 36f.

Wednesday 2 January 1963

Worst For 82 Years. More Snow To Come. That was the grim picture in southern Britain last night as fresh blizzards swept in from the sea. “The snowfall on Boxing Day will be child’s play compared with this,” said a spokesman from the Meteorological Office.

Dozens of West Country villages cut-off by 20ft snowdrifts face new peril from the approaching blizzards. Roads are blocked and train services will be slashed today. Thousands of factory workers are idle, and there is a threat to the milk supply because of a milk bottle shortage.

The BBC last night claimed a sweeping victory over ITV for its Christmas Day television audiences. BBC statisticians estimate that Billy Smart’s Circus attracted an audience of 20,600,000 – the biggest of the day. The Queen was seen by 20,100,000 on the BBC and 5,400,000 on ITV. Another 9,000,000 heard her speech on sound radio.

Along with woolly tights, furry hats, woolly bloomers, Wellington boots, sleighs, sleds and toboggans, Britain’s shops are running out of woolly vests.

Television highlights: I’m Going To Be…careers advice. West End – variety show. Holidays 1963.

Radio highlights: Teen and Twenty Disc Club, Test Match Cricket from Melbourne.

Football: Birmingham are using a pitch-clearing machine in the hope that their Third Round FA Cup tie with Bury can proceed. The machine’s makers claim that in ten minutes it can clear an area of the pitch that would take twenty-five men four hours.

Weather: more snow in most places. Very cold with strong winds reaching gale force. Outlook – very cold, more snow.

Thursday 3 January 1963

It’s Grim! There’s still no sign of a thaw in shivering Britain. The icy grip will continue until the weekend, at least. Meanwhile, housewives face a food crisis as the Big Freeze hits supplies sending prices soaring. Vegetables are expected to double in price, and the weekend joint may be dearer too.

Cabbage is almost the only green vegetable in the shops. Spouts and cauliflowers have been hit by the snow and those that are available have doubled in price. Potatoes are expected to go up 1d to 5d a Ib.

Britain is having a boom in babies – and that’s official. The number of babies born in Britain has soared from 675,000 a year in the mid-fifties to 842,000 in 1962. Earlier marriages is one explanation for the boom.

Television highlights: Tubby Hayes Plays Standards, Moment for Melody, Gay Cavalier.

Radio highlights: Music While You Work, Use Your Italian.

The Tornados have now sold over 2,000,000 copies of their disc Telstar, and netted royalties of £20,000.

Cliff Richard starts the new year at number one with The Next Time/Bachelor Boy. Seven of the top ten are British artists. The top thirty includes the Beatles at number twenty-one with Love Me Do and the Springfields at number thirty with Island of Dreams.

Weather: more snow in most areas. Very cold. Strong winds. Outlook – similar.

Friday 4 January 1963

Telstar, the American TV satellite in space, is back in business again after a six -week “radiation sickness”. In the four months it sped around Earth, Telstar handled forty-seven Transatlantic telecasts – five of them in colour – and hundreds of phone calls.

Agony Aunt: Johnny writes, “My dad is about my size and for years he has borrowed my shirts, socks, ties and sports jackets. Now, he wants to borrow my best suede shoes. Your advice please.” Jane Adams’ reply, “Put a lock on your wardrobe and the key in your pocket.”

More problems: “I have proposed to my girlfriend 117 times in the past three years and I’m still waiting for a ‘yes’.” Jane’s reply, “Stop proposing for a while and then she may begin to get worried.”

Food: apart from English beef, which is very scarce and expensive, meat supplies are fairly good. Prices – leg of pork, 3s 6d, leg of lamb 3s 10d, chops 4s 6d, sirloin 5s 8d, stewing steak, 4s.

Television highlights: The Woodentops, Richard the Lionheart, Television Playhouse.

Radio highlights: The Night Sky, The Bands Play On.

Football: Alf Ramsey is England’s new manger. He will leave Ipswich Town and take over at the FA on May 1st.

A European conference will be held on the use of drugs in sport. It follows a lap of the Tour de France race, which ended with many cyclists too ill from the effects of “pep pills” to continue.

Temperatures should rise above freezing point today for the first time since Boxing Day. Meanwhile, in Oxfordshire nine-tenths of the roads are unusable, and Gatwick Airport is at a standstill.

Weather: snow, sleet or rain. Outlook – more snow. Maximum temperature 3c, 37f.

Saturday 5 January 1963

He’s amazing! Fabulous! The golden boy of British show business – Cliff Richard. He is Britain’s most popular star, in films and on discs. Now, he’s TV’s singer of the year, topping the Mirror readers’ national awards poll.

Labour leader Hugh Gaitskell returned to hospital yesterday. He was confined to hospital in mid-December. The exact nature of his condition has not been revealed.

There is now one betting shop for every 3,846 people in Britain. Top of the list: London, Cardiff, Warrington, Wigan, and York. Bottom of the list: Plymouth, Exeter and Lincoln.

A total of 21,356 East Germans asked for political asylum in West Berlin in 1962.

Television highlights: The Rag Trade, Weightlifting, Ghost Squad.

Most popular TV programmes this week: 1. Coronation Street 2. Take Your Pick 3. Emergency Ward 10.

Radio highlights: Saturday Club, Twenty Questions.

Today’s football pools have been cancelled, for the second week running. In all, twenty-seven third-round FA Cup ties have been postponed – an all-time record. All major Rugby Union and Rugby League games are off too.

Weather: cold but above freezing. Outlook – uncertain. Maximum temperature 2c, 35f.

Coming soon, Songbird, my novel set in the winter of 1962-63

https://books2read.com/u/bMqNPG

For Authors

#1 for value with 565,000 readers, The Fussy Librarian has helped my books to reach #1 on over thirty occasions.

A special offer from my publisher and the Fussy Librarian. https://authors.thefussylibrarian.com/?ref=goylake

Don’t forget to use the code goylake20 to claim your discount 🙂

Categories
1962-63

Social History 1962-63 #3

Thursday 13 December 1962

Transport minister Ernest Marples announced a new 50mph speed limit over the Christmas period, when driving at night, and a clampdown on drunken motorists.

The Mona Lisa is going to America despite a storm of protest from French art lovers. The painting will travel aboard the liner France in a first-class cabin, reserved for £157.

Pat Simmons, 42, will be the new voice of TIM, the telephone clock. Pat was picked from six finalists, five of them women. She will receive £100 for winning the contest, and £25 for being a finalist.

Television highlights: Rag, Tag and Bobtail. Popeye. Double Your Money.

Radio highlights: Woman’s Hour, Brian Matthew’s Pop Parade.

In the Top Thirty this week: The Loco-Motion – Little Eva, Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree – Brenda Lee, Love Me Do – The Beatles.

Sportsman of the Year: Brian Kilby, a marathon runner who won gold at the AAA Championship, the European Championship, and the Empire Games.

Weather: snow, sleet, high winds. 3c 37f.

Friday 14 December 1962

The British press has grown timid, writes Mr Cecil H King, chairman of the Daily Mirror Group. Frequently, the Official Secrets Act is used as a threat or to deny information on matters not remotely connected with security. He added, “The present bias and unfair operation of the laws against the press reflects no credit on British justice.”

A new bid to get a forty-hour working week is to be made by the leaders of three million shipyard and engineering workers. Their chairman George Doughty said last night that the ultimate aim was a thirty-five-hour week.

Marie Cartnell, dance director at Radio Luxembourg, stated that the Twist, Madison and Shake would soon disappear and be replaced by the Beege, whose steps are not unlike an orangutang taking a shower on a rolling log.

A ban on BBC satirical programmes, such as That Was The Week That Was, will be discussed in the House of Commons next week.

ATV will insist on having the same access as the BBC to the new 625 lines transmission system.

Television highlights: Tales of the Riverbank, Gardening Club, Robin Hood.

Radio highlights: Friday Night is Music Night, Any Questions?

Agony Aunt Jane Adams: Question – My husband is a milkman and his women customers are always inviting him in for cups of tea. Jane’s answer: Who’s complaining – you, your husband, or his customers?

Weather: mostly cloudy with rain. Some frost. 7c 45f.

Saturday 15 December 1962

Christine Keeler, 20, a model, and Marilyn Davies, 18, an actress, leaned out of the window of a mews luxury flat yesterday and screamed as shots were fired. Neither girl was hit. One of the girls phoned Dr Stephen Ward, who has his surgery in nearby Devonshire Street. Dr Ward later said, “She gave me a running commentary on what was happening. I immediately telephoned the police.” Last night, a man was charged with intent to murder Christine Keeler.

Unemployment in Britain increased by 40.6% over the year. According to the latest figures, 544,451 people are now out of work.

Blonde Mrs Majorie Hutchinson, it was said yesterday, hired an assassin to murder her husband. The motive: sexual passion. Mrs Hutchinson pleaded “not guilty”. The case continues.

Green vegetables are in much better condition this weekend and prices are low for this time of year – potatoes 4d per pound, leeks 10d, turnips 8d, parsnips 8d, carrots 4d, lettuce 9d each.

Television highlights: Grandstand featuring boxing, snooker and motor racing. Boss Cat (this is Top Cat – the BBC insisted on a name change because of the cat food brand Top Cat). The Billy Cotton Band Show.

Radio highlights: Pops at the Piano, Transatlantic Tops.

Weather: mainly cloudy with rain and drizzle. Mild. 9c 48f.

Sunday 16 December 1962

The average British woman owns five bras and three girdles. Four years ago she possessed only three bras and one girdle. Now, a new man-made yarn called Spandex should increase sales further.

Party sandwich suggestions: liver paste mixed with fried bacon and sliced mushrooms. Hard-boiled egg with caviar. Meat and onion spread with horseradish. Pork luncheon meat with mustard and chopped pineapple.

Nearly 12,500 men at one of Britain’s biggest steelworks may be out of work by Christmas Eve because of a strike by 320 bricklayers. The strike, at the Abbey Steelworks, Port Talbot, was called on Friday. The bricklayers’ union called the strike after management suspended a bricklayer for not obeying a “normal instruction” – replacing twelve bricks in a hot open hearth furnace.

Football highlights: Everton 3 Burnley 1 (Everton remain top of the league). Manchester City 3 Wolverhampton Wanderers 3. Birmingham 0 Tottenham Hotspur 2 (Spurs remain in second place).

Television highlights: Cheyenne, Maverick, Bugs Bunny.

Radio highlights: Top Twenty, Sing Something Simple.

Weather: showers. Sleet and snow over high ground.

Monday 17 December 1962

American space scientists switched off their faltering communications satellite Relay. Relay, launched last Thursday, was supposed to have replaced Telstar as a radio and television link, but its power supply went wrong.

The government has promised ITV colour television, and a second television channel to match the BBC’s. BBC2 will start in April 1964. However, no start date has been announced for ITV2.

Dozens of cars got stuck last night on a main road flooded with treacle. The treacle had poured from a tanker, which turned over after a collision in Hardwick near Gloucester. Nobody was badly hurt.

Television highlights: What’s My Line? Huckleberry Hound. Discs-A-GoGo.

Radio highlights: Inspector Scott Investigates. Marching and Waltzing. German for Beginners.

Joe Mears, Chelsea’s chairman, wonders if his £59-a-week footballers will like being paid by cheque in future. “I’m not sure the idea will be popular with them,” he said. “They like to have their pay handed to them in hard cash.”

Weather: rain at times, mild. Outlook – colder. 11c 52f.

Tuesday 18 December 1962

“The Frighteners” are stalking Soho again. Yesterday, a jury convicted four protection racket men who tried to get money from a Soho nightclub owner. Such rackets were common a few years ago, then they disappeared. Now, they have started up again.

Thousands of hosiery workers will be off work for ten days this Christmas, and only paid for two of them. This is because of a sharp fall in the nylon stocking trade.

Television highlights: Polish cartoon. Beat Your Neighbour. Danger Man.

Radio highlights: Pop Corn. Workers Playtime.

Pop singer Billy Fury left hospital after a kidney operation. Earlier this year he suffered bouts of bronchitis and measles. His best disc, Because of Love, was listed twenty-fifth in the Top Fifty.

Football: a proposal to scrap injury time – play ninety minutes and then call time.

Halifax Town, already several thousand pounds in the red, calculated that they lost £420 on Saturday’s home Third Division match with Crystal Palace. The gate, the lowest in the league, was 1,886. After paying their opponents, referee, linesmen, police and gatemen they had £60 left – to meet their weekly wage bill of £480.

Weather: sunshine and showers. Outlook – changeable. 9c 48f.

Coming soon, Songbird, my novel set in the winter of 1962-63

https://books2read.com/u/bMqNPG

For Authors

#1 for value with 565,000 readers, The Fussy Librarian has helped my books to reach #1 on over thirty occasions.

A special offer from my publisher and the Fussy Librarian. https://authors.thefussylibrarian.com/?ref=goylake

Don’t forget to use the code goylake20 to claim your discount 🙂

Categories
1962-63

Social History 1962-63 #2

Friday 7 December 1962

The Great Smog should vanish today. This was the heartening forecast last night after three days of death and chaos in Britain. Over the past three days, sixty-seven people have died.

Four gibbons escaped across a frozen moat surrounding their artificial island in Whipsnade Zoo. They climbed nearby trees and were captured by the zoo keepers.

The government is to be asked to ban completely cigarette advertising on television. The request will be made to the Home Office next Thursday by a deputation from the National Society of Non-Smokers.

‘Agony Aunt’ Marjorie Proops’ CHRISTMAS. C is for Cash – where does it all go? H is for Hints – get the right presents. R is for Roulette – you can’t learn to gamble too young. I is for Indigestion. S is for Sex, Sin and Sausages – all in their way delicious. T is for Tibetan Lamb – a snug outfit that costs 45 guineas for the jacket and 5 guineas for the hat. M is for Men – I don’t need mistletoe or an excuse for kissing. A is for Apprehension – so far, I’ve only bought one present. S is for more Sausages – chipolatas for the Christmas dinner.

Television highlights: Captain Pugwash, Dr Kildare, Take Your Pick.

Radio highlights: Take Your Partners, Parliament, Smooth ‘n’ Swinging.

Frost threatens the horse racing meetings at Lingfield, Newcastle, Chepstow and Uttoxetter. 

Football League Cup semi-final draw – Aston Villa v Sunderland, Birmingham or Manchester City v Bury.

Weather: hazy sun, some rain. Outlook – persistent fog unlikely. Rain in most places.

Saturday 8 December 1962

London breathed a sigh of relief as the Great Smog lifted yesterday. However, nearly 1,000 people were taken to hospital, and 116 people died.

Autolite Ltd have created cigarettes that light themselves. They light when you rub the end against a striking surface on the packet. The cigarettes will be on sale early in the new year, cost 4s 6s for a packet of twenty.

Hitler’s deputy, Martin Bormann, who vanished in 1945, died in Paraguay three years ago, a French news agency reported yesterday.

There’s a battle of the sexes every time the television is switched on at Dinsdale Lodge Retirement Home. The women want to watch travel, fashion and Coronation Street while the men prefer Westerns, boxing and football. The residents asked the council for a second television set, but they said “no”.

Best weekend buys: sprouts 10d, swedes 4d, bananas 1s 4d, Spanish oranges 3d each, Belgian hothouse black grapes 5s.

Television highlights: The Lone Ranger, Laramie, That Was The Week That Was.

Radio highlights: Variety Playhouse, World of Books, Honey Hit Parade.

Today’s rugby: Lancashire v Yorkshire, Cornwall v Gloucestershire, Harlequins v Cardiff. Varsity match: Oxford v Cambridge at Wembley.

Weather: dry and cloudy, mild.9c, 48f

Sunday 9 December 1962

Thieves stole 400 Christmas trees from an estate in Wiltshire.

Chris Preece of Shropshire, tired of his rugby injuries, took up soccer – and dislocated his arm. Now he’s taken up darts…

Agony Aunt Column: Sue writes from Merseyside – “My fiancé was horrified when I told him that I wear hair curlers in bed. He said I must never wear them when we are married, but my hair will look terrible. What should I do? Jane Adams’ advice – Settle for straight hair. He’ll love you all the more.

Agony Aunt Column: “Modern Miss” writes from North London – “I spend many weekends at my boyfriend’s flat. After six months of intimate living, I’m still not sure if we are suited for each other. What should I do? Jane Adams’ advice – I suggest you go home for the weekend for a change, and put this affair in cold storage.

Christmas gift ideas: Revlon’s Cleopatra-inspired milk bath that turns ordinary bath water into a mass of foaming milky-white bubbles. 29s 6d.

Television highlights: Indoor Soccer, Sunday Break – Love, Sex and Marriage. Sunday Night at the London Palladium with Lonnie Donegan.

Radio highlights: Gardening, Thinking Aloud, Reith Lectures.

Weather: sunny spells and showers. Strong winds reaching gale force.

Monday 10 December 1962

A whirlwind roared through Redditch yesterday leaving a one and a half mile trail of havoc. And in three minutes it damaged sixty houses, blew the roof off a prefabricated school, uprooted trees, and carried parts of garages into neighbours’ gardens.

Nearly a thousand viewers jammed the BBC switchboards yesterday in response to That Was The Week That Was. The satirical show lampooned prime minister Harold Macmillan and religion. In one sketch, Millicent Martin told a man in a restaurant that his fly buttons were undone.

According to the magazine Films and Filming, seven of this year’s top ten films are British. The top three: 1. The Guns of Navarone 2. Dr No. 3. The Young Ones.

Television highlights: What’s My Line? Panorama, Professional Boxing. 

Radio highlights: Melody on the Move, The Dales, Democracy in America.

Sue Dexter (pictured), 24 year old wife of England cricket captain Ted Dexter said. “I’ll guarantee that the press will blame me if Ted does not do so well.” Sue arrived in Sydney to join Ted and his team on their Test Match tour of Australia.

Weather: bright at first, rain later. 8c, 46f.

Tuesday 11 December 1962

The Minister of Health, Enoch Powell, yesterday gave local councils the go-ahead to add fluoride to drinking water supplies.

Ninety-seven-year-old Dr William George was preaching at the evening service at a chapel in Criccieth when suddenly two windows shattered and a bullet whistled overhead. Carnarvonshire police are looking for the gunman.

Soccer: seventy-four out of eighty-four of Algeria’s referees have gone on strike because the “don’t shoot the ref” rule was ignored on the weekend. At several matches, referees had to run for their lives to avoid being shot. Meanwhile, in world football, English referees are no longer considered the best.

Manchester City’s goalkeeper Bert Trautmann broke a bone in his left thumb at West Bromwich on Saturday. His regular deputy, Harry Dowd, is also nursing a broken finger.

Television highlights: Soccer – the second half of the European Cup Winners’ Cup tie, Glasgow Rangers v Tottenham Hotspur. Andy Pandy. Compact. 

Radio highlights: Movietime, Bing Sings, Time for Laughter.

Weather: rain and drizzle. Outlook – rather cold, with showers. 9c 48f.

Wednesday 12 December 1962

Bing Crosby has sold 12,000,000 records with White Christmas. Now he has another likely super-seller with Little Drummer Boy.

Nottingham Police plan to frighten motorists into good driving with a Ghost Squad – a fleet of all-white vehicles.

A jury awarded a jilted woman £850 for breach of promise. She was also allowed to keep the £522 engagement ring.

Elastoplast reported £2,217,000 profits for the first nine months of 1962, up £263,000 on last year.

Television highlights: Bucknell’s House – DIY, In or Out? – a panel discuses the Common Market, Take a Letter – crossword game with Bob Holness.

Radio highlights: Postal Bingo, Teen and Twenty Disc Club, Get With It.

Football: Best home record – Everton, 27 games since a defeat. Best away record – Stoke and Celtic, 8 games since a defeat.

Results: Birmingham 6 Manchester City 0. Two own goals, one by goalkeeper Steve Fleet, helped Birmingham into the League Cup semi-finals.

European Cup Winners’ Cup: Glasgow Rangers 2 Tottenham Hotspur 3 (aggregate 4 – 8).

Weather: sunny intervals, showers, high winds. Outlook – little change. 7c 45f.

Coming soon, Songbird, my novel set in the winter of 1962-63

https://books2read.com/u/bMqNPG

For Authors

#1 for value with 565,000 readers, The Fussy Librarian has helped my books to reach #1 on over thirty occasions.

A special offer from my publisher and the Fussy Librarian. https://authors.thefussylibrarian.com/?ref=goylake

Don’t forget to use the code goylake20 to claim your discount 🙂