100 years ago

Large parties were engaged among the hills of North Wales in search of the two German officers, Lieutenant von Sandersleben and Lieutenant Hans Andler, who on Sunday night had escaped from the German officers' concentration camp near Denbigh.

Searching had been continued during the whole of Tuesday night on the Berwyn range and the hills surrounding the Vale of Clwyd and the Vale of Llangollen, as it was believed that the officers had wandered over the mountains in that direction.

The London police had also been busily engaged, on account of a report that the officers had been seen at Ruabon Station, on the Great Western Railway, en route for London.

However, information reached Llangollen Police station that two men answering the description of the missing officers had been seen on the Penmachno Mountain.

Telegrams were immediately dispatched to the police in various centres of North Wales, and further search parties had been sent over the mountains.
 

50 years ago

With women on television today, it's beauty before brains. This comment was made by television personality Olive Stevens, when she spoke to York Conservative Luncheon Club at Terry's Restaurant.

"Women have a barrier to overcome in television and radio. They are cast so much on a decorative level. They are not there to show brains or intelligence. There are no women taking part in what I call a first-rate intellectual programme; and yet there are hundreds who could succeed."

A man on television was accepted for what he was, or what he did, even though he perhaps had an odd voice. No one could call Fyfe Robertson a pin-up. "Why are we prepared to accept them?" she asked.

"We would not accept a woman Richard Dimbleby... the difficulty is that when a woman speaks with authority, she tends to come over as a battleaxe."
 

25 years ago

Home improvement enthusiasts seeking reliable advice were advised to avoid asking DIY store assistants, according to a consumer watchdog.

Tips on offer ranged from the dangerous to the inaccurate, said the latest Which? magazine, published by the one-million member Consumers Association.

A dozen shoppers were sent to DIY superstores armed with a list of questions and Which? said: "We were not impressed with the results. It is pot luck whether or not you get accurate advice."

Half the assistants quizzed said correctly hot air guns or paste chemical strippers were a good way to take layers of paint of an old door.

But many suggested liquid chemical strippers - not a good choice if there were several layers to be removed, said Which?