From our archives:

85 years ago

York was plunged into darkness as a result of a breakdown at the electricity works.

The lights had failed about half-an-hour before the shops closed, causing great inconvenience to tradespeople and stallholders in the market.

The cause of the breakdown was a mystery until inspection of the River Foss discovered that a straw mattress, which had been thrown into the river, was probably the cause of the trouble.

The mattress which had blocked up the intakes and prevented the circulating water from the Foss getting into the condensers had been thrown into the river during the clearance of slum areas in the district.

There was a surprise for the congregation at Crathie Parish Church when Princess Elizabeth attended divine service for the first time.

The King and Queen and Duke and Duchess of York were also present as the Little Princess followed the service with intelligent interest, and exemplary behaviour.

50 years ago

Work on an approximate £10,000 road-widening scheme had just been started at Eastholme Drive, Clifton.

Houses along the stretch had lost as much as 149 sq ft of garden space but would be well compensated by the Ministry of Transport, who was to also pay for hedges in place of the temporary wooden fences.

The whole scheme was expected to take about 12 months to complete.

One man was killed, and 32 people were hurt, when a motor coach carrying BBC Television film extras crashed down a steep slope on Holme Moss Mountain in the West Riding.

The extras were returning to Manchester from Barnsley after filming location sequences for a new television series ‘The First Lady,’ starring Thora Hird as a town councillor.

20 years ago

Former Easingwold School pupil international soprano Lynne Dawson, was due to sing part of Verdi’s Requiem during the service at Princess Diana’s funeral.

Lynne, of Tollerton, a well-known figure on the international operatic circuit, was breaking off from performances of The Magic Flute in Berlin to perform alongside BBC Singers.

The Queen had returned to London to make a special broadcast to the nation for only the second time in her long reign.

As millions across the country prepared for her message, broadcast live from Buckingham Palace at 6pm, thousands were claiming their places on the route of the funeral procession.