Tuesday, September 20, 2005

100 years ago

Donkeys were a feature of Flamborough life during the months when the fishermen pursued their calling. When a man turned out during the small hours of the morning to tramp the dreary road from the village to the beach, his nets and other gear were carried down to the boat on the back of the patient ass, who was afterwards sent home alone. "Jenny" knew her way. She might loiter and stray in defiance of the laws which regulated the Yorkshire highways, and so get her master into trouble; but usually "t'owd ass" went straight home and made a noise at the door until some sleepy member of the family got up and put her in the stable.

50 years ago

To make recordings for a BBC Children's Hour programme "Afternoon Out", to be broadcast on Saturday, October 8, Wilfred Pickles visited the York Castle Museum. At the Museum, he met Mr Thornley, trustee for the Kirk Collection, who told him the story of Dr Kirk, the Pickering practitioner, whose "bygones" formed the nucleus of the existing museum. Wilfred's tour of the museum was made in the company of the Curator, Mr Patterson. He also met Mr Goodall, who helped to build the "Street", and Mr Turner, who described his experiences while driving the museum's hansom cab on festive occasions. He also spoke to Mr Wells, who made some of the memory-evoking sweets in the confectioner's shop in Princess Mary Court.

25 years ago

Friday the 13th was a truly awful film, but guaranteed to leave you shaking like a jelly. Unless you enjoyed seeing throats cut and heads cut off in slow motion, that was the best that could be said for the new movie showing at the ABC in York. The plot was simple and predictable. Take seven beautiful young people at a remote holiday camp in America. Add brooding and suspicious locals. Sprinkle on a violent thunderstorm and stir up with a wild psychotic roaming in the woods. It was one of those horror films that could have been directed by a computer. Mr Sean S Cunningham, the actual director, employed every cinematic clich in the book to keep us gripped. The following week at the Odeon would see the eagerly awaited Secret Policeman's Ball, armed with John Cleese, Peter Cook, Billy Connolly and other cult comedians. The Empire Strikes Back had another week to play and Daughter Of Emmanuelle provided some highbrow erotica in Odeon Three.

Updated: 08:31 Tuesday, September 20, 2005