100 years ago

At the York City Police Court Thomas Herbert Haddock was summoned for unlawfully driving a motorcycle, DA490, at a speed dangerous to the public on the Mount on February 1st.

PS Williams said that at five minutes past three on February 1st he was on the Mount near Dalton Terrace, when a motorcycle was driven past him at a furious pace.

He estimated the speed at about 30 miles an hour.

He put up his hand, and shouted for the man to drive steadily, but the defendant took no notice.

The Chief Constable said that he had received a letter which purported to have come from the defendant, who said that he was in this city on the day in question, but never drove at more than 10 miles an hour.

Arthur Dickson said that on the day in question he was exercising a horse on the Mount, when the cycle past him, and he noticed that it was going at a tremendous speed. The magistrates imposed a fine of 2s 6d and costs.

50 years ago

Roof-level car parking in York was within sight.

If York City Council approved the decision of its Development and Planning Rota Committee on a change in the plans of the £250,000 shop and office block scheme for the Stonebow-St Saviourgate island site, there would be parking space for 60 cars on the first floor.

Originally the scheme incorporated a 40-car basement park, and a restaurant and open-air roof garden. But the restaurant and roof garden were now “out”, and the basement was to be used as a service access to the shops.

A ramp to get the cars to roof level was now planned.

The ramp, said an official, would be situated in Hungate, and would not be visible from Stonebow or from St Saviourgate. But he could not say how visible cars parked on the first floor would be from the main roads.

He emphasised that there would be ample retaining and safety measures at the limits of the elevated park.

25 years ago

With the Oscars just a few weeks away the Hollywood megabuck stars we had come to love and hate had come up with another eye-opener.

Many were currently having 'no kiss' clauses written into their contracts for fear of getting AIDS which since the deaths of, among others, Rock Hudson and Liberace, had rocked the showbiz world.

Did this mean no more kissin’ and cuddlin’ on the silver screen? One thing was for sure it would make the receiving of the Oscars very interesting at the forthcoming ceremony.