100 years ago

Mr FW Wolters, the manager of the house of amusement in Fossgate, had arranged an exceptionally good programme for the following week, and had certainly secured something good in the film entitled Saved From The Sea, or The Fisherman’s Sweetheart.

The film was 3,000 feet long, and was in itself nearly an hour’s performance. It told a tale of daring deeds, the love interest of which was strong.

Other fine films showing here at the Electric Theatre included The Death Of Saul, a drama; A Pair Of Bags (humorous), and Harpooning Whales. It was suggested that the latter would prove of exceptional interest.

50 years ago

London and Manchester were considering a ban on smoking in theatres and cinemas as a condition of the operator’s licence.

If either city decided to adopt this measure it would be a powerful influence upon other areas.

So far all the discussion appeared to have centred upon the welfare of cinema audiences.

Should non-smokers be freed from the infliction of a smoke-laden atmosphere upon them? Would it be in the interests of public health, for smokers and non-smokers alike, to insist that places of public entertainment be smoke-free?

The question brought up considerations in other areas too.

If smoking were banned in cinemas, why not apply the ban to dance halls, Bingo halls and indeed any enclosed place in which people met in considerable numbers? Hardly anyone, however, had stopped to consider the important side issues involved.

Could the cinema survive a ban on smoking?

The industry had been through some pretty bad times in recent years. Attendance figures had recovered a little, but were still not very good. It could not be seriously denied, stated the article, that a great many smokers, faced with a ban, would give up the cinema.

A ban on smoking might, indeed, close many of the cinemas that were still open. Licensing authorities as yet had no clear-cut warrant to single out cinemas for a smoking ban.

A good deal more knowledge of public opinion than had been expressed so far was needed.

25 years ago

A government move to stop youngsters going straight from school on to the dole had caused a political storm.

The rumpus was over plans by Mrs Thatcher and the Employment Secretary, Lord Young, to end automatic payment of unemployment benefit to school leavers.

Lord Young declared young people should not “lie in bed” if work, further education or training were available.

A Labour employment spokesman, Mr John Evans, said: “I am extremely angry about this but not surprised – it is the natural next step for Thatcherism.”

Mrs Thatcher was determined to do something about the current generation of dead-end kids.