Tuesday, August 23, 2005

100 years ago

There was some curious evidence about "penny shaves" on Sundays just published in the report by the Select Committee of the House of Lords on the Sunday Closing Shops Bill. The secretary of the National Federation of Hairdressers in England, told how in many cases a workman practised shaving a little and then supplemented his income by opening a little shop or his front room as a shaving saloon on Sunday. In one location a hairdresser displayed the notice: "Open on Sunday mornings only." During the week he had other employment. Of the fifteen persons in another location who catered for shaving and haircutting only five depended upon the trade for a living. The other ten were nut and bolt forgers. The secretary said the association objected to unqualified men forcing the other hairdressers to open on Sundays.

50 years ago

The York Repertory Trio, which provided music before the curtain rose and during the interval at the Theatre Royal, was to be disbanded at the end of the week. Two of the instrumentalists Percy Bedford (violin) and Clyde Nottingham (cello) had received notices terminating their engagement. From the following Monday, the only remaining member of the trio would be Denis Neill, the pianist, who had been musical director at the Theatre Royal since 1943. He would play a Univox musical instrument in place of the trio. The move had been taken in the interests of economy and should the position become easier, it was likely that the trio would be brought back again.

25 years ago

Within a month the three ABC screens in York would be fully operational. And that would be a great relief for anyone who enjoyed good films. The two new screens at the ABC would provide a much greater degree of flexibility for manager Colin Bays. At the time, he had his hands tied by the success of Bronco Billy, the latest Clint Eastwood comedy. He could not afford to take it off, as there was still a market for it. Yet, with the Odeon changing only one of its three films, there was precious little to enthuse about. At York's Odeon One, The Empire Strikes Back was retained for the second week on the large screen. One of the most amusing aspects of this film was the unfortunate misprints it had generated. Not only had it been called The Vampire Strikes Back -- shades of Vincent Price and Peter Cushing -- but also The Umpire Strikes Back. What, it was wondered, had happened to the umpire in the first place?

Updated: 14:10 Monday, August 22, 2005