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Saturday 26 December 2009

Web Page No 798




HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE





FIRST PICTURE: A NEW YEAR DAY CARD FOR ALL OF YOU








SECOND PICTURE: HOME SWEET HOME OVER THE CHRISTMAS HOLIDAYS






HOME ON SUNDAY

Hey! Do you remember Sundays and holidays at home when we were first at Manor Court. We were 11 years old or so that would make it 1957 or thereabouts; but Sundays then were a very different animal than they are today.
To start with as Sundays were special and were mainly reserved for the visits of, or visits to, some of the far flung members of the family I was never allowed to go out and play with my friends because ‘It is Sunday and it was for the family’ and when you are an only child with no brothers or sisters to contend with, that can make for a very boring day!! Especially if I was playing in the garden I was not to make too much noise ‘because it was Sunday’. Maybe in the afternoon we might go out for a walk if the weather was fine but even that was no relief as to go out, ‘because it was Sunday’, it meant being dressed in your Sunday best, not comfortable clothes, what a bore.

You could not even escape by running an errand to the shops as they were not open, no grocery store, no d-i-y store, no supermarket and definitely no off licence. The only shop that was open was the newsagent for the Sunday papers and their deliveries and by 11 or 12 o’clock they had usually closed ‘because it was Sunday’.

There was no professional sport on a Sunday but amateur sport was allowed so club football, rugby and cricket matches took place as did motor cycle scrambling and moto cross. There really was a queer mix of things that were allowed by the Lords Day Observance Society who had a lot of influence as to what could or could not happen on a Sunday.

The radio programmes weren’t bad and I know I have discussed them in depth on earlier pages But then there was Television. In the early days of us owning a TV, set a 14” Sobell, there was very little to watch apart from the Sunday Service in the morning, then there was a period when the station was off the air, ‘because it is Sunday’. It then re-opened with programmes specially aimed at children, programmes, which, as far as I can remember, children did not like, or want, programmes such as ‘All Your Own’ with Huw Weldon. I know that I never had the slightest interest in what other children could do or what they could play, to me and to many others it made for just a boring programme. Then came one of the highlights of the day, the Sunday afternoon serial, ‘Hornblower’, Children of the New Forest, ‘Kidnapped’, ‘the Black Narcissus’, Swiss Family Robinson, Treasure Island or some other exciting story usually dramatised for television by a man whose name always fascinated me by its strangeness, Dennis Constandures.

The of course there was ‘Songs of Praise’, ‘because it was Sunday’ the tv company’s had to fill the God Spot! Then we would all settle down with a cup of tea, a cold meat sandwich (meat left over from the Sunday Roast) and a slice of Victoria Sandwich ready for ‘Sunday Night at the London Palladium’, a real family favourite.

Once this had finished it was time to get your clothes and books ready for school so as not to have a rush in the morning, a bath ‘because it was Sunday’, then off to bed as I had to get up for school in the morning.

As far as I can remember this was the regular routine in our house every Sunday for years and years, maybe being interspersed sometimes with church on most Sunday mornings. And even when we went to stay with my Grandmother in London or my Godmother in Essex the routine hardly changed except for one very big thing, neither of them had a television set!

Well as I am sitting here writing this of an evening when all the rest of the family have gone on to bed I had better stop writing as time is marching on and out of guilt I will have to stop writing ‘because it will soon be Sunday’.

Stay in touch and Take Care

Peter

DUSTYKEAT@aol.com
Pj.keat@ntlworld.com

YOU WRITE:

Even more about Highbury
I was speaking to an elderly lady the other day who remembers moving into Highbury Grove when it was new and before the roads were made up. She tells me that opposite the Highbury Shops, where the bowling green is now there was a large builders sign advertising the houses. This sign consisted of a whole row of cut out houses and there were soon found by the local birds who very quickly moved in and made nests in them.


NEWS AND VIEWS:
A brand new "Ivor the Engine" story, the first in over 30 years, was unveiled on 7th December after a unique collaboration between Ivor's co-creator, Peter Firmin and Dan Postgate, son of the late Oliver Postgate who wrote the original Ivor stories. With brand new illustrations by Peter Firmin and words by Dan Postgate, "Bluebell's Christmas Mission" is set in a snow-bound Wales on Christmas Day, and will benefit the work of UK veterinary charity SPANA (Society for the Protection of Animals Abroad). SPANA provides free veterinary care to working animals like donkeys, mules and horses in some of the poorest countries of the world, and it's fitting that the new story sees a central role for Bluebell the donkey, who figured prominently in the original Ivor stories. The new story, entitled "Bluebell's Christmas Mission" is available as a download from the SPANA website at www.spana.org at a cost of £3. Hard copies can be ordered online for £3.50, or by sending a cheque to SPANA at 14 John Street, London. WC1N 2EB. All profits made will help SPANA's veterinary and education work overseas.
SPANA has had the story fully translated into the Welsh language, and this is available as a separate download from the same website or as a hard-copy by post
ON THIS DAY 3RD JANUARY 1960-1965
On 03/01/1960 the number one single was Starry Eyed - Michael Holliday and the number one album was South Pacific Soundtrack. The top rated TV show was not listed and the box office smash was North by Northwest. A pound of today's money was worth £13.68 and Burnley were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.The big news story of the day was Boeing 707s to be tested by UK pilots.

On 03/01/1961 the number one single was I Love You - Cliff Richard & the Shadows and the number one album was South Pacific Soundtrack. The top rated TV show was The Russ Conway Show (ATV) and the box office smash was One Hundred and One Dalmations. A pound of today's money was worth £13.25 and Tottenham Hotspur were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions. The big news story of the day was Millionth Morris Minor produced.

On 03/01/1962 the number one single was Moon River - Danny Williams and the number one album was Another Black & White Minstrell Show - George Mitchell Minstrels. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was Lawrence of Arabia. A pound of today's money was worth £12.89 and Ipswich Town were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions. The big news story of the day was Pope ex-communicates Fidel Castro.

On 03/01/1963 the number one single was The Next Time/Bachelor Boy - Cliff Richard & the Shadows and the number one album was Black & White Minstrel Show - George Mitchell Minstrels. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was The Great Escape. A pound of today's money was worth £12.64 and Everton were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

On 03/01/1964 the number one single was I Want to Hold Your hand - The Beatles and the number one album was With the Beatles - The Beatles. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was Dr Strangelove. A pound of today's money was worth £12.24 and Liverpool were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

On 03/01/1965 the number one single was I Feel Fine - The Beatles and the number one album was Beatles For Sale - The Beatles. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was The Sound of Music. A pound of today's money was worth £11.69 and Manchester United were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

Wednesday 16 December 2009

Web Page No 796





FIRST PICTURE: MY CHRISTMAS CARD TO YOU ALL












SECOND PICTURE: CHRISTMAS AT HOME


THE ANNUAL CHRISTMAS QUIZ


Where is it?

1. Chernobyl was the site of a nuclear accident in 1986, in which country is it?
2. Casablanca is the title of a well known film starring Humphrey Bogart. In which country is Casablanca ?
3. Waterloo was the scene of a famous battle fought in 1815, in which country is it?
4. Guadalcanal was the site of fierce fighting during World War II. In which group of islands is it?
5. Herp Alpert was backed on several hits by the Tijuana Brass. Where is Tijuana?
6. In which country is Transylvania, home of the vampire legends?
7. “The girl from Ipanema” was a popular tune of the 1960s. In which country is Ipanema?
8. Timbuktu is always cited as a very distant and outlandish place, where is it?
9. Fez is an African city which gives its name to a type of hat. In which country is it?
10. The Crimea is a famous as the scene of a war in the middle of the last century which included the famous Charge of the Light Brigade. What country does it belong to?

Memories.

11. What book, written in the 1920s was the subject of an obscenity trial when finally published in 1960?
12. The largest liner was launched in 1960 what was its name?
13. How did spurs player John White die in 1963?
14. Which UK channel started broadcasting in 1964?
15. What city was Martin Luther King killed in?
16. Which London landmark was cleaned in 1968 for the first time since 1864?
17. What became Britain's tallest building in October 1965?
18. Who became Governor of California in 1966?
19. Who was 'Chi-Chi' off to meet in 1966?

Locations
20. In which Beijing Square were the 1989 protests crushed by tanks?
21. Which cathedral was badly damaged by lightning in July 1984?
22. What was abolished by France in 1981, The Netherlands in 1982, Australia in 1985 and New Zealand in 1989?
23. What sank in the Solent in 1545 and was raised in 1982?
24. What year did Britain suffer its worst storm since records began?
25 Which year did the SAS storm the Iranian Embassy in London?
26. In 1984, who was the WPC shot dead outside the Libyan Peoples Bureau in London?

1960’s Music
27. What did Dora Bryan want for Christmas in 1963?
28. In 1966 who were they 'coming to take me away, ha-haa' ?
29. How was the Belgian Soeur Sourire known in the UK?
30. What was The Shadows' first No. hit?
31. Where and at what time was Kenny Ball in the charts in 1961?
32. Who advised us to 'Walk, Don't Run'?
33. Which famous guitarist's real name is Brian Robson Rankin?
34. Who was the band leader of Manuel and his Music of the Mountains?
35. What was The Beatles' first top ten single?
36. 1966 Frank Sinatra had a No. hit in 13 countries with what song?

1960’s General
37. Who or what was 'The Shrimp'?
38. Who played the lead in the film 'El Cid'?
39. Which new cup was introduced to English Football in 1960?
40. What went up with a bang in Dublin in 1966?
41. What football team did TV's Alf Garnett support?
42. India was attacked by which country in 1962?
43 What was the occupation of Norman Parkinson?
44. Who was in charge of the 'Desilu' production company?
45. What year saw the Rolling Stones' first No.1 hit?

Good Luck and Take Care the answers are in the You Write section as usual.

Peter

DUSTYKEAT@aol.com
Pj.keat@ntlworld.com

YOU WRITE:
I WRITE THE QUIZ ANSWERS
1. Ukraine
2. Morocco
3. Belgium
4. Solomon islands
5. Mexico
6. Romania
7. Brazil
8. The Sahara Desert in Mali
9. Morocco
10. Ukraine
11. Lady Chatterley's Lover
12. SS France (Norway)
13. Struck by lightning
14. BBC2
15. Memphis
16. Nelson's Column
17. The Post Office Tower
18. Ronald Reagan
19. An-An
20 Tiananmen Square
21 York Minister
22 The Death Penalty
23 The Mary Rose
24.1987
25 1980
26 Yvonne Fletcher
27( All I Want For Christmas Is ) A Beatle

28 Napoleon XIV

29 The Singing Nun

30 Apache

31 Midnight In Moscow

32 The Ventures

33 Hank B. Marvin

34 Geoff Love

35 Please Please Me

36. Strangers In The Night

37 Fashion model Jean Shrimpton

38 Charlton Heston

39 The Football League Cup

40 Nelson's Column

41 West Ham United

42 China

43 Photographer

44 Lucille Ball

45 1964

NEWS AND VIEWS:
Monkee Micky Dolenz will start rehearsing in January to join the London cast of the stage musical "Hairspray." He will take over the part of Tracy Turnblad's dad, Wilbur on February 2nd.

ON THIS DAY 20TH DECEMBER 1960-1965
On 20/12/1960 the number one single was It's Now Or Never - Elvis Presley and the number one album was South Pacific Soundtrack. The top rated TV show was Knight Errant (Granada) and the box office smash was Psycho. A pound of today's money was worth £13.68 and Tottenham Hotspur were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

On 20/12/1961 the number one single was Tower of Strength - Frankie Vaughan and the number one album was Another Black & White Minstrell Show - George Mitchell Minstrels. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was One Hundred and One Dalmations. A pound of today's money was worth £13.25 and Ipswich Town were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

On 20/12/1962 the number one single was Return to Sender - Elvis Presley and the number one album was West Side Story Soundtrack. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was Lawrence of Arabia. A pound of today's money was worth £12.89 and Everton were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

On 20/12/1963 the number one single was I Want to Hold Your hand - The Beatles and the number one album was With the Beatles - The Beatles. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was The Great Escape. A pound of today's money was worth £12.64 and Liverpool were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

On 20/12/1964 the number one single was I Feel Fine - The Beatles and the number one album was Beatles For Sale - The Beatles. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was Dr Strangelove. A pound of today's money was worth £12.24 and Manchester United were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

On 20/12/1965 the number one single was Day Tripper/We Can Work It Out - The Beatles and the number one album was The Sound of Music Soundtrack. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was The Sound of Music. A pound of today's money was worth £11.69 and Liverpool were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

Wednesday 9 December 2009



FIRST PICTURE: TRANSPORT FROM THE PAST BOAC BEDFORD VAN





SECOND PICTURE: SOUTH PARADE PIER IN ITS HEY DAY.





Web Page No 794

13th December 2009

COMEDY SIT COM.


The mainstay of much of television in the early days was the comedy sit com. Most of us remember the famous ones from the 1950’s and 60’s, the Likely Lads, the Army Game, Bootsie and Snudge etc but here are a few from the period of time up until 1965 many of which I have never heard of before.
Abigail And Roger
This was 1950s sitcom about a young engaged couple who love to explore life in the city of London from their flats in bedsitter land. It was broadcast on BBC in 1956 and they only made one series of nine episodes. The programmewas written by Kevin Sheldon and starred Julie Webb, David Drummond, John Stone, Rosina Enright, Maud Long, Frank Williams, Grace Denbeigh-Russell

The Sky Larks
From 1958 this was probably the first Royal Navy based TV sit com and featured the adventures of a helicopter crew based on the fictional aircraft carrier, HMS Aerial (not to be confused with the former name of the air station HMS Daedalus at Lee on Solent in fact in real-life the ship was HMS Ark Royal). Again a BBC production and only ran for one series of 16 episodes.16 (1 series). Written by Trevor Peacock, Gavin Blakeney, John Warrington, it starred Anton Rodgers (who later found fame in many sit coms), A.E. Matthews (Matty), Robert Chetwyn, Roland Curram, John Southworth, William Mervyn (later to be cast as the Bishop in All Gas and Gaters), Frank Shelley

Educating Archie
This strange programme did actually transfer from the radio to TV the though of Archie Andrews, a ventriloquist's dummy, taking on a life of it's own as it talks and walks all over it's creator, Peter Brough was quite bizarre. The series was made by ITV between 1958 and 1959 and ran for two series of 27 episodes. Despite the programmes writers being a Who’s Who of British Comedy Marty Feldman, Ronald Chesney, Barry Pevan, Ronald Wolfeand starred the likes of Peter Brough, Dick Emery, Irene Handl, Freddie Sales, Ray Barrett the fact that Peter Brough was a good theatre ventriloquist ie from a distance, close up he was very poor probably helped to finish the series.

The Artful Dodger
There was only one series of 6 episodes and was made in 1959 by the BBC. It starred Dave Morris, Joe Gladwin (later to become Wally Batty in Last of the Summer Wine), Gretchen Franklin (who found fame in Coronation Street. The stories were about the swaggering, work-shy, know-all Artful Dodger.

The Adventures of Brigadier Wellington-Bull
This was a short lived BBC programme of 1959 only having 5 episodes. It was a sitcom following the barnstorming antics of retired Brigadier Wellington-Bull. The Brigadier in trying to come to terms with civilian life gets into all sorts of situations. 'Sooty' Pilkington, a young officer who had served under the Brigadier and the Brigadier's daughter Jane, also featured. It starred Alexander Gauge, Valerie Singleton (she of later Blue Peter fame), Donald Hewlett

Three Live Wires
Made by Associated Rediffusion this was a trio of TV repairmen who travelled around London repairing the TV sets of the rich and famous and trying to avoid the wrath of the shop manager. With a total of 26 episodes it is remarkable that it only lasted for one series: Starring: Michael Medwin (from the Army Game), Bernard Fox, George Roderick, Deryck Guyler(Sykes and Please Sir much later) , Derek

Colonel Trumper's Private War
Yet another Army based sit Com from the unpublished biography of an hitherto unknown war hero, Colonel Basil Trumper, comes the stories that changed the course of World War II. Made by ITV it lasted only five episodes and featured Dennis Price (Jeeves), Warren Mitchell (Alf Garnett 0 and George Tovey. Written by established writersBarry Took, Hugh Woodhouse, Bill Craig, Dick Vosburgh it was made by Granada Television.

The Walrus And The Carpenter
AKA:You're Only Old Once Carpenter
Two old men Gascoigne Quilt & Luther Flannery meet in a graveyard, theyhave little in common but Luther's sense of adventure leads them into scrapes. It was made in 1963 and there were only seven episodes Starring Hugh Griffith, Felix Aylmer(the Abbot in Oh! Brother) and Hazel Hughes, the stories were written by Marty Feldman, Barry Took for the BBC




Meet the Wife

This ran between 1963 - 1966 on the BBC for 40 episodes in 5 series. It starred Thora Hird, Freddie Frinton (known as the best drunk in the business but was in fact TT), Ronald Wolfe, Ronald Chesney
The stories revolved round a plumber Freddie Blacklock who lived with his wife Thora in the north of England. Freddie was a down-to-earth bloke who likes to take things easy whereas his wife had ambitions for the couple to improve their social standing. Snobbish Thora often put on a 'posh voice' in an attempt to impress those she was speaking to. A much loved sitcom at the time (the Beatles even mentioned it in one of their songs) and was based on a 1963 Comedy Playhouse production, "The Bed".

Best of Friends
A 1963 ITV single series of 13 episodes, it featrured Charles Hawtrey (of Carry on Fame), Hylda Baker (she knows ya know), Sheena Marshe and Brad Ashton. It was written Bob Block (who later wrote the childrens programme Rentaghost) and Gerry Maxin About a clerk in an insurance office situated next door to a café. The owner of the shop accompanied the clerk on insurance assignments and protected him from his Uncle Sidney who was always trying to find a way to dismiss his nephew

HMS Paradise
Another Royal Naval sit com this time by ITV in 1964 and ran for 26 episodes. HMS Paradise was supposedly an island off the Dorset coast an idyllic posting as nobody seemed to do any work... but not everyone is happy about the situation It featured Richard Caldicot, (from the radios Navy Lark, in fact one of the writers of this very long running series Lawrie Wyman was also a writer for HMS Paradise ) Frank Thornton, Robin Hunter, Ronald Radd, Angus Lennie, Priscilla Morgan, Ambrosine Phillpotts, Graham Crowden

The Big Noise
Events in the uneasy life of a top pop disc jockey, Bob Mason were broadcast by the BBC in 1964. Bob Monkhouse played the lead and with the team of writers of Frank Muir, Denis Norden, Denis Goodwin, it is amazing that it only lasted six episodes. It was to prove a crossroads in the career of Bob Monkhouse and he would never return to the world of sitcom again.

Stay in touch and Take Care

Peter

DUSTYKEAT@aol.com
Pj.keat@ntlworld.com

YOU WRITE:
Mike Writes about the Highbury estate:-
I like reading your postings, but I have to disagree when you said there was no school on the Highbury Estate in the early days. I'm a little older than you, and I attended an infants school which was located very close to where the junior school was later built, on Dovercourt Road. I remember the old infants school as a small building with either a parking area or playground of black cinders. They were not kind to knees if you fell over!

My younger sister went to the new Highbury Junior School, but I went to Court Lane, and after the 11+ to the Northern Grammar. Incidentally, I asked my older sister if she remembers the infants school that I attended, but she did not. It is possible she never went there, as it may have been before the family moved to Chatsworth Ave.
NEWS AND VIEWS:
Little Richard has just undergone a hip operation in the Medical Center in Nashville. He is currently undergoing physiotherapy and is preparing for a concert tour early next year.

ON THIS DAY 13TH DECEMBER 1960-1965

On 13/12/1960 the number one single was It's Now Or Never - Elvis Presley. The top rated TV show was The Army Game (Granada) and the box office smash was Psycho. A pound of today's money was worth £13.68 and Tottenham Hotspur were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.The big news story of the day was Bootsie & Snudge (Granada).

On 13/12/1961 the number one single was Tower of Strength - Frankie Vaughan and the number one album was Another Black & White Minstrell Show - George Mitchell Minstrels. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was One Hundred and One Dalmations. A pound of today's money was worth £13.25 and Ipswich Town were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions. The big news story of the day was Grandma Moses dies.
On 13/12/1962 the number one single was Return to Sender - Elvis Presley and the number one album was On Stage with the Black & White Minstrels - George Mitchell Minstrels. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was Lawrence of Arabia. A pound of today's money was worth £12.89 and Everton were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

On 13/12/1963 the number one single was I Want to Hold Your hand - The Beatles and the number one album was With the Beatles - The Beatles. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was The Great Escape. A pound of today's money was worth £12.64 and Liverpool were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.


On 13/12/1964 the number one single was I Feel Fine - The Beatles and the number one album was A Hard Day's Night - Beatles. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was Dr Strangelove. A pound of today's money was worth £12.24 and Manchester United were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

On 13/12/1965 the number one single was The Carnival is Over - Seekers and the number one album was The Sound of Music Soundtrack. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was The Sound of Music. A pound of today's money was worth £11.69 and Liverpool were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

Wednesday 2 December 2009

Web Page No 792






FIRST PICTURE: ADVERTS FOR LOCAL HOUSES IN THE DAILY SKETCH OF 1957. HOUSES AT BARGAIN PRIZES!!!!






SECOND PICTURE: THE TOP OF COSHAM HIGH STREET 1910



BACK TO THE DAILY SKETCH OF TUESDAY, APRIL 2, 1957

TRY THIS FOR A HEADLINE! THE STORY REALLY MAKES YOUR HEART BLEED!

MONEY SCARES THEM.

To hire somebody like Dirk Bogarde to make a film you'd have to pay him at least £20,000 for the eight or ten weeks you have him on your pay roll. The same goes for most big British stars. Some like John Mills and Jack Hawkins have been in the £50,000 a year income bracket for years.

On the face of it that should make them very rich men. But it doesn't. No film star to-day has a chance in a million of ever making a million. The staggering fact is this: Our stars are constantly thinking: up ways of keeping the wolf from their palatial doors. Money terrifies them. Lots of it—or lack of it.

The big bogy is income tax. Unlike authors, who have their Income spread over thrqe years, actors have to cough up annually. And it's usually a great big cough, too. Dirk Bogarde is lucky if he gets £3,000 out of the £20,000. Even the steady £50,000 a yearers seldom see more than £6,000 of what they earn. To the general public this still seems ,a healthy chunk of cash. But is it, when weighed against the gargantuan expenditure entailed in being a movie star?

Whenever the subject of money is raised, actors look coy. Mention their big salaries to them and they roar — with bitter laughter. Jack Hawkins is likely to roar like a wounded bull and tell you that most of his Roehampton neighbours probably have more money than he ever will.

Mrs. Donald Sinden is even more explicit. " It is impossible for actors to save money," she said. " This small house Donald and I own is the only asset we have. And Donald's been an actor for 19 years. " If Donald was thrown out of work to-morrow we would have nothing to live on. As a film star, he gets plenty of prestige but no security." When I asked where the money went, she told me that just being Donald Sinden, movie star, made enormous inroads into their net earnings. Clothes for premieres were a big item. "Stars and their wives or husbands have to be well dressed," she said. " This is essential. We owe it to the public, who sometimes wait in the rain for hours to see us, to be glamorously dressed. " The public also demands that its movie stars live glamorous lives. That has to be worked out the best way the star and his budget will permit."

Mrs. Sinden said that she and Donald were anxious about the education of their children. " We just can't make any security for them," she said. " If we take out an insurance policy to safeguard their education, what guarantee have we that Donald will earn enough to pay the premiums over a number of years? " This is always a worrying thing. No one can tell when Donald will no longer be considered fashionable as a star. It's happening all the time in the theatre. " Yet at school our kids are regarded as young millionaires.! It's ridiculous, but you can't blame people thinking that, when you hear what stars earn— BEFORE TAXATION."

Mrs. Sinden said that unlike doctors or solicitors or other professional people, stars had to pay out a lot of money for simple domestic privacy. ! "If Donald takes the kiddies on buses or eats with them in cheap cafeterias, he is mobbed by fans. So he has to take them to more exclusive places and pay exclusive prices."

Then she summed up the plight—and fear—of all movie stars. " Like all stars Donald has slogged hard all his life to get where he is. When he retires he will not have much put aside. " And unlike the other professions he has no capital to show or sell. " AFTER ALL, WHO WANTS TO BUY A SHARE IN A RETIRED MOVIE STAR?"

Well Mrs Sinden how time has changed things, Donald is still well employed at 86 years of age and staging his own One Man Show and unusually for show business still married to the same woman. Oh! And of course he is now Sir Donald Sinden so I expect he no longer worries about being a Retired Movie Star!!!!

Stay in touch and Take Care

Peter

DUSTYKEAT@aol.com
Pj.keat@ntlworld.com

YOU WRITE:
Jonathon writes:
Thanks for your I -Spy comments.As a boy I also loved to fill in the I-Spy books and had virtually the whole collection. It was a huge thrill to spot the rare objects that scored 50 points such as a VR post box in I-Spy in the Street ........I have often wondered if they are still in publication and whether the modern child of the computer generation would also enjoy them today...........I am sure they would .............I must try and get some for my grandchildren.
I don't remember sacrificing my book to get a feather......I thought I got my books back,,,,,,,,,,,,,still my memory is not strong on that issue.

NEWS AND VIEWS:
At the National Portrait Gallery in London there is an exhibit called ‘From The Beatles to Bowie’ The sixty’s exposed. This exhibition explores the leading pop music personalities who helped create 'Swinging London' in the 1960s. Over 150 photographs, together with a range of memorabilia, illustrate how the photographic image, music and performance made these popstars the leading icons of their time. Featuring key pop cultural figures the exhibition begins in 1960 with groups such as The Shadows and The John Barry Seven. As the decade progressed, early portraits of singers such as Cliff Richard, Adam Faith and Billy Fury were followed by those of bands such as The Kinks and The Who. The classic rivalry between The Beatles and The Rolling Stones is played out visually by a variety of top photographers. The exhibition is on until 24th January.

ON THIS DAY 6TH DECEMBER 1960-1965
On 06/12/1960 the number one single was It's Now Or Never - Elvis Presley and the number one album was South Pacific Soundtrack. The top rated TV show was Armchair Theatre (ABC) and the box office smash was still Psycho. A pound of today's money was worth £13.68 and Tottenham Hotspur were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

On 06/12/1961 the number one single was Little Sister/His Latest Flame - Elvis Presley and the number one album was Ipswich Town. The top rated TV show was "Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was One Hundred and One Dalmations. A pound of today's money was worth £not very interesting and 13.25 were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.The big news story of the day was Sunday Night at the London Palladium (ATV)".

On 06/12/1962 the number one single was Lovesick Blues - Frank Ifield and the number one album was On Stage with the Black & White Minstrels - George Mitchell Minstrels. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was Lawrence of Arabia. A pound of today's money was worth £12.89 and Everton were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

On 06/12/1963 the number one single was She Loves You - The Beatles and the number one album was Please Please Me - The Beatles. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was The Great Escape. A pound of today's money was worth £12.64 and Liverpool were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions. The big news story of the day was Christine Keeler jailed for perjury.

On 06/12/1964 the number one single was Little Red Rooster - Rolling Stones and the number one album was A Hard Day's Night - Beatles. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was Dr Strangelove. A pound of today's money was worth £12.24 and Manchester United were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions. The big news story of the day was Martin Luther King preaches at St Paul's Cathedral

On 06/12/1965 the number one single was The Carnival is Over - Seekers and the number one album was The Sound of Music Soundtrack. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was The Sound of Music. A pound of today's money was worth £11.69 and Liverpool were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.