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Looking Back: Friday, May 16, 2008

By Elaine Squire - Friday, May 16, 2008
100 Years Ago
May 16, 1908
While rolling the cricket ground at Blackwater, an inmate from the County Asylum got more than he bargained for when he bolted across country.
As he tried to cross the Huffingford Mill pond, he got trapped in the mud 50 yards from the bank and began to sink.
Successful efforts to rescue the inmate were delayed when he refused to grab a rope, thrown to him by rescuers, until he had been given an assurance his escapade would not be punished.
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About 250 people attended a social evening in Freshwater to raise money for the HMS Gladiator Relief Fund.
The evening, held at the Assembly Rooms, raised money for the survivors and families of those killed when the Gladiator collided with an American liner near Yarmouth.
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Proposals to provide a refuse destructor were discussed at a joint committee of Shanklin and Sandown councils.
No decision was taken but the meeting was told the installation would cost the equivalent to a 1/2d rate for the two districts.
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The Prince and Princess of Wales began a week-long private visit to Barton Manor.

75 Years Ago
May 13, 1933
Spartan Air Lines launched a daily air service from the Island to London.
The cost of a return fare was 55 shillings for the 40-minute flight, which was available from either Cowes or Ryde aerodromes to the airway terminus at Victoria Station.
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Among the ladies presented to the Queen at Buckingham Palace at the first court of the season were Lady Campbell, of Davaar, Bembridge, and Lady Hindley, of The Glen, Seaview.
Lady Hindley presented her daughter, the Hon Millicent Hindley, who wore a gown of ivory chiffon, the skirt trimmed with pin-tucks and finished in a deep flounce of embroidered chrysanthemums in stiffened chiffon.
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Evidence of the useful training given to the Girls’ Friendly Society was shown during an exhibition by junior members.
Needlework, essays and other handicrafts were on display with the girls also taking part in singing and dancing competitions at the Queen’s Hall, Newport.

50 Years Ago
May 17, 1958
A sewing machine salesman from Worcester was fined £3 after pleading guilty to stealing a car wheel and tyre from a vehicle parked near Carisbrooke Garage.
When the salesman discovered he had a puncture and that his spare tyre was also flat he made his way to the garage.
On finding the garage closed, the salesman exchanged his punctured tyre for a similar un-punctured one on a nearby car.
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Crowds flocked to Shanklin for the opening of the new cliff lift and to commemorate the part played by the town in the pipe line under the ocean (PLUTO) scheme used during the Normandy landings.
The guest of honour at the opening was Geoffrey Lloyd, the minister of education and wartime minister in charge of petroleum warfare, who read out a personal message from Sir Winston Churchill, who described the PLUTO scheme as an example of the ‘true characteristics of a virile nation in a technological age’.
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An application to convert Rookley School into a petrol filling station and repair shop was rejected on the grounds that it would endanger users of the adjoining main road.

25 Years Ago
May 13, 1983
Actor Brian McDermott from Ryde announced his intention to stand as a candidate at the General Election on June 9, campaigning for Island Independence.
Mr McDermott, founder-director of the Prince Consort Theatre Club, had just returned from filming in Jersey when he made his announcement and wanted to see the IW run along the same lines as a tax haven with its own parliament.
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Top woman powerboat racer, Fiona Brothers, of Ventnor, was seriously injured when her powerboat somersaulted while travelling at about 100mph.
Fiona, 28, was at the controls as the catamaran-type craft flipped over on top of her during a meeting near Birmingham.
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Plans to turn a 400 ft stretch of Shanklin Chine, previously closed to the public, into a tourist attraction were submitted to South Wight Borough Council.
Dennis Ottley, owner of the Glenbrook Hotel, wanted to develop the site with a Wind in the Willows theme.
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Calls for the IW Community Health Council to press for the retention of Shanklin Hospital came at a public meeting.
Mr G. Orchard, a South Wight borough councillor, said residents feared it would close when the new energy-saving hospital opened at St Mary’s, Newport.

10 Years Ago
May 15, 1998
County Hall was at the centre of a power struggle as all parties reacted to their gains and losses during local elections.
Among those gaining seats were Marc Morgan Huws, who was voted Lib Dem leader, and Roger Mazillius, new member for Northwood and leader of the Conservative and Independent coalition.
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A record number had registered for the forthcoming Walk the Wight in aid of the Earl Mountbatten Hospice. Organisers had received 1,241 entries a week before the event.
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A Ventnor man was lucky to be alive after falling more than 100ft from a tree.
Robert Humphries, 18, of Clarence Road, fell 50 ft from a tree in a friend’s garden at Bonchurch Shute and then a further 60ft down a steep bank, breaking his right leg and fracturing his pelvis and shoulder.
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CP columnist Charlotte Hofton was pipped to the post as British Telecom Southern Counties feature writer of 1997 at a ceremony in London.
Charlotte, who lost out to Kevin Nash of the Bournemouth Daily Echo, said: “I was thrilled to get to the final”