New threat to Games

25 YEARS AGO

THE Olympic Games were dealt another crippling blow today with the formal threat by 16 African nationals to withdraw unless New Zealand is barred. They accused New Zealand of "bare faced support of acts of inhumanity against Africans in South Africa."

COCK-a-hoop Mrs Margaret Thatcher was today hammering a warning at the Government: Even a 14,000 majority seat is not safe for Labour any more. In yesterday's Thurrock by-election, Labour's 19,080 General Election majority was slashed to 4,839, with the Liberal losing their deposit with their vote halved.

50 YEARS AGO

From the Evening News,

July 17, 1951

THE new world champion non-stop piano player is 41-years-old "Syncopating" Sandy Strickland, 37, Harvey-st., Bolton. At Frankfurt on Sunday, only 34 hours after the contest started, Sandy was declared the winner by the organiser Herr Reinke.

DOCTORS in Lancashire, meeting in Bolton last night, decided to withdraw from the National Health Service if their demands on remuneration are not met by Sept, 30th. They say they are tired of the protracted negotiations with the Ministry of Health, and they fell the time has come to take action.

125 YEARS AGO

From the Evening News,

July 17, 1876

ON Sunday, Manchester and the vicinity were visited by a thunderstorm of unusual severity. Shortly before two o'clock the sky became overcast, and peals of distant thunder betokened the approaching storm. The rain fell in torrents, and was accompanied by thunder and lightning and hailstones of an extraordinary size. In a few minutes the roads and streets were flooded, and in many instances the water penetrated the cellars of the houses.

Sunday was the hottest day which has been known in Bristol for the last 30 years at least. The thermometer registered in the shade a maximum of 96.2 deg. Two fatal cases of sunstroke occurred.