Author: cottagecapers

Hi, I'm Hazel.... I write purely for pleasure; I love to delve in history, customs, traditions and nature....or whatever else grabs my attention at the time.... I am in no way an expert on what I choose to write about - I simply love to find out about things.... Whilst I always endeavour to get the facts right - occasionally I may get things wrong.... I guess you could call this my disclaimer.... I hope you enjoy reading my blog posts.... If so please give me a follow on Twitter or sign up via email for future posts.... If you are on Facebook Cottage Capers has a page with lots of ‘mini blogs’ and snippets.... It’s where we ‘like-minded’ folk can interact.... Hope to meet you again soon....

British History

On this day in history….8th February 1983

On this day in history : 8th February 1983 – Shergar, the 1981 Derby winner is kidnapped from his stable in County Kildare, Ireland….

Along with Red Rum, (the three-time winner of the Grand National), Shergar has to be one of the most famous race horses of the last century…. With his distinctive white blaze and socks – and the way he raced with his tongue hanging out – the bay colt won the hearts of the nation….

After an incredible season in 1981 – when he won the Epsom Derby by 10 lengths as well as the Irish Derby – five-year-old Shergar, who was owned by the Aga Khan, was retired from racing….

Shergar was born in Kildare in 1978 – and this was where he was retired to – ready to be put to stud at the Ballymany Stud, Curragh, Co. Kildare…. The Aga Khan sold the horse to a syndicate; 40 shares at £250,000 each – 6 of which he kept himself – making Shergar worth £10 million….

In his first season at stud he bred with 35 mares….and was expected to cover at least 55 in his next…. At a stud fee of £80,000 per time this made Shergar not only one of the most famous horses but also one of the most valuable….

Shergar and Walter Swinburn – by Ray Miller (1981) : image credit – Ken Jones via Flickr

Head groom Jim Fitzgerald lived at the stud with his family…. On the evening of the 8th of February 1983 at around 8.30pm his son answered a knock at the door. Three masked gunmen burst in – part of a gang of at least six…. “We have come for Shergar. We want £2 million for him”….

Fitzgerald’s family were locked in a room and the groom was forced at gunpoint to load Shergar into a horse-box…. He was then ordered to lie on the floor of the van and he and Shergar were driven away….

After about four hours of being driven around Fitzgerald was released roughly 20 miles away, near to the village of Kilcock…. It was several hours before the police were informed – and by this time the trail had already gone cold. There was also a large horse sale taking place locally, with so many horse boxes in the area it made it even more difficult for the Garda….

There was some negotiation between the gang and the Aga Khan – but he was no longer the outright owner of Shergar – possibly the gang did not know this…. No ransom was ever paid out – and contact between the gang and the Aga Khan was severed….

No one ever officially admitted responsibility to the kidnapping – and so nobody has ever been convicted….. However, it is accepted that it was the work of the IRA – as an attempt to raise much-needed funds….

Shergar on his way to winning the 1981 Epsom Derby – George Selwyn – fair use

There have been several theories and rumours as to what happened to Shergar…. One being that the horse fractured a leg bone and as the gang had no access to veterinary help, felt they had no alternative but to shoot him…. Other stories are far more grisly….

As there was no proof of his death Shergar’s insurers refused to pay out…. It is pretty much a forgone conclusion that Shergar’s kidnappers did murder him….and it is believed his remains lie in a bog about 10 miles from the border with Northern Ireland….

On this day in history….7th February 1974

On this day in history : 7th February 1974 – Prime Minister Edward Heath calls a snap general election and appeals to the miners to suspend their planned strike action….

The 1970s was a decade of power cuts and blackouts, it became a way of life; anything that depended on electricity, industrial or domestic, faced disruption….

It was a time of discontent throughout much of British industry…. The miners’ dispute had begun in 1971 with a disagreement with the Government over pay…. The National Union of Miners demanded a 43% pay increase, whilst the Government were offering between 7-8%…. In late 1971 the miners voted to take action if their demands were not met…. On the 5th of January 1972 the NUM rejected the pay offer made to them and four days later miners from all over the Country came out on strike….the first time they had done so since 1926….

To start with the miners were to picket coal power stations – but then started to target all power stations….along with coal depots, steelworks and ports…. Dockers supported them by refusing to unload coal from ships….

On the 9th of February 1972 s state of emergency was declared and a 3-day working week introduced to try and conserve electricity…. On the 19th, after much negotiation an agreement was reached with the Government – on the 25th of February the miners accepted an offer and returned to work three days later….

Markham Colliery – Image: Jabsco via Flickr

This now made the miners some of the highest paid industrial workers…. However, it did not take long for other industries to catch-up and overtake…. By 1973 the miners had gone down to 18th position in the industrial wages league….

The miners realised the strong position they were in – their previous action proving the importance of coal to the nation…. In addition, this time oil prices were soaring because of troubles in the Middle East – and the Unions were hostile towards the Government, who were trying to introduce pay freezes to help the economy….

In late 1973 the miners voted once again to take industrial action if their demands for a further pay increase were not met…. Talks reached stalemate – and with the severe economic circumstances of the Country at the time – Edward Heath was prompted to announce a general election for the 28th of February 1974….appealing at the same time to the miners to suspend their action….

Edward Heath – Open Media Ltd CC BY-SA 3.0

The miners walked out on strike (supported by other Unions) on the 9th of February; a state of emergency was declared and a 3-day working week reintroduced….

The general election saw a Conservative defeat, leaving Harold Wilson to lead a minority Labour Government…. The miners and new Government came to an agreement and the strike ended on the 19th of February…. The miners returned back to work on the 25th, victorious with a 29% pay deal….

British History

On this day in history….6th February 1958

On this day in history : 6th February 1958 – Seven Manchester United football players are among twenty killed as their plane crashed on take-off at Munich-Riem Airport….

The Manchester United team, known as the ‘Busby Babes’ after their manager Matt Busby, had won the hearts of the Nation…. In the previous two seasons they had won First Division titles and had just drew 3-3 against Red Star Belgrade ~ securing a place in the European semi finals for the second year running….

Manchester United’s “Busby Babes” pictured in 1958, before their last match. Scanpix – Public domain

They were on their way back to Manchester from Yugoslavia and had stopped at Munich to refuel…. The team’s chartered six-year-old Airspeed AS-57 Ambassador had already made two aborted attempts at take-off from Munich, due to technical difficulties…. The pilot, James Thain, decided despite deteriorating weather conditions to try again – as they were already behind schedule…. Understandably the team members were feeling nervous as they boarded for the third time….

The Airspeed Ambassador G-ALZU at Riem Airport shortly before the accident – Fair use

By now it had begun to snow heavily….a build up of slush on the runway meant the plane was unable to reach the full speed needed for takeoff…. The aircraft overshot the runway and hit a house and tree before smashing its way through a hut, which exploded…. Once the plane had come to a stop the pilot and surviving crew helped their passengers evacuate….with the help of Manchester United’s goal keeper, Harry Gregg, who had sustained only minor injuries….

Seven United players were killed in the crash; team captain Roger Byrne, 28 – Tommy Taylor, 26 – Geoff Bent, 25 – Mark Jones, 24 – David Pegg, 22 – Liam Whelan, 22 and Eddie Colman, 21…. Pegg and Taylor were both England international players….

Another player and England international, Duncan Edwards, died of his injuries in hospital 15 days later…. Two other survivors of the crash also died in hospital….

The Airspeed Ambassador G-ALZU burning at Munich – Fair use

Three of United’s staff died; Walter Crickmer, Club Secretary – Bert Whalley, chief coach and Tom Curry, trainer….

Eight journalists on board the plane were killed; one being Frank Swift of the News of the World – a former goal keeper for Manchester City and who had played for England 19 times….

Two aircraft crew were also killed; co-pilot Captain Kenneth Raymond and steward Tom Cable…. Two other passengers also lost their lives….

Matt Busby was severely injured and was read his last rites twice – but he recovered after two months in hospital….

Sir Matt Busby. Credit: Kurt Nielsen @ Scanpix – Public domain

Ten years later his dream was realised when Manchester United won the European Cup in 1968…. Sir Matt Busby retired as Manager in 1969….

British History

On this day in history….5th February 1953

On this day in history : 5th February 1953 – Sweet rationing finally comes to an end after over 10 years of restrictions – children flock to their nearest sweet-shop….

Rationing came into force on the 8th of January 1940 – shortly after the beginning of World War 2…. Initially it was just for petrol but it wasn’t long before it was introduced for food as well….with bacon, butter and sugar being the first…. By Summer 1942 this had extended to include tea, meat, cheese, eggs, lard, milk and jam….

A shopkeeper cancels the coupons in a British housewife’s ration book for the tea, sugar, cooking fats and bacon she is allowed for one week. Most foods in Britain were rationed and some brand names given the designation ‘National’. Image : Library of Congress’s Prints and Photographs division – Public domain

Of course, it wasn’t just food and petrol that were rationed….pretty much everything was in short supply….coal, clothing, paper, furniture, frying pans, razor blades….even basic commodities such as soap….

The rationing of sweets and chocolate began on the 26th of July 1942….with an allowance of just 12oz every four weeks…. Generally de-rationing began in 1948 but it was a slow process…. An attempt was made to de-ration sweets in April 1949 – but demand far outweighed supply and it had to be reintroduced four months later….

Major Gwilym Lloyd-George, Minister for Food, had to reassure the House of Commons that measures were to be taken to deal with the anticipated surge in demand…. Manufacturers were to be allocated a one-off increased allowance of sugar in preparation – but even so, they still only had 54% of the sugar available to them before the war….

On the day of de-rationing it gave cause for celebration…. One company at Clapham Common gave 800 school children lollipops during their lunch breaks – and another London factory opened its doors and handed out free sweets to all….

Queues formed outside sweet-shops, many popular brands sold out quickly…. Among the favourites were toffee apples, chocolates, liquorice, lollipops and nougat…. But whatever your fancied ~ lemon sherberts, barley sugar, jelly babies, gob stoppers, pear drops, liquorice allsorts….they were all available again…. Workers queued in their lunch breaks to buy boxes of chocolates to take home to their loved ones….and the BBC reported – “Children all over Britain have been emptying their piggy banks and heading for the nearest sweet shop”….

However, there was no panic buying – possibly people were used to having a limited supply. Or perhaps another reason being the cost….the price of sweets and chocolates having nearly doubled since the beginning of the war….

As well as the de-rationing of sweets restrictions were also lifted on cheese, butter, margarine, cooking fats, eggs and cream…. Sugar itself was not de-rationed until September 1953 – and this was probably due to pressure from the confectionery manufacturers…. Bread rationing had ended in 1948, clothing in 1949 and petrol in 1950…. Rationing officially ended when meat was de-rationed in July 1954….

In the first year following the de-rationing of sweets spending on confectionery went up by approximately £100m to £250m per year…. Nowadays as a nation we spend in excess of £5.5bn…!

British History

On this day in history….4th February 1963

On this day in history : 4th February 1963 – Britain’s worst ever learner driver is fined for erratic driving – after her instructor jumps out of the car shouting “this is suicide”….

Margaret Hunter may have terrified the wits out of her instructor, to the extent that he leapt from the passenger seat of the moving car – but I suspect there have been many far worse than Margaret since then….

In 2016 a man finally passed his practical test on his 39th attempt…. Not far behind – a woman from Sutton Coldfield and a man from Weston-super-Mare, both of whom took 36 attempts….

The record for theory test failures is even greater…. A 30-year-old women from Ilford had failed the test 113 times by her last attempt in 2015….and a 40-year-old man has since racked up a fail score of 107 at exactly the same test centre….

Meanwhile, a female driving instructor has been identified as Britain’s worst instructor in recent years – with a pass rate of just 15% amongst her students (the national pass rate is above 40%) and one of her pupils failed the practical test 27 times….

According to the Drivers Standards Agency it takes an average of 47 lessons to pass…. Since the driving test was introduced in 1935 over 50 million tests have been taken….

At first the test was on a voluntary basis – in an effort to reduce the anticipated flood of applicants when it became compulsory on the 1st of June 1935. A Mr.J.Beene was the first ever to pass the driving test, it cost him seven shillings and sixpence…. The authorities were right to expect a flood of applications – 246,000 applied to take their driving test – with a 63% pass rate…. It was also at this time that legislation was brought in requiring learner drivers to display a red L plate on the front and rear of their car….

To start with there were no test centres; candidates would have to meet at an appointed location, often a car park or railway station…. Throughout the country 13 supervising examiners and 250 driving examiners were appointed. The test included:- general questions on the Highway Code, correct use of hand signals, emergency breaking on command, pulling away on a steep hill, a three-point turn and a reverse manoeuvre…. Little was to change within the driving test until more recent times….

In 1939 driving tests were suspended for the duration of World War 2 and resumed again in November 1946. They were suspended again ten years later during the Suez Crisis, resuming in 1957….

In 1965 a central licensing system was set up at a new centre in Swansea – the DVLA – taking over from individual councils…. From 1970 all driving instructors had to be officially registered and from March 1973 green computerised licenses were issued, replacing the old-style red booklet…. From 1975 onwards it was no longer a requirement to demonstrate hand signals….

1996 saw the first major change to the driving test, with the introduction of the theory test, replacing the verbally asked questions on the Highway Code….and in 2000 the touchscreen theory test was introduced….

2017 brought an even bigger ‘shake-up’; with an increase from 10 to 20 minutes of independent driving time and the need to show the ability of following directions from a sat nav. The reverse-around-corner and turn-in-the-road manoeuvres were dropped from the test….candidates instead having to demonstrate parallel parking, parking in a bay or pulling up, reversing 2 car lengths and rejoining traffic….and finally the answering of safety questions….

Since the introduction of the new test the pass rate has slightly declined – but perhaps it is too early to know if this will be a continuing trend….