FIFTY YEARS AGO THIS WEEK (28 JUNE - 4 JULY 1971)
This week's many stories include the grand opening of Knowsley Safari Park, stampeding giraffes injure a park worker, the chaotic "super-brain" computer at Pilkingtons, a major accident takes place at UGB and Lennon's announce record profits.
The opening of Knowsley Safari Park – after three years of planning by Lord Derby and his partner Jimmy Chipperfield – dominates this week's news. The run up to the big day got off to a bad start after a TV advert for the 360-acre reserve had been prematurely broadcast – leading to thousands of disappointed visitors having to be turned away. Lord Derby apologised but stated that it had not been the fault of his or Mr. Chipperfield. "The mistake was caused by the wrong advertisement going out on Granada TV on Saturday," he explained.
On the 29th eight fully-grown lions left their wooden cages and became the first animals to be allowed to roam in the park – watched from outside specially built fences by armed guards. Laurence Tennant, the Knowsley reserve's manager, told the Press: "They have settled down very well. We have also got 20 lion cubs, which will be kept in a different section of the park."
The reserve was costing £1 million – around £15m in today's money – and Lord Derby was flogging off some of his precious antiquities to pay for it. Earlier this month nine miniature Elizabethan artworks sold at Christie's for £166,000 and last week a Van Dyck painting went under the hammer at the London auctioneers for 400,000 guineas. On the 30th Lord Derby auctioned his collection of botanical and entomological books. The 61 volumes, mostly dating from the 19th and late 18th centuries, went for £55,897.
On July 1st it was the turn of the giraffes to be let loose in Knowsley Safari Park – but their release did not go to plan. A passing van startled a wildebeest and stampeded the giraffes. A man was injured and taken to Whiston Hospital, as park manager, Laurence Tennant, described: "The giraffes were disturbed by another animal as they were being let out of their compound. They were already nervous after spending many months in quarantine and could be easily upset. As they stampeded, one of the workmen received a blow from one of the animals."
It took three hours to round up the giraffes and return them to their compound. One was injured after crashing through a fence and veterinary surgeons decided to destroy it. More details of the injured man were released on the 2nd. He was 31-year-old George Anderson of Park Farm in Knowsley who had received a kick on the head but was said to be in a satisfactory condition at Whiston. Later that day the long-promised herd of elephants arrived in the park. They had been delayed leaving Africa and so their arrival at Knowsley was last minute.
The Safari Park finally opened to the public on the 3rd and predictably there was a huge rush of visitors. By the afternoon the park office estimated that some 120 cars an hour were entering the reserve with manager Laurence Tennant saying: "There are a lot more people than we expected but we are coping easily. It looks as if we are in for a very busy weekend, especially if the weather picks up."
The Echo added: "The animals in the park have settled down well and while the humid weather made most of them tired, some showed a great deal of interest in the visitors. The monkeys and baboons for instance stopped all traffic in their section as they clambered from car to car. The lions however were not so friendly and visitors were only too willing to obey the rules and keep their windows firmly closed as the large bears prowled around a few feet away." The giraffes that had stampeded were reported as now being "quite happy". But visitors were advised to drive slowly past them just in case they should become frightened.
And now for the rest of this week's stories… A major accident at the United Glass bottleworks in Peasley Cross – in which 400 tons of molten glass poured out of a leaking furnace – was described as being "like a volcano erupting". The glass that had been heated to 1,400 degrees Centigrade caused a number of fires. As a consequence production on the huge furnace at UGB would be disrupted for several weeks but fortunately there were no reports of injuries.
I mentioned in April that St Helens-born football referee Jim Finney (pictured above centre with Robins Lane headmaster Joseph Woods) had been seriously injured in a road crash. Jim was brought up in Sutton Road and had attended Robins Lane School, playing for their soccer team in 1937. In 1962 Jim took charge of the FA Cup Final between Burnley and Tottenham Hotspur and he had also officiated at the 1966 World Cup Finals. On the 28th and now out of hospital, Jim wrote a long article in the Daily Mirror, for which he was introduced as "Britain's top referee". Jim said the hundreds of letters from fans that he had received while in hospital had "brought tears to my eyes and made me realise a referee's life is not all boos."
Cowley Boys was advertising in The Guardian on the 29th for a new chemistry master to teach in "a well-equipped Chemistry Department at all levels, including Sixth Form".
The St Helens Reporter was published on the 2nd and its lead story bore the headline "Save Our Hospital Campaign Launched". Providence Hospital was £20,000 in the red – around £300,000 in today's money – and the Reporter wrote that an "emergency fund to provide a massive cash transfusion" had been launched by the mayor. Cllr. Charles Martin said: "It is a magnificent hospital doing a magnificent job for St. Helens. It is our responsibility to help."
Another story on the Reporter's front page began: "Wages went haywire on the day a computer took over the payroll." The paper described a "chaotic afternoon" at Pilkingtons two days earlier after a "super-brain" had been tasked with implementing a new payroll system. One glassworker's wage slip had him owed £79,000! Needless to say he didn't receive the cash but the strain led to one wage clerk collapsing. The delay caused by the computer cock-up led to some staff being forced to work into the night in order to prepare pay packets for the following day.
Lennons Supermarkets posted record results on the 2nd with pre-tax profit having risen by 40%. The St Helens-based firm had opened two new supermarkets last year and now had 29, along with 33 off-licences. Chairman Terence Lennon announced that the firm was applying for licences for even more wine and spirit outlets, which he expected to be opened in time for Christmas.
The council's 'Bands In Parks' weekly concert series was now well underway with the ensemble performing in Sherdley Park on the 4th being the Liverpool Premier Banjo Mandolin & Guitar Orchestra. On the same day the ABC Savoy began seven days of screenings of 'Butch Cassidy and The Sundance Kid', along with 'The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie'. Meanwhile 'Woodstock' – "3 days of peace, music…and love" – was being shown at the Capitol. The town's twin cinemas had no competition from the Theatre Royal this week, as the Corporation Street venue was now on what they described as "summer recess".
And finally, a report on a court case in the Echo provides an appraisal of where the country now was in terms of the obscenity laws. The Lord Chamberlain's responsibility to licence stage scripts had finally come to an end. But although that form of theatrical censorship that dated back to 1737 had been removed, producers still had to be careful they did not overstep the boundaries of taste. And obscenity was still – like beauty – in the eye of the beholder and a play that misjudged how the authorities might react could have serious consequences for those involved. This article was published in the Echo under the headline "‘Filthy’ Sex Play Woman Freed":
"The so-called play “Dee Jay” staged at a Manchester theatre club was “complete filth for filth's sake,” an Appeal Court judge said in London to-day. It opened, said Lord Justice Fenton Atkinson, with six naked women dancing round a man in bed and ended with the performers inviting the audience to tell their friends how filthy it was. Appeals were heard by four people gaoled for staging the play following the first “obscene play” prosecution under the 1968 Theatres Act, which abolished the Lord Chamberlain's role as stage censor.
"Three men had their appeals dismissed, but the woman convicted with them, Mrs. Jacqueline Brownson, was freed. Mrs. Brownson, aged 26, of Park Lane, Whitefield, Lancashire, had her 12-month gaol sentence suspended for two years “as an act of mercy.” Gaol sentences of 15 months on her husband, Sidney Brownson, aged 47, and his brother Eric Brownson, aged 53, of Viceroy Court, Lord Street, Southport were upheld. Both were refused leave to appeal against their sentences as was David Willard Arthur Logan, aged 44, of Seymour Road, Manchester, who directed the play.
"Logan received a 12 months sentence for his part in staging the play at the Brownson Brothers Revuebar, George Street, Manchester, which was run by the Brownson brothers. All were sentenced at Manchester Crown Court on May 28. Lord Justice Fenton Atkinson described the play as “grossly obscene by any standard.” Even the most advanced modern critic would have been unable to find a trace of artistic, literary or any other merit, he said.
"Describing parts of the show, the judge said that in one scene there was a foul-mouthed argument between a man and a woman. And jokes were obscene even by lavatory wall standards. Performers had undressed each other and danced naked on the stage and there was also a masturbation scene. “Here is a case where they decided to see how far they dared go and deliberately set out to make money out of as filthy a performance as they dared put on”, said Lord Justice Fenton Atkinson, who sat with Lord Justice Cairns and Mr. Justice Lyell.
"Sentences on the three men were fair considering it was the first prosecution. Mrs. Brownson, described as make-up and wig mistress, had been prominent at rehearsals. The Lord Chief Justice said the court had seen a report on the effects of the sentence on her nine-years-old son and as an act of mercy felt that leniency could be shown to her."
Next week's stories will include the traffic chaos in Knowsley Safari Park, the debt owed to Providence Hospital, the fire that destroyed a Rainhill Scout Group's dreams and controversial headmaster Brother Leonard announces he is leaving West Park.
The opening of Knowsley Safari Park – after three years of planning by Lord Derby and his partner Jimmy Chipperfield – dominates this week's news. The run up to the big day got off to a bad start after a TV advert for the 360-acre reserve had been prematurely broadcast – leading to thousands of disappointed visitors having to be turned away. Lord Derby apologised but stated that it had not been the fault of his or Mr. Chipperfield. "The mistake was caused by the wrong advertisement going out on Granada TV on Saturday," he explained.
On the 29th eight fully-grown lions left their wooden cages and became the first animals to be allowed to roam in the park – watched from outside specially built fences by armed guards. Laurence Tennant, the Knowsley reserve's manager, told the Press: "They have settled down very well. We have also got 20 lion cubs, which will be kept in a different section of the park."
On July 1st it was the turn of the giraffes to be let loose in Knowsley Safari Park – but their release did not go to plan. A passing van startled a wildebeest and stampeded the giraffes. A man was injured and taken to Whiston Hospital, as park manager, Laurence Tennant, described: "The giraffes were disturbed by another animal as they were being let out of their compound. They were already nervous after spending many months in quarantine and could be easily upset. As they stampeded, one of the workmen received a blow from one of the animals."
It took three hours to round up the giraffes and return them to their compound. One was injured after crashing through a fence and veterinary surgeons decided to destroy it. More details of the injured man were released on the 2nd. He was 31-year-old George Anderson of Park Farm in Knowsley who had received a kick on the head but was said to be in a satisfactory condition at Whiston. Later that day the long-promised herd of elephants arrived in the park. They had been delayed leaving Africa and so their arrival at Knowsley was last minute.
The Safari Park finally opened to the public on the 3rd and predictably there was a huge rush of visitors. By the afternoon the park office estimated that some 120 cars an hour were entering the reserve with manager Laurence Tennant saying: "There are a lot more people than we expected but we are coping easily. It looks as if we are in for a very busy weekend, especially if the weather picks up."
The Echo added: "The animals in the park have settled down well and while the humid weather made most of them tired, some showed a great deal of interest in the visitors. The monkeys and baboons for instance stopped all traffic in their section as they clambered from car to car. The lions however were not so friendly and visitors were only too willing to obey the rules and keep their windows firmly closed as the large bears prowled around a few feet away." The giraffes that had stampeded were reported as now being "quite happy". But visitors were advised to drive slowly past them just in case they should become frightened.
And now for the rest of this week's stories… A major accident at the United Glass bottleworks in Peasley Cross – in which 400 tons of molten glass poured out of a leaking furnace – was described as being "like a volcano erupting". The glass that had been heated to 1,400 degrees Centigrade caused a number of fires. As a consequence production on the huge furnace at UGB would be disrupted for several weeks but fortunately there were no reports of injuries.
Cowley Boys was advertising in The Guardian on the 29th for a new chemistry master to teach in "a well-equipped Chemistry Department at all levels, including Sixth Form".
The St Helens Reporter was published on the 2nd and its lead story bore the headline "Save Our Hospital Campaign Launched". Providence Hospital was £20,000 in the red – around £300,000 in today's money – and the Reporter wrote that an "emergency fund to provide a massive cash transfusion" had been launched by the mayor. Cllr. Charles Martin said: "It is a magnificent hospital doing a magnificent job for St. Helens. It is our responsibility to help."
Another story on the Reporter's front page began: "Wages went haywire on the day a computer took over the payroll." The paper described a "chaotic afternoon" at Pilkingtons two days earlier after a "super-brain" had been tasked with implementing a new payroll system. One glassworker's wage slip had him owed £79,000! Needless to say he didn't receive the cash but the strain led to one wage clerk collapsing. The delay caused by the computer cock-up led to some staff being forced to work into the night in order to prepare pay packets for the following day.
Lennons Supermarkets posted record results on the 2nd with pre-tax profit having risen by 40%. The St Helens-based firm had opened two new supermarkets last year and now had 29, along with 33 off-licences. Chairman Terence Lennon announced that the firm was applying for licences for even more wine and spirit outlets, which he expected to be opened in time for Christmas.
The council's 'Bands In Parks' weekly concert series was now well underway with the ensemble performing in Sherdley Park on the 4th being the Liverpool Premier Banjo Mandolin & Guitar Orchestra. On the same day the ABC Savoy began seven days of screenings of 'Butch Cassidy and The Sundance Kid', along with 'The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie'. Meanwhile 'Woodstock' – "3 days of peace, music…and love" – was being shown at the Capitol. The town's twin cinemas had no competition from the Theatre Royal this week, as the Corporation Street venue was now on what they described as "summer recess".
And finally, a report on a court case in the Echo provides an appraisal of where the country now was in terms of the obscenity laws. The Lord Chamberlain's responsibility to licence stage scripts had finally come to an end. But although that form of theatrical censorship that dated back to 1737 had been removed, producers still had to be careful they did not overstep the boundaries of taste. And obscenity was still – like beauty – in the eye of the beholder and a play that misjudged how the authorities might react could have serious consequences for those involved. This article was published in the Echo under the headline "‘Filthy’ Sex Play Woman Freed":
"The so-called play “Dee Jay” staged at a Manchester theatre club was “complete filth for filth's sake,” an Appeal Court judge said in London to-day. It opened, said Lord Justice Fenton Atkinson, with six naked women dancing round a man in bed and ended with the performers inviting the audience to tell their friends how filthy it was. Appeals were heard by four people gaoled for staging the play following the first “obscene play” prosecution under the 1968 Theatres Act, which abolished the Lord Chamberlain's role as stage censor.
"Three men had their appeals dismissed, but the woman convicted with them, Mrs. Jacqueline Brownson, was freed. Mrs. Brownson, aged 26, of Park Lane, Whitefield, Lancashire, had her 12-month gaol sentence suspended for two years “as an act of mercy.” Gaol sentences of 15 months on her husband, Sidney Brownson, aged 47, and his brother Eric Brownson, aged 53, of Viceroy Court, Lord Street, Southport were upheld. Both were refused leave to appeal against their sentences as was David Willard Arthur Logan, aged 44, of Seymour Road, Manchester, who directed the play.
"Logan received a 12 months sentence for his part in staging the play at the Brownson Brothers Revuebar, George Street, Manchester, which was run by the Brownson brothers. All were sentenced at Manchester Crown Court on May 28. Lord Justice Fenton Atkinson described the play as “grossly obscene by any standard.” Even the most advanced modern critic would have been unable to find a trace of artistic, literary or any other merit, he said.
"Describing parts of the show, the judge said that in one scene there was a foul-mouthed argument between a man and a woman. And jokes were obscene even by lavatory wall standards. Performers had undressed each other and danced naked on the stage and there was also a masturbation scene. “Here is a case where they decided to see how far they dared go and deliberately set out to make money out of as filthy a performance as they dared put on”, said Lord Justice Fenton Atkinson, who sat with Lord Justice Cairns and Mr. Justice Lyell.
"Sentences on the three men were fair considering it was the first prosecution. Mrs. Brownson, described as make-up and wig mistress, had been prominent at rehearsals. The Lord Chief Justice said the court had seen a report on the effects of the sentence on her nine-years-old son and as an act of mercy felt that leniency could be shown to her."
Next week's stories will include the traffic chaos in Knowsley Safari Park, the debt owed to Providence Hospital, the fire that destroyed a Rainhill Scout Group's dreams and controversial headmaster Brother Leonard announces he is leaving West Park.
This week's many stories include the grand opening of Knowsley Safari Park, stampeding giraffes injure a park worker, the chaotic "super-brain" computer at Pilkingtons, a major accident takes place at UGB and Lennon's announce record profits.
The opening of Knowsley Safari Park – after three years of planning by Lord Derby and his partner Jimmy Chipperfield – dominates this week's news.
The run up to the big day got off to a bad start after a TV advert for the 360-acre reserve had been prematurely broadcast – leading to thousands of disappointed visitors having to be turned away.
Lord Derby apologised but stated that it had not been the fault of his or Mr. Chipperfield. "The mistake was caused by the wrong advertisement going out on Granada TV on Saturday," he explained.
On the 29th eight fully-grown lions left their wooden cages and became the first animals to be allowed to roam in the park – watched from outside specially built fences by armed guards.
Laurence Tennant, the Knowsley reserve's manager, told the Press:
"They have settled down very well. We have also got 20 lion cubs, which will be kept in a different section of the park."
The reserve was costing £1 million – around £15m in today's money – and Lord Derby was flogging off some of his precious antiquities to pay for it.
Earlier this month nine miniature Elizabethan artworks sold at Christie's for £166,000 and last week a Van Dyck painting went under the hammer at the London auctioneers for 400,000 guineas.
On the 30th Lord Derby auctioned his collection of botanical and entomological books. The 61 volumes, mostly dating from the 19th and late 18th centuries, went for £55,897.
On July 1st it was the turn of the giraffes to be let loose in Knowsley Safari Park – but their release did not go to plan. A passing van startled a wildebeest and stampeded the giraffes.
A man was injured and taken to Whiston Hospital, as park manager, Laurence Tennant, described:
"The giraffes were disturbed by another animal as they were being let out of their compound. They were already nervous after spending many months in quarantine and could be easily upset. As they stampeded, one of the workmen received a blow from one of the animals."
It took three hours to round up the giraffes and return them to their compound. One was injured after crashing through a fence and veterinary surgeons decided to destroy it.
More details of the injured man were released on the 2nd. He was 31-year-old George Anderson of Park Farm in Knowsley who had received a kick on the head but was said to be in a satisfactory condition at Whiston.
Later that day the long-promised herd of elephants arrived in the park. They had been delayed leaving Africa and so their arrival at Knowsley was last minute.
The Safari Park finally opened to the public on the 3rd and predictably there was a huge rush of visitors.
By the afternoon the park office estimated that some 120 cars an hour were entering the reserve with manager Laurence Tennant saying:
"There are a lot more people than we expected but we are coping easily. It looks as if we are in for a very busy weekend, especially if the weather picks up." The Echo added:
"The animals in the park have settled down well and while the humid weather made most of them tired, some showed a great deal of interest in the visitors.
"The monkeys and baboons for instance stopped all traffic in their section as they clambered from car to car.
"The lions however were not so friendly and visitors were only too willing to obey the rules and keep their windows firmly closed as the large bears prowled around a few feet away."
The giraffes that had stampeded were reported as now being "quite happy". But visitors were advised to drive slowly past them just in case they should become frightened.
And now for the rest of this week's stories…
A major accident at the United Glass bottleworks in Peasley Cross – in which 400 tons of molten glass poured out of a leaking furnace – was described as being "like a volcano erupting".
The glass that had been heated to 1,400 degrees Centigrade caused a number of fires. As a consequence production on the huge furnace at UGB would be disrupted for several weeks but fortunately there were no reports of injuries.
I mentioned in April that St Helens-born football referee Jim Finney (pictured above centre with Robins Lane headmaster Joseph Woods) had been seriously injured in a road crash.
Jim was brought up in Sutton Road and had attended Robins Lane School, playing for their soccer team in 1937.
In 1962 Jim took charge of the FA Cup Final between Burnley and Tottenham Hotspur and he had also officiated at the 1966 World Cup Finals.
On the 28th and now out of hospital, Jim wrote a long article in the Daily Mirror, for which he was introduced as "Britain's top referee".
Jim said the hundreds of letters from fans that he had received while in hospital had "brought tears to my eyes and made me realise a referee's life is not all boos."
Cowley Boys was advertising in The Guardian on the 29th for a new chemistry master to teach in "a well-equipped Chemistry Department at all levels, including Sixth Form".
The St Helens Reporter was published on the 2nd and its lead story bore the headline "Save Our Hospital Campaign Launched".
Providence Hospital was £20,000 in the red – around £300,000 in today's money – and the Reporter wrote that an "emergency fund to provide a massive cash transfusion" had been launched by the mayor.
Cllr. Charles Martin said: "It is a magnificent hospital doing a magnificent job for St. Helens. It is our responsibility to help."
Another story on the Reporter's front page began: "Wages went haywire on the day a computer took over the payroll."
The paper described a "chaotic afternoon" at Pilkingtons two days earlier after a "super-brain" had been tasked with implementing a new payroll system.
One glassworker's wage slip had him owed £79,000! Needless to say he didn't receive the cash but the strain led to one wage clerk collapsing.
The delay caused by the computer cock-up led to some staff being forced to work into the night in order to prepare pay packets for the following day.
Lennons Supermarkets posted record results on the 2nd with pre-tax profit having risen by 40%.
The St Helens-based firm had opened two new supermarkets last year and now had 29, along with 33 off-licences.
Chairman Terence Lennon announced that the firm was applying for licences for even more wine and spirit outlets, which he expected to be opened in time for Christmas.
The council's 'Bands In Parks' weekly concert series was now well underway with the ensemble performing in Sherdley Park on the 4th being the Liverpool Premier Banjo Mandolin & Guitar Orchestra.
On the same day the ABC Savoy began seven days of screenings of 'Butch Cassidy and The Sundance Kid', along with 'The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie'.
Meanwhile 'Woodstock' – "3 days of peace, music…and love" – was being shown at the Capitol.
The town's twin cinemas had no competition from the Theatre Royal this week, as the Corporation Street venue was now on what they described as "summer recess".
And finally, a report on a court case in the Echo provides an appraisal of where the country now was in terms of the obscenity laws.
The Lord Chamberlain's responsibility to licence stage scripts had finally come to an end.
But although that form of theatrical censorship that dated back to 1737 had been removed, producers still had to be careful they did not overstep the boundaries of taste.
And obscenity was still – like beauty – in the eye of the beholder and a play that misjudged how the authorities might react could have serious consequences for those involved.
This article was published in the Echo under the headline "‘Filthy’ Sex Play Woman Freed":
"The so-called play “Dee Jay” staged at a Manchester theatre club was “complete filth for filth's sake,” an Appeal Court judge said in London to-day.
"It opened, said Lord Justice Fenton Atkinson, with six naked women dancing round a man in bed and ended with the performers inviting the audience to tell their friends how filthy it was.
"Appeals were heard by four people gaoled for staging the play following the first “obscene play” prosecution under the 1968 Theatres Act, which abolished the Lord Chamberlain's role as stage censor.
"Three men had their appeals dismissed, but the woman convicted with them, Mrs. Jacqueline Brownson, was freed.
"Mrs. Brownson, aged 26, of Park Lane, Whitefield, Lancashire, had her 12-month gaol sentence suspended for two years “as an act of mercy.”
"Gaol sentences of 15 months on her husband, Sidney Brownson, aged 47, and his brother Eric Brownson, aged 53, of Viceroy Court, Lord Street, Southport were upheld.
"Both were refused leave to appeal against their sentences as was David Willard Arthur Logan, aged 44, of Seymour Road, Manchester, who directed the play.
"Logan received a 12 months sentence for his part in staging the play at the Brownson Brothers Revuebar, George Street, Manchester, which was run by the Brownson brothers. All were sentenced at Manchester Crown Court on May 28.
"Lord Justice Fenton Atkinson described the play as “grossly obscene by any standard.”
"Even the most advanced modern critic would have been unable to find a trace of artistic, literary or any other merit, he said.
"Describing parts of the show, the judge said that in one scene there was a foul-mouthed argument between a man and a woman. And jokes were obscene even by lavatory wall standards.
"Performers had undressed each other and danced naked on the stage and there was also a masturbation scene.
"“Here is a case where they decided to see how far they dared go and deliberately set out to make money out of as filthy a performance as they dared put on”, said Lord Justice Fenton Atkinson, who sat with Lord Justice Cairns and Mr. Justice Lyell.
"Sentences on the three men were fair considering it was the first prosecution. Mrs. Brownson, described as make-up and wig mistress, had been prominent at rehearsals.
"The Lord Chief Justice said the court had seen a report on the effects of the sentence on her nine-years-old son and as an act of mercy felt that leniency could be shown to her."
Next week's stories will include the traffic chaos in Knowsley Safari Park, the debt owed to Providence Hospital, the fire that destroyed a Rainhill Scout Group's dreams and controversial headmaster Brother Leonard announces he is leaving West Park.
The opening of Knowsley Safari Park – after three years of planning by Lord Derby and his partner Jimmy Chipperfield – dominates this week's news.
The run up to the big day got off to a bad start after a TV advert for the 360-acre reserve had been prematurely broadcast – leading to thousands of disappointed visitors having to be turned away.
Lord Derby apologised but stated that it had not been the fault of his or Mr. Chipperfield. "The mistake was caused by the wrong advertisement going out on Granada TV on Saturday," he explained.
On the 29th eight fully-grown lions left their wooden cages and became the first animals to be allowed to roam in the park – watched from outside specially built fences by armed guards.
Laurence Tennant, the Knowsley reserve's manager, told the Press:
"They have settled down very well. We have also got 20 lion cubs, which will be kept in a different section of the park."
Earlier this month nine miniature Elizabethan artworks sold at Christie's for £166,000 and last week a Van Dyck painting went under the hammer at the London auctioneers for 400,000 guineas.
On the 30th Lord Derby auctioned his collection of botanical and entomological books. The 61 volumes, mostly dating from the 19th and late 18th centuries, went for £55,897.
On July 1st it was the turn of the giraffes to be let loose in Knowsley Safari Park – but their release did not go to plan. A passing van startled a wildebeest and stampeded the giraffes.
A man was injured and taken to Whiston Hospital, as park manager, Laurence Tennant, described:
"The giraffes were disturbed by another animal as they were being let out of their compound. They were already nervous after spending many months in quarantine and could be easily upset. As they stampeded, one of the workmen received a blow from one of the animals."
It took three hours to round up the giraffes and return them to their compound. One was injured after crashing through a fence and veterinary surgeons decided to destroy it.
More details of the injured man were released on the 2nd. He was 31-year-old George Anderson of Park Farm in Knowsley who had received a kick on the head but was said to be in a satisfactory condition at Whiston.
Later that day the long-promised herd of elephants arrived in the park. They had been delayed leaving Africa and so their arrival at Knowsley was last minute.
The Safari Park finally opened to the public on the 3rd and predictably there was a huge rush of visitors.
By the afternoon the park office estimated that some 120 cars an hour were entering the reserve with manager Laurence Tennant saying:
"There are a lot more people than we expected but we are coping easily. It looks as if we are in for a very busy weekend, especially if the weather picks up." The Echo added:
"The animals in the park have settled down well and while the humid weather made most of them tired, some showed a great deal of interest in the visitors.
"The monkeys and baboons for instance stopped all traffic in their section as they clambered from car to car.
"The lions however were not so friendly and visitors were only too willing to obey the rules and keep their windows firmly closed as the large bears prowled around a few feet away."
The giraffes that had stampeded were reported as now being "quite happy". But visitors were advised to drive slowly past them just in case they should become frightened.
And now for the rest of this week's stories…
A major accident at the United Glass bottleworks in Peasley Cross – in which 400 tons of molten glass poured out of a leaking furnace – was described as being "like a volcano erupting".
The glass that had been heated to 1,400 degrees Centigrade caused a number of fires. As a consequence production on the huge furnace at UGB would be disrupted for several weeks but fortunately there were no reports of injuries.
Jim was brought up in Sutton Road and had attended Robins Lane School, playing for their soccer team in 1937.
In 1962 Jim took charge of the FA Cup Final between Burnley and Tottenham Hotspur and he had also officiated at the 1966 World Cup Finals.
On the 28th and now out of hospital, Jim wrote a long article in the Daily Mirror, for which he was introduced as "Britain's top referee".
Jim said the hundreds of letters from fans that he had received while in hospital had "brought tears to my eyes and made me realise a referee's life is not all boos."
Cowley Boys was advertising in The Guardian on the 29th for a new chemistry master to teach in "a well-equipped Chemistry Department at all levels, including Sixth Form".
The St Helens Reporter was published on the 2nd and its lead story bore the headline "Save Our Hospital Campaign Launched".
Providence Hospital was £20,000 in the red – around £300,000 in today's money – and the Reporter wrote that an "emergency fund to provide a massive cash transfusion" had been launched by the mayor.
Cllr. Charles Martin said: "It is a magnificent hospital doing a magnificent job for St. Helens. It is our responsibility to help."
Another story on the Reporter's front page began: "Wages went haywire on the day a computer took over the payroll."
The paper described a "chaotic afternoon" at Pilkingtons two days earlier after a "super-brain" had been tasked with implementing a new payroll system.
One glassworker's wage slip had him owed £79,000! Needless to say he didn't receive the cash but the strain led to one wage clerk collapsing.
The delay caused by the computer cock-up led to some staff being forced to work into the night in order to prepare pay packets for the following day.
Lennons Supermarkets posted record results on the 2nd with pre-tax profit having risen by 40%.
The St Helens-based firm had opened two new supermarkets last year and now had 29, along with 33 off-licences.
Chairman Terence Lennon announced that the firm was applying for licences for even more wine and spirit outlets, which he expected to be opened in time for Christmas.
The council's 'Bands In Parks' weekly concert series was now well underway with the ensemble performing in Sherdley Park on the 4th being the Liverpool Premier Banjo Mandolin & Guitar Orchestra.
On the same day the ABC Savoy began seven days of screenings of 'Butch Cassidy and The Sundance Kid', along with 'The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie'.
Meanwhile 'Woodstock' – "3 days of peace, music…and love" – was being shown at the Capitol.
The town's twin cinemas had no competition from the Theatre Royal this week, as the Corporation Street venue was now on what they described as "summer recess".
And finally, a report on a court case in the Echo provides an appraisal of where the country now was in terms of the obscenity laws.
The Lord Chamberlain's responsibility to licence stage scripts had finally come to an end.
But although that form of theatrical censorship that dated back to 1737 had been removed, producers still had to be careful they did not overstep the boundaries of taste.
And obscenity was still – like beauty – in the eye of the beholder and a play that misjudged how the authorities might react could have serious consequences for those involved.
This article was published in the Echo under the headline "‘Filthy’ Sex Play Woman Freed":
"The so-called play “Dee Jay” staged at a Manchester theatre club was “complete filth for filth's sake,” an Appeal Court judge said in London to-day.
"It opened, said Lord Justice Fenton Atkinson, with six naked women dancing round a man in bed and ended with the performers inviting the audience to tell their friends how filthy it was.
"Appeals were heard by four people gaoled for staging the play following the first “obscene play” prosecution under the 1968 Theatres Act, which abolished the Lord Chamberlain's role as stage censor.
"Three men had their appeals dismissed, but the woman convicted with them, Mrs. Jacqueline Brownson, was freed.
"Mrs. Brownson, aged 26, of Park Lane, Whitefield, Lancashire, had her 12-month gaol sentence suspended for two years “as an act of mercy.”
"Gaol sentences of 15 months on her husband, Sidney Brownson, aged 47, and his brother Eric Brownson, aged 53, of Viceroy Court, Lord Street, Southport were upheld.
"Both were refused leave to appeal against their sentences as was David Willard Arthur Logan, aged 44, of Seymour Road, Manchester, who directed the play.
"Logan received a 12 months sentence for his part in staging the play at the Brownson Brothers Revuebar, George Street, Manchester, which was run by the Brownson brothers. All were sentenced at Manchester Crown Court on May 28.
"Lord Justice Fenton Atkinson described the play as “grossly obscene by any standard.”
"Even the most advanced modern critic would have been unable to find a trace of artistic, literary or any other merit, he said.
"Describing parts of the show, the judge said that in one scene there was a foul-mouthed argument between a man and a woman. And jokes were obscene even by lavatory wall standards.
"Performers had undressed each other and danced naked on the stage and there was also a masturbation scene.
"“Here is a case where they decided to see how far they dared go and deliberately set out to make money out of as filthy a performance as they dared put on”, said Lord Justice Fenton Atkinson, who sat with Lord Justice Cairns and Mr. Justice Lyell.
"Sentences on the three men were fair considering it was the first prosecution. Mrs. Brownson, described as make-up and wig mistress, had been prominent at rehearsals.
"The Lord Chief Justice said the court had seen a report on the effects of the sentence on her nine-years-old son and as an act of mercy felt that leniency could be shown to her."
Next week's stories will include the traffic chaos in Knowsley Safari Park, the debt owed to Providence Hospital, the fire that destroyed a Rainhill Scout Group's dreams and controversial headmaster Brother Leonard announces he is leaving West Park.