ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY-FIVE YEARS AGO — 20 DECEMBER 1889

ADVERTISEMENTS

WANTED to know, if anyone Teaches BOXING in Hants; Gentleman desires private lessons.—Apply, stating particulars, Office this Paper.

FOR SALE, at a moderate price, a quiet, good tempered PONY, has been driven by a lady.—Apply Mr.J.F.Child, Charlton, Andover.

ONE HUNDRED YEARS AGO — 18 DECEMBER 1914

STOCKBRIDGE BOARD OF GUARDIANS — CAUGHT NAPPING

The Master produced a new book, known as a punishment journal, in which he had entered the name of an inmate who had been smoking cigarettes and who had burnt the Guardians’ cushion as a result (laughter). For his usual dinner was substituted a “dry” one of bread and water as a punishment.

Mr.Corrall: Not solitary confinement?

Rev.Routh: Not three weeks in the cell? (laughter).

Mr.Leigh: Is there any objection to the inmates smoking cigarettes in the house?

The Chairman: They are only supposed to smoke the tobacco we supply.

Mr.Leigh: But if someone for outside gave them some cigarettes, it would be rather hard if they could not smoke them.

The Master said but for the burnt cushion he would not have known about it. If an inmate did the business properly he would not be caught (laughter).

SEVENTY-FIVE YEARS AGO — 22 DECEMBER 1939

TWO ROSES AMONGST 34 THORNS

For the Christmas rush Andover Post Office is employing 34 auxiliary postmen—and two postWOMEN.

NO EXTRA BUTTER

There will be no extra allocation of butter this week, states an official of the Food Ministry, and the week’s ration will have to be spread over nearly half of next week, as shops will be closed on Christmas Day and Boxing Day.

FIFTY YEARS AGO — 18 DECEMBER 1964

“SURPRISE” RESCUE AT ST.MARY BOURNE

For 10 o’clock in the evening there was an unusual amount of activity in St.Mary Bourne on Monday. Intrigues passers-by took a closer look and saw that all the attention was focussed on an electricity pole. Perched precariously at the top of the pole, surrounded by a maze of live wires and afraid to move was . . . a kitten.

“Surprise” (the name of the kitten), had obviously been frightened by something and sought refuge up the pole, only to find that it could not come down again.

“It must have been up there for three or four hours before it was discovered,” said its owner, Mr.Norman Bell of the George Inn.

First they telephoned the Fire Brigade and asked them to bring Surprise down. They replied it was not in their line of duty and advised them to get in touch with the R.S.P.C.A.

The R.S.P.C.A. told them to leave the kitten up there and wait until it came down of its own accord, but quite obviously it had no intention of coming down!

A frustrated Mr.Bell asked the police if they could help. The police advised him to get in touch with the Southern Electricity Board.

At last they came up with a positive reply: Mr.Walter Giles of Pound Road, Over Wallop, got out of bed at 1 a.m. to deal with the emergency.

Donning his rubber gloves, he climbed the pole and plucked Surprise to safety from between the wires carrying 415 volts.

“It hasn’t made much attempt to go out since then,” said Mr.Bell.

TWENTY-FIVE YEARS AGO — 22 DECEMBER 1989

WRANGLE GOES ON OVER GROWTH OF INDUSTRY

Local industrialists and the man who has the thorny problem of the town’s future growth always on his desk, are still on a collision course over Andover’s expansion, lack of housing and local wage levels.

Gerry Blythe, borough council chief executive, attempted to ‘sell’ the vision of a high tech business park to the industrialists association and in doing so was reprimanded, forcible, of the perpetual problem suffered by long-established manufacturers of finding labour.

The chief executive also suggested that local wages could be higher to stop the drift of people to higher paid work in Newbury and Basingstoke.

Brian Robinson, association secretary, was quick to correct that assumption.

In a comment to the “Advertiser” he pointed out: “What the chief executive fails to realise is that companies like ourselves are already paying way, way above what is the national average for our industry and still cannot fill all the vacancies we have, so paying even higher wages is not the answer.”

10 YEARS AGO — 17 DECEMBER 2004

TOWN CINEMA COULD PROVIDE £1M INCOME

A pending announcement is likely to reveal the deal by which Andover can have its own cinema — which could generate an income of £1 million a year.

Analysis of population figures, cinema use and prices suggests a cinema in Andover could generate the magic million.

Although Andover’s population is only 38,500 its community area, which arguably includes Tidworth and Whitchurch and many villages, has a population of around 70,000.

In 2003 the average British citizen paid 2.8 visits to the cinema which would suggest that our community area population could generate 200,000 cinema visits — worth £1 million at a ticket price of £5 per visit.

Recently cinema audiences have been on the increase but how many screens Andover could sup[port is anyone’s guess.

Research shows that the number of screens varies widely across the country.

Swindon is thought to have the highest concentration of screens in the country with figures suggesting that there are 7,262 residents per screen and 35 people per seat.

On the other hand London has 17,960 people per cinema screen and almost double the number of people per seat.

Assuming Andover is more like Swindon than London then it could be assumed that one cinema screen per 12,500 population would be sustainable here — especially, when it is considered that a round trip of 40 miles is needed to visit the nearest screens in Basingstoke or Salisbury.

Under these figures it could be that Andover could realistically support a cinema with five screens.