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RETRO: Adventurer returns
Dateline: July 1968
THE BIG STORY
Lone yachtsman Alec Rose returned home after an epic year-long round-the-world voyage in a seven-ton boat named Lively Lady.
He arrived in Portsmouth to a welcome message from the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh which read: "Warmest congratulations on your magnificent voyage. Welcome home."
Canons boomed, fireworks soared and crackled overhead and an armada of escort boats hooted and sounded their sirens as Rose sailed into port to be greeted by a crowd of over a quarter of a million wellwishers.
His wife was also on hand to meet him and stayed by his side through his journey in the Lord Mayor's Rolls Royce and through press conferences, where he was given a standing ovation.
His journey was not an entirely smooth one as he had troubles with the engine on his way home, the fumes of which caused him to pass out for several hours. He also admitted there were times when he doubted he would survive.
He was knighted shortly after his arrival, thanks to a recommendation from the Prime Minister.
The 59-year-old went back to his job as a greengrocer on Osbourne Road, Portsmouth.
THE HEADLINES
Freak storms, described as the worst in living memory, brought chaos to much of Yorkshire. Landslides blocked railway lines, road traffic came to a standstill and golfball-sized hailstones damaged people's conservatories and caused shoppers to take refuge in doorways. Many homes were damaged by floods during a time which was described as 'midnight during daylight.'
Pope Paul VI condemned all birth control for the Catholic Church. In the document Humanae Vitae the Pope ruled out all forms of artificial methods of preventing birth for Roman Catholic couples because he believed they opened the way for marital infidelity, immorality and loss of respect of women. He also ruled sterilisation and abortions a sin.
Yorkshire Television took to the screen, The Duchess of Kent flicked the switch at the 1.5m television centre in Kirkstall Road, Leeds, to put the service on air. Yorkshire-born Prime Minister, Harold Wilson, was present to support the first ever broadcast.
Transplants in Britain were on the rise. Britain's second heart transplant operation was completed at the National Heart Hospital in London. The patient was Gordon Ford, of Tunbridge Wells, a 48-year-old accountant, husband and father of two, who died six days later.
Conservative Party leader Edward Heath took refuge at the Great Yorkshire Show after a revolt by 44 MPs in a bid to oust him from office and replace him with Enoch Powell. Amid the uncertainty, Mr Heath took the day off to visit the Great Yorkshire Show at Harrogate, where he declared he would only answer questions on agriculture, not politics.
Microchip maker Intel (Integrated Electronics Corporation) was founded in America. Today it is ranked among the top 50 most influential companies on the planet and is worth an estimated 413bn.
Rock band The Yardbirds played their final concert at Luton Technical College, Bedfordshire, before disbanding. Jimmy Page wanted to pursue heavier rock and went on to create Led Zeppelin.
THE GOSSIP
Actor Marlon Brando won annulment of his eight-year marriage to Mexican actress Movita Castenada. Superior Judge Edward Brand granted the annulment on the grounds that Miss Castenada's previous husband was still alive and she had not legally been divorced from him. The actress gained custody of the couple's two children, Sergio, seven, and Rebecca, two. The couple had married secretly in 1960 and separated in 1962.
Crooner and actor Dean Martin suffered burns on both hands when a trick camera caught fire on the set of House of Seven Joys at Columbia Studios. The camera was supposed to emit smoke but burst into flames, leaving him with painful injuries.
THE WORLD
Previously dormant Arenal Volcano, located approximately 110 miles north of San Jose, Costa Rica, had its first eruption in centuries. The eruption devastated the towns of Tabacon, Pueblo Nuevo and San Luis and killed 87 people. Some people threw themselves into the River Tarrazon in an effort to escape the avalanche of lava. The 5,200ft volcano had previously been considered a mountain by the population.
Saddam Hussein became Vice Chairman of the Revolutionary Council in Iraq after a coup. With this key role Hussein brought the Ba'ath Party to long-term power. In 1979 Hussein overthrew Ahmad Hasan al-Bakr and became president of Iraq until 2003.
South Vietnamese opposition leader Truong Dinh Dzu was sentenced to five years hard labour for advocating the formation of a coalition government as a beginning to end the Vietnam War. However, due to public pressure he was released after only five months.
The nuclear non-proliferation treaty was proposed by Ireland and Finland, who were the first countries to sign the register, aimed at stopping the spread of nuclear weapons around the world. Today some 189 countries are on the register but several have not, including Israel, Pakistan, India and North Korea.
AND FINALLY
Neighbours formed a human mattress to cushion the fall of a Yorkshire family of six who leaped from an upstairs window of their home in Doncaster, seconds before it was engulfed in flames.
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Weather for Leeds
Thursday 24 May 2012
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