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Retro - January 1982: Students strike a blow
RESCUED: Mark Thatcher with his father Dennis.
The YEP turns back the clock to find out what was making the news in Leeds and beyond in January 1982.
THE BIG STORY
HUNDREDS of angry students occupied an administration block at Leeds University in protest at plans to cut some departments.
They put placards up in the windows which read: ‘Occupation, come join us’ and said further protests were planned in Manchester and Portsmouth.
They even put up barricades and many spent the night on floors in sleeping bags. In response, university authorities cut the phone lines.
The occupation began on January 28, immediately after the annual meeting of the students union, which was against Government funding cuts of six per cent.
THE HEADLINES
* Yorkshire Water workers rejected a 9.1 per cent pay deal by two to one.
* A 15oz tin of Heinz chicken soup cost 22-and-a-half pence, a tin of Heinz baked beans 19p, while a six-pack of Penguin chocolate biscuits cost 28p.
* There was a total eclipse of the sun on January 9 between 7.17pm and 8.35pm, depending on where you lived in the UK.
* The lowest ever United Kingdom temperature of −27.2 degrees Centigrade (−17.0 degrees Fahrenheit) was recorded at Braemar, in Aberdeenshire on January 10. It equalled the record set in the same place in 1895.
* Dave Lee Travis appeared at Batley’s Frontier nightclub, as did David ‘The Kid’ Jensen, as part of a special Radio 1 DJ week.
* Larger than life showjumper Harvey Smith allegedly punched a man in the face knocking him off his chair and then kicked him in a row over the royal family, a court heard. Smith was said to have then declared: “No-one calls the royal family in front of me.”
* British Airways announced it was cutting the cost of flights to and from Australia to £390, or 2p per mile for a return ticket.
* The 12th Century Norman stone porchway at Adel Church, among the oldest in Leeds, was protected by an oak portico.
* Police had to patrol Boroughbridge, North Yorkshire in boats in a bid to prevent looting following some of the worst floods in living memory. Water levels reached 16ft, flooding dozens of homes and businesses.
* On January 11, Mark Thatcher, son of British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, disappeared in the Sahara during the Paris-Dakar Rally. He went missing along with his co-driver and mechanic on the final leg of the infamously treacherous rally. Mrs Thatcher said: “As far as I know they only had water for a certain number of days and one’s heart stopped, you can imagine. We heard nothing from the tour organisers and I said to Denis, ‘You have to get out there and see what is happening.’” He was rescued on January 14.
* Anyone who thinks modern cars are more economical than older ones can think again – the 1.6l Datsun Stanza three-door hatchback managed 56mpg, while the Renault 5 GTL did even better, with 62.8mpg combined usage.
* Films on at the cinema included The Shining, starring Jack Nicholson, Blazing Saddles, starring and directed by Mel Brooks and UK comedy Arthur, starring Dudley Moore.
the gossip
* John Coughan, founder member of the group Status Quo, left the band on the anniversary of its 20th anniversary to start his own band, John Coughlan’s Diesel Band.
* Spanish singing sensation Julio Inglasias was stunned after the apparent kidnapping of his father in Madrid. The star was forced to postpone a planned recording with Barry Gibb, as well as tours in England, West Germany and Switzerland.
the world
* On January 9, the Commodore 64 8-bit home computer was introduced by Commodore International at the Winter Consumer Electronics Show. It caused a stir and changed the face of home entertainment forever.
* Horrific pictures emerged showing people struggling for their lives after being plunged into the freezing Potomac River, Washington, after a Boeing 737 crashed on take-off from Fort Lauderdale – 81 people lost their lives in the tragedy,
and finally...
* Leeds-based Associated Dairies (Asda) reported a healthy rise in profits by £5.8m to £28,558,000. The figures were encouraging as they came as the country struggled through a recession.
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Saturday 26 May 2012
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