From the pages of the Down Recorder, November 25, 1975

From the pages of the Down Recorder, November 25, 1975

25 November 2015

NEWCASTLE — Newcastle is again set to make a bold bid to draw holidaymakers in 1976 with plans already laid for a full two-month programme of events, including another festival week in July.

To capitalise on the success of this year’s holiday season the people behind the bid, Newcastle Town Committee, have set a target of £5,000 to cover the estimated expenditure.

Mr John Toner, the chairman of the committee, says their aim is simple. “We aim to have a programme which will make it worthwhile for people to come to the town throughout the holiday period.”

He said they would concentrate on the festival week, but will help with the comprehensive programme of events to take place at other times during the season. In that way the committee hope to attract people to come to the resort and stay for even longer periods than they did this year.

Mr Dick Colgan, the director of this year’s ‘Looney Moon’ festival in the town and former Northern Ireland Commonwealth Games manager, has again been persuaded to give the committee the benefit of his advice and assistance for the season.

Mr Toner said that the committee were very fortunate to have Mr Colgan’s experience for another year. The festival director has also had talks with another important figure in the Newcastle plans – Down Council’s Recreation Officer, Mr Bryan Coburn.

Mr Coburn has drawn up the outline programme for the holiday period. He was the man who masterminded much of last year’s holiday programme.

CASTLEWELLAN — More than 300 people demonstrated against army tactics outside Castlewellan police station on Saturday night. They gathered at Upper Square where local councillor Mr Seamus Fitzpatrick spoke about recent incidents. The crowd picketed for about half an hour, then the demonstration broke up. No incidents were reported.

DOWNPATRICK — Local junior doctors at hospitals in Downpatrick do not see any end to the present disruption in the Health Service before the New Year. Spokesmen are keen to point out that the next step in their action could well be mass resignations.

Feelings of anger and frustration were rife during the week among junior doctors working at the local hospitals. For almost a month junior doctors in Downpatrick have been working on a 24-hour emergency basis only and worst hit has been minor surgery, with very few operations of a non-emergency type being carried out. Staffing levels in the clinics have hit a new low.

The province’s junior doctors met during the week in Belfast to consider their action and it was decided that the call from their colleagues in Great Britain to implement a 40-hour week would not be carried out.

SAINTFIELD — Saintfield police are still  baffled by the refusal of eleven cattle, which had been found straying in the district over two months ago, to come forward with a claim. In spite of press and television appeals, the owner has yet to be traced.

KILLYLEAGH — Twenty-three month-old Claire Ruddock is the happiest toddler in Killyleagh this week after renewing a friendship which goes back as far as she can remember. The friend who bounced back into her life is her eleven month-old springer spaniel, Blaze.

Claire was despondent a fortnight ago when Blaze didn’t come home after his normal afternoon stroll. Claire’s mother and father, Irene and Jim, got in touch with animal centres at Ballynahinch and Carryduff to see if they had any dogs that matched Blaze’s deion. Both times they were out of luck.

Then Jim’s father, William, took a hand and telephoned Killyleagh police station to report the missing pup. The police said they had a black and white spaniel and that’s how Blaze turned up with Claire this week.

Fortunately he was in good health when he turned up at the police station and if anything he was overweight. He came back minus his collar and was strangely subdued. Claire, however, will not mind. She will have him back to normal with a short time.

BALLYKINLAR — The Secretary of State, Mr Merlyn Rees, visited the Anderson Centre, Ballykinler, home of the Co Down Battalion Ulster Defence Regiment. It was part of a quick tour of three counties —Armagh, including the border area, Tyrone and Down.

On arrival at the Anderson Centre Mr Rees was met by the Commanding Officer, Lt Col I H McCausland, who showed him around the centre discussed the facilities available. He also took the opportunity to talk with the local men and women who were on duty and the civilians of the permanent staff.

BALLYNAHINCH — Charity-conscious children at Ballynahinch Primary School have chalked up yet another success on their blackboard. At the end of last term they handed over a £250 cheque to the Guide Dogs for the Blind Association and now, just two-and-a-half months into the new term, they have handed over a £275 cheque to the Royal National Institute for the Blind.

The cheque was handed over to a representative from the Institute by Stephen Barr, who had the largest individual collection. Mr Norris Hughes, the school’s principal, explained that the fund-raising effort had come as a direct result of a film show presented for the children in October.

They had appreciated the work of the Institute and took to upon themselves to organise a collection. As has always been the case, the children and their sponsors rose to the occasion and as a result another organisation has benefited greatly.

COMBER — A Comber-based Canadian, James Ruthenbery, has been voted the best underwater cameraman in Ireland. The 32 year-old from Toronto picked up the award, plus several others, in Limerick.

James is a member off the Belfast branch of the British Sub-Aqua Club and one of his prize-winning pictures was of a dive by his club near Rathlin Island. He has been here for four years and always takes a camera on his dives.

TELEPHONES — More than 5,600 telephone users in the Downpatrick district will be able to dial most their own international calls from 8am on December 29, it was announced this week.

international Subscriber Dialling is being installed at the exchange in Downpatrick and customers will be able to dial direct to more than 250 million telephones in 26 countries, including Canada, USA, Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong, South Africa and Western Europe.

Asked if the number of international calls made from the Downpatrick and district area deserved the introduction of expensive equipment, a spokesman for the GPO said: “The number of international calls from this area would be as little as a dozen a week, but this is part of a policy to bring International Subscribing Dialling to all parts of the United Kingdom and it is a very profitable service.”

ROADS — Early morning motorists who have caught unaware by frosty roads are being advised to take extra care over the next few days. Until agreement has been reached in the Roads Executive workers dispute, the likelihood of our roads being gritted is nil.

A spate of accidents, some minor and some serious, were reported all over the district, each one the result of frost on ungritted roads. One of the most serious was outside Carryduff on the main Ballynahinch Road when a Carryduff man was taken to the Royal Victoria Hospital with serious injuries after his Ford Capri struck a telephone pole. Firemen were in attendance and had to cut him out.

Another crash occurred near Crossgar when a mother and her son were taken to Downe Hospital after their Vauxhall Viva crashed on the main Downpatrick Road. Several minor accidents were reported in the Saintfield area and the Seaforde to Newcastle Road proved notorious with a number of accidents being reported.