A Quick Reminder: Looking back through the archives of The Keswick Reminder from around this week 20, 30, 40 and 50 years ago.
20 years ago
Planner’s housing plea
Leading Lake District planning committee member Alan Clark has warned that Keswick could potentially turn into a town consisting of “a tribe of people carrying pension books”, if the lack of housing for local young people is not addressed urgently.
Mr. Clark, who is a member of the Development Control committee, said: “It is impossible for young people to get a foot on the housing ladder in Keswick and, without young people, the whole place will just fall to pieces.”
Record audiences for theatre production
The Easter production of Melvyn Bragg’s The Hired Man drew record audience figures to Keswick’s Theatre by the Lake. The musical played to full houses throughout its run, with around 9,000 people attending performances of the first-ever Cumbrian professional production of The Hired Man.
Lord Bragg attended rehearsals and one of the performances of the musical based on his Cumbrian epic tale, and he praised the quality of the production which brought many people into the building for the first time.
Letter to the Editor
Dear Editor,
May I voice my grave concern and growing dismay to those, already expressed in your columns, about what is happening to Keswick?
This was once a vibrant, busy, gem of a market town, serving well both visitors and locals alike.
Slowly, at great expense in time and money, it is being strangled to make way for a traffic-free, soulless, bland imitation of a suburban shopping precinct disproportionately catering for visitors wishing to buy out-door clothing. All this while local men and boys cannot buy a stitch of clothing in the town – could it be that there are further secret plans to make Hope Park into a male nudist colony?!
There is only one way to describe any proposed change to the Lakeside Tea Gardens – desecration and deprivation. No longer will weary feet in Cumbrian-muck-encrusted boots be welcome on the sun-lit terraces while their owners enjoy a cup of tea and listen to the birds.
It is ludicrous that residents must conform to rigorous conditions when they must replace the windows in their houses, while the heart of the town is ripped out and replaced with totally alien, crumbling square ‘cobbles’ and ‘pavements’ that are a hazard to the able-bodied and sighted. For the disabled, the frail and the blind the Market Square is a nightmare. How long will it be before it is contemptuously used as a depository for spat out chewing gum?
Mrs. Mavis Clark and Mrs. Irene Ewart, Ray Trickey, the Scotts and Laila Marshall whose views have already been expressed in these columns, are sensibly worried local people with the welfare and concerns of both locals and visitors at heart. They
are by no means alone in their frustration at what is happening in the name of ‘progress’. Unlike the self-styled planners of the region they know the difference between ‘regeneration’ and ‘evisceration’.
The time for moaning is past. The time for all concerned to stand up and be counted has arrived.
Helen Spencer
Greta Hamlet
Keswick
Letter to the Editor
Dear Editor
Keswick is being vandalised not by yobs, but money and greed. The closure of another essential shop for local people, and plans to reopen as another clothing venture, shows the march of the outdoor clothing brigade continues. Perhaps Keswick should change its name to Anorak Town – it must now be the capital of cagoules, boots and socks.
Now a plan to replace the friendly and excellent Tea Gardens with a restaurant. Why? Are there not enough eating places to cater for theatregoers?
Those who encourage and support these changes – “Leave our town alone”.
Annoyed
Name and address supplied
30 years ago
Keswick vicar leaving
The Vicar of St. John’s, the Revd. Nigel Holmes, is leaving Keswick to become Vicar of St. John the Baptist church at Mexborough in South Yorkshire.
Mr. Holmes came to Keswick three years ago from Carlisle, where he had been Vicar of St. Herbert’s, Currock since 1984. He was born in Millom and attended Sheffield University.
During his time in Keswick he has become known as the “running Vicar” as he is a keen runner and can be seen many times each week training on the highways and byways of the area.
Planning board
At last week’s meeting of the Lake District Planning Board’s Development Control committee the application by Lakeland Plastics for permission to open a shop, restaurant and cafe in the former railway station premises was turned down.
Objectors to the proposals said that traffic would be increased on the narrow roads leading to the station and that it was an unsuitable use for a listed building.
Members of the Development Control committee have visited the site and agreed that the nature of the Lakeland Plastics business would not take trade away from the town centre, but their main concern was that, once permission was granted, they would have no control over any other type of shop in the building.
Another concern was the change of appearance of the building if the platform was enclosed with glass panels to form a sales area.
40 years ago
Annual meeting of town council
Keswick’s Town Mayor for the past twelve months, Councillor Martin Jordan, was last night performing the last official function of his year of office.
Mr. Jordan was handing over the chain of office to his successor at the annual meeting of the Town Council. The Mayor elect for the past year has been Councillor Eric Impey.
Keswick boy’s ski success
Keswick skier Ian Turnbull took on some of the country’s best opposition at the weekend when he competed in the All English Dry Slope Championships at Gloucester.
lan is twelve and in his first year at Keswick School, and this was his best individual performance so far, coming 9th out of twenty. He skied in two competitions, on the 240 metre age group slalom course and as under 13 representative for the North Region team in the parallel slalom.
Ian, who is interested in all sports, was chosen to train in Austria with the English schools ski squad in March and his place in the weekend competition resulted from the way he performed there.
He is the elder son of Dr. and Mrs. M. R. Turnbull of Keswick, and started ski-ing about five years ago on family holidays in Scotland and abroad. He now trains on the dry slope at the Lairthwaite site of Keswick School.
The previous weekend Ian joined Paul Spencer, Richard Baxter and Stephen Scott in the Keswick School team at the British Schools Snow Championships at Aviemore where they were placed 14th.
Carnival
Three young Keswick children were chosen to play special roles in the Carnival on June 17th.
Ruth Scott, who will be three years old in July, has been chosen Carnival Princess. Ruth is the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Tony Scott, of 6 Eskin Street.
The Carnival Prince will be Stuart Bell, son of Mr. and Mrs. Mike Bell, 47 Millfield Gardens, while eight year old Andrea Cartwright, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Denis Cartwright, Trinity Way, will be the Herald.
The children were judged by Mr. and Mrs. J. Hamilton of Harrington, Workington, at a disco held at the R.A.F.A. Club on Saturday afternoon.
Wedding of Benson – Wilkinson
A surprise awaited Keswick electrician Geoffrey Benson and his bride, Heather, as they left St. John’s Church after their wedding ceremony, for instead of a taxi there was a pony and trap driven by Mr. John Davidson which took them to the Pack Horse Inn, where they were given sherry and a lucky horseshoe by Jim and Merle Wilson before going on to the Edinburgh Woollen Mill to receive the good wishes of the staff.
The happy couple were then driven to the boat landings where a launch had been hired, and with the rest of the wedding party they enjoyed a champagne reception on the trip across the lake to the Derwentwater Hotel, Portinscale where they joined the rest of their guests for the wedding reception.
Geoff, son of Mr. and Mrs. H. E. Benson of 32A Latrigg Close, and Heather, elder daughter of Mr. and Mrs. F. Wilkinson, Greystones, Ambleside Road, were married on April 28th, one of the sunniest April Saturdays anyone can remember. Heather and her father, and her bridesmaids, had walked across the road from her home to the church where the vicar, Canon Richard Watson officiated. Mr. P. D. W. Iliffe was the organist.
Heather wore a crinoline gown of white nylon and lace, trimmed with satin, and her short veil was edged with satin and held in place by a headdress of fresh flowers. She carried a parasol and a bouquet of bridal orchids, carnations, stephanotis and fern.
50 years ago
Allerdale Plans
Plans for a new showroom at Honister Quarry were opposed by Allerdale Council’s planning subcommittee at Cockermouth on Tuesday.
The new building, proposed by the Buttermere and Westmorland Green Slate Company, is for the display of the company’s products; and the committee felt it would be “more in the nature of a shop.”
Because it was thought that such a building would be likely to attract passing traffic, the committee considered that parking space off the road should be included in the plan — an observation which will be passed to the National Park planning authority, which will determine the application.
