Back in the day… we delve into our archives to see what was going on 10 years ago, 25 years ago and 50 years ago this week

If you have any photos or memories you would like to share with us, please email us at newsdesk@newburynews.co.uk

10 years ago – April 3, 2014

Cat TB scare

Newbury is at the centre of a bio-alert after the first known case of tuberculosis infection jumping species from cat to human.

Public Health England has revealed that four people were exposed to the Mycobacterium bovis (M. bovis) strain after contact with domestic cats.

Two developed the full-blown disease – the first cases on record of it jumping the species barrier from household pets to humans.

The first instance was that of a 19-year-old, of Digby Road, who became infected after she found a wound on her five-month-old kitten Onyx – a pet she had only had for six weeks.

She suffered fever, chest pains, hallucinations and pneumonia-like symptoms before her condition was diagnosed and successfully treated.

Onyx died from the disease.

Alarm bells were first rung by Newbury vet Carl Gorman from Falkland Surgery in Newtown Road, who found a cluster of M.bovis cases in his feline patients.

Subsequently, nine cases of M. bovis infection were investigated in Newbury by the Animal Health and Veterinary Laboratories Agency (AHVLA) and PHE during 2013.

25 years ago – April 1, 1999

Store’s revamp

Work has started on an extensive revamp and extension to Sainsbury’s store in Mill Lane, Newbury.

The supermarket giant is increasing the retail floor space in the store by more than a third, bringing it up to 45,000 sq ft.

Store manager Mr Andy Smith said that the supermarket would remain open throughout the work which started last week and is expected to be completed by September.

Sainsbury’s already employs 243 full and part-time staff at the store and Mr Smith said the extension would increase that figure, although it was too early to know how many news jobs would be created.

The extension was needed to accommodate an increase in demand, he said.

“Business has grown significantly as a result of the by-pass literally from the week it opened,” he said, adding that the decrease in traffic had made the store more accessible.

The extension was given planning permission last year by West Berkshire Council which placed a condition on Sainsbury’s that it allowed shoppers in the town centre to park in its car park free of charge for two hours.

50 years ago – April 2, 1974

No pomp for Joe

Hungerford now has a town instead of parish council with the former chairman Mr Joe Brady becoming mayor.

The decision was taken at last Thursday’s annual parish meeting when townsfolk voted in favour of the change under the new local government reorganisation which came into effect on Monday.

The vote which put Mr Brady into mayoral office did not come before a spirited discussion as to the wisdom of the change.

The Domesday Book was even cited during an examination of the pros and cons of the question, and one parishioner referred back to events affecting Hungerford in 1214 AD.

There was some concern over which title should take precedence – the mayor or the constable.

Mr Brady himself thought there was some confusion about the title of mayor.

Some people, he said, “think of it as being a borough mayor with all the pomp and ceremony that goes with it. I don’t think we want it to be like that.”