YESTERDAYS 1977
Twenty dogs live in the home of Miss Margaret Williams, according to her neighbours. And they want the dogs out.
They say the animals cause noise and smell and are a public health hazard.
And now Cardiff City Council are ready once again to evict the dogs from Miss Williams’ home in Richards Street, Cathays.
The council have evicted the dogs before and now Miss Williams is defying a court order to get rid of the animals.
Miss Williams, right, insists that she will not part with her pets. She described the house as “derelict, but not dirty”.
“I love dogs, they are my life and if the council take them away, I will fill my house with Alsatian guard dogs to stop them trying in future,” said Miss Williams.
Next-door neighbours Mr Clive James and his wife Christina both say they have been complaining for years about the situation but nothing seems to be done about it.
“They take one lot of animals away and in a short while she fills the house up again and the whole legal process has to be gone through once more. These dogs create a terrible smell and during the hot summer last year it was almost unbearable,” said Mr James. Angela Rippon these days seems to make more news than she reads – and she could be forgiven for being a bit blasé about being in the public eye. After all, it’s claimed 27m people switched on to see her in the Morecambe and Wise Show on Christmas night.
But what gave her one of the biggest thrills of 1976? Why, news that the regulars of Aberflyarff’s Golden Dap public house have formed a society in her honour – The Angela Rippon Lusting Society. It meets twice-weekly and its chairman is Gren, the Echo cartoonist who felt that his Ponty and Pop strip needed a sex symbol to replace Bromide Lil.
Now Angela has written to the Echo enthusiastically accepting the sex symbol job. “What a tremendous compliment,” she says. “My sincere thanks to both you and Gren.” She’s collecting copies of all the cartoons about her – and there are more and more each week – but Gren’s are top of her list. “And you can tell Gren that,” she says.
At least one public house in South Wales has applied for a licence to form an Angela Rippon Lusting Society, and badges and cards will be printed. But as Gren says: “If Miss Rippon wants to open a society, Aberflyarff’s got first call – we’ll even pay for her beer.” Cardiff City are to seek top-level talks with British Railways to clamp down on the kind of hooligans among fans who wrecked four coaches on a football special. Rampaging fans left a £2,000 trail of destruction as they returned from Bristol Rovers’ Eastville ground after a 1-1 draw.
They smashed windows in shops, damaged houses and cars – including a police panda – and there were clashes with Bristol fans on the way from Eastville to Stapleton Road Station to catch the special. Police estimated the damage at “nearly £2,000”. Peter Sayer, above right, has spoken about the moment he kept his cool in front of goal to score the glorious FA Cup third-round match-winner against Tottenham Hotspur at Ninian Park on Saturday.
“I have missed half a dozen clearcut chances this season because I lost my head,” said Cardiff City’s goal hero.
“I think it is because in my overeagerness to score I have tried to hit the ball too hard and lost direction.
“But this time it all went right for me when Ralph Coates made a mistake,” he said.
“Steve Grapes headed opponents towards me.
“I headed the ball down and moved forward a few strides.
“I wanted to get in my shot before the ball reached the sandy patch.
“I caught it just right on the volley and it flew into the corner of the net. “What a thrill. “The winner against Spurs in my first FA Cup tie.
“It’s a goal I’ll never forget,” said the cup hero.
Sayer was playing because Robin Friday was cup-tied, whilst Derek Showers was injured. over two