A snooker champ, fears over heritage and an aide to Adolf
SATURDAY 25 October 1947 saw a Scot crowned as world snooker champion for the first time, Edinburgh’s Walter Donaldson triumphing over Fred Davis in the final.
In other news there was a stir caused by a proposal part-funded by holiday camp founder Billy Butlin to build a memorial theatre to Robert Burns in his Alloway home town, while Edinburgh’s George Square was the subject of much debate, with heritage campaigners arguing against its demolition. Further afield, reports were coming in that Martin Bormann, deputy to Adolf Hitler, was still alive, albeit in Russian hands. It was later discovered that the prominent Nazi figure died in May 1945 and that he had probably committed suicide. Scot is World Snooker Champion Walter Donaldson yesterday succeeded Joe Davis as world professional snooker champion. Joe was at the Leicester Square Hall, London, to congratulate the Scottish player when he won the first two frames to gain a winning margin of 73 frames to 49 over Fred Davis, brother of the retiring champion. Another to witness Donaldson’s triumph was his father who had travelled from Scotland to be “in at the finish.”
Donaldson won three more frames for an interval lead of 76-50, Davis won the last four at night, making the score at the close 78-54. Schoolboys’ physique: Increase in height and weight during War Mr G. H. Sommerfield, of Allan Glen’s School, Glasgow, yesterday disclosed that while investigating the possibility of grading boys for school athletics by a combined age, weight, and height factor, he had discovered that during the war years there was an average increase in the weight and height of secondary schoolboys between the ages of 14 and 17 years.
Mr Sommerfield said that in collecting data for his research he had carried out checks of age, weight and height for the school population at Allan Glen’s in 1932, 1936, 1939 and 1945. The figure for the 700 or so boys had not varied greatly on the first three occasions.
In 1945, however, it was discovered that in the 14-17 years age group there was an average increase of 2 1/2 to 3lbs in weight, and an increase in height of between one and two inches, compared with the 1932 figures. Hitler’s deputy “still alive” Otto Ohlendorf, last of the big killers of the Nazi regime, and now on trial as a war criminal, said today that he believes Martin Bormann (Hitler’s deputy) is in Russian hands by choice. 0 Walter Donaldson became the first Scottish world snooker champion in 1947. Burns Memorial Theatre: Alloway regarded as ideal site Correspondence in The Scotsman this week has revived interest in Mr W. E. Butlin’s offer of £10,000 and a site for a Burns Memorial Theatre. Burns was certainly a potential playwright, and the idea of a memorial theatre must commend itself to many people. George Square protest: National Trust against demolition of houses An emphatic protest against the proposed University extension scheme, and in particular the sugand gested demolition of the houses around George Square, has been sent to the Lord Provost of Edinburgh on behalf of the National Trust for Scotland by the Earl of Wemyss.
“Quite apart from their aesthetic merits,” says the letter, “they are good and dignified houses in which to live while in the neighbourhood there are large areas of mean and squalid property which could well be demolished instead.”
The Trust feels it is not its function to go into details about any of these matters, or to suggest alternative schemes.
But it is aware that alternatives do exist, and feels that some of them are more in keeping with the essential character of the city, which is not suitable for “large and imposing buildings”.