THE ARCHIVES

100 years ago

The housing problem in Dundee is daily increasing in seriousness. House-hunters are becoming desperate. A four-roomed cottage in the west end of the city was advertised as being to let in yesterday’s Courier and before the evening there were 300 applicants for the tenancy. The advertiser told The Courier that applications were made in person, by letter and even by telegraph. One letter sent from Perth arrived by express delivery. Many applicants were young war brides at present living with their parents.

50 years ago

Nine climbers were injured when a snow avalanche swept down the high slopes of the Coire Cas, in the Cairngorms, yesterday. The men – mostly students, but including some soldiers – were all from a party undergoing winter survival training at Glenmore Lodge. Among those buried were two instructors. Rescuers dug frantically in the snow with their bare hands and pulled the buried men clear. They were given first aid and wrapped in blankets. Seven were stretcher cases.

25 years ago

Britain’s skating stars Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean were greeted by a standing ovation, a flurry of Union Jacks and an avalanche of flowers as an impressive original dance put them back on course for a gold medal at the Winter Olympics in Lillehammer. All but one of the judges on the nine-strong panel rated Torvill and Dean’s rumba the best, with the British and Ukrainian judges both awarding perfect sixes for presentation. “We wanted to skate well tonight for ourselves and our audience,” said Torvill.