Glimpse history through old images of Wokingham, Berkshire, England.
Female Aviator 1930
Winifred Evelyn Spooner in 1933, at the age of 32, after the cold she caught at Ratcliffe Aerodrome, Leicestershire led to pneumonia and a related heart attack.
By then, she had received a pilot’s license – only the 16th woman to do so – and achieved a lot of success as an active competitor in sports aviation. She was one of the first women in teh Wokingham area to drive a car.
A big civic ceremony was held in Wokingham for the famous female aviator in 1930, then considered her hometown because Winifred and her brothers Hugh (Tony) and Frank lived at 4, South Drive.
The brothers leased some farmland and stables near Folly Court to school polo-ponies, hunters and steeplechasers. On a spare piece of the land, Winifred built a wooden hangar for her Moth from Stag Lane, offering lessons and an air-taxi service across Britain and France.
Gallant … Miss Spooner! Aka Gallan’ Miss Spooner (1930) – British Pathé on YouTube
Royal Merchant Navy School 1935
On Prize Day 1935, at the Royal Merchant Navy School, the prizes were given out by Admiral Earl Jellicoe.
Prize Day (1935) – British Pathé on YouTube
Space Age Hairdresser 1962
A quirky 1962 newsreel shows the outside of Pountney International Hairdresser salon. Inside, Daphne Cave has her hair modelled for the Year 2000, as envisaged by Alec Pountney.
Space Age Hair Fashions (1962) – British Pathé on YouTube
