Village pub could be knocked down and litter pickers clean up river bank: Memories from 1992 and 1994

In our regular On This Week column, we look back through the pages of the Lynn News from April 7 – 13, 1994 as well as a picture from April 1992…A boom in bungalows would be bad news for Downham’s already strained medical care services and amenities. That is the view of West Norfolk planners who also say that a ‘sea’ of single-storey properties would be unimaginative and unattractive, in their opposition to a planning application from major builders Bennett Homes. The company wants to swap houses for 40 bungalows on the third phase of the Parkfields development north of the town’s southern by-pass. Planners want to see a greater mix of houses and bungalows on the site, to prevent Downham becoming too heavily dependent on retired people which could lead to a further strain on the town’s services and amenities, particularly medical care.Dersingham’s Dun Cow pub would be demolished if plans to turn it into a supermarket go ahead. Brighton-based Wyncote Developments have submitted plans to the borough council for a food store with a 123-space car park. Villagers have the chance to air their views on the proposal when a public meeting is held at Dersingham First School next week. If the plans go ahead then the pub – which closed in 1993 – would be razed to the ground.

Handbags could be ‘banned bags’ at Lynn’s new Matalan store – as a novel way of cracking down on crime. The newly-opened American-style discount shop has introduced a policy of taking large bags from shoppers, but when three friends were told their bags were too big they stormed out. Matalan offers club members the chance to snap up brand fashions at bargain prices and says it can afford to do so by keeping criminals out.West Norfolk Borough Council planners are to consider a revised project for another out-of-town shopping complex on an 11-acre site off Hardwick Road, Lynn. Already three stores – Wickes (DIY), Halfords (motor supplies) and Scottish Power (electrical goods) – are said to be interested in the scheme which will take in land between Campbell’s factory and the railway line. A drive-through restaurant and a bank are further possibilities, but no names have been given. Fakenham romped to victory in the Norfolk Senior Cup final at Carrow Road, beating a tired and dispirited Lynn side by 4-0. With Darren Rolph and Darren Bloodworth injured, and Hamish Curtis cup-tied, Lynn’s makeshift defence was caught out time and time again by Fakenham’s long ball tactics and livewire striker Paul Reeve who benefited with a hat-trick. Reeve was named as the Lynn News man of the match,The busiest shop in Hunstanton last Friday must have been the new Sense charity shop in the High Street. Nearly 200 eager shoppers milled around waiting, and burst through doors when they opened just before 11am. Bustling, bumping bargain-hunters besieged the counter, where Mr Peter Withers, shops development manager for the charity’s Eastern Region and new manageress Angie Randall were controlling the queue at the till. Mr Withers assured shoppers that the displays of menswear, bric-a-brac, household goods, dresses, babywear and crafts would all be quickly replenished.Overhead signs similar to motorway gantries have been suggested to ease drivers’ confusion at the Hardwick roundabout in Lynn. Since new lane markings were introduced last year, scores of drivers have been bewildered about which lanes they are supposed to take. Some motorists are even prepared to take long detours in order to avoid negotiating the Hardwick area. The area road safety committee has suggested the overhead signs and will be raising the matter with Norfolk County Council’s highways department.Actors in Victorian costume became a familiar sight in Lynn town centre when filming began for BBC 2’s major new drama series, Martin Chuzzlewit. The area around King’s Staithe Lane, King’s Staithe Square and part of Queen Street has been transformed into a London street scene of the era for the dramatization of the Charles Dickens novel. Rosy-faced women in long dresses and high bonnets, gentlemen in tall hats, coats and tails, a soot-blackened chimney sweep, and Oliver Twist-type urchins mingled on the set between shooting sequences. Horses and carts were also brought in for some scenes. A production crew of about 50 are involved and the main stars in the series include Sir John Mills and Paul Scofield, although it is understood neither was in Lynn for the scenes shot this week. The historic Bank House in King Staithe Square is being used for bank scenes and nearby a set has been constructed with a mock frontage featuring a greengrocer’s, poultry and biscuit shops.