Reporter’s diary

Press, 30 June 1982, Page 2

Reporter’s diary

Crew news

DOUG WRIGHT, a crew' member of the round-the-world yacht race contender - Ceramco New Zealand will give a public address in Christchurch bn Saturday evening. This is thought to be the first visit to Christchurch ’ by a member of the crew. The address has been organised by the Medbury School Old Boys’ Association. Mr Wright will speak at the . school hall at 8 p.m. and ticket reservations are limited to 260. Those interested are invited to phone 516-169 for reservations. White gold ' THE RANGIORA District Council was discussing the merits of white lining its more important, roads. It was suggested that a white line would be a help to drivers, especially in fog..The County Engineer (Mr G. J. Hughson) said-that broken < white lines would cost about $7O a kilometre and contin.u.ous lines abotit $lO5. “Is that white paint dr gold?” said Cr M. H. Harris? -Norwegian white? •

MOST television viewers aie familier with the dead parrot which helped -to make John

Cleese famous.' But how many Christchurch people have in their' home a stuffed seagull? One benevolent owner would be enough for the Court which needs the dead bird for its production of the Chekhov play "Seagull” on July 17. The theatre also needs some weathered old-style cane furniture — a small settee, a chair and a table — also a Persia'n-style carpet, bluegrey in colour, measuring about’ 3.6 m by 2.4 m. Anyone willing to lend the Court Theatre-any or all of these things is asked, to ring Miss Jane Dean' (66-992). '. Lady Di-day “TO THE whole of France the Princess of Wales is simply 'Lady Di' and rio amount of patient British tuition about Royal titles is going to persuade French headline writers to the contrary?.’ said “Peterborough” in the “Daily Telegraph.” '.‘News of the birth was variously reported there as ‘Lady Di E’st Maman’ (‘Le Figaro') and ‘Lady Di: C'est Un Garcon' (‘France-Soir’l. However, 'Le Monde’ lived up to its male chauvinist reputation and headed its report of the Princess’s longest day: ‘Hourra Clfarlg”’

Hot property THE SINGAPORE Government has announced that it will build a $5OOO million underground railway system. Construction will start in 1985 and will take eight to 10 years to complete. The Government will sell some of the 255 ha of reclaimed land at Marina South to finance the project. Some property sources say that the profit from the sale of the land could finance four or five similar projects. The value of the 255 ha is $NZ63.750 million — or SNZ2S million for a quarter-acre section. Lost and found THE LATEST issue of "Oxford,” the journal of the Oxford Society, contains a list of “members whose addresses are unknown.” Listed under Magdalen College is "Fraser. J. M., Nareen, Victoria. Australia,” who matriculated in 1949. An Australian Rhodes scholar has already rung with the suggestion: "Try The Lodge, Canberra, the Australian Prime - Minister’s official residence. John (Malcolm) Fraser has been Prime Minister of Australia since November. 1975?’ To. rcas-

sure the Rhodes scholar there was nothing anti-Aus-tralian in the lapse, the society secretary told him that for many years copies of the journal were sent to Miss M. Roberts in Grantham. It was only in 1979 that the society realised they should be going to Margaret Thatcher, but when a letter was sent to apologise, Mrs Thatcher replied that there was nothing to worry about — the journals had beensafely forwarded. Grave moan A CHURCH magazine in Hampreston, near Wimborne in Dorset recently had this among its notices: "Churchyard maintenance is becoming increasingly difficult and it will be appreciated if parishioners would cut the grass round their own graves." In a jam SOVIET housewives are in a jam. “Trud." the union newspaper. reports a dire shortage of lids for preserving jars. The paper says that the Soviet Union has' kept up well with the production of jars, but for years has forgoucn about making lids.