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Read more about the article Prangs, crashes, accidents: Part 1
Volkswagen Beetle hit by a steam locomotive at Adamstown, NSW, January 14, 1963.

Prangs, crashes, accidents: Part 1

As a career fireman, transport collector Ken Magor naturally accumulated many photographs of accidents and disasters. Here are some of them, along with interesting stories that came to light after the photos were published. Car meets steam locomotive Collision between Volkswagen Beetle and steam locomotive at Adamstown, January 14, 1963. After this photo appeared in our book Destination Newcastle, I received a letter from Laurie Bowman, of Charlestown, who told how he had been working that day as an electrician at the BHP. He had just finished a day shift and, as usual, bought a copy…

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Shaking a tower with Rev. Spooner

My problem with spoonerisms started a long time ago. Once I heard about poor old Reverend Spooner and his habit of accidentally transposing the first letters of words in an expression I started doing it myself - deliberately. Once I started I didn't seem able to stop, and now they tend to spring automatically into my head. Somebody tells me that it’s pouring with rain, for example, my brain does the transposition and, hey presto, it’s roaring with pain instead. Years ago when my daughter made a sticky date pudding I couldn’t help instinctively renaming it…

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Read more about the article The phantom of the Victoria Theatre and other cinema tales
The old Victoria Theatre, now undergoing restoration.

The phantom of the Victoria Theatre and other cinema tales

THE entertainment Max Donnan enjoyed during his long career in Newcastle cinemas wasn’t always on the big screen. Some of it came from the clientele, some came from the quirks and challenges of the various theatres and a little bit came from the ghost. That was the ghost at the old Victoria Theatre in Perkin Street, which rejoiced in Max’s time in the full name “British Victoria Theatre”. The Vic has a treasured place in Max’s memory, but he admits the ghost rattled him more than a little on the two occasions he encountered it. He…

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