ONE of Britain's top pathologists, Professor James Webster from Beacon Hill, Rubery, had been forced to retire on medical grounds. He had also been involved with the Home Office Forensic Science Laboratory since it had been established in Birmingham and had assisted in countless criminal investigations. Among these had been the Lickey End murder in October 1944 and the wartime discovery of a skeleton in Hagley wood.

MEMBERS of the Bromsgrove branch of the Electric Association for Women enjoyed an outing to Stourport Power Station where they saw the generators at work. This was followed by tea. The association's aim was to encourage women to use more of the ever-increasing range of domestic electrical appliances coming on the market.

GARRINGTONS in Bromsgrove unveiled its new state-of-the-art laboratory at its Newton Factory, Aston Fields, in front of 200 invited guests. The lab had been converted from two floors of what had been the canteen. The day was a triumph for the back room boffins who now had up to the minute equipment at their disposal. The firm had been in Bromsgrove for ten years during which time it had grown to become Europe's largest and most modern forgings plant producing some 150,000,000 units annually.

A SCHEME to build houses on Oakalls Farm in Bromsgrove looked set to fail. The county council's chief planing officer said the area fell outside the town's development zone.

IN a break with tradition, organised football would in future be allowed to be played on pitches owned by Bromsgrove Urban District Council on Sundays, the authority agreed. It followed a plea by Worcestershire Cadets who could only meet for a game on Sundays. However, Tory councillor Edgar Longney declaring his opposition saying he believed: "It was not something Bromsgrove people wanted or expected."