Journal 150th special edition, Newmarket Journal
The only way to find those stories was to comb the newspaper's archive, week by week, month by month, year by year. In total, the project took six months, involving evening and weekend work for Alison Hayes (researcher and writer) and Duncan Bradley (designer and editor), but both felt it was worth it if they were to produce a supplement of real value. There were so many wonderful stories, some of national as well as local importance. It's hard to single out specific ones for mention, as there were so many, but a few come to mind. In 1885, Jockey Club workmen, laying new turf, came across a strange-looking mound and proceeded to level it. It turned out to be an ancient burial chamber containing the remains of a warrior chief, his wife, and his horse, believed to be around 2,000 years old. In 1946, Newmarket stationer William Tindall had a bullet removed from his chest which had been there for 28 years. As a captain, he had been wounded by machine gun fire while serving with the Suffolk Regiment in France in 1918. 1961 saw Tommy, one of just a handful of shunt horses still working on the railways, head to Wembley for the Horse of the Year show, together with Alfred Newton, who looked after him. He travelled to the capital by train, of course. "He'll love it at Wembley," said Alfred. "He's a dreadful swank." And in the same year, 15-year-old Manchester-born stable lad David Jones was working for a Newmarket trainer and living in a caravan at his stables. He spoke to the Journal about his upcoming role in Coronation Street as Ena Sharple's nephew. Five years later, he became a member of The Monkees, whose first single, Last Train to Clarksville, launched them to super stardom. The supplement ran to 48 pages and included paid-for advertising. It was included as an insert in the edition of February 23, 2023, and was very well received. In the weeks that followed, people would call into the office to say how much they had enjoyed it and to ask how they could get hold of extra copies because they wanted to send it to friends, and family, who used to live in the town and wanted to read it. Copies of the supplement were also given to local primary schools to use as an aid in their local history studies.