50 YEARS AGO

BLACKBURN nursing bosses appointed a royal princess as their very own Florence Nightingale. Princess Florence Olateri-Olagbegi of Owo, Nigeria, arrived at Queens Park Hospital to train as a nurse. The eldest daughter of King H.H Olagbegi came to England because her home village had no qualified medical staff.

25 YEARS AGO

A HOUSING association planned to spend £400,000 on a new development for single working people. To meet a crying need for one bedroom flats the complex will be built in the middle of Blackburn's bed-sitter land. The 39-flat block to be built on Preston New Road will house 47 people including the conversion of three neighbouring houses.

10 YEARS AGO

NEW UNIFORMS for Lancashire ambulance men were modelled on TV programme wardrobes. The mercy crews of Lancashire Ambulance Service were influenced by the actors' uniforms on BBC1 show Casualty. The new one-piece zip suit was styled on the ones used in the prime time TV series with a green and blue colour scheme, designed to be a calming effect on patients in shock.