‘Health and Safety gone mad” is an oft used phrase these days and, looking through the archive, there have in the past been many events which look like they were enormous fun but which you can’t imagine being allowed to do these days. One such is piano smashing.

I can’t help feeling there must be a better way to retire an old “joanna” rather than smashing it to bits, but back in the 1950s and 1960s, giving them a good going over with a sledgehammer was all the rage. It seems that once television came in, the old piano in the front parlour suddenly became redundant and, as no-one wanted to buy them, rather than let them sit gathering dust, teams of men would smash them to bits at village fetes as entertainment or to raise money (not to mention breaking records).

And so it was at the King George V playing fields in Tolpits Lane, Watford, on August 19, 1967.

There were four teams taking part, each of which had to smash a piano into bits small enough to fit through a nine-inch hole. Three of the teams were from Holywell Community Centre and the fourth from WEMCo. Their aim: To break the record of four minutes 28 seconds.

I’ll let the Watford Observer of the following Friday take up the story.

“Within seconds, the Community Association’s darts team had broken the handle of one of their two hammers. The second team, drawn from the football side, knocked out the head of the second sledgehammer.

“But even with the handicap of only one rather shaky hammer, the third team, the Do Re Me’s, won easily in nine minutes, 37 seconds. WEMCo tried mightily to beat them, but were thwarted by the piano’s obstinate iron frame.

“The Community Association hope the contest will be the first of many knock-out competitions between companies and societies throughout the county. Whitbread Breweries has given a shield which will be held for three months. Then it is up to the winning team to choose what form the next challenge will take.”

And that was that. Why piano smashing fell out of fashion is something of a mystery – maybe they just ran out of pianos? Or maybe people found something better to do. Mind you, it’s better than smashing up the village hall itself.

 

In the same edition of the Watford Observer, August 25, 1967, there’s a rather more heartwarming story concerning a heroic army major. The article reads as follows:

“An army major from Bushey who sailed a small boat through dangerous reefs in the Indian Ocean to get help for a wounded soldier has been awarded the Queen’s Commendation for Brave Conduct.

“He is Major Ronald Emery, 38, of the Royal Engineers, who lives in Gulland Close.

“Major Emery was in charge of a survey party on the south coast of the island of Socotra in the Indian Ocean when a soldier in one of the boats was flung into the sea and injured by a propeller after the boat had been struck by a wave, said the Ministry of Defence (Army).

“Major Emery recovered the man, administered morphine and realised the wounds required medical attention, which was three days away by land. To save time, he decided to make the journey by sea taking a corporal with him to help crew the boat.

“Without any knowledge of the prevailing tidal streams or currents and with only a small hand compass to navigate the notorious reefs, they made the dangerous night passage, collected a medical officer and returned with him. The injured man was later evacuated by helicopter.”