25 years on: Royals, rowing and cleaning up lorry exhausts

This week 25 years ago Anglia News was reporting on a royal visit, a rowing regatta and one of the first environmentally-friendly lorries.

Anglia Television has been reporting the news in the East of England since 1959 and its archive is a rich sources of stories.

A quarter of a century ago in 1990, Anglia News was reporting on a Royal visit to Colchester garrison by the Queen Mother. She was the Colonel-in-Chief to the Royal Anglian Regiment.

Click below to watch the original report by Timothy Evans on the Queen Mother's visit transmitted on Anglia News on 16 July 1990

In other royal news, Anglia was reporting on a building that had an historic place in royal constitutional matters.

The woman at the heart of the abdication crisis of 1936, Mrs Wallis Simpson, was granted her divorce from her first husband in a courtroom in Ipswich.

In 1990 there was been a campaign to save the interior of the building because it was going to be converted to offices by Suffolk County Council.

The court was offered up for sale by there was no buyers.

Click below to watch a report from 16 July 1990 from Lindsay Brooke

The county town of Bedford has had a long and illustrious rowing history with the first amateur regatta taking place in 1853 on the River Great Ouse.

These days racing takes place through the heart of the town over a 1,200 metre course with races every two minutes and competitors coming from far and wide representing schools, colleges and clubs. Events are offered for fours and eights across all categories.

Back in 1990 Anglia News ran pictures of the rowing races as part of its sport bulletin

Environmental issues were moving up the news agenda a quarter of a century ago with fears of global warming and traffic pollution in our towns and cities.

In 1990, Anglia News reported on a new development to cut smoky exhausts from diesel trucks. The it was a rather chunky and device that needed to be fitted under the lorry.

Its clean, green credentials were demonstrated with the use of a white handkerchief.

Click below to watch the original report by Rebecca Atherstone transmitted on Anglia News in July 1990