Archive material from the last 100 years has been added to the Internet site for the Hinckley Times – in response to a plea from readers.

Now Hinckleyans, and readers from further afield, can catch up with A Century of News in the new feature.

The Hinckley Times has been reporting events in the area during three centuries after being founded by Thomas Baxter in 1889.

There have been only five editors in that time – the current holder of the post is Diane Chalmers.

The website tells readers: “In a Century of News we board a time machine taking us back to a different millennium to look at the stories that made the headlines in the 20th century, an era when life was to change beyond recognition.

“In the century The Hinckley Times appeared 5,200 times – first every Saturday, then each Friday, and now every Thursday.”

One of the first reports in the new feature describes the evening of New Year’s Eve 1899.

The weather was calm, mild and fair and many local people had attended their church for a midnight service.

At St Mary’s the vicar preached on “I am the Alpha and the Omega” (the beginning and the end).

The Hinckley Times is BT Weekly Newspaper of the Year, a title gained after beating off competition from England, Scotland Wales and Northern Ireland.

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