“CHIM chiminey, Chim chiminey, Chim chim cher-ee! A sweep is as lucky, As lucky can be,” sang Dick Van Dyke in Mary Poppins in 1964.

His ‘Cockney’ accent remains a global symbol of horror, but the song’s lyrics touched on a superstition which died out with the mass use of open fires.

There was a time when sweeps were commonly invited to weddings, as their touch was said to bring good fortune.

By 1973 the tradition was quaint enough to merit a newspaper story and picture.

Exactly 42 years ago today we carried a photo of a happy couple being greeted with a handshake by a top-hatted man carrying a set of brushes.

“Chimney sweep James Trowbridge,” we said, “surprises Mr Brian Trinder and his wife Miss Linda Watson after their marriage at St Barnabas Church, Ferndale Road, Swindon.

“Mr Trinder is the younger son of Mr and Mrs A Trinder, of Cornwall Avenue, Swindon. Miss Watson is the younger daughter of Mr and Mrs F Watson, of Norman Road, Swindon.

“The couple are honeymooning in Malta.”

The reception, we added, was held at Swindon Rugby Club, and the couple planned to live in Greenmeadow.

Over at Fairford, meanwhile, what turned out to be an intriguing footnote in British aviation history was unfolding.

It doesn’t take a general knowledge genius to name the UK and France as the only nations to run Concorde services from 1973 until the fleet was taken out of service in 2003.

What few people realise is that other nations were interested until wrangles began over whether the supersonic aircraft met US environmental regulations.

Potential buyers included airlines in America, pre-revolutionary Iran and China.

A Chinese delegation visited Fairford to see test pilot Brian Trubshaw to put prototype Condorde 002 through its paces.

“The Chinese Foreign Minister, Mr Chi Peng-Fei, and his party of diplomats saw Concorde 002 give what is now being claimed as its best yet display,” we said.

“It carried out a series of low-level runs with tight climbing turns similar to the one the Russian Concordski was doing when it fell from the sky and crashed.”

‘Concordski’ was the nickname of a failure-prone Soviet Concorde clone which had recently crashed at the Paris Air Show.

We added that the Chinese guests were impressed by the Fairford display, and planned to buy three of the machines.

A rather more down to earth mode of transport was preferred by a 33-year-old Swindon vehicle examiner called John Tincknell.

Mr Tincknell, who lived in Buckingham Road with his wife, Jane, and children Rebecca and Tim, had just taken delivery of a used Bristol bus which he planned to turn into a motorhome.

We said: “He expects to take 300 hours tidying up the paintwork, stripping the seats, putting in berths and mattresses and fitting the sink and cooker units.

“So far he has managed about 25 hours work, most of them at home.

“The bus, which was taken out of service in February, is being kept at Chiseldon Service Station.”

We hope Mr Tincknell and his family enjoyed many happy trips in their bus.

If they did, they would undoubtedly have found themselves negotiating Stratton Crossroads, which was soon to have the twinned mini-roundabouts we know today.

A council spokesman told us: “This is by no means the first ‘facelift’ that this junction has received. Some years ago the original crossroads were staggered in order to improve safety.

“But by 1967 the junction was being used by half a million vehicles a month and 12 accidents a year were being reported.

“The layout was again altered and traffic signals installed.

“Since then traffic has increased by half as much again and in 1972 there were 17 accidents causing 15 injuries.”

It was also all change at Swindon’s ABC cinema, which had been opened in 1937 as a grand old art deco-influenced picture house on the former site of a row of Regent Street businesses.

By 1973, thanks largely to television, cinema audiences were dwindling and attempts were made to win them back by offering more choice.

Before the rise of the multiplex, that meant dividing existing spaces into smaller ones.

The ABC’s conversion into three spaces took as many months and cost more than £100,000.

“In the foyer,” we said, “the ceiling has been lowered by 10ft 6in. The two existing box offices have been retained. The two flights of stairs which used to lead to the circle seats now lead to ABC One. ABC Two and Three are downstairs.

“ABC has its own projection box and the other two smaller cinemas share a twin box.”

The changes were enough to buy the cinema an extra 18 years of life, seeing it well into an era when countless others across the country became bingo halls, clubs or were simply demolished.

These days, of course, it’s the Savoy pub.