Director's Note

Fear of “helmet hair”. Remarkably, this was one of the reasons people gave for not wanting to wear a crash helmet while riding a motorcycle or scooter before the 1970s. In this issue’s cover story, Sharad Pandian recounts how a campaign to get people to voluntarily wear helmets failed, and why the government had to turn to legislation instead.

Not all heroes wear capes; sometimes they wear football shorts. Nick Aplin’s piece on how Singapore dominated the Malaya Cup before the war will help ensure these men take their rightful place in the annals of local football greats.

One of these men was Choo Seng Quee, also known as Uncle Choo. A skilful player in his younger days, he turned his hand to coaching after the war and was instrumental in Singapore’s memorable victory over Penang in the 1977 Malaysia Cup. A. Thiyaga Raju and Gary Koh chronicle the life and career of a beloved football icon.

Around the time that Uncle Choo was making a name for himself as a coach, a grand piano at the Victoria Memorial Hall was gaining a reputation as well, but not in a good way. It was so bad that a renowned pianist compared it to cookware. It may not have been a great musical instrument, but its history makes for a great read in the hands of retired physics professor and composer Bernard Tan.

Speaking of great reads, don’t miss the story of the missing ancient gold coins. These two coins were found in the middle of the 19th century but mysteriously vanished a few decades later. Where did they come from and how did they disappear? Through a clever bit of reverse engineering, librarian Foo Shu Tieng has come up with some compelling new theories about their origins.

No need for clever guesswork regarding the origins of printing in Singapore though. This year marks the 200th anniversary of printing here. If you want to discover the early pioneers and see examples of the first material printed on the island, don’t miss librarian Gracie Lee’s essay.

These are just some of the interesting stories we have for you. There’s more of course, from the “Eat More Wheat” campaign to the discovery of a fascinating manuscript of Malay pantuns in a Portuguese archive and the history of the Singapore Ballet (formerly Singapore Dance Theatre). We hope you’ll agree that this is yet another well-choreographed issue!

Alicia Yeo
Director
National Library, Singapore