Number one: Prize bonds still rock 50 years on

YOUNG Elvis Presley had burst onto the world stage, Jailhouse Rock was a huge hit and the Irish economy was racked by unemployment and emigration.

The year was 1957 when finance minister James Ryan introduced a unique scheme, giving the people a state-guaranteed means of saving and the chance — for a fiver — to win super cash prizes.

Fifty years later, Elvis has passed on, but our love affair with prize bonds has gone from strength to strength. In the past five years alone, sales have gone up by nearly 80%.