1662 - The first recorded Punch & Judy show in Britain is widely accepted to have taken place in Covent Garden, London, in May 1662. The performance was observed by Samuel Pepys and documented in his diary, although he didn't specifically name it a Punch & Judy show.

1984 - The Thames Barrier is officially opened, preventing the floodplain of most of Greater London from being flooded except under extreme circumstances.

1765 - HMS Victory, the ship which became the flagship of British Admiral Horatio Nelson, was launched at Chatham. The ship is preserved today as a historic relic at Portsmouth.

1979 - Six rock-cut tombs at Heysham in Lancashire became Grade I listed and a Scheduled Ancient Monument. Further excavation in 1993 on land below the stone coffins showed that the site had been occupied about 12,000 years previously.

1980 - The SAS stormed the terrorist-occupied Iranian Embassy at Knightsbridge in London. Four gunmen were killed in the attack and all 19 hostages were rescued.

1471 - Edward IV defeated a Lancastrian Army and killed Edward, Prince of Wales. Many of the Lancastrian nobles and knights sought sanctuary in Tewkesbury Abbey although the Abbey was not officially a sanctuary.

1926 - Britain’s miners walked out and in a move of solidarity, workers from other industries joined them. This was the first ever general strike in Britain. By 4th May, the number of strikers had reached 1.5 million.

2016 - Ranked outsiders Leicester City win the Premier League title. They achieved the impossible and were crowned champions for the first time in their history at odds of 5,000- 1.

1840 - The first British Penny Black stamp went on sale. Invented by Rowland Hill, it was the world’s first adhesive postage stamp and it became valid for postage on 6th May.