1949 - Britain’s first jet bomber, the Canberra, was given its first test flight at Warton in Lancashire and was flown by Wing Cdr. RP Beaumont.

1945 - The publication of the first of the 'Thomas the Tank Engine' series by the Rev. Wilbert Awdry. It was entitled 'The Three Railway Engines' and featured Edward, Gordon and Henry.

1964 - Interior designer and businessman Terence Conran opened his first Habitat Shop in London's Fulham Road.

1824 - The National Gallery in Trafalgar Square, London opened to the public. It houses a collection of more than 2,300 paintings dating from the mid-13th century to 1900.

1662 - The first recorded Punch & Judy Show in Britain took place at Covent Garden in London performed by the Italian puppet showman Pietro Gimonde from Bologna, otherwise known as Signor Bologna.

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 now preserved 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.