View todays celebrity birthdays and find out what happened in history today.
What : day is it
1819 – Prince Albert, Consort to Queen Victoria, was born in Bavaria.
1936 – Over 7,000 people queued to see the first high definition television pictures on sets at the Olympia Radio Show, west London. The pictures were transmitted by the BBC from Alexandra Palace, introduced by Leslie Mitchell, their first announcer.
1942 – World War II: The beginning of the Holocaust in western Ukraine. At 2.30 am the German security police evicted Jews from their houses, divided them into groups of 120, packed them in freight cars and deported 2000 to Belzec death camp. 500 of the sick, along with children, were murdered on the spot.
1959 – British car manufacturers Austin and Morris launched a small family car – the ‘Mini’.
1959 – The Radio Show opened at Earls Court in London, with the appearance of some of the first ‘transistor’ radios.
1963 – Cilla Black made her first major concert appearance at The Odeon Cinema, Southport, on a bill with the Beatles.
1967 – The birth of Michael Gove, former Secretary of State for Education and Conservative Party Member of Parliament for the Surrey Heath constituency. He is also an author and former Times journalist who remains on friendly terms with proprietor Rupert Murdoch.
1981 – Steve Ovett recaptured the mile-run record which had been taken from him just a week earlier by Sebastian Coe. Ovett’s new world record time was 3:48.40.
1994 – A man was given the world’s first battery-operated heart in a pioneering operation in Britain.
1997 – Diana, Princess of Wales, condemned the previous Conservative Government as ‘hopeless’ over the issue of the banning of landmines.
2001 – It was announced that thousands of patients facing long delays in British hospitals could have the chance to be treated abroad in a Government bid to reduce waiting lists.
2014 – Manchester United signed winger Angel Di Maria from Real Madrid for new a British record transfer fee of £59.7m.
2017 – Half a million people take part in a peace march in Barcelona, following terrorist attacks. The attack happened on August 17, when a van smashed into nearby walkers. Thirteen people were killed, while over 100 were injured.
Did you know that on this day in 1895, the first electric power was generated at Niagara Falls? The electricity was used to power local aluminium and carborundum production and later on part of the nearby city of Buffalo.
A fortnight is 14 nights or two weeks.
“Now cut that out!” – Jack Benny (The Jack Benny Program)
Hulk Hogan – Real Name: Terry Bollea
The charcoal drawing of Kate Winslet in James Cameron’s “Titanic” was actually drawn by James Cameron.
What if houseflies buzz around and land on us because they love us just as dogs do?
A group of Worms is called a Bed or Clew or Bunch or Clat.
Food poisoning doesn’t come from undercooked food. It comes from under-cooked bacteria, viruses, and parasites.
You probably never read this sentence before.
In the far future, when our gifs and memes are considered fine art, the creators will only be remembered by their usernames
Any 3 consecutive numbers added together will always be divisible by three.
The star with the most screen credits is John Carradine (1906-1988), who has been in over 230 movies.
“Peace begins with a smile” – Mother Teresa
“Try to pick a profession in which you enjoy even the most mundane, tedious parts. Then you will always be happy.” – Will Shortz
“You know, we have two families: the one we’re born into, and the one that we make for ourselves afterward.” – Valerie Simpson
“I hope I’m remembered as the king of the world, the nobleman who united all the nations of the earth. But that probably won’t happen.” – Macaulay Culkin
“I paid $120,000 for someone to tell me to read Jane Austen, and then I didn’t.” – John Mulaney
“Never say “never” about anything, because if you do, life has a way of humbling you.” – Mike Colter
2018 – Xi’an, China, introduced a pedestrian lane for people who walk while looking at their phones.
1993 – The Holbeck Hall Hotel in Scarborough, North Yorkshire, fell into the sea following a landslide, making news around the world.
1805 – The first Trooping of the Colour took place on Horse Guards Parade. It was Edward VII who moved Trooping the Colour to its June date, because of the vagaries of British weather.