1915 – Sir Stanley Matthews, often regarded as one of the greatest English football players, was born. He is the only player to have been knighted while still playing, as well as being the first winner of both the European Footballer of the Year and the Football Writers’ Association Footballer of the Year awards. He kept fit enough to play at the top level until he was 50 years old, was also the oldest player ever to play in England’s top football division and the oldest player ever to represent his country. He played his final competitive game in 1985, at the age of 70.

1930 – The first ever ‘Times’ crossword was published.

1939 – A British White Paper proposing the formation of the Home Guard (which became better known as Dad’s Army because of the average age of the volunteers) was published. The hugely popular TV series of Dad’s Army was first aired on 31st July 1968 and ran for 9 series until 13th November 1977. The 2016 Dad’s Army film had its premiere on 26th January 2016. Principal filming took place on the beach at North Landing (Flamborough Head) and at nearby Bridlington.

1952 – The first TV detector van was demonstrated. It enabled the BBC to track down users of unlicensed television sets in Britain.

1965 – P.J. Proby, the US rock singer, was banned by ABC Theatres and the BBC after he had deliberately split his trousers during his act. The mainly female audience and the tabloids, who claimed Proby’s act was obscene, went wild. It was the beginning of the end for the flamboyant performer. (Note – We went to a concert that year, but Proby had been banned and was replaced with a then unknown singer called Tom Jones!)

1965 – Prescriptions on the NHS became free of charge and remained so until June 1968.

1974 – Escaped Great Train Robber Ronald Biggs was arrested by Brazilian police in Rio. He escaped extradition because he was the father of a child by his Brazilian girlfriend.

1979 – Trevor Francis, aged 24, became the first £1m footballer in England, signing for Brian Clough’s Nottingham Forest.

1984 – Chancellor, Nigel Lawson, announced that the halfpenny coin would cease to be legal tender. Its fate was sealed when it became more expensive to make than its face value.

2005 – Arsenal’s English Premier League record 33-game unbeaten streak at home ends when the Gunners go down, 4-2 to Manchester United at Highbury.

2008 – NASA announce that Across The Universe by The Beatles will be the first song beamed directly into space.

2013 – Det. Ch. Insp. April Casburn, aged 53, became the first person to be prosecuted and jailed (15 months) as part of the investigation into payments by News of the World journalists to officials.

2017 – British MPs vote in favour of the European Union Bill, allowing the government to begin Brexit.