1873 – Alexandra Palace in London burned down, after being open for only 16 days. It was built as a public centre of recreation, education and entertainment and as North London’s counterpart to the Crystal Palace in South London. With typical Victorian vigour, the palace was quickly rebuilt and it reopened on 1st May 1875.

1898 – An agreement was signed under which Hong Kong was leased to Britain, by China, for a period of 99 years.

1899 – Boxer Bob Fitzsimmons, the first British world heavyweight champion, lost his title to American James Jeffries at Coney Island, New York.

1904 – Musicians who left the Henry Wood Orchestra after a disagreement, formed the London Symphony Orchestra.

1933 – Baird demonstrated high definition television at his Long Acre studio in London, showing the difference between the previous 30-line picture and the new 120-line tubes.

1958 – The Queen opened an extended airport at Gatwick, south of London, modernised at a cost of £7m.

1960 – It was announced that one of Britain’s oldest quality cars, the Armstrong Siddeley, was to go out of production.

1975 – The first live transmission from the House of Commons was broadcast by BBC Radio and commercial stations.

1983 – Margaret Thatcher’s Conservative Party won a landslide second term election victory.

2014 – The death of the comedian, actor and writer Richard Michael “Rik” Mayall aged 56. He played the anarchist Rick in The Young Ones, alongside his friend, Adrian Edmonson. The duo later went on to star in the series Bottom and Mayall also appeared in Blackadder and The New Statesman.

2014 – Sir Michael Wilshaw, Ofsted chief, delivered his findings on claims of hardline Muslim takeovers in certain school. 21 schools were inspected, following claims in an anonymous letter that hardline Muslims were trying to impose their view on a group of schools in Birmingham. Quote – “A culture of fear and intimidation has taken grip. Some of our findings are deeply worrying and, in some ways, quite shocking.”

2015 – Her Royal Highness, the Duchess of Cornwall unveiled a memorial window to Sir Winston Churchill, in St. Martin’s Church, Bladon, near Woodstock, Oxfordshire. Churchill died in 1965 and is buried in Bladon churchyard along with other members of the Churchill family.