View todays celebrity birthdays and find out what happened in history today.
What : day is it
1941 – The German Luftwaffe launched a bombing raid on Nottingham and Derby.
1945 – VE Day in Europe. After five years, eight months, and five days of massive devastation, the end of the European phase of World War II was celebrated. Victory in Europe was commemorated with celebrations all around the world in recognition of the unconditional surrender of all German forces, which was signed in Reims, France, the previous day.
1961 – Former British diplomat George Blake, was jailed for 42 years after being found guilty of spying for Russia. In 1966 he successfully escaped from London’s Wormwood Scrubs.
1968 – Gangster twins Reginald and Ronnie Kray and their brother Charlie were arrested after dawn raids by police in London.
1984 – The official opening of the Thames Barrier in London. The barrier is designed to be raised when exceptionally high tides on the River Thames threaten to flood parts of London.
1986 – British climber Alison Hargreaves became the first climber to conquer a Himalayan peak by its toughest route when she reached the 22,251 foot (6,782 m) summit of Kantega in 5 days without oxygen, porters or a fixed camp.
2013 – Mother-of-five Melanie Smith, 43 who started a fire in a communal hallway which killed five members of a neighbouring family, including three young children, was given five life terms for the murders and serve a minimum of 30 years.
2013 – Sir Alex Ferguson (aged 71) announced his retirement as Manchester United manager after 26 years in charge. The Scot won 38 trophies for the club including 13 league titles, two Champions League crowns, five FA Cups and four League Cups and was the most successful manager in the history of British football.
2015 – 20 year old Mhairi Black became Westminster’s youngest MP since 1667 when she won the Paisley and Renfrewshire South seat for the Scottish National Party in the General Election. (Note: In 1667 Christopher Monck, the 2nd Duke of Albemarle, aged 13 and a half, became knight of the Shire for Devon.)
2015 – David cameron’s Conservative party won a majority Government. In the aftermath; Ed Miliband (Labour party leader) resigned, as did Nick Clegg (Liberal Democrat leader) and also the UKIP leader Nigel Farage. (Note: The UKIP chairman Steve Crowther later rejected Mr. Farage’s post-election resignation because ‘the party’s election campaign has been a great success’.
Peter Wyngarde – Real Name: Cyril Louis Goldbert
When black & white photographs were invented, they must have looked pretty weird because people had never seen the world in black & white before.
The Capital of Swaziland is Mbabane.
Alyssa Milano was the inspiration for Ariel’s features in The Little Mermaid.
Sponges are weird. They’re artificial now, but in the past, people would pluck animals out of the ocean and use them to wash dishes and stuff. That seems like something you’d do in the Flintstones.
When I was a kid, Swag and Booty made me think of Pirates. Now all I think of is Rappers and Hip Hop.
“Queue” is just “Q” followed by 4 silent letters.
I agreed to disagree, and I’m wondering about the potential legal trouble for breaking paradox laws.
“Been around the world and found that only stupid people are breeding.” #songlyrics
“The past always seems better when you look back on it than it did at the time. And the present never looks as good as it will in the future.” – Peter Benchley
“The public be damned. I am working for my stockholders.” – William Henry Vanderbilt
“I used to play golf. I wanted to be a better player, but after a while, I realized I’d always stink. And that’s when I really started to enjoy the game.” – Don Rickles
“And what better way to get people talking than by creating a new word.” – Stephen Amell
“If you can’t be happy at the prospect of lunch, you are unlikely to be happy about anything.” – Robert Johnson
“A boxing match is like a cowboy movie. There’s got to be good guys and there’s got to be bad guys. And that’s what people pay for – to see the bad guys get beat.” – Sonny Liston
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.
2012 – The Thames Diamond Jubilee Pageant took place on the Tideway of the River Thames, as part of the celebrations of the Diamond Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II.