Thursday, August 7th "2025" Daily Prep
Welcome to day 219, known as National Sea Serpent Day, Aged Care Employee Day, Cycle To Work Day. Your star sign is Leo and your birthstone is Peridot.
1995 – British athlete Jonathan Edwards twice broke his own world triple jump record, becoming the first man to clear 18 metres – whilst winning the gold medal in the World Athletics Championships in Gothenburg.
Todays birthdays
1958 – Bruce Dickinson (67), English singer and lead vocalist of heavy metal band Iron Maiden (“Run to Hills”, “The Number of the Beast”), born in Worksop, Nottinghamshire.
1960 – Jacquie O’Sullivan (65), English singer and member of the pop group Bananarama (1988-1991) replacing Siobhan Fahey, born in London.
1961 – Brian Conley (64), English comedian (The Brian Conley Show) and actor (The Grimleys), born in Paddington, London.
1965 – Raul Malo (60), American singer and lead vocalist with the country music band the Mavericks (“Dance The Night Away”), born in Miami, Florida, United States.
1966 – Shobna Gulati (59), English actress best known for her roles as Sunita Alahan in Coronation Street and Anita in Dinnerladies, born in Langkawi, Malaysia.
1975 – Charlize Theron (50), South African born American actress and producer (Mad Max: Fury Road, Prometheus, The Old Guard), born in Benoni, South Africa.
1983 – Tina O’Brien (42), English actress (Waterloo Road), best known for her role as Sarah Platt in Coronation Street, born in Rusholme, Manchester.
1990 – Helen Flanagan (35), English actress best known for her role as Rosie Webster in Coronation Street, born in Bury, Lancashire.
Famous deaths
2004 – Rick James (b. 1948), American singer-songwriter and producer (“Super Freak”, “Party All the Time” – sung by Eddie Murphy).
2012 – Bernard Lovell (b. 1913), English physicist and astronomer (founder of University of Manchester’s Jodrell Bank Observatory).
The day today
1925 – Britain introduced the Daylight Saving Act bringing in British summer time so the nation changed clocks by one hour twice a year.
1926 – The first British motor racing Grand Prix was staged at Brooklands; 110 laps of the track for a total distance of 287 miles. The winner was Robert Senechal in just over 4 hours, at an average speed of almost 72 miles an hour.
1958 – The Litter Act came into force in London as part of the Keep Britain Tidy campaign. Offenders could be fined up to £10 for dropping litter. In the first year nearly 1000 were prosecuted.
1993 – The public got its first glimpse inside Buckingham Palace as people were given the opportunity to tour the London home of Queen Elizabeth II. Proceeds from ticket sales were earmarked to help repair fire damage at Windsor Castle.
1995 – British athlete Jonathan Edwards twice broke his own world triple jump record, becoming the first man to clear 18 metres – whilst winning the gold medal in the World Athletics Championships in Gothenburg.
2011 – Rioting began in Tottenham, during which residents attacked people, set fire to shops, and looted the neighbourhood in protest against the shooting of local man Mark Duggan by police. The rioting continued for several days and spread to other major cities, as a sign of unrest. Authorities believed the riots were organised through the use of social media such as Facebook and Twitter. A total of 3,443 crimes across London alone were linked to the disorder and damage to property was estimated at £200 million.
2012 – Fifty year old Jessica Harper, former head of fraud and security at Lloyds Bank admitted carrying out a £2.4m fraud over a period of 4 years.
Today in music
1957 – The Quarry Men played at The Cavern Club in Liverpool, (without Paul McCartney who was away at Boy Scout summer camp). The Cavern was still a jazz club, but skiffle was tolerated, but when John Lennon dared to play ‘Hound Dog’ and ‘Blue Suede Shoes’, the club owner sent a note to the stage saying, “Cut out the bloody rock!”
1976 – Elton John and Kiki Dee were at No.1 on the singles chart with ‘Don’t Go Breaking My Heart’, giving Elton his sixth US No.1. It was written by Elton John with Bernie Taupin under the pseudonym “Ann Orson” and “Carte Blanche.”
1980 – John Lennon began recording his final album, ‘Double Fantasy’ at The Hit Factory, in New York City. It would be released on November 17th by the newly-formed Geffen Records and would win the 1982 Grammy Award for Album of the Year.
1982 – Dexy’s Midnight Runners were at No.1 on the UK singles chart with ‘Come On Eileen’ their second and last No.1. It was the Best-selling single of 1982 and the song won Best British Single at the 1983 Brit Awards. The “Eileen” as featured in the video is Máire Fahey, sister of Siobhan Fahey, former singer with Bananarama and Shakespears Sister.
1998 – The music video for the Britney Spears ‘…Baby One More Time’ single was shot at Venice High School, the same school used to shoot the 1978 film Grease. The song topped the charts in at least 23 countries and was the best-selling single of 1999.
2005 – James Blunt was at No.1 on the UK singles chart with ‘You’re Beautiful’, Mariah Carey was at No.1 on the US charts with ‘We Belong Together’ and Axel F had ‘Crazy Frog’ at No.1 on the Australian singles charts.
2014 – Ed Sheeran was at No.1 on the UK album chart with his second studio album X. The album has been certified 10x platinum in the UK with sales of over 3 million copies, making it the third best-selling album of the 2010s and one of the best selling albums in the history of the UK.
2024 – Sabrina Carpenter achieved her first-ever Spotify ‘Billions Club’ entry after her single ‘Espresso’ crossed the 1 billion stream threshold. It has since doubled that number, amassing over 2 billion streams to date.
Today in history
1606 – The first known performance of Shakespeare’s “Macbeth” was performed. The play was shown to King James I and his guest at Hampton Court in England.
1613 – The death of Sir Thomas Fleming, the English judge in the trial of Guy Fawkes following the Gunpowder Plot.
1711 – The first race meeting was held at Ascot, established by Queen Anne, thus giving them the status of ‘Royal Ascot’.
1840 – The employment of climbing boys as chimney sweeps was prohibited by an Act of Parliament.
1879 – The opening of the ‘Poor Man’s Palace’ in Openshaw, Manchester, a Salvation Army Citadel specifically for soldiers in the area.