February 10th "2024" daily prep
Welcome to day 41, known as Chinese Lunar New Year’s Day, Global Movie Day and National Umbrella Day. If you were born on this day, you were likely conceived the week of May 20th. Your star sign is Aquarius and your birthstone is Amethyst.
1840 – Queen Victoria and Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, both aged 20, were married in St James’ Palace, London. This was the first marriage of a reigning English Queen since Queen Mary in 1554.
Todays birthdays
1937 – Roberta Flack (87), American pop vocalist (“The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face”, “Killing Me Softly with His Song”), born in Black Mountain, North Carolina, United States.
1939 – Peter Purves (85), English television presenter (Blue Peter) and actor (Doctor Who), born in New Longton, Preston, Lancashire.
1981 – Holly Willoughby (43), English television presenter (This Morning, Dancing on Ice), author and model, born in Brighton, Brighton and Hove.
1991 – Emma Roberts (33), American actress (American Horror Story, We’re the Millers), born in Rhinebeck Village, Rhinebeck, New York, United States.
1997 – Chloe Grace Moretz (27), American actress (Kick-Ass, Kick-Ass 2m Carrie (2013), The Equalizer), born in Atlanta, Georgia, United States.
The day today
1906 – Britain’s first modern & largest battleship, HMS Dreadnought, was launched. It established the pattern of the turbine-powered, “all-big-gun” warship, a type that dominated the world’s navies for the next 35 years.
1940 – Tom and Jerry made their debut appearance. The duo was shown for the first time in a short animation called “Puss Gets the Boot.”
1996 – A computer defeated world champion chess player Gary Kasparov for the first time. The battle, which took three hours to complete, was won by an IBM computer called Deep Blue.
2005 – Clarence House announced the engagement of the Prince of Wales and his long-term partner Camilla Parker Bowles.
2014 – Jenny Jones from Bristol won bronze in the women’s snowboarding slopestyle event. Not only was it Britain’s first medal of the Sochi Winter Olympic Games, but it was Britain’s first ever medal on snow. Aged 33 she was also the oldest in the competition.
Today in music
1942 – ‘Chattanooga Choo Choo’ by Glenn Miller and his Orchestra became the first recording to be awarded a Gold record. It was actually just a master copy of the disc sprayed with gold lacquer by RCA as a publicity stunt. The actual award recognized today as a Gold Record would not be initiated for another sixteen years when the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) borrowed the idea and trademarked the Gold Record. The first Gold single was awarded to Perry Como in 1958 for ‘Catch A Falling Star’ and the first Gold album was given to Gordon McRae for the soundtrack to ‘Oklahoma’.
1973 – Elton John had his first UK No.1 album when Don’t Shoot Me I’m Only The Piano Player started a six-week run at the top of the charts. The title of the album came from comic actor Groucho Marx of The Marx Brothers who referred to him as ‘John Elton’ whilst holding out his middle and index finger in the style of a pistol. Elton then retaliated saying “Don’t shoot me, I’m only the piano player” at Marx’s gun imitation.
1984 – Frankie Goes To Hollywood were at No.1 on the UK singles chart for the third week with ‘Relax.’ Eurythmics had the UK No.1 album with ‘Touch.’
1997 – Blur released their eponymous fifth studio album. As well as lead single, ‘Beetlebum’, reaching the top of the UK charts the album also reached the top 20 in six other countries. The success of ‘Song 2’ led to Blur becoming the band’s most successful album in the US where the Britpop scene had been largely unsuccessful.
2008 – Amy Winehouse won five prizes at this year’s Grammy Awards, including song of the year and record of the year, both for her single ‘Rehab’, and best new artist. The UK singer was not at the Los Angeles ceremony to collect them due to visa problems.
Today in history
1306 – In front of the high altar of Greyfriars Church in Dumfries, Robert the Bruce murdered John Comyn, his leading political rival, sparking revolution in the Scottish Wars of Independence.
1355 – The St. Scholastica’s Day Riots began in Oxford when University students clashed with townspeople in a three-day street battle, following a dispute about beer in The Swindlestock Tavern. 64 students were killed and 30 locals. The dispute was settled in favour of the university with a special charter. Annually thereafter, on 10th February, the town mayor and councillors had to march bareheaded through the streets and pay to the university a fine of one penny for every scholar killed. The penance ended in 1825 when the mayor refused to take part.
1567 – An explosion destroyed the Kirk o’ Field house in Edinburgh, Scotland. The second husband of Mary, Queen of Scots, (Lord Darnly) was found strangled, in what many believe to be an assassination.
1840 – Queen Victoria and Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, both aged 20, were married in St James’ Palace, London. This was the first marriage of a reigning English Queen since Queen Mary in 1554.
1894 – The birth of Harold Macmillan, 1st Earl of Stockton, who, as British Prime Minister after Eden’s resignation following the Suez crisis, claimed ‘You’ve never had it so good’ and warned South Africa that ‘the wind of change’ was blowing through the continent. He was nicknamed ‘Supermac’.
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