February 7th "2024" daily prep
Welcome to day 38, known as Hug an Addict day, National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day, National Periodic Table Day. If you were born on this day, you were likely conceived the week of May 17th. Your star sign is Aquarius and your birthstone is Amethyst.
1964 – Beatlemania arrived in the United States when the Beatles landed in New York. Over 5,000 screaming fans greeted the Pan Am Flight 101 from London, UK to get a glimpse of John Lennon, Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, and George Harrison.
Todays birthdays
1959 – Mick McCarthy (65), English football manager (Cardiff City, Blackpool), pundit and former player (Barnsley FC, Manchester City), born in Barnsley, South Yorkshire.
1962 – Eddie Izzard (62), British stand-up comedian, actor (Valkyrie), and activist, born in Aden, Yemen.
1965 – Chris Rock (59), American comedian and actor (Grown Ups, Lethal Weapon 4, The Longest Yard), born in Andrews, South Carolina, United States.
1977 – Mariusz Pudzianowski (47), Polish former strongman competitor (Worlds Strongest Man 2002, 2003, 2005, 2007 and 2008), born in Biała Rawska, Poland.
1978 – Ashton Kutcher (46), American actor (The Butterfly Effect, Dude, Where’s My Car?) and entrepreneur, born in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, United States.
The day today
1922 – The birth of the comedy actress Hattie Jacques. She is best known as a regular of the Carry On films, but also appeared in three highly popular radio series – with Tommy Handley in It’s That Man Again, with ventriloquist Peter Brough on Educating Archie and then with Tony Hancock on Hancock’s Half Hour. She was married to the actor John Le Mesurier (Sergeant Wilson in the BBC TV comedy Dad’s Army) from 1949 until their divorce in 1965.
1937 – Britain’s first dive-bomber, the prototype B-24 Skua, made its maiden flight over Yorkshire, piloted by Dasher Blake.
1964 – Pan Am flight 101 was greeted by over 5,000 screaming fans as it arrived at New York’s JFK airport, bringing The Beatles to the US for the first time.
1991 – Prime Minister John Major and senior Cabinet Ministers escaped unhurt during an apparent assassination attempt, when the IRA fired three mortar shells at 10 Downing Street from a van parked several streets away in the centre of London.
2005 – Britain’s Ellen MacArthur (born 8th July 1976) became the fastest person to sail solo around the world. Two months after her amazing feat she also became the youngest person to receive a damehood.
Today in music
1981 – John Lennon was at No.1 on the UK singles chart with ‘Woman’, an ode to his wife Yoko Ono. It was Lennon’s third No.1 in seven weeks after his death on December 8, 1980.
1999 – Blondie went to No.1 on the UK singles chart with ‘Maria’, giving the group their sixth UK No.1 single, 20 years after their first No.1 ‘Heart of Glass.’ At the age of 54, lead singer Debbie Harry became the oldest female to make No.1 in the UK.
2004 – Queen’s single ‘We Will Rock You’ topped a poll of music fans to find the greatest rock anthem of all time. The 1977 song beat the band’s classic ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ into second place in a survey of 1,000 people carried out for the UCI cinema chain. The poll was carried out to mark the release of new Jack Black comedy ‘School of Rock.’
2005 – Michael Jackson’s Thriller was named the top pop video in a poll of Channel 4 viewers in the UK. The 1983 video, which depicts the singer as a werewolf and a zombie, beat videos by Madonna and Robbie Williams. Animated videos for Peter Gabriel’s Sledgehammer and A-Ha’s Take On Me were in second and third place respectively. 4th was Queen with Bohemian Rhapsody, 5th, Madonna Like a Prayer, 6th, Robbie Williams, Rock DJ, 7th, Michael Jackson, Billie Jean, 8th, The Verve, Bittersweet Symphony, 9th, Madonna Vogue and 10th Nirvana, Smells Like Teen Spirit.
2023 – David Bowie’s handwritten lyrics for ‘The Jean Genie’ sold for £57,000 at auction. The song, taken from the Aladdin Sane album, was released as a single in 1972 and reached No.2 in the UK charts. The lyric sheet for ‘The Jean Genie’ comprised of 18 lines on a piece of A4 lined paper, which was titled, signed and dated by Bowie.
Today in history
1301 – Edward of Caernarfon (born at Caernarfon Castle and would later become King Edward II) became the first Prince of Wales, a title traditionally given to the English royal heir.
1478 – The birth of Sir Thomas More, English statesman and Lord Chancellor. He was executed by Henry VIII for refusing to deny Papal authority. He was canonized by Pope Pius XI in 1935.
1812 – Charles Dickens, English journalist and novelist was born. He is considered the greatest novelist of the Victorian period. He created characters such as Oliver Twist, Nicholas Nickleby and David Copperfield and amongst his other works were The Old Curiosity Shop, A Christmas Carol, Great Expectations, Bleak House and many, many more.
1886 – While building a cottage for a prospector in the Transvaal, South Africa, an Englishman, George Walker, found a clear streak of gold. It became the richest gold reef in the world.
1873 – The birth, in County Down, of Thomas Andrews. Andrews was the naval architect in charge of the plans for the ocean liner RMS Titanic. He was travelling on board the Titanic during its maiden voyage when it hit an iceberg on 14th April 1912 and was one of the 1,517 people who perished in the disaster.
DAILY FACTS NOW HAS A BRAND NEW PAGE UNDER PREP ESSENTIALS: FREE. All daily facts can now be found on that page which will be updated weekly.