January 3rd "2024" daily prep

Welcome to day 3 of 2024! Known as Festival of Sleep Day, J.R.R. Tolkien Day, National Chocolate Covered Cherry Day, National Drinking Straw Day, Women Rock! Day. If you were born on this day, you were likely conceived the week of April 12th. Your star sign is “Capricorn” and your birthstone is Garnet.
2014 – Along the whole of Wales’ coastline dozens of roads were closed and the rail network was also badly affected as storm surges brought flooding chaos around Wales’ coast.
Todays birthdays
1956 – Mel Gibson (68), American actor (Lethal Weapon, Braveheart, Mad Max), born in Peekskill, New York, United States.
1962 – Gavin Hastings (62), Scottish rugby union fullback and captain (61 caps Scotland, 6 caps British Lions; Watsonians, London Scottish), born in Edinburgh, Scotland.
1969 – Michael Schumacher (55), German former racing driver and winner of 7 Formula One world championships, born in Hürth, Germany.
1996 – Florence Pugh (28), English actress (Black Widow, Oppenheimer, Lady Macbeth), born in Oxford.
2003 – Greta Thunberg (21), Swedish environmental activist known for challenging world leaders to take immediate action for climate change mitigation, born in Stockholm, Sweden.
The day today
1940 – Unity Mitford, a member of the aristocratic Mitford family, returned to England after an unsuccessful suicide attempt in Munich. She had been greatly attracted to Fascism and idolized Hitler. When Britain declared war she was so distraught that she shot herself in the head with a pearl-handled pistol, given to her for protection by Hitler himself. She eventually died in Oban, in 1948, of meningitis caused by the cerebral swelling around the bullet.
1946 – William Joyce (Lord Haw-Haw) was hanged for treason, in London. Born in Brooklyn, New York, he had broadcast propaganda from Nazi Germany during the Second World War to both Britain and the United States. The broadcasts started on 18th September 1939 and continued until 30th April 1945, when Hamburg was overrun by the British Army.
1961 – The production of the millionth Morris Minor, designed by the Greek born Sir Alec Issigonis. He considered the Morris Minor to be a vehicle that combined many of the luxuries and conveniences of a good motor car, but at a price suitable for the working classes.
2014 – Along the whole of Wales’ coastline dozens of roads were closed and the rail network was also badly affected as storm surges brought flooding chaos around Wales’ coast. In Aberystwyth the promenade and its historic shelter were destroyed as huge waves crashed onto it. The winter storms continued across many parts of Britain and parts of Somerset, including the village of Muchelney were cut off for weeks.
2015 – A 51,000 tonne car carrier ship (Hoegh Osaka) became stranded on Bramble Bank in the Solent between Southampton and the Isle of Wight. The ship was carrying 1,200 Jaguar sports cars, Land Rover 4x4s, 65 BMW Minis, 105 JCB diggers and a single Rolls-Royce Wraith – worth an estimated £260,000 – all destined for the Middle East. The vessel was eventually righted and towed to Southampton on 22nd January.
Today in music
1957 – Guy Mitchell was at No.1 on the UK singles chart with ‘Singing The Blues.’ (Tommy Steele and Marty Robbins had also released versions and Steele would replace this version at No.1). Also a US No.1.
1963 – Cliff Richard was at No.1 on the UK singles chart with his sixth UK No.1 ‘The Next Time / Bachelor Boy.’ Both songs were taken from the film Summer Holiday.
1987 – Aretha Franklin became the first woman inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Despite the enormity of the milestone, Franklin wasn’t actually able to attend the ceremony herself, so instead, Rolling Stones’ guitarist Keith Richards, Clive Davis and her brother Cecil inducted Franklin with her poignant speech, “To be the first woman inductee into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is a historical moment and indeed a milestone in my career…”
2002 – Liam and Noel Gallagher topped a poll of celebrities you would least like to live next to, getting 40% of the vote. Readers of Your Home magazine voted the brothers from Oasis as ‘Neighbours From Hell’.
2017 – Vinyl sales topped three million, the highest UK total in 25 years. More than 3.2 million records were sold in 2016, a rise of 53% on the previous year, according to the BPI, which represents the music industry. David Bowie’s Blackstar was the most popular album on vinyl, selling more than double the number of copies of 2015’s biggest-seller, Adele’s 25.
Today in history
1496 – Leonardo da Vinci unsuccessfully tried to fly his famous Flying Machine invention for the first time. Leonardo da Vinci is known for many things, from his incredible art to his master inventions, and one of the most well-known was his Flying Machine. Unfortunately, his attempt to fly was unsuccessful, but he learned that no man could ever jump high enough to propel his craft.
1777 – During the Battle of Princeton, British forces (led by Cornwallis) were defeated in New Jersey by George Washington’s revolutionary army.
1795 – The death of Josiah Wedgwood, English potter and grandfather of the naturalist Charles Darwin.The pottery that Wedgewood founded became one of the most famous in the world. In 2009, Wedgewood was placed into administration and eventually became part of a group of companies known as WWRD, an initialism for ‘Wedgwood Waterford Royal Doulton’.
1883 – The birth of Clement (Richard) Attlee, Labour politician who served as Prime Minister from 1945 to 1951, and as the Leader of the Labour Party from 1935 to 1955. He was also the first person to hold the office of Deputy Prime Minister under Winston Churchill, in the wartime coalition government.
1911 – The Siege of Sidney Street: fire fight breaks out in London’s East End between Latvian gang and Police, who request army back-up.
Fact of the day
Penicillin was first called “mold juice” In 1928, bacteriologist Alexander Fleming left a petri dish in his lab while he was on vacation—only to return and find that some liquid around the mold had killed the bacteria in the dish. This became the world’s first antibiotic, but before naming it penicillin, he called it “mold juice.”