Wednesday, April 2nd "2025" Daily Prep
Welcome to day 92, known as Autism Awareness Day, International Childrens Book Day and National Ferret Day. Your star sign is Aries and your birthstone is Diamond.
1962 – There was confusion and chaos on the streets of 1962 London following the launch of the first Panda crossing on York Road, opposite Waterloo Station. The minister for transport, Mr Ernest Marples opened the crossing, describing it as “a new idea in pedestrian safety”.
Todays birthdays
1940 – Penelope Keith (85), English actress (To the Manor Born and as Margo Leadbetter in The Good Life), born in Sutton, South London.
1960 – Linford Christie (65), Jamaican-born British former sprinter and the only British man to have won gold medals in the 100 metres at all four major competitions open to British athletes: the Olympic Games, the World Championships, the European Championships and the Commonwealth Games, born in St. Andrew Parish, Jamaica.
1961 – Keren Woodward (64), English singer/songwriter and founding member of Bananarama (“Venus”, “Cruel Summer”), born in Bristol.
1966 – Teddy Sherringham (59), English football manager (Stevenage) and former player (Manchester United, Tottenham Hotspur, West Ham), born in Highams Park, London.
1967 – Helen Chamberlain (58), English television presenter, best known for presenting Soccer AM on Sky Sports, born in Somerset.
1977 – Michael Fassbender (48), German-born Irish actor (Prometheus, Alien: Covenant, Assassins Creed, 12 Years a Slave ), born in Heidelberg, Germany.
2002 – Emma Myers (23), American actress (Minecraft) best known for her role as Enid Sinclair in Wednesday alongside Jenna Ortega, born in Orlando, Florida, United States.
Famous deaths
1984 – Marvin Gaye (b. 1939), American singer, songwriter and musician (“I Heard It Through the Grapevine”, “How Sweet It Is To Be Loved by You”).
The day today
1914 – Alec Guinness, English actor was born. His roles included ‘Kind Hearts and Coronets’, ‘The Bridge on the River Kwai’, for which he won an Oscar, and ‘The Ladykillers’. He was also nominated for a further four Academy Awards, including Best Supporting Actor for what is possibly his best-known role; as Obi-Wan Kenobi in Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope.
1921 – The IRA took delivery of their first consignment of ‘Tommy’ guns. It’s said that the nickname comes from their potential targets, British ‘Tommies’, but Tommy Gun is more likely derived from its American creator General John T. Thompson. The guns were developed for him with the assistance of Oscar Payne and Theodore Eickhoff of Hartford, Connecticut.
1954 – Britain’s first TV soap opera was transmitted. It was ‘The Grove Family’, named after the BBC’s Lime Grove Studios in London.
1962 – A new style of pedestrian crossing (the Panda crossing) was launched in York Road, opposite Waterloo Station in London by the Minister of Transport, Ernest Marples. It caused confusion among both drivers and pedestrians.
1977 – Charlotte Brew becomes the first woman jockey to ride in the Grand National. Her horse, Barony Fort, fell at the 27th fence. Also on this day, Red Rum won the Grand National for a record third time.
1982 – Argentina invaded the Falkland Islands in the South Atlantic, a British possession for 149 years. The British government dispatched a naval task force to engage the Argentine Navy and Air Force. The resulting conflict lasted 74 days and ended with the Argentine surrender on 14th June 1982, which returned the islands to British control. During the Falklands conflict the Royal Navy requisitioned more vessels registered in Hull than from any other British port.
2007 – A smoking ban came into force in Wales (in England on 1st July 2007), making it illegal for anyone to smoke in an enclosed public place and within the workplace.
Today in music
1964 – The Beatles had their fourth UK No.1 single with ‘Can’t Buy Me Love.’ With advanced sales of over 2.1 million, it holds the record for the greatest advanced orders for a single in the UK.
1975 – The Bay City Rollers were at No.1 on the UK singles chart with their version of The Four Seasons song ‘Bye Bye Baby.’ It gave the Scottish group the best selling single of 1975.
1977 – ABBA were at No.1 on the UK singles chart with their fifth No.1 ‘Knowing Me, Knowing You.’ The song was also a Top 10 hit in over 15 countries.
1977 – Fleetwood Mac went to No.1 on the US album chart with Rumours. The album is Fleetwood Mac’s most successful release; along with winning the Grammy Award for Album of the Year in 1978, the record has sold over 45 million copies worldwide.
1998 – Rob Pilatus, one half of pop duo Milli Vanilli was found dead in a Frankfurt Hotel room after taking a lethal combination of drugs and alcohol. Milli Vanilli won the 1989 best new artist Grammy after hits like ‘Blame it on the Rain’ and ‘Girl, You Know It’s True,’ selling 30 million singles and 14 million albums. But in late 1990, the performers were stripped of the award after it was revealed that neither actually sang on the Milli Vanilli album.
2006 – Gnarls Barkley started an nine-week run at No.1 on the UK singles chart with ‘Crazy.’ The American duo made chart history by becoming the first act ever to reach No.1 through computer downloads only. The single was not available to buy in shops until the following week.
2013 – Coldplay beat the likes of Pink Floyd and The Beatles to the top of a BBC Radio 2 poll to find listeners’ favourite album of all time. A Rush Of Blood To The Head, came top of the list. Keane’s Hopes And Fears took second place, with Duran Duran’s Rio in third. Pink Floyd’s The Dark Side Of The Moon came fourth, while The Beatles’ 1967 classic Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band could only manage eighth place. The poll was held to tie in with the recent BBC season The Golden Age of the Album.
Today in history
1502 – The death (aged just 15) of Arthur, Prince of Wales and heir apparent as the eldest son of King Henry VII. At the age of eleven Arthur was formally betrothed to Catherine of Aragon who later married Henry VIII, Arthur’s brother.
1681 – King Charles II of England officially proclaimed the charter he had granted in March to William Penn for the Quaker colony of Pennsylvania in North America.
1783 – William Cavendish-Bentinck becomes prime minister of Britain after an opposition coalition of Henry Fox and Frederick North forces William Petty to resign.
1801 – In the Battle of Copenhagen, British hero Horatio Nelson (born at Burnham Thorpe, Norfolk) put his telescope to his blind eye and ignored Admiral Parker’s signal to stop fighting. “I have only one eye. I have a right to be blind sometimes. I really do not see the signal.” He continued until the Danish fleet was defeated.
1873 – Almost 14 years after the United States, British trains were fitted with toilets, but only for sleeping cars. Day carriages were fitted in 1881. Third class passengers weren’t able to ‘spend a penny’ until 1886.