Friday, June 20th "2025" Daily Prep
Welcome to day 171, known as National Flip Flop Day, Vanilla Milkshake Day, World Refugee Day. Your star sign is Gemini and your birthstone is Pearl (Alexandrite and Moonstone is also recognised).
1996 – English cricket umpire Harold ‘Dickie’ Bird received a standing ovation by players and spectators at Lords when he took the field to officiate in his final Test Match. The two teams (India and England) formed a guard of honour as he came out.
Todays birthdays
1949 – Lionel Richie (76), American singer, songwriter and record producer (“All Night Long”, “Dancing on the Ceiling”), born in Tuskegee, Alabama, United States.
1952 – John Goodman (73), American actor (Roseanne, The Flintstones, Coyote Ugly, Monsters Inc), born in Affton, Missouri, United States.
1954 – Allan Lamb (71), South African-born former English cricketer (Northamptonshire, England), born in Langebaan, Western Cape Province, South Africa.
1960 – John Taylor (65), English musician and a founding member of Duran Duran (“The Reflex”, “Girls on Film”), born in Birmingham, West Midlands.
1967 – Nicole Kidman (58), Australian-American actress (The Others, Batman Forever, Days of Thunder), born in Honolulu, Hawaii, United States.
1978 – Frank Lampard (47), English professional football manager (Coventry City) and former player (Chelsea, Manchester City, England), born in Romford, East London.
Famous deaths
1993 – William Golding (b. 1911), British novelist (Lord of the Flies), playwright, and poet, Nobel Prize laureate.
The day today
1975 – The movie “Jaws” by Steven Spielberg hit theaters in the USA. It wasn’t released until 26th December in the UK.
1984 – The biggest exam shake up for over 10 years was announced with O Level and CSE exams to be replaced by new examinations, to be known as GCSEs.
1986 – In the wake of the Chernobyl disater, the UK government, under the Food and Environment Protection Act 1985, implemented emergency orders restricting the movement and slaughter of sheep in designated areas. A “mark and release” system was established, where sheep were monitored for radiation levels, and those exceeding acceptable limits were marked and not allowed for sale until levels decreased.
1990 – British Chancellor John Major proposed a new European currency which would circulate alongside existing national currencies.
1995 – Shell abandoned at the eleventh hour its plan to dump the disused Brent Spar rig in the Atlantic, provoking a furious reaction in the British government. Meanwhile, the environmental campaign group Greenpeace claimed victory in the high-profile battle.
1996 – English cricket umpire Harold ‘Dickie’ Bird received a standing ovation by players and spectators at Lords when he took the field to officiate in his final Test Match. The two teams (India and England) formed a guard of honour as he came out.
2014 – England were eliminated at the group stage of the Fifa World Cup for the first time since 1958. They were knocked out after just two matches, with Roy Hodgson’s side beaten by Group D rivals Italy and Uruguay.
Today in music
1965 – The Beatles began a 14-day European tour with two performances at the Palais Des Sports in Paris, France. The Beatles’ set list for this tour: ‘Twist and Shout’, ‘She’s a Woman’, ‘I’m a Loser’, ‘Can’t Buy Me Love’, ‘Baby’s In Black’, ‘I Wanna Be Your Man’, ‘A Hard Day’s Night’, ‘Everybody’s Trying to Be My Baby’, ‘Rock and Roll Music’, ‘I Feel Fine’, ‘Ticket to Ride’, and ‘Long Tall Sally’.
1969 – David Bowie recorded ‘Space Oddity’ at Trident Studios London. The track went on to become a UK No.1 when re-released in 1975. Written about the launch of Major Tom, a fictional astronaut; Bowie would later revisit his Major Tom character in the songs ‘Ashes to Ashes’, ‘Hallo Spaceboy’ and ‘Blackstar’.
1992 – Mariah Carey scored her sixth US No.1 single with ‘I’ll Be There’, a No.2 hit in the UK. The song was also a US No.1 for The Jackson Five in 1970.
1998 – Baddiel, Skinner & Lightning Seeds went to No.1 on the UK singles chart with ‘Three Lions ’98’ released for the football World Cup 98.
1999 – Jamiroquai went to No.1 on the UK album chart with ‘Synkronized’, the group’s second No.1 album.
2014 – Songs by Elvis Presley, ABBA and the Spice Girls were among those being used in research that hoped to unlock the secret of how our memory works. Researchers from the University of Amsterdam had created an online game in an attempt to shed light on why some tunes get stuck in your head. Fans were asked to identify song clips and compare them by their catchiness.
Today in history
1214 – The University of Oxford received its charter. Oxford is the second-oldest surviving university in the world (Bologna in Italy is the oldest) and the oldest in the English-speaking world.
1380 – The birth of John Plantagenet, duke of Bedford, 3rd son of Henry IV and a general and statesman who commanded England’s army during a critical period in the Hundred Years’ War with France. After many successes, he came under pressure from a French army led by Joan of Arc. She was eventually captured by the English and Bedford had her tried and burnt at the stake as a witch in 1431.
1756 – In India, the night of the infamous ‘Black Hole of Calcutta’, where more than 140 British soldiers and civilians were placed in a small prison cell – 18 feet by 14 feet – by the Nawab of Bengal. The following morning only 23 emerged alive.
1837 – On the death of William IV, Queen Victoria, aged 18, acceded to the throne. At the time of Victoria’s death her reign of 63 years and 7 months was longer than that of any other British monarch and the longest of any female monarch in history. On 9th September 2015 Queen Elizabeth II overtook Queen Victoria as the longest serving monarch of the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand.
1887 – Britain’s longest railway bridge over the River Tay opened. The first had collapsed in 1879 whilst the Edinburgh to Dundee train was crossing, killing over 90 people.