Born on this day 8th January 1823 Alfred Russel Wallace 1824 Wilkie Collins 1891 Storm Jameson 1897 Dennis Wheatley 1908 William Hartnell 1911 Tom Delaney 1923 Johnny Wardle 1924 Ron Moody 1927 Charles Tomlinson 1934 Roy Kinnear 1935 Elvis Presley 1937 Dame Shirley Bassey 1941 Graham Chapman 1942 Professor Stephen Hawking 1945 Terry Sylvester 1946 Robbie Krieger 1947 David Bowie 1951 John McTiernan 1961 Keith Arkell 1961 Calvin Smith 1969 R Kelly 1973 Mark Knight Died on this day 1941 Lord Baden-Powell 1990 Terry Thomas 1991 Steve Clark Music 1966 The Kinks and The Who appeared on the last edition … Continue reading 8th January

Born on this day 7th January 1502 Pope Gregory XIII 1746 George Elphinstone 1844 Marie-Bernarde Soubirous 1870 Lord Gordon Hewart 1876 William Hurlstone 1896 Arnold Ridley 1898 Art Baker 1899 Al Bowly 1903 Alan Napier 1924 Geoffrey Bayldon 1925 Gerald Durrell 1937 Ian La Frenais 1941 Iona Brown 1941 John E. Walker 1942 Danny Williams 1943 Sir Richard Armstrong 1944 Mike McGear 1950 Malcolm Macdonald 1951 Helen Worth 1963 Clint Mansell 1964 Nicolas Cage 1967 Mark Lamarr 1967 Nick Clegg 1985 Lewis Hamilton 1985 Wayne Routledge 1986 Grant Leadbitter Died on this day 1536 Catherine of Aragon 1988 Trevor Howard … Continue reading 7th January

Born on this day 6th January 1367 Richard II of England 1412 Joan of Arc 1714 Percivall Pott 1903 Francis L. Sullivan 1912 Danny Thomas 1913 Loretta Young 1915 Alan Watts 1920 Doris Stokes 1920 John Maynard Smith 1931 P.J. Kavanagh 1934 Sylvia Sims 1932 Sacha Distel 1943 Terry Venables 1946 Syd Barrett 1947 Sandy Denny 1954 Anthony Minghella 1954 Trudie Styler 1955 Rowan Atkinson 1955 Richard Corbett 1956 Angus Deayton 1960 Nigella Lawson 1964 Mark O’Toole 1975 Jason King 1986 Alex Turner Died on this day 1919 Theodore Roosevelt 1990 Ian Charleston Music 1977 The Sex Pistols were dropped … Continue reading 6th January

Born on this day 5th January 1787 John Burke 1855 King Camp Gillette 1902 Stella Gibbons 1931 Robert Duval 1938 King Juan Carlos of Spain 1940 Sir Michael Rose 1942 Jan Leeming 1943 Eusebio 1946 Diane Keaton 1950 Chris Stein 1960 Steve Jones 1965 Vinnie Jones 1974 Sarah Jane Honeywell Died on this day 1066 Edward the Confessor 1933 Calvin Coolidge 1941 Amy Johnson Music 1959 Buddy Holly’s single ‘It Doesn’t Matter Anymore’ was released in the US, the last single released before his death in February that year. 1983 Paul Weller played his first live show since leaving The … Continue reading 5th January

Born on this day 4th January 1643 Sir Isaac Newton 1785 Jakob Grimm 1809 Louis Braille 1813 Sir Isaac Pitman 1914 Jane Wyman 1935 Floyd Patterson 1937 Dyan Cannon 1947 Rick Stein 1956 Bernard Sumner 1960 Michael Stipe 1962 Martin McAloon 1986 James Milner Died on this day 1965 T. S. Eliot 1967 Donald Campbell 1986 Phil Lynott Music 1978 Ozzy Osbourne rejoined Black Sabbath for a temporary reunion 1979 Hamburg’s Star Club re-opened 1981 The Boomtown Rats began a UK tour at the Gaumont in Southampton Sport 1892 Erika Rowe showed more than a little front when she streaked … Continue reading 4th January

Born on this day 3rd January 106 BC Cicero 1733 Sir Richard Arkwright 1856 R. C. Lehmann 1861 William Renshaw 1883 Clement Attlee 1892 JRR Tolkien 1912 Robert Flemyng 1922 Bill Travers 1924 Doug Ellis 1926 Sir George Martin 1928 Michael Barrett 1933 Anya Linden ( Lady Sainsbury) 1935 David Vine 1942 John Thaw 1944 David Atherton 1946 John Paul Jones 1950 Victoria Principal 1956 Mel Gibson 1963 Alex Wheatle 1969 Michael Schumacher 1971 Sarah Alexander 1977 Lee Bowyer 1977 Michelle Stephenson 1978 Dominic Wood Died on this day 1795 Josiah Wedgwood 1903 Alois Hitler, father of Adolf Hitler 1967 … Continue reading 3rd January

Born on this day 2nd January 1727 James Wolfe 1886 Apsley Cherry-Garrard 1895 Count Folke Bernadotte 1897 Jimmy Nervo 1905 Michael Tippett 1913 Anna Lee 1914 Violet Vivian Finlay Stuart Mann 1936 Roger Miller 1938 David Bailey 1946 David Lynch 1963 Keith Gergory 1967 Tia Carrere 1969 Christy Turlington 1973 Lucy Davis 1979 Jonathan Greening Died on this day 1981 David Lynch 2002 Eileen Heckart Music 1966 The Beatles held onto the no. 1 spot with ‘Day Tripper/We Can Work It Out’ 1971 George Harrison’s ‘All Things Must Pass’ triple album reached the top of the US chart while his … Continue reading 2nd January

Born on this day 1st January 1879 E M Forster 1895 J Edgar Hoover 1897 William Fox 1933 Joe Orton 1919 J D Salinger 1944 Dame Kiri De Kanawa 1953 Nigel Mansell 1957 Nancy Lopez 1980 Richie Faulkner 1983 Calum Davenport 1983 Thomas Morrison 1992 Jack Wilshere 1993 Jon Flanagan Died on this day 1969 Barton McLane Music 1962 The Beatles failed their audition at Decca Records 1964 Top of the Pops was launched hosted by Jimmy Savile. The Rolling Stones were the first ever act to appear on the show, followed by Dusty Springfield, Dave Clark and the Hollies … Continue reading 1st January

Born on this day 31st December 1720 Charles Edward Stuart 1738 Charles Cornwallis 1869 Henri Matisse 1877 Lawrence Beesley 1897 Rhys Williams 1905 Jule Styne 1912 Maj-Gen John Frost 1917 Wilfrid Noyce 1943 John Denver 1937 Sir Anthony Hopkins 1941 Sarah Miles 1941 Sir Alex Ferguson 1942 Andy Summers 1943 Sir Ben Kingsley 1943 Pete Quaife 1948 Donna Summer 1959 Val Kilmer 1960 Steve Bruce 1962 Heather McCartney 1965 Tony Dorigo Music 1960 The Miracles gave Tamla Motwon their first major hit when their ‘Shop Around’ the US Top 40 1966 Soul Music reached a peak in the UK with … Continue reading 31st December

Born on this day 30th December 1552 Simon Forman 1678 William Croft 1722 Charles Yorke 1741 Princess Elizabeth of Great Britain 1865 Rudyard Kipling 1906 Carol Reed 1928 Jack Lord 1929 Rosalind Hurley 1937 Gordon Banks 1939 Del Shannon 1928 Bo Diddley 1934 Russ Tamblyn 1942 Mike Nesmith 1942 Guy Edwards 1945 Davy Jones 1947 Jeff Lynne 1957 Rod Harrington 1959 Tracey Ullman 1969 Jay Kay 1975 Tiger Woods 1983 Joe Thomas 1986 Ellie Goulding 1988 Leon Jackson Died on this day 1916 Rasputin 1970 Sonny Liston Music 1879 Gilbert and Sullivan’s ‘The Piratesof Penzance’ was performed for the first … Continue reading 30th December

Born on this day 29th December 1800 Charles Goodyear 1908 Dr Magnus Pyke 1911 Klaus Fuchs 1928 Bernard Cribbins 1937 Mary Tyler Moore 1938 Jon Voight 1938 Harvey Smith 1946 Marianne Faithful 1946 Ted Danson 1947 Cozy Powell 1972 Jude Law Music 1930 Radio Luxembourg received permission to start broadcasting 1976 Rod Stewart was at No.1 with ‘Tonight’s The Night(Gonna Be Alright)’ 1982 A Bob Marley postage stamp was issued in Jamaica Sport 1988 Ryder Cup golf captain Tony Jacklin married Astrid Waagen in Gibraltar People & Showbiz 1983 Princess Caroline married Stefano Casiraghiin Monte Carlo General Events 1860 HMS … Continue reading 29th December

Born on this day 28th December 1856 Woodrow Wilson 1905 Anthony Powell 1914 Bernard Youens 1934 Dame Maggie Smith 1943 Chas Hodges 1943 Keith Floyd 1943 Richard Whiteley 1954 Denzil Washington 1956 Nigel Kennedy Music 1968 Marvin Gaye began his 3rd week at the top of the US chart with ‘I Heard It Through The Grapevine’, a position he would hold for 7 weeks 1974 Helen Reddy reached the top of the US singles chart with ‘Angie Baby’ 1985 Shakin’ Stevens arrived a little late, topping the UK charts with his festive single ‘Merry Christmas Everyone’ Sport 1987 Liverpool beat … Continue reading 28th December

Born on this day 27th December 1822 Louis Pasteur 1901 Irene Handl 1901 Marlene Dietrich 1931 Scotty Moore 1944 Mick Jones 1946 Janet Street-Porter 1948 Gerard Depardieu 1974 Vanessa Paradis 1952 David Knopfler Music 1963 The Animals made their radio debut on ‘Saturday Club’ 1967 The Beatles held Nos 1 and 2 with ‘Hello Goodbye’ and ‘The Magical Mystery Tour’. 1980 St. Winifred’s Choir reached No.1 in the UK with the clasc ‘There’s Noone Quite Like Grandma’. General Events 1831 HMS Beagle set out on its famous scientific voyage around the world with Charles Darwin on board. It was during … Continue reading 27th December

Born on this day 26th December 1891 Henry Miller 1893 Mao Tse-Tung 1927 Denis Quilley 1914 Richard Widmark 1921 Steve Allen 1930 Donald Moffat 1940 Phil Spector 1944 Jane Lapatoire 1962 Mark Starr 1972 Shane Meadows 1972 Robert Muchamore 1973 Steve Prescott 1982 Roxanne Pallett 1986 Kit Harington 1987 Adam Walker Music 1956 Conway Twitty reached the top of the UK singles chart with ‘Its Only Make Believe’ knocking Lord Rockingham’s XI off the Number 1 position 1968 Sitting at the top of the charts for the UK Christmas No.1 were The Scaffold with ‘Lily The Pink’ while in the … Continue reading 26th December

Born on this day 25th December 1642 Sir Isaac Newton 1887 Conrad Hilton 1899 Humphrey Bogart 1944 Kenny Everett 1932 Little Richard 1936 HRH Princess Alexandra 1949 Sissy Spacek 1954 Annie Lennox 1957 Shane McGowan Music 1956 Pat Boone arrived in the UK for the first time 1967 Paul McCartney announced his engagement to actress Jane Asher 1978 Public Image Limited played their first live performance at the Rainbow theatre, London Sport 1866 The American yacht Henrietta sailed into Cowes harbour, to win the first transatlantic yacht race People & Showbiz 1800 The first Christmas tree in Britain was erected … Continue reading 25th December

Born on this day 24th December 1167 King John 1905 Howard Hughes 1922 Ava Gardner 1926 Lee Dorsey 1932 Lord (Colin) Cowdrey 1945 Lemmy 1948 Stan Bowles 1951 Nick Kent 1954 Helen Jones 1959 Chris Blackhurst 1959 Keith Deller 1960 Carol Vorderman 1962 Darren Wharton 1963 Caroline Aherne 1969 Nick Love 1969 Ed Miliband 1969 Mark Millar 1991 Louis Tomlinson 1992 Melissa Suffield Died on this day 1863 W.M. Thackeray 1954 Johnny Ace Music 1964 The Beatles’ first Christmas show took place at the Hammersmith Odeon. 1977 RSO Records had the first of 6 successive US No.1 records Sport 1984 … Continue reading 24th December

Born on this day 23rd December 1513 Thomas Smith 1621 Heneage Finch 1732 Sir Richard Arkwright 1854 Henry B. Guppy 1911 Niels Kaj Jerne 1925 Rayner Unwin 1933 Emperor Akihito 1947 Graham Bonnet 1951 Anthony Phillips 1953 Belinda Lang 1956 Dave Murray 1957 Trisha Goddard 1959 Geoff Willis 1961 Carol Smilie 1971 Tara Palmer-Tomkinson 1978 Jodie Marsh 1983 Michael Chopra 1984 Joseph Stacey 1985 Harry Judd Music 1893 The opera Hänsel und Gretel by Engelbert Humperdinck is first performed. 1955 18 year old Shirley Bassey appearing in Al Reed’s ‘Such Is Life’ revue, signed to Philps Records 1964 Pirate station … Continue reading 23rd December

Born on this day 22nd December 1858 Giacomo Puccini 1888 Lord J Arthur Rank 1907 Dame Peggy Ashcroft 1909 Patricia Hayes 1936 James Burke 1948 Noel Edmonds 1949 Robin Gibb 1957 Ricky Ross 1960 Mark Brydon 1962 Ralph Fiennes 1964 Simon Kirby 1966 David Wright 1967 Rebecca Harris 1969 Mark Robins 1970 Gary Anderson 1974 Michael Barron Music 1962 The Tornado’s instrumental single ‘Telstar’ became the first single by a UK group to top the US charts 1973 Elton John’s ‘Goodbye Yellow Brick Road’ stood at the top of the UK album charts 1990 For the second consecutive year, Paula … Continue reading 22nd December

Born on this day 21st December 1118 Thomas Becket 1682 Calico Jack Rackham 1804 Benjamin Disraeli 1879 Joseph Stalin 1892 Dame Rebecca West 1921 William Reid V.C 1940 Frank Zappa 1946 Carl Wilson 1959 Florence Griffith Joyner 1937 Jane Fonda 1948 Samuel L Jackson 1954 Chris Evert 1982 Charlie Cox 1982 Tom Payne 1985 Tom Sturridge 1986 Rachel Shenton 1988 Yasmin 1988 Alexa Goddard 1988 Perri Shakes-Drayton Music 1956 The rock and roll movies ‘Shake Rattle & Roll’ and ‘Rock Rock Rock’ went on general release in the UK 1967 Half A Sixpence starring Tommy Steele premiered in London 1974 … Continue reading 21st December

Born on this day 20th December 1928 Bo Diddley 1946 Lesley Judd 1946 Uri Geller 1952 Jenny Agutter 1957 Bo Derek 1958 Billy Bragg 1959 Simon Hughes 1966 Matt Neal 1968 Joe Cornish 1974 Paul Linger 1979 George Lamb 1980 Ashley Cole 1980 Fitz Hall 1983 Lucy Pinder Music 1952 Elvis Presley sang ‘Old Shep’ at a high school Christmas party. 1969 Rolf Harris reached no. 1 with ‘Two Little Boys’ 1976 Spending their final week at the top of the chart were Shawaddywaddy with ‘Under the Moon of Love’. 1980 Following the murder of John Lennon, his single ‘(Just … Continue reading 20th December

Born on this day 19th December 1915 Edith Piaf 1922 Eamonn Andrews 1923 Gordon Jackson 1946 Robert Urich 1924 Edmund Perdom 1941 Maurice White 1942 Sid Little 1947 Rosemary Conley 1958 Limahl 1958 Steven Isserlis 1969 Richard Hammond 1971 Karen Pickering 1975 Jon Smith 1983 Bridget Phillipson 1985 Gary Cahill 1985 Lady Sovereign 1986 Calvin Andrew 1988 Peter Winn 1989 Hamza Riazuddin 1991 Declan Galbraith Music 1955 Sun Records rockabilly star Carl Perkins recorded the classic ‘Blue Suede Shoes’ which went on to become a million seller the following year. 1965 Who drummer Keith Moon collapsed on stage at the … Continue reading 19th December

Born on this day 18th December 1916 Betty Grable 1938 Chas Chandler 1943 Keith Richards 1947 Steven Spielberg 1963 Brad Pitt 1963 Robson Green 1966 Les Ferdinand 1966 Keifer Sutherland 1980 Christina Aguilera 1984 Paul Harrison 1988 Lizzie Armitstead 1989 Emily Atack 1989 Ashley Slanina-Davies Music 1959 Emile Ford became the first black male artist to top the chart with ‘What Do Want To Make Those Eyes At Me For’. 1962 Elvis Presley was still No.1 with ‘Return To Sender’. 1983 Keith Richard married Patti Hansen in Mexico on his 40th birthday, with Mick Jagger as best man. Sport 1952 … Continue reading 18th December

Born on this day 17th December 1927 Robert Robinson 1934 Karl Denver 1936 Tommy Steele 1937 Kerry Packer 1943 Dave Dee 1944 Bernard Hill 1945 Christopher Cazanove 1947 Simon Bates 1973 Paula Radcliffe 1976 Andrew Simpson 1979 Charlotte Edwards 1979 Paul Smith 1982 Dynamo 1984 Julian Bennett 1984 Andrew Davies 1985 Craig Reid 2007 James, Viscount Severn Music 1892 ‘The Nutcracker’ was performed for the first time at St. Petersburg with music by Tchaikovsky and danced by the Russian Imperial Ballet. 1954 Bill Haley and the Comets entered the UK singles chart with ‘Shake Rattle and Roll’. 1964 Georgie Fame … Continue reading 17th December

Born on this day 16th December 1485 Catherine of Aragon 1770 Ludwig Van Beethoven 1775 Jane Austen 1899 Sir Noel Coward 1917 Sir Arthur C. Clarke 1938 Liv Ullman 1943 Tony Hicks 1943 Steven Bocho 1946 Benny Andersson 1947 Martyn Poliakoff 1948 Christopher Biggins 1951 Sally Emerson 1964 Gail Harris 1966 Dennis Wise 1969 Simon Grayson 1969 Craig White 1975 Paul Maynard 1978 Joe Absolom 1983 Danielle O’Hara 1984 Theo James 1985 Rachel Bright 1985 James Nash 1988 Anna Popplewell 1994 Elliot Lee 1994 Stephen Sutton Music 1937 Noel Gay’s ‘Me and my Girl’ received its first performance in London, … Continue reading 16th December

Born on this day 15th December 1734 George Romney 1832 Alexandre Gustav Eiffel 1892 John Paul Getty 1936 Edna O’ Brien 1939 Cindy Birdsong 1942 Dave Clark 1949 Don Johnson 1961 Nick Beggs 1962 Simon Hodgkinson 1964 Michael Le Vell 1964 Paul Kaye 1967 David Howells 1970 Frankie Dettori 1980 Sergio Pizzorno 1981 Michelle Dockery 1982 Charlie Cox 1984 Martyn Bernard 1988 Emily Head Music 1959 The Everly Brothers recorded ‘Let It Be’ in New York. 1966 The Who were standing at No.1 on the UK EP charts with ‘Ready Steady Who’. 1969 The Plastic Ono Band made their UK … Continue reading 15th December

Born on this day 14th December 1503 Nostradumus 1895 King George VI 1932 Charlie Rich 1935 Barbara Leigh-Hunt 1938 Jeanette Scott 1949 Cliff Williams 1954 Vicky Michelle 1958 Mike Scott 1979 Michael Owen 1982 Steve Sidwell 1982 Anthony Way 1983 Leanne Mitchell 1985 Tom Smith Music 1957 Buddy Holly made his chart debut in the UK as a solo artist with ‘Peggy Sue’. 1963 The Beatles reached No.1 with ‘I Want To Hold Your Hand’ , replacing their own single ‘She Loves You’ which had topped the chart for 2 weeks. 1968 The Scaffold reached the top of the chart … Continue reading 14th December

Born on this day 13th December 1925 Dick Van Dyke 1929 Christopher Plummer 1948 Ted Nugent 1949 Randy Owen 1949 Paula Wilcox 1949 Robert Lindsay 1952 John Francombe 1953 Jim Davidson 1957 Steve Buscemi 1961 Harry Gregson-Williams 1965 Jackie Clune 1972 Niki Evans 1974 Sara Cox 1974 Nicholas McCarthy 1977 Tupele Dorgu 1977 Charlotte Milchard 1980 Ryan France 1988 Oliver Lancashire Music 1960 Elvis Presley’s single ‘It’s Now or Never’ became the fastest UK million seller, passing the million mark just over six weeks after its release. 1961 The Beatles signed a management contract with local record shop owner Brian … Continue reading 13th December

Born on this day 12th December 1907 Jean Anderson 1915 Frank Sinatra 1929 John Osborne 1932 Lionel Blair 1938 Connie Francis 1941 Dionne Warwick 1959 Jasper Conran 1960 Tracy Austin 1965 Will Carling 1964 Reeta Chakrabarti 1969 Sophie Kinsella 1969 Fiona May 1973 Gary Breen 1977 Dean Macey 1981 Stephen Warnock Music 1955 Bill Haley and the Comets recorded their classic ‘See You Later Alligator’.. 1957 Jerry Lee Lewis married his 13 year old cousin Myra Brown in Mississippi. 1969 ‘The Trouble With Girls’, Elvis Presley’s 30th moviewas released. 1981 The Human League reached No.1 with ‘Don’t You Want Me’. … Continue reading 12th December

Born on this day 11th December 1803 Hector Berlioz 1922 Marie Wilson 1913 Carlo Ponti 1918 Alexander Solzhenitsyn 1919 Cliff Michelmore 1931 Rita Moreno 1944 Brenda Lee 1944 Kenneth Cranham 1954 Jermaine Jackson 1956 Andrew Lansley 1956 Stevie Young 1958 Chris Hughton 1960 Rachel Portman 1961 Marco Pierre White 1963 Nigel Winterburn 1974 Ben Shephard 1984 Leighton Baines Music 1971 Benny Hill moved to No 1 with ‘Ernie (The Fastest Milk Man In The West)’. 1972 Genesis made their live American debut in Massachusetts. 1982 The Jam’s final concert was held at Brighton Sport 1991 Seve Ballesteros received the Ritz … Continue reading 11th December

Born on this day 10th December 1889 Ray Collins 1910 Jill Summers 1932 Dan Blocker 1926 Harry Fowler 1945 Chad Stewart 1952 Clive Anderson 1957 Paul Hardcastle 1958 Lawrie ‘Pepsi’ Demacque 1959 Kevin Ash 1960 Kenneth Branagh 1969 Stephen Billington 1974 Meg White 1976 Shane Byrne 1979 Iain Brunnschweiler 1983 Lewis Buxton 1984 Mark Applegarth 1985 Scarlett Bowman Music 1972 Roberta Flack along with 2 members of her backing group, was injured in a car crash, in New York. Sport 1983 Sheffield United football club was told spectators would be banned from the terraces until a £51,000 bill for policing … Continue reading 10th December