IT HAPPENED TODAY

1783:

The last public hanging in England took place at Tyburn (now Marble Arch in London) — forger John Austin was the last to die there.

1867:

Scientific genius Marie Curie was born in Warsaw. She and her husband Pierre shared the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1903 and she was awarded a second Prize in 1911 for her discovery of radium.

1872:

The Marie Celeste, the ill-fated brigantine, sailed from New York

— and was found mysteriously abandoned near the Azores some time later.

1885:

A golden spike was driven into the track at Craigellachie in British Columbia to complete the Canadian Pacific Railway after four-and-a-half years’ work.

1917:

The Bolshevik Revolution, led by Lenin, overthrew prime minister Alexander Kerensky’s government.

1967:

Henry Cooper beat Billy Walker and became the first and only boxer to win three Lonsdale Belts outright.

1974:

Lord Lucan disappeared, following the murder of his children’s nanny and serious assault of his wife. He has never been seen since.

1980:

1990:

Actor Steve McQueen died.

Mary Robinson (above) was elected as the first woman President of the Irish Republic.

ON THIS DAY LAST YEAR:

Sheep demonstrated a celebrity-spotter’s ability to recognise faces of famous people, including former US President Barack Obama, in a study.

BIRTHDAYS:

Dame Gwyneth Jones, soprano, 82; Jean Shrimpton, former model, 76; Joni Mitchell, singer, 75; Su Pollard, actress and comedienne, 69; Lindsay Duncan, (below) actress, 68; John Barnes, former footballer and manager, 55; Sharleen Spiteri, Texas singer, 51; Rio Ferdinand, former Manchester United and England footballer, 40.