ON THIS DAY
FROM THE DAILY MAIL ARCHIVE
AUGUST 23, 1929 MR J. LANCELOT MARTIN, the Reading coroner, who has been attacking what he calls the ‘speed maniacs’ on the roads, returned to the subject when holding an inquest yesterday. He said: ‘Women motorists are simply disgraceful. They talk and chatter like maniacs while driving, and do not give a thought to what they are doing.’ AUGUST 23, 1930 IT WAS stated last night that the Duchess of York and her daughter, born at Glamis on Thursday, continue to make satisfactory progress, adding: ‘The infant princess [Margaret] is doing fine.’ The phrase, ‘doing fine’, a Scots colloquialism, is understood to appear in the bulletin in deference to the fact that the baby was born in Scotland.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY
BOBBY G, 66. Robert Gubby, of Eurovision-winning Bucks Fizz, bleached his hair to get into the group as ‘everyone had to be short and blonde’. His third wife bought the rights to the band’s name, leaving Mike Nolan, Jay Aston and Cheryl Baker (pictured from left, with Bobby on the far right) to perform as The Fizz. In 2016, they were reportedly offered £1 million to reunite, but refused. Baker said: ‘We could never be friends with Bobby G again.’ QUEEN NOOR OF JORDAN, 68. King Hussein’s U.S.-born widow was wooed by him singing Abba’s Take A Chance On Me. When asked what it was like to have been one of the first women to study at Princeton, she said: ‘Excellent preparation for living in the Arab world.’
BORN ON THIS DAY
LOUIS XVI (1754-1793). Historians believe the King of France’s marriage to Marie Antoinette was only consummated seven years after their wedding. He decreed that all handkerchiefs must be square, and that no-one be allowed to carry one larger than his. After France was declared a republic in 1792, he was found guilty of treason and executed by guillotine. GENE KELLY (1912-1996). The U.S. dancer, actor, director and choreographer said his movies were pioneering because ‘I tried to invent the dance to fit the camera and its movements’. Debbie Reynolds, who played his love interest in Singin’ In The Rain (right), despite being 19 to his 39, said: ‘The two hardest things I ever did in my life are childbirth and Singin’ In The Rain.’
ON AUGUST 23…
IN 1962, John Lennon married Cynthia Powell — they divorced six years later.
IN 1973, four bank workers were taken hostage by robbers in Stockholm, Sweden. Over six days, the hostages bonded with their captors, inspiring the term ‘Stockholm Syndrome’.
WORD WIZARDRY
GUESS THE DEFINITION: Niddering (coined Sir Walter Scott 1819) A) Cowardly. B) Shivering. C) Walking faster involuntarily. Answer below PHRASE EXPLAINED All systems go:
Something that can now start. From the Space Race in the Sixties; the systems controlled rocket launches and ‘all systems go’ meant ready for lift-off.
QUOTE FOR TODAY
ONE sees great things from the valley; only small things from the peak. G.K. Chesterton, writer (1874-1936)
JOKE OF THE DAY
HOW should you talk to a giant? Use big words. Guess The Definition answer: A.