ON THIS DAY
April 10, 2024
FROM THE DAILY MAIL ARCHIVE
APRIL 10, 1992
JOHN MAJOR returns to 10 Downing Street as PM this morning. Against all the forecasts of his downfall and the predictions of a hung parliament, he triumphed, despite fighting against the background of a deep national recession.
APRIL 10, 2004
BLOODY chaos gripped Iraq yesterday on the anniversary of the fall of Baghdad, with violence raging up to the gates of the capital. The triumph of a year ago — symbolised by a statue of Saddam hussein crashing to the ground — was just a flickering memory with horror and humiliation for the coalition across the country.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY
PETER MORGAN, 61. The Londonborn screenwriter penned the film The Queen and created Netflix series The Crown. The winner of five Baftas said of the monarchy: ‘As an institution, it’s indefensible. of course it is. And yet the whole thing’s so bloody ridiculous you can’t help feeling slightly sorry for them.’
SOPHIE ELLISBEXTOR, 45. The singer-songwriter from London topped the charts in 2000 with Groovejet (If This Ain’t Love). Murder on The Dancefloor peaked at number two in 2001, and again this year, thanks to its use in a nude dance scene in the film Saltburn.
BORN ON THIS DAY
GEORGE ARLISS (1868-1946). The monocle-wearing Londoner achieved four oscar firsts in 1930. he was the first actor to win for playing a real person; the first British actor to win; the first actor to win for a reprised role (all for Disraeli) and the first to win while nominated for a role in a second film (The Green Goddess).
JOSEPH PULITZER (1847-1911). The hungarian-born politician and publisher became America’s ‘first media titan’, turning the New york World into the country’s highest circulation newspaper and gave his name to the world’s top journalism prize, awarded annually since 1917.
ON APRIL 10…
IN 1944, Rudolf Vrba and Alfréd Wetzler escaped from Auschwitz and wrote a report about the mass murder taking place at the death camp.
IN 2014, Sue Townsend, author of Adrian Mole books, died, aged 68.
WORD WIZARDRY
GUESS THE DEFINITION
Galea
A) Ancient Roman helmet. B) Small cavity in a rock. C) A gondolier’s song. answer below
PHRASE EXPLAINED
Through thick and thin: denotes extreme loyalty in good and bad times; from a nautical expression that refers to a system of thick and thin pulleys that enables ropes of differing widths to hoist the sails.
QUOTE FOR TODAY
I set out to be a cross between lenny Bruce and Robert the Bruce.
Billy Connolly, Scottish comedian
JOKE OF THE DAY
HOW do you get an astronaut’s baby to stop crying? you rocket. Guess The Definition answer: a.