ON THIS DAY
FROM THE DAILY MAIL ARCHIVE DECEMBER 2, 1919
LADY ASTOR MP yesterday took her seat in the House of Commons, the first woman to do so. Her arrival was witnessed by the largest number of women who have ever come to the House of Commons. During the morning they lined up for seats. By the time the House met, there were 200 or 300 in the Central Hall waiting for admission.
DECEMBER 2, 1942
THE long-awaited Beveridge £2 a Week For All Plan was made public yesterday. Sir William Beveridge’s scheme is to insure us all from the cradle to the grave. It includes the setting up of a new Ministry of Social Security. It would provide free medical treatment for everyone, including hospital, dental and ophthalmic treatment.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY
BRITNEy SPEARS, 39. The U.S. pop star has had six UK No 1s, sold 150 mill i on records and has a £ 45 million fortune. Last month she l ost a court battle to stop her father controlling her finances, which he took over in 2008 after concerns about her mental health. A Free Britney campaign among fans claims she is being forced to work against her will.
MONICA SELES, 47. The retired tennis star, born in yugoslavia, won eight grand slams in her teens. At 19, she was stabbed in the back on court by a deranged fan of a rival player. Martina Navratilova said being beaten by Seles was like being ‘run over by a truck’ — and believed Seles would have become the greatest player ever had it not been for the attack.
BORN ON THIS DAY
GIANNI VERSACE (1946-1997). The Italian fashion designer was shot dead at 50 by a serial killer. Versace dressed Madonna and Elton John, and designed Liz Hurley’s famous safety-pin gown. Versace made his first dress at nine — a blue one- shoulder evening gown: Princess Diana wore a version of it 40 years later. He employed a full-time librarian for his five libraries.
MARIA CALLAS ( 19231977). The Greek-American opera star with a threeoctave range was born Maria Cecilia Sophia Anna Kalogeropoulos. She was due to marry shipping magnate Aristotle Onassis in London — a priest was flying in — when it was called off due to a row. One critic said: ‘If an orgasm could sing, it would sound like Callas.’
ON DECEMBER 2…
IN 1933, Dancing Lady, Fred Astaire’s first film (with Joan Crawford), was released. IN 1988, Benazir Bhutto became the first woman to lead the government of a modern Islamic nation when she was sworn in as Pakistan’s PM.
WORD WIZARDRIES
GUESS THE DEFINITION: Mizzle (coined late 15th century) A) The swamp surface of a wet, ploughed field B) A turnstile C) To rain in fine drops answer below. PHRASE EXPLAINED Here’s mud in your eye: another way to say cheers; coined in the 1930s, it expresses good wishes before drinking and is also used at the end of toasts as a signal to drink.
QUOTE FOR TODAY
The past is a foreign country: they do things differently there. L. P. Hartley, English novelist (1895-1972)
JOKE OF THE DAY
HOW do fish always know how much they weigh? Because they take their scales wherever they go. Guess The Definition answer: C