ON THIS DAY
138: Hadrian, Roman emperor who planned the great wall across northern Britain, died. 1099: Spanish warrior Rodrigo Diaz de Bivar – El Cid – died in Valencia, apparently of grief after defeat by the Moors. 1460: The Yorkists defeated the Lancastrians and captured Henry VI at the Battle of Northampton. 1553: Lady Jane Grey was proclaimed Queen of England at the age of 16 – she lasted only nine days before being arrested and executed. 1834: American artist James McNeill Whistler, who made Chelsea his adopted home, was born in Massachusetts. 1871: Author Marcel Proust – A la Recherche du Temps Perdu (Remembrance Of Things Past) – was born in Paris. 1900: The Paris Metro opened.
1954: Gordon Richards rode his last mount, at Sandown, the 21,834th of his nearly 34-year-long career.
1958: The first parking meters in Britain were installed in London’s Mayfair.
1962: Telstar I, the world’s first television telecommunications satellite, was launched in America. 2011: The News of the World bade farewell to its readers after 168 years with the words “Thank you & goodbye”.
ON THIS DAY LAST YEAR
The Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh marked 70 years since their engagement was celebrated at Buckingham Palace.
BIRTHDAYS
Gavin Strang, former MP, 75; Virginia Wade, former tennis player, 73; Sunil Gavaskar, former cricketer, 69; Neil Tennant, singer (Pet Shop Boys), 64; Gina Bellman, actress, 52; John Simm, actor, 48; Jason Orange, former Take That singer, 48; Jessica Simpson, singer, 38.