ON THIS DAY
FROM THE DAILY MAIL ARCHIVE
May 10, 1939 FROM the balcony of their Verdun hotel, the Duke and Duchess of Windsor acknowledged the cheers of the crowd. Thousands gathered to see them. The Duke’s radio peace appeal was made from a small room at the Hotel du Coq Hardi. It was his first broadcast since his abdication in December 1936. [The BBC didn’t broadcast the speech for fear of upstaging King George VI and Queen Elizabeth, who had just left for a tour of Canada and the U.S.] May 10, 1973 OSCAR-WINNER Liza Minnelli said last night that she had almost finished paying off debts run up by her mother, Judy Garland, who died in 1969, owing money in America and Europe. The exact figure has never been disclosed, but Miss Minnelli says it was ‘a substantial sum’, which she has been clearing for more than a year.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY
LINDA EVANGELISTA, 54. The Canadian supermodel will forever be remembered for saying she doesn’t ‘wake up for less than $10,000 a day’. Spotted by a model scout aged 13, on the catwalk she was famous for her short hairstyles. ‘Linda was the first supermodel to cut all her hair off,’ U.S. stylist Garren told Vogue. Evangelista says she doesn’t believe in diets, but prefers protein ‘that swims or flies’ and starts the day with lemon water and a shot of algae. DEBBIE WISEMAN, 56. Classic FM’s Composer in Residence is responsible for more than 200 film and TV scores, including Wolf Hall and Judge John Deed. nominated for a Grammy award, she started composing aged eight and says she prefers the simplest tunes: ‘There’s nothing wrong with three or four notes that create magic.’
BORN ON THIS DAY
SID VICIOUS (1957-1979). The Sex Pistols guitarist was born Simon John Ritchie and took his stage name from bandmate John Lydon’s pet hamster. He died of a heroin overdose, three months after the death of his girlfriend nancy Spungen — and while waiting to be tried for her murder. The band’s manager, Malcolm McLaren, called Vicious ‘the ultimate DIY punk idol: someone easy to assemble and therefore become’. SIR DENIS THATCHER (1915-2003). Mrs Thatcher’s husband had been married once before (to another Margaret), but his second wife did not reveal this to their twins, Carol and Mark, until they were 23. When asked what had attracted him to his wife, he said: ‘She’s got a good pair of legs.’
ON MAY 10...
IN 1963, the Rolling Stones recorded their first single, Come on, a day after finalising their first record deal. IN 1977, Hollywood star Joan Crawford died in new York.
WORD WIZARDRY
GUESS THE DEFINITION: Perdicine (late 19th century) Relating to A) a partridge; B) a pheasant; or C) a penguin. answer below
PHRASE EXPLAINED
Against the grain: Meaning contrary to natural inclination; it’s a woodcutter’s saying from the 1600s, where to work along the grain is much easier and smoother.
QUOTE FOR TODAY
Happiness in intelligent people is the rarest thing i know. Ernest Hemingway, novelist (1899-1961)
JOKE OF THE DAY
I Don’T tell jokes about unprocessed oil. They’re too crude. Guess The Definition answer: A