ON THIS DAY
August 10, 2015
IT’S DAY 222 OF 2015
THE Louvre Museum, Paris, opened 222 years ago. Now home to the Mona Lisa, most of its exhibits at the time consisted of treasures confiscated from the former royal family or the Church.
ESTABLISHED by the Jockey Club at Newmarket in 1814, the 1,000 Guineas stakes flat horse race was named after the winning purse (1,000 guineas = £1,050). This year’s winner, Legatissimo, won 222 times that amount in May.
IN THE charts f or 222 weeks, Amy Winehouse’s album Back To Black has sold more than 383,000 copies.
THE Bank of England issued its first £5 note 222 years ago — it would have had the buying value of £384.21 today.
THERE’S 143 DAYS LEFT
THE mummified body of Tutankhamun ( right) was found with 143 pieces of jewellery. The tomb of the king of Egypt (1336 to 1,327 BC) was discovered by archaeologist Howard Carter in 1920.
THE unlucky Apollo 13 moonshot mission, which had to be aborted after an oxygen tank exploded, lasted 143 hours. The story was turned into the 1995 film Apollo 13, starring Tom Hanks and Kevin Bacon.
CZECHS knock back 143 litres of beer per person each year, making them the world’s top beer drinkers. Britain, with 67 litres per person, is 22nd on the list.
THE average person loses £1.43 in loose change every year.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY
FOOTBALLER Roy Keane, 44, was the most successful captain in Manchester United’s history, with nine honours in eight years. But at 14 he was judged by a scout to be ‘too small’ to make the grade
GARDENING expert Charlie Dimmock, 49 ( pictured). The Hampshire-born TV presenter who came to fame as the bra-less gardener on BBC’s Ground Force, took a break from TV after her mother and stepfather died in the 2004 Asian tsunami.
HOLLYWOOD actor Antonio Banderas, 55, Spanish star of Shrek. A keen singer, he’s recorded a duet of Me And My Shadow with Michael Ball.
BORN ON THIS DAY
ACTRESS Kate O’Mara (1939-2014). The Leicester-born star played many a femme fatale and is best remembered as Caress Morrell in Dynasty and the evil Rani in Doctor Who. Roger Moore nicknamed her the Starlet O’Mara.
INVENTOR Charles Darrow (1889-1967). After seeing an old board game called The Landlord’s Game, unemployed Darrow created an alternative called Monopoly. Rejected by all the toymakers, he sold it directly to department stores. After selling the rights in 1935, he became the world’s first millionaire game designer.
ON AUGUST 10TH . . .
IN 1675, the foundation stone was laid for Britain’s first observatory at Greenwich — 1.6 million people visit every year.
IN 1984, U.S. athlete Mary Decker had her Olympic gold medal dream sensationally wrecked after she tripped over barefoot British runner zola Budd in the 3,000 metres. Decker was carried off the track, Budd finished seventh.
IN 1895, Sir Henry Wood conducted the first promenade concert, soon to become the Proms, at the Queen’s Hall, London. The admission price was one shilling.
QUOTE FOR TODAY
i went to a restaurant that serves ‘ breakfast at any time’. So i ordered French toast during the Renaissance. Comedian Peter Kay
JOKE OF THE DAY
WHAT’S the easiest way to keep the dream alive? Push the snooze button.