ON THIS DAY
IT’S DAY 255 OF 2015
AN AVERAGE of 255 babies are born every minute of every day worldwide. A Belgian clock-maker called John- Joseph Merlin became the first person to wear roller- skates in public 255 years ago, at a masquerade party in London’s Soho. Legend has it, he crashed into a large mirror as he had not yet mastered how to stop himself. DURING the 1982 Falklands War, 255 men of the British task force sent to liberate the South Atlantic islands were killed.
THERE ARE 110 DAYS LEFT
THE Uffington White Horse, carved into an Oxfordshire hill, is 110 metres long. It is said to be the oldest hill figure in Britain, having been created about 3,000 years ago. By a strange coincidence, three of Britain’s most famous rivers are exactly 110km long — Liverpool’s River Mersey, Sheffield’s River Don and Chester’s River Dee. THE average smartphone user unlocks their phone ( releasing the keypad privacy safeguard) 110 times a day — peak times being between 5pm and 8pm.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY
U.S. ACTRESS Linda Gray (pictured), 75, famed for her role as J.R. Ewing’s alcoholic wife Sue Ellen in Tv soap Dallas. Last Christmas she starred as the Fairy Godmother in a panto of Cinderella at the New Wimbledon Theatre. ACTOR Sir Ian Holm, 84. He is best known for appearing in The Fifth Element and as Bilbo Baggins in the Lord Of The Rings and The Hobbit films. He had a bout of stage fright in 1976 and didn’t return to the theatre for eight years.
BORN ON THIS DAY
HERBERT HENRy ASqUITH (1852-1928). yorkshire-born Liberal Prime Minister from 1908 to 1916 — the prime years of the suffragette movement, which he strongly opposed. His great-granddaughter is the actress Helena Bonham Carter, star of forthcoming film Suffragette. ACTOR Paul Walker (1973-2013). Hollywood A-Lister famous for The Fast And The Furious drag-racing films. He died in a car crash — as a passenger in a Porsche Carrera GT that was travelling at more than 100mph when it hit a tree and exploded into flames. BARRy WHITE (1944-2003, pictured). Known as the Walrus of Love for his seductive songs and 27st bulk, he was jailed for theft aged 17. White credited listening to Elvis Presley’s It’s Now Or Never in prison with turning his life around. JESSE OWENS (1913-1980). Alabama-born black American athlete who famously won four gold medals at the Berlin Olympics of 1936, crushing the Nazi’s myth of German/ Aryan strength. Despite his stunning success, Owens commented wryly that he still ‘couldn’t ride at the front of the bus’ after returning home — segregation being the norm in America at the time.
ON SEPTEMBER 12 . . .
IN 1878, Cleopatra’s Needle, an Ancient Egyptian obelisk given to Britain by Muhammad Ali, the Khedive of Egypt, was erected on victoria Embankment, London. Its twin stands in New york’s Central Park. Despite their nicknames, they have no connection to queen Cleopatra vII; they were already 1,000 years old in her reign. IN 1958, Cliff Richard made his first appearance on the UK pop charts with Move It. It reached No 2. IN 1960, the MoT test was introduced in Britain to ensure the roadworthiness of cars that were ten years and older.
QUOTE FOR TODAY
Tact is the knack of making a point without making an enemy.
Sir Isaac Newton (1642-1726)
JOKE OF THE DAY
WHERE do sheep go for their haircut? To the baa baa shop.