ON THIS DAY
FROM THE DAILY MAIL ARCHIVE
MAY 26, 1946 The Court is not to go into mourning for the earl of harewood, who has died aged 64. An official announcement from St James’s Palace stated: ‘The King has decided that, in view of the difficulties in connection with clothes [rationing], members of the Royal Family will not be expected to wear mourning when attending public functions.’ MAY 26, 2001 BRITONS have just 12 days left to save the pound, William hague declared yesterday. On the day Tony Blair gave the clearest signal yet that he is determined to take Britain into the single currency, the Tory leader said: ‘This morning, Tony Blair finally admitted he wants to ditch the pound.’
he declared today ‘Save the Pound Day’ with rallies and petitions in all 180 marginals the party hopes to capture.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY
STeVIe NICKS, 72. The American singer-songwriter, pictured, made her name with Fleetwood Mac, who had hits with Go Your Own Way and Dreams. Last year she became the first woman inducted into the Rock and Roll hall of Fame twice (first as part of Fleetwood Mac and then as a solo act). She had an affair with bandmate Mick Fleetwood, but he dumped Nicks for her best friend. She said Joe Walsh of the eagles was ‘the great, great love of my life’.
JeReMY CORBYN, 71. The former Labour leader became a vegetarian at 20 after working on a pig farm. One of his hobbies is to make jam from fruit grown on his allotment. Another pastime is photographing manhole covers. An avid cyclist, he once refused to be interviewed in an electric car by the BBC.
BORN ON THIS DAY
MILeS DAVIS (1926-1991). The jazz pioneer declared he’d ‘changed music five or six times’. Before performances, he tied the laces of his shoes — which were one size too small — as tightly as possible, and avoided food and sex. he also refused to shake anyone’s hand, apparently because he didn’t want ‘the oil from other people’s hands to mess up how his hands felt’.
SALLY RIDe (1951-2012). America’s first female astronaut (and at 32, its youngest) entered space in June 1983 — 20 years to the month after the USSR’s Valentina Tereshkova became the first woman in space. Among the intrusive questions asked her was whether she’d wear a bra. ‘There is no sag in zero-gravity,’ she replied.
ON MAY 26...
IN 1703, english diarist Samuel Pepys died, aged 70.
IN 2002, the first episode of The Osbournes was shown on MTV in the UK. It made stars of Ozzy Osbourne’s wife Sharon and children Jack and Kelly.
WORD WIZARDRY
GUESS THE DEFINITION: Varmint (c1530)
A) Violent and brawling. B) Vermin. C) A lean deer unfit to hunt. Answer below.
PHRASE EXPLAINED
Put one’s foot in it: To say the wrong thing; coined in the 18th century in reference to Irish parliamentarian Sir Boyle Roche, from the full phrase: ‘To put your foot in your mouth.’
QUOTE FOR TODAY
Be the first to say something obvious and achieve immortality
Marie von Ebner-Eschenbach, Austrian novelist (1830-1916)
JOKE OF THE DAY
hAVe you heard about the new broom that just came out? It’s sweeping the nation.
Guess the definition answer: B.