On this day

1792: The Mint of the United States was established, striking its first silver dollars.

1801: Nelson put a telescope to his blind eye at the Battle of Copenhagen and thus ignored the command to cease fighting. He continued the action until the pro-French Danish fleet was totally subdued.

1805: Hans Christian Andersen, master of the fairy tale, was born in Odense, Denmark.

1873: British trains were fitted with toilets – but only in sleeping cars.

1877: The first human cannonball act was performed at London’s Amphitheatre, when acrobatic Lady Zazal was shot by elastic springs into a safety net. 1947: The Royal Military Academy at Sandhurst was formed.

1954: Britain’s first TV soap opera, The Grove Family (named after Lime Grove Studios), was transmitted.

1977: Charlotte Brew on Barony Fort became the first woman to ride in a Grand National. Her mount refused at the 27th fence. The winner was Red Rum, pictured, scoring his third win, the only horse ever to do so.

1982: Argentinian forces invaded and occupied the British Falkland Islands in the South Atlantic.

ON THIS DAY LAST YEAR: A baby fox, pictured, was rescued by firefighters after getting stuck in a cavity wall at a market.

“Germany are testing half a million people a week, yet we still haven’t hit the 10,000–a–day the prime minister promised. NHS staff are rightly asking if we’ve left it too late to buy the kits and chemicals we need, or whether our lab capacity is too overstretched after years of tight budgets” - Labour’s shadow health secretary Jonathan Ashworth, pictured, calls for an explanation on why the UK’s Covid-19 testing is lagging behind other countries.

“Having recently gone through the process of contracting this coronavirus – luckily with relatively mild symptoms – I now find myself on the other side of the illness but still in no less a state of social distance and general isolation. As we are all learning, this is a strange, frustrating and often distressing experience when the presence of family and friends is no longer possible and the normal structures of life are suddenly removed” - The Prince of Wales, pictured, makes his first comments since his coronavirus selfisolation ended.

“I have put myself through some pain during a very strange time for everyone, as long as it is for a good cause. If other people get inspired to do something like this, then good luck. I would recommend it, it’s not that bad” - Former international athlete James Campbell speaks after spending his 32nd birthday running a marathon in his six-metrelong back garden, raising more than £17,000 for the NHS.