1532 – Sir Thomas More resigns as Lord Chancellor of England after the first request was not granted, he was allowed to on this request as he explained to Henry VIII he was of ill health.
1568 – Mary, Queen of Scots, flees to England. She crossed the Solway Firth and landed in Workington in Cumberland.
1929 – The first Academy Awards are handed out in Hollywood, California. The first best actor was Emil Jennings for his performance in The Last Command and The Way of All Flesh.
Birthdays
1905 – Henry Fonda was born in Nebraska, US. He became an actor and made his Hollywood debut in 1935 and won an Academy Award for his role in The Grapes of Wrath.
1919 – Liberace was born as Wladziu (or Vładziu) Valentino Liberace in Wisconsin, US. He became a pianist and is well known for his flamboyance and became at the time was the highest paid entertainer.
1953 – Pierce Brosnan was born in County Louth, Ireland. He became an actor and has played James Bond and has received
1618 – Johannes Kepler confirms his previously rejected discovery of the third law of planetary motion. He had first discovered it on 8 March that year but soon rejected the idea after some initial calculations were made.
1940 – McDonald’s opens its first restaurant in San Bernardino, California by two brothers called Richard and Maurice McDonald.
2010 – Jessica Watson becomes the youngest person to sail, non-stop and unassisted around the world solo. She had departed Sydney, Australia on 18th October 2009 and returned three days before her 17th Birthday.
Birthdays
1953 – Mike Oldfield was born in Reading, UK. He became a musician and composer and is best known for the album Tubular Bells.
1981 – Zara Phillips was born in Paddington ,London. She is the second child of Princess Anne and she is also an accomplished equestrian and has won Eventing World Championship in 2009.
1987 – Andy Murray was born in Glasgow, Scotland. He became a tennis player and is the only person to have reached the semi-finals in one year for all four grand slam titles.
1796 - Edward Jenner administers the first smallpox vaccination. It was an eight year old boy called James Phipps who had the vaccine administered and it was proven successful.
1939 - Lina Medina becomes the youngest confirmed mother in medical history at the age of five. There is still no explanation to this day on how she was able to conceive at that age and she gave birth to a boy.
1973 - Skylab, the United States’ first space station, is launched. It lasted until 1979 on which it re-entered Earth’s atmosphere with debris striking Western Australia.
Birthdays
1727 - Thomas Gainsborough was born in Sudbury, UK. He became a painter, he preferred to paint landscapes as opposed to portraits. Although, he did paint portraits of Kings and Queens.
1944 - George Lucas was born in California, US. He became a film director, screenwriter and producer. He is famed for Star Wars and Indiana Jones.
1969 – Cate Blanchett was born in Melbourne, Australia. She became an actress and has won two Golden Globes, one Academy Awards and two BAFTA’s.
1787 - Captain Arthur Phillip leaves Portsmouth, England, with eleven ships full of convicts, this was known as the “First Fleet”. It was to establish a penal colony in Australia, they landed at Port Jackson which is now Sydney Harbour.
1950 - The first round of the Formula One World Championship is held at Silverstone. The championship for the constructors arrived in 1958.
1995 - 33-year-old British mother Alison Hargreaves became the first woman to conquer Everest without oxygen or the help of Sherpa’s. She had intended to climb the three highest mountains in the world, however after Everest she died on K2 that year, when a violent storm struck after her group were returning from the summit.
Birthdays
1907 – Daphne Du Maurier was born in London, UK. She became playwright and author, many of her works have been turned into films, including Rebecca and Jamaica Inn.
1939 – Harvey Keitel was born in New York. He became an actor and has starred in many films including Reservoir Dogs and The Piano.
1950 – Stevie Wonder was born as Stevland Hardaway Judkins in Michigan, US. He became a singer and songwriter, his has sold many albums and his singles include Superstition and I Just Called to Say I Love You.
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