Today in History

[Gemini]

1956

Premium Bonds first went on sale in Britain with the winning numbers picked at random by a machine with the acronym 'ERNIE'. The first Premium Bond was bought by the then Lord Mayor of London, Sir Cuthbert Ackroyd.

[Daisy]

1852

Today was the first time journalists had been allowed into the House of Commons so they could report on debates.

[Gemini]

1935

The Royal National Institute for the Blind distributed its first Talking Books of players and records to blind & partially sighted people

[Gemini]

1920

Rupert Bear made his first appearance in the Daily Express. Rupert Bear Annuals have been produced since 1936 and are still in production today. The Rupert Annual is still one of the top three Annual titles sold worldwide.


I loved my Rupert Annuals

[Daisy]

Gem, so did I!

[Gemini]

1922

Children's Hour was first broadcast on the radio. It established a tradition of drama and story-telling and built up a devoted audience of over three million at its peak.

[Gemini]

1880

The first three women to graduate in Britain received their Bachelor of Arts degrees at London University.

[Daisy]

They must have been very determined to break down the 'male only' university system. I can't remember the exact details, but I don't think women were allowed to matriculate until some time in the 1920s, and they couldn't actually receive the degrees although they had done the work and passed the exams.

[Gemini]

1947

Princess Elizabeth (Queen Elizabeth II) married Lieutenant Philip Mountbatten (Duke of Edinburgh) at Westminster Abbey. The BBC made the first tele-recording of the event, which was broadcast in the US 32 hours later.

70 years! CONGRATULATIONS TO THEM!

[Oma]

70 years , no matter who you are Queen or commoner 70 years married is still a wonderful thing

[Daisy]

It is, Oma. OH and I have just been working out how old we'd be if we get to 70 years! I can remember hearing bits about the wedding on the radio (I was only 4), and it was the most awful weather with coal on rations - a horrible winter.

[Gemini]

2003

An acoustic guitar on which the late Beatle George Harrison learned to play, fetched £276,000 at a London auction

[ZIZI]

George was my favourite

[Gemini]

1976

British comedians Eric Morecambe and Ernie Wise received the Order of the British Empire (OBE) from Queen Elizabeth II. There is a statue of Eric Morecambe on the promenade at Morecambe, Lancashire.

[Daisy]

Morecambe and Wise were an amazing act. They managed to be incredibly funny without a single swear word between them.