Swindon

1951: A cat which attacked a fledgling in Swindon’s Durham Street was immediately set upon by a group of starlings. So fierce was their onslaught that the cat was forced to abandon its intended prey and retreat. The fledgling, not strong enough to fly away, was then rescued by passers by.

1951: New abattoir regulations angered Cricklade and Wootton Bassett Rural Council. Its inspectors said rules relating to the use of calves’ stomachs as food meant they would spend so much time inspecting stomachs and intestines that their other duties would be compromised. The council’s two inspectors estimated that they would be occupied for at least four days a week by the inspections. The council lodged a protest with the Ministry of Food.

1961: A skull, said to be brown with age, was discovered during work on the site of what would be the new William Deacon Bank in Regent Street. Attempts were being made to date the skull, which was initially taken to the nearby museum but later moved to the police station. Museum assistant Morna MacGregor said it was difficult to determine its age because there were no teeth. She added that there was a perforation on the left side.

1961: A retired railway clerk with a lifelong interest in education became the new Swindon mayor. Alderman TG Gay, 72, an independent, was born in Swindon and educated at Sanford Street School and The College, later studying at the London School of Economics. Between 1903 and his retirement in 1953, Alderman Gay worked as a clerk in various departments at the Railway Works.

1971: Swindon ambulance driver Roy Williams beat drivers from all over the South and West in the regional finals of the local authority ambulance competitions at Dorchester. Roy, 32, of Inglesham Road in Penhill, earned a place in the national finals, due to be held in Harrogate in August. A fellow Swindon competitor, Jack Hyde, came second in his class.

1971: Aldbourne composer David Gow was due to have two of his works performed in a single day. His A Little Cantata to the Stars was to be performed at Westminster venue St Johns by a group of former Cambridge choral students called The Scholars, while a suite, Cocledemoy, was to be performed in Northern Ireland by the BBC Northern Ireland Symphony Orchestra.

The world

1686: Gabriel Daniel Fahrenheit, German physicist who invented the mercury thermometer, was born.

1809: Dartmoor Prison was opened to house French prisoners of war. From 1850 it was used for convicts.

1819: Queen Victoria, pictured, was born at Kensington Palace.

1862: London’s Westminster Bridge opened.

1895: The first stage knighthood was conferred, on Sir Henry Irving.

1916: Conscription began in Britain.

1941: The German battleship Bismarck sank HMS Hood off Greenland with the loss of more than 1,400 lives.

1969: The Black And White Minstrel Show, at London’s Victoria Palace, closed after 4,354 performances in seven years.

1974: Jazz musician, bandleader and composer Edward ‘Duke’ Ellington died.

1978: Princess Margaret’s 18-year marriage to Lord Snowdon was ended by a special procedure divorce.

BIRTHDAYS Bob Dylan, singer/songwriter, 76; Patti LaBelle, singer, 73; Dave Peacock, singer (Chas & Dave), 72; Priscilla Presley, actress, 72; Jim Broadbent, actor, 68; Alfred Molina, actor, 64; Kristin Scott Thomas, actress, 57; Eric Cantona, former footballer, 51.