SWINDON...

1947: A blizzard hit the town with wind piling up the snow in drifts18ft high in places. Vehicles were abandoned at the roadside and roads were blocked.

1957: Five Swindon and District Road Club members successfully competed in the classic Castlenau Cycle Club reliability trial the toughest of the season. The course, London to Bath and back, embraces real hills and tiring slopes.

1977: The Cricklade branch of the BSA Owner’s Motorcycle Club held an exhibition in the Brunel Plaza, Swindon, including motorbikes such as the 1971 Rocket.

2013: A mystery pong was causing concern for people living in North Swindon.The Environment Agency and Swindon Council’s environmental health team were working to identify the smell, which had been noticed for two to three weeks in the Oakhurst, Taw Hill and Redhouse areas.

 

THE WORLD...

1899: Bayer registered “Aspirin” as a trademark.

1951: The trial of Ethel and Julius Rosenberg began.

1957: Ghana became the first Sub-Saharan country to gain independence from the British.

1964: Nation of Islam’s Elijah Muhammad officially gave boxing champion Cassius Clay the name Muhammad Ali.

1967: Joseph Stalin's daughter Svetlana Alliluyeva defected to the United States.

 

BORN...

1475: Michelangelo – Italian painter and sculptor.

1619: Cyrano de Bergerac – French soldier and playwright.

1806: Elizabeth Barrett Browning – English poet.

1906: Lou Costello – American actor and comedian.

1917: Frankie Howerd – English comedian, actor, and singer.

1926: Alan Greenspan – American economist.

1934: John Noakes – English actor and television host.

1944: Kiri Te Kanawa – New Zealand soprano.

1947: Kiki Dee – English singer.

1947: Dick Fosbury – American high jumper.

 

DIED...

1888: Louisa May Alcott, American author.

1951: Ivor Novello – Welsh singer-songwriter and actor.

1961: George Formby – English singer-songwriter and actor.

1967: Nelson Eddy – American actor and singer.

1973: Pearl S Buck – American author, Nobel Prize laureate.

1994: Melina Mercouri, Greek actress, singer, and politician.