27th September

[chenrezig]

1066 William the Conqueror and his army set sail from the mouth of the Somme River in Picardy, northern France, beginning the Norman Conquest of England.

1672 A new British company, the 'Royal Africa Company' was given a monopoly of the African slave trade to America, with discounts for those who purchased entire shiploads.

1825 The world’s first public railway service began with the opening of the Stockton and Darlington Railway. Built by George Stephenson, the track was 27 miles long, and the steam locomotive Active pulled 32 passenger wagons at ten miles per hour.

1888 The first use of the name, 'Jack the Ripper' in an anonymous letter to the Central News Agency. He went on to kill five women, and it's believed he may have been responsible for the deaths of four more.

1938 The 83,000 ton liner 'Queen Elizabeth' was launched at John Brown's Yard on Clydebank in Scotland by the Queen Mother. With her sister ship Queen Mary, she provided luxury liner service between Southampton and New York via Cherbourg in France.

1960 Bank Underground Station in London opened Europe's first 'moving pavement' .

1967 The Queen Mary arrived in Southampton at the end of its last transatlantic voyage.

1968 The musical Hair, (which took advantage of the end of British stage censorship by including a scene cast in the nude), had its first London performance. It played 1,998 performances until its closure was forced by the roof collapsing in July 1973.

1979 Gracie Fields, the Rochdale born wartime singer, died aged 81, in Canzone Del Mare, Capri. Her most famous song was 'Sally' which she sang at nearly every performance she made from 1931 onwards.

1979 The BBC's Question Time aired for the first time, chaired by Robin Day, who stayed with the programme for ten years.

1979 The death (aged 26) from heart failure caused by a heroin overdose of Jimmy McCulloch, Scottish musician and songwriter best known for playing lead guitar in Paul McCartney's Wings from 1974 to 1977.

1987 Tony Jacklin led a team of 12 golfers, including Seve Ballesteros, to win the Ryder Cup. It was the first time the US team had been defeated on their home ground.

1991 The first Scrabble Championship was held in London, with 20 countries competing.

1993 The Government announced its plans to privatise the Post Office.

1995 There was anger within the Government when a European Court of Human Rights ruling condemned the killing, by the British SAS, of three IRA terrorists in Gibraltar in 1988.

2011 David Croft died, aged 89. He was particularly noted for producing and co-writing a string of popular BBC sitcoms including Dad's Army, 'Allo 'Allo!, Hi-De-Hi!, Are You Being Served?, You Rang M’Lord? and It Ain't Half Hot Mum.

[annie]

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[Rosalind]

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