8th June 2021
We are tied to the ocean. And when we go back to the sea, whether it is to sail or to watch – we are going back from whence we came.
John F. Kennedy
World Oceans Day
66% of the world is covered in a blanket of rich, vibrant blue, from its depths once came all life on the Earth, and it continues to house an immense amount of life. This blanket is the world’s oceans, and they serve as one of the most popular vacation spots in the world and play a vital role in the economy of countries worldwide. Across the briny deep massive amounts of cargo cross each year, and it still serves as the primary thoroughfare for trade. World Oceans Day celebrates the ocean and the important role it plays in our lives.
It’s a time for supporters of the oceans to focus on conversation and sustainability so that they can remain clean and usable. The animals deserve a happy and safe place to roam and live without having to worry about any destruction or man-made obstacles. It’s important to safeguard the oceans to help ensure a healthy home for all. One this day, people can come together to create a space for all to enjoy and appreciate, no matter where each person lives.
Best Friends Day
Life wouldn’t be the same without best friends. They’re the friends that can be counted on to be there at a moment’s notice. The ones who love, laugh, support, and cherish – in both good and bad times.
Friendships are an indestructible bond that join many people together in beautiful ways. Celebrating best friends day is just one of the ways you can acknowledge your awesome sidekick and show them how much you love them.
Take a moment right now to think about that one important person who is there by your side no matter what. They are the person you want to go on vacation with, you turn to them when you are having trouble with relationships and you always want to share secrets with them.
Upsy Daisy Day
Listen, we know it’s early, we know you had a late night, and we know that that bed you’re in is about the coziest thing you can think of ever being in. Getting up and getting going can be a challenge, but with a fresh attitude and a positive outlook on the day, it can make getting up a whole lot easier. A great attitude gets you off to a smooth start, with none of the grumble and drag that normally accompanies your mornings. Upsy Daisy Day is your reminder to greet the day bright and cheerful, and be an Upsy Daisy!
History of Upsy Daisy Day
Stephanie West Allen is the one responsible for this holiday, so if you choose not to be an Upsy Daisy today, and everyone else does? Well, at least you’ll know who to blame for everyone else’s abominably cheerful attitudes. But we can’t really say her position on life doesn’t work! It’s been shown increasingly that your outlook on life is your choice, having a bad day is all in how you respond to what you face. If everything is a reason to get angry and ‘everyone is out to get you’, then you’re going to be perpetuating what you fear.
So on Upsy Daisy Day, just for one day, assume that everything is going to go your way. This doesn’t mean you won’t have your bumps, it just means that when they happen you’ll shrug them off and take a moment to appreciate how little those little setbacks really matter. A bright attitude makes hard tasks easier, it makes things that were once difficult and seemingly impossible become a breeze to manage. It really is all on how you treat the day, and treating it as a glorious, amazing gift rather than a burden you have to make it through is a great start.
Call Your Doctor Day
If you have ever wondered about your family’s history of cancer, then it’s important to check with your doctor about those risks. If you a woman, the risk of breast and ovarian cancer can increase. Thus, gynecologists are a vital profession and help women everywhere understand their body and educate women on what’s normal and what isn’t normal. Call Your Doctor Day is all about the preventative measures you can make to reduce those risks and possibly prevent cancer from ever coming into your life.
A Selection of Birthdays
1625 Giovanni Domenico Cassini, Italian-French mathematician, astronomer and engineer who discovered four of Saturn's moons, born in Perinaldo, Republic of Genova (d. 1712)
1652 William Dampier, English explorer and pirate who was the 1st Englishman to explore parts of Australia and the 1st person to circumnavigate the world 3 times, born in East Coker, Somerset (d.1715)
1724 John Smeaton, British civil engineer, born in Austhorpe, Leeds, England (d. 1792)
1759 Thomas Dunham Whitaker, British topographer, born in Rainham, Norfolk (d. 1821)
1772 Robert Stevenson, Civil engineer (Bell Rock Lighthouse, Scotland), born in Glasgow, (d.1850)
1814 Charles Reade, English novelist (Cloister & Hearth), born in Ipsden, Oxfordshire (d. 1884)
1821 Samuel White Baker, English explorer (Ceylon & Egypt), born in London, (d. 1893)
1829 John Everett Millais, English painter (Order of Release), born in Southampton, (d. 1896)
1834 George Garrett, English composer, born in Winchester, (d. 1897)
1860 Alicia Boole Stott, Irish mathematician, born in Cork, Ireland (d. 1940)
1866 Hylton Philipson, Cricket wicketkeeper (5 Tests, 11 dismissals), born in Tynemouth, (d. 1935)
1879 Ethel Larcombe, British tennis player (Wimbledon 1912), born in Islington, London (d. 1965)
1894 Erwin Schulhoff, Czech-Russian composer and pianist (Ogelala) who died in a German concentration camp, born in Prague, Bohemia, Austria-Hungary (d. 1942)
1903 Ronald Shiner, Actor (Dry Rot, Carry on Admiral, Keep it Clean, Aunt Clara), b. London, (d.1966)
1905 Brian Coffey, Irish poet (Avent), born in Dublin (d. 1995)
1912 Ian Morrow, British company director, best known for saving Rolls Royce (d. 2006)
1916 Francis Crick, Molecular biologist who co-discovered DNA's structure and 1962 Nobel laureate, born Northampton, (d. 2004)
1921 Alwyn Williams, Welsh geologist and Vice-Chancellor (University of Glasgow), born in Aberdare, Wales (d. 2004)
1923 Alice Coleman, geographer (UK Land Use Survey)
1930 Michael Codron, British theatrical producer, born in London
1931 June Thorburn, Actress (Touch & Go, Children Galore), born Karachi, British India (d. 1967)
1932 Ray Illingworth CBE, English cricket captain and spin bowler (61 Tests; 122 wickets, 1,836 runs @ 23.24; Yorkshire, Leicestershire), born in Pudsey, England
1933 Joan Rivers, American comedian and actress (Late Show, Hollywood Squares), born in Brooklyn, New York (d. 2014)
1934 Millicent Martin, English actress (Alfie, Nothing but the Best), born in Romford, Essex
1937 Norma Shaw, English lawn bowler (World Outdoor C'ship gold 1981; Indoor C'ship gold 1997), born in Wakefield, (d. 2009)
1940 Nancy Sinatra, American singer ("These Boots Are Made for Walkin'"; "Something Stupid"), and daughter of Frank Sinatra, born in Jersey City, New Jersey
1942 Doug Mountjoy, Welsh snooker player (Masters 1977; Pot Black 1978, 85; UK C'ship 1988, World C'ship 1981 runner-up), born in Gelligaer, Wales (d. 2021)
1943 Colin Baker, English actor (Sixth Doctor in Doctor Who, Swallows & Amazons), born in London
1945 Derek Underwood, England cricket spin bowler (86 Tests, 297 wickets @ 25.83), born in Bromley,
1947 Julie Driscoll, English rocker and actress (33 1/3 Revolutions Per Monkee), born in London
1947 Mick Box, British rock guitarist (Uriah Heep), born in Walthamstow, East London, England
1947 Annie Haslam, British art-rock singer-songwriter (Renaissance - "Carpet Of The Sun"; "Mother Russia") and painter, born in Bolton
1951 Bonnie Tyler [Gaynor Hopkins],Welsh rocker("Total Eclipse Of The Heart"),b. Skewen, Neath, Wales
1955 Computer Scientist Tim Berners-Lee, English inventor (World Wide Web), born in London,
1958 Michael "Jakko" Jakszyk [Curran], British rock singer, songwriter and guitarist (Level 42, 1991-94; King Crimson, 2010-present), producer, and actor, born in Archway, London
1960 Mick Hucknall, Singer-songwriter (Simply Red "If You Don't Know Me by Now"), b. Manchester
1962 Nick Rhodes [Bates], Keyboard (Duran Duran-"Hungry Like the Wolf"), born in Moseley, Birmingham
1966 Doris Pearson, Pop and disco singer (Five Star - "Can't Wait Another Minute"), b. London
1967 Neil Mitchell, Scottish rock keyboardist (Wet Wet Wet - "Good Night Gir"; "Love Is All Around"), born Helensburgh, Dunbartonshire.
1977 Kanye West, American rapper and record producer, born in Atlanta, Georgia
1989 Gary Wilson, Scottish Musician
Today in British history
793 Vikings in long ships from modern-day Norway plunder St Cuthbert's monastery on Lindisfarne Island, off the northeast coast of England
1191 King Richard I arrives at Acre in modern day Israel to join the Siege of Acre during Third Crusade
1405 Richard le Scrope, Archbishop of York & Thomas Mowbray, Earl of Norfolk, executed in York on King Henry IV's orders
1663 Battle at Amegical: English & Portuguese fleet beats Spanish
1694 English troops attack Brest (300 killed)
1761 British fleet occupies Belle Île off the Brittany Coast
1779 Admiral Horatio Nelson and Captain Thomas Hardy on HMS Foudroyant set sail against Spanish fleet
1812 Robert Jenkinson becomes Prime Minister of the United Kingdom after Spencer Perceval's assassination
1846 Battle at Gwanga: British troops beat Bantu
1886 First Home Rule Bill for Ireland defeated by 343 votes to 313 in the British House of Common
1940 Last British troops leave Narvik, Norway
1961 English prince Edward, Duke of Kent, weds Katharine Worsley
1968 Bermuda adopts its constitution
1968 New colonial constitution for Bermuda adopted
1969 General Franco closes Spain's frontier with Gibraltar
1971 General Officer Commanding the British Army Harry Tuzo, then claims that a permanent military solution to the 'troubles' in Northern Ireland could not be achieved
1982 US President Ronald Reagan addresses the British Parliament in his "ash heap of history" speech
1996 Revival of the legendary procession of Lady Godiva (Godgifu) naked through Coventry, England
2017 British General Election results in a hung parliament, Prime Minister Theresa May and the Conservative party lose their majority
Deaths in History
1042 Harthacnut/Harthacanute, King of Denmark and England (b. 1018) Lambeth
1376 Edward the Black Prince, English knight and heir to King Edward III, dies of dysentery at 46
1383 Thomas de Ros, 5th Baron de Ros, English Crusader (b. 1338)
1476 George Neville, English archbishop and statesman
1771 George Montague-Dunk, 2nd Earl of Halifax, English statesman, dies at 54
1809 Thomas Paine, English American writer (Age of Reason, Common Sense), dies at 72
1857 Douglas William Jerrold, British playwright and satirist (b. 1803)
1865 Joseph Paxton, English architect, gardener and MP (Crystal Palace), dies at 61
1889 Gerard Manley Hopkins, English poet (Windhover), dies at 54
1924 Andrew Irvine, English mountain climber (climbing accident) (b. 1902)
1924 George Mallory, English mountain climber ("because it is there"), dies in a climbing accident at 37
2016 Michael Manser, English architect, dies at 87