Post
by Richard Frost » Wed Aug 04 2021 10:55am
4th August 2021
Coast Guard Day
Coast Guard Day celebrates the courageous work of coast guards. When Hurricane Katrina struck the Atlantic coast of America, the US Coast Guardsmen saved over 33,500 lives, an estimated 24,000 of these were rescued from peril in severely dangerous conditions. In the UK, although not directly associated with HM Coast Guard, the RNLI (Royal National Lifeboat Institution) are a charitable organisation with the sole aim of rescuing those in distress at sea. They launch over 6500 times a year, and have saved over 134,000 lives since their founding.
Pakistan Coast Guard Day is celebrated on September 8.
International Clouded Leopard Day
International Clouded Leopard Day (ICLD) is a day of international awareness and an attempt to increase the profile of Clouded leopards both in captivity and in the wild. Organizers of ICLD are Lauren Amos and Dan Kemp, two carnivore keepers from Howletts Wild Animal Park in Kent, who work with this shy and elusive species on a daily basis. ICLD at the park included talks, tours, and activities for all ages but the day didn’t just exist in Kent, this day of celebration reached zoos in the USA and Asia. The objective is to raise awareness and unite conservation thinking amongst zoological collections, charities, NGO’s, businesses and all those with an interest in one of the world`s most beautiful and iconic cats, the Clouded leopard. Every species on earth has its own unique role to play in maintaining an over-arching ecological balance both in life and in nature.
Single Working Women’s Day
The importance of single women to our economic and social growth cannot be understated. Every year millions of single women work in industries all over the world, doing the work for themselves and living for themselves. Single Working Women’s Day reminds us how important each and every one of them is, and that it’s not just men that make the world go round.
Assistance Dog Day
Assistance dogs improve the quality of life for countless people who live with disability or illness, and a special day celebrates these four-legged friends every year. Assistance Dog Day recognises and celebrates assistance dogs and their trainers. It aims to raise funds and increase awareness of the work they do. It is part of International Assistance Dog Week, a yearly event started by long-time paraplegic, Marcie Davis. There are many different kinds of assistance dogs, from the well-known guide dogs and hearing alert dogs that help people with vision and hearing loss, to lesser-known helpers like seizure alert and medical alert dogs that can recognise the signs of heart attacks, strokes and epilepsy.
A range of events are held to celebrate Assistance Dog Day, including dog shows, sponsored dog walks, talks and dog graduation ceremonies. Many assistance dog training facilities hold open days and tours on this day to show the work that they do.
A Selection of Birthdays
1701 Thomas Blackwell, Scottish classical scholar, born in Aberdeen (d. 1757)
1792 Percy Bysshe Shelley, English romantic poet (Adonais; Prometheus Unbound), born in Horsham, Sussex (d. 1822)
1805 William Rowan Hamilton, Irish astronomer and mathematician, born in Dublin (d. 1865)
1821 Louis Vuitton, French founder of the Louis Vuitton brand of leather goods now owned by LVMH, born in Anchay, France (d. 1892)
1825 Arthur Haygarth, Cricket batsman (Middlesex & Surrey, cricket historian), born Hastings (d.1903)
1834 John Venn, English mathematician (Venn Diagram), born in Kingston upon Hull (d. 1923)
1839 Walter Pater, writer (Plato & Platoism), born in London was an English essayist, literary/art critic & fiction writer, regarded as one of the great stylists. His works on Renaissance subjects were popular but controversial in his time (d. 1894)
1870 Harry Lauder, Comedian & singer (Roamin' in the Gloamin), born Portobello, Edinburgh (d. 1950)
1877 Dame Laura Knight, English impressionist artist, born in Long Eaton, Derbyshire (d. 1970)
1900 Douglas L Mays, cartoonist (Punch) (d.1991)
1900 Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon, British consort of King George VI and Queen Mother after his death, born in Hitchin, Hertfordshire, (d. 2002)
1901 Louis Armstrong, American jazz trumpeter and singer ("Hello, Dolly!"; "What A Wonderful World"), born in New Orleans, Louisiana (d. 1971)
1904 Joe Tate, English footballer, born in Old Hill, Cradley Heath, England (d. 1973)
1905 Michael Scott Montague Fordham, English child psychiatrist and Jungian analyst, born in Kensington, London (d. 1995)
1908 Osbert Lancaster, English cartoonist and author (Daily Express), born in London (d. 1986)
1923 Arthur Butterworth, Classical trumpet player & composer, b. New Moston, Manchester (d. 2014)
1930 John Gorman, printer and socialist historian, born in Stratford, East London (d. 1996)
1937 David Vickerman Bedford, Composer & educator, born Hendon, Middlesex (d. 2011)
1941 Martin Jarvis OBE Actor, b. Cheltenham, Gloucestershire. Also producer of radio drama. Described by the BBC as "one of Britain's most distinguished & versatile actors", has had a varied career in theatre, film & television, He has become particularly noted for radio acting & voicing audiobooks.
1943 David Carr, British rock keyboardist (The Fortunes), born in Leyton, London (d. 2011)
1943 Rodney Stuart Pattison, British yachtsman, double Olympic gold medalist in sailing won at the 1968 Mexico City Olympics and 1972 Munich Olympics both in the Flying Dutchman class. He also won a silver medal at the 1976 Montreal Olympics in the same class to become Great Britain’s most successful Olympic yachtsman until Ben Ainslie overtook him with 3 gold medals and a silver medal at four different Olympic Games at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Pattisson was a member of Itchenor Sailing Club.
1945 John Qace Hardbattle, political activist, served in the British army, studied at Oxford University, and farmed cattle in Ghanzi before taking up the cause of Bushman rights. "Son of a half-Bushman mother, Khwa, and an English father, ", His father a retired policeman who travelled to South Africa and then Botswana. There he married "Kawi", John's mother. John Hardbattle co-founded (with Roy Sesana) and became leader of the First People of Kalahari (FPK).
1946 Maureen Starkey [Mary Cox], British ex-wife of Beatle Ringo Starr, born in Liverpool (d. 1994)
1946 Max Middleton, Rock keyboard player (Jeff Beck Group), born in Amersham, Buckinghamshire
1947 Paul Layton, Musician and rocker (The New Seekers - "I'd Like to Teach the World to Sing"), born Beaconsfield, Buckinghamshire
1952 Moya Brennan [Máire Ní Bhraonáin], Irish folksinger and harpist (Clannad; Máire), born in Dublin,
1957 John Wark, Scottish former footballer who spent most of his playing time with Ipswich Town. He won a record four Player of the Year awards before becoming one of the four inaugural members of the club's Hall of Fame. Wark had long spells at the club, which bookended his career, and a third, brief interlude dividing his briefer periods at Liverpool and Middlesbrough. A versatile player, Wark played most of his professional games as a midfielder, although he sometimes played as a central defender and on occasion as a striker. Born in Glasgow, Wark represented Scotland in international football, winning 29 caps and scoring seven goals. This included selection for Scotland in the 1982 FIFA World Cup in which he made three appearances and scored twice. During his playing career, Wark appeared in the film Escape to Victory. Since retiring as a professional player in 1996, he has continued to work for Ipswich Town—since September 2008 in the corporate hospitality department. His autobiography, Wark On, was published in 2009.
1959 John Gormley, Irish politician, Leader of the Green Party, Mayor of Dublin (1994-95), born Dublin
1959 Laurence Anholt, British children's author, born in London
1960 Bernard Rose, English filmmaker and screenwriter, considered a pioneer of digital filmmaking, began his career by making Super 8 films at the age of 9. The BBC held an amateur movie competition which he won in 1975, causing his 3-minute film to air on the BBC. He later worked for Jim Henson on the last season of The Muppet Show, as a gofer, in the puppet workshop. He is best known for directing the horror films Paperhouse (1988) and Candyman (1992), the historical romances Immortal Beloved (1994) and Anna Karenina (1997), and the independent drama Ivans xtc (2000), for which he was nominated for the Independent Spirit Award for Best Director and the John Cassavetes Award. He has also been nominated for the Grand Prix des Amériques and the Venice Horizons Prize.
1961 Barack Obama, 44th United States President (Democrat: 2009-17) and first African-American president, born in Honolulu, Hawaii
1962 Paul Reynolds, British rock guitarist (A Flock of Seagulls - "I Ran (So Far Away)"), born Liverpool,
Person of interest
1964 Gary King, British radio presenter for Smooth Radio
1981 Ben Scott, English cricketer began playing his cricket at Wycombe House Cricket Club. Scott began to work on his batting and progressed through the Middlesex Colts Age groups before signing for the Middlesex. A lack of opportunities meant that he crossed the Thames and moved to Middlesex's local rivals Surrey for one season, where he was behind Jonathan Batty as first choice wicket-keeper. Now works as a personal trainer.
1981 [Rachel] Meghan Markle, American former actress, Duchess of Sussex and wife of Prince Harry, born in Los Angeles, California
On this day in British History
1265 Battle of Evesham: English prince Edward beats Simon de Montfort the younger
1347 English troops conquer Fort Calais
1351 Sea battle at Zwartewaal: Willem V beats Hoeksen and English
1666 Sea battle between Netherlands and England
1704 War of Spanish Succession, English and Dutch troops occupy Gibraltar
1730 Crown prince Frederick of Prussia escapes to England
1772 Poet and artist William Blake aged 14 is first apprenticed to engraver James Basire in London
1870 British Red Cross Society forms
1900 An allied expeditionary force, made up of Japanese, Russian, British, French and American troops, sets off from Tientsin for Peking, China, to put down Boxer rebellion
1914 WWI: Germany declares war on Belgium; Britain declares war on Germany
1914 WWI: Field Marshal Lord Kitchener becomes British Minister of War after British declaration of war on Germany
1916 The Turks attack the British line at Romani in the northern Sinai (WWI)
1934 II British Empire Games open at London's White City Stadium
1941 Winston Churchill departs on Prince of Wales to US
1942 British premier Winston Churchill arrives in Cairo
1943 British premier Winston Churchill travels on the Queen Mary to Canada
1944 British 8th Army reaches suburbs of Florence, Italy
1967 British pirate radio station Radio 355 goes off air.
Deaths in History
1265 Simon de Montfort the younger, English Earl of Leicester, dies in battle
1338 Thomas of Brotherton, 1st Earl of Norfolk, son of Edward I of England (b. 1300)
1578 Thomas Stucley, English adventurer
1598 William Cecil, 1st baron Burghley, English statesman, dies at 77
1612 Hugh Broughton, English scholar (b. 1549)
1633 George Abbott, English theologist and the Archbishop of Canterbury (1611-1633), dies at 60
1927 John Dillon, Irish nationalist and British Lower house leader, dies at 75
2004 Sir Kenneth Couzens, British Deputy Chairman of British Coal Board and significant figure during Miners Strike, dies at 79