British History

On this day in history….21st May 1950

On this day in history : 21st May 1950 – Violent storms and a tornado sweep across parts of Southern England, causing devastation and the death of three people….

It was a Sunday afternoon….intense dark clouds were seen accumulating between 2.30pm and 4pm over Buckinghamshire, Bedfordshire and the Chiltern Hills – and then the thunderstorms broke out…. But worse was to come, as a tornado formed, which first touched down at Missenden in the Wendover Valley…. Uprooting trees on its way it then changed direction towards the town of Wendover – ripping tiles from the roofs of houses as it passed through….

The tornado was to sweep through the counties to the north of London beginning in Buckinghamshire, travelling as far as Cambridgeshire before eventually dying out in North Norfolk…. Its path, at least 66 miles long, is still the longest tornado trail on record in England – its duration, at 2.5 hours, is the longest lasting on record in Europe….

Complete streets of houses lost roof tiles, torrential rain then pouring into the properties…. In Linslade village, Buckinghamshire, approximately 200 houses were damaged, 50 severely…. A shop in Leighton Buzzard was struck by lightening and set ablaze…. Hailstones broke windows, damaged crops, killed poultry and blocked the road at Oakley, Bedfordshire – where they lay a foot deep…. A double decker bus in Ely, Cambridgeshire, overturned….

Many people were made homeless….the Ministry of Supply had to issue some 450 tarpaulins to cover damaged roofs…. Parked cars were lifted up by the tornado – as were horses and cattle…. People were injured and three people lost their lives…. Two, Frederick Cast and James Perry, were struck by lightning in Kempston, Bedfordshire, as they ran for shelter – whilst three others with them were hospitalised…. 8-year-old Jennifer Margaret Reeves was swept away by flood waters and drowned….

On this day in history….20th May 1840

On this day n history : 20th May 1840 – York Minster is damaged by fire when a candle is left burning in the tower by a workman…. Barely a decade has passed since a previous serious fire….

York Minster – Image credit : Matze Trier – own work – CC BY-SA 3.0

William Groves, a clockmaker from Leeds, had been carrying out repair work at the cathedral when he carelessly left a candle unattended…. The resulting blaze destroyed the belfry in the south west tower along with the nave roof and its vaulting…. The Minster, which was cash strapped at the time, eventually reopened in 1844 – after the restoration of the nave and installation of new bells…. These were to include The Great Peter Bell, the third heaviest bell in Britain, which rang for the first time in 1845….

The fire of 1840 was accidental but it came only 11 years after another, even more serious fire, which was far from an accident…. On the 1st of February 1829 a former sailor from Northumberland, Jonathan Martin, hid in the Minster until nightfall…. Once the building was empty he piled up prayer books and cushions, set them alight and then quickly left the scene…. The fire was spotted in the early hours, fire crews rushed to the blaze but by now it was an inferno and there was little they could do…. The heat was so intense that the building’s pillars cracked and the lead on the roof melted…. It was late in the afternoon before the flames had died down – the roof had fallen, the pulpit, organ and medieval choir stalls had all been destroyed….

Martin fled York but it was not long before he was caught…. He had an axe to grind with the Clergy, who he called ‘Vipers of Hell’ in pamphlets he published against the teachings of the Church…. He believed all prayer should come from the heart and not be dictated by the religious leaders…. At his trial he was declared not guilty on the grounds of his insanity…. He died in a London hospital in May 1838….

As if all this wasn’t enough, York Minster was to suffer yet another catastrophic fire on the 9th of July 1984…. It broke out in the early hours in the south transept and destroyed the roof…. It is thought the most likely cause was a lightning strike….

The fire of 1984 – which destroyed the south transept roof – Photo credit : York Minster via Flickr

The roof was replaced with a hand carved replica – with six transept ceiling bosses designed by the winners of a competition held by children’s TV programme Blue Peter….

Fears were that the 16th century stained glass rose window had been damaged beyond repair…. But with painstaking restoration of the cracked glass and the application of additional reinforcement it was able to be saved…. It took four years to complete the repairs of the Minster at a cost of £2.25m, much of which came from public donations…. In November 1988 the Minster was rededicated in a service which was attended by Her Majesty the Queen….

Image credit : Bradford Timeline via Flickr

British History

On this day in history….19th May 1932

On this day in history : 19th May 1932 – The birth of singer Alma Cogan – the highest paid British female entertainer of her era and dubbed the ‘girl with the giggle in her voice’….

Alma was born in Whitechapel, East London to Jewish Russian/Romanian parents…. She was one of three children, with a sister Sandra, who was to become a successful actress – and a brother, Ivor…. The family moved around quite a bit due to their father’s work as a haberdasher – but settled for a longer spell in Worthing, Sussex…. Even though Alma came from a Jewish family she was educated at St. Joseph’s Convent School in Reading….

Alma’s father sang but it was her mother who had show business dreams for the children…. Alma’s first public performance was at a charity show held at the Palace Theatre, Reading…. Then at the age of 11 she won £5 at a singing contest in Brighton…. When she was 14 Vera Lynn recommended her to perform in a variety show…. She was then to audition for the then band leader (later to become Prime Minister) Ted Heath when she was 16…. Only he was to tell her that although she had a good voice she was too young for the business and should come back in five years time…. He was later to say letting her go was one of the biggest mistakes of his life….

After leaving school Alma was to study fashion design at Worthing Art College – at the same time she sang at tea dances…. She went on to sing in a couple of musicals and then in 1949 became the resident singer in a hotel…. It was there that she was spotted by EMI producer Walter Ridley, who began to coach her and signed her to EMI….

Her first release ‘To Be Worthy Of You’ was recorded on her 20th birthday….. It was to gain her a regular spot on Dick Bentley’s BBC radio show ‘Gently Bentley’’…. She then went on to be the vocalist for radio comedy ‘Take It From Here’ between 1953-1960…. It was during 1953, whilst recording ‘If I Had A Golden Umbrella’ that she gave a little giggle – and this was to become her trademark, earning her the name the ‘girl with the giggle in her voice’….

Although she wrote some of her own songs Alma would often cover American hits – she would frequently be compared to Doris Day…. Her first chart success was with ‘Bell Bottom Blues’ which reached No.4 in April 1954…. She was to appear in the UK charts 18 times during the 1950s, including a No.1 with ‘Dreamboat’ in 1955….

By the early 1960s the British public had begun to find her music too tame and unfashionable – her highest chart position in the 60s reaching just No.26 with ‘We Got Love’…. However, she maintained her popularity abroad, especially in Japan, Germany and Scandinavia…. She reached No.1 in Sweden in 1965 with ‘The Birds and The Bees’….

After the death of her father she continued living with her mother in Kensington – and she would often entertain famous friends at home…. The likes of Audrey Hepburn, Cary Grant, Roger Moore, Michael Caine, Frankie Vaughan, Bruce Forsyth, Noel Coward – and even royalty – Princess Margaret all visited…. She became close friends with John Lennon after meeting him on TV show ‘Ready Steady Go’ in 1964…. Her sister believes they had a secret romance….

By the mid 1960s her record label was becoming unhappy with how her releases were performing – her health was also beginning to fail…. During a tour of the North of England in 1966 she collapsed – and had to receive treatment for stomach cancer…. Her final TV appearance was in the August of 1966 – and she was to collapse again whilst in Sweden…. Alma died in London’s Middlesex Hospital on the 26th of October 1966 of ovarian cancer…. She was only 34 years old….

British History

On this day in history….18th May 1909

On this day in history : 18th May 1909 – The birth of English tennis player Fred Perry who – until Andy Murray in 2013 – was the last British player to win the men’s Wimbledon Championship….

Fred was born in Stockport – his father, Samuel Perry, was a cotton spinner but also a Labour Co-operative politician…. Due to his father’s political career the family moved around in Fred’s early years, living in Bolton, Lancashire and Wallasey in Cheshire…. When Fred was 11 they settled in Brentham Garden Suburb, Ealing, West London as Samuel had become the National Secretary of the Co-operative Party…. He then came to serve as the Labour Co-op Member of Parliament for Kettering in 1929….

Fred Perry’s birthplace – 33, Corrington Road, Stockport – Image credit : Zzztriple2000 – own work- public domain

Fred was educated at Ealing Grammar School for Boys and first began to play tennis on the public courts near to the family’s housing estate…. However, his first taste of sporting success was as a table tennis player – winning various titles and medals and eventually the world table tennis singles title in Budapest in 1929 – when he was 19-years-old….

Using the speed and aggressive techniques he had learned during his table tennis days Fred developed his own unique style of tennis…. At first his approach was not appreciated by the Lawn Tennis Association – who regarded him as being rather hot-headed…. There was also a certain degree of stuffiness from them because of his working-class background….

Considered one of the greatest tennis players ever it is no surprise that Fred was to become the first player to win all four singles titles in a Career Grand Slam…. He was to win ten Majors, including Grand-Slam and Pro-Slam singles…. He also won six Major doubles titles – and won the Wimbledon Championship three years running, 1934-36…. Always at his side through his sporting career, lending her support, was his sister Edith…. They also had a half-sister, Sylvia….

Fred Perry (right) with Pat Hughes, Sydney, Australia, 1934 – Public domain

During the 1940s he teamed up with Austrian footballer Tibby Wegner and the Fred Perry clothing brand was formed…. Starting out with the creation of the wrist worn sweat band – then going on to the classic Fred Perry sports shirt, which when launched at Wimbledon in 1952 became an instant success…. The brand’s laurel wreath logo is based on the original Wimbledon symbol….

Classic Fred Perry design – Image credit : Stylecountz CC BY-SA 2.0

Fred also had a colourful life off of the court and was popular with the ladies…. He was romantically linked with actresses Marlene Dietrich, Jean Harlow and Bette Davies and in 1934 announced his engagement to Mary Lawson – however the relationship ended after his move to the US….

He was to have a trio of unsuccessful marriages…. He married American movie star Helen Vinson in 1935 but they divorced in 1940…. He then married model Sandra Breaux in 1941 but that was to be short-lived; as was his marriage in 1945 to Lorraine Walsh…. Finally in 1952 he found ‘the right one’, when he married Barbara Riese – a marriage that was to last until his death in 1995…. The couple had two children, Penny and David….

Fred died in hospital in Melbourne on the 2nd of February 1995, after a fall in a hotel bathroom in which he broke his ribs….

British History

On this day in history….17th May 1978

On this day in history : 17th May 1978 – The intact coffin of Charlie Chaplin is found after it had gone missing from his grave over two months before….

Chaplin had died at his home in Switzerland, at the age of 88, on Christmas Day 1977…. He had been buried four days later in the cemetery of the village of Corsier-sur-Vevey, in the hills above Lake Geneva….

On the 2nd of March 1978 his grave was found empty…. Massive media speculation followed; had Chaplin been dug up by fans – or anti-Semites objecting to a Jew in a Christian burial ground – or even pro-Nazis taking revenge for the film ‘The Great Dictator’….

Chaplin satirising Adolf Hitler in ‘The Great Dictator’, 1940 – Public domain

A ransom demand of 600,000 francs (£400K) had been made to Chaplin’s widow, 51-year-old Lady Oona Chaplin, for the return of her husband’s body…. It appeared the kidnappers were willing to negotiate, as in all 27 phone calls were made to Oona and to her lawyer…. What they didn’t know was that Oona had no intention of paying up – saying “my husband is in Heaven and in my heart”…. She added “Charlie would have thought it rather ridiculous”…. However, by keeping the dialogue open police were able to watch some 200 telephone kiosks in the area….

Chaplin, Oona and 6 of their children, 1961 – Public domain

On the 16th of May 24-year-old Roman Wardas, a Polish refugee car mechanic was arrested in a phone booth…. His accomplice, 38-year-old Bulgarian Gantscho Ganev was arrested shortly afterwards…. Chaplin’s coffin was found the following day buried in a corn field about a mile from the Chaplin family home…. It was reburied in a more secure concrete grave….

Chaplin’s grave, Corsier-sur-Vevey, Switzerland – Silk Tork CC BY-SA 3.0

Wardas claimed he had been inspired by a similar case that he had read about in an Italian newspaper…. As the mastermind behind the crime he received four and a half years hard labour…. Ganev was given an eighteen month suspended sentence….