Posted in 1920s, 1930s, 1940s, 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, 2000s, Art & Design, Australia & New Zealand, Before my time, Rest of World, Sport, UK & Ireland, US & Canada on Jul 23rd, 2008
1896 ATHENS, Greece
Dates: from 6 to 15 April 1896.
Participants: 14 National Olympic Committees (NOCs), 43 events, 241 athletes (men only).
Officially opened by: King George I.
The Games of the Olympiad in Athens were financed by a donation of approximately one million drachmas from a rich businessman, Georges Averof, and by the sale of souvenir stamps and […]
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Al Oerter was an gold medal winning discus thrower from 1956 to 1968. He was among a group of gigantic shot put throwers and discus throwers who were nearly seven feet tall and very impressive to a young boy of seven! Al sadly passed away in 2007.
Steve Haywood is a personal trainer in West and […]
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Posted in 1920s, 1930s, 1940s, 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, 2000s, Before my time, Food & Drink, Products, UK & Ireland on Jul 3rd, 2008
Some people chew it, some people smoke it, but no-one seems to sniff tobacco anymore.
In our local pub (very oldy worldy CAMRA type), there’s a rack by the door filled with little metal pots. They have funny flavours written in old school lettering on the lids. This is snuff and you won’t find many pubs […]
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Posted in 1920s, 1930s, 1940s, 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, 1990s, 2000s, Before my time, Sport on Jun 16th, 2008
It was Queen Anne who first saw the potential for a racecourse at Ascot, which in those days was called East Cote. Whilst out riding in 1711, she came upon an area of open heath, not far from Windsor Castle, that looked an ideal place for “horses to gallop at full stretch.”
The first race meeting […]
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The Queen’s involvement with racing stretches back to before she came to the throne in 1952, with her first winner, owned jointly with her mother, the late Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother, being Monaveen in a National Hunt race at Fontwell.
On the death of her father, King George VI, the Queen inherited the Royal string […]
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Posted in 1920s, 1930s, 1940s, 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, 2000s, Before my time, Sport, UK & Ireland on Jun 6th, 2008
1780
Diomed, owned by Sir Charles Bunbury, wins the inaugural running of the Derby
on Thursday, May 4.
1784
The distance increases from a mile to a mile and a half which still prevails today,
though from 1991 the offi cial distance has been one mile, four furlongs and 10
yards.
1794 The smallest fi eld of four goes to post and […]
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Posted in 1920s, 1930s, 1940s, 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, 2000s, Before my time, News & Current Affairs, Sport on Jun 6th, 2008
The Derby has been run on the Downs near Epsom since 1780 and is named after Edward Smith Stanley, the 12th Earl of Derby. The original race was The Oaks, named after Derby’s estate, and was exclusively for three-year-old fillies. The race became so successful that The Derby was created to find the best colts […]
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Posted in 1950s, Art & Design on Jun 4th, 2008
We’ve been renovating a very old cottage and found this old wallpaper under several layers of paint, plaster and paper. The owner informs us that this design is from the 1950’s. We also found this design from the 1960’s. It has fish on because the room was used as a bathroom for some time. The […]
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George Formby was born George Hoy Booth on 26 May 1904 in Wigan, Lancashire. He started out as a professional jockey because his father didn’t want his son to follow him into showbusiness. Once his Father died, George went into stand-up. He bought a ukelele from an actor for £2.50 with a bet that he […]
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Posted in 1920s, 1930s, 1940s, 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, 2000s, Before my time, Rest of World, Sport, UK & Ireland on Apr 4th, 2008
A comprehensive history of the Grand National from its official beginning in the 1800’s. From paintings to photo finishes and radio commentary to internet broadcasting.
1839
The Grand National was run at Aintree for the first time on Tuesday, February 26 and a horse named Lottery took the honours. Captain Martin Becher was unseated from his mount, […]
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Beltran de Osorio y Diez de Rivera, the “Iron” Duke of Albuquerque (1919-1994), was a Spanish aristocrat obsessed with horse-racing. After receiving a film of the Grand National as a gift for his eighth birthday, the Corinthian Duke set his sight on England’s greatest equestrian prize: “I said then that I would win that race […]
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Posted in 1950s, Sport, UK & Ireland on Apr 1st, 2008
1956 was the year that the Queen Mother’s favourite, Devon Loch, tried to jump a phantom fence and landed on his belly. This left the way clear for ESB. Afterwards, The Queen Mother famously said “That’s racing”. Watch this video from 06:15 for the bizarre footage of the event from British Pathe.
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Posted in 1950s, 1960s, Fashion on Mar 25th, 2008
So-called because of the sharp pointy toes of the shoe -similar to the tools used for prising winkles out of their shells. Winkle pickers were worn by “Teddy Boys”, Modernists and Mods. They had Cuban Heels and in the 60’s were best worn with laces down the side and extra-long trousers.
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Posted in 1930s, 1940s, 1950s, Music on Mar 8th, 2008
My favourite song from the Andrews Sisters is probably “Hold Tight” but “Don’t Sit Under the Apple Tree” is much better known. The Andrews Sisters courted controversy with their release of “Rum and Coca-Cola” which referred to prostitution. The Andrews Sisters went on to feature in lots of films but are best remembered for their […]
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Following the death of King George VI on 6 February 1952, Princess Elizabeth immediately became Head of the Commonwealth and Defender of the Faith. She was the first monarch in over 200 years to succeed to the throne whilst abroad. However, the desire for a sunny day and a big party to accompany the coronation […]
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