10 weird and wonderful things which happened on 3 April:
- This date in 1924 saw the birth of singer and actor Doris Day (Doris Mary Ann von Kappelhoff). She starred in 39 films, and her leading men included Rock Hudson, Cary Grant and Clark Gable.
- Another star of the silver screen born today was Marlon Brando, in 1924. His films include A Streetcar Named Desire, The Teahouse of the August Moon, The Island of Dr Moreau, Superman, and The Godfather.
- In 1721, Robert Walpole became the first prime minister of Britain.
- A House of Commons vote ended in a tie for the first time in the 21st century on this date in 2019. It was an indicative vote on holding more indicative votes and the result was 310 Aye and 310 No. Speaker John Bercow broke the tie by voting No.
- In 1983, Norman Johnson set a record for Cucumber slicing. He sliced a 12in cucumber 22 slices to the inch in 13.4 seconds. (It is not recorded how many slices were missing from his fingers).
- The wood block alarm was invented on this date in 1882. It consisted of 20 wooden blocks suspended over your Bed; when the alarm went off, it dropped them over your head to wake you up.
- The Pony Express was inaugurated on this date in 1860. The first rider left St. Joseph, Missouri, for Sacramento California. Before this, the fastest delivery service between the East and West Coast was by ship around South America. An ad for riders in a California newspaper of the time read: "Wanted. Young, skinny, wiry fellows. Not over 18. Must be expert riders. Willing to risk death daily. Orphans preferred."
- In 1934 Percy Shaw laid the first 50 cats’ eyes at his own expense at an accident black-spot near Bradford. The accident rate fell dramatically, so the Ministry of Transport took over, and now they're everywhere.
- In 1222, today was Easter. An Arabic prophecy had foretold that when Easter fell on 3 April, the Muslim religion would end. The Mongolian conqueror, Genghis Khan, decided he was intended to be the person who ended it. He pushed forward towards the West with three legions, destroying the power of Islam in Central Asia. He and many of his Christian allies persecuted Muslims, whom they slaughtered in huge numbers. However, as we know, he ultimately failed as Islam is still going strong today.
- In 1988, the world's longest after-dinner speech ended. Dr. Donald Thomas performed an after-dinner speech at City College in New York which lasted from April 1, 1988 until today, about Vegetarian Athletic Nutrition. Not including several 5 minute rest breaks, Dr. Donald Thomas' speech lasted 32 hours and 25 minutes.
The Power of Love
Willow believes in crystal healing, cosmic ordering and the significance of chance encounters. She believes there's a spiritual explanation for everything. Except she struggles to find a reason why she can turn herself into mist and create a wave of energy which can slam a would-be mugger into a wall. Or why the love of her life left her for a mysterious woman in sunglasses, who then disappeared without trace.
A chance encounter with Firebolt, leader of the Freedom League superhero team, in a Glastonbury coffee shop, does turn out to be significant. He offers her a new start and the chance to use her powers for good.
Servant is a Christian who has joined the Freedom League in order to use his teleporting power to serve God. He and Willow clash from the start, yet they are drawn inexorably to one another.
When Willow leaves the team abruptly for reasons unknown, Servant knows he must put her out of his mind and find a nice Christian girl to settle down with. He is about to propose to devout and straight-laced Ruth, when Willow returns and turns his entire world upside down.
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