25 October

10 weird and wonderful things which happened on 25 October:

1. This date in 1881 saw the birth of Pablo Picasso, Spanish/French painter whose works include Guernica. He is best known for co-founding the Cubist movement.
2. In 1920, King Alexander of Greece died from Blood poisoning shortly after being bitten by a pet Monkey. He was 27.
3. In 1936, the first radio request programme was broadcast in Germany on this date in 1936. It was called You Ask – We Play. The first British request programme was From My Post Bag in May 1939.
4. The first edition of Private Eye, the British satirical magazine, was published on this date in 1961. Other titles considered for the magazine were The Flesh is weekly (possibly rejected because the magazine was fortnightly) The Yellow Press and The Bladder.
5. In 1938, the Archbishop of Dubuque denounced the new-fangled "swing" music. Its cannibalistic rhythms, he said, are the first step along the "primrose path to Hell."
6. At 11 a.m. on this date in 1854, Lord Cardigan led the Charge of the Light Brigade during the Battle of Balaclava in the Crimean War. An ambiguous order from the commander, Lord Raglan, led Cardigan’s cavalry to charge the Russians while fire came from three different sides. As one of the generals was heard to remark as the soldiers suffered heavy casualties, ‘C’est magnifique, mais ce n’est pas la guerre’.
7. In 1996, Tony Smith was ordered to pay £150 for throwing Freddie, a Chilean Rose Spider at Kevin Knight, who was having an affair with his wife. Freddie was harmless but looked like a tarantula.
8. In 1992, Tiny Tim's Ukulele was stolen from a Des Moines, Iowa, hotel lobby. It was found hours later in a rubbish bin.
9. Microsoft Windows XP operating system went on sale on this date in 2001 with a slogan which had been rapidly changed due to events the previous month. "Learn to fly" had been changed to changed to "Yes you can" after the terror attacks on 9/11.
10. Meanwhile, in Dublin's O'Connell Street Nelson's Pillar monument, dating to 1808, was demolished and blown up. A granite time capsule was found in the foundations, but it was empty. The contents had been stolen.

I write Fiction, too.

There is a whole new universe of superheroes to discover in my novels. The Ultraheroes Universe includes at least one alternative dimension, good guys, bad guys, secrets, romance and more.

For more information visit My Books Page

For even more information visit My website