Calendar: January 2020
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Monday 30
Rudyard Kipling
Rudyard Kipling was born on this date in 1865.
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Tuesday 31
New Year's Eve
Today is New Year’s Eve.
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Wednesday 01
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Thursday 02
Luna 1 Launched
On this day in 1959, the USSR satellite, Luna 1, was launched. Luna 1 is still in orbit around the Sun.
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Friday 03
J.R.R. Tolkien’s birthday
The author of The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit was born on this day in 1892.
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Saturday 04
Louis Braille's Birthday
Inventor of braille, now used and adapted into almost every language was born on this day in 1809
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Sunday 05
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Monday 06
Epiphany
Today is the Christian festival of Epiphany.
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Tuesday 07
The first crossing of the English Channel in a balloon was completed.
On 7th January 1875, the first successful crossing of the English Channel in a balloon was completed.
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Wednesday 08
Elvis Presley’s birthday
Known as ‘The King’, the world famous rock and roll singer was born 1935.
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Thursday 09
UN headquarters open
On this day in 1951, the UN headquarters in New York opened.
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Friday 10
London Underground opened
The first part of the London Underground – The Metropolitan Railway – opened on this day in 1863.
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Saturday 11
Thomas Hardy
The famous English author died on this day in 1928.
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Sunday 12
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Monday 13
Bikaner Camel Festival
In January, the city of Rajasthan hosts the Bikaner Camel Festival.
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Tuesday 14
Lewis Carroll
On this day in 1898, Lewis Carroll, the English writer and mathematician, died. He was 65 years old. The writer of books including Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland.
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Wednesday 15
Martin Luther King’s birthday
The civil rights activist was born on this day in 1929.
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Thursday 16
Ecological Disaster
On this day in 2001, a fuel tanker ran aground off the island of San Cristobal. A few days later, around 180 thousand gallons of fuel was released into the sea – causing huge damage to the area’s plant and animal life.
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Friday 17
Robert Scott reached the South Pole
On this date in 1912, famous explorer Robert Scott and his party arrived at the South Pole, narrowly missing out on being the first to reach it.
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Saturday 18
A.A. Milne's birthday
Creator of Winnie the Pooh was born on this day in 1882.
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Sunday 19
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Monday 20
Buzz Aldrin's birthday
The famous astronaut Buzz Aldrin was born on this date in 1930.
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Tuesday 21
Concorde’s first commercial flight
On this day in 1976, the first commercial Concorde flights took to the skies.
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Wednesday 22
Queen Victoria
This famous Victorian monarch died on this day in 1901.
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Thursday 23
Vietnam Peace Deal
On this day in 1973, US president Richard Nixon appeared on national television to announce a peace deal with Vietnam
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Friday 24
Winston Churchill died (1965)
On this day in 1965, Sir Winston Churchill, former Primer Minister, died at the age of 90.
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Saturday 25
Burns Night
The Scottish poet, Robert Burns, was born on this day in 1759.
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Sunday 26
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Monday 27
The light bulb was patented
On this date in 1880 Thomas Edison received a patent for his incandescent lamp.
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Tuesday 28
Challenger
On this day in 1986, the American space shuttle, Challenger, exploded just over a minute into its flight. Its crew included teacher Christa McAuliffe.
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Wednesday 29
Foggy weather in 1959
Thick fog – the worst for seven years – brought road, rail and air transport in many parts of England and Wales to a standstill.
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Thursday 30
Charles I beheaded
On this day in 1649, King Charles I was beheaded in Whitehall, in front of the Banqueting House.
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Friday 31
Seat belt legislation introduced
On this day in 1983, all drivers and front seat passengers were, by law, required to wear seat belts. Later, in 1991, it became compulsory for back seat passengers to also wear seat belts.
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Saturday 01
Oxford English Dictionary
On this day in 1884, the Oxford English Dictionary (OED), considered the most comprehensive and accurate dictionary of the English language, was first published.
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Sunday 02