King Stephen was the only King of which Royal House?

BBC - History - King Stephen z Stephen    © Stephen usurped the English throne from Matilda in 1135, but failed to consolidate his power during the ensuing civil strife. Stephen was born in around 1097 in Blois, France, the son of the Count of Blois and Adela, daughter of William the Conqueror. He was sent to England to be raised at the court of his uncle, Henry I. Although Stephen and other nobles pledged to support Henry's daughter, Matilda, as Henry's successor there was widespread unhappiness at the thought of a woman ruler. Consequently, after Henry I died in December 1135, the leading lords and bishops welcomed Stephen as the new king. He was not a natural leader, rapidly making concessions that exposed his weakness. He appointed large numbers of new earls, an expensive act that brought little reward and alienated his nobles with his desperate measures to build support and with the lawlessness of his Flemish mercenaries. In 1138, Matilda's half brother, Robert, Earl of Gloucester, took up arms on her behalf. Early victories for Stephen faded when he lost the support of the church. Seizing her opportunity, Matilda invaded England in September 1139. With foolish chivalry, Stephen had Matilda escorted to Bristol, whereupon she proceeded to take control of western England. Early in 1141, Matilda's supporters captured Stephen in a battle at Lincoln. In November, he was exchanged for Gloucester, who had been captured by forces loyal to the king. Over time, Stephen gained the upper hand and in 1148 Matilda left England. But Stephen had only nominal control over most of the kingdom and was unable to enforce the law or mediate between warring nobles. He hoped only to secure the succession for his son, Eustace. Matilda's son Henry invaded England in 1153 to claim his royal inheritance. When Eustace died in August, under the Treaty of Wallingford, Stephen agreed that Henry should be his successor. When Stephen died in October 1154, Henry ascended the throne as Henry II.


Monica Rose was a hostess of which 1960s TV quiz show?

Obituary: Monica Rose | The Independent Obituary: Monica Rose Friday 11 February 1994 00:02 BST Click to follow The Independent Online Monica Rose, television presenter: born London 11 February 1948; married 1982 Terry Dunnell; died Leicester 4 February 1994. EIGHTEEN MINUTES of fame as a quiz-show contestant turned to 10 years of television stardom for the pint-sized Monica Rose, the chirpy cockney who became Hughie Green's resident and most popular hostess in Double Your Money. 'Being a hostess enabled me to see the world,' said Rose, the 4ft 9in daughter of a London Underground train driver and a cleaner at White City Stadium. 'Coming from a rough council estate, it was a lot to take in - being picked up in a Rolls and travelling by private plane.' Rose, one of six children, was a 15-year-old junior accounts clerk when, in 1964, she was given tickets for a recording of Hughie Green's popular quiz show Double Your Money, which was born on Radio Luxembourg and moved to ITV when the commercial channel opened in 1955. Always locked in a ratings battle with the channel's other audience-grabbing quiz, Take Your Pick, hosted by Michael Miles, Double Your Money gave contestants a choice of 42 subjects, offered pounds 1 for the answer to a simple question and, if they answered correctly, doubled their money up to as much as pounds 32, then gave them the chance to win a top prize of pounds 1,000 on the Treasure Trail. Plucked out of the audience to take part, Rose won only pounds 8 but showed enough personality to persuade Green to let her chatter away for a full 18 minutes and to invite her back as a guest hostess six weeks later. She stayed for three years, but then left to escape the pressures of stardom. Fame had included a stage act with Green, based on the programme's format, in summer seasons and even a Royal Variety Performance. When Double Your Money was taken to the Soviet Union in 1965, the Soviet cultural attache in London made it a condition that 'the little cockney girl Monica' went with the show. Rose returned to Double Your Money shortly before it was axed in 1968, as a result of an ITV franchise reshuffle, and was reunited with Green in The Sky's the Limit (1971- 74), in which contestants could win 21,000 miles of travel plus spending money. With the demise of that show, Rose went into cabaret with a singing and comedy act, and also performed pantomime. She finally left showbusiness in 1977 when a personal relationship turned sour. Three years later the darling of millions was admitted to hospital, suffering from depression and nervous exhaustion. Her life was in turmoil but appeared to improve when she met and married Terry Dunnell, a Baptist lay preacher and officer of a religious group called the Frontier Youth Trust, whose wife had died in the same hospital. Monica Rose subsequently became a Christian and took a job as a check-out operator in a supermarket near their house in Leicester. Her last years were riddled with ill- health, although she enjoyed visiting a local young offenders centre once a week until last year. (Photograph omitted)


"Which famous scientist said ""A man who wastes one hour of time has not discovered the value of life""?"

A man who dares to waste one hour of time has not discovered the value of life. - Charles Darwin - BrainyQuote A man who dares to waste one hour of time has not discovered the value of life. Find on Amazon: Charles Darwin Cite this Page: Citation


The exclusive right to breed Gressingham Ducks was bought by Gressingham Foods in 1996, and the ducks they now produce are all from their farms in East Anglia, however the village of Gressingham is in which Lancashire town or city?

Gressingham - WOW.com Gressingham Coordinates : 54°07′23″N 2°39′22″W / 54.123°N 2.656°W / 54.123; -2.656 Gressingham is a small village and civil parish in the City of Lancaster in the English county of Lancashire . It is north of the River Lune and across the river from Hornby . In the 2001 census , it had a population of 153. [1] St John the Evangelist's Church was originally built in the 12th century and is a Grade I listed building . It was partly rebuilt in 1734, and restored by Edward Paley in 1862. [2] The Gressingham Duck was named after the village of Gressingham, having been first bred here in 1980 from a cross of mallards and Pekin ducks [3] However, the exclusive right to breed Gressingham Ducks was bought by Gressingham Foods in 1996, and the ducks they now produce are all from their farms in East Anglia . [4] See also


Which Football League club share the John Smith's Stadium with the town's rugby league club?

John Smith's Stadium | Huddersfield Town FC | Football Ground Guide Football Ground Guide Pitch Size: 115 x 76 yards Pitch Type: Grass Shirt Sponsors: Pure Legal Limited Away Shirt Sponsors: Radian B Third Kit Sponsors: Covonia Home Kit: Blue and White Away Kit: Yellow and Black Hoops Third Kit: Red and White North and East Stands WHAT IS THE JOHN SMITH'S STADIUM LIKE? The club moved the short distance to the then called Alfred McAlpine Stadium in 1994 after leaving their former Leeds Road ground , their home for 86 years. When the stadium originally opened it had just three sides with the North Stand being opened later in 1997. In 2004 it was renamed the Galpharm Stadium, before becoming the John Smith's Stadium in 2012, in a new five year sponsorship deal with Heineken. Most new stadiums in this country are rather boring affairs with little character, but the Galpharm does not fall into this category. Each stand is semi circular rather than rectangular, and is further enhanced with large white steel tubing above the contours. In fact from the car park I first thought it looked like a new ride at Alton Towers! It is good to see something different from the architects for a change. The ground has won many design awards and is well worth a visit. The only disappointment is that the corners of the ground are open. The Fantastic Media North Stand at one end and the Revell Ward (Riverside) Stand at one side are both two tiered stands, each with a row of executive boxes running across the middle. The other two sides of the ground are large single tiered affairs. One of these the Britannia Rescue Stand, at one side of the pitch, can accommodate 7,000 supporters. There is an electric scoreboard at the back of the away end. The stadium is completed with a striking set of four floodlights. The stadium is shared with Huddersfield Giants Rugby League Club. WHAT IS IT LIKE FOR VISITING SUPPORTERS? Away fans are located at one end of the ground in the Chadwick Lawrence (South) Stand, where up to 4,000 supporters can be accommodated. The facilities in this stand and the view of the playing action are both good. The acoustics of the stand are good also, meaning that a relative small number of fans can really make some noise. There is also a Ladbrokes outlet and a bar serving alcoholic drinks at the back of the stand, which remains open during the first half and half time. I have enjoyed my visits to the John Smith's Stadium, I have always been thoroughly impressed with the stadium and the general set-up. Food on offer inside the stadium, includes; Cheeseburgers (£3.50), Hamburgers (£3.20), Hot Dogs (£3.20), Peppered Steak Pie (£3.50), Meat and Potato Pie (£3), Chicken Balti Pie (£3), Cheese and Onion Pie (£3) and Sausage Rolls (£3)  PUBS FOR AWAY FANS John Ellis a visiting Leicester City fan recommends the Gas Club on Gasworks Street, about five to ten minute walk from the Stadium. 'On our visit there was a good mix of home and away fans. The Club does charge a £1 entry fee, but both the drinks and food were reasonably priced. You can also park in their car park at a cost of £3'. Please note that after the game the Club reverts to a 'home fans only' bar. Tim Oscroft informs me; 'The Head of Steam pub at the railway station is pretty good and serves food too'. Also near to the railway station is the Cherry Tree pub. This Wetherspoons outlet is located on John William Street and is popular with away fans. Otherwise if you like your real ale, then Huddersfield has a number of entries in the CAMRA Good Beer Guide. Those in the town centre closest to the ground include; The King's Head (very near to the Head of Steam), The Sportsman on St John's Road, the Vulcan in St Peter's Street and Slubbers Arms on Halifax Old Road. There is also a cinema and entertainment complex behind the North Stand, which also contains the Rope Walk pub. Craig Murray a visiting AFC Bournemouth fan adds; 'We went for a pre-match pint at the Rope Walk. Inside it was a mixture of home and away fans and the locals were very friendly and happy to chat about footy. We w


Which classic song was the only UK No. 1 hit single for Simon and Garfunkel?

Top 10 Simon & Garfunkel Songs Top 10 Simon & Garfunkel Songs By Michael Gallucci November 5, 2012 1:22 PM REDDIT Michael Ochs Archives Simon & Garfunkel couldn't have come out of any other time but the '60s. The duo started the decade as painfully earnest folk singers before evolving into one of the era's most adventurous artists. Their final two albums — 1968's 'Bookends' and 1970's 'Bridge Over Troubled Water' — are as aurally exciting as any record that came out of popular music's most fertile period. Then there are the songs themselves, penned by Paul Simon and sung by him and Art Garfunkel in a glorious mix of earthbound realism and angelic idealism. That timeless harmonic dichotomy runs through our list of the Top 10 Simon & Garfunkel Songs. 10 From ‘Bridge Over Troubled Water’ (1970)     Simon was messing around with world music long before 'Graceland' and “Me and Julio Down by the Schoolyard.' Two songs on 'Bridge Over Troubled Water' reflected his growing interest in sounds from other cultures: the Peruvian-influenced 'El Condor Pasa (If I Could)' and this one, a percussion-driven singalong based on Latin rhythms. Simon would explore global music more deeply throughout his solo career, but this handclap-fueled ditty is where it all began. From ‘Bridge Over Troubled Water’ (1970)     One of Simon's most poignant songs was first released as a single in April 1969, serving as a bridge between the 'Bookends' and 'Bridge Over Troubled Water' albums. It's also one of Simon & Garfunkel's most meticulously produced records, a cornucopia of sounds that includes acoustic guitar, harmonica and a piccolo trumpet solo. But the heart of 'The Boxer' is its folk-like, and metaphorical, tale of a fighter struggling in both his personal and professional lives. From ‘Still Crazy After All These Years’ (1975)     After releasing 'Bridge Over Troubled Water' in 1970, Simon and Garfunkel went their own ways. Five years later, Simon was working on a song for his old partner's solo album that ended up a new Simon & Garfunkel single and their last Top 10 hit together. It's one of their all-time best, a blistering attack on small-town values that discharges like a gunshot during the final minute.     Simon's masterpiece about two people searching for the true meaning of America, recorded during a period when it looked like the U.S. indeed may have lost its way, almost reads like a short story. The verses don't rhyme, there's not really a chorus and the whole thing comes off like the narrator's sad sigh of hopes and dreams. Simon was one of the '60s' most literary songwriters (and at times one of its most pretentious), and 'America' is his most majestic composition on this list of the Top 10 Simon & Garfunkel Songs. From ‘Sounds of Silence’ (1966)     Simon's prettiest song, and one of the most gorgeous songs ever written, was penned for his girlfriend whom he met in England while living there in the mid '60s. It's a love song, and a rather uncomplicated one, but Simon's plaintive voice, the spare acoustic guitar and, most of all, the lovely melody make it one of the most endearing songs recorded by Simon, who appears without Garfunkel on the track. From ‘Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme’ (1966)     Simon originally wrote 'Homeward Bound' for his London-based girlfriend (the same one who checks in at No. 6 on our list of the Top 10 Simon & Garfunkel Songs), but over the years it took on more weighted significance, especially as the Vietnam War dragged on and soldiers, some of them in body bags, returned to the States. Either way, it's a perfect blend of melody and harmony — one of the duo's best performances. ‘The Only Living Boy in New York’ From ‘Bridge Over Troubled Water’ (1970)     At the end of the '60s, Garfunkel spent as much time on movie sets as he did in recording studios. Simon wrote 'The Only Living Boy in New York' for his MIA musical partner (whom he calls “Tom,” a reference to the duo's late-'50s recording career as Tom & Jerry). It's a wonderful song of longing, loneliness and even sadness. It's a revealing trace of com


What was the name of the Space Shuttle that flew the last US mission to the International Space Station in July 2011?

Atlantis: Last Shuttle Launch Atlantis: Last Space Shuttle Launch By Elizabeth Howell, Space.com Contributor | June 29, 2013 07:41am ET MORE Atlantis was the fourth shuttle constructed and the last one to fly into space. It performed well in 25 years of service, flying 33 missions that included secret missions for the U.S. military, ferrying astronauts to and from space stations and launching several probes. The shuttle gained a reputation of being the unsung workhorse of the shuttle fleet because it sent so many satellites into space. It also has the distinction of flying the final shuttle mission before the fleet was retired in 2011. The space shuttle Atlantis is seen over the Bahamas prior to a perfect docking with the International Space Station at 11:07 a.m. (EDT) on July 10, 2011 on Flight Day 3 of NASA's last shuttle flight. Part of a Russian Progress spacecraft which is docked to the station is in the foreground. Credit: NASA Atlantis was named after a ship that did work for Massachusetts' Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute between 1930 and 1966. The sailing ship was the first to image the ocean floor using electronic sounding devices. New construction technique and early missions Construction work started on shuttle Atlantis on March 3, 1980, in Palmdale, Calif. Using what it had learned from its other shuttles, NASA built Atlantis in less time than its siblings. It was also lighter than the other shuttles. NASA used thermal protection covers on the top of the shuttle rather than individual tiles, which saved substantial time and money during its construction. Atlantis ended up almost 3.5 tons lighter than Columbia, weighing in at 151,315 pounds. It took about six months to get ready for its first mission, which lifted off Oct. 3, 1985. To this day, Atlantis' first flight is shrouded in secrecy. Mission STS-51J took five people into space and lasted four days. At the time, NASA did periodic flights for the Department of Defense, sending classified payloads into space. Just over one month later, Atlantis headed for space again on Nov. 26, 1985, on mission STS-61B. It lofted three communications satellites into orbit. Additionally, Atlantis' crew members did two experimental spacewalks devoted to learning about assembling structures in space. The Challenger explosion in January 1986 grounded the remaining shuttle fleet for two years. It wasn't until December 1988 that Atlantis flew again, this time bringing another classified payload into space on STS-27. Sending probes towards the planets Atlantis' fourth flight, STS-30, marked a historic first for NASA. On board the shuttle was Magellan , a spacecraft that would be launched toward Venus. This was the first time that NASA launched an interplanetary probe from the shuttle's payload bay. The astronauts sent the satellite on its way remarkably quickly, only six hours after launch. Magellan fired its rocket stages successfully to coast to Venus. Its radar peered beneath Venus' thick clouds and eventually mapped 98 percent of the hot planet's surface. STS-30 marked the beginning of a flurry of satellite and classified payload launches for the orbiter. Atlantis repeated its interplanetary feat on STS-34, when it sent the Galileo probe toward Jupiter. It then flew two classified missions for the Department of Defense before sending yet another probe into space on STS-37, in 1991: the Compton Gamma-Ray Observatory . Astronauts had to do an emergency spacewalk to fix a high-gain antenna that refused to deploy. Once that was fixed, the observatory successfully watched supernovas and neutron stars for nine years. Atlantis went on to deploy a Tracking and Data Relay Satellite on its next mission, STS-43. Next, it lofted a defense satellite on STS-44, and a European tethered gravity experimental satellite on STS-46. Seven straight to Mir In the mid-1990s, Atlantis' focus changed again. NASA and Russia had brokered an agreement for American astronauts to stay aboard the Mir space station, which would give both sides experience in working together in space ahead of the planned


The wartime code-breaking centre, Bletchley Park, is in which New Town?

A tour of the WWII code-cracking centre Bletchley Park, England A tour of the WWII code-cracking centre Bletchley Park, England Steve Meacham Keira Knightley and Benedict Cumberbatch as Alan Turing in The Imitation Game.  Share Share on Google Plus It's hardly a secret, but let me share this with you anyway.  If you visit Bletchley Park, an hour's train ride from London's Euston Station, before November 1 this year, you can see a fascinating new exhibition.  See Also England travel guide And, as you do, you'll have the added bonus of standing in the very room where two of Britain's most bankable movie stars - Benedict Cumberbatch and Keira Knightley - filmed the bar scenes of The Imitation Game which was released in Australia in January. SHARE Link Bletchley Park.   Bletchley Park? Wasn't that "Station X", the best-kept secret of World War II? The code-breaking centre, based at an undistinguished country house in the unremarkable Buckinghamshire town of Bletchley?  The place which Winston Churchill described (inimitably) as "the goose that laid the golden egg but never cackled"? The last time I was here, 14 years ago, Bletchley Park needed to be reintroduced to Australian audiences.  Obviously anyone who had lived through World War II had read about it with enormous regard, when the truth was finally revealed. But that only came in the 1970s - a quarter of a century after the war was  won.  Once revealed, Bletchley Park became celebrated as the place where a dedicated team of 12,000 silent warriors - mainly mathematicians, crossword puzzle addicts and dedicated back-up crew (with a huge leg-up at enormous cost from the Polish Resistance) - cracked the Nazi's Enigma code. Before that, the secret discoveries of Bletchley Park had been so hush-hush British cities such as Coventry were carpet bombed rather than aFighter Command squadron being dispatched to defend the innocent citizens beneath, for fear of alerting to Hitler's flunkeys that the Nazi game was up. My initial visit to Bletchley Park in 2001 was prompted by two things. Firstly, a new film - based on Robert Harris's excellent novel, Enigma, starring Kate Winslet, and partly produced by a promising young rock singer called Mick Jagger - was just about to be released. Secondly - and far more importantly - Bletchley Park had been saved.  It seems extraordinary now, but Bletchley Park was almost laid to waste for a new housing estate. At the last minute, the British saw sense. Finally in 2001 it was re-opened as a museum. Fourteen years later as we enter the hallowed gates on a sunny September afternoon, my two sons - aged 12 and 10 - aren't that bothered about "history" or "espionage". They are cool kids, who are much more adept at computers than their ancient father. So, as we pass through the entrance, I tell them that Alan Turing "is sometimes called the father of the computer … or, if you prefer, the Godfather Bill Gates and Steve Jobs wished they'd had". They don't seem impressed.  But Turing, driven to suicide because of his homosexuality at a time when that was considered akin to witches in 16th century Salem, was one of Britain's greatest heroes in WWII. Today, Bletchley Park is also the home of Britain's national computer museum. And that's what I've told my sons we've come to see. I tell them that until 1937, Bletchley Park was the home of Lady Fanny Leon. The following year Hitler invaded Austria and (what was then known as) Czechoslovakia (it is two countries now, boys - both beautiful). With surprising forethought, the British government under Neville Chamberlain - hell bent on appeasement - decided to move the Government Code and Cypher School to a less vulnerable location than central London.  Bletchley, midway between Oxford and Cambridge universities, was considered ideal, and the code-breakers began arriving soon afterwards. Forgive me if you know all this. Bletchley Girls - the BBC series, repeated on the ABC last summer - related the story of the highly intelligent women who staffed Bletchley Park. And, of course, by now you may have already seen


Australian Heather McKay was undefeated for a period of almost 20 years until her retirement in 1981, in which sport?

Michael Jordan Or Wayne Gretzky? The 30 Most Dominant Athletes Of All Time | Bleacher Report Michael Jordan Or Wayne Gretzky? The 30 Most Dominant Athletes Of All Time Use your ← → (arrow) keys to browse the slideshow 24.9K It's a word we use in every day life. However, contrary to popular belief, it's certainly not something we see in everyday life. Seeing anybody dominate anything in this world is rare enough, let alone the sports world. Dominant athletes come around once a generation. There is a difference between a great athlete and a dominate one. For example, arguably the greatest quarterback in NFL history, Joe Montana would most certainly make a list of the 30 greatest athletes of all time, however, he doesn't make the cut on this list of the 30 most dominant athletes. Why you ask? Although he did win four rings in his career, he never dominated the game quite like his running mate, Jerry Rice who led the league in receiving six times over a ten year period. Some of the athletes on this list may surprise you, as will some of the ones omitted, but I feel I made the best choices. I can guarantee you that for a good amount of time, each athlete on this list was the most feared person in their respective game, and put up numbers that were hard to fathom. That's what I like to call each athlete's "period of domination." And while some of the athletes on this list's weren't long enough to span a career, there numbers during that run were absolutely insane. I tried to represent as many sports as I possibly could here. Hockey, baseball, basketball, football, soccer, tennis, horse racing, cricket, track, cycling, squash, boxing, and Greco-Roman wrestling are among the sports represented. Without further ado, I give you the 30 most dominant athletes of all time. Enjoy! Next » 30. Pete Maravich Pete Maravich is not a part of this list because of his days as a Hall Of Fame point guard for Atlanta and New Orleans, he makes this list solely based on his college dominance—the only player to make the list based off college performance. Was Maravich the greatest college basketball player of all-time? It's debatable, but that debate would likely end with three words: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (known as Lew Alcindor in his college days). However, while Alcindor was the more decorated of the two in their college days, Maravich was more dominant. For proof of that, look no further than his per-game averages. In his three years at LSU, Maravich averaged 43.8, 44.2, and 44.5 points per game respectively. That calculates to a 44.2 point per game average over a three year period. Pretty impressive, huh? Allow me to blow your mind some more. Maravich, a player known for his range on the court, put up these ridiculous scoring totals before college basketball used a three-point line. Still not impressed? LSU Head Coach Dale Brown charted every college game Maravich played, taking all shots he took into consideration. Brown calculated that had the NCAA used a three-point line during Maravich's heyday, he would have averaged 13 threes a game. That would have brought his college career scoring average to 57 points per game.  You read that correctly, 57 points per game. If you don't think that's dominant then you should probably make sure you know the correct definition of the word. 29. Pedro Martinez Stephen Dunn/Getty Images I know what you're thinking, Pedro Martinez as one of the 30 most dominant athletes of all time? What a joke. Just drop your pitchfork for a second and listen. From 1997 to 2003, Pedro Martinez was as dominant as any pitcher in the history of baseball. He was every bit as good as Bob Gibson, Cy Young, Christy Matthewson, and any other all time great pitcher you care to name. Before I dive into the numbers, let me just enlighten you on something. Martinez's 2001 season is omitted from the seven year period from 1997-2003 because he was injured for much of the year. And we will also omit his pesky 1998 season where he was a little off his game (he finished second in Cy Young voting and had a 2.89 ERA, how horrible!) Here's Pedro'


Which US bridge was designed by John Roebling (who died of tetanus during its construction) and completed by his son in 1883, until 1903 it was the longest suspension bridge in the world?

Brooklyn Bridge - Facts & Summary - HISTORY.com Google The Man with the Plan John Augustus Roebling, the Brooklyn Bridge’s creator, was a great pioneer in the design of steel suspension bridges. Born in Germany in 1806, he studied industrial engineering in Berlin and at the age of 25 immigrated to western Pennsylvania , where he attempted, unsuccessfully, to make his living as a farmer. He later moved to the state capital in Harrisburg, where he found work as a civil engineer. He promoted the use of wire cable and established a successful wire-cable factory. Did You Know? On May 17, 1884, P. T. Barnum led 21 elephants over the Brooklyn Bridge to prove that it was stable. Meanwhile, he earned a reputation as a designer of suspension bridges, which at the time were widely used but known to fail under strong winds or heavy loads. Roebling is credited with a major breakthrough in suspension-bridge technology: a web truss added to either side of the bridge roadway that greatly stabilized the structure. Using this model, Roebling successfully bridged the Niagara Gorge at Niagara Falls , New York , and the Ohio River in Cincinnati, Ohio. In 1867, on the basis of these achievements, New York legislators approved Roebling’s plan for a suspension bridge over the East River between Manhattan and Brooklyn. It would be the very first steel suspension bridge, boasting the longest span in the world: 1,600 feet from tower to tower. Just before construction began in 1869, Roebling was fatally injured while taking a few final compass readings across the East River. A boat smashed the toes on one of his feet, and three weeks later he died of tetanus. His 32-year-old son, Washington A. Roebling, took over as chief engineer. Roebling had worked with his father on several bridges and had helped design the Brooklyn Bridge. A Perilous Process To achieve a solid foundation for the bridge, workers excavated the riverbed in massive wooden boxes called caissons. These airtight chambers were pinned to the river’s floor by enormous granite blocks; pressurized air was pumped in to keep water and debris out. Workers known as “sandhogs”—many of them immigrants earning about $2 a day—used shovels and dynamite to clear away the mud and boulders at the bottom of the river. Each week, the caissons inched closer to the bedrock. When they reached a sufficient depth—44 feet on the Brooklyn side and 78 feet on the Manhattan side—they began laying granite, working their way back up to the surface. Underwater, the workers in the caisson were uncomfortable—the hot, dense air gave them blinding headaches, itchy skin, bloody noses and slowed heartbeats—but relatively safe. The journey to and from the depths of the East River, however, could be deadly. To get down into the caissons, the sandhogs rode in small iron containers called airlocks. As the airlock descended into the river, it filled with compressed air. This air made it possible to breathe in the caisson and kept the water from seeping in, but it also dissolved a dangerous amount of gas into the workers’ bloodstreams. When the workers resurfaced, the dissolved gases in their blood were quickly released. This often caused a constellation of painful symptoms known as “caisson disease” or “the bends”: excruciating joint pain, paralysis, convulsions, numbness, speech impediments and, in some cases, death. More than 100 workers suffered from the disease, including Washington Roebling himself, who remained partially paralyzed for the rest of his life. He was forced to watch with a telescope while his wife Emily took charge of the bridge’s construction. Over the years, the bends claimed the lives of several sandhogs, while others died as a result of more conventional construction accidents, such as collapses, fires and explosions. By the early 20th century, scientists had figured out that if the airlocks traveled to the river’s surface more gradually, slowing the workers’ decompression, the bends could be prevented altogether. In 1909, New York’s legislature passed the nation’s first caisson-safety laws to protect


The name of which Italian city was corrupted to give its name to various British coins since the 14th century?

The Disastrous 14th Century The Disastrous 14th Century First-time Visitors: Please visit Site Map and Disclaimer . Use "Back" to return here. A Distant Mirror - The 14th Century Europe in 1300 was well on the way to rapid expansion. It was rapidly increasing in intellectual and mathematical sophistication. Technically, thanks to water power and the mechanical discoveries that flowed from it, Europe was in the midst of what many historians call the Medieval Industrial Revolution. One reason there seems to be such a break between the Middle Ages and the Renaissance was that there was in fact a break. The 14th Century was a time of turmoil, diminished expectations, loss of confidence in institutions, and feelings of helplessness at forces beyond human control. Historian Barbara Tuchman entitled her book on this period A Distant Mirror because many of our modern problems had counterparts in the 14th Century. Even the extinction of the human race, something we ponder in discussing nuclear war, was faced by medieval Europeans, in fact, far more directly than we ever have. Two Great Natural Disasters The Little Ice Age Two great natural disasters struck Europe in the 14th Century. One was climatic: the Little Ice Age. This term is used in wildly varied ways by different authors, and there actually seem to have been two cooling episodes: an earlier one from the late 1200's to 1600 or so, and a later one in the 1700's and 1800's. During the earlier one, the Baltic Sea froze over in 1303, 1306 and 1307, something never before recorded. Alpine glaciers advanced. The Norse settlements in Greenland were cut off and grain cultivation ceased in Iceland. The last ship sailed from Iceland to Greenland in the early 1400's (tantalizingly close to Columbus); when contact was resumed in the 1700's, the settlements were long abandoned. Starvation, disease, raids by English pirates and conflict with natives have all been suggested as causes, and all probably played a role in the demise of the colonies. In France, crops failed after heavy rains in 1315; there were widespread famine, reports of cannibalism, and epidemics. The Black Death If the Little Ice Age weakened Europe's agricultural productivity and made life uncomfortable, the Bubonic Plague brought life to a virtual standstill. Tuchman's prose describes the plague as powerfully as anyone. In October 1347, two months after the fall of Calais, Genoese trading ships put into  the harbor of Messina in Sicily with dead and dying men at the oars. The ships had come  from the Black Sea port of Caffa (now Feodosiya) in the Crimea, where the Genoese  maintained a trading post. The diseased sailors showed strange black swellings about the  size of an egg or an apple in the armpits and groin. The swellings oozed blood and pus and  were followed by spreading boils and black blotches on the skin from internal bleeding.  The sick suffered severe pain and died quickly within five days of the first symptoms. As  the disease spread, other symptoms of continuous fever and spitting of blood appeared  instead of the swellings or buboes. These victims coughed and sweated heavily and died  even more quickly, within three days or less, sometimes in 24 hours. In both types  everything that issued from the body- breath, sweat, blood from the buboes and lungs,  bloody urine, and blood-blackened excrement- smelled foul. Depression and despair  accompanied the physical symptoms, and before the end "death is seen seated on the  face." The disease was bubonic plague, present in two forms: one that infected the  bloodstream, causing the buboes and internal bleeding, and was spread by contact; and a  second, more virulent pneumonic type that infected the lungs and was spread by respiratory  infection. The presence of both at once caused the high mortality and speed of contagion.  So lethal was the disease that cases were known of persons going to bed well and dying  before they woke, of doctors catching the illness at a bedside and dying before the  patient. So rapidly did it spread from one to ano


A Canadian-born former Lord Privy Seal, he represented Ashton-Under-Lyne in parliament. He founded a Sunday newspaper and served in the governments of both Lloyd-George and Churchill, by what title was he known?

What If-Finland had been prepared for the Winter War? - Page 23 - Axis History Forum What If-Finland had been prepared for the Winter War? Discussions on the Winter War and Continuation War, the wars between Finland and the USSR. Hosted by Juha Tompuri Joined: 26 Nov 2010, 16:48 Location: Toronto, Canada Quote Post by CanKiwi2 » 13 Mar 2012, 12:21 These are a few videoclips of the Polish aircraft covered in the previous post, together with another on General Wladyslaw Anders. Included these as a bit of general background - particularly as the aircraft are little known and there is not a lot of info on them - and certainly not much visual info. Not really relevant to the main story, just background....... Enjoy! PZL P.37 LOS - in 1939, one of the better medium bombers in service anywhere PZL P.11 Fighter - in 1935, this was as good as anything in the world. By 1939, it was obsolete but it was the best fighter Poland had available and with these, the Polish Air Force shot down numerous Luftwaffe aircraft. Polish fighter pilots went through some of the toughest training in the world and they were good .... quickly improvising effective tactics to deal with the German fighter and bombers PZL P.23 Karas light bomber - obsolete and vunerable, almost all were shot down in action against the Germans Another clip on the Karas OK, this is a simulation, but a pretty good one General Wladyslaw Anders - Polish Army ex Ngāti Tumatauenga ("Tribe of the Maori War God") aka the New Zealand Army Joined: 26 Nov 2010, 16:48 Location: Toronto, Canada Post by CanKiwi2 » 18 Mar 2012, 06:50 The British Volunteers We will get into the intricacies of Finland's political relationships with the European powers in later Posts. Suffice it to say that Finland was in the invidious position of being a pawn in the political maneouvering between France, Britain and the USSR with regard to Germany. And a pawn that the UK and France were quite happy to lose if it meant an agreement with the USSR. Finnish Intelligence was well aware of this and this knowledge of the British attitude would play an important part in official and unofficial Finnish decision making throughout WW2. After being a spectator to the fate of Czechoslovakia (and having perhaps a greater understanding of what the loss of the Czechoslovakian arms industry to Germany meant to the balance of industrial power in Europe than did Chamberlain) those who were responsible for the defence of Finland in the period after the Munich Crisis were even more concerned than before. As has been noted, this resulted in Finland moving to a war-footing in late 1938, making it perhaps the first country in Europe to take such drastic steps. The result had been a surge in Finnish defence spending, in military training and in the acquisition of arms, munitions and aircraft as well as other military equipment considered essential. Following the German attack on Poland, Finland had stepped up its attempts to purchase weapons, aircraft and military material from every available source. While purchases from France and the US had been negotiated and concluded, a number of requests to purchase artillery and aircraft from the UK had been declined. Some, consisting of material consider non-critical by the British, were approved for sale to Finland but despite this, exports to Finland required further approvals to be exported according to British blockade orders. Though the blockade orders were relatively lenient, only one shipload of war material was shipped to Finland from the UK by the beginning of November, and this was from France. The Finnish Ambassador to the UK, Georg Gripenberg, expressed his frustration at the situation, stating that Finland was being blockaded far more effectively by British and French bureaucrats than by German submarines. However, neither of the Allied governments was, during the first weeks of WW2, sufficiently interested in Finland to facilitate its task of preparing for the worst. Photo sourced from: http://www.finlandun.org/public/downloa ... 5833&GUID= {C726D9EC-69B0-43C5-9432-69EF95E2F


The HQ of the International Olympic Committee is in which Swiss town or city?

Olympic Committee HQ Switzerland - e-architect Home > Switzerland > Olympic Committee HQ Switzerland Olympic Committee HQ Switzerland Published by Joel Solkoff updated on November 3, 2016 Olympic Committee HQ in Switzerland, Lake Geneva Architecture, Swiss Design, Images, Building Olympic Committee HQ Swiss Office Building: Lausanne Commercial Propert, Switzerland – design by 3XN Architects 11 Dec 2014 Location: Lake Geneva in Lausanne, Switzerland Design: 3XN Dynamic, Flexible Building Located on Lake Geneva in Lausanne The International Olympic Committee (IOC) selected 3XN to design its new headquarters after a multi-stage, international architectural competition that concluded earlier this year. The IOC and 3XN have now released the first renderings of the project, which is located on a 24,000sm site on the banks of Lake Geneva in Lausanne, Switzerland. The new building will bring together 600 employees currently working in disparate offices throughout the city. “In recognition of the symbolism of the Olympic Games and needs of the organization, we designed the new IOC headquarters around three key elements: movement, flexibility and sustainability,” said Jan Ammundsen, Senior Partner with 3XN. “With its dynamic, undulating façade, the building will appear different from all angles and convey the energy of an athlete in motion. Its interior is designed with as few structural constraints as possible. This open and flexible environment will adapt to multiple work styles now and in the future. Our design is also intended to encourage interaction, communication and knowledge sharing among staff.” 3XN’s entire design is built upon respect for the site and sustainable principles. The building features many energy efficient systems, including lake water pumping, photovoltaics and daylight optimization. The new headquarters is located within a park on the shores of Lake Geneva and adjacent to historic Château de Vidy, which has been the iconic home of the IOC. 3XN’s design is intended to respect both the château’s legacy and park setting and make as soft a transition as possible from park to building. Olympic Committee HQ in Switzerland images / information from 3XN To see all listed projects on a single map please follow this link .


Which TV programme's 'experts' include Philip Munn and Christopher Payne?

Meet the experts | Homes and Antiques Homes and Antiques Meet the experts Marc Allum Marc joined the Roadshow in 1998 and works as a freelance writer, lecturer and broadcaster, as well as running art and antiques courses with his AR colleagues from his chateau in south-west France.   George Archdale George has been examining ceramics and miscellaneous items for the Antiques Roadshow for 27 years. He joined the team while he was working in the insurance industry, and has since spent time at a number of auction houses before ending up with Cheffins in Cambridge. Since 1985, he has worked with local radio, given talks and written occasional articles. Paul Atterbury Since beginning his career as a ceramics specialist in the late 1960s, Paul has become known for his prolific writing as well as for his Roadshow appearances. Graphic design is a particular interest of Paul's.   John Axford John joined Woolley & Wallis Fine Art Auctioneers, Salisbury in 1993 and is now a director of the company, as well as an expert in ceramics and glass for the Antiques Roadshow. Earlier this year john made headlines when he sold a Qianlong jade water buffalo for £3.4m. Jon Baddeley Jon began his career in fine art and antiques as a porter at Sotheby’s, and later as an auctioneer. He is now the director of collectables at Bonhams and is also a freelance writer, broadcaster and lecturer. David Battie David has appeared on the Antiques Roadshow since its very first programme in 1977. He became a director of Sotheby’s in 1976 and, since retiring in 1999, has developed a lively lecturing career, specialising in oriental ceramics and works of art. John Benjamin Qualified gemmologist and Antiques Roadshow jewellery expert, John is an independent jewellery advisor, valuer and lecturer specialising in the Renaissance, 18th- and 19th-century periods.   Elaine Binning A miscellaneous expert for the Antiques Roadshow, Elaine joined Sotheby's in 1992, before leaving to work for Dreweatts in Newbury, where she is a consultant specialising in furniture. John Bly In addition to being one of the Antiques Roadshow's furniture experts, John is also an antiques dealer and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts. For two years he was elected a chairman of the British Antique Dealers Association (BADA). The Bly family have been antique dealers since the 1800s and John's son Julian also now works on the show.   Penny Brittain Roadshow expert Penny is an independent fine art consultant whose specialism is 18th and 19th-century furniture and objects, along with the decorative arts of the 20th century. Bunny Campione Bunny has run her own antiques and fine art consultancy since 1988. Although she’s known for her expert knowledge in the field of antique dolls and teddy bears, Bunny’s first love is actually English furniture. Lennox Cato Lennox Cato has been dealing for almost 30 years and is a regular contributor to the Antiques Roadshow. His passion is for fine quality 18th & 19th century English furniture. A regular exhibitor at all the major London Fairs he also has showrooms in Edenbridge, Kent. He recently became Country Vice Chairman of the BADA.     Justin Croft Justin has worked with rare and antiquarian books for 20 years. He started as a porter at Phillips Auctioneers, going on to complete a PhD in the study of medieval manuscripts, and is now proprietor of his own firm based in Faversham. He works closely with museums and libraries around the world, helping to build collections of exceptional books and manuscripts.    Alistair Dickinson A former director of Asprey, Alastair set up his own business in Jermyn Street in 1996, specialising in fine and important silver from the 16th to 19th centuries. He is a freeman of the Goldsmiths Company and the City of London and has a passion for electric guitars.  Dendy Easton Dendy began his career in fine art in 1971 and spent 30 years working for Sotheby's, where he was a director, specialising in 19th and 20th-century pictures. He is now a fine art consultant for Bonhams.   Clive Farahar Clive has been an antiquarian book


Name the French artist (1798-1863) whose painting 'Liberty Leading The People' is in the Louvre?

1000+ images about delacroix (1798 – 1863) on Pinterest | Attila the hun, Self portraits and George sand Pinterest • The world’s catalog of ideas delacroix (1798 – 1863) Ferdinand Victor Eugène Delacroix (1798 – 1863) was a French Romantic artist regarded from the outset of his career as the leader of the French Romantic school. Delacroix's use of expressive brushstrokes and his study of the optical effects of colour profoundly shaped the work of the Impressionists, while his passion for the exotic inspired the artists of the Symbolist movement. 108 Pins791 Followers


Who wrote the book from which Sir Benjamin Britten created the opera 'Billy Budd'?

Billy Budd and Mahler's Symphony No 3 | Classical review | Music | The Guardian Billy Budd and Mahler's Symphony No 3 Glydebourne; Liverpool Share on Messenger Close Apart from one potent glimpse of a red duster ensign fluttering in a sea breeze, Glyndebourne's electrifying new Billy Budd imprisons us below deck. This sense of oppression is as it should be. The salt of Britten's marine opera is acrid not with brine alone but with the human sweat of toil and conflict. This 1950-51 masterpiece, based on Herman Melville's posthumous novella, could inhabit any place of confinement, as in Richard Jones's recent production for Frankfurt set in a bullying, public school-style naval academy. The HMS Indomitable, under the command of its popular, humanist captain, "Starry" Vere, is a man o'war fighting the French but in fear of mutiny among its own men. It is also a ship of life sailing the perpetual high seas like a star in the galaxy, in Melville's words "but one craft in a Milky Way fleet". Vere himself, a man who has "read books" and "tried to fathom eternal truth", feels himself lost on the "infinite sea". Theatre director Michael Grandage, in his first attempt at opera, holds this balance perfectly in a tense staging meticulously and passionately conducted by Sir Mark Elder. Cast and chorus are outstanding. The London Philharmonic negotiates Britten's lurching, shifting-sand harmonies with proper vigilance and exhilarating involvement. The wistful, lullaby nonchalance of the alto sax is only the most conspicuous of the composer's astonishing musical inventions. Paule Constable's lighting design, with its pools of confined daylight, complements the lustrous, shadowy score. If this Billy Budd sets the tone for the 2010 festival, it heralds a vintage Glyndebourne year. A ribbed cross-section of a Napoleonic ship in Christopher Oram's grand, claustral design brilliantly encases the action throughout. Yinka Shonibare 's new "ship in a bottle" for Trafalgar Square's fourth plinth, based on Nelson's Victory, makes a timely visual touchstone – the very ship Britten's librettists, EM Forster and Eric Crozier, visited in Portsmouth to do their nautical homework. Forster in particular felt he was truly out of his depth in comprehending life below deck, but he responded to the underlying homoeroticism of the story to "a sexual discharge gone evil" and recognised Melville as a fellow "suppressed homosex". This aspect is implicit, but never overworked, in Grandage's shrewd production. Britten himself, who nearly came to blows with Forster when the novelist took exception to some of the music, was more interested in the moral complexities of Vere, a role created for his partner, the tenor Peter Pears, and here sung eloquently, if at times on the first night too wanly, by the ever-perceptive John Mark Ainsley. The central relationship is between the good, high-minded captain and his sadistic master-at-arms, Claggart (Phillip Ens). Both are unsettled by the arrival of the innocent, stammering, archetypal "handsome sailor" Budd, here played with eager, light-limbed fervour by Jacques Imbrailo. Claggart hates him because, to borrow a line from Iago, he "hath a daily beauty in his life that makes me ugly". A tragedy unfolds that summer of 1797 which preys on Vere for the rest of his days. Each cameo role in the all-male ensemble cast takes on personality and musical character, especially Ben Johnson's Novice, Jeremy White's Dansker, Iain Paterson's Mr Redburn and Matthew Rose's Mr Flint. As good-hearted, whiskery Dansker ties the noose for his friend Billy to be hanged from the yardarm, Britten's genius for expressing human feeling cries out. Is any moment in opera more heart- wrenching? A few years before tackling Billy Budd, in 1941, Britten wrote a small-scale version of the second movement of Mahler's Symphony No 3. He had a particular affinity with the Austrian composer, whose music was still hardly known. One reason was the scale, and the forces required, especially in that same symphony, which lasts nearly two hours and calls for a vast


Queen Victoria was a member of which Royal House?

Queen Victoria | Britroyals Born: May 24, 1819 at Kensington Palace Parents: Edward, Duke of Kent (son of George III) and Victoria of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld Relation to Elizabeth II: great-great-grandmother House of: Hanover Ascended to the throne: June 20, 1837 aged 18 years Crowned: June 28, 1838 at Westminster Abbey Married: Albert, son of Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha Children: Four sons including Edward VII, and five daughters Died: January 22, 1901 at Osborne, Isle of Wight, aged 81 years, 7 months, and 29 days Buried at: Frogmore Reigned for: 63 years, 7 months, and 2 days Succeeded by: her son Edward VII Named Alexandrina Victoria but known as Victoria, she was the only child of Edward Duke of Kent and Victoria Saxe-Coburg. Her father died when she was 1 year old and her domineering mother kept her away from her �wicked� uncles Kings George and William. She had a sheltered upbringing, and came to the throne shortly after her 18th birthday in 1837 on the death of her uncle William IV who had no surviving legitimate children. She was at the time unmarried and not crowned until June 28, 1838. In February 1840 she married her cousin and love of her life Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. The British Empire was at the height of its power and she ruled over 450 million people, one quarter of the world�s population and approximately one quarter of the work�s landmass. It stretched so far around the globe from Canada to the Caribbean, Africa, India, Australia and New Zealand that it was said that the sun never set on the British Empire. India was Jewel in the Crown and in 1876 she was given the title Empress of India. The Victorian era was a time of immense industrial, political, trade, scientific and military progress for Great Britain. In her early years she was dependent on her Prime Minister Lord Melbourne and her uncle King Leopold of Belgium for advice, but increasingly her husband Albert became her main advisor. He was involved in organising the Great Exhibition in 1851, and persuaded her to take a more constitutional role in leaving the rule of the nation and Empire to Parliament. She was strong willed and her relations with her prime ministers ranged from the affectionate (Melbourne and Disraeli) to the stormy (Peel, Palmerston, and Gladstone). Victoria and Albert had four sons, five daughters and 42 grandchildren who were married to royalty across Europe making her the �grandmother of Europe�. Her daughter Victoria was mother of the German Emperor Kaiser Wilhelm II, and her grand-daughter Alexandria was the wife of Nicholas II Emperor and last Tzar of Russia. The death of Albert from typhoid in 1861 plunged Victoria into mourning and she withdrew almost completely from public life spending her time at Balmoral Castle in Scotland and Osborne house on the Isle of Wight where she spent time with her favourite Scottish servant John Brown. This encouraged republican sentiments and she was the target of several assassination attempts. However she kept control of affairs, refusing her son Edward, Prince of Wales (who became Edward VII) any active role. Her golden jubilee in 1887 and diamond jubilee in 1897 regained her popular support and matriarchal role as Queen of the nation and Empire. She died at Osborne House on 22 January 1901, and was buried at Windsor. Her reign lasted 63 years and 7 months which is the second longest of any British monarch. Queen Victoria's Signature Quotes: �Great events make me quiet and calm; it is only trifles that irritate my nerves� - Queen Victoria �Being pregnant is an occupational hazard of being a wife� - Queen Victoria� (she had 9 children) �The Queen is most anxious to enlist everyone who can speak or write or join in checking this mad, wicked folly of �Woman�s Rights� with all its attendant horrors on which her poor feeble sex is bent, forgetting every sense of womanly feeling and propriety� � Queen Victoria (she was against women�s rights despite being matriarch to nearly a quarter of the world�s population) �The important thing is not what they think of me, but what I thin


The HQ of UEFA is in which Swiss town or city, on the shores of Lake Geneva?

UEFA Campus - UEFA.org UEFA.org The House of European Football in Nyon ©UEFA.com Published: Thursday 30 January 2014, 15.53CET Read more UEFA's administrative headquarters are situated in the town of Nyon on the banks of Lake Geneva in western Switzerland, and comprises a football campus of three buildings, as well as the Colovray Stadium. The main administration building, the House of European Football, was inaugurated on 22 September 1999 and officially opened for work on 5 October 1999. UEFA had known several homes before the House of European Football – Paris until 1959; the Swiss federal capital, Berne (until 1995, with two moves within the city in 1962 and 1974); and provisional offices in the Providentia insurance building in Nyon between 1995 and September 1999. After deciding to move from Berne in April 1993, UEFA and the Nyon municipal authorities signed the commitment to buy and sell the plot of land, 'La Colline', in July 1993, and Nyon commune council authorised the sale of the land to UEFA three months later. Late 1996 saw initial preparations, construction work – involving many local companies – began the following February, and the then UEFA president Lennart Johansson laid the foundation stone in a special ceremony on 18 April 1997. While UEFA has continued to grow rapidly, both in terms of activities and staff, facilities at the building also considered UEFA's further expansion in the future, with conference rooms equipped with simultaneous translation facilities and a restaurant included in the new complex. The offices are situated on the two upper floors of the building. In addition, the superstructures house another three conference rooms, and the car park provides space for 100 vehicles. UEFA's headquarters have continued to expand and keep pace with the development of European football. In October 2010, a second administrative building was inaugurated in Nyon, at a ceremony attended by UEFA's member national associations and the UEFA Executive Committee. The La Clairière building is located opposite the House of European Football, and has enabled UEFA to bring together some of its staff members who have been based at different sites. Circular in shape, the new four-level building meets high ecological and environmental standards, and can accommodate some 250 members of staff. The foundation stone for the building was laid in January 2009. A third UEFA building, Bois-Bougy – also built with environmental considerations in mind – opened for business in March 2012 . A total of 195 staff can be accommodated in this building. In April 2010, UEFA highlighted its commitment to its home town of Nyon and further developing European football by taking over the management of the Colovray Stadium opposite UEFA's headquarters . The stadium includes a main football pitch – which has been used for training by club and national teams – as well as track and field facilities and a restaurant. UEFA uses the Colovray complex for its own events, and has also set up a Centre of Refereeing Excellence (CORE) for young match officials. Sporting life in Nyon is flourishing as local clubs and sports associations take advantage of the facilities. ©UEFA.com 1998-2015. All rights reserved. Last updated: 09/12/14 17.20CET


The largest state or territory by area in Canada is Northwest Territories, which is second?

Northwest Territories Facts on Largest Cities, Populations, Symbols - Worldatlas.com Ethnicity: First Nations (36%), English (16%), Scottish (14%), Irish (12%), Inuit (11%), others GDP total: $4.103 billion (Canadian dollars) (11th) GDP per capita: GDP per capita $76,000 (Canadian dollars) (1st) Language: Chipewyan, Cree, English, French, Gwich'in, Inuinnaqtun, Inuktitut, Inuvialuktun, North Slavey, South Slavey, Tlich Yatiì Largest Cities: (by population) Yellowknife, Inuvik, Fort McPherson, Norman Wells, Tuktoyaktuk Name: The name was originally used to describe lands in the west and north of what is now modern-day Canada. Even though parts of those lands were merged into other provinces, the original name remains. Territory Date: July 15, 1870 Dominion dates (all provinces and teritories) Note: The Canadian Confederation, or the birth of Canada as a recognized nation, took place on July 1, 1867, and originally included the provinces of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Ontario and Quebec. Religion: Catholic (46%), Anglican Church of Canada (15%), United Church of Canada (6%), others


Benjamin Briggs was captain of which famous ship?

Benjamin Briggs, Captain Mary Celeste - Timeline Index Timeline Index Benjamin Briggs, Captain Mary Celeste Benjamin Spooner Briggs was an experienced United States seaman and master mariner. He is famous today for being the Captain of the merchant ship Mary Celeste when she was discovered unmanned and drifting in the Atlantic Ocean near the Straits of Gibraltar, on 4 December 1872. The lifeboat was missing, yet the Mary Celeste herself was still under sail, and there were still signs of a sudden and unexplained abandonment. Benjamin Briggs, his wife Sarah and two-year-old daughter Sophia Matilda, along with the crew of the Mary Celeste, and the lifeboat, were never found and presumed lost. It is generally considered the greatest maritime mystery of all time. More on this Website


At least one of which series of spacecraft is docked to the International Space Station at all times for use as an escape craft in the event of an emergency?

International Day of Human Space Flight: 10 achievements since Yuri Gagarin made first Earth orbit International Day of Human Space Flight: 10 achievements since Yuri Gagarin made first Earth orbit April 12, 2015 00:01 BST Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin wearing his helmet for the first manned flight in spaceGetty Earth's orbit has become a busy arena of human activity over the last 50 years. At the beginning of the 20th century, a burst of scientific investigation into interplanetary travel, inspired by fiction writers such as H.G. Wells, led to a breakthrough in space flight on 12 April 1961. Soviet citizen Yuri Gagarin became the first human in space, paving the way for space exploration as we know it today. Opening the era of manned space flight, Gagarin's flight took 108 minutes and consisted of a single orbit of the Earth, as part of the Soviet Vostok space exploration programme. Just under a month later, the United States launched its first suborbital Mercury astronaut, Alan Shepherd in a Freedom 7 capsule. Twenty days later, President John F. Kennedy, to quell the US public alarm at the widening lead by the USSR, announced a plan to land a man on the moon by 1970. In celebration of Gagarin and the beginning of the space era for mankind, we look at other milestones in human space flight – from the first woman in space to the launch of space tourism. First woman in space The first woman in space, Valentina Tereshkova, attends a press conference in Moscow in 2013Getty Although female space travellers were not commonplace until the 1980s, the first woman in space was a former civilian parachutist called Valentina Tereshkova. She entered orbit on 16 June 1963 on board the Soviet mission Vostok 6. The chief Soviet spacecraft designer, Sergey Korolyov, came up with the idea to recruit a female cosmonaut corps and to launch two women on Vostok 5/6, but his plan was changed to launch a male first in Vostok 5, followed shortly afterwards by Tereshkova. Sally Ride became the first American woman in space on board Space Shuttle mission STS-7 on 18 June 1983. First American in space Alan Shephard became the first American to travel into space in 1961Getty The US caught up with the Soviets less than a month after Gagarin became the first person in space. On 5 May 1961, Nasa astronaut Alan Shephard was launched aboard the Freedom 7 vehicle to become the first American in space. Shephard's suborbital flight lasted just 15 minutes, taking him up to an altitude of 115 miles before splashing down in the Atlantic Ocean around 300 miles from the launch site in Cape Canaveral, Florida. US Space Shuttle The retired space shuttle Atlantis leaves the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral in 2012Reuters The US launched the first reusable spacecraft, the Space Shuttle, on 12 April 1981, exactly 20 years after Gagarin's flight. It was able to carry different payloads to low Earth orbit, provide crew rotation, perform satellite repairs and allowed for supplies to be taken to the International Space Station. Each shuttle was designed for a projected lifespan of 100 launches or ten years of operational life. On 15 November 1988, the Soviet Union launched the unmanned Buran shuttle, its first reusable spacecraft. Soyuz The Soyuz TMA-16M spacecraft is transported to its launch pad at the Baikonur cosmodromeReuters Soyuz is a series of spacecraft designed for the Soviet space programme by the Korolyov Design Bureau in the 1960s that remain in service today. The Soyuz spacecraft is launched on a Soyuz rocket, which is the most frequently used and reliable launch vehicle in the world to date, from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. The spacecraft are used for transport to and from the International Space Station, with at least one Soyuz spacecraft docked to the ISS at all times as an escape craft in the event of an emergency. International Space Station The International Space Station, backdropped by EarthReuters The first component of the habitable artificial satellite, located in low Earth orbit, was launched in 1998 and is now the largest art


Sébastien Loeb won a record 9 successive World Championship, in which sport?

BBC Sport - Motorsport - Sebastien Loeb wins seventh straight World Rally crown Sebastien Loeb wins seventh straight World Rally crown Victory in France seals Loeb's place in motor sport history Citroen driver Sebastien Loeb has claimed a record seventh successive World Rally Championship crown. The 36-year-old Frenchman, made it into the record books by winning his home event, the Rally de France. He now has three more world titles than Finnish drivers Juha Kankkunen and Tommy Makinen and a record 60 career rally wins. Loeb said: "It's unbelievable to become world champion at home, in front of all these people." The Frenchman was already in a league of his own after becoming the first rally driver to win five titles in a row when he surpassed retired Finnish great Tommy Makinen in 2008. Loeb, with co-driver Daniel Elena, took the first of his 60 rally wins in Germany in 2002 after joining Citroen as French rally champion in 2001. He has stayed with the French manufacturer ever since. He has tested a Formula 1 car and was linked to a one-off drive with Toro Rosso ahead of the last year's season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. 606: DEBATE Where does Sebastien Loeb rank among the greats? Mike L - BBC Sport Having won six of the 11 rallies this season, Loeb can relax going into the final two rounds of the season in Spain starting 22 October and Great Britain, from 12 November. Loeb clinched his seventh title in style, leading the Rally of France from start to finish, ahead of fellow Citroen drivers Dani Sordo of Spain and Norway's Petter Solberg to make it a 1-2-3 for the French marque. Loeb won with more than half a minute to spare and was mobbed by fans at the finish line in Strasbourg, very close to his home. "I knew I could do it but it was an extremely tough race and I had to believe right through to the finish line," he said. "I didn't think there would be so many people and that the rally would take on such a dimension." Bookmark with:


Which Tuscan wine was traditionally packaged in a squat bottle enclosed in a straw basket, called a fiasco?

VisitsItaly.com - Chianti and Chianti Wines from Tuscany Shipped from Tuscany to your door! History The earliest documentation of a "Chianti wine" dates back to the 13th century when viticulture     was known to flourish in the "Chianti Mountains" around Florence . The merchants in the nearby     townships of Castellina , Gaiole and Radda formed     the Lega del Chianti (League of Chianti) to     produce and promote the local wine. In 1398,     records note that the earliest incarnation of     Chianti was as a white wine. In 1716 Cosimo III de' Medici, Grand Duke of     Tuscany issued an edict legislating that the     three villages of the Lega del Chianti as well     as the village of Greve and a 2 mile (3 km)     hillside north of Greve near Spedaluzza as the     only officially recognized producers of Chianti.     This delineation existed until the 1930s when     the Italian government expanded the zone.     Subsequent expansions throughout the 20th     century would eventually bring the Chianti zone     to cover almost all of Tuscany. The original     zone dictated by the edict of Cosimo III de'     Medici would eventually be considered the heart     of the Chianti Classico region. The Italian statesman Bettino Ricasoli developed     the first "modern" Chianti recipe that was     Sangiovese based.By the 18th century, Chianti     was widely recognized as a red wine, but the     exact composition and grape varieties used to     make Chianti at this point is unknown.     Ampelographers find clues about which grape     varieties were popular at the time in the     writings of Italian writer Cosimo Villifranchi     who noted that Canaiolo was widely planted     variety in the area along with Sangiovese,     Mammolo and Marzemino. It was not until the work     of the Italian statesman Bettino Ricasoli that     the modern "Chianti recipe" as a     Sangiovese-based wine would take shape. Prior to Ricasoli, Canaiolo was emerging as the     dominant variety in the Chianti blend with     Sangiovese and Malvasia playing supporting     roles. In the mid-19th century, Ricasoli     developed a recipe for Chianti that was based     primarily on Sangiovese. His recipe called for     70% Sangiovese, 15% Canaiolo, 10% Malvasia     (later amended to include Trebbiano) and 5%     other local red varieties. In 1967, the     Denominazione di origine controllata (DOC)     regulation set by the Italian government firmly     established the "Ricasoli formula" of a     Sangiovese-based blend with 10-30% Malvasia and     Trebbiano. The late 19th century saw a period of economic     and political upheaval. First came oidium and     then the phylloxera epidemic would take it toll     on the vineyards of Chianti just as they had     ravaged vineyards across the rest of Europe. The     chaos and poverty following the Risorgimento     heralded the beginning of the Italian diaspora     that would take Italian vineyard workers and     winemakers abroad as immigrants to new lands. Those that stayed behind and replanted choose     high-yielding varieties like Trebbiano and     Sangiovese clones such as the Sangiovese di     Romagna from the nearby Romagna region. Following World War II, the general trend in the     world wine market for cheap, easy-drinking wine     saw a brief boom for the region. With     over-cropping and an emphasis on quantity over     quality, the reputation of Chianti among     consumers eventually plummeted. By the 1950s,     Trebbiano (which is known for its neutral     flavors) made up to 30% of many mass-market     Chiantis. By the late 20th century, Chianti was often     associated with basic Chianti sold in a squat     bottle enclosed in a straw basket, called a     fiasco. However, during


Jim Broadbent won an Oscar in 2001 for his portrayal of the husband of which British writer?

Jim Broadbent Film Title: Iris Iris (2001)  Jim Broadbent plays John     Bayley   Also     starring Judi Dench, Kate Winslet and Hugh Bonneville. Directed by Richard Eyre "Her greatest talent was for   life" Plot Summery:  Iris tells the tender and extraordinary true story of the enduring love between the novelist and philosopher Iris Murdoch and her husband John Bayley, from the romance of their early days at Oxford in the 1950s to her tragic death with Alzheimer's disease in February 1999. The film is based on the memoir, 'Elegy for Iris' by John Bayley. play the trailer Patrick's comments:  Jim, who shaved his head for the role, plays Iris's husband, John Bayley, opposite Judi Dench.  The film covers two distinct periods of her life. The young Iris and John are played by Kate Winslet and Hugh Bonneville.  This is a truly moving story but the film's strength is undoubtedly due to the casting and the gripping performances by the four leads.  Jim completed filming in Oxford and at Pinewood Studios in Spring 2001. Awards: The Oscars: Jim has won the Academy Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role for his portrayal of John Bayley beating fellow English colleagues Sir Ian McKellen and Ben Kingsley. "Stone the crows!" exclaimed the elated actor, "Making Iris was the most joyful and wonderful experience". Jim in the Oscar news: BBC: Broadbent scores for the UK The Oscar Acceptance speech: Jim kissed his wife, kissed Judi Dench and was then embraced by Kate Winslet.  He ascended the steps to the stage and said:  "Stone the Crows!  I'd like to thank the Academy for this wonderful honour. Making Iris was the most joyful, wonderful experience and for that much thanks to Intermedia, to BBC Films and to Miramax for getting behind it and putting it out. And above all to Richard Eyre for writing a wonderful script with Charles Wood, for directing with skill, intelligence, humour and great talent and for putting together a wonderful cast for us to work with. With Hugh Bonneville as the younger me and Kate Winslet and the special Judi Dench who I had a lot to do with. And I'd like to thank John Bayley who allowed us to plunder and, I'm sure, misrepresent his life with Iris and above all I'd like to thank my wife Anastasia for coming with me on this long and rather unpredictable journey.  Good luck Moulin Rouge!" Awards: Golden Globes: Jim Broadbent was the toast of the British film world in the early hours (UK time) of Monday 21st January after scooping a top Hollywood award for his role in the movie Iris.  Broadbent was honoured by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association with a Golden Globe for Best Actor in a Supporting Role.  Accepting his award after beating competition from actors including Jude Law, Ben Kingsley and Steve Buscemi, Broadbent said: "This is amazing, I couldn't be more surprised, I've not got anything worked out." Before the awards he said: "I'm overwhelmed, I'm trembling. There's Jon Voight and James Coburn, all my heroes. I might pass out."  At a star-studded bash at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills, Los Angeles, he paid tribute to fellow Britons Dame Judi and to Kate Winslet, who played the young Iris. Jim gets a hug and a kiss from co-star Kate Winslet before receiving his Golden Globe with thanks to DiscoverKate for photos Golden Globe - The Acceptance Speech:  This is amazing, I couldn't be more surprised, and I really haven't got anything worked out. But I'd just like to thank the producers, the director, the writers, the fellow cast, particularly Judi Dench who I had so many scenes with and who made it so easy. Kate Winslet who made the film so wonderful even though I didn't actually act with her. But, um, Hugh Bonneville who played the younger me, which is quite a task, but - I think this reflects on him as well, because it's the whole part. And most of all I'd like to thank Richard Eyre, the director who co-wrote it and cast me in it. He's a brilliant, wonderful director and friend. And I'd like to thank my wife Anastasia who is here to support me tonight. And thank you to the Golden


What is the largest island in the Pacific Ocean?

The Pacific Ocean & It's Islands - worldfactsinc worldfactsinc The Pacific Ocean & It's Islands                                                                                The Pacific Ocean is the world's largest body of water at 165.2 million square kilometers. The ocean covers 1/3rd of the world's surface and accounts for 46% of the earth's water. The ocean covers an area from the Indonesian Archipelago to it's west to the east coast of South America to it's east, and from the Arctic Sea to it's north to the Southern Ocean to it's south. The ocean is linked with the Atlantic Ocean by way of Drakes Passage, situated at the very southern tip of South America and the Panama Canal, situated on the Isthmus of Panama in Central America.The ocean is divided into north and south at the point of the Equator. The Pacific borders thirty six countries on three continents, twenty two in Asia, eleven in the Americas and three in Oceania. The Pacific Ocean was originally named the Mare Pacificum, the Peaceful Sea, by Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan in 1519, when he first traveled from west to east via the stretch of water named in his honour, The Magellan Strait, situated off the coast of South America.  FOR MORE MAPS, TRAVEL ADVICE OR GEOGRAPHY FACTS ABOUT THE SOUTH PACIFIC ISLANDS  VISIT OUR SISTER SITE -   South Pacific Island Travel .       The Pacific Ocean is renowned for the area known as the Pacific Rim or Pacific Ring of Fire, an area of high tectonic activity and volcanic eruptions, situated along the ocean's entire periphery. The Pacific is home to the world's largest coral reef, the Great Barrier Reef, situated off the north, east coast of Australia and the deepest point on earth, the Mariana Trench, situated in the Philippine Sea which is 10,911 meters deep, making it deeper than Mount Everest is high. Geographically the various land masses that are located in the Pacific are generally referred to as Oceania, this can also include the continent of Australia and the island nation of New Zealand.  The Pacific Ocean is the location of the International Date Line, see map below, an imaginary line passing through the middle of the ocean at the 180th parallel , directly opposite the Prime Meridian, which defines the start of each new calendar day or 24 hour period.      SEAS OF THE PACIFIC OCEAN The Pacific Ocean is home to several, large straits, gulfs and bays, including the Strait of Malakka, the Taiwan Strait, the Cook Strait, the Gulf of Carpenteria, the Gulf of Thailand, the Gulf of Anadyr, the Gulf of Alaska, Korea Bay and Tokyo Bay. The Pacific Ocean also consists of sixteen seas, they are;     The Yellow Sea.    LARGEST ISLANDS OF THE PACIFIC  The Pacific Ocean is most renowned for it's many paradise islands, of which it has between twenty and thirty thousand. Not considering Australia as an island - as it is a continent which sits on it's own continental plate - shown below is a list of the Pacific Ocean's ten largest islands.   New Guinea - 785,753 square kilometers, the world's second largest island. The island is geographically part of Melanesia but politically divided into east and west, with the western half being made up of the two Indonesian provinces of Papua and West Papua, capital city Jayapura and the eastern half made up of the constitutional monarchy of Papua New Guinea, capital city Port Moresby. Borneo - Indonesia - 748,168 sq km. Sumatra - Indonesia - 443,044 sq km. Sulawesi - Indonesia - 180,681 sq km. South Island - New Zealand - 145,836 sq km. Java - 138,794 sq km. North Island - New Zealand - 111,583 sq km. Luzon - Philippines - 109,965 sq km. Mindinao - Philippines - 97,530 sq km. Hokkaido - Japan - 78,719 sq km.      ISLAND GROUPS OF THE PACIFIC   The Pacific Ocean's thousands of islands are mainly located in south, east Asia and the south Pacific. Most of the islands belong to the six main island groups of Indonesia, Malaysia, The Philippines, Polynesia, Melanesia and Micronesia.   The island groups were given these


Darrowby was the fictional setting for which TV series of the 70s, 80s and 90s?

All Creatures Great And Small All Creatures Great And Small 1 9 7 7 - 1 9 8 0 (UK) 1 9 8 8 - 1 9 9 0 (UK) 88 x 50 minute episodes 3 x 90 minute episodes James Herriot's tales of his time as a country vet first appeared on screen in a 1974 movie starring Simon Ward, followed by a sequel, It Shouldn't Happen To A Vet, with John Alderton in 1976. For the TV series All Creatures Great And Small, Christopher Timothy was cast as Herriot - a novice vet who joins the practice of Siegfried Farnon (Robert Hardy) and his easygoing brother Tristan (Peter Davison, later to become the fifth incarnation of Doctor Who ) in the fictional Yorkshire Dales town of Darrowby in the 1930s. The countryside around Askrigg in Yorkshire was used to provide the location, but it proved difficult to find farm animals who looked right for the 1930s setting (cows had horns back then). Right from the start the actors found out what vets right arms are for: shoving up animals backsides. Christopher Timothy soon learned about getting to know a cow in depth, and several unfortunate cows learned early how easy it is for a novice to take a wrong turning! But luckily, viewers weren't shown the whole process until the 1988 series - in which the actors seemed to do very little else . . . By 1978 the series had become one of the BBC's biggest successes. It survived the small scandal of Christopher Timothy's real romance with his leading lady, Carol Drinkwater, and it helped to knock  Bruce Forsyth's Big Night  out of the ratings. American tour companies began running 'Herriot Country' trips around Askrigg, and the Pekinese who played Tricki Woo (Mrs Pumphrey's pampered pooch) had to have a batch of photographs printed to send out to his growing legion of fans. The programme came to an end in 1980 after three series'', with Herriot and Tristan Farnon heading off to World War II. Two Christmas specials followed in 1983 and 1985, and public pressure succeeded in bringing about a return for the series in 1988. The war was now over and Siegfried was married. A new vet, Glaswegian Calum Buchanan, had joined the practice and Carol Drinkwater''s Helen Herriot was replaced by Lynda Bellingham. The sick animals seen in the stories were usually local beasts with injuries courtesy of the makeup department. Sometimes expensive shire horses and foals were tranquillised to look lifeless, with anxious owners looking on. But operations were genuine ones, actually performed (for obvious reasons) by real vets, with the actors filmed doing easy bits. Eddie Straiton, a vet who was friends with the real James Herriot, was the consultant on the series for a long time. He was reported as recalling only one occasion when an animal was operated on unnecessarily. A mongrel dog had been brought into his surgery to be put down. In the series, James was to operate on a dog which had swallowed a ball. Straiton anaesthetised the dog, cut a part of its throat and inserted a squashed ball for Christopher to remove. The animal recovered completely and was found a new owner, but the scene upset some of the technicians, who claimed it was vivisection. Eddie agreed with them and resolved "never again". All Creatures Great And Small finished with another high rating Christmas special in 1990. AUDIO


Who directed the 2012 film 'Zero Dark Thirty'?

Zero Dark Thirty (2012) directed by Kathryn Bigelow • Reviews, film + cast • Letterboxd 19 That's a very grudging three stars, because — like Flight — there's more to chew on than I initially realized, but I still think it's kind of a crappy movie. Let me count the ways: 1) The first third in particular wore me down. I exceedingly dislike the way Bigelow transforms 7/7, the 2008 Islamabad Marriott bombing and the bombing of Camp Chapman into standard suspense setpieces (when will that explosive go off?). The latter particularly rubbed the wrong way: the longer Bigelow keeps intercutting between Maya's chat window and the guilelessly optimistic CIA officials awaiting their big break is downright sadistic. (It was just another gchat session UNTIL.) Is there intent here to make the viewer tensely ever-expectant of… 132 I feel deeply conflicted by this film. While I admire its scope I have great difficulties with the way it presents it, both in content and in cinematic quality. Let me start by saying that Bigelow should earn nothing but respect for taking on such an ambitious project. I am not a big fan of hers as a director (and she betrays here weaknesses here as well), but I always admire artists who dare to push the boat out a bit further than the rest or take on a challenge with both hands. Chronicling a decade long man-hunt for the world's public enemy number one is no small task. Mark Boal's script comes across as fastidiously researched, giving us a… 24 Zero Dark Thirty, Kathryn Bigelow’s controversial drama about the ten-year manhunt for Osama bin Laden, comes with more baggage than most movies. It was released a mere year after the culmination of the investigation that finished with bin Laden being killed in Pakistan. The film has been plagued by vocal detractors criticising its stance on torture whilst the war on terror still remains a contentious subject for politicians and public alike. It is therefore a film that is impossible to evaluate on its own merits as it is intrinsically linked to the politics of our age. Bigelow and writer-producer, Mark Boal, smartly navigate this perilous minefield delivering a tense thriller and investigative drama that follows one CIA officer’s obsessive quest… 7 "It's her against the world." - The Wolf Ah...I feel sick. That was officially the most intense cinematic experience I've ever had. Picture this: a black-box theatre that's more like a small screening room, every seat taken, surround sound. It opens with a black screen, with only the sounds of the weeping, panicking victims of the 9/11 attacks. It's uncomfortable, it's dark, and it's sure as hell upsetting. Welcome to Zero Dark Thirty, kids; the tone is set. There's been much controversy over the use of torture to make the 'good guys' armour look more than just a bit tarnished, and the furore is justified. In the first 30 minutes, there are numerous instances of brutal, humiliating, unrelenting torture, that… 43 This movie commits two cardinal sins of film-making. The first is that it doesn't build up the threat. What's at stake? We are all aware that this is based on allegedly real events, but the goal these characters are so vehemently pursuing doesn't feel important because the threat is never seen. He was allegedly responsible for many acts of terrorism in real life, but where is this *in the movie*? There's a quick allusion to 9/11 in the beginning, but that is just not enough. I felt the same way at the end as I did at the start because nobody was feeling any effects of the threat at any point throughout the entire story. Simply put, it feels like… Review by Stu ★★★★½ Kathryn Bigelow's typically hard-nosed account of the hunt for Osama bin Laden was a political hot potato back in 2013, with questions raised about the accuracy of early scenes depicting enhanced interrogation techniques such as waterboarding and sleep deprivation. I purposefully avoided the film at the time, though one's own politics are always going to affect the way in which you interpret a work like Zero Dark Thirty and the extent to which you can


Give one year when George 'Beau' Brummell was alive.

Regency History: The rise and fall of Beau Brummell (1778-1840) The rise and fall of Beau Brummell (1778-1840) by from The History of White's  by Hon Algernon Bourke (1892) Profile George "Beau" Brummell (7 June 1778 - 30 March 1840) was a Regency dandy and fashion leader, famous for his elegant dress, his witty remarks and his friendship with George, Prince of Wales, the future George IV. From Downing Street to Eton George Bryan Brummell, famously nicknamed “Beau”, was born on 7 June 1778, the younger son of Billy Brummell and Mary Richardson. He was born in Downing Street, where his father worked as private secretary to Lord North. In 1783, Billy Brummell retired from politics and bought an estate, Donnington Grove in Berkshire. In 1786, Brummell was sent to Eton with his elder brother, William. They were Oppidans or fee-paying boys and boarded with Dame Young. Brummell mingled with the aristocracy, becoming known for his gentlemanly manners and ready wit, which kept him out of trouble. He developed an interest in dress and his elegant bearing earned him the nickname Buck Brummell. A grand inheritance When Brummell’s father died in 1794, he left his estate to be shared equally between his three children, rather than the whole going to his eldest son. The estate, valued at around £60,000, was to be held in trust until the children came of age. This was a huge fortune, equivalent to more than £5 million today using the retail price index, and more like £70 million when relative earnings are taken into account.(1) The Hussars Brummell went up to Oriel College, Oxford, in May 1794, but after just one term, he asked his father’s executors for a commission in the army. He became a cornet in the 10th Light Dragoons – the Prince of Wales ’ own regiment. The dragoons wore elaborate uniforms and liked to be known as Hussars. They were disorderly, hard drinking and known for their lack of morality, and included many of the Prince of Wales’ set, of which Brummell soon became an important member. Brummell obtained promotion to lieutenant in 1795 and then captain in 1796, and with each promotion came a new, and grander, uniform. But life in the army had its costs. A fall, or possibly a kick, from his horse broke his nose, damaging his classic profile. Brummell and the Prince from Memoirs of George IV by Robert Huish (1830) It seems incredible that a non-aristocratic boy of sixteen should be accepted into the Prince’s own regiment and then into his circle of intimate friends. How Brummell first came to the Prince’s notice is not known, but it seems likely that it was his wit and dress sense that attracted the Prince, probably while Brummell was still at Eton. Brummell supported the Prince at his wedding to Princess Caroline in 1795; he was also one of the drunken companions whom she accused of ruining her honeymoon. When the regiment were ordered to Manchester in 1798, Brummell sold out, anxious not to lose his position of influence with the Prince. The following year, he came into his inheritance. He was now a man of means and meant to make his mark. Beau Brummell the dandy Brummell moved into 4 Chesterfield Street in 1799 and determined to become the best dressed gentleman in London. His levées became events of great importance as gentlemen, including the Prince of Wales, came to see how he dressed. It was around 1800, after Brummell’s first season in London, that he acquired the nickname Beau. His style was understated elegance, with a limited palette of colours, rather than the gaudy finery of the Georgian gentleman. He was famous for the intricate folds of his neck cloth and the Bath coating material of his blue jacket. He patronized a variety of tailors so that no one could say that they made him famous. Brummell rules the ton For many years, it was Brummell’s opinion that mattered. It was he who influenced who should be given vouchers for Almack’s . He could bring someone into fashion by showing them favour or put someone out of fashion by cutting them. He was a member of Whites, Brooks and Watiers. A bow window in his club at


Billy the Badger is the mascot for which London Premier League football club?

Billy the Badger – Fulham’s breakdancing mascot | Who Ate all the Pies Who Ate All The Pies admin 5th, February 2008 The clip from Match of the Day 2 shows the Premier League’s naughtiest mascot, Billy the Badger, getting up to mischief. Firstly he taunts Avram Grant in what can only be described as an act of badger baiting. More recently, he delayed the kick-off for the second half of the Fulham-Aston Villa match with his breakdancing antics.


Britain's Charlotte Dujardin won a 2012 Olympic gold in which individual event?

Charlotte DUJARDIN - Olympic Equestrian / Dressage | Great Britain Charlotte DUJARDIN Olympic Games 2012 British individual dressage Grand Prix gold medallist Charlotte Dujardin’s relationship with her horse, Valegro, has been described as “telepathic” – and it was this bond between rider and animal that helped the Londoner see off a strong German challenge to finish with an astonishing score of 83.286 On her way to the final at Greenwich Park, Dujardin topped even her final score, smashing the Games record set by Germany’s Kristina Sprehe earlier that day, and finishing just a shade off the world record. Her neatly executed routine was set to music and crammed with patriotic British tunes, such as Land of Hope and Glory and I Vow to Thee, My Country. It also included the chimes of Big Ben – adding a dash of humour and colour to one of the most technically demanding events in the Games. In front of a cheering, shouting and stamping sell-out crowd of 200,000, she scored 12 tens to eclipse Dutch rider Adelinde Cornelissen and Parzival's score of 88.196, while her British teammate, Laura Bechtolsheimer, and Mistral Hojris won bronze. Having earlier taken team dressage gold with Bechtolsheimer and her mentor, Carl Hester, she joined Kelly Holmes, Rebecca Adlington and Laura Trott as one of only three British women to have won two gold medals at a single Games. The 27-year-old’s achievement came a mere five years after she took up the sport competitively – she had aspired to be a jockey – and less than two years after her first Grand Prix dressage event, having been trained by British equestrian champion Hester, himself a Games veteran. Dujardin took up riding aged two and tried dressage – where rider and horse must complete a series of complex moves such as the tempi, zig-zag, piaffe and pirhouettes – for the first time at the age of 13. Hailing from a modest background, but competing in an expensive sport, she was able to buy her first Grand Prix horse, Fernandez, only in 2007, thanks to a legacy left by her late grandmother. In 2011, she sold the 11-year-old horse to Norwegian rider Cathrine Rasmussen so she could buy a younger animal. It was, she admits, a tough decision, given the special bond that dressage riders develop with their animals – but of such hardy stuff are Olympic champions made. Dujardin won her Olympic medals on Valegro, the Dutch gelding partly owned by Hester, who employs her at his yard in Gloucestershire. He allowed Dujardin, then a groom, to ride the horse when he was a novice, with the expectation of reclaiming him when he had more experience. But horse and rider proved such a successful combination that they stayed together. One of the side effects of Olympic success is that Valegro – considered the best Grand Prix dressage horse in the world – will be sold, leaving Dujardin to forge a relationship with a new equine partner. For now, though, the surprise Olympic equestrian star is revelling in her breakthrough victories. After winning individual gold, she said: “It is always something I've known the horse could achieve, but I didn't really know how I was going to find the atmosphere and the expectation. But when I got that phone call to say I had made the team for London, I was so determined. Not many people are going to have the chance that I’ve had to get to the Olympics in a year and a bit of competing in Grand Prix. I wanted to go out there and enjoy it. All I could do was to do my best. Valegro was feeling tired, but he got in there and he gave his all.”


The author Theodor Geisel wrote under which pen name?

Theodor Geisel, Dr. Seuss and Theo. Lesieg Connection By Elizabeth Kennedy Question: What's the Connection Between Theodor Geisel, Dr. Seuss and Theo. Lesieg? Answer: What do Theodor Geisel, Dr. Seuss, and Theo. Lesieg have in common? The latter two names were used by Theodor Geisel as pen names. When he first began writing and illustrating children's books, Theodor Geisel combined "Dr." and "Seuss," his middle name, which was also his mother's maiden name, to create the pseudonym "Dr. Seuss." The Dr. Seuss picture books and beginning readers were written and illustrated by Geisel. Among our family's favorite picture books by Dr. Seuss are Horton Hatches the Egg and The Lorax. Favorite beginning readers by Dr. Seuss include The Cat in the Hat and Green Eggs and Ham. Theodor Geisel also wrote a number of beginning readers under the pseudonym "Theo. Lesieg" (Geisel spelled backwards). Unlike the Dr. Seuss books, the beginning readers written under the pen name Theo. Lesieg were not illustrated by Geisel. Instead, a variety of different illustrators were used. continue reading below our video Best Vacation Reads of 2015 Beginning readers by Theo. Lesieg include The Eye Book, Ten Apples Up on Top, and Many Mice of Mr. Price.