Looking Back - Falklands/Pope John Paul/Red Rum

Three interesting headlines taken from history for 2 April. During different years, on this day the Falklands were invaded by Argentina, Pope John Paul II died and Red Rum won his third Grand National.

Argentina invades Falklands

On this day in 1982 Argentina invaded the British territory of the Falkland Islands in the south Atlantic. The islands were claimed by Britain in 1833 and since that time have been a cause of friction between the two countries. As the Argentinian flag flew over Government House in the countries capital Port Stanley, the head of the country's military junta, General Leopoldo Galteri, welcomed the "recovery" of "Las Malvinas" - the Argentine name for the Falklands. In the days prior to the invasion Argentine war ships had been standing off the Falklands, home to about 1,800 people. At 0600 'Operation Rosario' began, when Argentine troops landed near Port Stanley. The Falklands' governor, Rex Hunt, had been contacted by Admiral Jorge Anaya, who appealed for a peaceful surrender. The request was rejected and 80 Royal Marines' and twenty locals were mobilised. By afternoon the Argentine troops numbered 3,000 and following an attack on Government House Rex Hunt ordered the British troops to surrender. The subsequent war cost the lives of 655 Argentine and 255 British servicemen, many of them sailors who died during attacks on warships. The war finally ended on 14 June when the commander of the Argentine garrison at Port Stanley surrendered to British troops.

Pope John Paul II dies

On this day in 2005 the Vatican announced the death of Pope John Paul II, the third longest-serving pontiff in history. He died at the age of 84. The Pope died in his private apartment at 2137 local time (1937 GMT), surrounded by his closest Polish aides. The Pope had suffered worsening health problems including a heart condition. As church bells tolled throughout the city, many thousands of people gathered in Rome's St Peter's Square to pay tribute to the pontiff.

Hat trick for Red Rum

On this day in 1977 Red Rum galloped into racing history when winning the Grand National for the third time. The most famous steeple chaser ever had won the race in 1973 and 1974 and had finished second in the following two years. Doubts by many as to whether Red Rum should have run in the most dangerous race in the world, at the age of 12, were dispelled when he romped up the Aintree straight to land the prize and justify his place in the line-up. Speaking after the race his jockey, Tommy Stack, said of Red Rum "He is so intelligent, always looks for the open places and is always on the alert for loose horses." Red Rum's win brought his career earnings to a steeple-chasing record of £114,000. Red Rum was again entered for the race in 1978 but a heel injury prevented him from running, but he did lead a parade of the runners. In his retirement Red Rum became an equine personality, appearing at charity events and betting shop and supermarket openings. He also received a daily stream of visitors at trainer Ginger McCain's yard in Southport, Merseyside. Following his death in 1995 Red Rum was buried near the winning post at Aintree racecourse.

Today's Smile

Brainteaser

Today's brainteaser is another set of trivia questions. Ten questions with a varying degree of difficulty. Can you answer all 10 correctly?

01 Which is the oldest university in England?
02 What country did Abel Tasman discover?
03 What is sisal used to make?
04 For what is Broadway in New York famous?
05 What is jade?
06 Aeroflot is the national airline of which country?
07 In which sport is the Davis Cup an important trophy?
08 Where do cars with the registration letters DK come from?
09 If you are an octogenarian how old are you?
10 What type of fish is a conger?

The best of luck with the above questions!

Thought For Today

Conversation should be pleasant without scurrility, witty without affectation, free without indecency, learned without conceitedness, novel without falsehood.
William Shakespeare

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April Fools' Day

Today is 1 April, also known as April Fools' Day or All Fools' Day. The day is traditionally marked by playing tricks on friends, family and neighbours, the aim of which is to embarrass the gullible. In England, and some other countries, the pranks must be played out by noon, after this time the person playing the trick is regarded as the 'April Fool'. In certain countries such as Ireland, France and the United States the jokes last all day. No one really knows when or where the tradition started but many theories have been suggested. The one I like best is that in France 1 April used to be counted as the first day of the year. When King Charles IX changed that to 1 January, some people stayed with 1 April. Those who did were called 'April Fools' and were taunted by their neighbours. Some well known pranks from the past include:

San Serriffe The Guardian printed a supplement in 1977 praising this fictional resort, its two main islands (Upper Caisse and Lower Caisse) its capital (Bodoni) and its leader (General Pica). Intrigued readers were later disappointed to learn that San Serriffe (sans serif) did not exist except as references to typeface terminology.

Smell-o-vision In 1965 the BBC purported to conduct a trial of a new technology allowing the transmission of odor over the airwaves to all viewers. Many viewers reportedly contacted the BBC to report the trials success. In 2007 the BBC website repeated an online version of the hoax.

Tower of Pisa The Dutch television news reported once in the 1950's that the Tower of Pisa had fallen over. Many shocked people contacted the station.

Left Handed Whoppers In 1998 Burger King ran an ad in 'USA Today' saying that people could get a Whopper for left-handed people whose condiments were designed to drip out of the right side. Not only did customers order the new burgers, but some specifically requested the "old" right-handed burgers.

So, be careful what you see, hear or read before lunchtime today!