FRIDAY AUGUST 17 1967 Jimmy Hill quit as manager of Coventry City. 1989 Electronic tagging for criminals was introduced in Britain. 1979 Monty Python s Life of Brian opened at cinemas. Deaths: Ira Gershwin, lyricist, 1983; Harry Corbett, cre

FRIDAY AUGUST 17

1967 Jimmy Hill quit as manager of Coventry City.

1989 Electronic tagging for criminals was introduced in Britain.

1979 Monty Python's Life of Brian opened at cinemas.

Deaths: Ira Gershwin, lyricist, 1983; Harry Corbett, creator of Sooty, 1989.

Today's birthdays: Robert De Niro, actor, 64; John Humphrys, broadcaster, 64; Nelson Piquet, ex-Formula 1 racing driver, 55; Robin Cousins, ice skater, 50; Belinda Carlisle, singer-songwriter, 49; Thierry Henry, ex-Arsenal soccer star, 30.

SATURDAY AUGUST 18

1930 The two halves of the Sydney Harbour Bridge were joined.

1939 The Wizard of Oz opened in the United States.

1964 South Africa was banned from entering the Olympic Games because of its racial policies.

1967 Long Beach in California purchased the Queen Mary liner.

Deaths: Alan Dell, broadcaster, 1995.

Today's birthdays: Roman Polanski, director, 74; Robert Redford, actor, 71; Patrick Swayze, actor, 55; Madeline Stowe, actress, 49; Christian Slater, actor, 38.

SUNDAY AUGUST 19

1946 Footballers threatened to strike for a minimum weekly wage of £7.

1970 the 1,000th edition of Coronation Street broadcast.

1979 Two Russian cosmonauts returned to earth after a record 175 days in space.

1991 Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev was overthrown in a coup.

Deaths: Groucho Marx, one of the Marx brothers, 1977; Frederick Ashton, choreographer, 1988; Mo Mowlan, ex-Northern Ireland Secretary, 2005.

Today's birthdays: Bill Clinton, ex-US President, 61; Jennie Bond, ex-BBC Royal correspondent, 57.

MONDAY AUGUST 20

1908 King Leopold handed over the Congo to the Belgian state after holding it as a private possession.

1971 Prince Charles was awarded his wings at RAF Cranwell.

1969 The Beatles completed their last recording session.

1977 The US Voyager 1 spacecraft was launched.

Deaths: William Booth, creator of the Salvation Army, 1912; George Adamson, conservationist, 1989.

Today's birthdays: Don King, boxing promoter, 76; Sylvester McCoy, ex-Dr Who, 64; Robert Plant, singer-songwriter, 59; David Walliams, of Little Britain, 36; Jamie Cullum, jazz pianist, 28.

TUESDAY AUGUST 21

1901 The Cadillac Motor Company was set up in Detroit.

1936 First BBC television broadcast, from Alexandra Palace in north London.

1950 Hawaii became the 50th state of the US.

1968 Warsaw Pact troops invaded Czechoslovakia.

1991 Latvia declared its independence from the USSR.

1996 The new Shakespeare Globe Theatre in Southwark opened with a production of Two Gentlemen of Verona.

Deaths: Leon Trotsky, Russian revolutionary, 1940.

Today's birthdays: Barry Norman, movie critic, 74; Kenny Rogers, country and western singer, 69; Kim Cattrall, from Sex and the City, 51; Matthew Broderick, actor, 45.

WEDNESDAY AUGUST 22

1953 France released its last inmate from the Devil's Island prison.

1960 The satirical Beyond the Fringe opened at the Edinburgh Festival.

1964 First broadcast of Match of the Day.

1966 Plans were unveiled for the skyscraper Centrepoint in London.

Deaths: Richard III, 1485; Lord Salisbury, Conservative MP, 1903; Michael Collins, Irish politician, 1922; William Richard Morris, car manufacturer, 1963.

Today's birthdays: Ray Bradbury, author of Fahrenheit 451, 87; Honor Blackman, actress, 81; Norman Schwarzkopf, American general, 73; Steve Davis, ex-world snooker champion, 50.

THURSDAY AUGUST 23

1940 German bombers began all-night raids on London.

1966 The Cotswolds became an area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

1990 Armenia declared its independence from the USSR.

2000 The National Lottery gave Cambridge University £5 million to keep Sir Isaac Newton's papers in Britain.

Deaths: William Wallace, Scottish patriot, 1305; Rudolph Valentino, silent movie actor, 1926; Oscar Hammerstein II, lyricist, 1960.

Today's birthdays: Peter Lilley, ex-Conservative Cabinet minister, 64; Willy Russell, writer, 60.