On This Day: January 24
1966: 117 die in Air India tragedy
Up to 117 people have been killed after an Air India Boeing 707 crashed near the summit of...
On This Day: 21 January 1950 – Acclaimed author George Orwell dies
The writer, George Orwell, has died after a three-year battle against tuberculosis.
Until the last, news had been positive and it was hoped Mr Orwell...
On This Day: 20 January 1961- John F Kennedy sworn in as US president
The Democrat John F Kennedy has been sworn in as the youngest ever elected president of the United States.
The 43-year-old Roman Catholic was inaugurated...
On This Day: 19 January 1966 – Indira Gandhi takes charge in India
Indira Gandhi, only daughter of India's first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru, is to become the country's next leader.
She was chosen at the end of...
On this Day: 19 January 1988 – Disabled author wins Whitbread
Writer Christopher Nolan, who cannot move or speak because of an accident at birth, has won the Whitbread Book of the Year.
The 21-year-old Dubliner,...
On This Day: 18 January 1991 – Iraqi Scud missiles hit Israel
Iraq has attacked two Israeli cities with Scud missiles, prompting fears that Israel may be drawn into the Gulf War.
Israel's largest city, Tel Aviv,...
On this Day: 13 January 1991: Bloodshed at Lithuanian TV station
At least 13 people have been killed and more than 140 injured by the Soviet military in the capital of Lithuania as Moscow continues...
On this Day: 12 January 1976 – Crime writer Agatha Christie dies
The most popular novelist in the world, Dame Agatha Christie, has died leaving rumours of a multi-million pound fortune and a final book waiting...
On This Day: 10 January 1954 – Comet Jet Crashes With 35 On Board
Thirty-five people are missing, feared dead, after a Comet jet airliner crashed into the Mediterranean.
The plane - a British Overseas Airways Corporation jet...
On This Day: 09 January 1986 – Heseltine Quits Over Westland
The Defence Secretary, Michael Heseltine, has resigned from his Cabinet job in a row with Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher over the Westland affair.
Mr Heseltine...
On This Day: 08 January 1961 – French Vote For Algerian Freedom
The French people have voted to grant Algeria its independence in a referendum.
The result was a clear majority for self-determination, with 75% voting in...
On this Day: 3 November 1955 – Deputy President Phumzile Mlambo is born
Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, deputy president of South Africa and wife of former public prosecutor Bulelani Ngcuka, was born in Claremont, Durban. She was appointed as...