On this day
1st December
The day Rosa Parks rode the bus
How does a woman become famous for riding a bus? When her name is Rosa Parks. On 1st December 1955, Parks, an African-American activist, was sitting in
2nd December
Anniversary of the first artificial heart
In 1982, a Seattle dentist named Barney Clark awoke from surgery he had known he was unlikely to survive, with a brand new heart in his chest. And, no,
3rd December
Joseph Conrad's Birthday
The man who brought us Heart of Darkness, the book that inspired the film Apocalypse Now, Joseph Conrad was born in Poland on this day in 1857, and christened
4th December
December 4th
Anyone who remembers The Black Album, released November 2003, as Jay-Z's eighth studio album, will also remember that today is December 4th, AKA the great
5th December
Repeal Day
The Noble Experiment – US Prohibition – came to an end on this day in 1933 when the House of Representatives passed the Twenty-first Amendment to the
6th December
Happy St Nicholas Day!
The saint best known as Santa Claus died today more than 1,600 years ago, and in many parts of Europe children will wake up to gifts from the man himself
7th December
We're celebrating a Dead Parrot
1969 was quite some year. The world celebrated the first man on the moon, 350,000 fans attended Woodstock, the Beatles gave their last performance on the
8th December
National Bartender Day
After some digging, it seems the beautifully adorned folk at Sailor Jerry declared today National Bartender Appreciation Day back in 2011, but there's
9th December
Birthday of the world's longest running soap
Ever since America's TV series As the World Turns finished its epic run in 2010, Britain's Coronation Street has been the world's longest-running soap
10th December
Trader Vic's birthday
If you've ever sipped a Mai Tai or a Zombie, lounged under a palm-thatched roof, then you've enjoyed the wonders of the Tiki nightlife genre that would
11th December
International Mountain Day
Sometimes it feels as though the UN has a day for everything. And, lo and behold, today is Mountain Day, established by the UN General Assembly in 2003
12th December
Ol' Blue Eyes birthday
Frank Sinatra, born today in 1915, sang in the musical On the Town, I want to wake up, in a city that never sleeps/And find I'm king of the hill/Top of
13th December
National Day in St Lucia
Today in St Lucia the sun, as always, shines and the good folk of this tiny country, a Caribbean island only 617 square kilometres (238 square miles) in
14th December
It's National Screwdriver Day
According to some National Screwdriver Day was actually yesterday on the 13th. Screw them! Others we respect say it's the 14th. A Screwdriver made with
15th December
RIP "Professor" Jerry Thomas
The godfather of modern bartending, author of the first known cocktail book, and the most famous bartender of his era, Jerry Thomas died in New York on
16th December
Anniversary of The Boston Tea Party
As an argument about tax and monopolies escalated, on this day in 1773 it culminated in a boat-based riot. As the captains and crew of three British ships
17th December
The aeroplane's birthday
For seven years the Wright brothers had been experimenting with flight from their bicycle shop in Ohio when Orville Wright took to the skies on this day
18th December
Keith Richards' birthday
The godfather of cool, Keith Richards turns - dear lord! - 78 today (born 18th December 1943 in Dartford, Kent, England).
19th December
Édith Piaf's birthday
Rifle through your record collection, and put on some of the popular French singer's music as a tribute to her short, but incredible life.
20th December
Anniversary of the Louisiana Purchase
In 1803, the United States, then a new nation confined to the eastern seaboard of a largely unknown continent, concluded the biggest property deal in history,
21st December
The shortest or Longest day
Depending on whether you are reading this in the Northern of Sothern Hemispheres, you are about to endure the shortest day of the year or enjoy the longest
22nd December
Anniversary of the Andes Survivors' rescue
On 13 October 1972, a plane carrying rugby players to a match in Santiago, Chile, crashed high in the snowy Andes. More than two months later, long after
23rd December
Festivus
For anyone who is fed up with Christmas or irreligious enough to eschew Hanukkah but keen to throw a party, Festivus provides the answer to the secularist's
24th December
Christmas Eve
Today is, of course, Christmas Eve and it's also, rather splendidly, the anniversary of the first time men orbited the moon.
25th December
A Very Merry Christmas
Today is, allegedly, Jesus' birthday, the day he was born in the stable of Bethlehem, and a chance for families around the world to come together and over-indulge
26th December
Boxing Day
Depending on where you're from, today is St Stephen's Day, Boxing Day, Wren Day, or just the day after Christmas.
27th December
Anniversary of London's Great Fog
On this day in 1813, a mysterious, thick fog smelling of coal tar blanketed London, cutting visibility so low that folk couldn't see across the street,
28th December
Childermas
Today is Childermas, if you are an Anglo Christian, or Santos Inocentes, if you are a fun-loving Spaniard - the day when Herod supposedly massacred the
29th December
Nanotech was envisioned on this day
Nanotechnology, the science of manipulating incredibly tiny things – like atoms and molecules – is truly awe-inspiring. Scientists have made films
30th December
International Bacon Day
Perhaps not a celebration for vegetarians, vegans, Jews and Muslims, but for the rest of us, this is a day to enjoy everything from bacon butties to bacon-flavoured
31st December
New Year's Eve
Tonight the world will be celebrating the New Year. In New York, it's all about the ball drop; in Sydney, Hong Kong and London, fireworks rule; in London
