Founded by Patrick Grant, a New York musician, International Strange Music Day aims to broaden minds by encouraging people to listen to something new, unfamiliar or just downright weird.

The inspiration behind this international celebration of musical strangeness was Grant's desire to provide a platform for 'strange' and 'weird' music, for people to open their minds to something new and follow his mantra, 'listening without prejudice'. If someone could forgo passing judgment on an unfamiliar piece of music and just take it for what it is, then perhaps the same could happen across other aspects of society. Through listening to something new, you could find something you love that you previously never would have heard.

Grant chose August 24th in 1997 to honour his girlfriend's dad who had been somewhat of a musical mentor to him and also used the date to release his album Fields Amaze. By 2002 the day had grown to an international level and was being celebrated by several venues and artists. Today events are hosted in celebration, the movement is linked to concerts, and it hosts a record label. In case you're looking for inspiration, some artists that have performed in celebration of the day include The Dreamscape Floppies, Micro-tons o' Fun and Jolly Ramey.

So take the opportunity to find a strange song, listen, and broaden your mind or maybe even have a go at making your own strange music whilst enjoying a Beat Dis which harmoniously brings together the flavours of beetroot and vanilla.

The British torched the White House on this day

Two hundred years ago, Britain and the US were at war: Native American tribes had asked the British to help them fend off the Americans, who were, in any case, none too happy about the British Navy's habit of kidnapping their sailors and forcing them to work on their ships.

And on this day in 1814, British troops rolled into an abandoned White House, which was then a flat-fronted building without its imposing portico. They ate the President's food at the President's table, then set the place on fire - although it would be rebuilt within three years.

The White House is, of course, a Washington icon, so in search of a drink to mark this event, we of course considered Wayne Collins' Washington Apple. We also considered the numerous 'presidential' cocktails on our database, of which El Presidente No.1 is our favourite. But in light of the present-day "special relationship" between America and Britain, we decided the not dissimilar Bacardi Special more appropriate.