Comedy great, Tony Hancock, was born 100 years ago today. Here he is talking to John Freeman on BBC programme, Face to Face, in 1960.

7 years ago today my sister Carol died suddenly and much too young at 63. At her funeral, John Gibbons, a family friend, who delivered her eulogy, said: “I never heard Carol make a critical comment about anyone in all the years I knew her.” A fine epitaph 💕

PHOTO OF THE DAY. The Beatles in Hamburg (left to right, Peter Best, George Harrison, John Lennon, Paul McCartney and Stuart Sutcliffe (1960). 📷Astrid Kirchherr

USA No.1 on this day in 1985: Madonna - Crazy For You youtu.be/DHutZXREZ0E?si… via YouTube

UK No.1 on this day in 1978: Boney M- Rivers of Babylon youtu.be/jSxQJUv1e8k?si… via YouTube

12 May 2020. German photographer Astrid Kirchherr died (aged 81). She’s best known for her photographs of The Beatles during their formative Hamburg period. She was engaged to band member, Stuart Sutcliffe, before his sudden death on 10 April 1962.

12 May 2018. Dennis Nilsen died (aged 72). He murdered at least 12 young men between 1978 and 1983, who were invited to his two North London residences where he had lived. He was sentenced to life imprisonment for his horrific crimes and never released.

12 May 2001. Liverpool beat Arsenal 2-1 in the 1st FA Cup Final held outside England, at Cardiff’s Millennium Stadium. Michael Owen scored the winning goal. The move to Cardiff was due to the reconstruction of Wembley Stadium. It was Arsenal’s 14th final and Liverpool’s 12th.

12 May 1994. Popular Labour Leader John Smith died (aged 55) in London, after a sudden heart attack. Tony Blair succeeded him as leader and went on to victory in the three subsequent general elections, thus showing how unexpected events often change the course of history.

12 May 1980. Rishi Sunak was born in Southampton. He’s been Prime Minister of the UK and Leader of the Conservative Party since October 2022. He was Chancellor of the Exchequer from 2020 to 2022, and has been MP for Richmond since 2015.

12 May 1971. Rolling Stone Mick Jagger married the stylish, Bianca Perez Morena de Macias, in St Tropez, France. It was one of the most iconic and heavily publicised weddings of the 1970s. The union lasted for 7 years.

12 May 1949. The Soviet Union lifted the Berlin blockade, which had been the 1st major dispute of the Cold War. The Allied response in the form of the Berlin Airlift, represented the first major triumph for the west in the Cold War.

12 April 1947. David Letterman was born in Indianapolis, Indiana, USA. He was the longest-serving US late night talk show host, beginning on 1 February 1982 with, Late Night with David Letterman on NBC and ending on 20 May 2015 with, The Late Show with David Letterman on CBS.

12 May 1946. Innovative architect Daniel Libeskind was born in Łódź, Poland. One of his most famous buildings is the Jewish Museum in Berlin, Germany, which opened in 2001. He also designed the Imperial War Museum North in Greater Manchester, UK.

12 May 1945. Alan Ball was born in Farnworth. He was a member of the 1966 England World Cup winning team. He was also a star player for Blackpool, Everton and Arsenal at the peak of his career, and he managed a number of clubs, most notably, Manchester City.

12 May 1942. Ian Dury was born in Harrow. He was the lead singer of Ian Dury and the Blockheads. His most well known record was the single, Hit Me with Your Rhythm Stick, which reached No 1 in the UK in January 1979, selling a million copies.

12 May 1940. In one of the most spectacular military assaults in history, the German Army, spearheaded by its deadly Panzer divisions, invaded France through the heavily wooded Ardennes region, then captured Sedan. This move completely outwitted the western Allies.

12 May 1937. The BBC televised the procession to and from Westminster Abbey for the Coronation of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth, but TV cameras were not allowed inside the Abbey. It was also the 1st Coronation broadcast live on BBC radio.

12 May 1932. American aviator Charles Lindbergh's son, Charles Junior (aged 1), who was kidnapped from his home in East Amwell, New Jersey on 1 March 1932, was found dead. Bruno Hauptmann was found guilty of the murder and executed, but his guilt remains in doubt.