mo 05 my 08

1646  Charles I surrendered to the Scots at Newark

we 30 ap 08

1980  Queen Juliana of the Netherlands abdicated in favour of her daughter Beatrix

sa 2 fe 08

1986  In Liechtenstein women voted for the first time in a general election

Earl Soham Lodge is gorgeous!  It actually is a moated (farm?)house, that standing water goes all the way round it's not just a medieval fish farm, and we're told some of the cellar is Roman.  When we arrived around 11 this morning for Paddy and Scott's Coffee Morning Scott had already served 160 coffees (Paddy was on a sabbatical) and Scott reckoned the event would raise some £500-600 for the village hall.  As with all similar events one of the great pleasures is to blether with your neighbours and by the way this nipper was supping it might have been hot chocolate.

th 27 de 07

1945  The International Monetary Fund established

The smilies are back on the board, and this George V stamp on ebaY is a poignant reminder that there may have been a post office in Earl Soham for over a century but there ain't one now.

th 15 no 07

1837  Isaac Pitman's shorthand system was published

Earl Soham hasn't changed that much in a hundred years but the world certainly has, who would have thought a teenager would be arrested for stealing virtual furniture.

mo 01 oc 07

1974  The first British McDonald's opened in south London, God help us

Amos Clarke and Ernie Messenger demolishing Kent's Mill, Earl Soham in 1947.  Didn't know there had been a windmill in Earl Soham let alone two.  More info (if you can tolerate the anally retentive officiousness) at www.millsarchive.com

su 23 se 07

1974  Ceefax went live on BBC television to become the world's first teletext system

It was a bad sign that we could easily park in the not large Earl Soham Village Hall car park last night.  Ziggy was trying really hard in the nicely decorated hall but the audience, who were trying really hard too, needed to be larger.  The lady on the door said they'd had 200 for Ziggy last time.  Ah well, you try hard and sometimes you win ...

th 02 au 07

1967  The second Blackwall Tunnel opened in a large town near Chelmsford

Because the Great British Beer Festival is imminent and because a photographer has spent two hours at ESB you might see Earl Soham Brewery in the Guardian ... well actually you might see Matt.