Uberazzi

IT WAS ON THIS DAY (30 July) IN HISTORY:

- in 1718 WILLIAM PENN, the English Quaker leader who founded the American state of Pennsylvania, died.

- in 1930 Uruguay beat Argentina 4-2 in the first World Cup soccer final.

- in 1935 the first Penguin book was published, sparking the new trend for paperback books. ARIEL, a life of the poet SHELLEY was the first title

- in 1963 the celebrated English spy KIM PHILBY fled to Moscow, Russia, after escaping arrest in Britain

- in 1966 England beat West Germany 4-2 in the soccer World Cup at Wembley Stadium, London

- in 1968 the 238-pound (115 kilo) Californian public defender DON JONES was fined for being too fat.

- in 1968 THE BEATLES' Apple boutique in London's Baker Street, folded

- in 1980 the Republic of Vanuatu, formerly known as the New Hebrides, gained its independence from France and Britain.

- in 1984 11-day-old British HOLLEY ROFFEY became the world's youngest heart transplant patient. Sadly, she died in England on 17 August.

- in 1993 DR CHARLES McCREERY was awarded Oxford University, England's first degree in out-of-body experiences after years working in experimental psychology. He found that 20 per cent of people have had the sensation of leaving the body for a short time.

- in 1996 new medical guidelines in Iran urged doctors to diagnose the opposite sex without touching or undressing them.

- in 2003 in Mexico, the last 'old style' Volkswagen Beetle rolls off the assembly line.

- in 2004 a gas explosion kills 16 people in Belgium.