October in history according to an eternal pessimist.

1st October 1977

The famous Brazilian footballer Pelé retired, having scored a total of 1281 goals. What really matters, however, is that he never scored one against Poland!

2nd October 1971

During a homing pigeon race in Australia, one carrier pigeon achieved a record speed of 133 km/h. Perhaps it would be a good idea to hire pigeons in today’s post offices to improve their efficiency?

3rd October 1992

The Irish singer Sinéad O’Connor ripped up a photograph of Pope John Paul II during her live television performance. The artist did it in protest against the Vatican papering over paedophile scandals in the Catholic Church. The gesture caused a scandal. But it wasn’t nearly as upsetting as the discovery that there were many more cases to discover…

4th October 1705

Stanisła