Today's the Day - 12th August

• 150 years ago: On this day in 1865 British surgeon Joseph Lister, became the first person in the world to use an antiseptic dressing to treat a wound (lint dipped in carbolic acid – now known as phenol). The wound healed successfully and the results were published in the medical journal The Lancet 2 years later.

• 90 years ago: Today was the birthday of twins Ross and Norris McWhirter, co-founders of the Guinness Book of Records. At the age of 50 Ross was murdered when 2 IRA gunmen shot him outside his home in Enfield, Middlesex. Brother Norris died of heart failure, aged 78 in 2004.

• 50 years ago: Today in 1965, Elizabeth Lane was appointed as Britain’s first High Court judge. After her husband decided to become a barrister, she decided to study law at the same time. She was appointed as the first female judge in the County Court in 1962, followed by the High Court 3 years later. She retired in 1979 and moved to Winchester, where she died 9 years later aged 82.