Something happened on 23rd November 1963 that changed the lives of many people and still has an impact to this day. This momentous event has caused successive generations of children to hide behind the sofa.

It has sparked a multi million pound industry and has made news headlines. Of course I am talking about the first ever episode of Doctor Who on BBC 1 The Unearthly Child.

The show, about an alien who travels in time and space, is now the longest running science fiction series in the world and not only is it on TV but includes books, comics and audio adventures. It has been sold all over the world and now has a massive following in many countries including the States.

So in tribute to Doctor Who, here are a few facts you may not know.

Officially 13 actors have played the Doctor on screen although they only represent 11 actual incarnations. The extra doctors all played the first Doctor who was originally played by William Hartnell, in the two Hollywood movies he was played by Peter Cushing and in the 20th Anniversary episode The Five Doctors he was played by Richard Hurndall.

William Hartnell was so ill during some of the time when he was the Doctor that at times only his hands can be seen in shot (not actually his hands) and his voice heard.

The Doctor can only regenerate 12 times, and he has done it 10 time so far.

Doctor Who has met many of the Earth´s greatest legends and historic figures, including Gengis Kahn, Picasso, The Queen, Shakespeare and the Loch Ness Monster

In Doctor Who history there was a female prime minister in the UK long before Margaret Thatcher actually came to power.

The Tardis is actually meant to be able to change shape but its chameleon circuit got stuck in 1963 when it was shaped as a police box. It has changed once during Colin Bakers time when it was fixed for a short time but as it was out of practice it did not blend it its surroundings.

The Doctor has four main enemies, The Daleks, The Cybermen, The Master and Davros.

Dalek was the first fictional alien to appear in the Oxford English Dictionary.

The Master is also a Time Lord like the Doctor but has gone past his 12 regenerations. He has overcome this, firstly by absorbing another body on the planet Traken and secondly when he was given his regenerations back by the Time Lords to fight the time war.

The Doctor usually travels with a companion who is there to ask, why? Over the years three of these companions have died including Adric who crashed into the Earth in a space ship causing the extinction of the dinosaurs. (this pleased many fans as he was not popular)

The first episode was broadcast the day after the assassination of JFK and had to be repeated a week later as it was missed by many who were caught up in the events in the USA.

So if you have never seen Doctor Who, you should start now through the new stories with the new Doctor Matt Smith or via the many DVDs on sale. We at Supa Swap hope is running for many more years to come.

Yesterday, news broke about a long running depute being resolved, Apple finally announced that after a Long, Long, Long time The Beatles´music will finally be available on YouTube.

Over the past few years it has been a Helter Skelter ride of legal battles after The Beatles took Apple to court over their company name as their record label is called Apple Corps Ltd. This was settled in 2007 after many a Hard Day´s Night of negotiations.

This settlement has Helped to pave the way for this historic decision . The Beatles have sales of over 30million in the last 10 years, but Paul McCartney has stated that he is very excited about their music now being available on one of the biggest download services in the world.

So in true Beatles fashion the sentiment of We Can Work It Out, proved to be true, and the fact that I believed it would have been When I´m sixty four until it was resolved were proved wrong.

(Unfortunately they did not write a song with Supa Swap in the title)

The End

Following our article about Price William and the speculation that he is about to marry, we at SupaSwap are very pleased to learn that the official announcement has now been made by Clarence House; Prince William and Kate Middleton will marry next year.

The couple who are both 28 became engaged while on holiday in Kenya last month. The Wedding is set to take place in Spring or Summer of 2011 in London and further details will be announced in due course.

It also seems that William is quite an old fashioned guy, asking Kate´s father´s permission for her hand but it is not known if he went down on one knee to do the deed itself.

Sounds like a good excuse for a party and lets face it, the country needs something positive like this at the moment.

Unless you have been a guest at Her Majesty´s pleasure this must be a had concept to imagine, however for Burma´s pro democracy opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi this has been the reality of the last 21 years.

However this week the Nobel Piece Prize Winner was released from her house arrest. Official in Burma have climbed that there are no conditions to this release but commentators in the west are fairly skeptical about long she will be allowed to roam free.

She greeted the crowds telling them “We must work together in unison to achieve our goal”.

The 69 year old has become a symbol of the struggle for democracy in Burma against the military rulers and obvious parallels have been made between her and Nelson Mandela. However support for her is not as unified in the country as it seems to outside viewers and she may find it hard to cement her support across the country.

Politicians all over the world have expressed their support for her release including British Prime Minister David Cameron and  America President Barack Obama.

We all at Supa Swap would like to add our support for this positive move towards a free and democratic Burma.

Harry is the “spare” to his brother Prince William, heir to the throne of England. Once known as the “The Happy Prince” for always smiling, lately Prince Harry seems to have taken the place in the tabloids formerly occupied by his deceased mother, Diana, Princess of Wales.

Poor Harry was eight when his parents separated, and 12 when his mother was killed in a “mysterious car crash in Paris.

There have been many shames and scandals within the fortresses of Buckingham Palace and the Royal residencies, however Harry seems to be a repeat offender. I say “good on him”; it has been a long time since the Royal family members were seen as squeaky-clean role models. Harry is a modern Royal and fair play to him he is honest and upfront about it!

At 17, Harry admitted to his father that he had indulged in underage drinking binges and had experimented with marijuana. He and his father toured a drug treatment facility to see up close the dangers of drug use.

Ordinarily cause for expulsion from Eton school, administrators shelved their “zero tolerance” policy due to Harry’s parentage. Just imagine a Royal being expelled, what a front pager! Criminal charges for the marijuana use were considered by the police but not brought up. As if they would have Prince Harry!

Harry is the total opposite of the “normal” Windsor Family gene pull. The young prince is by no means academically gifted, graduating Eton with poor grades. During his gap year he truly followed in his mother’s philanthropic footsteps and traveled the globe helping out in 3^rd World countries, and of course his beloved charities.

Since then, Harry has stirred up some serious media attention. A scuffle with a member of the paparazzi in 2004 caused the Palace a massive headache. Later that year, during a stay at the Davey Ranch in Argentina, Prince Harry went ‘absent without leave’ after having a skin full of alcohol, causing dramatic but unfounded rumors that he had been kidnapped. Bless, most of us fancy little stroll after a few Sherries!

In more recent news, Harry´s reputation has taken a decidedly upward turn and his work with charities and his career in the army has given him some very positive press.

Harry was devastated after being pulled from Afghanistan after foreign press sources released information of his presence in the high profile war zone.

The chief of the general staff, Sir Richard Dannatt expressed his sadness in regards to the press leak.

“Now that the story is in the public domain, the chief of defense staff and I will take advice from the operational commanders about whether his deployment can continue.”

Gordon Brown praised Harry as “an exemplary soldier”, adding: “The whole of Britain will be proud of the outstanding service he is giving.”

In recent news Prince Harry opened a field of remembrance for those lost in the conflict in Afghanistan. The Prince placed a cross in memory of 26-year-old Jonathan Woodgate of the Household Cavalry, the prince’s former regiment, in the Wootton Bassett Field of Remembrance in Swindon, England.

Harry, who spent 10 weeks in Afghanistan in 2007 on a tour of duty with the army, led the commemorations to the 343 servicemen and women who have died in the country since 2001.

However over remembrance weekend it has been stated that harry could be returning to Afghanistan, but this time as an Apache helicopter pilot. The head of the armed forces stated that there was no reason why Harry could not be deployed as long as he passed his exams.

We all, at Supa Swap, wish Harry all the best. He certainly is one of our favourite royals.