30 June 1937: The 999 emergency services line opens

On this day, the 999 emergency services telephone line opened, but it wasn't until a week later that the first call was received.

999 emergency number
(Image credit: Getty Images)

It's the dead of night on 30 June 1937 and you've just been woken by the screams in the flat above yours. You run to the window to hear better, convinced the husband is murdering his wife. Shame, you think, they always seemed like such a nice couple.

But as you go to fling open the window, you stop. By the light of the moon, you make out the silver outline of a cat burglar clutching to the drainpipe of the local bank.

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Chris Carter
Wealth Editor, MoneyWeek

Chris Carter spent three glorious years reading English literature on the beautiful Welsh coast at Aberystwyth University. Graduating in 2005, he left for the University of York to specialise in Renaissance literature for his MA, before returning to his native Twickenham, in southwest London. He joined a Richmond-based recruitment company, where he worked with several clients, including the Queen’s bank, Coutts, as well as the super luxury, Dorchester-owned Coworth Park country house hotel, near Ascot in Berkshire.

Then, in 2011, Chris joined MoneyWeek. Initially working as part of the website production team, Chris soon rose to the lofty heights of wealth editor, overseeing MoneyWeek’s Spending It lifestyle section. Chris travels the globe in pursuit of his work, soaking up the local culture and sampling the very finest in cuisine, hotels and resorts for the magazine’s discerning readership. He also enjoys writing his fortnightly page on collectables, delving into the fascinating world of auctions and art, classic cars, coins, watches, wine and whisky investing.

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