Today is Tynwald Day on the Isle of Man. It is a public holiday and marks the annual outdoor sitting of the Manx Parliament – the Tynwald. There is no representation from the Isle of Man in the United Kingdom parliament and UK laws do not automatically apply in the Isle of Man. Tynwald makes the laws which are given final approval by the Queen. Tynwald meets regularly during the year, with an outdoor session held on July 5th at St. John’s. The main event on Tynwald day is the promulgation of acts as each act of Tynwald must be promulgated on Tynwald Hill within 18 months of enactment. On Tynwald Day any person may approach Tynwald Hill and present a Petition for Redress. The Petitions can be taken up by members of Tynwald and put to the parliament. Many pieces of legislation in the Isle of Man have been passed using this process.
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Today is the birthday, in 1943, of Robbie Robertson, Canadian musician, songwriter, film composer, producer and actor. He was lead guitarist for The Band and as a songwriter, Robertson is credited for writing ‘The Weight’, ‘The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down’, ‘Up on Cripple Creek’, ‘Broken Arrow’ and ‘Somewhere Down the Crazy River’.
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