Coventry Firsts

20 items:

Item	Details
All-Seater Football Stadium	In 1981 Coventry City converted Highfield Road to all-seating, the first club in England to do so, at the instigation of the then chairman, Jimmy Hill. (The first all-seater in the UK, however, was Pittodrie Stadium in Aberdeen, in 1978.) Wiki article.
Asian Policeman	In March 1966 Coventry man, Mohammed Daar, became the first Asian policeman in Britain. Article.
Belgrade Theatre	The Belgrade was the first theatre in the country to be built after WWII, opening on the 27th March 1958. Wiki article.
Car Production	The first serial production cars in the UK were built by The Daimler Motor Company Limited in a disused cotton mill in Radford in 1896. Known initially as the Motor Mills, it became the Daimler Works in 1898. Article.
Differential Gear	In 1876 James Starley was trying out an early two-rider tricycle with his son. Due to the unequal strength of the riders a sudden surge of power by his son threw the machine into a ditch. Starley immediately sat down and began to plan the idea for the differential gear, which was patented the following year, 1877. Wiki article.
Ejection Seat - first emergency use	On the 30th May 1949 Flight Lieutenant John Oliver Lancaster made the first ever emergency evacuation using the newly developed Martin-Baker Mk1 ejection seat near to Coventry. At 3,000 feet he needed to eject from a prototype A.W.52 Flying Wing, which was becoming dangerously unstable during a 320MPH dive. Article 1, Article 2.
Green Party	The Green Party of England and Wales has its roots in the PEOPLE Party started in Coventry in 1972/3 by four professional friends (Michael Benfield, Freda Sanders, Tony Whittaker and Lesley Whittaker). It then changed its name to the more descriptive Ecology Party in 1975, and to the Green Party ten years later. Wiki article.
Ian McKellen's first acting job	Another "first" for the Belgrade theatre is that it gave renowned actor (now Sir) Ian McKellen his first ever taste of the stage in professional capacity, in April 1961. Article.
International Children's Games	Although the International Children's Games began in 1968, hosted by Celje in Yugoslavia, Coventry was the first UK city to host the games. Wiki.
Jet engine	Invention of the jet engine by Coventry born engineer and pilot, Frank Whittle. Wiki entry
Monty Python's first live show	In yet another first for the Belgrade Theatre, it became the first venue where the legendary comedy company, Monty Python, tried out their live show, on the 31st January 1971. Article.
Municipal Council	In 1345 Edward III granted a Royal Charter of Incorporation, allowing Coventry to become the first Municipal Council in England, electing its own Mayor, John Ward. More info.
Safety Bicycle	In 1885 John Kemp Starley invented what was then known as the Rover Safety Bicycle - a design so revolutionary that it has not needed to be radically changed to this day. The name "Safety Cycle" came about because it was so much safer to ride than the Penny Farthing (more correctly known as the "High Ordinary") cycles that were then commonly in use. Article.
Smokeless Zone	As far back as 1946, Manchester was the first place in the country to obtain powers from Parliament to implement a Smokeless Zone. However, due to their difficulties obtaining smokeless fuel, this was not put into place at that time. Coventry took up the proposal in November 1947, but discussions continued until the date eventually decided was the1st March 1951, still establishing Coventry as the first place in the country to implement a Smokeless Zone.
Spayer (new word)	According the the Oxford English Dictionary, the first evidence for the word "Spayer" originated in Coventry, first used in the Leet Book in 1450. It referred to the blocking of water in the river Sherbourne, for defensive purposes. The word more commonly used now is "sluice". OED entry - Leet extract.
Tracer Bullets	James Frank Buckingham, a motor car builder at 159 Spon Street, invented the incendiary tracer bullet at the outbreak of WWI in response for the need to shoot down German Zeppelins, which were not affected by being hit by standard bullets. (BBC item.)
Traffic-Free Shopping Precinct	Coventry's Precinct, giving traffic-free shopping, was the first of its kind in Europe, and the first large scale shopping precinct of its sort in the world. Article.
Twin Cities	In 1944 Coventry and Stalingrad were the first cities in the world to be twinned internationally. They had shared support for some time previous, with donations giving Stalingrad a new wing to its hospital, named the Coventry Wing. The Russian city was, in 1961, renamed to Volgograd. Coventry went on to become twinned with 26 towns or cities.
Witchcraft Trial	The first known account of a witchcraft trial for black magic in England took place in Coventry in 1325. See article
Yellow Fire Engines	In October 1966 the first yellow Dennis F36 fire engine made its debut at the Chief Fire Officer's annual conference at Southport, with KDU 997D being the first of three purchased for the City of Coventry Fire Brigade. The appliances were put into service in late January 1967. Another pioneering feature was that these were also the first appliances to be fitted with specialist compressed air-tools such as a Cengar Saw and drilling and lighting equipment.