On this day in 1971 John, Lord Reith, the Scottish broadcasting executive, died.

Reith is regarded as the founding father of public service broadcasting in Britain. He served as the first General Manager of the British Broadcasting Company between 1922-27, and as the first Director-General of the BBC from 1927-38. Reith was the inspiration behind using radio as an educational medium and as a tool for providing the nation, and world, with regular impartial news, making the nation as one man, as he described it.

On 16 June 1948 Henry McLeish, Scottish Labour politician, was born. McLeish began his working life as a footballer for East Fife, but soon entered the political arena, serving from 1987 as MP for Central Fife. His career reached its zenith with his appointment as First Minister of the Scottish Executive, succeeding Donald Dewar. He was forced to resign, however, after a financial scandal at his constituency.

On 16 June 1807 the Rev. John Skinner, poet, theologion and Episcopalian minister of Longside in Buchan, died. His song, Tullochgorum, was complemented by Robert Burns in a letter sent to Skinner as, the best Scotch song ever Scotland saw.

Today's recipe: treat someone special with this easy chocolate cake ... unless they're sweet enough already.