Former Beatle drummer Ringo Starr celebrated his 68th birthday today (07/07/08) by holding a peace party in downtown Chicago. Larry King telephoned the musician and sang "Happy Birthday" to him. Starr encouraged people around the world to make the peace and love signs and has said: "we want people to be saying, singing, shouting, whispering, signing, writing or quietly thinking one simply beautiful and universal message - peace and love".

Since the Beatles split up, Ringo's most significant contribution to culture has probably been narrating "Thomas the Tank Engine and Friends". This coveted role has now passed onto Pierce Brosnan, as producers were tired of Ringo insisting on drumming along to the theme tune and painting Thomas in psychadelic rainbow colors. The last straw however, was them catching Ringo and The Fat Controller sharing a joint.