21st March

The three impoverished daughters of South African songwriter Solomon Linda, who composed the song variously known as Mbube, Wimoweh or The Lion Sleeps Tonight, in 1939, win a lengthy court battle which secures them 25% of all past and future royalties from the song. Linda was a cleaner at a Johannesburg record company when he wrote the song, but he received virtually nothing for his work, dying with just $25 in his bank account in 1962. The song has been recorded by, to name but a few, Pete Seeger [as Wimoweh], The Kingston Trio, The Tokens, Karl Denver [as Wimoweh], Robert John, Tight Fit, Brian Eno and R.E.M. It was also prominently featured in the Disney film The Lion King, from which usage alone it was estimated to have earned $15m.