Eamonn Fitzgerald's Rainy Day

"At 50, everyone has the face he deserves." So wrote George Orwell, who was born 100 years ago today. But what does that mean in an era of nose jobs and Botox jabs? Well, just as 1984 is more of a warning than a prediction, Orwell's words about appearance are not to be taken at face value. In the 21st century, the "deserves" of a generation ago could now be interpreted as "earns". Meaning that if you've got the money, get a new look. You've earned it. You "deserve" it.

A more negative 21st century reading of Orwell's saying, however, might suggest that because a "fresh" face is necessary for survival in certain businesses — movies, PR, politics, advertising, real estate sales — those who've tried to deny the plod of time "deserve" the mutilation they've subjected themselves to. Having attempted to cheat chronology, they're now condemned to live a cosmetic lie. Beware! That surgical smile might someday turn into "A rictus of cruel malignity" as James Joyce put it in A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man.

And that brings us to another 21st century reality: longevity. Fifty in Orwell's exhausted 1940s is today's, what, 60? 70? Meaning that those who opt for serious image change in their 30s, 40s and 50s might be living with the implications for a long, long time. But that's enough theory. Let's move on to the practice. With the help of HistoryOrb, I've selected 50 people who are 50 this year. Your task is to Google 'em and find out if Orwell's maxim applies. Go!

Tony Blair, British Prime Minister, Leon Spinks, former heavyweight boxing champion, Mike Oldfield, composer of Tubular Bells, Mickey Rourke, actor/boxer (Wild Orchid, Barfly), Tina Brown, ex-New Yorker editor, Kevin Rowlands, vocalist Dexy's Midnight Runners (Come on Eileen), Tom Hulce, actor (Amadeus), Merrill Osmond (Osmond Brothers), John Edward Stevens, New York bank robber (FBI Most Wanted List), Henry Percy, 11th duke of Northumberland, godchild of Queen Elizabeth II

Willy "Mink" Deville, blues/rock singer, Klaus-Dietrich Flade, German cosmonaut (Soyuz TM-14), Robert Parish, NBA center (Boston Celtics, Charlotte Hornets), Marcia Clark, LA DA (OJ Simpson case), Franz Klammer, Austrian downhill skier (Olympic gold 1976), John Malkovich, actor/director, Midge Ure, rocker (Ultravox), Bruce Sutter, baseball pitcher (Cubs, Cards, Braves), Pat Benatar, singer (Hell Is for Children)

Kim Basinger, actress (Batman), Kathie Lee Gifford, TV hostess (Live with Regis & Kathie Lee), Dale Earnhardt, six-time NASCAR national champion, Michael Bolton, rock vocalist (That's What Love Is All About), Jean-Bertrand Aristide, president of Haiti, Desi Arnaz Jr, actor, Chaka Khan, singer (I am Every Woman), Osvaldo "Ossie" Ardiles, Argentine football player, Ken Burns, epic documentary maker (Civil War), Sara Simeoni, Italian high jumper (Olympic gold, 1980)

Tom Petty lead singer The Heartbreakers, Mary Steenburgen, actress (Parenthood, Time After Time), Suleiman Nyambui, Tanzanian runner (world record 5k indoor), Vijay Amritraj, India, tennis player/actor (Octopussy), Ron Howard, actor/director (American Graffiti), Senator Russel D Feingold, (Democrat, Wisconsin), Robert Cray, bluesman, Hulk Hogan WWF heavyweight champion, Dalila di Lazzaro, Italian model, Graham Gooch, English cricket captain

Nanci Griffith, singer/songwriter (Poet in My Window), Eric Bogosian, actor (Talk Radio), Greta Waitz, Norwegian marathoner, Andras Schiff, Hungarian pianist, Colm Meaney, Irish actor (Star Trek, Deep Space 9), John Shirley, sci-fi author (Eclipse Penumbra, Eclipse Corona), Roland Butcher, first black cricketer to play for England, 1981, Kathleen Ann Shower, Playmate of the Year, May, 1985, Tico Torres, Bon Jovi drummer, Bobby Rahal, Indy-car racer.

Diarist of the day: Joe Orton, 25 June 1967

"[Tangier] It is half past nine and the Fatima [maid] hasn?t arrived yet. Perhaps she isn't coming today. I hope not. Women are a terrible drag to have around. It's like a holiday when she isn't here. Although the last two months have been very enjoyable and a great success, neither Kenneth [Halliwell] nor I will be sorry to leave on Friday. I feel the need to some something fresh. Not work -- though undoubtedly I shall finish What the Butler Saw -- just a change of scene. Even sex with a teenage boy becomes monotonous. Ecstasy is as liable to bore as boredom. I need the atmosphere of London for a month or two in order to stir me from the lethargy into which I am in danger of falling."