26Stuart Drummond
A man named Stuart Drummond was elected to be the first and only mayor of the English town Hartlepool under the guise of thier football mascot, H'angus the monkey. He barely campaigned and his only promise was to provide free bananas for school children. He became the first elected mayor in Britain to win a third term.
27. “University of the People” is a tuition-free, American-accredited online University providing Bachelor, Masters and Associate degrees in Computer science, Business, Health Science and Education.
28. MLB gives out “golden ticket” that gives free admission to the bearer to any game. It’s given to players after 8 years in the major leagues, people who have worked for a team for 25 years, and other VIPs. NASA astronauts, returning Vietnam POWs, and the 1979 hostages in Iran were all given one.
29. About 1389 people died at a banquet celebrating the crowning of Tsar Nicholas II. The banquet was free to the public but a rumor of gold coins as gifts and there not being enough beer for everyone caused a stampede; trampling many. The festivities continued anyways and the incident was cleaned up.
30. The Heart Attack Grill is a hospital-themed restaurant in Tempe, Arizona, where “patients” over 350 pounds eat for free and the wait staff are dressed as sexy nurses.
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31Pretzel Sunday
On Pretzel Sunday, a spring celebration in Luxembourg, the Pretzel Queen and a group of bakers parade through the city of Luxembourg and hand out pretzels for free, accompanied by a small tourist train decorated with pretzels and a marching band.
32. Awardees of the Bharat Ratna, India's highest civilian honor, are entitled to a lifetime of free first-class tickets on Air India.
33. Red Cross Clubmobiles served free hot coffee and donuts to US soldiers in England. The Clubmobiles were staffed by women called "Donut Dollies." The service was so popular, Clubmobiles accompanied soldiers on D-Day and through the end of the war in Europe.
34. A town in Texas renamed itself to DISH in 2005 for 10 years of free television service from the Dish network company.
35. In 1574, the Dutch city of Leiden was under siege by Spanish forces. The defenders breached dykes, flooding the low-lying countryside. Naval ships reached the city on Oct 3rd, bringing bread and herring and ending the siege. Leiden still gives citizens free bread and herring every Oct 3rd.
