September 2006 was marked by a controversy surrounding statements made by Pope Benedict XVI regarding Islam, during the same week as the fifth anniversary of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. Steve Irwin, star of The Crocodile Hunter, died early in the month due to a stingray attack. Meanwhile, the Space Shuttle Atlantis made a mission to the International Space Station and a coup d'état was carried out by the Royal Thai Army, ousting Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra.

The following events also occurred during the month:

Template:Portal:Current events/Events by month

Norman Gene "Norm" Macdonald (born October 17, 1963) is a Canadian stand-up comedian, writer, producer and actor. He is best known for his five seasons as a cast member on Saturday Night Live, which included anchoring Weekend Update for three years. Early in his career, he wrote for the sitcom Roseanne and made appearances on shows including The Drew Carey Show and NewsRadio. He also starred in The Norm Show from 1999 to 2001. Comedy Central named him #83 on the five-part miniseries 100 Greatest Stand-ups of All Time. He is noted as one of Conan O'Brien's favorite and most frequent guests on his various talk shows. His brother is Canadian journalist Neil Macdonald, of CBC News' Washington, D.C. bureau.

Starting February 26, 2011, Macdonald became the new host of High Stakes Poker on Game Show Network. He also hosted Sports Show with Norm Macdonald on Comedy Central, which began airing on April 12, 2011. It was announced on June 7, 2011, that the Sports Show would not be renewed for a second season, reportedly due to low ratings, even though Sports Show steadily averaged one-million viewers per episode.

Russell Edward Brand (born 4 June 1975) is an English comedian, actor, columnist, singer, author and radio/television presenter.

Brand achieved mainstream fame in the UK in 2004 for his role as host of Big Brother spin-off, Big Brother's Big Mouth. His first major film role was in the 2007 film St Trinian's. He became known to American audiences when he got a major role in Forgetting Sarah Marshall which led to a starring role in 2010's Get Him to the Greek. He has also been a voice actor for animated films such as 2010's Despicable Me and the 2011 film Hop. He starred in the 2011 remake of the 1981 Dudley Moore film Arthur.

Brand is noted for his eccentricity and his controversies in the British media, including his dismissal from MTV for dressing up as Osama bin Laden and controversies while presenting at various award ceremonies, as well as his former substance abuse. The 2008 prank telephone calls he made to Andrew Sachs while co-hosting The Russell Brand Show with Jonathan Ross led to his resignation from the BBC and major policy changes in that organisation. His prior drug use, alcoholism and promiscuity influenced his comedic material and public image. He married American pop singer Katy Perry in October 2010, and filed for divorce from her in December 2011; the divorce was finalised in 2012.

Ghulam Nabi Azad (Hindi: ग़ुलाम नबी आज़ाद; born March 7, 1949 in Jammu and Kashmir, India) is an Indian politician from the Indian National Congress and the current Minister of Health and Family Welfare

He was the Parliamentary Affairs Minister of India in the government of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh until October 27, 2005, when he was appointed as the Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir. After delivering victories in several key states, including Kerala, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh, the 'crisis manager' of the Congress surprised many when he led the party successfully in the 2002 Assembly election in Jammu and Kashmir.

Azad's forte is his organisational skills, having been the AICC general secretary for a record nine times and member of the powerful Congress Working Committee for 18 years, perhaps the longest period among the current leaders.

As a Union minister, he steered successive Congress governments to victory in 21 no-confidence motions including the minority government of P. V. Narasimha Rao in the early 1990s.

Jacqueline "Jacqui" McQueen (previously Malota) is a fictional character from the British Channel 4 soap opera Hollyoaks, played by Claire Cooper. She debuted on-screen during the episode airing on 26 September 2006 and was introduced by series producer Bryan Kirkwood as part of the McQueen family. Cooper has stated that whilst Lucy Allan produced the serial she was not used and Jacqui had "lost her identity". In 2010 when Paul Marquess took over the role, he recognised she was an under used character split her apart from her on-screen family, subsequently increasing her role within the show. Jacqui has been portrayed as a "tough ex-con" and is extremely feisty, she often takes on the matriarch role within her family. She is also described as loyal and is one of a few characters to remain faithful within a relationship in the serial itself.