Wikipedia:Main Page history/2016 June 30

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From today's featured article

Covent Garden's central square

Covent Garden is a district in London on the eastern fringes of the West End, between St. Martin's Lane and Drury Lane. In its historical boundaries, on the north side are shops centred on Neal's Yard and Seven Dials; the south side holds the Royal Opera House (also called Covent Garden), the Drury Lane theatre, the London Transport Museum, and other cultural and entertainment venues. Its central square (pictured) is a popular shopping and tourist site. The area was originally the "garden of the Abbey and Convent", with orchards for Westminster Abbey, around 1200. In 1630 the 4th Earl of Bedford commissioned Inigo Jones to design the Italianate arcaded square, which served as a prototype for other estates as London grew. A small open-air market and its neighbourhood fell into disrepute as taverns, theatres and brothels opened up; the gentry moved away, and rakes, wits and playwrights moved in. Charles Fowler's neo-classical building was erected in 1830 to cover and organise the market. Further buildings were added: the Floral Hall, Charter Market, and in 1904 the Jubilee Market. The central building reopened as a shopping centre in 1980 with cafes, pubs, small shops and a craft market. (Full article...)

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Did you know...

Blue Moon ice cream

... that the House of Flavors' signature ice cream is the "Blue Moon" flavor (pictured) that has been sold since 1935?
... that Lucía Meza Guzmán has represented Cuautla twice in the state congress of Morelos and once at the Chamber of Deputies?
... that Mamamoo's Melting was described as "heralding the Korean quartet's rise to the top ranks of the girl group hunger games"?
... that Howard Rusk Long interviewed Chiang Kai-shek while teaching at the National Chengchi University in Taipei?
... that the İskender Pasha Mosque in Fatih, Istanbul, became the center of an Islamic religious order to which several prominent Turkish politicians belonged?
... that Sharon Barker, director of the Women's Resource Center at the University of Maine, brings 500 middle school girls to campus each year to explore careers in the STEM fields?
... that Usmar Ismail was ashamed of Tiga Dara, his company's greatest commercial success?

In the news

David Cameron announcing his resignation

An armed attack at Istanbul Atatürk Airport leaves at least 42 people dead and 230 others injured.
Conservative People's Party, led by Mariano Rajoy, gains the most seats in the Spanish repeat election but remains short of a majority.
Flash flooding in West Virginia kills at least 23 people.
After the United Kingdom votes to leave the European Union, British Prime Minister David Cameron (pictured) announces he will resign by October.
A tornado kills at least 99 people and injures approximately 800 others in Jiangsu Province, China.

On this day...

June 30: Independence Day in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (1960)

Henry II of France

1559 – During a jousting match, Gabriel Montgomery of the Garde Écossaise mortally wounded King Henry II of France (pictured), piercing him in the eye with his lance.
1860 – Seven months after the publication of Charles Darwin's On the Origin of Species, several prominent British scientists and philosophers participated in an evolution debate at the Oxford University Museum in Oxford, England.
1908 – A massive explosion occurred near the Podkamennaya Tunguska River in what is now Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia, knocking over 80 million trees over 2,150 square kilometres (830 sq mi).
1966 – The National Organization for Women, one of the United States' leading feminist organizations, was founded in Washington, D.C.
2009 – Schoolgirl Bahia Bakari was the sole survivor when Yemenia Flight 626 crashed into the Indian Ocean killing 152 people.

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Today's featured picture

Dustforce is a 2012 platform video game developed by Hitbox Team. In it, the player controls one of four janitors who are using acrobatic skills in an attempt to sweep away the dust and filth corrupting the world. The player's performance is ranked based on time and completion, and access to certain levels requires near-perfect runs of earlier levels. Dustforce was generally well received by critics, who praised its demanding gameplay, online leaderboard features, graphics, and soundtrack.

Video: Hitbox Team, with music by Lifeformed

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