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Weymouth Harbour and Bay

Weymouth is a seaside town in Dorset, England, on the English Channel. Situated on a sheltered bay at the mouth of the River Wey, the town had a population of 53,427 in 2021, the third-largest in Dorset. The town had roles in the spread of the Black Death, the settlement of the Americas and the development of Georgian architecture. It was also a major departure point for the Normandy landings during World War II. Since 2019, the area has been governed by Dorset Council. Weymouth's economy depends on tourism. Visitors are attracted by its harbour (pictured) and position, approximately halfway along the Jurassic Coast. Once a port for cross-channel ferries, Weymouth Harbour is now home to a commercial fishing fleet, pleasure boats and private yachts, while nearby Portland Harbour is the location of the Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy, where the sailing events of the 2012 Summer Olympics and Paralympics were held. (Full article...)

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Did you know ...

Henri Deglane

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... that the Alexander McQueen collection Neptune drew negative reviews comparing the clothing to 1980s science fiction, Xena, and Wonder Woman?
... that three years prior to this month's massive plastics fire in Indiana, a court determined that the site was a fire hazard "unsafe to people and property"?
... that former East Java provincial secretary Trimarjono was known for his habit of standing in front of the governor's office lobby every morning?
... that the 12th-century Lundie Kirk was left as "a charred roofless shell" after a fire in November 2022?
... that goalkeeper Sophie Whitehouse, who has lived in England, Africa and the US, has been chosen to play soccer for the Republic of Ireland?
... that during the Battle of Nicopolis in 1798, Revolutionary French troops placed their artillery on top of an ancient burial mound?
... that while feathers are light, and light opposes darkness, feathers do not oppose darkness?

In the news

Ding Liren

Ding Liren (pictured) defeats Ian Nepomniachtchi to win the World Chess Championship.
In Kenya, at least 109 people are found in mass graves and more than 350 others are missing after the leader of a cult allegedly instructed members to starve themselves.
In the London Marathon, Sifan Hassan wins the women's race, while Kelvin Kiptum wins the men's event and breaks the course record.

On this day

April 30

Evacuees on the USS Midway

311 – The Diocletianic Persecution of Christians officially ended in the eastern Roman Empire.
1943 – Second World War: The Royal Navy submarine HMS Seraph began Operation Mincemeat to deceive Germany about the upcoming invasion of Sicily.
1963 – A refusal by the Bristol Omnibus Company and the Transport and General Workers' Union to permit the employment of black bus crews led to a bus boycott in Bristol, England.
1975 – American forces completed a helicopter evacuation (aircraft and evacuees pictured) of U.S. citizens, South Vietnamese civilians and others from Saigon, just before North Vietnamese troops captured the city, ending the Vietnam War.
2021 – A crowd crush killed 45 people during the annual pilgrimage to the tomb of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai in Israel.

Marie of the Incarnation (d. 1672)
Emily Stowe (d. 1903)
Kirsten Dunst (b. 1982)

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Today's featured picture

Street Musicians at the Door is an oil-on-canvas painting by the Dutch Golden Age artist Jacob Ochtervelt, painted in Rotterdam in 1665. It depicts a mother, child and maid from a wealthy family interacting with two musicians at the door of their house. The musicians are playing a violin and a hurdy-gurdy. It is an example of an "entrance hall painting", a genre pioneered by Ochtervelt. The work is now in the collection of the Saint Louis Art Museum in St. Louis, Missouri.

Painting credit: Jacob Ochtervelt

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