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From today's featured article

Part of the Coventry ring road at sunset

The Coventry ring road (A4053) is a 2.25-mile (3.62 km) ring road in Coventry, England, forming a dual-carriageway loop around the city centre. The road encloses Coventry Cathedral, the shopping areas, and much of Coventry University. Except junction 1, all junctions are entirely grade-separated and closely spaced, with weaving sections between them. The road connects with three other A roads: the A4114, the A4600 and the A429. From the 1930s, Coventry City Council began replacing its medieval streets with modern roads, and Donald Gibson, the city architect, began work in 1939 on a plan that was expanded after the Coventry Blitz during the Second World War. The ring road was constructed in six stages from 1959, initially with at-grade junctions, cycle tracks and footpaths, but in the early 1960s the council amended the design to include grade separation and the weaving sections. The road was completed in 1974, with an overall cost of £14.5 million (equivalent to £191 million in 2023). (Full article...)

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Did you know ...

Ahmad Shah Durrani

... that Ahmad Shah Durrani (pictured) conducted fifteen major military campaigns during his reign, comprising nine invasions of India, three in Khorasan, and three in Afghan Turkestan?
... that, when workers of the Zenkoku Jiren went on strike at a Hitachi factory, anarchist militants firebombed the mansion of Hitachi's president, Namihei Odaira?
... that Matilda Freeman did not originally intend to be an actress, but auditioned for a role after being teased by some classmates?
... that New Tide was abandoned after many of its contributors left the country or joined the Chinese Literary Association?
... that the 2014 Louisville, Mississippi tornado was powerful enough that an entire door was torn off and blown 30 miles (48 km)?
... that a park in New York City occupies the former site of a waste transfer station and a heliport?
... that reggae musician James Mange formed a soccer-themed political party to compete in South Africa's first democratic election?
... that the Queen's Theatre in East London was named to reflect its opening in the same year as the coronation of Elizabeth II?
... that "the Boshfather" was deported from Australia in October 2025?

In the news

Frank Gehry

In Benin, a coup attempt by members of the army is thwarted.
Architect and designer Frank Gehry (pictured) dies at the age of 96.
In Saint Lucia, the Labour Party, led by Prime Minister Philip J. Pierre, retains its majority in the House of Assembly.
Playwright and screenwriter Tom Stoppard dies at the age of 88.
In motorsport, Sébastien Ogier and Vincent Landais win the World Rally Championship.

On this day

December 8: Rōhatsu in Japan; Nations, Nationalities and Peoples' Day in Ethiopia; Liberation Day in Syria

Portrait of Margaret Hughes by Peter Lely, 1672

1660 – Margaret Hughes (pictured) appeared professionally on the English stage; she is thought to have been the first woman to do so.
1880 – At an assembly of 10,000 Boers, Paul Kruger announced the fulfilment of the decision to restore the government and volksraad of the South African Republic.
1987 – A man shot and killed eight people at the Australia Post building in Melbourne, before jumping to his death.
2010 – The Japanese experimental spacecraft IKAROS flew by Venus at a distance of 80,800 km (50,200 mi), completing its planned mission to demonstrate solar-sail technology.
2024 – The Syrian civil war ended when Bashar al-Assad's party, the Syrian Ba'ath Party, surrendered to the Syrian opposition.

Adolph Menzel (b. 1815)
Georges Feydeau (b. 1862)
Ann T. Bowling (d. 2000)
Robert Austin Markus (d. 2010)

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From today's featured list

Concourse of London King's Cross

There are fifty-five stations on the Great Northern route, a suburban rail route in London and the East of England. The route consists of services on the southern end of the East Coast Main Line, which is the main railway link between the cities of London and Edinburgh, as well as its associated branches, including the Cambridge line, the Fen Line, the Hertford Loop line, and the Northern City Line. The route is currently operated by Great Northern, which is one brand under the umbrella of Govia Thameslink Railway. Services originating at London King's Cross (pictured) operate to Peterborough, Letchworth Garden City, Cambridge, Ely, and King's Lynn, whereas services originating at Moorgate operate to Welwyn Garden City, Hertford North, Gordon Hill, and Stevenage. (Full list...)

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Today's featured picture

The American robin (Turdus migratorius) is a migratory bird in the family Turdidae, the thrushes. It is named after the European robin because of its reddish-orange breast, although the two species are not closely related. The American robin is widely distributed throughout North America, wintering from southern Canada to central Mexico and along the Pacific coast. It is active mostly during the day and assembles in large flocks at night. Its diet consists of invertebrates (such as beetle grubs, earthworms, and caterpillars), fruits, and berries. The American robin's nest consists of long coarse grass, twigs, paper, and feathers, and is smeared with mud and often cushioned with grass or other soft materials. It is among the earliest birds to sing at dawn, and its song consists of several discrete units that are repeated. This American robin was photographed in Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn, New York City.

Photograph credit: Rhododendrites

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