From today's featured article
Terry Griffiths (1947–2024) was a Welsh professional snooker player, coach and pundit. After winning several amateur titles, he turned professional in June 1978 at the age of 30. In his second professional tournament, he qualified for the 1979 World Snooker Championship. He reached the final of the event where he defeated Dennis Taylor. In the 1988 World Snooker Championship, Griffiths again reached the final of the competition but lost to Steve Davis. Griffiths reached at least the quarter-finals of the World Championship for nine consecutive years, from 1984 to 1992. He also won the Masters in 1980 and the UK Championship in 1982, completing snooker's Triple Crown. He was runner-up at the Masters three times and reached the final of the 1989 European Open, where he lost the deciding frame to John Parrott. Griffiths retired from the professional tour in 1996 to become the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association's director of coaching. ( Full article... )
Did you know ...
- ... that one newspaper described the North Christian Church (pictured) as "poised to lift off and take man to meet his Maker"?
- ... that Donald Trump nicknamed a lawyer " Sir Charles " because he would "act like royalty"?
- ... that the first literary work published in Alabama criticized a participant in the Battle of Burnt Corn ?
- ... that English and British monarchs claimed to be kings and queens of France for more than 450 years, and finally dropped the title only in 1801?
- ... that Indonesian ambassador Alfred Tanduk Palembangan was inspired to become a diplomat through interacting with tourists?
- ... that the name of Memorial Park in Tauranga, New Zealand, was chosen in order to qualify for a subsidy?
- ... that former NFL player Heinie Jawish died suddenly while playing handball at the age of 41?
- ... that concrete ties used on the Middleborough/Lakeville Line began to fail after just a decade?
- ... that Martin Robertson kept his job at the British Museum only because he did not clean the exhibits?
In the news
- More than 300 students are kidnapped in Papiri, Niger State, Nigeria.
- Former prime minister of Bangladesh Sheikh Hasina is found guilty of crimes against humanity in absentia by a Bangladeshi tribunal and sentenced to death.
- In Canadian football, the Saskatchewan Roughriders defeat the Montreal Alouettes to win the Grey Cup (MVP Trevor Harris pictured).
- In motorcycle racing, Marc Márquez wins the MotoGP World Championship .
On this day
November 26 : Feast day of Saint Sylvester Gozzolini (Catholicism); Constitution Day in India (1949)
- 1835 – Texas Revolution: Texian forces attacked a Mexican pack train, capturing 40 saddlebags of grass.
- 1914 – A large internal explosion destroyed HMS Bulwark near Sheerness, killing 741 people on board.
- 1940 – The Iron Guard killed 64 political detainees at a penitentiary near Bucharest and followed up with several high-profile assassinations, including that of former Romanian prime minister Nicolae Iorga.
- 1942 – A riot involving infantrymen, military police, and local law enforcement officers killed three people in Phoenix, Arizona.
- 2008 – A coordinated group of shooting and bombing attacks across Mumbai began, ultimately killing 175 people and wounding more than 300 others.
- William Derham (b. 1657)
- Adam Mickiewicz (d. 1855)
- Shelley Moore Capito (b. 1953)
- Rachel Roberts (d. 1980)
Today's featured picture
 |
The Basilica of Superga is a hilltop Catholic basilica in Superga, in the vicinity of Turin, Italy. It was built from 1717 to 1731 for Victor Amadeus II, the duke of Savoy and future king of Sicily, to a design by Filippo Juvarra. The building of the church fulfilled a vow Victor Amadeus had made during the Battle of Turin, after defeating the besieging French army in the War of the Spanish Succession. The basilica is considered to be an example of late Baroque-Classicist architecture. Its royal crypt is the traditional burial place of members of the House of Savoy, including various kings of Sardinia and of Italy. In 1949, the basilica was the site of the Superga air disaster when the plane carrying the Grande Torino football team collided with the church's rear supporting wall, killing the entire team and their coach. This photograph shows the basilica with the Monte Rosa massif in the background. Photograph credit: Domeian Recently featured: |