Latest news with #WW2
Toronto Star
10 hours ago
- General
- Toronto Star
UK's oldest WWII veteran, Donald Rose, dies at 110
FILE - WW2 veteran Donald Rose, 110, poses for a photo at the National Memorial Arboretum, ahead of a memorial event hosted by the Royal British Legion to mark the 80th anniversary of V-E Day, in Alrewas, Staffordshire, England, Thursday, May 8, 2025. (Jacob King/PA via AP, File) flag wire: true flag sponsored: false article_type: : sWebsitePrimaryPublication : publications/toronto_star bHasMigratedAvatar : false :
Toronto Star
11 hours ago
- General
- Toronto Star
UK's oldest man and WWII veteran, Donald Rose, dies at 110
FILE - WW2 veteran Donald Rose, 110, poses for a photo at the National Memorial Arboretum, ahead of a memorial event hosted by the Royal British Legion to mark the 80th anniversary of V-E Day, in Alrewas, Staffordshire, England, Thursday, May 8, 2025. (Jacob King/PA via AP, File) flag wire: true flag sponsored: false article_type: : sWebsitePrimaryPublication : publications/toronto_star bHasMigratedAvatar : false :
Glasgow Times
16 hours ago
- Automotive
- Glasgow Times
Times Past: How Glasgow's Clyde Tunnel changed the city forever
The Glasgow Herald article from that day captures the sense of public excitement generated by the opening of the road tunnel, with drivers and passengers "marvelling at the steepness of the dip under the Clyde and the climb out on the other side." Two days earlier, on the 3rd of July 1963, hundreds of spectators had crowded behind the crash barriers on Govan Road to catch a glimpse of Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh at the official opening ceremony. West Tunnel under construction looking north, showing lighting, trunking and exhaust duct cladding (1963) (Image: Supplied) The effects of the new tunnel on Glasgow's traffic were felt immediately. On King George V Bridge, at the time the most westerly of Glasgow's bridges and the site of regular snarl-ups, traffic flowed freely. The long queues of cars that could usually be seen waiting for the Govan ferry at rush hour had disappeared – "they must all be using the tunnel today," commented ferryman Kenneth McKenzie in the Evening Times the day after the opening of the tunnel. West Tunnel, general view looking north (1963) (Image: Supplied) The opening of the Clyde Tunnel had been a long time in the making. Glasgow Corporation had been eager to improve Glasgow's cross-river transport infrastructure since the end of WW2. The importance of the stretch of the Clyde westwards from Govan and Finnieston to Glasgow's shipbuilding industry rendered a bridge across that section of the river undesirable. The boom of the motor car and the resultant congestion in the city, however, required a solution. A pamphlet created to mark the opening of the tunnel, held at Glasgow City Archives, outlines the difficulty faced by those attempting to cross the river by car prior to the construction of the tunnel: "motor traffic has had to rely on vehicular ferries to carry vehicles between the opposite banks or make a detour into the heart of Glasgow and cross the river by one of the four city bridges." In 1948, Glasgow Corporation acquired the powers to construct a road tunnel under the Clyde, between Whiteinch and Linthouse. Financial troubles meant nearly ten years would pass before Lord Provost Andrew Hood would sink a silver-plated spade into the soil at Linthouse to mark the beginning of the construction of the tunnel. Building the Clyde Tunnel was gruelling work for the tunnellers underground. Nicknamed the 'Tunnel Tigers', the cohort included many emigrant workers from County Donegal. The 'Tigers' spent eight hours a day digging tonnes upon tonnes of stone and silt from beneath the river. Beyond being physically exhausting, the work could also be dangerous. There were numerous cases of workers suffering from 'the bends' during and after their work on the Clyde Tunnel, and two workers, Leslie Bone and Thomas Roache, died from decompression sickness. When the first tunnel was completed in 1963, it was hailed as a feat of civil engineering. At time of opening, the Clyde Tunnel's 6% gradient made it the steepest road tunnel in the world – a fact which won't be surprising to anyone who has puffed their way out of the tunnel's cycle lane on their bike. The initial estimate was that 9000 cars a day would use the Clyde Tunnel, but within a year of opening that figure had shot up to 22000. While the Clyde Tunnel proved popular with motorists, some certainly felt its disadvantages. The neighbourhoods of Whiteinch and Linthouse were considerably altered by the construction of the tunnel, with the demolition of 250 tenements, a church, several bowling greens and a number of allotments. The residents of these areas found the peace of their neighbourhoods disturbed by the traffic of the large new roads. The Herald reports how "people accustomed to quiet nights found the late-night and early-morning traffic interrupted their sleep," while children who used to play freely in the street found themselves hemmed in by crash barriers. The Clyde Tunnel is a landmark not only of Glasgow's road network, but of the country as a whole. In the 62 years since its construction, it remains Scotland's only road tunnel, and now carries around 25 million motorists, cyclists and pedestrians a year.
Scottish Sun
3 days ago
- Scottish Sun
Look around the stunning paradise island with WW2 wrecks, that's become a haven for dark tourism
The island was the site of one of the bloodiest Pacific battles during the Second World War TROPICAL SECRETS Look around the stunning paradise island with WW2 wrecks, that's become a haven for dark tourism A REMOTE paradise island, littered with abandoned World War II wrecks, has become a popular destination for dark tourists. During the Second World War, battles spread to the Pacific, where Japanese and American troops fought on tiny islands. 7 Peleliu is a small island in Micronesia Credit: Getty 7 Abandoned tanks litter the island Credit: Getty 7 Debris of the Imperial Japanese Navy A6M 'Zero' fighter Credit: Getty One of these islands has now become a playground for history fans, who flock to look at the abundance of abandoned tanks and ships. In 1944, Peleliu, a small island in Micronesia, was the site of a bloody battle between the US and Japan. The battle raged on for almost two months between September 15 and November 27, with 10,900 Japanese troops and 1600 US troops killed in action. It became one of the bloodiest battles to take place in the Pacific during the war, with the Americans claiming victory. More than 60 Japanese ships were destroyed in the area, many of which remain underwater today. Japan managed to salvage some of the ships, but those that weren't saved have now become covered in coral and marine life, making them a haven for divers. One of the most visited wrecks is Teshio Maru which was damaged by US aircraft during the brutal battle. 7 An abandoned plane on the island of Peleliu Credit: Getty Those who venture underwater to see the shipwreck can marvel at the deck gun, which is visible at the front of the boat. Chuyo Maru, which was hit by a US bomb is still mostly intact, making it another popular choice for divers. An anti-aircraft gun can be spotted at the back of the boat, which lies upright on the seabed. Historic UK lido with 'stunning' mountain views that has been abandoned for decades The Helmet Wreck, which was found by divers exploring the area, still has depth chargers on board, whilst Jake's Seaplane is partly visible from the surface. The island is also littered with rusty abandoned tanks, with trees sprouting out of the top and vines looping around the body. Visitors to the island can pay to take a guided tour of the tanks, plus bunkers and an old Japanese airstrip. The island also has a museum filled with artefacts from the battle. Travellers can also visit Orange Beach, where US troops first arrived to the island. And eagle-eyed tourists may even be able to spot bullets and shells in the sea or on the island. What is dark tourism? Dark tourism, also called grief tourism or thanatourism means visiting sites associated with disaster or suffering. Examples of popular dark tourism locations are Aushwitz in Poland and Chernobyl in Ukraine. This type of tourism has soared in recent years, although some experts have questioned its ethics and whether it is respectful to families of victims. 7 US Marines taking time for a rest and a cigarette during mopping up operations, Battle of Peleliu, September-November 1944 Credit: Getty 7 Visitors can take a guided tour of the island Credit: Getty
Scottish Sun
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Scottish Sun
Smash-hit Call of Duty game pulled offline for millions after shock X-rated pop-ups that cause your machine to crash
It comes amid big job cuts at publisher Activision CALL OF DIRTY Smash-hit Call of Duty game pulled offline for millions after shock X-rated pop-ups that cause your machine to crash Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) GAMERS were left red-faced after a popular Call Of Duty title was reportedly hit by a hack causing porn to bombard people's screens. Players of Call Of Duty: WWII claim a number of strange and embarrassing glitches have flashed up on the Xbox PC version. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 2 Gamers have shared screenshots of the apparent hack Credit: 2 Call of Duty: WWII has is one of the more popular titles in the franchise Credit: Activision This includes gay pornography, insulting messages popping up in the notepad app and loading malware on their machine, according to PCGamer. "I JUST GOT HACKED PLAYING WW2! EVERYONE DO NOT PLAY WW2 ON GAMEPASS!" one user wrote on X. "Someone is trolling gamers with Notepad pop ups, PC shutdowns, and gay pornography," another claimed. Ethical hacker group VX-Underground also noticed that affected PCs have had their background bizarrely changed to "show a prominent lawyer who Activision hired to prosecute video game cheaters". Call of Duty publisher Activision has taken the game offline but not confirmed whether it's related to alleged hacks. The Sun approached Activision for comment and was referred a company post on X. "Call of Duty: WWII on PC Microsoft Store was brought offline while we investigate reports of an issue," the firm tweeted. Fortunately, it appears that hackers are more interested in messing with people than trying to steal bank details. Most read in Gaming GAME OVER PlayStation game mysteriously VANISHES from consoles without warning "The concern in this particular case is that this means an attacker is capable of deploying information stealer malware, a RAT (remote administration tool), or ransomware," VX-Underground added. LG TVs now play Xbox games even without any console after upgrade "Thankfully, it appears this attacker is primarily interested in memeing and f**ing with people." Call Of Duty: WWII was released back in November 2017 and a commercial success, netting $500million / £368million in revenue within three days of launching. The issue comes just days after Activision Blizzard owner Microsoft announced huge job cuts. Some 1,900 people working for Activision and Xbox have been laid off, around 8 percent of the Microsoft's gaming division overall. Mike Ybarra, who has served as Blizzard's president since 2022, has also decided to leave over the move. Across all of Microsoft, more than 9,000 jobs have been cut globally.
