Two young brothers launch model boats to circumnavigate Antarctica

Ollie and Harry Ferguson have built replicas of HMS Erebus and HMS Terror

(Image credit: MacNeill Ferguson)

published 20 July 2023

Two brothers from Aberdeenshire have built model boats that they hope will circumnavigate Antarctica. Ollie and Harry Ferguson, 13 and 11, were inspired by the Ross expedition of 1839-43, which led to the discovery of the Ross Ice Shelf. They built one metre-long replicas of HMS Erebus and HMS Terror, the vessels used on that expedition, which have now been launched into the Southern Ocean by a fishing vessel. The boats will be carried by currents around Antarctica, while transmitting scientific data back to the boys.

Dorset street revitalized with rent-free holiday

A run-down high street in Dorset has been revived by a two-year rent holiday. Before the pandemic, Kingland Crescent in Poole was blighted by empty retail units and boarded-up shopfronts. But in early 2021, LGIM, the asset management firm that owns the street, offered two years rent-free to independent businesses willing to take on one of the ten empty shop units. The street is now filled with thriving businesses paying rent, and footfall in the area has soared.

An unseeded 17-year-old from Wolverhampton has become the first British boys’ singles champion at Wimbledon since 1962. Henry Searle, who is 6ft 4in and started playing tennis at the age of three, beat the Russian 17-year-old Yaroslav Demin 6-4, 6-4 on No. 1 Court last week. Searle’s serve reached 134mph during the game. He was supported by a large contingent of friends and family clad in T-shirts bearing the words “Henry’s Barmy Army”. “It’s a pretty special feeling,” Searle said after his victory. “I’ll enjoy the moment over the next few days and weeks, then get back to it and try to win some more titles.”