Today in history..

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• 2004 The final episode of Friends is aired

  The immensely popular sitcom about Rachel, Monica, Phoebe, Joey, Chandler, and Ross had been produced since 1994. The final episode “The Last One” was watched by 52 million viewers.

• 1994 The Channel Tunnel linking the United Kingdom with France is opened

  Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom and French President François Mitterrand inaugurated the “Chunnel”. It measures just over 50 km (31 mi) and is the tunnel with the world's longest undersea portion.

• 1976 A massive earthquake hits northeast Italy

  939 people died and 157,000 were left homeless in Italy's worst earthquake, which measured 6.5 on the Richter scale.

• 1954 Roger Bannister becomes the first person to run a mile in under 4 minutes

  The British athlete took 3 minutes and 59.4 seconds to cover 1609 meters. The current record by Moroccan Hicham El Guerrouj stands at 3:43.13 (as at February 2014).

• 1937 The Hindenburg zeppelin filled with hydrogen goes up in flames

  The footage showing a colossal fireball engulfing the German airship during a landing attempt in Lakehurst, NJ, has become iconic for the end of the zeppelin era. 35 lives were lost in the crash.