30 January 2026
► LOOKING at events on 30 January;
In 1935, in southern Tasmania, regular train services on the Apsley branch railway ceased beyond Bagdad. The Apsley railway ran from the Brighton Junction railway station, through Bagdad, Dysart and Kempton to the small township of Apsley, a few kilometres beyond Melton Mowbray. The line closed in 1947.
And in 1945 in the Baltic Sea, off the coast of Poland, the ship MV Wilhelm Gustloff, which was overfilled with refugees and German military personnel, sank after being torpedoed three times by a Soviet submarine.
The resulting loss of around 9,400 lives remains the largest fatality from from the sinking of one vessel in maritime history. The wreck has been classified by the Polish Government as a war grave and diving is forbidden within a 500 metre radius of it.
In 1948, in New Delhi, India, Mohandas Gandhi, the political and spiritual leader of the Indian independence movement, was assassinated by a Hindu fanatic.
In 1965, in London, England, representatives of 110 countries attended the funeral of Sir Winston Churchill, English wartime leader, which was held in St Paul’s Cathedral. Churchill had died three days previously, aged 90.
In 1972, in Derry, Northern Ireland, fourteen unarmed demonstrators were killed by British paratroopers in an incident which became known as Bloody Sunday.
► ARRIVALS AND DEPARTURES ON THIS DATE
BORN: Dorothy Eloise Maloney alias Dorothy Malone in 1925, Chicago, Illinois, U.S.A. She was an actress whose career began in 1943. She later acquired a more glamorous image, after her performance in the 1956 movie Written On The Wind, for which she won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. Dorothy Malone achieved later success with her role as Constance McKenzie in the television soapie Peyton Place from 1964 to 1968. Died 2018.
BORN: Gene Hackman in 1930, San Francisco, California, USA. He became an actor who starred in 80 movies, whose performance as Buck Barrow in Bonnie and Clyde earned his first Oscar nomination. Died 2025.
BORN: Horst Jankowski in 1936, Berlin, Germany. He became a pianist famous for easy-listening music. His fame peaked in 1965 with his tune Eine Schwarz wald fahrt, which was released in English as A Walk In The Black Forest. Died 1998.
BORN: Vanessa Redgrave, in 1937, Greenwich, London, England. She is an Academy-award-winning actress of stage, screen and television, and political activist. She has starred in over 80 films and is a six-time Oscar nominee, and is the only British actress ever to win Oscar, Emmy, Tony, Olivier, Cannes, Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild awards.
DIED: Orville Wright, in 1948, Dayton, Ohio, U.S.A aged 76. He was the aviation pioneer who, together with his brother Wilbur, is credited with building and flying the world’s first heavier-than-air aircraft.
DIED: Ferdinand Porsche, in 1951, Stuttgart, West Germany, aged 75. He was an Austrian automotive engineer and founder of the Porsche car company, which created, amongst other things, the first petrol-electric hybrid vehicle and the Volkswagen Beetle.
DIED: Stanley Holloway, in 1982, Littlehampton, England, aged 91. He was a stage and film actor, comedian, and singer famous for his character roles, especially that of Alfred P. Doolittle in the musical My Fair Lady. He was also renowned for his comic recordings throughout his 70-year career.
DIED: Geraldine McEwen, in 2015, Hammersmith, London, England, aged 82. She was an actress best known for her role as Miss Marple in the television series of the same name between 2004 and 2009.
Today’s photo – Early morning reflections in the Derwent River, New Norfolk. Photo: Craig Farrell MLC
Today’s Playlist:
| TRACK | RELEASE YEAR | PLAY TIME | PREVIOUS PLAYS | LAST PLAYED |
| Starship – We Built This City | 1985 | 09:05 | 1 | 3/3/2023 |
| 70s Classic Lynn Anderson – Rose Garden | 1971 | 09:13 | 14 | 27/4/2025 |
| John McCall – Love in Katoomba | 2025 | 09:16 | 3 | 2/1/2026 |
| Comfort Zone –Well Known Artists and Songs + Matt Monro – This Is The Life | 09:22 | 1 | 15/2/2023 | |
| + Jon English – Six Ribbons | 09:24 | 9 | 16/3/2025 | |
| Mexicans – Winds of Barcelona | 09:29 | 13 | 17/8/2025 | |
| Francisco Cavez & His Orchestra – Bossa Nova Minus One | 09:34 | 3 | 23/6/2023 | |
| Horst Jankowski Orchestra & Chorus – Simpel Gimpel | 1965 | 09:39 | 8 | 12/9/2025 |
| Debz Standen – Living Without You | 2025 | 09:43 | 0 | |
| For a Listener Cliff Richard – Good Times | 1969 | 09:47 | 9 | 21/11/2021 |
| Diamond Classic – From the Album “Sinatra 65” Charting on this day 1966 Frank Sinatra – When Somebody Loves You | 1965 | 09:51 | 1 | 14/5/2021 |
| Diamond Classic – From the Album “More Hits By The Supremes” Charting on this day 1966 Supremes – Nothing But Heartaches | 1965 | 09:53 | 1 | 12/2/2021 |
| Foster & Allen – A Place In The Choir | 09:58 | 0 | ||
| Ron Christopher – Forever 1956 | 2024 | 10:05 | 2 | 20/12/2024 |
| Wendy Jewel – Are You Looking At The Same Stars | 2026 | 10:11 | 0 | |
| Ashley Cook – The Waters of Lake Eyre | 2026 | 10:13 | 0 | |
| Stanley Holloway – Get Me to the Church on Time | 10:18 | 2 | 1/10/2023 | |
| Vintage Vinyl Jimmy Rodgers – Secretly | 1958 | 10:22 | 3 | 18/9/2020 |
| Gary R Farmer – South of the Border | 2026 | 10:25 | 0 | |
| Johnny Douglas & His Orchestra – Small World | 10:31 | 0 | ||
| Kym Cormack – Never Lie Again | 2026 | 10:36 | 0 | |
| Hein Simons – Von Herz zu Herz (From Heart to Heart) | 10:39 | 0 | ||
| 70s Classic Billy Joel – Just the Way You Are | 1978 | 10:44 | 4 | 29/6/2025 |
| Electric Indian – Land Of A Thousand Dances | 1969 | 10:48 | 2 | 17/2/2023 |
| Joy Adams – After All | 2026 | 10:52 | 0 | |
| David McCaffrey – Walk Of Life | 2025 | 10:55 | 4 | 4/1/2026 |
| Lawrence Welk – Blue Velvet | 10:58 | 4 | 9/11/2025 | |
| Elisabeth Grey – Mrs Grey | 11:05 | 1 | 16/1/2026 | |
| Country Road – Old style country songs + Lindsay Butler & Barry Thornton – Slim Dusty Medley | 11:11 | 0 | ||
| + Slim Dusty – Sunny Northern Rose | 11:14 | 0 | ||
| For a Listener Roger Whittaker – Tanz Heut Nacht Mit Mir (Dance Tonight With Me) | 11:20 | 0 | ||
| Vintage Vinyl Nat King Cole – Pretend | 1953 | 11:29 | 2 | 19/2/2025 |
| Romantic Strings Orchestra – Mozart’s 40th | 11:36 | 1 | 5/8/2022 | |
| Diamond Classic – From the Album “Dear Heart” Charting on this day 1966 Andy Williams – Dear Heart | 1965 | 11:41 | 1 | 15/9/2019 |
| Diamond Classic – From the Album “Going Places” Charting on this day 1966 Herb Alpert & Tijuana Brass – Cinco De Mayo | 1965 | 11:44 | 3 | 17/7/2022 |
| Sheila Pope – If Not For You | 2026 | 11:48 | 0 | |
| Demis Roussos – Island Of Love | 11:51 | 2 | 2/9/2018 |