It wasn’t all bad

The only parchment copy of the American Declaration of Independence, aside from the one kept in the National Archives in Washington, has been found in a West Sussex archive. Harvard historians were amazed when they established the identity of the document: produced in the 1780s, a decade after the original, it was unearthed in a Chichester record office in 2015. It had been handed in by a local man in 1956, and since kept, folded up, in the archive. How it got to England is still a mystery.

A man from Cumbria has run 100 marathons in 100 days, as part of his ongoing efforts to raise money for the charity that looked after his father, before his death, 20 years ago. Gary Mckee (pictured), 47, fitted the first 98 marathons around his job at the Sellafield nuclear plant: he ran most of them before work, often with local teenagers inspired by his efforts. He finished the 100th, the London Marathon, in 3hrs 32 mins, raising £72,500 for Macmillan Cancer Support. His previous fundraising efforts have included climbing Mount Kilimanjaro, trekking 800 miles in Brazil, and walking over hot coals.

A million native oysters are to be put into the Solent this year, in a bid to restore the species to the area. They will be placed in spots where fishing is illegal, while a further 10,000 will be put in cages in harbours where they can discharge larvae. The Solent used to be the site of Europe’s largest oyster fishery, but following a collapse in numbers, a fishing ban was imposed in 2013. It is hoped this will be lifted once the oysters are re-established. The oysters will reduce pollution levels, by filtering water, and provide a habitat for other species.