Timeline April 2019

Events in April 2019 23

• 1927 – 2019 Sydney Brenner (1927-2019) Died 5 April 2019, aged 92 Sydney Brenner was a South African-born biologist who helped decipher the genetic code and pioneered the use of the roundworm C. elegans as a model organism in developmental biology. He shared the 2002 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for this work. He died in Singapore.
• 1940 – 2019 John Havlicek Hondo 8-time champion with the Celtics; famous for the "Havlicek stole the ball!" call.
• 1968 – 2019 John Singleton (1968-2019) Died 28 April 2019, aged 51 John Singleton was an American film director whose debut feature, Boyz n the Hood, earned him Academy Award nominations for directing and screenwriting at age 24, making him the youngest and first Black director nominated for the award. He went on to direct films including Poetic Justice and Baby Boy. He died in Los Angeles after suffering a stroke.
• 2019 A German Life -- final stage role In April 2019, after an 11-year absence from the stage, Smith returns to perform in A German Life at the Bridge Theatre in London -- a one-woman solo play by Christopher Hampton in which she portrays Brunhilde Pomsel, an elderly German woman who in her youth worked as a secretary for Joseph Goebbels. Matt Wolf of The New York Times writes that her performance "represents a new high in a six-decade career with no shortage of peaks." She wins a record sixth Evening Standard Best Actress award. It is her final stage performance.
• 2019 Wins the Masters, completing historic comeback 15th major championship Eleven years after his previous major win, Woods captured his fifth Masters title and 15th major championship, completing one of the most celebrated comebacks in sports history after years of injury and personal turmoil. The victory drew one of the largest television audiences in golf history.
• 2019 Bouteflika resigns as Algeria president Weeks of mass protests force out a 20-year ruler Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika resigned after weeks of massive peaceful protests against his bid for a fifth term. He had ruled Algeria since 1999 and had rarely appeared in public after a 2013 stroke. His resignation did not fully satisfy protesters, who continued demonstrating against the ruling establishment.
• 2019 First black hole image Event Horizon Telescope captures M87 The Event Horizon Telescope collaboration published the first ever image of a black hole on April 10, 2019 — the supermassive black hole at the centre of galaxy M87, 55 million light-years away.
• 2019 First image of a black hole The Event Horizon Telescope photographs M87 A planet-sized array of radio telescopes produced a picture of the shadow cast by a black hole six and a half billion times the mass of the Sun. The ring matched the size and shape general relativity demanded. It was a direct image of a prediction Einstein himself found hard to believe in.
• 2019 Beresheet lunar lander crashes on the Moon Israeli spacecraft fails during final descent Israel's Beresheet probe, built by the nonprofit SpaceIL, crashed while attempting to land on the Moon after an engine failure during its descent. It would have made Israel the fourth country to achieve a soft lunar landing. The mission was privately funded and considered a technological milestone despite the crash.
• 2019 Julian Assange arrested in London WikiLeaks founder dragged from Ecuadorian embassy Julian Assange was arrested by British police after Ecuador withdrew the political asylum that had sheltered him in its London embassy for nearly seven years. The US unsealed charges against him related to the 2010 publication of classified military and diplomatic documents. He was later held in a British prison while fighting extradition to the United States.
• 2019 Omar al-Bashir ousted in Sudan Military removes Sudan's longtime leader after mass protests Sudan's military overthrew President Omar al-Bashir after months of mass protests against his 30-year rule. A transitional council took power, later sharing authority with civilian opposition leaders. Bashir was later charged with corruption and, separately, faced international warrants over Darfur.
• 2019 Tiger Woods wins the Masters Golfer completes comeback with fifth green jacket Tiger Woods won the Masters Tournament for a fifth time, completing one of the most celebrated comebacks in sports history after years of injuries, surgeries, and personal setbacks. It was his first major championship victory in 11 years. The win was widely covered around the world.
• 2019 Aretha Franklin awarded a posthumous Pulitzer Special Citation The first individual woman to receive a Pulitzer special citation.
• 2019 Extinction Rebellion protests spread globally Climate activists stage mass civil disobedience The environmental group Extinction Rebellion staged coordinated civil disobedience actions in cities including London, occupying bridges and public spaces to demand urgent government action on climate change. Thousands were arrested over the course of the protests. The movement helped push climate policy higher on the political agenda in several countries.
• 2019 – 2024 Notre Dame Fire Cultural Tragedy A massive fire severely damaged the historic cathedral; it was reopened to the public in late 2024.
• 2019 Notre-Dame fire Medieval cathedral nearly destroyed A devastating fire engulfed Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris on April 15, 2019, causing the collapse of the spire and most of the roof. The 850-year-old cathedral was saved by firefighters.
• 2019 Mueller Report released Special counsel report on Russian election interference published Special Counsel Robert Mueller's report on Russian interference in the 2016 election and possible obstruction of justice by President Trump was released in redacted form. It found insufficient evidence to establish a criminal conspiracy with Russia but did not exonerate Trump on obstruction. The report shaped the following year's impeachment debate.
• 2019 2019 World Snooker Championship Judd Trump First Title Winner: Judd Trump; Runner-up: John Higgins. Score: 18–9.
• 2019 Sri Lanka Easter Sunday bombings Coordinated suicide bombings kill over 250 people A series of coordinated suicide bombings struck churches and luxury hotels across Sri Lanka on Easter Sunday, killing more than 250 people and injuring hundreds more. A local Islamist group with links to ISIS was blamed for the attacks. It was the deadliest violence in the country since its civil war ended in 2009.
• 2019 Volodymyr Zelensky elected President of Ukraine A television comedian wins in a landslide Volodymyr Zelensky, a comedian with no prior political office, won Ukraine's presidential runoff election with over 73 percent of the vote. His victory over incumbent Petro Poroshenko reflected widespread frustration with corruption and the stalled war in the Donbas. He was inaugurated the following month.
• 2019 Project Possible — All 14 Peaks in 189 Days Completed all fourteen 8,000-metre summits in just six months and six days, shattering the previous record of seven years, ten months and six days. Along the way, he summited Everest, Lhotse and Makalu in 48 hours — a feat many considered impossible. A photograph he took of a queue of climbers on Everest went viral worldwide.
• 2019 Avengers Endgame released Highest-grossing film ever at the time Avengers: Endgame was released on April 26, 2019, earning $2.798 billion worldwide to become the highest-grossing film in history, surpassing Avatar.
• 2019 Avengers: Endgame #1 film of 2019 — $2.80bn worldwide Directed by the Russo brothers. After Thanos wiped out half of all life, the Avengers must assemble one last time to undo his actions.