← All famous nights
Famous Nights · 24 August 1875

The night the Channel was crossed for the first time

«Nothing great is easy»

24 August 1875. Matthew Webb dived off Admiralty Pier at Dover and swam all night — stung by a jellyfish in the dark, kept going on brandy and beef tea — reaching Calais 21 hours 45 minutes later. Nobody managed it again for 36 years. Every star in its true position. What's your night?

Dover, United Kingdom · 24 August 1875 · 23:30 local · 51.1279° N · 1.3134° E

Now map your own night — from £34.99 Set to this famous sky below — or map your own date and place in two taps.
The night the Channel was crossed for the first time — star map art print
The short film

Eight seconds over Dover.

The era scene is an AI reconstruction. The sky above it is not — every star is computed from astronomical data for 24 August 1875, 23:30 local time.

Your turn

Make it your night.

Below, the map is set to this famous sky. Start fresh with your own date and place — the night you met, a birthday, a wedding — from £34.99. Or keep this historic sky as a print.

Map my own night — from £34.99 Keep this historic sky →
✦ Star Map ☾ The Moon

Your sky.

£34.99
Design code:
Keep exploring

Other famous nights.

The sky over London the night of the royal wedding, 1981
29 July 1981
A day of fireworks and fairy tales
The sky over Wembley the night England won the World Cup
30 July 1966
They think it's all over
The night she walked out of the sea
6 August 1926
She swam the Channel
Tonight: the best meteor shower of the year
12 August 2026
Look up tonight
The sky over Woodstock, opening night
15 August 1969
Three days of peace and music
Tonight the moon is full
28 August 2026
The night the moon was whole
The night the Beatles played live for the last time
29 August 1966
The last time they played
The night the aurora reached London
1 September 1859
The night the sky caught fire
The night Voyager left — and never came back
5 September 1977
Sounds of Earth
The sky the night Roald Dahl was born
13 September 1916
The night a storyteller arrived
Tonight the night equals the day
23 September 2026
The night summer ended
The night we found Neptune
23 September 1846
Exactly where the maths said
The night Abbey Road arrived
26 September 1969
And in the end…
The night a lookout shouted one word
12 October 1492
Tierra
The night the gate opened
9 November 1989
Sofort, unverzüglich
The night the century turned
31 December 1999
The lights stayed on