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TIL that the first French territory that seaborne Allied forces captured on D-Day were the Îles Saint-Marcouf islands off the Normandy coast. Although they faced no resistance, the US troops suffered 19 casualties, killed and wounded, from mines that the Germans had left.

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VBKbk TIL in 2012 two drunk tourists stole a penguin named Dirk from an aquarium after they broke into the SeaWorld in Queensland, Australia. The next day they released him into a canal but were spotted by locals, who reported them. Both were fined £637.
ELMP TIL that Lawn Gnomes used to actually be real people that the English employed to live in their gardens. The so called Ornamental Hermit.
JY914 TIL about the Groom of the Stool: the most intimate of an English monarch's courtiers, responsible for assisting the king in excretion and ablution. Under Henry VII, the Groom of the Stool became a powerful official involved in setting national fiscal policy.
P1gEg TIL that during WWII, a dentist came up with 'Project X-Ray,' strapping incendiary bombs onto bats to start fires in Japanese cities. However, the plan failed due to difficulties in training the bats and lack of military funding. Development ceased in 1944.
MeEZW TIL of the world’s longest golf course, the Nullarbor Links. Stretching 1,365km (or 848 miles), it has 18 holes with a par of 72