How Charles Darwin’s statue would look with his birthday party hat on

The world was today marking the 200th anniversary of the birth of Charles Darwin, who was born in Shrewsbury on this day in 1809.

The celebrations are truly global, with 640 events scheduled to take place in 42 countries.

The events mark not only Darwin’s birth, but the 150th anniversary of his landmark work, ‘On the Origin of Species’.

In Shrewsbury, Darwin waymarkers were being unveiled at 10am at Shrewsbury Library. The markers, sponsored by Royal Mail, are located throughout the town and highlight Darwin points of interest. They can be followed as part of the Darwin town trail.

Other events in Shrewsbury include:

• 12pm – Darwin toast and walk – a guided walk around the town centre and the sights Darwin would have know. The meeting place is the Bellstone and the cost is £4. For details call 01743 281200.

•  2pm – Darwin’s Big Birthday Cake – The cutting of a giant cake decorated with 200 candles in the Square.  A free slice of cake will be given out.

• For further Darwin events visit www.discovedarwin.co.uk

Meanwhile, people from as far away as Japan, South Korea and Spain will be descending on Shrewsbury for today’s anniversary celebrations.

In Australia, the city of Darwin is also marking Darwin’s birthday. The area that became Darwin city was discovered by the crew of HMS Beagle. Dawin sailed on the ship on his voyage to the Galapagos Islands, where many of his theories were formed. To see how Darwin is marking the anniversary, click here.

See today’s Shropshire Star for full coverage of Darwin events.

For our Darwin archive click here