1961 in the United Kingdom
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Image:Flag of the United Kingdom.svg 1961 in the United Kingdom: Image:Flag of the United Kingdom.svg |
| Other years |
| 1959 | 1960 | 1961 | 1962 | 1963 |
| Sport and Music |
| British and Irish current events |
| 1961 English cricket season |
| Football Image:Flag of England.svg England | Image:Flag of Scotland.svg Scotland |
| 1961 in British music |
Events from the year 1961 in the United Kingdom.
Contents |
[edit] Incumbents
- Monarch - HM Queen Elizabeth II
- Prime Minister - Harold Macmillan, Conservative Party
[edit] Events
- January 1 - The farthing coin, used since the 13th century, ceases to be legal tender in the United Kingdom.
- January 9 - British authorities announce that they have discovered a large Soviet spy ring in London.
- 5 February - Sunday Telegraph first published. [1]
- 19 February - Police break up a demonstration outside the Belgian embassy in London protesting about the murder of the ex-Prime Minister of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Patrice Lumumba. [2]
- 13 March - the five members of the Portland Spy Ring go on trial at the Old Bailey accused of passing nuclear secrets to the Soviet Union. [3]
- March 13 - Black and white £5 notes cease to be legal tender. [1]
- 21 March - The Beatles perform at the legendary Cavern Club for the first time.
- 27 April - Sierra Leone gains independence from the UK. [4]
- May 1 - Betting shops are legalised.[5]
- May 8 - George Blake is sentenced to 42 years imprisonment for spying.
- May 28 - Peter Benenson's article "The Forgotten Prisoners" is published in several internationally read newspapers. This will later be thought of as the founding of the human rights organization Amnesty International.
- June 19 - The British protectorate ends in Kuwait and it becames an emirate.
- June 27 - Kuwait requests British help; the United Kingdom sends in troops.
- August 10 - Britain applies for membership in the EEC.
- August 16 - The play "Lady Chatterley" by John Harte - based on D.H.Lawrence's novel - opened at The Arts Theatre in London and was well reviewed by west end theatre critic Harold Hobson.
- 23 August - Police launch a man hunt for the perpetrator of the A6 murder, who killed 36-year-old Michael Gregsten and paralysed his mistress Valerie Storie. [6]
- 17 September - Police arrest over 1,300 protesters in Trafalgar Square during a CND rally.[5]
- October 25 - The first edition of Private Eye, the British satirical magazine, is published.
- 27 November - Royal Air Force participates in air drops of food to flood victims in Somalia. [7]
- 4 December - Birth control pills become available on the National Health Service after their availablity is backed by Health Minister Enoch Powell. [8]
- 9 December - Tanganyika gains independence from the UK. [9]
[edit] Unknown dates
[edit] Births
[edit] January - April
- January 1 - Mark Wingett, British actor
- 12 January - Simon Russell Beale, British actor
- January 13 - Suggs, British singer (Madness)
- January 31 - Lloyd Cole, British singer and songwriter
- February 16 -Andy Taylor, British musician (Duran Duran)
- 20 February - Imogen Stubbs, British actress
- 24 February - John Grogan, British Labour politician
- 3 March - Fatima Whitbread, British javelin thrower and Olympic medalist
- 29 March - Michael Winterbottom, British filmmaker
- 14 April - Robert Carlyle, Scottish actor
- 17 April - Bella Freud, British fashion designer and columnist
- April 18 - Jane Leeves, English actress
[edit] May - August
- May 2 - Phil Vickery, British celebrity chef
- May 8 - Janet McTeer, British actress
- May 12 - Billy (William H) Duffy, English guitarist (The Cult)
- May 14 - Tim Roth, English actor
- May 30 - Harry Enfield, English comedian
- June 5 - Rosie Kane, member of Scottish Parliament
- 13 June - Bob Crow, British trade union leader
- 14 June - Boy George, English musician
- June 15 - Dave McAuley, Northern Irish boxer
- June 25 - Ricky Gervais, English comedian
- 27 June - Meera Syal, British comedian and writer
- July 1 - Diana, Princess of Wales (d. 1997)
- July 17 - Jeremy Hardy, English comedian, radio panelist, and singer
- August 3 - Nicholas Harvey, English politician
- 22 August - Roland Orzabal, English musician Tears for Fears)
[edit] September - December
- 13 September - Tom Holt, British author
- 22 September - Liam Fox, British Conservative politician and Shadow Defence Secretary
- 26 September - Will Self, English novelist, reviewer and columnist
- 3 November - David Armstrong-Jones, Viscount Linley, chairman of Christie's U.K. auction house
- November 4 - Nigel Worthington, Northern Irish footballer and football manager
- 16 November - Frank Bruno, British boxer
- November 20 - Dave Watson, English footballer
- 26 November - Karan Bilimoria, Baron Bilimoria, British Asian entrepreneur and university chancellor
- 11 December - Marco Pierre White, British chef and restaurateur
- December 12 - Sarah Sutton, British actress
- December 12 - Philip Parkin, Welsh golfer
- December 19 - Matthew Waterhouse, British actor
- December 29 - Jim Reid, Scottish musician
[edit] Unknown date
- Sexton Ming, British artist, poet and musician
- Graham Taylor, British clergyman and author
- Gerard Woodward, British novelist and poet
[edit] Deaths
- January 26 - Stan Nichols, English cricketer (b. 1900)
- March 6 - George Formby, British singer, comedian & actor (b. 1904)
- March 8 - Thomas Beecham, English conductor (b. 1879)
- April 7 - Vanessa Bell, English artist and interior designer (b. 1879)
[edit] See also
- UK No.1 Hits of 1961
- List of Statutory Instruments of the United Kingdom, 1961
- Society of Film and Television Arts Television Awards 1961
[edit] References
- ^ a b (2006) Penguin Pocket On This Day. Penguin Reference Library. ISBN 0-141-02715-0.
- ^ "Lumumba rally clashes with UK police" BBC On This Day
- ^ "Five Britons accused of spying for Moscow" BBC On This Day
- ^ "Sierra Leone wins independence" BBC On This Day
- ^ a b Palmer, Alan & Veronica (1992). The Chronology of British History. London: Century Ltd. ISBN 0-7126-5616-2.
- ^ "Couple found shot in A6 lay-by" BBC On This Day
- ^ "RAF flies aid to flood-stricken Somalia" BBC On This Day
- ^ "Birth control pill available to all" BBC On This Day
- ^ CIA World Factbook entry on Tanzania
