1964 in the United Kingdom
Encyclopedia
Events from the year 1964 in the United Kingdom. The year sees a general election
with a change of government.
United Kingdom general election, 1964
The United Kingdom general election of 1964 was held on 15 October 1964, more than five years after the preceding election, and thirteen years after the Conservative Party had retaken power...
with a change of government.
Incumbents
- Monarch – Elizabeth II
- Prime Minister – Alec Douglas-HomeAlec Douglas-HomeAlexander Frederick Douglas-Home, Baron Home of the Hirsel, KT, PC , known as The Earl of Home from 1951 to 1963 and as Sir Alec Douglas-Home from 1963 to 1974, was a British Conservative politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from October 1963 to October 1964.He is the last...
, ConservativeConservative Party (UK)The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
(until 16 October), Harold WilsonHarold WilsonJames Harold Wilson, Baron Wilson of Rievaulx, KG, OBE, FRS, FSS, PC was a British Labour Member of Parliament, Leader of the Labour Party. He was twice Prime Minister of the United Kingdom during the 1960s and 1970s, winning four general elections, including a minority government after the...
, LabourLabour Party (UK)The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
Events
- 11 January – Teen girls' magazine JackieJackie (magazine)Jackie was a weekly British magazine for girls. The magazine was published by D. C. Thomson & Co. Ltd of Dundee from 11 January 1964 until its closure on 3 July 1993—a total of 1534 issues....
first published. - 20 January – Nineteen men go on trial at BuckinghamshireBuckinghamshireBuckinghamshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan home county in South East England. The county town is Aylesbury, the largest town in the ceremonial county is Milton Keynes and largest town in the non-metropolitan county is High Wycombe....
AssizesAssizesAssize or Assizes may refer to:Assize or Assizes may refer to:Assize or Assizes may refer to::;in common law countries :::*assizes , an obsolete judicial inquest...
charged with the Great Train RobberyGreat Train Robbery (1963)The Great Train Robbery is the name given to a £2.6 million train robbery committed on 8 August 1963 at Bridego Railway Bridge, Ledburn near Mentmore in Buckinghamshire, England. The bulk of the stolen money was not recovered...
five months ago. - 21 January – Government figures show that the average weekly wage is £16.
- 22 January – Film ZuluZulu (film)Zulu is a 1964 historical war film depicting the Battle of Rorke's Drift between the British Army and the Zulus in January 1879, during the Anglo-Zulu War....
released. - 28 January – Families from Springtown Camp make a silent march through DerryDerryDerry or Londonderry is the second-biggest city in Northern Ireland and the fourth-biggest city on the island of Ireland. The name Derry is an anglicisation of the Irish name Doire or Doire Cholmcille meaning "oak-wood of Colmcille"...
to demand rehousing. - 29 January–9 February – Great Britain and Northern IrelandGreat Britain and Northern Ireland at the 1964 Winter OlympicsThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland competed as Great Britain at the 1964 Winter Olympics in Innsbruck, Austria.British luger Kazimierz Kay-Skyszpeski was killed on the Olympic course two weeks before the games.-Medallists:...
compete at the Winter Olympics1964 Winter OlympicsThe 1964 Winter Olympics, officially known as the IX Olympic Winter Games, were a winter multi-sport event which was celebrated in Innsbruck, Austria, from January 29 to February 9, 1964...
in InnsbruckInnsbruck- Main sights :- Buildings :*Golden Roof*Kaiserliche Hofburg *Hofkirche with the cenotaph of Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor*Altes Landhaus...
, Austria, and win one gold medal. - 6 February – The British and French governments agree a deal for the construction of a Channel TunnelChannel TunnelThe Channel Tunnel is a undersea rail tunnel linking Folkestone, Kent in the United Kingdom with Coquelles, Pas-de-Calais near Calais in northern France beneath the English Channel at the Strait of Dover. At its lowest point, it is deep...
. The twin-tunneled rail link is expected to take five years to build. - 11 February – SouthamptonSouthamptonSouthampton is the largest city in the county of Hampshire on the south coast of England, and is situated south-west of London and north-west of Portsmouth. Southampton is a major port and the closest city to the New Forest...
is granted the status of cityCity status in the United KingdomCity status in the United Kingdom is granted by the British monarch to a select group of communities. The holding of city status gives a settlement no special rights other than that of calling itself a "city". Nonetheless, this appellation carries its own prestige and, consequently, competitions...
, the first such designation of the current reign. - 19 February – Actor Peter SellersPeter SellersRichard Henry Sellers, CBE , known as Peter Sellers, was a British comedian and actor. Perhaps best known as Chief Inspector Clouseau in The Pink Panther film series, he is also notable for playing three different characters in Dr...
marries actress Britt EklandBritt EklandBritt-Marie Ekland is a Swedish actress and singer, and a long time resident of the United Kingdom. She is best known for her roles as a Bond girl in The Man with the Golden Gun, and in the British cult horror film The Wicker Man, as well as her marriage to actor Peter Sellers, and her...
. - 21 February – £10 banknotes are issued for the first time since the Second World War.
- 10 March – The Queen gives birth to her fourth child, a son.
- 19 March
- Power disputePower dispute of 1964The power dispute of 1964 was an industrial action by electric power workers in the United Kingdom that raised fears of power cuts which were ultimately averted through negotiation with the employers.Unions representing 128,000 manual workers demanded:...
talks break down and it is feared that supply disruptions will follow industrial action. - The government announces plans to build three new towns in South East EnglandSouth East EnglandSouth East England is one of the nine official regions of England, designated in 1994 and adopted for statistical purposes in 1999. It consists of Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, East Sussex, Hampshire, Isle of Wight, Kent, Oxfordshire, Surrey and West Sussex...
to act as overspill for overpopulated LondonLondonLondon is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
.One of these is centred around the village of Milton KeynesMilton KeynesMilton Keynes , sometimes abbreviated MK, is a large town in Buckinghamshire, in the south east of England, about north-west of London. It is the administrative centre of the Borough of Milton Keynes...
in north BuckinghamshireBuckinghamshireBuckinghamshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan home county in South East England. The county town is Aylesbury, the largest town in the ceremonial county is Milton Keynes and largest town in the non-metropolitan county is High Wycombe....
.
- Power dispute
- 28 March – Pirate radio station Radio CarolineRadio CarolineRadio Caroline is an English radio station founded in 1964 by Ronan O'Rahilly to circumvent the record companies' control of popular music broadcasting in the United Kingdom and the BBC's radio broadcasting monopoly...
begins broadcasting. - 30 March – Violent disturbances between Mods and RockersMods and RockersThe Mods and Rockers were two conflicting British youth subcultures of the early-mid 1960s. Mods and rockers fighting in 1964 sparked a moral panic about British youths, and the two groups were seen as folk devils. The rockers were motorcyclists, wearing clothes such as black leather jackets. The...
at Clacton beach. - 31 March – Minister of LabourSecretary of State for EmploymentThe Secretary of State for Employment was a position in the Cabinet of the United Kingdom. In 1995 it was merged with Secretary of State for Education to make the Secretary of State for Education and Employment...
Joseph GodberJoseph GodberJoseph Bradshaw Godber, Baron Godber of Willington PC was a British Conservative Party politician and cabinet minister.-Background:...
appoints Lord Justice PearsonColin Pearson, Baron PearsonColin Hargreaves Pearson, Baron Pearson PC, KC, CBE was a Canadian-born English barrister and judge. Rising to sit as a judge in the House of Lords, he is best remembered for his unspectacular but efficient and courteous chairmanship of industrial inquiries and royal commissions...
to chair a court of inquiryPublic inquiryA Tribunal of Inquiry is an official review of events or actions ordered by a government body in Common Law countries such as the United Kingdom, Ireland or Canada. Such a public inquiry differs from a Royal Commission in that a public inquiry accepts evidence and conducts its hearings in a more...
into the power dispute. - 1 April – Ministry of DefenceMinistry of Defence (United Kingdom)The Ministry of Defence is the United Kingdom government department responsible for implementation of government defence policy and is the headquarters of the British Armed Forces....
takes over the duties of the War Office, AdmiraltyAdmiraltyThe Admiralty was formerly the authority in the Kingdom of England, and later in the United Kingdom, responsible for the command of the Royal Navy...
, and Air MinistryAir MinistryThe Air Ministry was a department of the British Government with the responsibility of managing the affairs of the Royal Air Force, that existed from 1918 to 1964...
, which cease to exist. The title of Lord High Admiral is re-vested in the MonarchMonarchA monarch is the person who heads a monarchy. This is a form of government in which a state or polity is ruled or controlled by an individual who typically inherits the throne by birth and occasionally rules for life or until abdication...
. - 9 April – Labour wins the first elections to the Greater London CouncilGreater London CouncilThe Greater London Council was the top-tier local government administrative body for Greater London from 1965 to 1986. It replaced the earlier London County Council which had covered a much smaller area...
. - 10 April – RuncornRuncornRuncorn is an industrial town and cargo port within the borough of Halton in the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. In 2009, its population was estimated to be 61,500. The town is on the southern bank of the River Mersey where the estuary narrows to form Runcorn Gap. Directly to the north...
, a small town in north CheshireCheshireCheshire is a ceremonial county in North West England. Cheshire's county town is the city of Chester, although its largest town is Warrington. Other major towns include Widnes, Congleton, Crewe, Ellesmere Port, Runcorn, Macclesfield, Winsford, Northwich, and Wilmslow...
, is designated as a new townNew townA new town is a specific type of a planned community, or planned city, that was carefully planned from its inception and is typically constructed in a previously undeveloped area. This contrasts with settlements that evolve in a more ad hoc fashion. Land use conflicts are uncommon in new...
by Alec Douglas-Home's government. Extensive house building and industrial and commercial developments are predicted to inflate the town's population to around 70,000 by 1981. - 11 April – The National TrustNational Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural BeautyThe National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, usually known as the National Trust, is a conservation organisation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland...
reopens the southern section of the Stratford-upon-Avon CanalStratford-upon-Avon CanalThe Stratford-upon-Avon Canal is a canal in the south Midlands of England.The canal, which was built between 1793 and 1816, runs for in total, and consists of two sections. The dividing line is at Kingswood Junction, which gives access to the Grand Union Canal...
, the first major restoration of a canalCanals of the United KingdomThe canals of the United Kingdom are a major part of the network of inland waterways in the United Kingdom. They have a colourful history, from use for irrigation and transport, through becoming the focus of the Industrial Revolution, to today's role for recreational boating...
for leisure use. - 16 April – Seven of the Great Train Robbers are sentenced to 30 years each for their role in the 1963 robberyGreat Train Robbery (1963)The Great Train Robbery is the name given to a £2.6 million train robbery committed on 8 August 1963 at Bridego Railway Bridge, Ledburn near Mentmore in Buckinghamshire, England. The bulk of the stolen money was not recovered...
. - 18 April – LiverpoolLiverpool F.C.Liverpool Football Club is an English Premier League football club based in Liverpool, Merseyside. Liverpool has won eighteen League titles, second most in English football, seven FA Cups and a record seven League Cups...
win the Football League First DivisionFootball League First DivisionThe First Division was a division of The Football League between 1888 and 2004 and the highest division in English football until the creation of the Premier League in 1992. The secondary tier in English football has since become known as the Championship....
for the sixth time in their history. - 20 April
- The Queen's son is registered as EdwardPrince Edward, Earl of WessexPrince Edward, Earl of Wessex KG GCVO is the third son and fourth child of Elizabeth II and The Duke of Edinburgh...
. - The scheduled opening night of BBC TwoBBC TwoBBC Two is the second television channel operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It covers a wide range of subject matter, but tending towards more 'highbrow' programmes than the more mainstream and popular BBC One. Like the BBC's other domestic TV and radio...
, the UK's third television channel, is disrupted by power cuts, and all that can be screened is announcer Gerald PriestlandGerald PriestlandGerald Francis Priestland was a news correspondent and newsreader for the BBC.-Early life and work:Gerald Priestland was educated at Charterhouse and New College, Oxford. He began his work at the BBC with a six-month spell writing obituary pieces for broadcast news...
delivering apologies from Alexandra PalaceAlexandra PalaceAlexandra Palace is a building in North London, England. It stands in Alexandra Park, in an area between Hornsey, Muswell Hill and Wood Green...
.
- The Queen's son is registered as Edward
- 21 April – BBC Two begins scheduled broadcasting; its first programme is Play School.
- 29 April – All schools in AberdeenAberdeenAberdeen is Scotland's third most populous city, one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas and the United Kingdom's 25th most populous city, with an official population estimate of ....
are closed following 136 cases of typhoid being reported. - 2 May
- West Ham UnitedWest Ham United F.C.West Ham United Football Club is an English professional football club based in Upton Park, Newham, East London. They play in The Football League Championship. The club was founded in 1895 as Thames Ironworks FC and reformed in 1900 as West Ham United. In 1904 the club relocated to their current...
win the FA CupFA CupThe Football Association Challenge Cup, commonly known as the FA Cup, is a knockout cup competition in English football and is the oldest association football competition in the world. The "FA Cup" is run by and named after The Football Association and usually refers to the English men's...
for the first time in their history, beating Preston North End 3-2 at Wembley Stadium. - The Queen and The Duke of EdinburghPrince Philip, Duke of EdinburghPrince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh is the husband of Elizabeth II. He is the United Kingdom's longest-serving consort and the oldest serving spouse of a reigning British monarch....
's seven-week-old son is christened Edward Antony Richard Louis – today he is The Earl of WessexPrince Edward, Earl of WessexPrince Edward, Earl of Wessex KG GCVO is the third son and fourth child of Elizabeth II and The Duke of Edinburgh...
.
- West Ham United
- 5 May – Granada TelevisionGranada TelevisionGranada Television is the ITV contractor for North West England. Based in Manchester since its inception, it is the only surviving original ITA franchisee from 1954 and is ITV's most successful....
broadcasts the first in what will become a series of documentary interviews, Seven Up! - 6 May – Joe OrtonJoe OrtonJohn Kingsley Orton was an English playwright.In a short but prolific career lasting from 1964 until his death, he shocked, outraged and amused audiences with his scandalous black comedies...
's black comedyBlack comedyA black comedy, or dark comedy, is a comic work that employs black humor or gallows humor. The definition of black humor is problematic; it has been argued that it corresponds to the earlier concept of gallows humor; and that, as humor has been defined since Freud as a comedic act that anesthetizes...
Entertaining Mr SloaneEntertaining Mr SloaneEntertaining Mr Sloane is a play by the English playwright Joe Orton. It was first produced in London at the New Arts Theatre on 6 May 1964 and transferred to the West End's Wyndham's Theatre on 29 June 1964.-Plot summary:Act 1...
premieres at the New Arts TheatreArts TheatreThe Arts Theatre is a theatre in Great Newport Street, in Westminster, Central London. It now operates as the West End's smallest commercial receiving house.-History:...
in LondonLondonLondon is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. - 11 May – Terence ConranTerence ConranSir Terence Orby Conran, FCSD, is an English designer, restaurateur, retailer and writer.-Early life and education:Terence Conran was born in Kingston upon Thames, the son of Christina Mabel and South African-born Gerard Rupert Conran, a businessman who owned a rubber importation company in East...
opens the first HabitatHabitat (retailer)Habitat Retail Ltd. is a retailer of household furnishings in the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Spain, and has franchised outlets in other countries. Founded in 1964 by Terence Conran, it was sold by the IKANO Group, owned by the Kamprad family, in December 2009 to Hilco, a restructuring...
store on London's Fulham RoadFulham RoadFulham Road is a street in London, England, that runs from the A219 road in right in the centre of Fulham, in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, through Chelsea to Brompton Road Knightsbridge and the A4 in Brompton, in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea.Fulham Road runs parallel...
. - 15 May – Lord Justice Pearson reports on the power dispute.
- 27 May – Pirate radio station Radio SutchRadio City (pirate radio station)Radio City was a British pirate radio station that broadcast from Shivering Sands Army Fort, one of the abandoned Second World War Maunsell Sea Forts in the Thames Estuary.- Origins :...
begins broadcasting from Shivering Sands Army FortShivering Sands Army FortShivering Sands Army Fort [U7] was a Maunsell army fort built near the Thames estuary for anti-aircraft defence. It is made up of several once interconnected towers north of Herne Bay and is 9.2 miles from the nearest land. They can be viewed from Shoeburyness East Beach on clear, cloudless summer...
in the Thames EstuaryThames EstuaryThe Thames Mouth is the estuary in which the River Thames meets the waters of the North Sea.It is not easy to define the limits of the estuary, although physically the head of Sea Reach, near Canvey Island on the Essex shore is probably the western boundary...
. - 17 June – A missing persons investigation is launched in FallowfieldFallowfieldLadybarn is the part of Fallowfield to the south-east. Chancellors Hotel & Conference Centre is used by the University of Manchester: it was built by Edward Walters for Sir Joseph Whitworth, as were the Firs Botanical Grounds.-Religion:...
, ManchesterManchesterManchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
, as police search for twelve-year-old Keith Bennett, who went missing on the previous evening. - July – Helen Brook sets up the first Brook Advisory Centre offering teenage contraception and sexual health advice.
- 6 July
- MalawiMalawiThe Republic of Malawi is a landlocked country in southeast Africa that was formerly known as Nyasaland. It is bordered by Zambia to the northwest, Tanzania to the northeast, and Mozambique on the east, south and west. The country is separated from Tanzania and Mozambique by Lake Malawi. Its size...
gains its independence. - The BeatlesThe BeatlesThe Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
' first film, A Hard Day's NightA Hard Day's Night (film)A Hard Day's Night is a 1964 British black-and-white comedy film directed by Richard Lester and starring The Beatles—John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr—during the height of Beatlemania. It was written by Alun Owen and originally released by United Artists...
, is released.
- Malawi
- 10 July – More than 300 people are injured in LiverpoolLiverpoolLiverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
when a crowd of some 150,000 people welcome The Beatles back to their home city. - 15 July – The Post Office TowerBT TowerThe BT Tower is a tall cylindrical building in London, United Kingdom, located at 60 Cleveland Street, Fitzrovia W1T 4JZ, London Borough of Camden. It has been previously known as the Post Office Tower, the London Telecom Tower and the British Telecom Tower. The main structure is tall, with a...
in London is completed, although it does not begin operation until October 1965. - 28 July – Winston ChurchillWinston ChurchillSir Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill, was a predominantly Conservative British politician and statesman known for his leadership of the United Kingdom during the Second World War. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest wartime leaders of the century and served as Prime Minister twice...
retires from the House of Commons at the age of 89. - 4 August – The first portable televisions go on sale.
- 13 August – Peter Anthony Allen, at Walton PrisonLiverpool (HM Prison)HM Prison Liverpool is a categoryB/C local men's prison, located in the Walton area of Liverpool in England. The prison is operated by Her Majesty's Prison Service.-History:...
in LiverpoolLiverpoolLiverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
, and Gwynne Owen Evans, at Strangeways PrisonManchester (HM Prison)HM Prison Manchester is a high-security male prison situated in Manchester, England operated by Her Majesty's Prison Service. It is a local Prison, holding prisoners remanded into custody from the courts in the Manchester area as well as a number of Category A prisoners.HM Prison Manchester was...
in ManchesterManchesterManchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
, are hangedHangingHanging is the lethal suspension of a person by a ligature. The Oxford English Dictionary states that hanging in this sense is "specifically to put to death by suspension by the neck", though it formerly also referred to crucifixion and death by impalement in which the body would remain...
for the murder of John Alan WestJohn Alan WestJohn Alan West was a 53-year-old laundry van driver from Seaton, Cumberland, England, murdered by two men on 7 April 1964. His murder led to the executions of Peter Allen and Gwynne Evans — the last executions in the United Kingdom.-Crime and arrest:John West, who lived alone, had returned to...
on 7 April, the last executions to take place in the British Isles. - 22 August – The first Match of the DayMatch of the DayMatch of the Day is the BBC's main football television programme. Typically, it is shown on BBC One on Saturday evenings during the English football season, showing highlights of the day's matches in English football's top division, the Premier League...
airs on BBC TwoBBC TwoBBC Two is the second television channel operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It covers a wide range of subject matter, but tending towards more 'highbrow' programmes than the more mainstream and popular BBC One. Like the BBC's other domestic TV and radio...
television. - 4 September – Forth Road BridgeForth Road BridgeThe Forth Road Bridge is a suspension bridge in east central Scotland. The bridge, opened in 1964, spans the Firth of Forth, connecting the capital city Edinburgh, at South Queensferry, to Fife, at North Queensferry...
opens over the Firth of ForthFirth of ForthThe Firth of Forth is the estuary or firth of Scotland's River Forth, where it flows into the North Sea, between Fife to the north, and West Lothian, the City of Edinburgh and East Lothian to the south...
, linking FifeFifeFife is a council area and former county of Scotland. It is situated between the Firth of Tay and the Firth of Forth, with inland boundaries to Perth and Kinross and Clackmannanshire...
and EdinburghEdinburghEdinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
. - 14 September – The final edition of the Daily Herald newspaper is published.
- 15 September
- The SunThe Sun (newspaper)The Sun is a daily national tabloid newspaper published in the United Kingdom and owned by News Corporation. Sister editions are published in Glasgow and Dublin...
newspaper goes into circulation. - Sir Alec Douglas-Home calls a general election for 15 October.
- The Sun
- 21 September – MaltaMaltaMalta , officially known as the Republic of Malta , is a Southern European country consisting of an archipelago situated in the centre of the Mediterranean, south of Sicily, east of Tunisia and north of Libya, with Gibraltar to the west and Alexandria to the east.Malta covers just over in...
obtains independence from the UK. - 29 September – Announcement that American car manufacturer ChryslerChryslerChrysler Group LLC is a multinational automaker headquartered in Auburn Hills, Michigan, USA. Chrysler was first organized as the Chrysler Corporation in 1925....
is taking a substantial share in the British Rootes Group combine, which includes the HillmanHillmanHillman is a British automobile marque created by the Hillman Motor Car Company, founded in 1907. The company was based in Ryton-on-Dunsmore, near Coventry, England. Before 1907 the company had built bicycles...
, Singer and Sunbeam marques. - October – Dorothy Crowfoot HodgkinDorothy Crowfoot HodgkinDorothy Mary Hodgkin OM, FRS , née Crowfoot, was a British chemist, credited with the development of protein crystallography....
wins the Nobel Prize in ChemistryNobel Prize in ChemistryThe Nobel Prize in Chemistry is awarded annually by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences to scientists in the various fields of chemistry. It is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the will of Alfred Nobel in 1895, awarded for outstanding contributions in chemistry, physics, literature,...
(the first British woman to win a Nobel) "for her determinations by X-ray techniques of the structures of important biochemical substances". - 10 October–24 October – Great Britain competes at the Olympics1964 Summer OlympicsThe 1964 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XVIII Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event held in Tokyo, Japan in 1964. Tokyo had been awarded with the organization of the 1940 Summer Olympics, but this honor was subsequently passed to Helsinki because of Japan's...
in Tokyo and wins 4 gold, 12 silver and 2 bronze medals. - 15 October – The General electionUnited Kingdom general election, 1964The United Kingdom general election of 1964 was held on 15 October 1964, more than five years after the preceding election, and thirteen years after the Conservative Party had retaken power...
is held. The Labour PartyLabour Party (UK)The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
defeats the ConservativesConservative Party (UK)The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
. Harold WilsonHarold WilsonJames Harold Wilson, Baron Wilson of Rievaulx, KG, OBE, FRS, FSS, PC was a British Labour Member of Parliament, Leader of the Labour Party. He was twice Prime Minister of the United Kingdom during the 1960s and 1970s, winning four general elections, including a minority government after the...
becomes Britain's first Labour Prime Minister in thirteen years, replacing Alec Douglas-HomeAlec Douglas-HomeAlexander Frederick Douglas-Home, Baron Home of the Hirsel, KT, PC , known as The Earl of Home from 1951 to 1963 and as Sir Alec Douglas-Home from 1963 to 1974, was a British Conservative politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from October 1963 to October 1964.He is the last...
, having gained a majority of five seats. - 17 October – Harold Wilson's cabinet is announced; it includes James CallaghanJames CallaghanLeonard James Callaghan, Baron Callaghan of Cardiff, KG, PC , was a British Labour politician, who was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1976 to 1979 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1976 to 1980...
, Denis HealeyDenis HealeyDenis Winston Healey, Baron Healey CH, MBE, PC is a British Labour politician, who served as Secretary of State for Defence from 1964 to 1970 and Chancellor of the Exchequer from 1974 to 1979.-Early life:...
, Barbara CastleBarbara CastleBarbara Anne Castle, Baroness Castle of Blackburn , PC, GCOT was a British Labour Party politician....
and Roy JenkinsRoy JenkinsRoy Harris Jenkins, Baron Jenkins of Hillhead OM, PC was a British politician.The son of a Welsh coal miner who later became a union official and Labour MP, Roy Jenkins served with distinction in World War II. Elected to Parliament as a Labour member in 1948, he served in several major posts in...
. Jim GriffithsJim GriffithsJames "Jim" Griffiths CH , was a Welsh Labour politician, trade union leader and the first ever Secretary of State for Wales.-Background and education:...
becomes the first Secretary of State for WalesSecretary of State for WalesThe Secretary of State for Wales is the head of the Wales Office within the British cabinet. He or she is responsible for ensuring Welsh interests are taken into account by the government, representing the government within Wales and overseeing the passing of legislation which is only for Wales...
. - 18 October – Wilson creates the Welsh OfficeWelsh OfficeThe Welsh Office was a department in the Government of the United Kingdom with responsibilities for Wales. It was established in April 1965 to execute government policy in Wales, and was headed by the Secretary of State for Wales, a post which had been created in October 1964...
. - 24 October – Northern RhodesiaRhodesiaRhodesia , officially the Republic of Rhodesia from 1970, was an unrecognised state located in southern Africa that existed between 1965 and 1979 following its Unilateral Declaration of Independence from the United Kingdom on 11 November 1965...
, a former British protectorate, becomes the independent Republic of ZambiaZambiaZambia , officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. The neighbouring countries are the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the north, Tanzania to the north-east, Malawi to the east, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Botswana and Namibia to the south, and Angola to the west....
, ending 73 years of British rule. - 2 November – ITV soap opera Crossroads airs for the first time.
- 9 November – House of CommonsBritish House of CommonsThe House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which also comprises the Sovereign and the House of Lords . Both Commons and Lords meet in the Palace of Westminster. The Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 650 members , who are known as Members...
votes to abolish the death penalty for murder in Britain. The last execution took place in August and the death penalty is set to be officially abolished before the end of next year1965 in the United KingdomEvents of the year 1965 in the United Kingdom.-Incumbents:*Monarch – Elizabeth II*Prime Minister – Harold Wilson, Labour-Events:*1 January – Introduction of new "Worboys Committee" road signs....
. - 27 November – Power unions announce that they will start ballotBallotA ballot is a device used to record choices made by voters. Each voter uses one ballot, and ballots are not shared. In the simplest elections, a ballot may be a simple scrap of paper on which each voter writes in the name of a candidate, but governmental elections use pre-printed to protect the...
ing for a strikeStrike actionStrike action, also called labour strike, on strike, greve , or simply strike, is a work stoppage caused by the mass refusal of employees to work. A strike usually takes place in response to employee grievances. Strikes became important during the industrial revolution, when mass labour became...
. - 30 November – Power dispute settled and strike action called off.
- 16 December – Government, Trades Union CongressTrades Union CongressThe Trades Union Congress is a national trade union centre, a federation of trade unions in the United Kingdom, representing the majority of trade unions...
and employers produce a joint Statement of Intent on Productivity, Prices and Incomes. - 21 December – MP's vote 355 to 170 for the abolition of the death penalty, with the abolition likely to be confirmed before the end of next year. The death penalty has gradually fallen out of use over the last twenty years, with the two most recent executions having taken place in August this year.
- 23 December – Richard BeechingRichard BeechingRichard Beeching, Baron Beeching , commonly known as Doctor Beeching, was chairman of British Railways and a physicist and engineer...
announces his intention to resign as Chairman of the British Railways BoardBritish Railways BoardThe British Railways Board was a nationalised industry in the United Kingdom that existed from 1962 to 2001. From its foundation until 1997, it was responsible for most railway services in Great Britain, trading under the brand names British Railways and, from 1965, British Rail...
after three-and-a-half years, during which he ordered the closure of many smaller and financially non-viableBeeching AxeThe Beeching Axe or the Beeching Cuts are informal names for the British Government's attempt in the 1960s to reduce the cost of running British Railways, the nationalised railway system in the United Kingdom. The name is that of the main author of The Reshaping of British Railways, Dr Richard...
railways. - 24 December – The BeatlesThe BeatlesThe Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
gain the Christmas number one for the second year running with I Feel FineI Feel Fine"I Feel Fine" is a riff-driven rock song written by John Lennon and released in 1964 by The Beatles as the A-side of their eighth British single. The song is notable for the use of feedback on a recording for the first time by any musician...
, which has topped the singles charts for the third week running. The Beatles have now had six number ones in the United Kingdom alone. - 26 December – Police launch a missing persons investigation after ten-year-old Lesley Ann Downey goes missing from a fairground in AncoatsAncoatsAncoats is an inner city area of Manchester, in North West England, next to the Northern Quarter and the northern part of Manchester's commercial centre....
, ManchesterManchesterManchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
. - 31 December – Donald CampbellDonald CampbellDonald Malcolm Campbell, CBE was a British speed record breaker who broke eight world speed records in the 1950s and 1960s...
sets the world speed record on water at 276.33 mph on Dumbleyung LakeDumbleyung LakeDumbleyung Lake, also widely known as Lake Dumbleyung, is a salt lake in Western Australia. It is located at , in the Great Southern region of Western Australia...
in Australia.
Undated
- Resale Prices Act ends most resale price maintenanceResale price maintenanceResale price maintenance is the practice whereby a manufacturer and its distributors agree that the latter will sell the former's product at certain prices , at or above a price floor or at or below a price ceiling...
. - Hanson TrustHanson plcHanson plc is a British based international building materials company, headquartered in Maidenhead. Traded on the London Stock Exchange and a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index for many years, the company was acquired by a division of German rival Heidelberg Cement in August 2007.-History:Hanson...
set up by James HansonJames Hanson, Baron HansonJames Edward, Baron Hanson was an English Conservative industrialist who built his businesses through the process of leveraged buyouts through Hanson plc.-Career:...
and Gordon White to purchase underperforming companies and turn them around. - London premiere of Frank MarcusFrank MarcusFrank Marcus was a British playwright, best known for The Killing of Sister George.-Life:Frank Ulrich Marcus was born 30 June 1928 into a Jewish family in Breslau . They came to England as refugees in 1939...
' farce The Killing of Sister GeorgeThe Killing of Sister GeorgeThe Killing of Sister George is a 1964 play by Frank Marcus that was adapted as a 1968 film directed by Robert Aldrich.- Stage version :Sister George is a beloved character in the popular radio series Applehurst, a nurse who ministers to the medical needs and personal problems of the local villagers...
, one of the first mainstream British plays with lesbianLesbianLesbian is a term most widely used in the English language to describe sexual and romantic desire between females. The word may be used as a noun, to refer to women who identify themselves or who are characterized by others as having the primary attribute of female homosexuality, or as an...
characters. - The European Car of the YearEuropean Car of the YearThe European Car of the Year award was established in 1964 by a collective of automobile magazines from different countries in Europe. The current organisers of the award are Auto , Autocar , Autopista , Autovisie , L'Automobile Magazine , Stern and Vi Bilägare .The voting jury consists of motoring...
award, in its second year, is again won by a British Motor CorporationBritish Motor CorporationThe British Motor Corporation, or commonly known as BMC was a vehicle manufacturer from United Kingdom, formed by the merger of the Austin Motor Company and the Nuffield Organisation in 1952...
product, this time the Austin 1800Austin 1800BMC ADO17 was the model code used by the British Motor Corporation for a range of cars produced from September 1964 to 1975 and sold initially under its Austin marque as the Austin 1800. The car was also sold as the Morris 1800 and Wolseley 18/85, and later as the Austin 2200, Morris 2200 and...
large family saloon. - Daihatsu becomes the first JapanJapanJapan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese carmaker to import passenger cars to the United Kingdom, launching its CompagnoDaihatsu CompagnoThe Daihatsu Compagno is an automobile which was produced by Daihatsu in Japan from 1964 to 1970. The Compagno was designed prior to the acquisition of Daihatsu by Toyota in 1967 and was available as a four-cylinder, two-door sedan or convertible....
on the British market.
Publications
- Agatha ChristieAgatha ChristieDame Agatha Christie DBE was a British crime writer of novels, short stories, and plays. She also wrote romances under the name Mary Westmacott, but she is best remembered for her 66 detective novels and 14 short story collections , and her successful West End plays.According to...
's Miss MarpleMiss MarpleJane Marple, usually referred to as Miss Marple, is a fictional character appearing in twelve of Agatha Christie's crime novels and in twenty short stories. Miss Marple is an elderly spinster who lives in the village of St. Mary Mead and acts as an amateur detective. She is one of the most famous...
novel A Caribbean MysteryA Caribbean MysteryA Caribbean Mystery is a work of detective fiction by Agatha Christie, first published in the UK by the Collins Crime Club on November 16, 1964 and in the United States by Dodd, Mead and Company the following year. The UK edition retailed at sixteen shillings and the US edition at $4.50...
. - Ian FlemingIan FlemingIan Lancaster Fleming was a British author, journalist and Naval Intelligence Officer.Fleming is best known for creating the fictional British spy James Bond and for a series of twelve novels and nine short stories about the character, one of the biggest-selling series of fictional books of...
's James BondJames BondJames Bond, code name 007, is a fictional character created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short story collections. There have been a six other authors who wrote authorised Bond novels or novelizations after Fleming's death in 1964: Kingsley Amis,...
novel You Only Live Twice and his children's novel Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. - William GoldingWilliam GoldingSir William Gerald Golding was a British novelist, poet, playwright and Nobel Prize for Literature laureate, best known for his novel Lord of the Flies...
's novel The SpireThe SpireThe Spire is a 1964 novel by the English author William Golding. "A dark and powerful portrait of one man's will", it deals with the construction of the 404-foot high spire of Salisbury Cathedral; the vision of the fictional Dean Jocelin...
. - Philip LarkinPhilip LarkinPhilip Arthur Larkin, CH, CBE, FRSL is widely regarded as one of the great English poets of the latter half of the twentieth century...
's poetry collection The Whitsun WeddingsThe Whitsun Weddings (book)The Whitsun Weddings is a collection of 32 poems by Philip Larkin. It was first published by Faber and Faber in the United Kingdom on 28 February 1964. It was a commercial success, by the standards of poetry publication, with the first 4,000 copies being sold within two months. A U.S...
. - Ruth RendellRuth RendellRuth Barbara Rendell, Baroness Rendell of Babergh, CBE, , who also writes under the pseudonym Barbara Vine, is an English crime writer, author of psychological thrillers and murder mysteries....
's first novel From Doon with DeathFrom Doon With DeathFrom Doon with Death is the debut novel of British writer Ruth Rendell, first published in 1964. The story was later made into a movie in 1988. The novel introduced her popular recurring character Inspector Wexford, who has since gone on to feature in 20 of her novels.- Plot summary:The police knew...
. - The research study London: aspects of change, introducing Ruth GlassRuth GlassRuth Glass was a German-born British sociologist.Glass's work reflected her belief "that the purpose of sociological research was to influence government policy and bring about social change"...
's concept of gentrificationGentrificationGentrification and urban gentrification refer to the changes that result when wealthier people acquire or rent property in low income and working class communities. Urban gentrification is associated with movement. Consequent to gentrification, the average income increases and average family size...
.
Births
- 13 January – Bill BaileyBill BaileyBill Bailey is an English comedian, musician and actor. As well as his extensive stand-up work, Bailey is well known for his appearances on Black Books, Never Mind the Buzzcocks, Have I Got News for You, and QI.Bailey was listed by The Observer as one of the 50 funniest acts in British comedy in...
, comedian - 16 February – Christopher EcclestonChristopher EcclestonChristopher Eccleston is an English stage, film and television actor. His films include Let Him Have It, Shallow Grave, Elizabeth, 28 Days Later, Gone in 60 Seconds, The Others, and G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra...
, actor - 29 February – James OgilvyJames OgilvyJames Robert Bruce Ogilvy is the elder child and only son of the late Sir Angus Ogilvy and Princess Alexandra of Kent. He was born in Thatched House Lodge, Richmond Park, Surrey and was the first of four babies born to royals in 1964. When he was born he was 13th in the line of succession to the...
, son of Princess Alexandra, The Honourable Lady OgilvyPrincess Alexandra, The Honourable Lady OgilvyPrincess Alexandra, The Honourable Lady Ogilvy is the youngest granddaughter of King George V of the United Kingdom and Mary of Teck. She is the widow of Sir Angus Ogilvy...
and the Sir Angus OgilvyAngus OgilvySir Angus James Bruce Ogilvy, was a British businessman best known as the husband of Princess Alexandra of Kent, a first cousin of Queen Elizabeth II.... - 10 March – The Prince Edward (now The Earl of Wessex)Prince Edward, Earl of WessexPrince Edward, Earl of Wessex KG GCVO is the third son and fourth child of Elizabeth II and The Duke of Edinburgh...
, youngest son of The Queen - 11 March – Shane RichieShane RichieShane Richie is an English actor, comedian, singer and media personality, known for his portrayal of the character Alfie Moon in the BBC One soap opera EastEnders.-Early life and career beginnings:...
, actor - 17 March - Lee DixonLee DixonLee Michael Dixon is a former English professional footballer born in Manchester.He formed part of the Arsenal defence from the late 1980s, through till 2002. He was capped 22 times for England, scoring once....
, English footballer - 26 March – Martin Donnelly, Northern Irish racecar driver
- 3 April – Nigel FarageNigel FarageNigel Paul Farage MEP , a position he previously held from September 2006 to November 2009. He is a current Member of the European Parliament for South East England and co-chairs the Eurosceptic Europe of Freedom and Democracy group....
, United Kingdom Independence PartyUnited Kingdom Independence PartyThe United Kingdom Independence Party is a eurosceptic and right-wing populist political party in the United Kingdom. Whilst its primary goal is the UK's withdrawal from the European Union, the party has expanded beyond its single-issue image to develop a more comprehensive party platform.UKIP...
leader and MEPMember of the European ParliamentA Member of the European Parliament is a person who has been elected to the European Parliament. The name of MEPs differ in different languages, with terms such as europarliamentarian or eurodeputy being common in Romance language-speaking areas.When the European Parliament was first established,...
for South East EnglandSouth East England (European Parliament constituency)South East England is a constituency of the European Parliament. It currently elects 10 Members of the European Parliament using the D'Hondt method of party-list proportional representation.- Boundaries :... - 18 April – Niall FergusonNiall FergusonNiall Campbell Douglas Ferguson is a British historian. His specialty is financial and economic history, particularly hyperinflation and the bond markets, as well as the history of colonialism.....
, Scottish historian - 20 April - Andy SerkisAndy SerkisAndrew Clement G. "Andy" Serkis is an English actor, director and author. He is popularly known for playing Gollum in The Lord of the Rings film trilogy, for which he earned several award nominations, including the Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in The Two Towers...
, English actor - 25 April – Andy BellAndy Bell (singer)Andrew Ivan "Andy" Bell is the lead singer of the English synthpop duo Erasure. He also has a solo career, with the albums Non-Stop and Electric Blue.-Early life:Andy Bell originates from the Dogsthorpe area in Peterborough...
, singer and songwriter (band ErasureErasureErasure are an English synthpop duo, consisting of songwriter and keyboardist Vince Clarke and singer Andy Bell. Erasure entered the music scene in 1985 with their debut single "Who Needs Love Like That"...
) - 28 April – Lady Helen TaylorLady Helen TaylorThe Lady Helen Taylor A first cousin once removed of Queen Elizabeth II, she is a great-granddaughter of King George V of the United Kingdom and is in the line of succession to the British throne....
, daughter of The DukePrince Edward, Duke of KentThe Duke of Kent graduated from the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst on 29 July 1955 as a Second Lieutenant in the Royal Scots Greys, the beginning of a military career that would last over 20 years. He was promoted to captain on 29 July 1961. The Duke of Kent saw service in Hong Kong from 1962–63...
and Duchess of Kent - 1 May – Lady Sarah ChattoLady Sarah ChattoThe Lady Sarah Frances Elizabeth Chatto, née Armstrong-Jones , is the only daughter of the 1st Earl of Snowdon and Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon, the second daughter of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth. She is 17th in line of succession to the thrones of each of the Commonwealth Realms;...
, daughter of Antony Armstrong-Jones, 1st Earl of SnowdonAntony Armstrong-Jones, 1st Earl of SnowdonAntony Charles Robert Armstrong-Jones, 1st Earl of Snowdon, GCVO, RDI is an English photographer and film maker. He was married to Princess Margaret, younger daughter of King George VI and younger sister of Queen Elizabeth II....
and Princess Margaret, Countess of SnowdonPrincess Margaret, Countess of SnowdonPrincess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon was the younger sister of Queen Elizabeth II and the younger daughter of King George VI.... - 24 May – Adrian MoorhouseAdrian MoorhouseAdrian David Moorhouse MBE is a British former swimmer who dominated British swimming in the late 1980s. He won the 100 m breaststroke gold medal at the Seoul Olympics. Since then Moorhouse, a former pupil of Bradford Grammar School, has translated his sporting success to a successful career...
, swimmer - 13 June – Kathy BurkeKathy BurkeKatherine Lucy Bridget Burke is an English actress, comedienne, playwright and theatre director. She is best known for her portrayals of Perry in the Harry Enfield film Kevin and Perry Go Large, and of Linda La Hughes in the British sitcom Gimme Gimme Gimme...
, actress and comedienne - 3 July – Joanne HarrisJoanne HarrisJoanne Michèle Sylvie Harris is a British author.Biography=Born to a French mother and an English father in her grandparents' sweet shop, her family life was filled with food and folklore. Her great-grandmother had an odd reputation and enjoyed letting the gullible think she was a witch and healer...
, novelist - 21 July - Ross KempRoss KempRoss James Kemp is a BAFTA award-winning British actor, author and journalist, who rose to prominence in the role of Grant Mitchell in the BBC soap opera, EastEnders...
, English actor - 22 July – Bonnie LangfordBonnie LangfordBonita Melody Lysette "Bonnie" Langford is an English actress, dancer and entertainer. She came to prominence as a child star in the early 1970s then she subsequently became a companion of Colin Baker and Sylvester McCoy's Doctor Who and has appeared on stage in various musicals such as Peter Pan:...
, actress and entertainer - 3 October - Clive OwenClive OwenClive Owen is an English actor, who has worked on television, stage and film. He first gained recognition in the United Kingdom for portraying the lead in the ITV series Chancer from 1990 to 1991...
, English actor - 7 October - Paul Stewart, English footballer
- 7 November – Philip HollobonePhilip HollobonePhilip Thomas Hollobone is a British Conservative Party politician who is both a Member of Parliament for the Kettering constituency and a member of Kettering Borough Council for the Piper's Hill ward .-Early life:Hollobone was educated at Dulwich College, London, and Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford...
, British Conservative politician and MP for KetteringKettering (UK Parliament constituency)Kettering is a county constituency in Northamptonshire which returns one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom.... - 25 December - Gary McAllisterGary McAllisterGary McAllister MBE is a Scottish former professional footballer.McAllister played primarily as a midfielder, in a successful career spanning over nineteen years. He started his career at local side Motherwell before moving south of the border to Leicester City at the age of 20...
, Scottish footballer, football manager and football coach
Deaths
- 17 January – T.H. White, author (born 19061906 in the United KingdomEvents from the year 1906 in the United Kingdom.-Incumbents:*Monarch - King Edward VII*Prime Minister - Henry Campbell-Bannerman, Liberal-Events:...
) - 21 March – Nancy SpainNancy SpainNancy Brooker Spain was a prominent English broadcaster and journalist.She spent much of her youth in Jesmond, Newcastle upon Tyne. Her father was Lieutenant-Colonel Spain, a freeman of the city and a prominent figure in local military and antiquarian affairs...
(born 1917) and Joan Werner LaurieJoan Werner LaurieJoan Werner Laurie was the daughter of Thomas Werner Laurie, a London publisher with a reputation for publishing risqué titles...
(born 1920), journalists, in the crash of a light plane near Aintree - 9 June – Max Aitken, 1st Baron BeaverbrookMax Aitken, 1st Baron BeaverbrookWilliam Maxwell "Max" Aitken, 1st Baron Beaverbrook, Bt, PC, was a Canadian-British business tycoon, politician, and writer.-Early career in Canada:...
, Canadian-British business tycoon, politician and writer (born 18791879 in the United KingdomEvents from the year 1879 in the United Kingdom.-Incumbents:*Monarch — Queen Victoria*Prime Minister — Benjamin Disraeli, Conservative-Events:* 1 January — Benjamin Henry Blackwell opens the first Blackwell's bookshop in Oxford....
) - 21 July - John White, footballer (born 19371937 in the United KingdomEvents from the year 1937 in the United Kingdom.-Incumbents:*Monarch – King George VI*Prime Minister – Stanley Baldwin, national coalition , Neville Chamberlain, national coalition-Events:...
) - 12 August – Ian FlemingIan FlemingIan Lancaster Fleming was a British author, journalist and Naval Intelligence Officer.Fleming is best known for creating the fictional British spy James Bond and for a series of twelve novels and nine short stories about the character, one of the biggest-selling series of fictional books of...
, author and journalist (born 19081908 in the United KingdomEvents from the year 1908 in the United Kingdom.-Incumbents:*Monarch - King Edward VII*Prime Minister - Henry Campbell-Bannerman, Liberal , H. H...
) - 18 September – Clive BellClive BellArthur Clive Heward Bell was an English Art critic, associated with formalism and the Bloomsbury Group.- Origins :Clive Bell was born in East Shefford, Berkshire, in 1881...
, art critic (born 18811881 in the United KingdomEvents from the year 1881 in the United Kingdom.-Incumbents:*Monarch — Queen Victoria*Prime Minister — William Ewart Gladstone, Liberal-Events:* 1 January — Postal orders issued for the first time in Britain....
) - 1 December – J. B. S. HaldaneJ. B. S. HaldaneJohn Burdon Sanderson Haldane FRS , known as Jack , was a British-born geneticist and evolutionary biologist. A staunch Marxist, he was critical of Britain's role in the Suez Crisis, and chose to leave Oxford and moved to India and became an Indian citizen...
, geneticist (born 18921892 in the United KingdomEvents from the year 1892 in the United Kingdom.-Incumbents:*Monarch — Queen Victoria*Prime Minister — Robert Cecil, Marquess of Salisbury, Conservative , William Ewart Gladstone, Liberal-Events:...
) - 8 December – Simon Marks, 1st Baron Marks of Broughton, businessman (born 18881888 in the United KingdomEvents from the year 1888 in the United Kingdom.-Incumbents:*Monarch — Queen Victoria*Prime Minister — Robert Cecil, Marquess of Salisbury, Conservative-Events:* 26 January — The Lawn Tennis Association is founded....
) - 9 December – Edith SitwellEdith SitwellDame Edith Louisa Sitwell DBE was a British poet and critic.-Background:Edith Sitwell was born in Scarborough, North Yorkshire, the oldest child and only daughter of Sir George Sitwell, 4th Baronet, of Renishaw Hall; he was an expert on genealogy and landscaping...
, poet (born 18871887 in the United KingdomEvents from the year 1887 in the United Kingdom. This is the Queen's Golden Jubilee year.-Incumbents:*Monarch — Queen Victoria*Prime Minister — Robert Cecil, Marquess of Salisbury, Conservative-Events:...
) - 24 December – Claudia JonesClaudia JonesClaudia Cumberbatch Jones was a Trinidadian journalist, who applied her skills to becoming a political activist and black nationalist through Communisum....
, black activist (born 19151915 in the United KingdomEvents from the year 1915 in the United Kingdom. This year is dominated by World War I, which had broken out in the August of the previous year.-Incumbents:*Monarch - King George V*Prime Minister - H. H...
)