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1986 Soviets launch space station Mir
The Soviets have opened a new phase in space exploration with the launch of the world’s biggest space station, Mir. The successful launch of ... -
1978 Italy mourns murdered statesman
The murdered Italian politician Aldo Moro has been buried after a private funeral service and the Interior Minister, Francesco Cossiga, has resigned. Italians stopped ... -
1972 Israeli commandos storm hijacked jet
Twelve Israeli soldiers disguised as maintenance staff have stormed a hijacked Sabena Boeing at Lod airport in Tel Aviv and released the 100 people ... -
1984 Moscow pulls out of US Olympics
Twelve weeks before the opening ceremony of the Los Angeles Olympic Games, the USSR has announced it is boycotting them. It is expected most ... -
1980 SAS rescue ends Iran embassy siege
The siege of the Iranian embassy in London has ended after a dramatic raid by SAS commandos. Five Iranian gunmen were killed and one ... -
1979 Election victory for Margaret Thatcher
The Conservative Party has won the general election making Margaret Thatcher Britain’s first ever woman prime minister. Mrs Thatcher arrived at Downing Street to ... -
1994 Race ace Senna killed in car crash
The Brazilian racing driver Ayrton Senna has been killed in a crash at the San Marino Grand Prix at Imola, near Bologna in Italy. ... -
2001 First space tourist blasts off
A billionaire businessman from California has become the first paying passenger to go to outer space. Dennis Tito, aged 60, set off from Kazakhstan ... -
1984 Libyan embassy siege ends
The siege of the Libyan Embassy in St James’s Square in London is over. In the end, the diplomats, holed up in the building ... -
1984 Reagan arrives in China
The US President, Ronald Reagan, has landed in China at the start of a six-day visit – the first by an American president since ... -
1974 Rebels seize control of Portugal
Army rebels are in control of Portugal tonight after an almost bloodless dawn coup ended nearly 50 years of dictatorship. Shortly after midnight, tanks ... -
1993 IRA bomb devastates City of London
A massive bomb has ripped through the heart of the City of London, killing one and injuring more than 40. The explosion shook buildings ... -
1955 Fleet Street papers back after strike
National newspapers have been published for the first time in nearly a month following the end of the maintenance workers’ strike. The stoppage was ... -
1953 UN and Korea begin prisoner exchange
The Allies and Korea have exchanged sick and wounded prisoners of war at Panmunjon, just a mile away from continued fighting at the north-south ... -
1993 Waco cult siege ends with inferno
At least 70 people are feared to have died in a fire at the besieged headquarters of the Branch Davidian sect near Waco, Texas. ... -
1955 Albert Einstein dies
Albert Einstein has died in hospital in Princeton, New Jersey, aged 76. The eminent scientist and originator of the theory of relativity was admitted ... -
1999 Dozens hurt in London bomb blast
An explosion outside a busy supermarket in Brixton, south London, has injured at least 45 people. At least four of the casualties – including ... -
1970 Critical explosion cripples Apollo 13
An explosion on board Apollo 13 has caused one of the most critical situations in American space history and put the lives of the ... -
1997 Tiger Woods wins Masters at 21
The 21-year-old golfing sensation Eldrick “Tiger” Woods has become the youngest-ever player to win the US Masters Championships. He put in a virtuoso performance ... -
1957 Britain agrees to Singapore self-rule
The British government is to allow the island colony of Singapore to govern itself under a new constitution agreed in London. The Singapore Constitutional ... -
1955 Sir Winston Churchill resigns
Sir Winston Churchill has resigned as prime minister of Britain due to his failing health. The news was announced in a statement from Buckingham ... -
1968 Martin Luther King shot dead
The American black civil rights leader, Dr Martin Luther King, has been assassinated. Dr King was shot dead in the southern US city of ... -
1995 MPs move to outlaw hunting
A bill which would ban hunting with hounds in England and Wales has become the first such proposal to get a second reading in ... -
1966 Harold Wilson wins sweeping victory
The Labour party is on course to win the general election with a majority of about 100 seats in the House of Commons. Prime ... -
1981 President Reagan is shot
President Ronald Reagan has been shot and wounded after a lone gunman opened fire in Washington. He is currently undergoing emergency surgery at George ... -
1971 Calley guilty of My Lai massacre
Lieutenant William Calley has been found guilty of murder at a court martial for his part in the My Lai massacre which claimed the ... -
1965 Thousands join Dr King in Alabama rally
Dr Martin Luther King has taken a crowd of nearly 25,000 people to the steps of the state capital of Montgomery, Alabama to highlight ... -
1989 Millions of Russians go to the polls
Millions of Russian voters have gone to the polls, with early results suggesting that a number of Communist candidates have been rejected by the ... -
1992 Punch ends 150 years of satire
Punch, Britain’s oldest satirical magazine, is to close after suffering crippling losses of £1.5m a year. The decision ends a publishing tradition dating back ... -
1983: Reagan launches Cold War into space
President Reagan has unveiled plans to combat nuclear war in space. The Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI) proposes a defensive shield, using laser or particle ... -
1979 British ambassador assassinated in Holland
British ambassador in Holland Sir Richard Sykes has been shot dead outside his Dutch home. Two gunmen opened fire on Sir Richard and his ... -
1963 Train drives itself
The first automatic train on the London underground could be hurtling into stations in three weeks, the government has revealed. The trains, which operate ... -
1966 Football’s World Cup stolen
The football World Cup has been stolen while on exhibition at Central Hall in Westminster, London. The £30,000 solid gold Jules Rimet trophy disappeared ... -
1968 Anti-Vietnam demo turns violent
More than 200 people have been arrested after thousands of demonstrators clashed in an anti-Vietnam war protest outside the United States embassy in London. ... -
1978 Aldo Moro snatched at gunpoint
Former Italian prime minister Aldo Moro has been kidnapped in Rome. Mr Moro’s escort of five police bodyguards were killed when he was snatched ...
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