Tag: This Day in History
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1972 Miners strike against government
Coal miners walked out at midnight in their first national strike for almost 50 years. Three months of negotiations with the National Coal Board ended in ... -
1989 Dozens die as plane crashes on motorway
A Boeing 737 airplane has crashed onto the M1 motorway near East Midlands airport, killing 46 people. Eighty have survived, of whom ten are seriously injured. ... -
1981 Man arrested for Ripper murders
A 35-year-old lorry driver from Bradford, suspected of carrying out 13 murders across West Yorkshire over the past five years, has appeared in court. Peter William ... -
1951 Communist forces to re-take Seoul
Chinese and North Korean troops are reported to be close to capturing the South Korean capital of Seoul for the second time since the war began ... -
1980 Afghan leader defends Soviet invasion
The new president of Afghanistan, Babrak Karmal, has made his first public appearance since the Soviet-backed coup last week. Speaking in Kabul, Karmal told foreign journalists ... -
2000 Freezing Britain grinds to a halt
A blanket of snow has descended on the country as Arctic conditions wreak havoc on roads, rail and air services. Sub-zero temperatures, as low as -13C ... -
2003 Britain gives go-ahead for ‘sky marshals’
Armed undercover “sky marshals” will be placed on some British passenger planes in the United States, the British Government has announced. Home Secretary David Blunkett and ... -
1958 Easy victory for de Gaulle
General Charles de Gaulle has been elected President of France with an overwhelming majority. At 1715 this afternoon President Rene Coty telephoned his congratulations to General ... -
1973 Spanish prime minister assassinated
The Spanish Prime Minister, Admiral Luis Carrero Blanco, has been killed in a car bomb attack in Madrid. The 70-year-old, his bodyguard and a driver died ... -
1997 Dawn of Scottish parliament
A bill giving Scotland its own parliament for the first time in three centuries has been unveiled in Glasgow today. Scottish Secretary Donald Dewar revealed his ... -
1982 Spain opens border with the Rock
The gates isolating the people of Gibraltar from Spain have been opened to pedestrians after 13 years. Spain’s new socialist government opened the frontier for “humanitarian ... -
2003 Saddam Hussein captured
The ousted President of Iraq, Saddam Hussein, is under arrest after he was captured by US soldiers. “Ladies and gentlemen, we got him,” US administrator Paul ... -
1981 Military crackdown on Polish people
Poland’s military rulers have declared a state of emergency after imposing martial law and placing leaders of the Solidarity trade union under arrest. The country is ... -
1992 Princess Royal remarries
Princess Anne today became Mrs Timothy Laurence after a small family wedding in Scotland. The 42-year-old arrived at Crathie church near Balmoral Castle accompanied by her ... -
2001 30,000 postal jobs ‘to be cut’
Up to 30,000 Post Office workers could lose their jobs over the next 18 months, Consignia, the company which runs the service, has announced. The company ... -
1983 Tomcat halts steeplejack
Chief chimney-toppler Fred Dibnah has been halted in his work after a ginger tomcat got to his latest assignment first. Troublesome feline George has climbed a ... -
1978 Spain set to vote for democracy
Spaniards have been turning out in force today to cast a vote for democracy and end almost 40 years of dictatorial rule. The majority of the ... -
1961 Birth control pill ‘available to all’
Women who wish to have oral contraception will now be able to get it on the National Health Service. The Health Minister, Enoch Powell, made an ... -
1990 Tunnel links UK and Europe
Construction workers have drilled through the final wall of rock to join the two halves of the Channel Tunnel and link Britain to France. The momentous ... -
1982 Animal activists bomb Downing Street
A letter bomb has exploded inside the British Prime Minister’s London residence. Margaret Thatcher was in 10 Downing Street when the device exploded but was not ... -
1975 Graham Hill killed in air crash
One of Britain’s greatest motor racing drivers has been killed in a plane crash in south-east England. Graham Hill, 46, who retired from the sport in ... -
1990 Tearful farewell from Iron Lady
Britain has a new prime minister for the first time in more than 11 years. Margaret Thatcher formally tendered her resignation to the Queen early this ... -
1975 TV presenter Ross McWhirter shot dead
Guinness Book of Records co-founder and editor Ross McWhirter has been shot dead outside his North London home. Mr McWhirter was hit at close range in ... -
1963 Kennedy ‘assassin’ murdered
The man accused of assassinating the US President, John F Kennedy, has himself been shot dead in a Dallas police station. Lee Harvey Oswald, a 24-year-old ... -
1963 Johnson takes over as US president
Fifty-five year old Lyndon Baines Johnson begins his new job today as US president. He was sworn in yesterday just two hours after an assassin shot ... -
1985 Superpowers aim for ‘safer world’
The Geneva summit has ended in optimism but with no agreement on the “Star Wars” space defence system. Both United States President Ronald Reagan and Soviet ... -
1978 Liberal MP accused of murder plot
MP Jeremy Thorpe has been accused in court of plotting to kill his former homosexual lover and dispose of the body. The former Liberal Party leader ... -
1989 Police crush Prague protest rally
Riot police in Czechoslovakia have arrested hundreds of people taking part in a protest march. More than 15,000 people, mostly students, took part in the demonstration, ... -
1983 England fans rampage in Luxembourg
More than 20 English football supporters have been arrested in Luxembourg after a night of violence. The fans are being held for drunkenness, fighting and stealing ... -
1940 Germans bomb Coventry to destruction
The German Luftwaffe has bombed Coventry in a massive raid which lasted more than 10 hours and left much of the city devastated. Relays of enemy ... -
1991 US accuses Libyans of Lockerbie bombing
Two Libyan intelligence officers have been accused of masterminding the Lockerbie bombing. The United States has called on Libyan leader Colonel Gaddafi to hand over the ... -
1982 Brezhnev rumours sweep Moscow
Speculation is growing that Leonid Brezhnev, who has ruled the Soviet Union for the past two decades, has died. Suspicions that a senior Communist party figure ... -
1985 America welcomes Charles and Diana
Prince Charles and Princess Diana have ended the first day of their much-vaunted trip to the USA at a gala dinner in the Washington, hosted by ... -
1956 Eisenhower re-elected with record vote
General Dwight D Eisenhower has been returned to the White House with the biggest Republican win since Abraham Lincoln’s in 1860. President Eisenhower won 58% of ... -
1999 Australia rejects republic
Australians have rejected a proposal to break ties with the British monarchy and become a republic. In the landmark referendum to decide whether Australia would replace ...
