Tag: This Day in History
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1972 Asians given 90 days to leave Uganda
The Ugandan leader, Idi Amin, has set a deadline for the expulsion of most of the country’s Asians. General Amin said all Asians who are not ... -
1962 Marilyn Monroe found dead
Screen icon Marilyn Monroe has been found dead in bed at her Los Angeles home. The 36-year-old actress’ body was discovered in the early hours of ... -
1964 Three civil rights activists found dead
The bodies of three civil rights workers missing for six weeks have been found buried in a partially constructed dam near Philadelphia, Mississippi. Agents from the ... -
1976 Lauda fights for life after Grand Prix crash
Formula One racing driver Niki Lauda is in a critical condition in hospital after an horrific accident at the Nurburgring Grand Prix in Germany. The Austrian-born ... -
1998 UK imposes total ban on landmines
The British Government has announced a total ban on the use of landmines. Parliament passed the Landmines Act last month – after public pressure to do ... -
1966 Football glory for England
England have won football’s World Cup for the first time since the tournament began in 1930. A crowd of 93,000 spectators – including the Queen and ... -
1981 Charles and Diana marry
Crowds of 600,000 people filled the streets of London to catch a glimpse of Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer on their wedding day. The couple ... -
1976 Chinese earthquake kills hundreds of thousands
Hundreds of thousands of people are feared dead following an 8.3 magnitude earthquake in China. The quake has virtually destroyed the city of Tangshan, north-east of ... -
1978 First ‘test tube baby’ born
The birth of the world’s first “test tube baby” has been announced in Manchester. Louise Brown was born shortly before midnight in Oldham and District General ... -
1974 Nixon ‘must hand over Watergate tapes’
The United States Supreme Court has ordered President Nixon to surrender tape recordings of White House conversations about the Watergate affair. Giving the judgement to a ... -
1974 Greek military rule gives in to democracy
The military government in Greece has collapsed and the former prime minister Constantine Karamanlis has been invited to return. Huge crowds gathered to greet him at ... -
1977 Deng Xiaoping back in power
The disgraced deputy Prime Minister of China, Deng Xiaoping, is to return to Chinese Government. The Chinese Communist Party conference has restored him to the offices ... -
1990 English teenagers held in Thailand over drugs
Two teenage girls from the Midlands have been arrested for drug smuggling in Thailand. Patricia Cahill, 17, and Karen Smith, 18, were stopped by customs officials ... -
1993 Secret Service goes public
Britain’s internal security service, MI5, has held the first photocall in its 84-year history. Stella Rimington, 56, became the first Director General of the MI5 to ... -
1997 Versace murdered on his doorstep
Italian fashion designer Gianni Versace has been shot dead on the steps of his Miami mansion. The incident happened shortly before 0900 local time (1400 GMT) ... -
1971 Suicide note reveals murder confession
Cheshire Police have called off the hunt for the murderer of three French tourists after another body was found in Staffordshire. The body of Michael Bassett, ... -
1977 Gay paper guilty of blasphemy
The Gay News and its editor Denis Lemon have been found guilty of blasphemous libel in the first case of its kind for more than 50 ... -
2000 UK tidal wave of web users
One in four British homes is now using the internet according to figures released by the government. A new survey by the Office for National Statistics ... -
1982 Queen fends off bedroom intruder
A man has broken into Buckingham Palace and spent ten minutes talking to the Queen in her bedroom. At around 0715 BST Michael Fagan, 31, scaled ... -
2000 New Harry Potter most magical yet
The latest story about boy wizard Harry Potter has broken all publishing records. The fourth instalment of JK Rowling’s series has been released simultaneously on both ... -
1976 Israelis rescue Entebbe hostages
Israeli commandos have rescued 100 hostages, mostly Israelis or Jews, held by pro-Palestinian hijackers at Entebbe airport in Uganda. At about 0100 local time (2200GMT), Ugandan ... -
1987 Nazi war criminal Klaus Barbie gets life
The former Gestapo chief in Lyon, Klaus Barbie, has been sentenced to life imprisonment for crimes against humanity. Nine jurors and three judges found Barbie – ... -
1964 President Johnson signs Civil Rights Bill
The Civil Rights Bill – one of the most important piece of legislation in American history – has become law. US President Lyndon B Johnson signed ... -
1997 Hong Kong handed over to Chinese control
Hong Kong has been handed back to the Chinese authorities – ending more than 150 years of British control. The British flag was lowered over Government ... -
1971 Space mission ends in tragedy
Three Russian cosmonauts have been found dead in their space capsule after it made what looked like a perfect landing in Kazakhstan. Lieutenant-Colonel Georgi Dobrovolsky, Vladislav ... -
1963 Kennedy: ‘Ich bin ein Berliner’
The US President, John F Kennedy, has made a ground-breaking speech in Berlin offering American solidarity to the citizens of West Germany. A crowd of 120,000 ... -
1970 New peace plan for Middle East
The United States has launched its latest plan to bring peace to the Middle East. US Secretary of State William Rogers announced his initiative to encourage ... -
1974 Labour rift over nuclear test
The Labour Government has admitted Britain exploded a nuclear device in the United States a few weeks ago. It is thought the underground trial at America’s ... -
1985 Air India jet crashes killing 329
A passenger jet has disintegrated in mid-air off the coast of Ireland, killing all 329 people on board. The Air India flight was only 45 minutes ... -
1965 Students protest after Algiers coup
Police in the Algerian capital Algiers have broken up demonstrations by hundreds of people who have taken to the streets chanting slogans in support of deposed ... -
1982 ‘God’s banker’ found hanged
The body of a top Italian banker has been found hanging from Blackfriars Bridge in London. Known as God’s banker for his links with the Vatican, ... -
1999 Anti-capitalism demo turns violent
Police and protesters have clashed at a demonstration against capitalism in the centre of London’s financial district. The rally was timed to coincide with the start ... -
1992 Controversial Diana book published
A controversial new book about the Princess of Wales claims she attempted suicide on several occasions over the last decade, and portrays her as a deeply ... -
1981 Queen shot at by youth
A 17-year-old man has been arrested for shooting a replica gun at the Queen as she rode past crowds on horseback. Marcus Serjeant pointed a pistol ... -
1964 Nelson Mandela jailed for life
The leader of the anti-apartheid struggle in South Africa, Nelson Mandela, has been jailed for life for sabotage. Seven other defendants, including the former secretary-general of ...
