1968 in the United Kingdom

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1968 in the United Kingdom
Other years
1966 | 1967 | 1968 (1968) | 1969 | 1970
Constituent countries of the United Kingdom
| Northern Ireland | Scotland | Wales
Popular culture

Events from the year 1968 in the United Kingdom.

Incumbents[]

  • Monarch – Elizabeth II
  • Prime Minister – Harold Wilson (Labour)
  • Parliament – 44th

Events[]

Backing Britain Badge.jpg

January[]

  • January – The Ford Escort car is introduced to replace the Anglia.
  • 1 January – Cecil Day-Lewis is announced as the new Poet Laureate.[1]
  • 5 January – Gardeners' World debuts on BBC1 television, featuring Percy Thrower.[2]
  • 8 January – Prime Minister, Harold Wilson, endorses the 'I'm Backing Britain' campaign, encouraging workers to work extra time without pay or take other actions to help competitiveness, which is spreading across Britain.[3]
  • 16 January – Prime Minister Wilson announces that the Civil Defence Corps is being stood down.[4]

February[]

  • 4 February – 96 Indians and Pakistanis arrive in Britain from Kenya. Some 1,500 Asians have now arrived in Britain from Kenya, where they have been forced out by increasingly draconian immigration laws.[5]
  • 6–18 February – Great Britain and Northern Ireland compete at the Winter Olympics in Grenoble, France, but do not win any medals.
  • 14 February
    • Northampton, the county town of Northamptonshire, is designated as a new town, with the Labour Government hoping to double its size and population by 1980.[6]
    • Constitutional law case of Padfield v Minister of Agriculture is decided in the House of Lords, determining that a minister's discretion to refuse an investigation is subject to judicial review where a refusal would frustrate the policy of an Act.
  • 24 February – Announcement of the first discovery (last year) of a pulsar by astronomer Jocelyn Bell Burnell working with Antony Hewish at the University of Cambridge.[7]
  • 26 February – Shelton Hospital fire: a fire at Shelton Mental Hospital, Shrewsbury, kills 21 patients.

March[]

  • 1 March
    • Commonwealth Immigrants Act 1968 further reduces right of entry for citizens from the British Commonwealth to the UK.
    • First performance of an Andrew Lloyd Webber–Tim Rice musical, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat in its original form as a "pop cantata", by pupils of Colet Court preparatory school in Hammersmith.[8][9][10]
  • 2 March – Coal mining in the Black Country, which played a big part in the Industrial Revolution, ends after some 300 years with the closure of Baggeridge Colliery near Sedgley.[11]
  • 12 March – Mauritius achieves independence from the UK.[12]
  • 14 March – In the early hours, the Prime Minister convenes a meeting of the privy council to declare the following day a non-statutory bank holiday, allowing the government to suspend the London Gold Pool to stem the losses being suffered by the pound sterling. George Brown, the Foreign Secretary, apparently drunk, cannot be located in time for the meeting.
  • 15 March – George Brown resigns from the government.[13]
  • 17 March – A demonstration in London's Grosvenor Square against U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War leads to violence – 91 police injured, 200 demonstrators arrested.

April[]

  • 1 April – Thames Valley Police is formed by the amalgamation of Berkshire Constabulary, Buckinghamshire Constabulary, Oxford City Police, Oxfordshire Constabulary and Reading Borough Police.
  • 11 April – Popularity of Harold Wilson's Labour government is shown to be declining as opinion polls show the Conservatives, led by Edward Heath, with a lead of more than 20 points.[14]
  • 7 April – Motor racing world champion Jim Clark, 32, is killed when his car leaves the track at 170 mph and smashes into a tree during a Formula 2 race at Hockenheim.[15]
  • 18 April – London Bridge sold to American entrepreneur Robert P. McCulloch, for £1,029,000, who rebuilds it at Lake Havasu City, Arizona.[16]
  • 20 April – Enoch Powell makes his controversial Rivers of Blood Speech on immigration.[17]
  • 21 April – Enoch Powell is dismissed from the Shadow Cabinet by Opposition leader Edward Heath due to the Rivers of Blood Speech, despite several opinion polls stating that the majority of the public shares Mr Powell's fears.[18]
  • 23 April – Five and ten pence coins are introduced in the run-up to Decimalisation, which will be complete within the next three years.[16]
  • 27 April – The Abortion Act 1967 comes into effect, legalising abortion on a number of grounds, with free provision through the National Health Service.

May[]

  • 3 May – Mr. Frederick West (aged 45) becomes Britain's first heart transplant patient.[19]
  • 8 May – The Kray Twins, 34-year-old Ronnie and Reggie, are among 18 men arrested in dawn raids across London. They stand accused of a series of crimes including murder, fraud, blackmail and assault. Their 41-year-old brother Charlie Kray is one of the other 16 men under arrest.[20]
  • 11 May – Manchester City win the Football League First Division title.[21]
  • 16 May – Ronan Point tower block in the east London Borough of Newham collapses after a gas explosion, killing four occupants.[22]
  • 18 May – West Bromwich Albion win the FA Cup for the fifth time, with Jeff Astle scoring the only goal of the game against Everton at the Wembley Stadium.
  • 22 May – The General Assembly of the Church of Scotland permits the ordination of women as ministers.[23]
  • 29 May – Manchester United become the first English winners of the European Cup after beating Benfica 4–1 in extra time at Wembley Stadium.[24]

June[]

  • 7 June – Start of Ford sewing machinists strike at the Dagenham assembly plant: women workers strike for having their work valued as 'skilled' (Grade C) rather than 'unskilled' (Grade B). The machinists feel that they are skilled as they have had to pass a test to gain employment making the seats. They do not achieve full wage parity but are given 92% of the men's rate rather than 85%.[25][26] This influences the Equal Pay Act 1970.
  • 8 June – James Earl Ray, who was responsible for the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. in the United States on 4 April, is arrested at Heathrow Airport when he attempts to depart on a flight bound for Rhodesia.[16]
  • 10 June – The National Health Service reintroduces prescription charges.[22]
  • 18 June – Frederick West, Britain's first heart transplant patient, dies 46 days after his operation.
  • 20 June – Austin Currie, Member of Parliament at Stormont in Northern Ireland, along with others, squats a house in Caledon to protest against discrimination in housing allocations.

July[]

  • July – Cotton trading at the Royal Exchange, Manchester, ceases.
  • 1–2 July – July 1968 England and Wales dust fall storms.
  • 4 July – Alec Rose returns to Southsea from a 354-day single-handed round-the-world trip for which he receives a knighthood the following day.[27]
  • 10 July – Floods in South West England.[28]
  • 17 July – The Beatles animated film Yellow Submarine debuts in London.[16]
  • 31 July – Iconic BBC sitcom Dad's Army is first broadcast on television.

August[]

  • 8 August – Royal Navy Leander-class frigate HMS Scylla is launched at Devonport, the last ship to be built in a Royal Dockyard.
  • 11 August – British Rail's last steam train service runs on the standard gauge: steam locomotives make the 314-mile (505 km) return passenger journey from Liverpool to Carlisle before being dispatched to the scrapyard or preservation.
  • 31 August – First Isle of Wight Festival is held.

September[]

  • September
    • The new school year in England sees the first local authorities adopt three tier education, where 5–7 infant, 7–11 junior schools are replaced by 5–8 or 5–9 first schools and 8–12 or 9–13 middle schools, with the transfer age to grammar and secondary modern schools being increased to 12 or 13.[29]
    • Japanese carmaker Nissan launches its Datsun badged range of cars onto the British market.[30]
  • 8 September – English tennis player Virginia Wade wins the 1968 U.S. Open Women's Singles event.[16]
  • 15 September – Great Flood of 1968 in South East England.
  • 16 September – General Post Office divides post into first-class and second-class services.[22]
  • 26 September – Theatres Act 1968 (royal assent 26 July) ends censorship of the theatre.[12][31]
  • 27 September – US musical Hair opens in London following the removal of theatre censorship.[32]

October[]

  • October – The M1 motorway is completed when the final 35-mile section opens between Rotherham and Leeds.[33]
  • 2 October – A woman from Birmingham gives birth to the first recorded instance of live sextuplets in the UK.[34]
  • 5 October – A civil rights march in Derry, Northern Ireland, which includes several Stormont and British MPs, is batoned off the streets by the Royal Ulster Constabulary.[35]
  • 6 October – British racing drivers Jackie Stewart, Graham Hill and John Surtees take the first three places at the United States Grand Prix.[16]
  • 8 October – Enoch Powell warns that immigrants "may change the character" of England.[36]
  • 12–27 October – Great Britain and Northern Ireland compete at the Olympics in Mexico City and win 5 gold, 5 silver and 3 bronze medals.
  • 13 October – The rebuilt Euston railway station opens.[16]
  • 18 October – National Giro opens for business through the General Post Office,[37] with administrative headquarters at Bootle.
  • 27 October – Police and protestors clash at an anti-Vietnam War protest outside the Embassy of the United States in London.[38]
  • 31 October – Alan Bennett's play Forty Years On premieres at the Apollo Theatre in the West End.

November[]

  • 18 November – James Watt Street fire: a warehouse fire in Glasgow kills 22 people.[39]
  • 21 November – The Cyril Lord carpet business goes into receivership.[40][41]
  • 22 November – The Beatles ("The White Album") and The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society are released.[42]
  • 26 November – The Race Relations Act is passed, making it illegal to refuse housing, employment or public services to people in Britain because of their ethnic background.[43]
  • 29 November – Dawley New Town (Designation) Amendment (Telford) Order extends the boundaries of Dawley New Town in Shropshire and renames it Telford.
  • 30 November – The Trade Descriptions Act comes into force, preventing shops and traders from describing goods in a misleading way.[44]

December[]

  • 17 December
    • Mary Bell, an eleven-year-old girl from Newcastle upon Tyne, is sentenced to life detention for the manslaughter of two small boys.[45]
    • Official opening of first phase of the Royal Mint's new Llantrisant plant in South Wales.

Undated[]

  • Hong Kong flu pandemic reaches the UK. Over two years it will kill approximately 80,000.[46][47]
  • The National Liberal Party is wholly assimilated into the Conservative Party.

Publications[]

  • Agatha Christie's novel By the Pricking of My Thumbs.
  • Arthur C. Clarke's novel 2001: A Space Odyssey.
  • Lawrence Durrell's novel Tunc, first of The Revolt of Aphrodite pair.
  • Paul Scott's novel The Day of the Scorpion, second of the Raj Quartet.
  • John Wyndham's novel Chocky.

Births[]

January – March[]

  • 7 January – James Brokenshire, British Conservative politician and MP for Hornchurch
  • 12 January – Heather Mills, British model, businesswoman and campaigner, wife of musician Sir Paul McCartney 2002–8
  • 27 January
    • Matthew d'Ancona, British journalist, editor of The Spectator
    • Tricky (born Adrian Thaws), English rapper and musician
  • 5 February – Lee Martin, footballer
  • 16 February – Warren Ellis, British comic-book and graphic-novel writer
  • 2 March – Daniel Craig, British actor
  • 4 March – Patsy Kensit, English actress
  • 5 March – Theresa Villiers, British Conservative politician and MP for Chipping Barnet
  • 9 March – Maggie Aderin-Pocock, British scientist and science educator
  • 18 March – Paul Marsden, British Labour/Liberal Democrat politician
  • 20 March – Paul Merson, English footballer
  • 21 March
    • Jaye Davidson, British actor
    • Gary Walsh, English footballer
  • 23 March
    • Damon Albarn, English musician (Blur and Gorillaz)
    • Mike Atherton, English cricketer
  • 26 March – Chris Ward, British chess grandmaster, coach and author
  • 28 March – Nasser Hussain, English cricketer

April – June[]

  • 8 April – Jenny Powell, British television presenter
  • 18 April – David Hewlett, British-born Canadian actor, writer and director
  • 22 April – Amanda Mealing, British actress
  • 23 April – Ricky Groves, English actor
  • 28 April – Howard Donald, singer
  • 4 May – Julian Barratt, English comedian and actor
  • 8 May – Rachel Jordan, British artist
  • 9 May – Ruth Kelly, British Labour politician, Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 2006–7 and MP for Bolton West 1997–2010
  • 10 May – William Regal, professional wrestler
  • 12 May – Catherine Tate, comedian
  • 27 May
    • Rebekah Brooks, journalist, editor of The Sun
    • Ekow Eshun, arts journalist and administrator
  • 29 May
    • Torquhil Ian Campbell, 13th Duke of Argyll, Scottish peer
    • Jessica Morden, British Labour politician and MP for Newport East
  • 2 June – John Culshaw, English comedian and impressionist
  • 5 June – Edward Vaizey, British Conservative politician and MP for Wantage
  • 7 June – Sarah Parish, English actress
  • 13 June
    • David Gray, British folk rock singer-songwriter
    • Marcel Theroux, British novelist and broadcaster, son of American writer Paul Theroux
  • 15 June – Samira Ahmed, journalist and broadcaster
  • 26 June – Iwan Roberts, Welsh footballer
  • 28 June – Adam Woodyatt, British actor

July – September[]

  • 5 July – Moazzam Begg, British Islamist held in extrajudicial detention in the US Guantanamo Bay detainment camp
  • 20 July – Julian Rhind-Tutt, English film, television and radio actor
  • 21 July – Gary O'Donnell, Scottish soldier (died 2008)
  • 22 July – Rhys Ifans, Welsh actor
  • 26 July – Olivia Williams, English actress
  • 5 August – Colin McRae, Scottish rally driver (died 2007)
  • 8 August – Julian Dicks, English footballer
  • 14 August
    • Darren Clarke, Northern Irish golfer
    • Jane Couch, boxer
    • Adrian Lester, British actor
  • 15 August – Kate Osamor, Labour Party politician[48]
  • 17 August – Helen McCrory, English actress (died 2021)[49]
  • 22 August – Elisabeth Murdoch, Australian-born business executive
  • 26 August – Chris Boardman, English racing cyclist
  • September – Angela Hartnett, chef
  • 3 September – Achilleas Kallakis, fraudster
  • 9 September
    • Anas Altikriti, British anti-war activist
    • Julia Sawalha, English actress
  • 14 September – Grant Shapps, British Conservative politician and MP for Welwyn Hatfield
  • 20 September – Philippa Forrester, British television presenter
  • 28 September – Naomi Watts, English-born actress
  • 29 September – Luke and Matt Goss, twin brother singers, members of Bros

October – December[]

  • 1 October – Mark Durden-Smith, British television presenter
  • 2 October – Victoria Derbyshire, British broadcast presenter
  • 3 October – Paul Crichton, English footballer
  • 4 October – Beverley Allitt, British serial killer of children
  • 7 October – Thom Yorke, British singer/songwriter
  • 10 October – Chris Ofili, English painter
  • 14 October
    • Matthew Le Tissier, English footballer
    • Roger Moorhouse, British historian and author
  • 27 October – Martin Clark, English snooker player
  • 10 November – Steve Brookstein, British singer
  • 18 November – Barry Hunter, Northern Irish footballer and football manager
  • 22 November – Andrew Gilligan, British journalist
  • 20 December – Phil Andrews, British race car driver
  • 23 December – Siôn Simon, British Labour politician and MP for Birmingham Erdington
  • 28 December – Pauline Robertson, Scottish field hockey player

Unknown dates[]

  • Sonita Alleyne, Barbados-born media production company executive and college principal
  • Julian Baggini, philosopher
  • Andrew O'Hagan, Scottish writer and novelist
  • Carl Sargeant, Welsh politician (suicide 2017)[50]

Deaths[]

January – March[]

  • 27 January – Maxwell Knight, spymaster and naturalist (born 1900)
  • 6 February – Gomer Berry, 1st Viscount Kemsley, Welsh journalist (born 1883)
  • 17 February – Sir Donald Wolfit, actor-manager (born 1902)
  • 20 February – Anthony Asquith, director and writer (born 1902)

April – June[]

  • 7 April – Jim Clark, Scottish race car driver (born 1936)
  • 3 May – Ness Edwards, Welsh politician (born 1897)
  • 7 May – Mike Spence, English race car driver (born 1936)
  • 11 May – Frederick Bellenger, English politician, Secretary of State for War (born 1894)
  • 29 May – Sir Stewart Menzies, chief of the British Secret Intelligence Service (born 1890)
  • 21 June – Captain W. E. Johns, aviator and writer, creator of Biggles (born 1893)
  • 24 June – Tony Hancock, English comedian (born 1924)

July – September[]

  • 9 July – Sir Alexander Cadogan, diplomat (born 1884)
  • 13 July – R. J. Yeatman, humorist (born 1897)
  • 16 July – William Evans, Welsh-language poet (born 1883)
  • 23 July – Henry Hallett Dale, English scientist, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (born 1875)
  • 19 August – George Gamow, Ukrainian-born physicist (born 1904)
  • 27 August – Princess Marina, Duchess of Kent (born 1906)
  • 12 September – Tommy Armour, Scottish golfer (born 1894)

October – December[]

  • 13 October – Stanley Unwin, publisher (born 1884)
  • 20 October – Bud Flanagan, comedian and singer (born 1896)
  • 17 November – Mervyn Peake, writer and illustrator (born 1911)
  • 28 November – Enid Blyton, children's writer (born 1897)
  • 14 December – David James Jones (Gwenallt), Welsh-language poet (born 1899)

See also[]

External links[]

References[]

  1. ^ Marshall, Rita (2 January 1968). "C. Day Lewis Is Poet Laureate". The Times (57138). p. 1.
  2. ^ Stephenson, Hannah (24 September 2007). "Gardeners' World at 40". Bedford Today. Retrieved 10 November 2015.[permanent dead link]
  3. ^ Chartres, John (9 January 1968). "Wilson Joins 'I Back Britain'". The Times. p. 1.
  4. ^ Raine-Allen, Frank (2005). "1968 Stand-Down". In Essex-Lopresti, Tim (ed.). A Brief History of Civil Defence (PDF). Matlock: Civil Defence Association. pp. 53–58. ISBN 0-9550153-0-8.
  5. ^ "1968: More Kenyan Asians flee to Britain". On This Day. BBC News. 4 February 1968. Retrieved 12 August 2011.
  6. ^ "Historic Background" (PDF). Northamptonshire County Council. Archived from the original (PDF) on 27 September 2011. Retrieved 12 August 2011.
  7. ^ Hewish, A.; Bell, S. J.; Pilkington, J. D. H.; Scott, P. F.; Collins, R. A. (24 February 1968). "Observation of a Rapidly Pulsating Radio Source". Nature. 217 (5130): 709–713. doi:10.1038/217709a0. S2CID 4277613.
  8. ^ Vocal Selections: Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. Milwaukee, WI: Hal Leonard. 1994. ISBN 978-0-7935-3427-2.
  9. ^ "About The Show". The Really Useful Group. Archived from the original on 25 December 2008. Retrieved 29 December 2008.
  10. ^ "Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat". AndrewLloydWebber.com. 1991. Archived from the original on 23 October 2010. Retrieved 8 October 2010.
  11. ^ "The closing of Baggeridge Colliery". Black Country Society. Archived from the original on 19 July 2011. Retrieved 12 August 2011.
  12. ^ Jump up to: a b The Hutchinson Factfinder. Helicon. 1999. ISBN 978-1-85986-000-7.
  13. ^ "Statesman who bottled out: 'Tired and Emotional: The Life of Lord George Brown'". The Independent. London. 9 May 1993.
  14. ^ "The Sun (Vancouver)". news.google.com.
  15. ^ "1968: Jim Clark killed in car smash". BBC News. 7 April 1968. Archived from the original on 19 February 2008. Retrieved 5 February 2008.
  16. ^ Jump up to: a b c d e f g Penguin Pocket On This Day. Penguin Reference Library. 2006. ISBN 978-0-14-102715-9.
  17. ^ "1968: Powell slates immigration policy". BBC News. 20 April 1968. Archived from the original on 7 March 2008. Retrieved 5 February 2008.
  18. ^ Enoch Powell's Rivers of Blood Speech Archived 30 December 2009 at the Wayback Machine
  19. ^ "1968: Surgeons conduct UK's first heart transplant". 3 May 1968 – via news.bbc.co.uk.
  20. ^ "1968: Krays held on suspicion of murder". BBC News. 8 May 1968. Archived from the original on 3 March 2008. Retrieved 14 February 2008.
  21. ^ "Newcastle United 3 Man City 4". football-england-com. Archived from the original on 21 August 2011. Retrieved 12 August 2011.
  22. ^ Jump up to: a b c Palmer, Alan; Veronica (1992). The Chronology of British History. London: Century Ltd. pp. 427–428. ISBN 978-0-7126-5616-0.
  23. ^ "Ordination of women is approved". The Times (57258). 23 May 1968. p. 3.
  24. ^ "1968: Manchester Utd win European Cup". BBC News. 29 May 1968. Archived from the original on 21 January 2008. Retrieved 15 January 2008.
  25. ^ "When history was made in Dagenham". Socialist Review. Retrieved 26 August 2020.
  26. ^ "Dagenham sewing machinists recall strike that changed women's lives". The Guardian. 6 June 2013. Retrieved 26 August 2020.
  27. ^ "1968: Alec Rose sails home". BBC News. 4 July 1968. Archived from the original on 19 December 2007. Retrieved 15 January 2008.
  28. ^ "The great flood of 1968". Memories of Bristol. Archived from the original on 2 May 2006. Retrieved 4 January 2006.
  29. ^ [1] Archived 21 November 2008 at the Wayback Machine
  30. ^ "Nissan/Datsun – reallyloud.co.uk". Archived from the original on 14 August 2018. Retrieved 14 August 2018.
  31. ^ Text of the Theatres Act 1968 as in force today (including any amendments) within the United Kingdom, from legislation.gov.uk.
  32. ^ "1968: Musical Hair opens as censors withdraw". BBC News. 27 September 1968. Retrieved 15 January 2008.
  33. ^ Carpenter, Paddy (20 October 2016). "Police STOP!: Patrol and Response Vehicles in England and Wales". Amberley Publishing – via Amazon.
  34. ^ "1968: Birth of sextuplets stuns Britain". BBC News. 2 October 1968. Retrieved 15 January 2008.
  35. ^ "1968: Londonderry march ends in violence". BBC News. 5 October 1968. Retrieved 15 January 2008.
  36. ^ "Birmingham Post". 8 October 2007. Retrieved 12 May 2010.[dead link]
  37. ^ "National Giro Service". Hansard. 17 October 1968. Retrieved 12 August 2011.
  38. ^ "1968: Police clash with anti-war protesters". BBC News. 27 October 1968. Retrieved 15 January 2008.
  39. ^ "James Watt Street Fire". SunnyGovan. Archived from the original on 3 June 2010. Retrieved 14 July 2010.
  40. ^ Ollerenshaw, Philip (2006). "Innovation and Corporate Failure: Cyril Lord in UK Textiles 1945–1968" (PDF). Retrieved 2 September 2011.
  41. ^ Financial Times 22 November 1968.
  42. ^ Marr, Andrew (2007). A History of Modern Britain. London: Macmillan. p. 281. ISBN 978-1-4050-0538-8.
  43. ^ "1968: Race discrimination law tightened". 26 November 1968 – via news.bbc.co.uk.
  44. ^ "1968: Shops told to stop conning customers". BBC News. 30 November 1968. Archived from the original on 2 December 2007. Retrieved 15 January 2008.
  45. ^ "1968: Mary Bell found guilty of double killing". BBC News. 17 December 1968. Archived from the original on 19 December 2007. Retrieved 15 January 2008.
  46. ^ "History of major virus outbreaks in the UK in recent times". Express and Star. Wolverhampton. 3 March 2020. Retrieved 13 December 2020.
  47. ^ Bennett, Asa (2 May 2020). "Half a century ago stoic Britons battle a similar health crisis without any lockdown". The Telegraph. London. Retrieved 13 December 2020.
  48. ^ "Kate Osamor". politics.co.uk.
  49. ^ "Peaky Blinders star Helen McCrory dies, aged 52". Radio Times. Retrieved 16 April 2021.
  50. ^ "Carl Sargeant: Profile of long-serving AM's career". BBC News.
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