1969 in the United Kingdom
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 1969 in the United Kingdom: |
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Events from the year 1969 in the United Kingdom.
- Monarch - HM Queen Elizabeth II
- Prime Minister - Harold Wilson, Labour Party
Contents |
[edit] Events
[edit] January
- January 1 - Australian media baron Rupert Murdoch purchases the largest selling British Sunday newspaper The News Of The World.
- January 4 - Guitarist Jimi Hendrix causes complaints of arrogance from television producers after playing an impromptu version of "Sunshine of your Love" past his allotted timeslot on the BBC1 show Happening for Lulu.
- January 5 - The Derry Riots leave over 100 people injured.
- January 18 - Pete Best wins his defamation lawsuit against the Beatles. Best had originally sought $8 million, but ended up being awarded much less.
- January 24 - Violent protests by students close the London School of Economics, which does not re-open for three weeks.
- January 27 - Reverend Ian Paisley, hardline Protestant leader in Northern Ireland, is jailed for 3 months for illegal assembly.
- January 30 - The Beatles give their last public performance, on the roof of Apple Records. The impromptu concert is broken up by the police.
[edit] February
[edit] March
- March 12 - Paul McCartney marries Linda Eastman
- March 17 - The Longhope lifeboat in Scotland is lost; the entire crew of 8 die.
- March 19
- British paratroopers and Marines land on the island of Anguilla.
- A 385 metre tall TV-mast at Emley Moor collapses because of icing.
- March 20 - The Kray twins, Ronald and Reginald, are found guilty of murder. The next day, they are sentenced to life imprisonment.
- March 25 - John Lennon and Yoko Ono marry in Gibraltar.
- 29 March - The UK shares the win of the Eurovision Song Contest, in a four-way tie with France, Spain, and the Netherlands. Lulu represents the UK, singing "Boom bang-a-bang".
[edit] April
- April 1 - The Hawker-Siddeley Harrier enters service with the RAF.
- April 9 - Sikh busmen in Wolverhampton win the right to wear turbans on duty.
- April 20 - British troops arrive in Northern Ireland to reinforce the Royal Ulster Constabulary.
- April 22 - Robin Knox-Johnston becomes the first person to sail around the world solo without stopping.
[edit] May
- 2 May - The ocean liner Queen Elizabeth 2 departs on her maiden voyage to New York City.
[edit] June
- June 24 - The United Kingdom and Rhodesia sever diplomatic ties.
[edit] July
- July 1 - Charles, Prince of Wales, is invested with his title at Caernarfon.
- July 10 - The trimaran Teignmouth Electron of Donald Crowhurst is found drifting and unoccupied; Crowhurst might have committed suicide.
- July 31 - The halfpenny ceases to be legal tender in the UK.
[edit] August
- August 12 - Jack Lynch, Taoiseach of the Republic of Ireland, makes a speech to the United Nations, in which he asks them to deploy a peace-keeping mission in Northern Ireland.
- August 14 - British troops are deployed in Northern Ireland.
[edit] September
- September 7 - Monty Python's Flying Circus airs its first episode on the BBC.
- September 26 - The Beatles release what will be their final album (Abbey Road) recorded together.
[edit] October
- 14 October - The new seven-sided 50p coin is introduced.
[edit] November
- November 15 - Regular colour television broadcasts begin on BBC1 and ITV in UK.
- November 25 - John Lennon returns his OBE to protest the British government's support of the U.S. war in Vietnam.
[edit] December
[edit] Unknown dates
[edit] Births
[edit] January - April
- January 13 - Stephen Hendry, British snooker player
- February 21 James Dean Bradfield, Welsh musician (Manic Street Preachers)
- March 1 - Dafydd Ieuan, Welsh drummer (Super Furry Animals)
[edit] May - August
- May 6 - Jim Magilton, Northern Irish footballer
- July 26 - Tanni Grey-Thompson, British Paralympian
- August 29 - Joe Swail, Northern Irish snooker player
[edit] September - December
- September 25 - Catherine Zeta-Jones, Welsh actress
- September 26 - Paul Warhurst, English football player
- November 13 - Gerard Butler, Scottish actor
- December 18 - Irvin Duguid, Scottish keyboard player (Stiltskin)
- December 19 - Richard Hammond, British TV presenter
- December 30 - Jay Kay, English singer (Jamiroquai)
[edit] Unknown dates
[edit] Deaths
[edit] January - April
- January 4 - Violet and Daisy Hilton, English conjoined twin actresses (b. 1908)
- January 8 - Albert Hill, British athlete (b. 1889)
- January 25 - Irene Castle, English dancer (b. 1893)
- February 2 - Boris Karloff, English actor (b. 1887)
- March 11 - John Wyndham, British author (b. 1903)
- March 25 - Billy Cotton, British Entertainer & Bandleader (b. 1899)
[edit] May - August
- May 4 - Osbert Sitwell, English writer (b. 1892)
- July 3 - Brian Jones, British musician (The Rolling Stones) (b. 1942)
- August 9 - Cecil Frank Powell, British physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1903)
- August 27 - Ivy Compton-Burnett, English novelist (b. 1884)
[edit] September - December
- December 5 - Princess Alice of Battenberg, wife of Prince Andrew of Greece and Denmark and mother of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh (b. 1885)
