2006 in the United Kingdom

Events from the year 2006 in the United Kingdom.

Incumbents

• Monarch: Elizabeth II
• Prime Minister: Tony Blair (Labour)

Events

January

• 7 January – Charles Kennedy, resigns as leader of the Liberal Democrats, admitting that he has a drinking problem.^[1]
• 20 January – River Thames whale: a whale is discovered swimming in the River Thames in London.
• 24 January – Sven-Göran Eriksson announces that he will quit as manager of the England national football team after this summer's World Cup in Germany. Eriksson, 57, has been in charge of the England team for five years and, as a Swede, is the first non-English manager of the England team.^[2]

February

• 3 February – Islamist demonstration outside Danish Embassy in London in response to the Jyllands-Posten Muhammad cartoons controversy.
• 9 February
  • Dunfermline and West Fife by-election: Willie Rennie of the Liberal Democrats is the winner.
  • The Government announces that the Child Support Agency is to be abolished.
• 10–26 February – Great Britain competes at the Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy, and win one silver medal.
• 16 February – The BRIT Awards take place.
• 19 February – The BAFTA awards take place in London.
• 22 February
  • Securitas depot robbery: around £53 million (US$92 million) is stolen in the largest cash robbery in British crime history.
  • The Prince of Wales's court case continues in the High Court against the Mail on Sunday as he tries to prevent the publication of his journals. Various revelations have been made such as that he considers himself to be a dissident, and his opinion of government officials in People's Republic of China whom he described as "appalling old waxworks".
• 27 February – Writers Michael Baigent and Richard Leigh sue Random House in the High Court of Justice claiming that the best selling novel The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown contains ideas stolen from their 1982 book The Holy Blood and the Holy Grail.

March

• 1 March – The Senedd, debating chamber of the National Assembly for Wales on Cardiff Bay, designed by Richard Rogers is opened by the Queen.
• 2 March
  • Sir Menzies Campbell is elected leader of the Liberal Democrats following an election caused by the resignation of previous leader, Charles Kennedy.
  • Four people are injured in an explosion in a GlaxoSmithKline factory in Irvine, North Ayrshire.
• 7 March – The President of Brazil, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, makes a state visit to the UK.
• 14 March – Six men taking part in a clinical trial for a new anti-inflammatory drug TGN1412 are placed in intensive care, some in a life-threatening condition, after suffering adverse side-effects.^[1]
• 19 March – The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall begin a two-week foreign tour to Egypt, Saudi Arabia and India.
• 20 March – The British Press Awards are held at The Dorchester, Park Lane, London.
• 21 March – Labour's hopes of a unique fourth successive term in office at the next general election (by which time Tony Blair says he will have resigned as prime minister) are given a boost when an Ipsos MORI opinion poll puts them 11 points ahead of the Conservatives on 42%.
• 23 March – 2005-2006 Christian Peacemaker hostage crisis- British peacemaker, Norman Kember, and three Canadians rescued by SAS troops.
• 28 March
  • Council workers across the UK strike over pension rights.
  • Royal Regiment of Scotland created.

April

• 5 April – Discovery of a swan with avian influenza in Scotland.^[1]
• 7 April – Mr Justice Peter Smith delivers judgment in the copyright case over The Da Vinci Code finding that Dan Brown had not breached the copyright of Michael Baigent and Richard Leigh. The judgment itself contained a coded message on the whim of the judge.^[3]
• 12 April – Prince Harry passed out as a commissioned officer during the Sovereign's Parade at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst.
• 18 April – Peugeot announces plans to close the 60-year-old car factory at Ryton near Coventry, which it bought from Chrysler in 1979, within the next year.
• 21 April – Elizabeth II celebrates her 80th birthday at Windsor. The Prince of Wales makes a televised address in tribute.
• 25 April – The BBC announces that Grandstand, its flagship sports TV programme, will be phased out within the next year after nearly 50 years on air.^[4]
• 26 April – The Duke of Edinburgh visits the Republic of Ireland.^[5]
• 27 April – By-election in the Moray constituency of the Scottish Parliament. Richard Lochhead holds the seat for the Scottish National Party.

May

• 4 May
  • Local government elections take place in some areas of England.
  • Steve McClaren, manager of Middlesbrough F.C., agrees to become the next manager of the England national football team after the World Cup.^[6]
• 5 May – Tony Blair reshuffles his cabinet. Charles Clarke is dismissed as Home Secretary. Jack Straw is replaced as the Foreign Secretary by Margaret Beckett. John Prescott remains as Deputy Prime Minister, but loses responsibility for the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister.
• 20 May – Campaigners "Fathers 4 Justice" invade the set of the National Lottery.
• 30 May – An Ipsos MORI opinion poll shows the Conservatives back in the lead with 36% of the vote, two points ahead of Labour.

June

• 9–11 June – The British Grand Prix is held at the Silverstone Circuit and is won by reigning world champion Fernando Alonso ahead of Michael Schumacher and Kimi Räikkönen, while local hero Jenson Button retired earlier in the race with an engine oil leak.
• 10 June – The England football team's World Cup campaign begins with a 1–0 win over Paraguay.^[7]
• 15 June – England beat Trinidad and Tobago 2–0 in their second World Cup group game.
• 20 June – England go through to the knockout stages of the World Cup with a 2–2 draw against Sweden in their final group game.
• 25 June
  • Children's Party at the Palace held in honour of The Queen's 80th birthday.
  • The Lord Chancellor, Lord Falconer, rejects calls from families of murder victims for all convicted murderers to be sentenced to no less than a minimum of 25 years in prison.^[8]
  • England go through to the World Cup quarter-finals for the second tournament in succession by beating Ecuador 1–0 with a goal from captain David Beckham.
• 29 June
  • Blaenau Gwent by-elections: independent candidates defeat Labour Party in parliamentary and Welsh Assembly by-elections.
  • Bromley and Chislehurst by-election won by Bob Neill for the Conservative Party.

July

• July – European heat wave affects the United Kingdom, resulting in July 1983’s record for the hottest month in the CET series being beaten with a mean monthly CET of 19.7 °C or 67.5 °F.^[9]
• 1 July – England’s World Cup quest ends in the quarter-finals, when they lose on penalties to Portugal after an goalless draw.^[10]
• 4 July – Sheridan v News International: Scottish Socialist Party MSP, Tommy Sheridan begins legal action against the News of the World for libel at the Court of Session in Edinburgh.
• 17 July – George W. Bush greets Tony Blair with the phrase “Yo, Blair”.^[1]
• 18 July – 180 British citizens evacuated from the Lebanon due to growing crisis between Hizbollah militants and Israel.
• 20 July – HMS Bulwark prepares to evacuate British nationals from the Lebanon.
• 22 July – Arsenal F.C. move into the Emirates Stadium, named after the airline company as part of a 15-year sponsorship deal, after 93 years at nearby Highbury. The 60,000-seat stadium is the largest club stadium to have been built in English football since Maine Road, which was home of Manchester City from 1923 to 2003.

August

• 1 August – Steve McClaren is officially appointed as manager of the England national football team.^[11]
• 10 August – Police make many arrests in relation to a transatlantic aircraft plot, and tight security measures are instigated at airports.
• August – The first modern solely Gaelic-medium school to offer secondary education, Sgoil Ghàidhlig Ghlaschu, is opened at Woodside in Glasgow.

September

• 2 September – Royal Air Force Nimrod crash in Afghanistan: fourteen personnel are killed in Britain's worst single military loss since the Falklands war.
• 9 September – Helen Mirren awarded best actress at the Venice Film Festival for her role in The Queen, portraying Elizabeth II following the death of Diana, Princess of Wales.^[12]
• 20 September – Television presenter Richard Hammond suffers a serious brain injury when he crashes a jet-powered car whilst filming for Top Gear.^[1]
• 25 September – Copmanthorpe rail crash: One man dies when the 14:25 from Plymouth to Edinburgh operated by Virgin Trains hits a car at about 20:55.

October

• 1 October – Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 comes into effect, requiring a Fire Risk Assessment for all non-domestic premises in England and Wales.
• 5 October – Rt. Hon. Elish Angiolini, QC, appointed as Lord Advocate in Scotland. She is the first woman and the first solicitor to be appointed to the post.
• 26 October – The Duke of Edinburgh officially opens Arsenal's new stadium.^[13]
• 30 October – The Stern Review on the Economics of Climate Change is published by the UK government.

November

• 8 November – Three men of Pakistani origin sentenced to life imprisonment for the racist murder of Kriss Donald in Glasgow.
• 16 November – The 21st James Bond film – Casino Royale – is released in British cinemas. Daniel Craig makes his debut as Bond in the film.^[14]
• 23 November – Alexander Litvinenko dies in London having been poisoned by Polonium-210.^[15]
• 24 November – Loyalist Michael Stone attempts to bomb the Northern Ireland Assembly on the day nominations for first and deputy first minister are to be made.^[16] Ian Paisley indicates his willingness to serve as First Minister.^[17]

December

• 2 December – A young woman's body is found in a brook near Ipswich; her death is initially treated as "unexplained".^[18]
• 4 December – The woman whose corpse was found in Ipswich two days ago is identified as Gemma Adams, a 25-year-old local prostitute. Her death is reported to be suspicious and police launch a murder inquiry. There are also concerns about another Ipswich prostitute, 19-year-old Tania Nicol, who went missing on 30 October.^[19]
• 7 December – A tornado hits London.^[1]
• 8 December – The body of missing Ipswich prostitute Tania Nicol is found on the outskirts of the town.^[20]
• 9 December – Police in Ipswich launch a murder investigation into the death of Tania Nicol and admit that it is likely she met her death at the hands of the same person or people who killed Gemma Adams.^[21]
• 10 December – A third prostitute's body is found in the Ipswich area.^[22]
• 14 December – Two more women are found dead in Ipswich and it is confirmed that both are prostitutes, meaning that the police are now investigating five murders.^[23]
• 12 December – The Ryton car factory closes and Peugeot 206 production is transferred to Slovakia, several months ahead of the scheduled closure date. 2,300 jobs are lost.^[24]
• 18 December – A 37-year-old man is arrested near Felixstowe on suspicion of murdering the five Ipswich prostitutes. He is named as Tom Stephens, a 37-year-old Tesco supermarket worker.^[25]
• 19 December – A second man, 48-year-old Forklift truck driver Steve Wright, is arrested in connection with the Ipswich prostitute murders, while police are given more time to question the first suspect.^[26]
• 21 December – Steve Wright is charged with the Ipswich prostitute murders, while Tom Stephens is released on bail pending further inquiries.^[27]
• 29 December – The British government pays off the Anglo-American loan made in 1946.^[28]
• 31 December – Hogmanay celebrations in Glasgow and Edinburgh are cancelled due to poor weather conditions.

Publications

• Richard Dawkins' book The God Delusion.
• James Lovelock's book The Revenge of Gaia.
• Terry Pratchett's Discworld novel Wintersmith.
• Will Self's novel The Book of Dave.

Births

• 1 March – Baby P, child abuse victim (died 2007)
• 18 June – Countess Zaria of Orange-Nassau, Jonkvrouwe van Amsberg

Deaths

• 2 January – John Woodnutt, actor (born 1924)
• 5 January – Merlyn Rees, former Home Secretary (born 1920)
• 8 January – Tony Banks, Baron Stratford, former Labour Party MP and Minister for Sport (b 1943)
• 24 January – Sir Nicholas Shackleton, geologist (b 1937)
• 8 February – Ron Greenwood, former footballer and football manager (born 1921)
• 9 February – Sir Freddie Laker, airline entrepreneur (born 1922)
• 13 February – P. F. Strawson, philosopher (born 1919)
• 24 February – Denis C. Twitchett, Cambridge scholar, and Chinese historian (born 1925)
• 27 February – Linda Smith, comedian (born 1958)
• 1 March
  • Hugh McCartney, Scottish politician (born 1920)
  • Peter Osgood, former footballer (born 1947)
• 2 March – Jack Wild, actor (born 1952)
• 3 March – Ivor Cutler, poet, songwriter and humorist (born 1923)
• 9 March – John Profumo, politician (born 1915)
• 24 March – Lynne Perrie, actress (born 1931)
• 27 March – Ruari McLean, typographic designer (born 1917)
• 6 April – Leslie Norris, Anglo-Welsh poet and author (born 1921)
• 13 April – Muriel Spark, Scottish novelist (born 1918)
• 17 April – Calum Kennedy, Scottish singer (born 1928)
• 18 April – John Lyall, former footballer and football manager (born 1940)
• 24 April – Brian Labone, former footballer (born 1940)
• 25 April – Peter Law, Welsh politician (born 1948)
• 8 May – Iain MacMillan, photographer (born 1938)
• 10 May – Val Guest, film director (born 1911)
• 19 May – Freddie Garrity, singer (Freddie and the Dreamers) (born 1940)
• 28 June – George Unwin, fighter ace WWII (born 1913)
• 1 July – Fred Trueman, cricketer (born 1931)
• 7 July
  • Syd Barrett, founding member of Pink Floyd (born 1946)
  • Tom Weir, climber, author, and broadcaster (born 1914)
• 11 July – John Spencer, snooker player (born 1935)
• 16 July – Kevin Hughes, politician and MP for Doncaster North (born 1952)
• 18 July – David Maloney, television director and producer (born 1933
• 20 July – Ted Grant, politician (born 1913)
• 28 July – David Gemmell, author (born 1948)
• 13 August – Tony Jay, English-born actor (born 1933)
• 1 September – Kyffin Williams, landscape painter (born 1918)
• 2 September –
  • – Charlie Williams, comedian and former footballer (born 1928)
  • – Lionel Pickering, businessman and former football chairman (born 1932)
• 5 September – Anne Gregg, travel writer and TV presenter (born 1940)
• 8 September – Hilda Bernstein, English-born author, artist, and activist (born 1915)
• 9 September – John Drummond, controller of BBC Radio 3 (born 1934)
• 14 September – Peter Ling, Television writer and novelist (born 1926)
• 23 September – Malcolm Arnold, composer (born 1921)
• 24 September – Sally Gray, actress (born 1916)
• 28 September – James Hamilton, 4th Baron Hamilton of Dalzell, politician (born 1938)
• 4 October – Tom Bell, actor (born 1933)
• 9 October – Paul Hunter, snooker player (born 1978)
• 18 October
  • Anna Russell, British-born comedian and music satirist (born 1911)
  • Laurie Taitt, Olympic sprint hurdler (born 1934)
• 22 October – Richard Mayes, actor (born 1922)
• 7 November – Elizabeth Balneaves, writer and filmmaker (born 1902)
• 23 November
  • Nick Clarke radio and television presenter (born 1948)
  • Alexander Litvinenko, Russian defector (born 1962); died in Britain after being poisoned
• 27 November – Alan Freeman DJ and radio personality (born 1927, Australia)
• 3 December – Craig Hinton, writer (born 1964)
• 23 December – Charlie Drake, comedian (born 1925)
• 26 December – Marmaduke Hussey, Baron Hussey of North Bradley, chairman of the board of Governors of the BBC (born 1923)
• 30 December – Antony Lambton, politician (born 1922)

See also

References