1974 in the United Kingdom

none May 2020 January 2013 1974 Constituent countries of the United Kingdom England Northern Ireland Scotland Wales Popular culture 1974 British Grand Prix 1974 English cricket season Football: England Scotland 1974 in British television 1974 in British music 1974 in British radio UK in the Eurovision Song Contest 1974 Events from the year 1974 in the United Kingdom. The year is marked by the Three-Day Week, two general elections, a state of emergency in Northern Ireland, extensive Provisional Irish Republican Army bombing of the British mainland, several large company collapses and major local government reorganisation. Incumbents Monarch – Elizabeth II Prime Minister Edward Heath (Conservative) (until 4 March) Harold Wilson (Labour) (starting 4 March) Events January January – Britain enters its first post-war recession after statistics show that the economy contracted during the third and fourth quarters of last year. 1 January New Year's Day is celebrated as a public holiday for the first time. The Northern Ireland Power-sharing Executive is set up in Belfast.Palmer Alan Palmer Veronica 1992 The Chronology of British History Century Ltd London 435–436 0-7126-5616-2 1 January–7 March – The Three-Day Week is introduced by the Conservative Government as a measure to conserve electricity during the period of industrial action by coal miners.British Economics and Trade Union politics 1973–1974 http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/releases/2005/nyo/politics.htm The National Archives (UK Government records) 21 May 2007 https://web.archive.org/web/20070609060809/http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/releases/2005/nyo/politics.htm 9 June 2007 live 25 January – The travel writer and royal biographer James Pope-Hennessy, 57, is murdered at his flat in Ladbroke Grove, London, by a gang of young men.https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1129&dat=19740126&id=OJxRAAAAIBAJ&sjid=Am0DAAAAIBAJ&pg=5110,2913500&hl=en Pittsburgh Post-Gazette - Google News Archive Search news.google.com 2022-04-07 February 4 February – M62 coach bombing: A Provisional Irish Republican Army bomb planted on a coach carrying off-duty soldiers and their families kills 11.http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/february/4/newsid_4148000/4148933.stm 1974: Soldiers and children killed in coach bombing BBC News 2008-02-10 4 February 1974 https://web.archive.org/web/20080307114357/http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/february/4/newsid_4148000/4148933.stm 7 March 2008 live On 8 February the toll reaches 12 with the death in hospital of an 18-year-old soldier seriously injured in the bombing. 7 February The Prime Minister, Edward Heath, calls a general election for 28 February in an attempt to end the dispute over the miners' strike.http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/february/7/newsid_4054000/4054793.stm 1974: Heath calls snap election over miners BBC News 2008-02-10 7 February 1974 https://web.archive.org/web/20080219165600/http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/february/7/newsid_4054000/4054793.stm 19 February 2008 live During the campaign, the Labour Party and Trades Union Congress agree a 'Social Contract' intended to produce wage restraint. Grenada becomes independent of the United Kingdom.Penguin Pocket On This Day Penguin Reference Library 0-14-102715-0 2006 12 February – BBC1 first airs the children's television series Bagpuss, made by Peter Firmin and Oliver Postgate's Smallfilms in stop motion animation. Despite only 13 episodes being made, it becomes fondly remembered and gains a cult following.http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/magazine/7773124.stm Jonathan Duffy See Emily play 2011-03-14 BBC 12 September 2008Entertainment: Bagpuss cream of television BBC News 1 January 1999 http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/246080.stm 2011-03-14 14 February Bob Latchford, the Birmingham City centre forward, becomes Britain's most expensive footballer in a £350,000 move to Everton.https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=hYNAAAAAIBAJ&sjid=y6cMAAAAIBAJ&pg=4372,6384961&dq=bob-latchford&hl=en Evening Times – Google News Archive Search news.google.com Opinion polls show the Conservative government in the lead.https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=xZwQAAAAIBAJ&sjid=wJADAAAAIBAJ&pg=5840,3485277&dq=opinion+poll+wilson&hl=en The Age – Google News Archive Search news.google.com 27 February – Enoch Powell, the controversial Conservative MP who was dismissed from the shadow cabinet in 1968 for his "Rivers of Blood" speech opposing mass immigration, announces his resignation from the Conservative Party in protest against Edward Heath's decision to take Britain into the EEC.http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/april/20/newsid_2489000/2489357.stm BBC News 1968: Powell slates immigration policy 20 April 1968 28 February – The general election results in the first hung parliament since 1929, with the Conservative government having 297 seats – four fewer than Labour, who have 301 – and the largest number of votes. Prime Minister Edward Heath hopes to form a coalition with the Liberal Party in order to remain in power.http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/vote_2005/basics/4393301.stm dead BBC News 1974 Feb: Hung parliament looms 5 April 2005 https://web.archive.org/web/20090422054129/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/vote_2005/basics/4393301.stm 22 April 2009 March 3 March – 180 Britons are among the dead when Turkish Airlines Flight 981 travelling from Paris to London crashes in a wood near Paris, killing all 346 passengers and crew on board. 4 March – Heath fails to convince the Liberals to form a coalition and announces his resignation as Prime Minister, paving the way for Harold Wilson to become Prime Minister for the second time as Labour forms a minority government. 6 March – The miners' strike comes to an end due an improved pay offer by the new Labour government.http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/march/6/newsid_4207000/4207111.stm 1974: Miners' strike comes to an end BBC News 2008-02-10 6 March 1974 https://web.archive.org/web/20080306222308/http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/march/6/newsid_4207000/4207111.stm 6 March 2008 live 7 March – The Three-Day Week comes to an end.http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/releases/2005/nyo/politics.htm News | British Economics and Trade Union politics 1973-1974 21 May 2007 9 June 2007 https://web.archive.org/web/20070609060809/http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/releases/2005/nyo/politics.htm dead 10 March – Ten miners die in a methane gas explosion at Golborne Colliery near Wigan, Lancashire. 11 March – Convicted armed robbers Kenneth Littlejohn and his brother Keith, who claim to be British spies in the Republic of Ireland, escape from Mountjoy Prison in Dublin.http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/march/11/newsid_2800000/2800267.stm 1974: 'Anti-IRA spies' break out of jail BBC News 2008-02-10 11 March 1974 https://web.archive.org/web/20080202144814/http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/march/11/newsid_2800000/2800267.stm 2 February 2008 live 15 March – Architect John Poulson is jailed for five years for corruption.http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/march/15/newsid_4223000/4223045.stm 1974: Architect jailed over corruption BBC News 2008-02-10 15 March 1974 https://web.archive.org/web/20080307114347/http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/march/15/newsid_4223000/4223045.stm 7 March 2008 live 18 March – Oil embargo crisis: Most OPEC nations end a 5-month oil embargo against the United States, Europe and Japan. 20 March – Ian Ball fails in his attempt to kidnap HRH Princess Anne and her husband Captain Mark Phillips in The Mall, outside Buckingham Palace. 29 March – The government re-establishes direct rule over Northern Ireland after declaring a state of emergency. 31 March – British Airways becomes the unified brand for BOAC, BEA, Cambrian Airways and Northeast Airlines. April April – The Soviet car maker Lada, founded four years ago as a result of an enterprise by Italian automotive giant Fiat, begins selling cars in the United Kingdom: its 1200 four-door saloon is based on the Fiat 124 and retails for £999 (equivalent to £7,648.51 in 2022). They would be sold in Britain until 1997.http://www.lada-owners-club.co.uk/lada_%20cars_in_the_UK.htm Lada Owners Club of GB Lada cars in the UK 15 October 2010 https://web.archive.org/web/20100721003733/http://www.lada-owners-club.co.uk/lada_%20cars_in_the_UK.htm#nogo 21 July 2010 dead 1 April – The Local Government Act 1972 comes into effect in England and Wales, creating six new metropolitan counties and comprehensively redrawing the administrative map. The Act confirms the boundaries of Wales by including most of Newport and Monmouthshire in the new county of Gwent, and abolishes all the 13 counties created by the Statute of Rhuddlan and the Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542 to create eight new counties. West Midlands metropolitan county is created, centred on the cities of Birmingham and Coventry as well as towns including Dudley, Wolverhampton, West Bromwich and Walsall, covering areas which were all previously in Staffordshire, Worcestershire or Warwickshire. Greater Manchester is also created, centred on the city of Manchester and taking in areas including Oldham, Rochdale and Stockport, which were previously in Lancashire or Cheshire. Merseyside is formed from the city of Liverpool along with neighbouring parts of Lancashire and Cheshire. Tyne and Wear is created from parts of Northumberland and County Durham. Cleveland is created from parts of Yorkshire and County Durham, and Humberside from parts of Yorkshire and Lincolnshire. The remaining parts of Yorkshire are divided into West Yorkshire, South Yorkshire and North Yorkshire. Avon is created from the city of Bristol and nearby areas which were previously in Gloucestershire and Somerset. The historic county of Sussex is divided into West Sussex and East Sussex. The historic counties of Cumberland and Westmorland are dissolved and merged to form Cumbria, which also takes in areas previously in Lancashire and Yorkshire. 6 April – The 19th Eurovision Song Contest is held at the Dome in Brighton, produced and transmitted by the BBC. Katie Boyle hosts the event for the fourth time. Sweden wins the contest with the song "Waterloo", performed by ABBA, who become the first group to win the contest and go on to achieve huge international success. 24 April – Leeds United win their second Football League First Division title.http://www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/sport/football/leeds-united/revie_s_stars_reflect_on_the_man_who_turned_leeds_into_legends_1_3182388 Revie's stars reflect on the man who turned Leeds into legends www.yorkshirepost.co.uk 27 April – Manchester United are relegated from the Football League First Division where they have played continuously since 1938. Their relegation is confirmed when they lose 1–0 at home to their neighbours City in the penultimate game of the league season and the only goal of the game comes from former United striker Denis Law.http://dspace.dial.pipex.com/bob.dunning/thirty42a.htm Thirty Years Ago - April 1974 18 May 2010 https://web.archive.org/web/20100418203127/http://dspace.dial.pipex.com/bob.dunning/thirty42a.htm 18 April 2010 dead May 1 May – Alf Ramsey, who guided the England national football team to victory in the 1966 FIFA World Cup, is dismissed by the Football Association after 11 years in charge.http://dspace.dial.pipex.com/bob.dunning/thirty42b.htm Thirty Years Ago - May 1974 18 May 2010 https://web.archive.org/web/20100418203133/http://dspace.dial.pipex.com/bob.dunning/thirty42b.htm 18 April 2010 dead 2 May – The National Front gains more than 10% of the vote in several parts of London in council elections, but fails to net any councillors.https://www.theguardian.com/world/2007/mar/04/race.otherparties London The Guardian Ed Vulliamy Blood and glory 4 March 2007 15 October 2010 4 May – Liverpool win the FA Cup for the second time, beating Newcastle United 3–0 in the Wembley final, with Kevin Keegan scoring twice and Steve Heighway scoring the other goal. 6 May – Inauguration of full electric service on British Rail's West Coast Main Line through to Glasgow.July 2025 17 May – The Loyalist paramilitary Ulster Volunteer Force carries out the Dublin and Monaghan bombings in the Republic of Ireland, killing 34 people.http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/may/17/newsid_4311000/4311459.stm 1974: Bombs devastate Dublin and Monaghan BBC News 2008-02-10 17 May 1974 https://web.archive.org/web/20080307114254/http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/may/17/newsid_4311000/4311459.stm 7 March 2008 live 20 May – The Centre for Policy Studies, a Conservative social market think tank established by Keith Joseph, Margaret Thatcher and Alfred Sherman, holds its first meeting. 28 May – Power-sharing in the Northern Ireland Assembly collapses following a strike by unionists.http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/may/28/newsid_2495000/2495375.stm 1974: Strikes topple NI power-sharing body BBC News 2008-02-10 28 May 1974 https://web.archive.org/web/20080307114224/http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/may/28/newsid_2495000/2495375.stm 7 March 2008 live 29 May – Television producer James MacTaggart, 46, dies unexpectedly of a heart attack before finishing the film Robinson Crusoe.http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article44021531 A spirited "Crusoe" was tough for star The Australian Women's Weekly 1 January 1975 7 April 2022 10 National Library of Australia June 1 June – 28 people are killed in the Flixborough disaster. 5 June – Snow Knight wins the Epsom Derby at odds of 50/1 ridden by Brian Taylor 8 June – Jon Pertwee leaves Doctor Who in the final episode of Planet of the Spiders citing the death of his close acting friend Roger Delgado (who played 'The Master') the previous year as the reason. He is replaced by Tom Baker. 10 June – The Queen's last surviving royal uncle, Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester, dies at his home in Northamptonshire, seven years after his last public appearance. His funeral is held at Windsor Castle on 14 June. His younger, but only surviving, son, Prince Richard, Duke of Gloucester, succeeds to the title. 15 June – The Red Lion Square disorders see the National Front clash with counter-protesters in London's West End; 21-year-old Kevin Gateley, a university student, is killed.http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/june/15/newsid_2512000/2512725.stm 1974: Man dies in race rally clashes BBC News 2008-02-10 15 June 1974 https://web.archive.org/web/20080307114451/http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/june/15/newsid_2512000/2512725.stm 7 March 2008 live 17 June – A bomb explodes at the Houses of Parliament in London, damaging Westminster Hall. The Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) claims responsibility for planting the bomb. 24 June – The government admits testing a nuclear weapon in the United States causing a rift in the Labour Party.http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/june/24/newsid_2526000/2526963.stm 1974: Labour rift over nuclear test BBC News 2008-02-10 24 June 1974 https://web.archive.org/web/20080307114349/http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/june/24/newsid_2526000/2526963.stm 7 March 2008 live July 3 July – Don Revie, the manager of Football League champions Leeds United since 1961, accepts the Football Association's £200,000-a-year deal to become the new England manager.https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=uZFAAAAAIBAJ&sjid=_KQMAAAAIBAJ&pg=5610,924205&dq=don-revie&hl=en The Glasgow Herald – Google News Archive Search news.google.com 12 July – Bill Shankly, manager of FA Cup holders Liverpool, stuns the club by announcing his retirement after 15 years as manager. Shankly, 62, had arrived at Liverpool when they were in the Football League Second Division and transformed them into one of the world's top club sides with three top division titles, two FA Cups and a UEFA Cup triumph.http://www.lfchistory.net/Articles/Article/2410 Why did Bill Shankly retire? - LFChistory – Stats galore for Liverpool FC! LFChistory.net www.lfchistory.net 17 July – A bomb planted by the IRA explodes in the Tower of London's White Tower, killing one person and injuring 41. Another bomb explodes outside a government building in South London.http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/july/17/newsid_2514000/2514429.stm 1974: Bomb blast at the Tower of London BBC News 2008-02-10 17 July 1974 https://web.archive.org/web/20080307114442/http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/july/17/newsid_2514000/2514429.stm 7 March 2008 live 20 July – Leeds United appoint Brighton & Hove Albion manager Brian Clough, formerly of Derby County as their new manager.http://dspace.dial.pipex.com/bob.dunning/thirty43a.htm#june Thirty Years Ago - June 1974 July 1974 dspace.dial.pipex.com https://web.archive.org/web/20100418190019/http://dspace.dial.pipex.com/bob.dunning/thirty43a.htm#june 18 April 2010 21 July – 10,000 Greek-Cypriots protest in London against the Turkish invasion of Cyprus.http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/july/21/newsid_2515000/2515761.stm 1974: Cyprus conflict spills into London BBC News 2008-02-10 21 July 1974 https://web.archive.org/web/20080307114454/http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/july/21/newsid_2515000/2515761.stm 7 March 2008 live 26 July – Liverpool appoint 55-year-old first team coach Bob Paisley as their new manager.http://www.bobpaisley.com/article/2294 LFC Legends LFCHistory.net LFC Legends 25 April 2011 22 February 2011 https://web.archive.org/web/20110222050548/http://www.bobpaisley.com/article/2294 dead 28 July – Last production of steel by the Bessemer process in Britain, at Workington.Phil Baggley The Last Blow Workington Iron and Steel http://www.banklands.com/The%20Last%20Bessemer%20Converter%20blow.htm 2016-01-09Workington Steelworks, site of http://www.engineering-timelines.com/scripts/engineeringItem.asp?id=899 Engineering Timelines Institution of Civil Engineers 2016-01-09W.K.V. Gale Iron and Steel Ironbridge Gorge Museum Trust 1979 29 31 July – Town and Country Amenities Act passed. August 15 August – Collapse of Court Line and its subsidiaries Clarksons and Horizon Holidays leaves 100,000 holidaymakers stranded abroad. 29 August – Thames Valley Police break up the Windsor Free Festival. September 12 September – Brian Clough is dismissed after 44 days as manager of defending league champions Leeds United following a disappointing start to the Football League season.http://dspace.dial.pipex.com/bob.dunning/thirty44a.htm Thirty Years Ago – September 1974 18 May 2010 https://web.archive.org/web/20090531064239/http://dspace.dial.pipex.com/bob.dunning/thirty44a.htm 31 May 2009 dead 18 September – Harold Wilson confirms that a second general election for the year will be held on 10 October. 23 September – Ceefax is started by the BBC – one of the first public service information systems. 30 September – With the year's second general election 10 days away, opinion polls show Labour in the lead with Harold Wilson well placed to gain the overall majority that no party achieved in the election held seven months earlier.https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=JZtlAAAAIBAJ&sjid=PYsNAAAAIBAJ&pg=950,4489813&dq=opinion+poll+wilson&hl=en The Vancouver Sun – Google News Archive Search news.google.com October October – Five previously all-male Colleges of the University of Oxford admit women undergraduates for the first time.Christopher Hibbert The Encyclopædia of Oxford London Macmillan 1988 0-333-39917-X 427 5 October – Guildford pub bombings: Bombs planted by the IRA at pubs patronised by off-duty soldiers, The Horse and Groom and The Seven Stars, kill five people.http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/october/5/newsid_2492000/2492543.stm 1974: Four dead in Guildford bomb blasts BBC News 2008-02-10 5 October 1974 https://web.archive.org/web/20080307114415/http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/october/5/newsid_2492000/2492543.stm 7 March 2008 live 10 October – The second general election of the year results in a narrow victory for Harold Wilson, giving Labour a majority of three seats. It is widely expected that Edward Heath's leadership of the Conservative Party will soon be at an end, as he has now lost three of the four General Elections that he has contested in almost a decade as leader.http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/october/11/newsid_2542000/2542567.stm 1974: Labour scrapes working majority BBC News 2008-02-10 11 October 1974 https://web.archive.org/web/20080307114247/http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/october/11/newsid_2542000/2542567.stm 7 March 2008 live The Scottish National Party secures its highest Westminster party representation to date with 11 seats. Enoch Powell is returned to Parliament standing for the Ulster Unionist Party in Northern Ireland.http://cain.ulst.ac.uk/othelem/chron/ch74.htm CAIN: Chronology of the Conflict 1974 Dr Martin Melaugh cain.ulst.ac.uk Powell, who was dismissed from the Conservative Shadow Cabinet in April 1968 following his controversial Rivers of Blood speech on immigration, had left the Conservative Party at the general election on 28 February and recently rejected an offer to stand as a candidate for the National Front.http://www.martinfrost.ws/htmlfiles/april2008/greatlie_survives.html Enoch Powell: the Great Lie survives 5 February 2011 https://web.archive.org/web/20090201014831/http://www.martinfrost.ws/htmlfiles/april2008/greatlie_survives.html 1 February 2009 dead 16 October – Rioting prisoners set fire to the Maze Prison in Belfast.http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/october/16/newsid_2531000/2531083.stm 1974: Maze prison goes up in flames BBC News 2008-02-10 16 October 1974 https://web.archive.org/web/20080307114321/http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/october/16/newsid_2531000/2531083.stm 7 March 2008 live 19 October – Keith Joseph makes a speech in Edgbaston on the cycle of deprivation; the controversy it provokes has the effect of ruling him out of high office in the Conservative Party. 22 October – The IRA bombs Brooks's club in London.http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/october/22/newsid_2489000/2489263.stm 1974: Bomb blast in London club BBC News 2008-02-10 22 October 1974 https://web.archive.org/web/20080307114447/http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/october/22/newsid_2489000/2489263.stm 7 March 2008 live 28 October – The wife and son of Sports Minister Denis Howell survive an IRA bomb attack on their car.http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/october/28/newsid_2477000/2477645.stm 1974: Minister's wife survives bomb attack BBC News 2008-02-10 28 October 1974 https://web.archive.org/web/20080307114301/http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/october/28/newsid_2477000/2477645.stm 7 March 2008 live November 4 November – Judith Ward is sentenced to life imprisonment for the M62 coach bombing;http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/november/4/newsid_2538000/2538321.stm 1974: M62 bomber jailed for life BBC News 2008-02-10 4 November 1974 https://web.archive.org/web/20080307114435/http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/november/4/newsid_2538000/2538321.stm 7 March 2008 live her conviction is overturned nearly 18 years later. 7 November Lord Lucan disappears after the murder of his children's nanny.http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/november/8/newsid_3972000/3972213.stm 1974: Police hunt Lord Lucan after murder BBC News 2008-02-10 8 November 1974 https://web.archive.org/web/20080307114238/http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/november/8/newsid_3972000/3972213.stm 7 March 2008 live He is pronounced legally dead in 2016. A Provisional IRA bomb explodes at the Kings Arms, Woolwich. 11 November – The New Covent Garden Market in Nine Elms is opened.http://www.cgma.gov.uk/DisplayText.aspx?History History of Covent Garden Market 2008-03-28 https://web.archive.org/web/20071028092040/http://www.cgma.gov.uk/DisplayText.aspx?History 28 October 2007 dead 13 November – McDonald's opens its first UK restaurant in Woolwich, South East London.http://metro.co.uk/2015/05/15/someones-dug-up-the-first-ever-uk-mcdonalds-menu-from-1974-guess-how-much-a-value-meal-cost-5198551/ When the first UK McDonald's opened, guess how much a value meal cost? 15 May 2015 metro.co.uk 21 November – 21 people are killed in the Birmingham pub bombings.http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/november/21/newsid_2549000/2549953.stm 1974: Birmingham pub blasts kill 19 BBC News 2008-02-10 21 November 1974 https://web.archive.org/web/20080307114242/http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/november/21/newsid_2549000/2549953.stm 7 March 2008 live 24 November – The Birmingham Six are charged with the Birmingham pub bombings.http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/november/24/newsid_2546000/2546983.stm 1974: Six charged over Birmingham pub bombs BBC News 2008-02-10 24 November 1974 https://web.archive.org/web/20080307114210/http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/november/24/newsid_2546000/2546983.stm 7 March 2008 live 25 November – Home Secretary Roy Jenkins announces the government's intention to outlaw the IRA in the UK. 27 November – The Prevention of Terrorism Act is passed. December 5 December – "Party Political Broadcast", the final episode of Monty Python's Flying Circus, is broadcast on BBC Two. 10 December Friedrich Hayek shares the 1974 Nobel Prize in Economics with ideological rival Gunnar Myrdal "for their pioneering work in the theory of money and economic fluctuations and for their penetrating analysis of the interdependence of economic, social and institutional phenomena.".http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/economics/laureates/1974/index.html The Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel 1974 Bank of Sweden 1974 Nobel Prize in Economics 20 January 2007 https://web.archive.org/web/20070202224634/http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/economics/laureates/1974/index.html 2 February 2007 live Martin Ryle and Antony Hewish win the Nobel Prize in Physics "for their pioneering research in radio astrophysics: Ryle for his observations and inventions, in particular of the aperture synthesis technique, and Hewish for his decisive role in the discovery of pulsars".http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/physics/laureates/1974/ The Nobel Prize in Physics 1974 nobelprize.org 15 December – New speed limits are introduced on Britain's roads in an attempt to save fuel at a time of Arab fuel embargoes following the Yom Kippur War.http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/december/15/newsid_2559000/2559807.stm 1974: New speed limit to curb fuel use BBC News 2008-02-10 15 December 1974 https://web.archive.org/web/20080307052950/http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/december/15/newsid_2559000/2559807.stm 7 March 2008 live 18 December – The government pays £42,000 to families of victims of Bloody Sunday riots in Northern Ireland.http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/december/18/newsid_4627000/4627967.stm 1974: Compensation for Bloody Sunday victims BBC News 2008-02-10 18 December 1974 https://web.archive.org/web/20080307114402/http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/december/18/newsid_4627000/4627967.stm 7 March 2008 live 19 December – The ninth James Bond film, The Man with the Golden Gun, premieres in London. It is the second of seven films to star Roger Moore as James Bond. 22 December – The London home of Conservative Party leader and former Prime Minister Edward Heath is bombed in a suspected Provisional IRA attack. He is away from home when the bomb explodes, but returns just 10 minutes afterwards.http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/december/22/newsid_2539000/2539621.stm 1974: Heath's home is bombed BBC News 2008-02-10 22 December 1974 https://web.archive.org/web/20080307114235/http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/december/22/newsid_2539000/2539621.stm 7 March 2008 live 24 December – Former Cabinet Minister John Stonehouse is found living in Australia having faked his own death in Miami. He is quickly arrested by Australian police, who initially believe that he is Lord Lucan.http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/december/24/newsid_2540000/2540557.stm 1974: 'Drowned' Stonehouse found alive BBC News 2008-02-10 24 December 1974 https://web.archive.org/web/20080307114458/http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/december/24/newsid_2540000/2540557.stm 7 March 2008 live 31 December – Roger Hargreaves' Mr. Men TV series is first broadcast on BBC1. Undated Inflation soars to a 34-year high of 17.2%http://www.parliament.uk/commons/lib/research/rp99/rp99-020.pdf https://web.archive.org/web/20060219130455/http://www.parliament.uk/commons/lib/research/rp99/rp99-020.pdf dead 2006-02-19 Inflation: the Value of the Pound 1750-1998 House of Commons Library 1999-02-23 but the unemployment rate of 3.7% will not fall lower until 2022.Changes in the economy since the 1970s https://www.ons.gov.uk/economy/economicoutputandproductivity/output/articles/changesintheeconomysincethe1970s/2019-09-02 Office for National Statistics 2019-09-02 2022-11-04 The Department of Health and Social Security produces a report recommending that infants be breastfed for the first 4–6 months of life. China gives two giant pandas, Ching-Ching and Chia-Chia, to Britain.http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/politics/4555022.stm Pandas 'sparked diplomatic fears' BBC News 2007-11-24 2005-12-29 Ollie Stone-Lee Japanese carmaker Mitsubishi begins importing cars to Britain under the Colt brand, bringing the number of Japanese carmakers selling cars in Britain to five.http://mitsubishi-media.co.uk/page/category/5/ UK Overview : Mitsubishi Media Centre 15 March 2018 17 March 2018 https://web.archive.org/web/20180317012927/http://mitsubishi-media.co.uk/page/category/5/ usurped Investor Gold Index, a predecessor of IG Group, a global online financial trading service, is founded in London.Our History https://www.iggroup.com/about-us/who-we-are/our-history IG Group 25 October 2022 First branch Early Learning Centre toy stores opens in Swindon. Publications The Campaign for Real Ale's first Good Beer Guide. Linton Kwesi Johnson's first poetry collection Voices of the Living and the Dead.Published by Race Today. Larkin Colin 1998 The Virgin Encyclopedia of Reggae London Virgin Books 0-7535-0242-9 147–8 Philip Larkin's poetry collection High Windows. John le Carré's novel Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy, first in The Quest for Karla trilogy featuring George Smiley. Stanley Middleton's novel Holiday. Nikolaus Pevsner's guidebook Staffordshire, last in the Buildings of England series begun in 1951.http://www.pevsner.co.uk/ History of the Series Pevsner Architectural Guides 2010-06-14 https://web.archive.org/web/20100526114005/http://www.pevsner.co.uk/ 26 May 2010 dead F. W. Winterbotham's account The Ultra Secret: the inside story of Operation Ultra, Bletchley Park and Enigma. Births 12 January – Melanie C (Melanie Chisholm, "Sporty Spice"), English pop singer (Spice Girls) 15 January – Edith Bowman, radio DJ 16 January – Kate Moss, English model 30 January Christian Bale, English actor Olivia Colman, English actress 31 January – Ian Huntley, English murderer 6 February – Ed Chamberlin, English sports presenter 11 February – Nick Barmby, English footballer 13 February – Robbie Williams, English singer 22 February James Blunt, British pop singer-songwriter Chris Moyles, British disc jockey 25 February – Dominic Raab, politician 28 February – Lee Carsley, English football player and coach 5 March – Matt Lucas, English actor and comedian 6 March – Guy Garvey, English rock musician 7 March – Tobias Menzies, English actor 8 March – Ash Regan, Scottish politician 21 March – Ted Kravitz, sports presenter and reporter 28 March – Mark King, English snooker player 1 April – John Glen, politician 17 April – Victoria Beckham (née Adams, "Posh Spice"), English pop singer (Spice Girls) and fashion designerVictoria Beckham Biography & Facts Britannica https://www.britannica.com/biography/Victoria-Beckham www.britannica.com 24 May 2022 en 18 April – Edgar Wright, film director 20 April – Tina Cousins, singer 24 April – "Comedy Dave" (David Vitty), Hong Kong-born media presenter 26 April – Adil Ray, actor and presenter 28 April – Vernon Kay, television and radio presenter 2 May Matt Berry, actor and musician Andy Johnson, English-Welsh footballer 7 May Lynden David Hall, soul singer (died 2006) Ian Pearce, English footballer and manager 8 May – Jon Tickle, television host 27 May – Denise van Outen, actress, television presenter, singer 5 June – Nina Conti, ventriloquist and actress 7 June – Bear Grylls, adventurer and television presenter 16 June – Andrea Jenkyns, politician 21 June – Natasha Desborough, British radio personality 22 June – Jo Cox, British politician (died 2016)Langdon Julia Jo Cox obituary https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2016/jun/16/jo-cox-obituary The Guardian 16 June 2020 16 June 2016 23 June – Meg-John Barker, author, academic, activist and psychotherapist 30 June – Kelli Ali, vocalist 14 July David Mitchell, English comedy writer-performer Cathy Newman, English journalist and presenterNewman, Cathy, (born 14 July 1974), presenter, Channel 4 News, since 2011 https://www.ukwhoswho.com/view/10.1093/ww/9780199540884.001.0001/ww-9780199540884-e-249479 WHO'S WHO & WHO WAS WHO 2009 6 April 2022 en 10.1093/ww/9780199540884.013.U249479 978-0-19-954088-4 Maxine Peake, English actress 25 July – Gareth Thomas, Welsh rugby player 28 July Justin Lee Collins, English comedian, actor and author Hannah Waddingham, English actress and singer 29 July – Akram Khan, English dancer and choreographer 31 July – Emilia Fox, English actress 8 August – Brian Harvey, English singer 23 August – Ray Park, Scottish actor 5 September – Lauren Jeska, transgender fell runner convicted of the attempted murder of Ralph Knibbshttps://www.worldathletics.org/athletes/great-britain-ni/lauren-jeska-014470216 Lauren JESKA | Profile 6 September – Tim Henman, English tennis player 9 September – Gok Wan, stylist 13 September – Adam Ruckwood, English backstroke swimmer 18 September – Sol Campbell, English footballer 29 September – James Lance, English actor 10 October – Lucy Powell, English politician 15 October – Shumon Basar, writer and editor 17 October – Matthew Macfadyen, English actor 18 October – Robbie Savage, Welsh football player and pundit 20 October Mohammad Sidique Khan, Islamic terrorist, leader of 7 July 2005 London bombings (died 2005)http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/4762209.stm Profile: Mohammad Sidique Khan 30 April 2007 BBC News Brian Limond, Scottish comedian and writer 29 October – Michael Vaughan, English cricketer 2 November – David Smith, English hammer thrower 4 November – Louise Redknapp, English R&B singer (Eternal) 24 November - Stephen Merchant, English comedy writer-performer 27 November – Wendy Houvenaghel, Welsh racing cyclist 9 December – Luisa Bradshaw-White, English actress 11 December – Ben Shephard, English television presenter 13 December Sara Cox, English television and radio presenter Nick McCarthy, English-born rock guitarist (Franz Ferdinand) Natalie Haynes, comedian and critic Deaths 12 January – Princess Patricia of Connaught (born 1886) 19 January – Edward Seago, artist (born 1910) 25 January – James Pope-Hennessy, biographer and travel writer (murdered) (born 1916) 29 January – H. E. Bates, novelist (born 1905) 23 February – Raymond Glendenning, radio sports commentator (born 1907) 23 March – Edward Molyneux, fashion designer (born 1891) 8 April – K. A. C. Creswell, architectural historian (born 1879) 22 April – Ivor Brown, journalist and author (born 1891) 9 May – L. T. C. Rolt, writer on engineering history (born 1910) 29 May – James MacTaggart, Scottish television producer (born 1928) 10 June – Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester, last surviving child of George V (born 1900) 17 June – Sir Charles Keightley, Army general, Governor of Gibraltar (1958–1962) (born 1901) 4 July – Georgette Heyer, English novelist (born 1902) 13 July – Patrick Blackett, English physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1897) 14 July – Sibyl Hathaway, Dame of Sark (since 1927) (born 1884) 24 July – James Chadwick, English physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1891) 11 August – Compton Bennett, film director and writer (born 1900) 22 August – Jacob Bronowski, Polish-born mathematician and television presenter (born 1908) 29 August – Judith Furse, actress (born 1912) 2 September – Maureen Gardner, athlete (born 1928) 18 September – Harry Beck, graphic designer, creator of the London Underground map (born 1902)Harry Beck Biography, Designs and Facts https://www.famousgraphicdesigners.org/harry-beck 4 February 2025 Famous Graphic Designers en-US 4 February 2025 https://web.archive.org/web/20250204083128/https://www.famousgraphicdesigners.org/harry-beck dead 28 October – David Jones, poet and artist (born 1895) 2 November – Hilda Margaret Bruce, zoologist (born 1903) 21 November – Sir William Andrewes, admiral (born 1899) 25 November – Nick Drake, Burma-born folk singer-songwriter (born 1948) 20 December R. A. Bevan, English advertiser (born 1901) R. Palme Dutt, British communist theoretician (born 1896) 21 December – James Henry Govier, British painter and etcher (born 1910) See also 1974 in British music 1974 in British television List of British films of 1974 References 30em 1974 Category:Years of the 20th century in the United Kingdom Category:1974 by country Category:1970s in the United Kingdom Category:1974 in Europe