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1984 in the United Kingdom

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1984 in the United Kingdom
Other years
1982 | 1983 | 1984 (1984) | 1985 | 1986
Individual countries of the United Kingdom
England | Northern Ireland | Scotland | Wales
Sport, Television and music

Events from the year 1984 in the United Kingdom.

Incumbents

Events

January

February

March

April

  • 2 April – Youth gangs run riot in Wolverhampton, looting from shops.[14]
  • 4 April – Peace protesters evicted from the Greenham Common Women's Peace Camp.[15]
  • 9 April – More than 100 pickets are arrested in violent clashes at the Creswell colliery in Derbyshire and the Babbington colliery in Nottinghamshire. It is estimated that 46 out of 176 British coal mines are currently active as miners fight government plans to close 20 coal mines across Britain.[16]
  • 12 April – Arthur Scargill, the leader of the National Union of Mineworkers, rules out a national ballot of miners on whether to continue their strike, which has already lasted five weeks.[17]
  • 15 April – The comedian Tommy Cooper, 63, collapses and dies on stage from a heart attack during a live televised show, Live from Her Majesty's.
  • 17 April – WPC Yvonne Fletcher is shot and killed by a secluded gunman during a siege outside the Libyan Embassy in London in the event known as the 1984 Libyan Embassy Siege. 11 other people are also shot but survive.[18]
  • 22 April – In the wake of Yvonne Fletcher's death, Britain severs diplomatic relations with Libya and serves warning on its seven remaining Libyan diplomats to return to their homeland.
  • 25 April – Austin Rover launches its new Montego four-door saloon, which replaces the outdated Morris Ital and competes head-to-head with the Ford Sierra and Vauxhall Cavalier. An estate model will also be launched later this year. The demise of the Ital coincides with the demise of the 72-year-old Morris marque, as the restructuring of Austin Rover will result in the discontinuation of several less popular marques as well as a less extensive model range.
  • 27 April – 30 Libyan diplomats leave Britain.

May

June

July

August

September

October

  • 1 October – David Jenkins, Bishop of Durham, launches an attack on Margaret Thatcher's social policies. The Durham area has been particularly hard hit by factory and mine closures since her election as Prime Minister five years ago.
  • 3 October – Plans to expand the Urban Enterprise Zone in Dudley, West Midlands, are approved; developers Don and Roy Richardson get the go-ahead to build a retail park and shopping mall on the main part of the site. The first tenants will move to the site next year and the development is expected in the next 18 months, with scope for further service sector developments in the future.[36]
  • 5 October – Police in Essex make the largest cannabis seizure in British criminal history when a multimillion-pound stash of the drug is found on a schooner moored on the River Crouch near North Fambridge village.[37]
  • 10 October – The High Court fines the NUM £200,000 and Arthur Scargill £1,000 for contempt of court.
  • 12 October – The Provisional Irish Republican Army attempts to assassinate the Conservative cabinet in the Brighton hotel bombing. Margaret Thatcher escapes unharmed, but MP Anthony Berry and four other people are killed, whilst Norman Tebbit is trapped among the rubble and his wife Margaret is seriously injured.[38]
  • 13 October – Darts player John Lowe achieves the first televised nine dart finish.[25]
  • 16 October
    • There is good news for state-owned car maker Austin Rover. On the day that a facelifted version of the top selling Austin Metro, now available as a five-door as well as a three-door, is launched, it is announced that sales for September have increased by 39% over the same period last year. The pre-facelift Metro was Britain's best selling car last month, while the mid-range Maestro (launched 19 months ago) was the second best seller ahead of its key rival the Ford Escort, and the six-month-old Austin Montego was the fifth best seller ahead of the Ford Sierra.[39]
    • The Bill, a police TV drama, airs for the first time on ITV. It debuted last year as a pilot show Wooden Top.[40] When the last episode is shown in 2010 it will be the longest-running police procedural in British television history.
  • 18 October – Support for the Conservative government is reported to be improving after several months of dismal poll showings, with the latest MORI poll putting them nine points ahead of Labour on 44%.[41]
  • 23 October – BBC News newsreader Michael Buerk gives powerful commentary of the famine in Ethiopia which has already claimed thousands of lives and reportedly has the potential claim the lives of many as 7 million more people. Numerous British charities including Oxfam and Save the Children begin collection work to aid the famine victims, who are mostly encamped near the town of Korem.

November

  • 5 November – 800 miners end their strike and return to work.
  • 12 November – The English one pound note is withdrawn after 150 years in circulation.[42]
  • 15 November – The General Synod of the Church of England support the ordination of women as deacons, but not as full priests.[3]
  • 19 November – The number of working miners increases to around 62,000 when nearly 3,000 striking miners return to work.
  • 20 November – British Telecom shares go on sale in the biggest share issue ever.[14] Two million people (5% of the adult population) buy shares, almost doubling the number of share owners in Britain.[43]
  • 23 November – The Oxford Circus fire traps around 1,000 passengers on the London Underground but no-one is killed.[44]
  • 25 November – 36 of Britain and Ireland's top pop musicians gather in a Notting Hill studio to form Band Aid and record the song "Do They Know It's Christmas" in order to raise money for famine relief in Ethiopia.
  • 28 November – The British Telecom share offer closes.
  • 30 November
    • Tension in the miners' strike increases when two South Wales miners are charged with the murder of taxi driver David Wilkie, 35, who died when a concrete block was dropped on his car from a road bridge. The passenger in his car, who escaped with minor injuries, was a miner who had defied the strike and continued going to work.
    • The British and French governments announce their intention to seek private promoters for the construction of the Channel Tunnel in order to build and operate it without public funding. The tunnel, for which proposals were first made as long ago as 1802, is expected to be open in the early 1990s.[45]

December

Undated

  • Chatham Dockyard in Medway is closed after being used a shipbuilding yard for over 400 years since the reign of Henry VIII.
  • Vauxhall have a successful year in the motor industry. It reported that its market share has doubled since 1981, and the year ended on an even bigger high when its MK2 Astra range was elected European Car of the Year.
  • Despite unemployment reaching a peak of nearly 3.3million this year, inflation is still low at 5%.[55]
  • Youth unemployment (covering the 16-24 age range) stands at a record 1,200,000 - more than a third of the total unemployment count.[56]

Publications

Births

Deaths

References

  1. ^ "The Glasgow Herald - Google News Archive Search". google.com.
  2. ^ "1984: Benn back on road to Westminster". BBC News. 15 January 1984. Archived from the original on 7 March 2008. Retrieved 29 January 2008. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  3. ^ a b c d e Palmer, Alan; Veronica (1992). The Chronology of British History. London: Century Ltd. pp. 449–450. ISBN 0-7126-5616-2.
  4. ^ "Shot list". itnsource.com. Archived from the original on 19 July 2011. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  5. ^ "BBC on this day |1| 1984: Halfpenny coin to meet its maker". bbc.co.uk.
  6. ^ "On this day: Withdrawal of halfpenny coin announced - BT". bt.com.
  7. ^ "MRP - Triumph cars". mrpbooks.co.uk.
  8. ^ "The Glasgow Herald - Google News Archive Search". google.com.
  9. ^ "1984: British ice couple score Olympic gold". BBC News. 14 February 1984. Archived from the original on 31 January 2008. Retrieved 29 January 2008. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  10. ^ a b "Poll tracker: Interactive guide to the opinion polls". BBC News. 29 September 2009.
  11. ^ "1984: Miners strike over threatened pit closures". BBC News. 12 March 1984. Archived from the original on 7 March 2008. Retrieved 29 January 2008. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  12. ^ "1984: Sinn Féin leader shot in street attack". BBC News. 14 March 1984. Archived from the original on 7 March 2008. Retrieved 29 January 2008. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  13. ^ "1984: EEC summit collapses over rebate row". BBC News. 21 March 1984. Archived from the original on 7 March 2008. Retrieved 29 January 2008. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  14. ^ a b "Those were the days". expressandstar.com.
  15. ^ "1984: Greenham Common women evicted". BBC News. 4 April 1984. Archived from the original on 7 March 2008. Retrieved 29 January 2008. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  16. ^ "1984: Dozens arrested in picket line violence". BBC News. 9 April 1984. Archived from the original on 7 March 2008. Retrieved 29 January 2008. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  17. ^ "1984: Scargill vetoes national ballot on strike". BBC News. 12 April 1984. Archived from the original on 7 March 2008. Retrieved 29 January 2008. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  18. ^ "1984: Libyan embassy shots kill policewoman". BBC News. 17 April 1984. Archived from the original on 7 March 2008. Retrieved 29 January 2008. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  19. ^ "Liverpool Daily Post.co.uk — Everton FC — Everton FC News — FA Cup Final 1984: Everton make Elton John sing the Blues". Archived from the original on 7 October 2009. Retrieved 2009-10-04. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  20. ^ "Birmingham International Airport History - 1980s – 2000". Archived from the original on 7 October 2009. Retrieved 2009-10-04. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  21. ^ "LIVERWEB — European Cup Winners 1984 - Liverpool". Archived from the original on 7 October 2009. Retrieved 2009-10-04. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  22. ^ Jamieson, Alastair (9 August 1984). "Unemployment 'will reach 3m by Christmas'". The Daily Telegraph. London. Retrieved 19 October 2012.
  23. ^ "The European Elections in 1984". europarl.org.uk. Archived from the original on 27 September 2011.
  24. ^ "1984: O-Levels to be replaced by GCSEs". BBC News. 20 June 1984. Archived from the original on 7 March 2008. Retrieved 29 January 2008. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  25. ^ a b c Penguin Pocket On This Day. Penguin Reference Library. 2006. ISBN 0-14-102715-0.
  26. ^ Baker, Michael H. C. (1997). London Transport since 1963. Shepperton: Ian Allan. ISBN 0-7110-2481-2.
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  28. ^ "Llŷn Peninsula Earthquake Macroseismic". Retrieved 23 May 2008.
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  30. ^ "1984: Zola Budd in race trip controversy". BBC News. 11 August 1984. Archived from the original on 23 January 2008. Retrieved 29 January 2008. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  31. ^ "1984: DeLorean cleared of drugs charges". BBC News. 16 August 1984. Archived from the original on 5 June 2009. Retrieved 29 May 2009. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  32. ^ "The Glasgow Herald - Google News Archive Search". google.com.
  33. ^ "1984: Epidemic 'spreads to second hospital'". BBC News. 7 September 1984.
  34. ^ "MINIBUS CRASH:". itnsource.com. Archived from the original on 19 July 2011. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  35. ^ "1984: UK and China agree Hong Kong handover". BBC News. 26 September 1984. Archived from the original on 3 January 2008. Retrieved 29 January 2008. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  36. ^ "CA37600 - IBA: enterprise zones: list of enterprise zones". hmrc.gov.uk.
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  38. ^ "1984: Tory Cabinet in Brighton bomb blast". BBC News. 12 October 1984. Archived from the original on 7 March 2008. Retrieved 29 January 2008. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  39. ^ Hunston, Hugh (16 October 1984). "Metro adds to its range as it goes to top of sales league". Glasgow Herald. p. 11. Retrieved 19 October 2012.
  40. ^ "The Bill". tv.com. Retrieved 19 October 2012.
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  42. ^ "1984: Quid notes out — pound coins in". BBC News. 12 November 1984. Archived from the original on 7 March 2008. Retrieved 29 January 2008. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
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  44. ^ "1984: London tube fire traps hundreds". BBC News. 23 November 1984. Archived from the original on 7 March 2008. Retrieved 29 January 2008. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  45. ^ Eurotunnel. "History". eurotunnelgroup.com. Archived from the original on 22 July 2012.
  46. ^ "The Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel 1984". Retrieved 29 January 2008.
  47. ^ "The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 1984". Retrieved 29 January 2008.
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  52. ^ Howard, Philip (20 December 1984). "'True poet' Ted Hughes is Laureate". The Times. No. 62017. p. 1.
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  54. ^ "The 1980s". Number Ones. Retrieved 2 April 2013.
  55. ^ WebCite query result
  56. ^ Bowater, Donna (16 November 2011). "Youth unemployment reaches 1986 levels". The Daily Telegraph. London. Retrieved 16 November 2011.
  57. ^ Watson, Adam; Clement, R. D. (1983). "Aberdeenshire Gaelic". Transactions of the Gaelic Society of Inverness. 52: 373–404.

See also