1 January – Possession of
heroin becomes fully criminalised.[1]
4 January – Eight months after winning the General Election and barely a year after becoming
Prime Minister,
Anthony Eden's position is looking under threat as opinion polls show
Labour (now led by
Hugh Gaitskell) are in the lead.[2]
24 January – Plans are announced for the construction of thousands of new homes in the
Barbican area of London, devastated by the
Luftwaffe during the
Second World War.[3]
17 February – The
Midlands becomes the first region outside of London to receive ITV when
ATV Midlands begins broadcasting,
ABC, the weekend station, launches the following day.
10 March –
Fairey Aviationtest pilotPeter Twiss sets a new airspeed record in the
Fairey Delta 2, also becoming the first person to exceed 1,000 mph (1,610 km/h) in level flight. His top speed is 1,132 mph (1,821 km/h), 310 mph (499 km/h) in excess of the previous (US) record.
In his
Budget speech, Chancellor of the Exchequer
Harold Macmillan announces the launch of
Premium Bonds which will go on sale on 1 November, with a £1,000 prize available from the first draw in June next year.[14][15][16]
19 April –
DiverLionel Crabb (working for
MI6) dives into
Portsmouth Harbour to investigate visiting
Soviet cruiser Ordzhonikidze and vanishes during a state visit by
Nikita Khrushchev and
Nikolai Bulganin. On 9 May,
Anthony Eden who had refused permission for the operation, makes a statement refusing to reveal any details surrounding the mystery of Crabb's disappearance.[17]
7 May –
Minister of HealthRobin Turton rejects a call for the government to lead an anti-smoking campaign, arguing that no ill-effects have yet been proven.[21]
10 July – A
private member's bill to abolish the death penalty is vetoed in the House of Lords, however, no
capital punishment is carried out in the UK this year.
31 July –
Jim Laker sets a record by taking 19 wickets in a first class cricket match, at
Old Trafford in the fourth
Test between England and Australia.
17 August –
Scotland Yard are called to
Eastbourne to investigate the activities of society doctor
John Bodkin Adams. The case is reported around the world and press reports claim up to 400 patients may have been murdered.[32]
10 September –
Guy Mollet visits London and proposes a merger of France and the United Kingdom. However, the idea is rejected by Anthony Eden.[34]
12 September –
Manchester United become the first English team to compete in the
European Cup, a competition for the champions of domestic leagues across
Europe, when they play the first leg of the preliminary round in
Belgium and beat
R.S.C. Anderlecht 2–0.[35]
25 September – The
TAT-1 transatlantic telephone cable between the UK and North America is inaugurated.[8]
26 September – Manchester United qualify for the first round of the European Cup in style with a 10–0 win over R.S.C. Anderlecht at
Maine Road in the second leg of the preliminary round.[36]
28 September – Anthony Eden considers allowing France to join the
Commonwealth of Nations, but this idea is also rejected.[34]
17 October – The Queen opens the world's first commercial nuclear power station at
Calder Hall.[39]
24 October –
Protocol of Sèvres, a secret agreement between the UK, France and Israel allowing the latter to invade
Sinai with the support of the two former governments. Anthony Eden subsequently denies existence of an agreement.[40]
The long-running television programme What the Papers Say airs for the first time on ITV.[8]
6 November – British and French forces seize control of two major ports in the
Suez Canal in
Egypt before declaring a ceasefire.[41]
9 November – At the
Lord Mayor's Show in London, the first
AEC Routemaster forms part of the procession, advertised as "London's Bus of the Future".[6]
15 November – The Manchester Guardian calls for the resignation of Anthony Eden as Prime Minister, despite his improvement in opinion poll showings.
^Warwick, Neil; Kutner, Jon; Brown, Tony (2004). The Complete Book of the British Charts: Singles and Albums (3rd ed.). London: Omnibus Press.
ISBN978-1-84449-058-5.
1 January – Possession of
heroin becomes fully criminalised.[1]
4 January – Eight months after winning the General Election and barely a year after becoming
Prime Minister,
Anthony Eden's position is looking under threat as opinion polls show
Labour (now led by
Hugh Gaitskell) are in the lead.[2]
24 January – Plans are announced for the construction of thousands of new homes in the
Barbican area of London, devastated by the
Luftwaffe during the
Second World War.[3]
17 February – The
Midlands becomes the first region outside of London to receive ITV when
ATV Midlands begins broadcasting,
ABC, the weekend station, launches the following day.
10 March –
Fairey Aviationtest pilotPeter Twiss sets a new airspeed record in the
Fairey Delta 2, also becoming the first person to exceed 1,000 mph (1,610 km/h) in level flight. His top speed is 1,132 mph (1,821 km/h), 310 mph (499 km/h) in excess of the previous (US) record.
In his
Budget speech, Chancellor of the Exchequer
Harold Macmillan announces the launch of
Premium Bonds which will go on sale on 1 November, with a £1,000 prize available from the first draw in June next year.[14][15][16]
19 April –
DiverLionel Crabb (working for
MI6) dives into
Portsmouth Harbour to investigate visiting
Soviet cruiser Ordzhonikidze and vanishes during a state visit by
Nikita Khrushchev and
Nikolai Bulganin. On 9 May,
Anthony Eden who had refused permission for the operation, makes a statement refusing to reveal any details surrounding the mystery of Crabb's disappearance.[17]
7 May –
Minister of HealthRobin Turton rejects a call for the government to lead an anti-smoking campaign, arguing that no ill-effects have yet been proven.[21]
10 July – A
private member's bill to abolish the death penalty is vetoed in the House of Lords, however, no
capital punishment is carried out in the UK this year.
31 July –
Jim Laker sets a record by taking 19 wickets in a first class cricket match, at
Old Trafford in the fourth
Test between England and Australia.
17 August –
Scotland Yard are called to
Eastbourne to investigate the activities of society doctor
John Bodkin Adams. The case is reported around the world and press reports claim up to 400 patients may have been murdered.[32]
10 September –
Guy Mollet visits London and proposes a merger of France and the United Kingdom. However, the idea is rejected by Anthony Eden.[34]
12 September –
Manchester United become the first English team to compete in the
European Cup, a competition for the champions of domestic leagues across
Europe, when they play the first leg of the preliminary round in
Belgium and beat
R.S.C. Anderlecht 2–0.[35]
25 September – The
TAT-1 transatlantic telephone cable between the UK and North America is inaugurated.[8]
26 September – Manchester United qualify for the first round of the European Cup in style with a 10–0 win over R.S.C. Anderlecht at
Maine Road in the second leg of the preliminary round.[36]
28 September – Anthony Eden considers allowing France to join the
Commonwealth of Nations, but this idea is also rejected.[34]
17 October – The Queen opens the world's first commercial nuclear power station at
Calder Hall.[39]
24 October –
Protocol of Sèvres, a secret agreement between the UK, France and Israel allowing the latter to invade
Sinai with the support of the two former governments. Anthony Eden subsequently denies existence of an agreement.[40]
The long-running television programme What the Papers Say airs for the first time on ITV.[8]
6 November – British and French forces seize control of two major ports in the
Suez Canal in
Egypt before declaring a ceasefire.[41]
9 November – At the
Lord Mayor's Show in London, the first
AEC Routemaster forms part of the procession, advertised as "London's Bus of the Future".[6]
15 November – The Manchester Guardian calls for the resignation of Anthony Eden as Prime Minister, despite his improvement in opinion poll showings.
^Warwick, Neil; Kutner, Jon; Brown, Tony (2004). The Complete Book of the British Charts: Singles and Albums (3rd ed.). London: Omnibus Press.
ISBN978-1-84449-058-5.