16 February – The "
Toddlers' Truce" (an arrangement whereby there have been no television broadcasts between 18:00–19:00 to allow parents to put their children to bed) is abolished.
11 April – The UK Government agrees to allow
Singapore its independence.[14]
15 April – Suspected serial killer Dr
John Bodkin Adams is controversially found not guilty at the
Old Bailey after Britain's longest murder trial. Political interference is suspected.[15]
24 April – The first broadcast of
BBC Television astronomy series The Sky at Night, presented by
Patrick Moore. This will run with him as presenter until his death in December 2012.
3 June – The actor and playwright
Noël Coward returns to Britain from the
West Indies amid criticism that he is living abroad to avoid having to pay tax.[21]
13 June – Eight people are killed in
Oxford Street, London after a bus on
route 7 collides with a queue of people at a bus stop.[22]
27 June – A report by the
Medical Research Council reveals that there is evidence to support a link between tobacco smoking and lung cancer.[24]
Late June – The
1957–1958 influenza pandemic ("Asian flu") which has already killed thousands of people worldwide, reaches Britain where it will kill a number estimated at between 20,000 and 33,000.[25]
Prime Minister Harold Macmillan makes a speech to his fellow Conservative Party members at
Bedford, telling them that "most of our people have never had it so good".[26]
Civic Trust (England), founded by
Duncan Sandys to promote improvement of the built environment, holds its inaugural conference in London.
20–28 July – The
Transport and General Workers' Union stages a national strike by provincial (non-municipal) bus crews; some violence against non-strikers is reported.[28]
31 July – The
Tryweryn Bill, permitting Liverpool City Council to build a reservoir which will drown the village of
Capel Celyn, becomes law. Every Welsh MP votes against (or, in one case, abstains).
5 August – The cartoon character
Andy Capp first appears in northern editions of the Daily Mirror.
4 September – Publication of the
Wolfenden report, recommending "homosexual behaviour between consenting adults in private should no longer be a criminal offence".[30]
10 September –
Tony Lock becomes the last bowler to reach 200 wickets in a first-class season,[31] a feat subsequently impossible due to limited-overs cricket and covered pitches.
1 October
1957–1958 influenza pandemic: The UK introduces a vaccine against the "Asian flu".[32] Deaths from the condition will peak in week ending 17 October at 600 in England and Wales.[25]
Which? magazine is first published by The Consumers' Association.
10 October –
Windscale fire: The graphite core of the nuclear reactor at
Windscale,
Cumbria, catches fire, releasing substantial amounts of radioactive contamination into the surrounding area.[33]
28 October – Today is first broadcast as a daily early-morning topical radio show on the
BBC Home Service. It will still be running more than 60 years later.
30 October – The government unveils plans which will allow women to join the
House of Lords for the first time.[34]
An inquiry into last month's fire at Windscale nuclear power plant blames the accident on a combination of human error, poor management and faulty instruments.[36]
^Rubinstein, W. D. (2011). The Palgrave dictionary of Anglo-Jewish history. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan. p. 307.
ISBN9781403939104.
^Hay, Ann G. (1978). "Fyleman, Rose (Amy)". In Kirkpatrick, D.L. (ed.). Twentieth-century Children's Writers. London: Macmillan. p. 485.
ISBN978-0-33323-414-3.
^Hardy, Phil (1995). The Da Capo companion to 20th-century popular music. New York: Da Capo Press. p. 124.
ISBN9780306806407.
^"Obituary". The Guardian. 12 September 1957. Retrieved 13 September 2022.
16 February – The "
Toddlers' Truce" (an arrangement whereby there have been no television broadcasts between 18:00–19:00 to allow parents to put their children to bed) is abolished.
11 April – The UK Government agrees to allow
Singapore its independence.[14]
15 April – Suspected serial killer Dr
John Bodkin Adams is controversially found not guilty at the
Old Bailey after Britain's longest murder trial. Political interference is suspected.[15]
24 April – The first broadcast of
BBC Television astronomy series The Sky at Night, presented by
Patrick Moore. This will run with him as presenter until his death in December 2012.
3 June – The actor and playwright
Noël Coward returns to Britain from the
West Indies amid criticism that he is living abroad to avoid having to pay tax.[21]
13 June – Eight people are killed in
Oxford Street, London after a bus on
route 7 collides with a queue of people at a bus stop.[22]
27 June – A report by the
Medical Research Council reveals that there is evidence to support a link between tobacco smoking and lung cancer.[24]
Late June – The
1957–1958 influenza pandemic ("Asian flu") which has already killed thousands of people worldwide, reaches Britain where it will kill a number estimated at between 20,000 and 33,000.[25]
Prime Minister Harold Macmillan makes a speech to his fellow Conservative Party members at
Bedford, telling them that "most of our people have never had it so good".[26]
Civic Trust (England), founded by
Duncan Sandys to promote improvement of the built environment, holds its inaugural conference in London.
20–28 July – The
Transport and General Workers' Union stages a national strike by provincial (non-municipal) bus crews; some violence against non-strikers is reported.[28]
31 July – The
Tryweryn Bill, permitting Liverpool City Council to build a reservoir which will drown the village of
Capel Celyn, becomes law. Every Welsh MP votes against (or, in one case, abstains).
5 August – The cartoon character
Andy Capp first appears in northern editions of the Daily Mirror.
4 September – Publication of the
Wolfenden report, recommending "homosexual behaviour between consenting adults in private should no longer be a criminal offence".[30]
10 September –
Tony Lock becomes the last bowler to reach 200 wickets in a first-class season,[31] a feat subsequently impossible due to limited-overs cricket and covered pitches.
1 October
1957–1958 influenza pandemic: The UK introduces a vaccine against the "Asian flu".[32] Deaths from the condition will peak in week ending 17 October at 600 in England and Wales.[25]
Which? magazine is first published by The Consumers' Association.
10 October –
Windscale fire: The graphite core of the nuclear reactor at
Windscale,
Cumbria, catches fire, releasing substantial amounts of radioactive contamination into the surrounding area.[33]
28 October – Today is first broadcast as a daily early-morning topical radio show on the
BBC Home Service. It will still be running more than 60 years later.
30 October – The government unveils plans which will allow women to join the
House of Lords for the first time.[34]
An inquiry into last month's fire at Windscale nuclear power plant blames the accident on a combination of human error, poor management and faulty instruments.[36]
^Rubinstein, W. D. (2011). The Palgrave dictionary of Anglo-Jewish history. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan. p. 307.
ISBN9781403939104.
^Hay, Ann G. (1978). "Fyleman, Rose (Amy)". In Kirkpatrick, D.L. (ed.). Twentieth-century Children's Writers. London: Macmillan. p. 485.
ISBN978-0-33323-414-3.
^Hardy, Phil (1995). The Da Capo companion to 20th-century popular music. New York: Da Capo Press. p. 124.
ISBN9780306806407.
^"Obituary". The Guardian. 12 September 1957. Retrieved 13 September 2022.