UK, 
US, 
Australia & 
IrelandAt A Glance
31 December 1996 at a glance
- Day of the week
- 31 December 1996 was a Tuesday.
- ARIA No. 1
- The ARIA No. 1 was “Wannabe” by Spice Girls.
- Top Film of 1996
- The highest-grossing film worldwide released in 1996 was Independence Day.
- Best-Selling Vehicle of 1996
- Australia's top-selling new vehicle in 1996 was the Holden Commodore.
- Star sign
- The star sign for 31 December is Capricorn.
- Chinese zodiac
- In the Chinese zodiac, 31 December 1996 fell in the Year of the Rat.
- Birthstone
- The birthstone for December is Turquoise.
- Moon phase
- The moon phase on 31 December 1996 was Waning Gibbous.
On this day: 31 December
- 1994 This date is skipped altogether in Kiribati as the Phoenix Islands and Line Islands change time zones from UTC−11:00 to UTC+13:00 and UTC−10:00 to UTC+14:00, respectively.
- 1994 The First Chechen War: The Russian Ground Forces begin a New Year's storming of Grozny.
- 1995 The final comic of Calvin and Hobbes is published.
- 1998 The European Exchange Rate Mechanism freezes the values of the legacy currencies in the Eurozone, and establishes the value of the euro currency.
- 1999 The first President of Russia, Boris Yeltsin, resigns from office, leaving Prime Minister Vladimir Putin as the acting President and successor.
Famous people born on 31 December
- Val Kilmer, American actor (1959–2025)
- Sophia Laforteza, Filipino-American singer (born 2002)
- Alex Ferguson, Scottish footballer and manager (born 1941)
- Charles Edward Stuart, Scottish claimant to the throne of England (1720–1788)
Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)
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Events of 1996 in Australia
A selection from Wikipedia's '1996 in Australia'. Not a complete list.
- 3 February – Liberal Frank Tanti wins the 1996 Mundingburra state by-election causing Labor to lose its Parliamentary majority in Queensland.
- 24 February – A state election is held in Tasmania. The Liberal Party government of Ray Groom is re-elected; however, Groom's promise to only govern in a majority saw him resign.
- 2 March – A federal election is held. The Liberal/National coalition defeats the Labor government of Paul Keating with a landslide two-party preferred vote of 53.9% and a 45-seat majority, one of the biggest wins since World War II.
Life in Australia in 1996
Prime Minister
John Howard
Monarch
Queen Elizabeth II
Petrol (per litre)
$0.70
Loaf of Bread
$1.85
Average House
$146,000
Weekly Wage
$710.00
Or
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Famous Faces Born in the 1990s
Well-known people born in the same decade as you, not on your birthday.
Jacob Elordi26 June 1997ActorView their day →Samara Weaving23 February 1992Actress & modelView their day →Margot Robbie2 July 1990ActressView their day →Liam Hemsworth13 January 1990ActorView their day →Elizabeth Debicki24 August 1990ActressView their day →Troye Sivan5 June 1995Singer-songwriter & actorView their day →Ben Simmons20 July 1996Basketball playerView their day →Leila George20 March 1992ActressView their day →Sources: Wikidata and Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)
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