UK, 
US, 
Australia & 
IrelandAt A Glance
31 December 1997 at a glance
- Day of the week
- 31 December 1997 was a Wednesday.
- ARIA No. 1
- The ARIA No. 1 was “Doctor Jones” by Aqua.
- Top Film of 1997
- The highest-grossing film worldwide released in 1997 was Titanic.
- Best-Selling Vehicle of 1997
- Australia's top-selling new vehicle in 1997 was the Holden Commodore.
- Star sign
- The star sign for 31 December is Capricorn.
- Chinese zodiac
- In the Chinese zodiac, 31 December 1997 fell in the Year of the Ox.
- Birthstone
- The birthstone for December is Turquoise.
- Moon phase
- The moon phase on 31 December 1997 was Waxing Crescent.
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.
- 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.
- 1999 The U.S. government hands control of the Panama Canal (as well all the adjacent land to the canal known as the Panama Canal Zone) to Panama. This act complied with the signing of the 1977 Torrijos–Carter Treaties.
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 1997 in Australia
A selection from Wikipedia's '1997 in Australia'. Not a complete list.
- 1 January – The Tri-Nation ODI cricket match at the SCG between Australia and Pakistan is marred by poor crowd behaviour.
- 4 February – Prime Minister John Howard wins Parliamentary support for a constitutional convention on the republic.
- 6 March – In Cairns, Paul Streeton is sentenced to life imprisonment for setting fire to school boy Tjandamurra O'Shane.
Life in Australia in 1997
Prime Minister
John Howard
Monarch
Queen Elizabeth II
Petrol (per litre)
$0.68
Loaf of Bread
$1.90
Average House
$150,000
Weekly Wage
$735.00
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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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