At A Glance

11 August 1988 at a glance

Day of the week
11 August 1988 was a Thursday.
UK Number One
The UK Number One single was “The Only Way Is Up” by Yazz and the Plastic Population.
Top Film of 1988
The highest-grossing film worldwide released in 1988 was Rain Man.
Star sign
The star sign for 11 August is Leo.
Chinese zodiac
In the Chinese zodiac, 11 August 1988 fell in the Year of the Dragon.
Birthstone
The birthstone for August is Peridot.
Moon phase
The moon phase on 11 August 1988 was New Moon.

On this day: 11 August

  • 1975 East Timor: Governor Mário Lemos Pires of Portuguese Timor abandons the capital Dili, following a coup by the Timorese Democratic Union (UDT) and the outbreak of civil war between UDT and Fretilin.
  • 1988 A meeting between Sayyed Imam Al-Sharif, Osama bin Laden, Abdullah Yusuf Azzam, and leaders of Egyptian Islamic Jihad in Afghanistan culminates in the formation of Al-Qaeda.
  • 1991 Nickelodeon's first line of "Nicktoons" (Doug, Rugrats and Ren & Stimpy) premiere on the channel.
  • 1992 The Mall of America in Bloomington, Minnesota opens. At the time, it is the largest shopping mall in the United States.
  • 2003 NATO takes over command of the peacekeeping force in Afghanistan, marking its first major operation outside Europe in its 54-year-history.

Famous people born on 11 August

  • Pervez Musharraf, Pakistani general and politician, 10th President of Pakistan (1943–2023)
  • Chris Hemsworth, Australian actor (born 1983)
  • Viola Davis, American actress (born 1965)
  • Hulk Hogan, American professional wrestler (1953–2025)

Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Choose your country: the charts, news and leaders change to match.

Events of 1988 in the United Kingdom

A selection from Wikipedia's '1988 in the United Kingdom'. Not a complete list.

  • 5 February – The first BBC Red Nose Day raises £15,000,000 for charity.
  • 3 March – The SDP amalgamates with the Liberal Party to form the Social and Liberal Democratic Party. Its interim leaders are David Steel and Robert Maclennan. The merger means that the Liberal Party has ceased to exist after 129 years.
  • 24 May – Local Government Act becomes law. The controversial Section 28 prevents local authorities from "promoting homosexuality". Local authorities are also obliged to outsource more services, and dog licences are abolished (except in Northern Ireland).
More events of 1988 →Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Life in 1988

Prime Minister

Margaret Thatcher

Monarch

Elizabeth II

Pint of Beer

80p

Loaf of Bread

51p

Average House

£46,788

Weekly Wage

£225.00

Or

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Famous Faces Born in the 1980s

Well-known people born in the same decade as you, not on your birthday.

Theo James16 December 1984Actor & musicianView their day →Pac22 August 1986WrestlerView their day →Robert Pattinson13 May 1986Actor & film producerView their day →Andrew Garfield20 August 1983ActorView their day →Charlie Hunnam10 April 1980ActorView their day →Juno Temple21 July 1989ActressView their day →Rebecca Hall3 May 1982Actress & filmmakerView their day →Lewis Hamilton7 January 1985Racing driverView their day →

Sources: Wikidata and Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

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