At A Glance

12 February 1961 at a glance

Day of the week
12 February 1961 was a Sunday.
UK Number One
The UK Number One single was “Are You Lonesome Tonight?” by Elvis Presley.
Top Film of 1961
The highest-grossing film worldwide released in 1961 was One Hundred and One Dalmatians.
Star sign
The star sign for 12 February is Aquarius.
Chinese zodiac
In the Chinese zodiac, 12 February 1961 fell in the Year of the Rat.
Birthstone
The birthstone for February is Amethyst.
Moon phase
The moon phase on 12 February 1961 was Waning Crescent.

On this day: 12 February

  • 1947 The largest observed iron meteorite until that time creates an impact crater in Sikhote-Alin, in the Soviet Union.
  • 1961 The Soviet Union launches Venera 1 towards Venus.
  • 1963 Construction begins on the Gateway Arch in St. Louis, Missouri.
  • 1965 Malcolm X visits Smethwick near Birmingham following the racially-charged 1964 United Kingdom general election.
  • 1974 Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1970, is exiled from the Soviet Union.

Famous people born on 12 February

  • Abraham Lincoln, American lawyer and statesman, 16th President of the United States (1809–1865)
  • Josh Brolin, American actor (born 1968)
  • Michael McDonald, American singer-songwriter and keyboard player (born 1952)
  • Christina Ricci, American actress and producer (born 1980)

Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

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

Events of 1961 in the United Kingdom

A selection from Wikipedia's '1961 in the United Kingdom'. Not a complete list.

  • 7 January – The Avengers television series first screened on ITV.
  • 15 March – The Jaguar E-Type, a sports car capable of reaching speeds of 150 mph, is launched as a two-seater roadster or 2+2 coupé (at the Geneva Motor Show). On 3 April it makes its racing debut by winning at Oulton Park.
  • 20 March – Shakespeare Memorial Theatre, Stratford-upon-Avon, becomes the Royal Shakespeare Theatre and its company the Royal Shakespeare Company (Peter Hall (director)).
More events of 1961 →Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Life in 1961

Prime Minister

Harold Macmillan

Monarch

Elizabeth II

Pint of Beer

11p

Loaf of Bread

7p

Average House

£2,670

Weekly Wage

£14.90

Or

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Famous Faces Born in the 1960s

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

Guy Ritchie10 September 1968FilmmakerView their day →Diana, Princess of Wales1 July 1961Member of the British royal familyView their day →Nigella Lawson6 January 1960Food writer & television cookView their day →Jason Statham26 July 1967ActorView their day →Catherine Zeta-Jones25 September 1969ActressView their day →Charles Spencer, 9th Earl Spencer20 May 1964Peer & authorView their day →Kenneth Branagh10 December 1960Actor & filmmakerView their day →George Michael25 June 1963SingerView their day →

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

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