At A Glance

15 May 1979 at a glance

Day of the week
15 May 1979 was a Tuesday.
UK Number One
The UK Number One single was “Bright Eyes” by Art Garfunkel.
Top Film of 1979
The highest-grossing film worldwide released in 1979 was Moonraker.
Star sign
The star sign for 15 May is Taurus.
Chinese zodiac
In the Chinese zodiac, 15 May 1979 fell in the Year of the Goat.
Birthstone
The birthstone for May is Emerald.
Moon phase
The moon phase on 15 May 1979 was Waning Gibbous.

On this day: 15 May

  • 1963 Project Mercury: The launch of the final Mercury mission, Mercury-Atlas 9 with astronaut Gordon Cooper on board. He becomes the first American to spend more than a day in space, and the last American to go into space alone.
  • 1970 President Richard Nixon appoints Anna Mae Hays and Elizabeth P. Hoisington as the first female United States Army generals.
  • 1972 The Ryukyu Islands, under U.S. military governance since their conquest in 1945, revert to Japanese control.
  • 1988 Soviet–Afghan War: After more than eight years of fighting, the Soviet Army begins to withdraw 115,000 troops from Afghanistan.
  • 1991 Édith Cresson becomes France's first female Prime Minister.

Famous people born on 15 May

  • Don Nelson, American basketball player and coach (1940–2026)
  • Jamie-Lynn Sigler, American actress and singer (born 1981)
  • David Krumholtz, American actor (born 1978)
  • Ousmane Dembélé, French footballer (born 1997)

Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

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Events of 1979 in the United Kingdom

A selection from Wikipedia's '1979 in the United Kingdom'. Not a complete list.

  • 22 February – Saint Lucia becomes independent of the United Kingdom.
  • 3 May – 1979 general election.
  • 7 June – European Parliament election, the first direct election to the European Parliament; the turnout in Britain is low at 32%. The Conservatives have the most MEPs at 60, while Labour only have 17.
More events of 1979 →Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Life in 1979

Prime Minister

Margaret Thatcher

Monarch

Elizabeth II

Pint of Beer

38p

Loaf of Bread

27p

Average House

£19,925

Weekly Wage

£101.00

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Famous Faces Born in the 1970s

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

Matthew Rhys8 November 1974ActorView their day →Hannah Waddingham28 July 1974ActressView their day →Andy Burnham7 January 1970PoliticianView their day →Christopher Nolan30 July 1970FilmmakerView their day →Lucy Davis17 February 1973ActressView their day →Tom Hardy15 September 1977ActorView their day →Christian Bale30 January 1974ActorView their day →Kelly Macdonald23 February 1976ActressView their day →

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

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