At A Glance

17 February 1961 at a glance

Day of the week
17 February 1961 was a Friday.
UK Number One
The UK Number One single was “Sailor” by Petula Clark.
Top Film of 1961
The highest-grossing film worldwide released in 1961 was One Hundred and One Dalmatians.
Star sign
The star sign for 17 February is Aquarius.
Chinese zodiac
In the Chinese zodiac, 17 February 1961 fell in the Year of the Ox.
Birthstone
The birthstone for February is Amethyst.
Moon phase
The moon phase on 17 February 1961 was Waxing Crescent.

On this day: 17 February

  • 1959 Project Vanguard: Vanguard 2: The first weather satellite is launched to measure cloud-cover distribution.
  • 1964 In Wesberry v. Sanders the Supreme Court of the United States rules that congressional districts have to be approximately equal in population.
  • 1964 Gabonese president Léon M'ba is toppled by a coup and his rival, Jean-Hilaire Aubame, is installed in his place.
  • 1965 Project Ranger: The Ranger 8 probe launches on its mission to photograph the Mare Tranquillitatis region of the Moon in preparation for the crewed Apollo missions. Mare Tranquillitatis or the "Sea of Tranquility" would become the site chosen for the Apollo 11 lunar landing.
  • 1972 Cumulative sales of the Volkswagen Beetle exceed those of the Ford Model T.

Famous people born on 17 February

  • Case Keenum, American football player (born 1988)
  • Ed Sheeran, English singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer (born 1991)
  • Michael Jordan, American basketball player, executive, and businessman (born 1963)
  • Jensen Huang, Taiwanese-American businessman, co-founded Nvidia (born 1963)

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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