UK, 
US, 
Australia & 
IrelandAt A Glance
18 August 1956 at a glance
- Day of the week
- 18 August 1956 was a Saturday.
- UK Number One
- The UK Number One single was “Whatever Will Be, Will Be (Que Sera, Sera)” by Doris Day.
- Top Film of 1956
- The highest-grossing film worldwide released in 1956 was The Ten Commandments.
- Star sign
- The star sign for 18 August is Leo.
- Chinese zodiac
- In the Chinese zodiac, 18 August 1956 fell in the Year of the Monkey.
- Birthstone
- The birthstone for August is Peridot.
- Moon phase
- The moon phase on 18 August 1956 was Waxing Gibbous.
On this day: 18 August
- 1949 Kemi strike: Two protesters die in the scuffle between the police and the strikers' protest procession in Kemi, Finland.
- 1958 Vladimir Nabokov's controversial novel Lolita is published in the United States.
- 1958 Brojen Das from Bangladesh swims across the English Channel in a competition as the first Bengali and the first Asian to do so, placing first among the 39 competitors.
- 1963 Civil rights movement: James Meredith becomes the first African American to graduate from the University of Mississippi.
- 1965 Vietnam War: Operation Starlite begins: United States Marines destroy a Viet Cong stronghold on the Van Tuong peninsula in the first major American ground battle of the war.
Famous people born on 18 August
- Robert Redford, American actor, director, and producer (1936–2025)
- Patrick Swayze, American actor and dancer (1952–2009)
- Edward Norton, American actor (born 1969)
- Kaitlin Olson, American actress and comedian (born 1975)
Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)
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Events of 1956 in the United Kingdom
A selection from Wikipedia's '1956 in the United Kingdom'. Not a complete list.
- 17 February – The Midlands becomes the first region outside of London to receive ITV when ATV Midlands begins broadcasting; ABC, the weekend station, launches the following day.
- 3 May – Granada Television begins broadcasting with a base in Manchester, extending ITV's coverage to Northern England and later Yorkshire.
- 8 May – First performance of John Osborne's play Look Back in Anger by the newly formed English Stage Company at the Royal Court Theatre. Alan Bates has his first major role as Cliff.
Life in 1956
Prime Minister
Anthony Eden
Monarch
Elizabeth II
Pint of Beer
9p
Loaf of Bread
6p
Average House
£2,140
Weekly Wage
£11.05
Or
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Famous Faces Born in the 1950s
Well-known people born in the same decade as you, not on your birthday.
Richard E. Grant5 May 1957ActorView their day →Gary Oldman21 March 1958Actor & filmmakerView their day →Anthony Head20 February 1954ActorView their day →Phil Collins30 January 1951Drummer & singerView their day →Bonnie Tyler8 June 1951SingerView their day →Liam Neeson7 June 1952ActorView their day →Emma Thompson15 April 1959Actress & screenwriterView their day →Rowan Atkinson6 January 1955Actor & comedianView their day →Sources: Wikidata and Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)
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