At A Glance

2 January 1988 at a glance

Day of the week
2 January 1988 was a Saturday.
UK Number One
The UK Number One single was “Always on My Mind” by Pet Shop Boys.
Top Film of 1988
The highest-grossing film worldwide released in 1988 was Rain Man.
Star sign
The star sign for 2 January is Capricorn.
Chinese zodiac
In the Chinese zodiac, 2 January 1988 fell in the Year of the Rabbit.
Birthstone
The birthstone for January is Garnet.
Moon phase
The moon phase on 2 January 1988 was Waxing Gibbous.

On this day: 2 January

  • 1959 Luna 1, the first spacecraft to reach the vicinity of the Moon and to orbit the Sun, is launched by the Soviet Union.
  • 1963 Vietnam War: The Viet Cong wins its first major victory, at the Battle of Ap Bac.
  • 1967 Ronald Reagan, past movie actor and future President of the United States, is sworn in as Governor of California.
  • 1991 Sharon Pratt Dixon becomes the first African American woman mayor of a major city and first woman Mayor of the District of Columbia.
  • 2004 Stardust successfully flies past Comet Wild 2, collecting samples that are returned to Earth.

Famous people born on 2 January

  • Jim Bakker, American televangelist (1940–2026)
  • Kemi Badenoch, English politician (born 1980)
  • Dax Shepard, American actor (born 1975)
  • Kate Bosworth, American actress (born 1983)

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

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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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