At A Glance

20 February 1997 at a glance

Day of the week
20 February 1997 was a Thursday.
UK Number One
The UK Number One single was “Don't Speak” by No Doubt.
Top Film of 1997
The highest-grossing film worldwide released in 1997 was Titanic.
Star sign
The star sign for 20 February is Pisces.
Chinese zodiac
In the Chinese zodiac, 20 February 1997 fell in the Year of the Ox.
Birthstone
The birthstone for February is Amethyst.
Moon phase
The moon phase on 20 February 1997 was Waxing Gibbous.

On this day: 20 February

  • 1986 The Soviet Union launches its Mir spacecraft. Remaining in orbit for 15 years, it is occupied for ten of those years.
  • 1988 The Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast votes to secede from Azerbaijan and join Armenia, triggering the First Nagorno-Karabakh War.
  • 1991 In the Albanian capital Tirana, a gigantic statue of Albania's long-time leader, Enver Hoxha, is brought down by mobs of angry protesters.
  • 1998 American figure skater Tara Lipinski, at the age of 15, becomes the youngest Olympic figure skating gold-medalist at the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan.
  • 2005 Spain becomes the first country to vote in a referendum on ratification of the proposed Constitution of the European Union, passing it by a substantial margin, but on a low turnout.

Famous people born on 20 February

  • Justin Verlander, American baseball player (born 1983)
  • Olivia Rodrigo, American actress and singer (born 2003)
  • Kurt Cobain, American musician (1967–1994)
  • Rihanna, Barbadian singer, songwriter, businesswoman, and actress (born 1988)

Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

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

Events of 1997 in the United Kingdom

A selection from Wikipedia's '1997 in the United Kingdom'. Not a complete list.

  • 30 March – Channel 5, Britain's fifth terrestrial television channel and its first new one since the launch of Channel 4 in November 1982, is launched.
  • 31 March – BBC preschool children's television series Teletubbies first airs.
  • 26 June – Publication of J. K. Rowling's first Harry Potter fantasy novel, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, in London by Bloomsbury Publishing, in an edition of 500 copies.
More events of 1997 →Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Life in 1997

Prime Minister

John Major

Monarch

Elizabeth II

Pint of Beer

£1.60

Loaf of Bread

67p

Average House

£65,798

Weekly Wage

£385.00

Or

Browse by Year

The 1940s
1940194119421943194419451946194719481949
The 1950s
1950195119521953195419551956195719581959
The 1960s
1960196119621963196419651966196719681969
The 1970s
1970197119721973197419751976197719781979
The 1980s
1980198119821983198419851986198719881989
The 1990s
1990199119921993199419951996199719981999
The 2000s
2000200120022003200420052006200720082009
The 2010s
2010201120122013201420152016201720182019
The 2020s
20202021202220232024

Famous Faces Born in the 1990s

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

Tom Holland1 June 1996ActorView their day →Florence Pugh3 January 1996ActressView their day →Kaya Scodelario13 March 1992ActressView their day →Ed Sheeran17 February 1991Singer-songwriterView their day →Dua Lipa22 August 1995Singer-songwriterView their day →Callum Turner15 February 1990ActorView their day →Harry Kane28 July 1993FootballerView their day →Jack Lowden2 June 1990ActorView their day →

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

About The Day You Were Born

Ever wondered what was happening in the world when you took your first breath? Our birthday lookup tool reveals the fascinating history of your special day.

About The Birthday Chronicle and where our data comes from →