At A Glance

21 December 1996 at a glance

Day of the week
21 December 1996 was a Saturday.
UK Number One
The UK Number One single was “Knockin' on Heaven's Door / Throw These Guns Away” by Dunblane.
Top Film of 1996
The highest-grossing film worldwide released in 1996 was Independence Day.
Star sign
The star sign for 21 December is Sagittarius.
Chinese zodiac
In the Chinese zodiac, 21 December 1996 fell in the Year of the Rat.
Birthstone
The birthstone for December is Turquoise.
Moon phase
The moon phase on 21 December 1996 was Waxing Gibbous.

On this day: 21 December

  • 1979 Lancaster House Agreement: An independence agreement for Rhodesia is signed in London by Lord Carrington, Sir Ian Gilmour, Robert Mugabe, Joshua Nkomo, Bishop Abel Muzorewa and S.C. Mundawarara.
  • 1991 Dissolution of the Soviet Union: The leaders of 11 now effectively autonomous Soviet republics sign the Alma-Ata Protocol establishing the Commonwealth of Independent States in place of the collapsing Soviet Union.
  • 1995 The city of Bethlehem passes from Israeli to Palestinian control.
  • 1999 The Spanish Civil Guard intercepts a van loaded with 950 kg of explosives that ETA intended to use to blow up Torre Picasso in Madrid, Spain.
  • 2012 2012 phenomenon: Festivities are held in parts of Mesoamerica to commemorate the conclusion of b'ak'tun 13, a roughly 5,126-year-long cycle in the Mesoamerican Long Count Calendar whose passing many New Age spiritualists had earlier held to portend a variety of cataclysmic or transformative events.

Famous people born on 21 December

  • Jane Fonda, American actress and activist (born 1937)
  • Madelyn Cline, American actress and model (born 1997)
  • Samuel L. Jackson, American actor and producer (born 1948)
  • Emmanuel Macron, French politician, 25th President of France (born 1977)

Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

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

Events of 1996 in the United Kingdom

A selection from Wikipedia's '1996 in the United Kingdom'. Not a complete list.

  • 13 January – National Union of Mineworkers' leader Arthur Scargill announces that he is defecting from the Labour Party to set up his own Socialist Labour Party.
  • 4 February – The first two passenger train operating companies begin operation of their service franchises as part of the privatisation of British Rail: South West Trains (part of the Stagecoach Group) and Great Western Trains (management buyout).
  • 17 March – Legoland Windsor opens its doors for the public. It becomes the second Legoland in Europe.

Life in 1996

Prime Minister

John Major

Monarch

Elizabeth II

Pint of Beer

£1.50

Loaf of Bread

65p

Average House

£60,750

Weekly Wage

£365.00

Or

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Famous Faces Born in the 1990s

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

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

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