UK, 
US, 
Australia & 
IrelandAt A Glance
24 May 1961 at a glance
- Day of the week
- 24 May 1961 was a Wednesday.
- UK Number One
- The UK Number One single was “You're Driving Me Crazy” by The Temperance Seven.
- Top Film of 1961
- The highest-grossing film worldwide released in 1961 was One Hundred and One Dalmatians.
- Star sign
- The star sign for 24 May is Gemini.
- Chinese zodiac
- In the Chinese zodiac, 24 May 1961 fell in the Year of the Ox.
- Birthstone
- The birthstone for May is Emerald.
- Moon phase
- The moon phase on 24 May 1961 was Waxing Gibbous.
On this day: 24 May
- 1956 The first Eurovision Song Contest is held in Lugano, Switzerland.
- 1958 United Press International is formed through a merger of the United Press and the International News Service.
- 1960 Following the 1960 Valdivia earthquake, the largest ever recorded earthquake, Cordón Caulle begins to erupt.
- 1961 American civil rights movement: Freedom Riders are arrested in Jackson, Mississippi, for "disturbing the peace" after disembarking from their bus.
- 1962 Project Mercury: American astronaut Scott Carpenter orbits the Earth three times in the Aurora 7 space capsule.
Famous people born on 24 May
- Queen Victoria (1819–1901)
- Bob Dylan, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, artist, writer, and producer; Nobel Prize laureate (born 1941)
- Priscilla Presley, American actress and businesswoman (born 1945)
- Alfred Molina, English actor (born 1953)
Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)
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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)).
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
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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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