At A Glance
31 December 2002 at a glance
- Day of the week
- 31 December 2002 was a Tuesday.
- UK Number One
- The UK Number One single was “Sound of the Underground” by Girls Aloud.
- Top Film of 2002
- The highest-grossing film worldwide released in 2002 was The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers.
- Star sign
- The star sign for 31 December is Capricorn.
- Chinese zodiac
- In the Chinese zodiac, 31 December 2002 fell in the Year of the Horse.
- Birthstone
- The birthstone for December is Turquoise.
- Moon phase
- The moon phase on 31 December 2002 was Waning Crescent.
On this day: 31 December
- 1998 The European Exchange Rate Mechanism freezes the values of the legacy currencies in the Eurozone, and establishes the value of the euro currency.
- 1999 The first President of Russia, Boris Yeltsin, resigns from office, leaving Prime Minister Vladimir Putin as the acting President and successor.
- 1999 The U.S. government hands control of the Panama Canal (as well all the adjacent land to the canal known as the Panama Canal Zone) to Panama. This act complied with the signing of the 1977 Torrijos–Carter Treaties.
- 2001 Rwanda adopts a new national flag and anthem.
- 2004 The official opening of Taipei 101, the tallest skyscraper at that time in the world, standing at a height of 509 metres (1,670 ft).
Famous people born on 31 December
- Val Kilmer, American actor (1959–2025)
- Sophia Laforteza, Filipino-American singer (born 2002)
- Alex Ferguson, Scottish footballer and manager (born 1941)
- Charles Edward Stuart, Scottish claimant to the throne of England (1720–1788)
Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Choose your country: the charts, news and leaders change to match.
Events of 2002 in the United Kingdom
A selection from Wikipedia's '2002 in the United Kingdom'. Not a complete list.
- 2 March – The animated series of Mr. Bean premieres on ITV1. It is based on Rowan Atkinson's Mr. Bean.
- 11 March – BBC 6 Music, the first new BBC Radio station in decades, is launched.
- 24 May – Falkirk Wheel boat lift opens in Scotland, also marking the reopening of the Union Canal for leisure traffic.
Life in 2002
Prime Minister
Tony Blair
Monarch
Elizabeth II
Pint of Beer
£2.00
Loaf of Bread
76p
Average House
£117,748
Weekly Wage
£506.00
Or
Browse by Year
Famous Faces Born in the 2000s
Well-known people born in the same decade as you, not on your birthday.
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 →
