At A Glance

20 January 1981 at a glance

Day of the week
20 January 1981 was a Tuesday.
Irish Chart Song in 1981
The Irish chart song for 1981 was “Don't You Want Me” by Human League.
Top Film of 1981
The highest-grossing film worldwide released in 1981 was Raiders of the Lost Ark.
Star sign
The star sign for 20 January is Aquarius.
Chinese zodiac
In the Chinese zodiac, 20 January 1981 fell in the Year of the Monkey.
Birthstone
The birthstone for January is Garnet.
Moon phase
The moon phase on 20 January 1981 was Full Moon.

On this day: 20 January

  • 1972 Pakistan launches its nuclear weapons program, a few weeks after its defeat in the Bangladesh Liberation War, as well as the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971.
  • 1974 China gains control over all the Paracel Islands after a military engagement between the naval forces of China and South Vietnam.
  • 1986 In the United States, Martin Luther King Jr. Day is celebrated as a federal holiday for the first time.
  • 1986 Leabua Jonathan, Prime Minister of Lesotho, is ousted from power in a coup d'état led by General Justin Lekhanya.
  • 1990 Protests in Azerbaijan, part of the Dissolution of the Soviet Union.

Famous people born on 20 January

  • J. J. McCarthy, American football player (born 2003)
  • David Lynch, American director, producer, and screenwriter (1946–2025)
  • Evan Peters, American actor (born 1987)
  • Sid Wilson, American musician (born 1977)

Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

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

Events of 1981 in Ireland

A selection from Wikipedia's '1981 in Ireland'. Not a complete list.

  • 1 March – Bobby Sands began a hunger strike in the Maze Prison (Long Kesh) near Lisburn (Northern Ireland).
  • 5 March – A petrol strike ended when 800 tanker drivers resumed work.
  • 10 April – Hunger striker Bobby Sands was elected Member of Parliament (MP) for Fermanagh and South Tyrone in the Parliament of the United Kingdom.
More events of 1981 →Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Life in Ireland in 1981

Taoiseach

Charles Haughey

Petrol (per litre)

£1.25/gal

Loaf of Bread

£0.34

Average House

£25,000

Weekly Wage

£56

Or

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Famous Faces Born in the 1980s

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

Ruth Kearney11 November 1984ActressView their day →Katie Taylor2 July 1986Footballer & boxerView their day →Domhnall Gleeson12 May 1983ActorView their day →Jessie Buckley28 December 1989Actress & singerView their day →Kerry Condon9 January 1983ActressView their day →Nicola Coughlan9 January 1987ActressView their day →Vogue Williams2 October 1985Model & media personalityView their day →Aidan Turner19 June 1983ActorView their day →

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

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