At A Glance

26 May 1961 at a glance

Day of the week
26 May 1961 was a Friday.
Top Film of 1961
The highest-grossing film worldwide released in 1961 was One Hundred and One Dalmatians.
Star sign
The star sign for 26 May is Gemini.
Chinese zodiac
In the Chinese zodiac, 26 May 1961 fell in the Year of the Ox.
Birthstone
The birthstone for May is Emerald.
Moon phase
The moon phase on 26 May 1961 was Waxing Gibbous.

On this day: 26 May

  • 1966 British Guiana gains independence, becoming Guyana.
  • 1967 The Beatles' album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band is released.
  • 1968 H-dagurinn in Iceland: Traffic changes from driving on the left to driving on the right overnight.
  • 1969 Apollo program: Apollo 10 returns to Earth after a successful eight-day test of all the components needed for the forthcoming first crewed Moon landing.
  • 1970 The Soviet Tupolev Tu-144 becomes the first commercial transport to exceed Mach 2.

Famous people born on 26 May

  • Stevie Nicks, American singer-songwriter (born 1948)
  • Helena Bonham Carter, English actress (born 1966)
  • John Wayne, American actor, director, and producer (1907–1979)
  • Lenny Kravitz, American singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, producer, and actor (born 1964)

Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

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

Events of 1961 in Ireland

A selection from Wikipedia's '1961 in Ireland'. Not a complete list.

  • 6 January – Lieutenant-General Seán Mac Eoin left Dublin for the Congo to take up his new post as General Commanding Officer of the United Nations.
  • 9 April – The national census showed that County Cork's population had reached an all-time low, with just 330,000 (in the late 1950s it was 336,000).
  • 10 June – President Éamon de Valera and his wife Sinéad greeted Prince Rainier and Princess Grace of Monaco at the presidential residence, Áras an Uachtaráin. It was the first official visit to Ireland by a head of state after it became an independent republic.

Life in Ireland in 1961

Taoiseach

Seán Lemass

Petrol (per litre)

2s 6d/gal

Loaf of Bread

8d

Average House

£2,400

Weekly Wage

£5 15s

Or

Browse by Year

Famous Faces Born in the 1960s

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 →