Forward Planner: News Anniversaries for the next 6 months

Here's the Expertsources list of some future UK news anniversaries which may spark
ideas for follow-ups & features. It's as accurate as we can make it, but clearly doesn't
include everything or cater for all tastes - two impossible tasks!

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Select Month:- May 2025  Jun 2025  Jul 2025  Aug 2025  Sep 2025  Oct 2025

May 2025

2 Years (2023)
May 05: The World Health Organization ends its declaration of COVID-19 being a global health emergency, but continues to refer to it as a pandemic.
May 06: The coronation of Charles III and Camilla as King and Queen of the United Kingdom and the other Commonwealth realms is held in Westminster Abbey, London.
May 09: Death - (24 November 1927 – 9 May 2023) General Sir Richard George Lawson KCSS was a British Army officer.

5 Years (2020)
May 01: Coronavirus pandemic: The total number of recovered COVID-19 patients reached 1 million worldwide (data from Johns Hopkins University).
May 10: The number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 passes 4 million worldwide
May 14: The global death toll from COVID-19 exceeds 300,000.
May 31: COVID-19 pandemic: The number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 passes 6 million worldwide.

10 Years (2015)
May 02: Birth of daughter, 2nd child of Duke & Duchess of Cambridge (Charlotte, Elizabeth, Diana).
May 02: Death of best-selling crime writer Ruth Rendell aged 85.
May 08: UK Election: SNP wins 56 of 59 parliamentary seats in Scotland.
May 08: UK: Conservative Party wins General Election with a 12 seat majority.
May 08: UK: Resignations of party leaders Ed Miliband (Labour) Nick Clegg (Liberal Democrats).
May 11: UKIP leader Nigel Farage 'persuaded' to remain party leader.
May 19: Prince Charles starts Irish tour (including a meeting with Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams).
May 19: UK: Police make 9 arrests following recent Hatton Garden Safe Deposit raid.
May 23: Irish Referendum votes in favour of legalising same-sex marriages.
May 27: Ex British PM Tony Blair says soon standing down as 'Middle East Envoy'
May 27: Police arrest FIFA officials in Switzerland in major corruption investigation.
May 30: Cricketer Alastair Cook becomes England's highest-ever Test-scoring batsman.

15 Years (2010)
May 02: Death of British actress Lynn Redgrave from breast cancer aged 67.
May 09: Death of African-American jazz singer Lena Horne aged 92.
May 15: Actor Harrison Ford marries actress Calista Flockhart, Santa Fe, New Mexico.
May 29: Death of American actor Dennis Hopper aged 74.
May 31: Death of Chris Haney, aged 59 ( co-creator of quiz game 'Trivial Pursuit')
May 31: Death of Chris Haney, co-creator of quiz game 'Trivial Pursuit', aged 59.

20 Years (2005)
May 05: UK: Labour PM Tony Blair wins historic 3rd consecutive General Election.
May 09: Launch of news commentary website 'The Huffington Post'.
May 10: Death of Irish comedian Dave Allen aged 68.
May 10: Dedication of Holocaust Memorial in Berlin, Germany.
May 12: Businessman Malcolm Glazer gains control of Manchester United Football Club.
May 26: Death of US actor Eddie Albert aged 99.
May 29: UK: BBC broadcasts last Sunday morning edition of 'Breakfast With Frost'.

25 Years (2000)
May 01: May Day riots in Central London by anti-capitalist protestors. Over 100 arrested.
May 04: UK: Labour left-winger Ken Livingstone elected 1st Mayor of London.
May 07: Death of Hollywood actor Douglas Fairbanks Jnr aged 90.
May 07: Vladimir Putin becomes President of Russia.
May 12: Opening of Tate Modern Art Museum, London.
May 12: UK: Ford Motor Company announces closure of Dagenham Plant with 3,000 job losses.
May 17: Two Royal Marine Commandos are 1st Britons to reach North Pole without support.
May 21: Death of English actor Sir John Gielgud aged 96.
May 21: Death of English novelist Dame Barbara Cartland aged 98.
May 24: Opening of National Botanic Garden of Wales to the public.
May 25: Israel withdraws IDF from South Lebanon after 22 years deployment.

30 Years (1995)
May 02: Death of British actor Sir Michael Hordern aged 83.
May 13: British mountaineer Alison Hargreaves 1st woman to climb Everest unaided.
May 15: Death of British actor Eric Porter.
May 24: Death of former British Prime Minister Harold Wilson aged 79.
May 27: US film actor Christopher Reeve ('Superman') paralysed after thrown from his horse.
May 28: Death of British dress designer Jean Muir.

35 Years (1990)
May 04: Latvia declares independence from Soviet Union.
May 16: Death of puppeteer Jim Henson aged 53. Creator of 'The Muppets'.
May 16: Death of US entertainer Sammy Davis Jnr aged 64.
May 19: East & West Germany sign treaty agreeing to merge their economies (July 1st).
May 19: USA & USSR agree to end production of chemical weapons.
May 29: Boris Yeltsin elected President of Russia.
May 30: France bans British beef imports over fears of spreading 'Mad Cow' disease.

40 Years (1985)
May 01: Death of British romantic novelist Denise Robins aged 88.
May 11: UK: 56 football fans killed in fire at Bradford Stadium, Yorkshire.
May 29: 39 Juventus football fans crushed to death in Heysel Stadium, Brussels.
May 31: FA bans English Football Clubs from Europe following Heysel Stadium Disaster.

45 Years (1980)
May 05: SAS raid ends siege of Iranian Embassy in London.
May 18: Mount St Helens volcanic eruption, Washington State. 59 killed.

55 Years (1970)
May 08: British group 'The Beatles' release their final record album 'Let It Be'.
May 22: English cricket authorities change mind & call off planned cricket tour by South Africa.

60 Years (1965)
May 07: White voters in Rhodesia back PM Ian Smith in struggle for independence from UK.
May 21: Death of British aircraft designer & engineer Sir Geoffrey de Havilland.

65 Years (1960)
May 06: UK: Princess Margaret (Queen's sister) marries photographer Anthony Armstrong-Jones.

70 Years (1955)
May 09: West Germany accepted as a member of NATO.
May 14: Soviet Union & Eastern European allies sign Warsaw Defence Pact.
May 27: UK: Conservative Party led by Anthony Eden wins General Election.
May 27: UK: Conservative Party, led by Anthony Eden, wins General Election.

75 Years (1950)
May 18: Europe & USA agree formation of NATO defence organisation.
May 21: UK: BBC opens Lime Grove TV Studios, Shepherd's Bush, London.
May 26: End of petrol rationing in UK 5 years after end of WW2.

80 Years (1945)
May 01: WW2: Nazi Germany claims Furher Adolf Hitler "killed during fighting".
May 02: WW2: Reports of German Fuhrer Adolf Hitler & Joseph Goebbels suicides.
May 07: WW2: Germany signs Unconditional Surrender.
May 08: WW2: VE Day - Victory in Europe.
May 09: WW2: Liberation of the Channel Islands (occupied by Germany for 5 years).
May 28: WW2: Arrest of Nazi propaganda broadcaster William Joyce ('Lord Haw-Haw').

85 Years (1940)
May 06: US writer John Steinbeck awarded Pulitzer Prize for 'The Grapes of Wrath'.
May 10: WW2: Germany invades Belgium, Netherlands & Luxembourg.
May 10: WW2: Winston Churchill becomes British Prime Minister heading Coalition Government.
May 13: WW2: Queen Wilhelmina of Netherlands flees to Britain to form Govt in exile.
May 13: WW2: Winston Churchill gives 1st speech to House of Commons as British PM.
May 14: WW2: Britain: Local Defence Volunteers formed (later 'The Home Guard').
May 17: WW2: German troops capture Belgian capital, Brussels.
May 26: WW2: 'Operation Dynamo': evacuation of British & French soldiers from Dunkirk.
May 26: WW2: Start 'Operation Dynamo': mass evacuation of British & French soldiers from Dunkirk.

90 Years (1935)
May 06: Britain: King George V & Queen Mary celebrate Silver Jubilee.
May 06: UK: King George V & Queen Mary celebrate Silver Jubilee.
May 09: Birth of British children's writer Roger Hargreaves, creator of 'Mr Men' series.
May 15: 1st section of Moscow Metro opens to the public.
May 17: Birth of British playwright Dennis Potter.
May 19: Death of British Army officer T.E.Lawrence ('Lawrence of Arabia').
May 30: American baseball legend 'Babe' Ruth plays final game.

95 Years (1930)
May 05: Aviator Amy Johnson leaves Croydon Airport (1st solo flight England to Australia).

105 Years (1920)
May 09: Birth of English author Richard Adams ('Watership Down').

110 Years (1915)
May 06: Birth of US stage & film actor Orson Welles ('Citizen Kane', 'The Third Man').
May 07: WW1: British liner RMS Lusitania sunk by German U-boat. Over 1,100 killed.
May 10: Birth British novelist Monica Dickens (great-granddaughter of Charles Dickens).
May 20: Birth of Israeli military leader Moshe Dayan.
May 27: WW1: Liberal Party & Conservative Party form UK wartime Coalition Government.

130 Years (1895)
May 20: Birth British aircraft designer Reginald J.Mitchell in Staffordshire ('Spitfire').

135 Years (1890)
May 12: 1st County Championship cricket match played in England.
May 19: Birth of Ho Chi Minh, President of North Vietnam (1945-1969).

160 Years (1865)
May 10: End of American Civil War & capture of Confederate President Jefferson Davis.

165 Years (1860)
May 09: Birth of Scottish novelist J.M.Barrie ('Peter Pan').

185 Years (1840)
May 01: World's 1st adhesive postage stamp, the 'Penny Black', issued in Britain.
May 07: Birth of Russian composer Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky.

260 Years (1765)
May 07: Britain: Launch of Admiral Horatio Nelson's flagship 'HMS Victory'.

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