Step back in time: to 1965
Take a trip down memory lane with a nostalgic look back at 1965.
Welcome back to the height of the Swinging Sixties; hems were shorter, music was louder and all over Britain new innovations were altering the way we would live forever.
The 60s were a time of optimism and change around the world and a golden age for fashion, art and music – part way through the decade we can already see some of the exciting changes begin to come about.
So grab a cuppa and step back in time with us to 1965…
Pop Culture
Popular Culture offers a glimpse into the lives of people and the big and little things that made up the everyday. Here’s a snapshot of life and pop culture in 1965.
The price of things: In 1965 a gallon of petrol cost 5 shillings, while Kellogg’s Cornflakes were priced at 1s 5d.
Jaguar’s luxury E-type car cost £1867.
At the cinema: The Sound of Music, Help!, Darling and Doctor Zhivago all debut in cinemas.
Mary Quant introduces the miniskirt from her shop Bazaar on the King’s Road in Chelsea, London. It’s a trend that takes the country by storm and comes to define 60s fashion. Speaking of her innovation, she said: “It was the girls on the King’s Road who invented the mini. I was making easy, youthful, simple clothes, in which you could move, in which you could run and jump and we would make them the length the customer wanted. I wore them very short and the customers would say, ‘Shorter, shorter’.”
ASDA opens its first store in Castleford, Yorkshire, bringing the new concept of a large supermarket chain to Britain.
1 August – The advertising of cigarettes is banned from British Television.
The Who release their iconic album My Generation.
Children’s TV programme Thunderbirds debuts for the first time with episode Trapped in the Sky.
My Fair Lady wins Best Picture at the 37th Academy Awards, while Julie Andrews scoops the Academy Award for Best Actress for her performance in Mary Poppins.
The Spirograph is developed by British Engineer Denys Fisher and goes on to be one of the best-selling toys in both the UK and the USA after its debut at the Nuremberg International Toy Fair that year.
Beatlemania takes hold around the world as The Beatles begin touring – between 1963 and 1970 the band would enjoy seventeen British number-one singles.
World Events
1965 wasn’t just an important year in Britain. Here’s a look at some of the most significant events that took place in 1965 around the globe.
7 January – Notorious gangsters and identical twins Ronnie and Reggie Kray, aged 31, are arrested on suspicion of running a protection racket in London.
24 January – Sir Winston Churchill dies aged 90 at home at Chartwell after suffering a stroke. Thousands of people gather in London for his funeral procession from Westminster Hall to St. Paul’s Cathedral on 30 January.
18 March – Cosmonaut Alexey Leonov becomes the first person to walk in space after leaving his spacecraft Voskhod 2 for 12 minutes.
21 March – Martin Luther Jr leads a march of 3,200 civil rights activists from Selma, Alabama to the capitol in Montgomery.
18 June – The government announces plans to clampdown on drink-driving by introducing a blood alcohol limit for drivers, a tradition that continues today.
22 June – The British Parliament celebrates its 700th anniversary.
21 September –BP’s oil platform, Sea Gem, strikes natural gas in the North Sea.
Sporting Moments
From big upsets to big wins, here are some of the most significant moments to take place in sport in 1965.
26 April – Manchester United win the Football League First Division title.
1 May – Liverpool FC win the FA Cup, beating Leeds United 2-1 at Wembley Stadium. Players Roger Hunt and Ian St John score for Liverpool to solidify the historic win, a first for the club.
6 February – Sir Stanley Matthews plays his final First Division game, at the record age of 50 years and 5 days.
Famous Births
Some big personalities came into the world in 1965. Here’s a few of the famous faces born this year.
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- 5 January – Vinnie Jones
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- 20 January – Sophie, Countess of Wessex
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- 27 January – Alan Cumming
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- 11 March – Lawrence Llewelyn-Bowen
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- 30 March – Piers Morgan
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- 7 June – Damien Hirst
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- 10 June – Elizabeth Hurley
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- 31 July – J.K Rowling
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- 14 October – Steve Coogan
Music
Nothing takes us back like music; these were some of the best-selling artists and most popular songs on the radio in 1965.
Best selling single of the year: The Seekers – I’ll Never Find Another You
Christmas number 1: The Beatles – Day Tripper/We Can Work It Out
Other popular songs
Rolling Stones – I Can’t Get No Satisfaction
Sonny & Cher – I Got You Babe
Tom Jones – It’s Not Unusual
How old were you in 1965? Does this timeline bring back any memories?
Rachel - Silversurfers Assistant Editor
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