YEAR THAT WAS!
It was the year of the three-day week, two general elections and a royal kidnap attempt. We remember an eventful 1974
January
With the sound of
Slade’s newly released Merry Xmas Everybody still ringing in our ears, we began the year with a lie in. For the first time, we didn’t have to dash back to work on January 1 as New Year’s Day had been declared a public bank holiday.
But a dark month followed with the lights still going off thanks to a three-day week being in place to save energy during the miners’ strike over pay.
February
Unable to settle the strike, Prime Minister Ted Heath called a snap general election which resulted in a hung Parliament.
British police tracked down Ronnie Biggs (pictured), who had escaped from prison in 1965 where he was serving a sentence for his part in the 1963 Great Train Robbery. After fleeing to Australia, then Brazil, he had been in Rio de Janeiro (which had no extradition treaty with the UK) since 1970.
March
Labour’s Harold Wilson became Prime Minister and led a minority government until a second election in October gave him a small majority. The miners’ strike ended and we put our candles away.
In China farmers discover the Terracotta Army near Xi’an – 8,000 clay warrior statues buried to guard the tomb of emperor Qin Shi Huang.
April
Two future stars of the entertainment world were born – Spice Girl Victoria Beckham and entertainer Vernon Kay.
Writer Stephen King, today known as ‘the king of horror’, published Carrie, the first of many novels.
May
Volkswagen launched the VW Golf in Britain to try and take sales from the two biggest-selling models, the Ford Cortina and Ford Escort.
With The Troubles at their height, Northern Ireland was brought under direct rule from Westminster.
June
A shocked nation mourned the deaths of 28 people when a chemical plant exploded in Flixborough, Lincolnshire. A further 36 were seriously injured.
Soviet ballet dancer Mikhail Baryshnikov defected and requested political asylum while the Bolshoi Ballet was in Toronto, Canada.
John Le Carré’s spy thriller Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy was released and the world was introduced to taciturn spymaster George Smiley.
July
American tennis player Chris Evert won her first Wimbledon title, as did her romantic partner Jimmy Connors.
John Lennon was ordered to leave the United States in 60 days due to a 1968 marijuana charge in the United Kingdom but went on to defy it.
August
The free world was rocked by the resignation of America’s 37th President, Richard Nixon, in the wake of the Watergate scandal. In his televised address to the nation he said: “I have never been a quitter.”
The first Laura Ashley fashion store in America opened in San Francisco.
September
The BBC launched the world’s first teletext information service, Ceefax, to keep us informed round the clock on our TVs.
Brian Clough was dismissed after just 44 days as manager of Leeds United after a disappointing start to the season for the defending champions.
October Formula 1 racing driver James Hunt married actress Suzy Miller, but they had separated within a year and Suzy went on to marry actor Richard Burton.
Muhammad Ali defeated George Foreman with a knockout in the eighth round of the world heavyweight boxing title fight billed as The Rumble in the Jungle. The event, attended by 60,000 people, was one of the most watched televised events at the time.
November
British peer Lord Lucan (pictured below) disappeared after becoming the prime suspect in the murder of his children’s nanny and the attempted murder of his wife. His body has never been found. Controversy hit the Miss World contest when it was revealed winner Helen Morgan was an unmarried mother. Helen had made no secret of it but resigned and was replaced by South Africa’s Anneline Kriel.
December
The Beatles officially disbanded after years of legal disputes. Reasons for the break-up were complex but involved money problems, manager Brian Epstein’s death and John Lennon’s relationship with Yoko Ono. Another political shock broke out when former Cabinet minister and suspected Russian spy John Stonehouse was found living in Australia after faking his own death. Police arrested him in the mistaken belief he was Lord Lucan.