Years 1970 to 1979

1970 1971	Mayor – Alderman Gordon Timberley Thornton (Redcar).
1970	In Redcar a resident Mr William Ling was awarded a testimonial on vellum by the Royal Humane Society, for rescuing a fellow seaman from drowning.
1970	Land Sailing Club formed at Redcar (more info required)
14/06/1970	Bobby Charlton played his 106th and last football match for England in the World Cup in Mexico. His first was April, 19, 1958, against Scotland.
16/07/1970	The Government declared a state of emergency and brought in troops to deal with a dock strike. 47,000 on strike to have tjeir basic wage raised to £11 a week.
08/08/1970	The Match Of The Day theme tune was aired for the first time. It has been called the most famous tune on British television
18/10/1970	Fishing Boat incident Teesmouth when boat sank with its owner. Further three persons rescued.
10/11/1970	The Great Wall of China was opened to tourists.
06/02/1971	‘Apollo14’ crew landed on the moon. Astronaut Alan Shepherd played golf on the moon, and struck two gold golf balls on the surface. The shots travelled more than 200 yards in the low density
08/03/1971	Boxer Joe Frazier defeated Mohammed Ali on points to become World Heavyweight Champion.
16/03/1971	Boxer Henry Cooper announced his retirement after losing his title to Joe Bugner.
29/03/1971	Charles Manson and three members of his cult were sentenced to death in Los Angeles for the murders of seven people and one unborn child.
29/03/1970	Easter Sunday. Over this period of Easter, council workers were brought out to fight an oil slick 1 mile long threatening Redcar Beach. Believe to have come from a slick further up the coast at Northumberland.
03/06/1971	The longest running comedy in UK theatre history No Sex Please We’re British opened in London, Savoy Theatre. Ran for 6,761 performances before closing in 1987.
06/08/1971	Chay Blyth completed his first solo round-the-world sail against prevailing winds in 292 days.
1971	NOTE – 15/02/1971 United Kingdom changes currency
00/07/1971	English National Sheepdog trials held their first ever show on Teesside. sheepdog
1971	Redcar parent requested prompt action regarding West Dyke Infant School toilets which had not altered since before the war. Children had to cross icy yard to get to the outside toilets.
18/07/1971	Legendary Footballer Pele played his last international appearance for Brazil in a game against Yugoslavia in front of thousands of fans in the Maracana Stadium in Rio de Janeiro. Score 2-2.
27/10/1971	The Democratic Republic of the Congo is named Zaire.
09/11/1871	Henry Morton Stanley, sent to Africa by his newspaper to find Scottish missionary David Livingstone, finally made contact with him at Ujiji on Lake Tanganyika with the words “Doctor Livingstone I presume.”
1971 1972	Mayor – Alderman Ronald Hall (Redcar).
11/01/1972	East Pakistan renames itself Bangladesh
17/02/1972	Volkswagen broke the record held by Model T Ford by selling the 15,007,034th production of the Beetle.
22/02/1972	An IRA bomb killed seven people at Aldershot barracks.
22/04/1972	The first people to row across the Pacific Ocean arrived in Australia aboard their boat Britannia II. Sylvia Cook and John Fairfax epic 8,000 mile trip started in San Francisco and took them 361 days.
30/04/1972	UK Premiere of Clint Eastwood’s Dirty Harry movie
07/05/1972	Reginald Kenneth Dwight officially changed his name by deed poll to Elton Hercules John. His middle named came from the horse Hercules featured in sit-com Steptoe and Son.
17/06/1972	Don McLean’s song Vincent about artist Vincent Van Gogh was at No.1 in Britain. The sheet music, and some of Van Gogh paint brushes were buried in a time capsule at the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam.
18/06/1972	British European Airways Trident aeroplane crashed taking off from Heathrow airport, killing 118 men, women and children.
26/08/1972	The 20th Olympic Games opened in Munich.
04/09/1972	American swimmer Mark Spitz became the first Olympic athlete to win seven gold medals.
1972	Nuclear power started supplying electricity.
1972	Queen Elizabeth opened the new London Bridge.
1972	Redcar Squash Club formed as an offshoot of Redcar Rugby Club
1972	Memorial Clock bell given to Marske Parish Church. It had not been used for almost 60 years
1972	Lifeboats – Sir James Knott into service saving 68 lives.
11/09/1972	The BBC TV quiz ‘Mastermind’ was first transmitted.
17/09/1972	Comedy series MAS* premiered on NBC TV in America. Went on to show 251 episodes with last one 125 million viewers watching.
22/09/1972	Idi Amin gave Uganda’s 8,000 Asians 48 hours to leave the country.
11/12/1972	Apollo 17 becomes the sixth and last Apollo mission to land on the Moon.
19/12/1972	Last manned mission by NASA astronauts. with module splashing down in the Pacific Ocean.
1972 1973	Mayor – Councillor Maurice Sutherland (Stockton).
14/01/1973	Multi Talented performer Roy Castle tap danced his way into the record books
23/01/1973	American President Richard Nixon announced “peace with honour” ending with the ceasefire in Vietnam. US military intervention began in 1965. This was America’s longest war.
27/01/1973	America signed a ceasefire to end its military action in Vietnam.
09/03/1973	The Provisional IRA terrorists exploded a bomb at the Old Bailey, at the time of the referendum.
24/03/1973	Rock Band Pink Floyd released The Dark Side Of The Moon, which went on to become on of the biggest-selling albums of all time.
26/03/1973	Women were allowed to enter the London Stock Exchange for the first time in its 200 year history.
02/07/1973	Successful comedian Peter Kay was born. His live arena shows have broken records for ticket sales.
17/07/1973	The Everyly Brothers parted on stage in California when Phil smashed his guitar and stormed off, leaving Don to finish the gig.
20/08/1973	The Sydney Opera House opens.
10/09/1973	Muhammed Ali defeated Ken Norton and won the NABF Heavyweight title.
23/09/1973	Juan Peron was re-elected president of Argentina after being ousted almost 18 years earlier.
1973	The 810 ton Dutch coaster ‘Hendrik a’ was wrecked off High Point, Saltscar, Redcar.
08/10/1973	Britain’s first independent licensed commercial radio began broadcasting, goin on air at 6am.
20/10/1873	The Dalai Lama made his first visit to the UK.
20/10/1973	Sydney Opera House opened by the Queen.
12/11/1973	The group Queen began their first UK tour at the Leeds Town Hall.
14/11/1973	The wedding of Queen Elizabeth 11’s only daughter, Princess Anne, at Westminster Abbey.
1973 1974	Councillor Gordon W Hodgson (BEM Chairman) 21/06/1973. The First Annual Meeting took place of Langbaurgh Borough Council, on Thursday, 21st, June, 1974, at 10.30am in the Council Chamber, Eston Town Hall.
1973 1974	Mayor – Alderman Leonard Poole (Middlesbrough).
00/00/1974	Redcar Health Committee introduce a smokeless Zone for the town. The first being the Lakes Estate. Electric fires and radiators to be introduced.
18/02/1976	Carl Andre’s “pile of bricks” sculpture at the Tate Gallery caused controversy. Known as Equivalent VIII and was a rectangle of fire bricks in a rectangle, and costing £2,297.
00/03/1974	Terry Scott, actor and comedian drove straight off the front platform of the Transporter Bridge, thinking it was the road. His car was caught by the safety net but was written off.
26/03/1974	The Final Meeting of Teesside County Borough Council took place on this date.
1974 1975	Mayor – Councillor W Hodgson. BEM.
1974	British Steel Corp. debated plans for building a bridge or tunnel to connect their Redcar Works and Seal sands plants saving a 16 miles journey. Cost 20 million pounds.
04/05/1974	Abba reached the top of the pop charts with Waterloo, the Eurovision song contest winner.
1974	Redcar residents of France Street and Red Lion Street took legal action against Langbaurgh Council following flooding to their homes.
02/09/1974	Edward Heath’s Morning Cloud III was sunk in a Force 9 gale in the English Channel.
14/09/1974	Chia-Chia and Ching-Ching, giant pandas, arrived at London Zoo
1974	HM Coastguard, Tees Coastguard control centre established at South Gare.
05/10/1974	Five people died and 65 were injured when the IRA bombed two pubs in Guilford.
1974	Langbaurgh Borough Council replaced Teesside County Borough.
1974	Ridley House (former site of public library demolished).
05/12/1974	Final episode of ‘Monty Python’s Flying Circus’ broadcast by the BBC.
24/12/1974	Drowned former UK minister, John Stonehouse, found alive after faking his own death. Living under a false name with his secretary in Australia.
1975	Damaged caused by 80 mph winds along the coastline. Redcar’s’ NLI was put on alert. Part of the beach centre roof was blown off during the winds.
1975-1976	Mayor – Councillor J Morgan. BEM.
04/02/1975	Sir Edward Hearth resigned as Tory leader, but remained a backbencher MP until his retirement in 2001.
1975	A19 Viaduct (Flyover) commenced taking traffic A19 over the River Tees Middlesbrough/Stockton North and South
19/04/1975	British actor William Hartnell died. Best known for playing the first Doctor Who series on television between November 1963 and July 1967. Returned to Dr Who to celebrate 10th Anniversary in a four part special involving three of the other Doctors.
05/06/1975	The first live radio broadcast of Parliament, from the House of Commons.
10/06/1975	It Ain’t Half Hot Mum comedy favourites Windsor Davies and Don Estell were no 1 in the Uk music charts with Whispering Grass.
05/07/1975	Arthur Ashe, American tennis player, became the first black man to win the Wimbledon singles’ championship.
11/07/1875	Archaeologists finished the first excavations of the Terracotta Army, discovered in China.
1975	Redcar resident Mr Benjamin Jones died at the age of 105 years.
1975	Sir William Turner’s moved as a Sixth Form College, to Redcar Lane.
11/08/1975	The Government took ownership of British Leyland, the only British owned car company.
24/09/1975	Douglas Heston and Doug Scott became the first Britons to conquer Everest
22/10/1975	Art Garfunkel was number one in the music charts with I Only Have Eyes For You. Originally written in 1934 for Busby Berkeley musical film Dames.
03/11/1975	The North Sea pipeline, the first to be built underwater bringing 400,000 barrels each day was opened by The Queen.
19/11/1975	One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest, based of the 1962 book by Ken Kesey, was released in cinemas. Went on 50 win 5 Oscar’s and the best actor award to Jack Nicholson. Film made more that £120m.
1976 1977	Mayor – Councillor Jack S Dyball.
1976	Construction of Kielder Dam commenced mainly to supply the needs of Industries in the North East, mainly Teesside.
02/01/1976	Queen were at number 1 in music charts with Bohemian Rhapsody. Freddie Mercury reported to have written the song on scraps of paper and telephone books.
12/01/1976	Dame Agatha Christie, the world’s most successful detective story writer, died. aged 85.
11/02/1976	John Curry was awarded the men’s figure skating gold medal at the Innsbruck Winter Olympic Games. First Britain to win a solo title. 20 million TV viewers watch his performance on TV.
05/04/1976	James Callaghan won the Labour leadership contest and became Prime Minister.
05/04/1976	Billionaire recluse Howard Hughes died on his private jet on his way to Houston, Texas.
11/04/1976	The Apple 1 is created.
29/06/1976	The Seychelles become Independent from the United Kingdom.
01/08/1976	World Champion Formula 1 racing driver Niki Lauder badly burned in an accident German Grand Prix
05/09/1976	Eurovision winners Abba went to the top of the charts again with Dancing Queen.
09/09/1976	The death of Chairman Mao Zedong.
09/09/1976	Mao Tse-tung (Chairman Mao) died aged 82 after a series of strokes.
04/10/1976	Official launch of the Inter-City 125 high-speed train.
15/10/1976	Two men from the Ulster Defence Regiment were jailed for 35 years in connection with the murders of the Miami Show Band. 7 people died in total.
03/12/1976	40 foot flying pig broke its moorings at Battersea Power Station during a photo shoot for Pink Floyd’s album Animals. Later at 18,000 feet over Chatham, Kent. Airports made aware of situation.
1977 1978	Mayor – Councillor Leonard A Douglass. JP
1977	02/77. Local Newspaper reported allegations of overcrowding in boarding houses in Redcar. Boarding houses being converted to accommodate large workforce at both British Steel and Redcar steelworks. Five or six men to a room.
27/03/1977	Two jumbo jets collided on a runway in Tenerife, killing hundreds of people, some from the UK
02/04/1977	Charlotte Brew became the first female jockey to ride in the Grand National at Aintree with the horse refusing at the 27th fence. The eventual winner was Red Rum.
27/08/1977	First ever Teesside Steel Family Gala held at the Redcar Racecourse.
17/08/1977	The Soviet icebreaker Artika becomes the first surface ship to reach the North Pole.
16/09/1977	Maria Callas opera singer was found dead in her Paris flat, aged 53.
26/09/1977	Freddie Laker’s first cut-price Sky train flight to New York from Gatwick
01/10/1977	World renown footballer Brazilian legend Pele retired from football. He scored 1,281 goals in his career.
18/10/1977	German anti-terror troops stormed a high-jacked Lufthansa airliner at Mogadishu, Somalia, killing three Palestinian terrorists, and freeing all hostages.
21/11/1977	The first occasion that Supersonic passenger aircraft Concorde, flew from London to New York’s John F Kennedy Airport.
21/01/1978	The Saturday Night Fever soundtrack featuring The Bee Gees, Kool and the Gang, and KC Sunshine Band Topped the US billboard chart. The music sold 30,000 copies when first released. Later sold 20 million, and became the popular music film soundtrack starring John Travolta.
07/04/1978	US President Jimmy Carter took the decision to postpone production of the controversial neutron bomb.
17/05/1978	Compact discs were created by Philips.
24/05/1978	The London to Washington, DC, service begins.
24/05/1978	Princess MArgaret’s 18 year marriage to Lord Snowden was ended by a special procedure divorce.
25/06/1878	First occasion when the Rainbow Flag was raised during the San Francisco Gay Freedom Day Parade.
	Redcar’s Coatham Bowl was the venue for the selection of the 1978 British Steel Gala Queen. 22 contestants from steelworks around the area.
17/08/1978	First transatlantic balloon crossing by ‘Double Eagle’, landed in Normandy, France.
26/08/1978	Cardinal Albino Luciani was elected Pope John Paul I. Within 33 days he was dead.
28/09/1978	Pope John 1 died after only 33 days as Pontiff
1978	A four day holiday in Blackpool for 78 pensioners from the Pig and Whistle public house was organised and paid for by younger customes.
1978	James Cook Museum opened in Stewart Park.
1979	David Coverdale former Depp Purple star, brought his acclaimed new band Whitesnake, to the Coatham Bowl.
1978 1979	Mayor – Councillor Mrs Pat J Zoryk.
02/01/1979	Sex Pistol Sid Vicious, on bail charged with killing girlfriend Nancy Spungen, died of a heroin overdose in New York.
1979 1980	Mayor – Councillor Mrs Ivy M Cole.
1979	During the Spring of this year the Cleveland Organ Society installed a Wurlitzer Organ.
1979	In the Spring of 1979, 32 houses were flooded at Dormanstown, owing to the excessive rainfall. Local becks overflowing onto Armitage Road. The whole flooded area was described as a Venetian lagoon.
01/02/1979	Ayatollah Khomeini returned to Iran after 14 years exile’ in France.
18/02/1979	Some falls of snow in the Sahara Desert in southern Algeria for the only time in recorded history.
22/02/1979	Independence of Saint Lucia from the United Kingdom.
19/03/1979	Richard Beckinsale comedy actor in Rising Damp and Porridge died from a massive heart attack.
04/05/1979	Margaret Thatcher became Britain’s first woman prime minister.
11/06/1979	Marion Robert Morrison, better known as John Wayne, movie star died. Nicknamed The Duke.
14/08/1979	The longest lasting rainbow on record took place over North Wales from the coast of Gwynedd to Clwyd, remaining for more than 3 hours.
27/08/1979	Earl Mountbatten, the Queen’s cousin, killed when the IRA exploded a remote controlled 50lb bomb on his boat Shadow V off the coast on County Sligo, Ireland.
24/10/1979	Paul Mc Carney celebrated being the most successful composer of all time. Presented with a rhodium disc.
16/11/1979	Anthony Blunt was revealed as the ‘fourth man’ in the Philby affair.
30/12/1979	Richard Rodger’s on of the world’s best-known composers of musicals died in New York, aged 77.

Chris Hansom February 1, 2013 1970-1979