2008 in the United Kingdom

Incumbents

• Monarch – Elizabeth II
• Prime Minister – Gordon Brown
• Parliament – 54th

  Events

January

• 17 January – The number of people affected by norovirus stomach bug in the UK reached an estimated 3 million.
• 18 January – Last working of Tower Colliery, the last deep mine in the South Wales Valleys.
• 24 January – Peter Hain resigned as Secretary of State for Work and Pensions over irregular donations.
• 31 January
• * Conservative Party MP Derek Conway was suspended from the House of Commons for 10 days over payments made to his son from his parliamentary allowances.
• * Four men were jailed for 15 years each for their part in the 2006 Securitas raid, the UK's biggest cash robbery.

  February

• 18 February – Mohammed Al Fayed told the inquest into the death of Diana, Princess of Wales that she and his son Dodi Fayed were both murdered in a conspiracy arranged by the Royal Family, Tony Blair, MI5, MI6 and the British ambassador to France. He claimed that Diana knew that The Prince of Wales and The Duke of Edinburgh were "trying to get rid of her".
• 19 February
• * Shannon Matthews, a 9-year-old, from Dewsbury, West Yorkshire, was reported missing.
• * The inquest into the death of Diana, Princess of Wales heard from Dodi Fayed's former assistant Melissa Henning that Diana, Princess of Wales voiced fears shortly before her death that someone was going to make an attempt on her and Fayed's life in a conspiracy that would be made to look like an accident.
• 21 February – A jury at Ipswich Crown Court found Steve Wright, 49, guilty of murdering five prostitutes during late 2006.
• 22 February
• * Northern Rock was nationalised by the British government.
• * Steve Wright was sentenced to life imprisonment with a recommendation that he should never be released.
• * Mark Dixie, 37, was found guilty of the September 2005 murder of Surrey model Sally Anne Bowman. He was sentenced to life imprisonment at the Old Bailey, where the trial judge recommends that he serves at least 34 years before parole can be considered.
• 26 February
• * Levi Bellfield, 38, was found guilty of murdering two women in London in sexually motivated attacks; the first in 2001, the second in 2004. He received a life sentence with a recommendation that he should never be released.
• * The inquest into the death of Diana, Princess of Wales found that MI6 did not keep files on Diana or Dodi Fayed, contradicting claims in conspiracy theories that the deaths were the result of an MI6 conspiracy.
• 27 February – An earthquake with an epicentre in Lincolnshire was felt across most of Britain, with several buildings suffering substantial damage.

  March

• 7 March – The coroner at the inquest into the death of Diana, Princess of Wales announced that The Duke of Edinburgh will not be called into court to give evidence over the deaths that Mohammed Al Fayed is accusing him of ordering.
• 12 March – The Budget was unveiled by Alistair Darling as his first in the position of Chancellor of the Exchequer.
• 14 March – Michael Donovan, 39, from Batley Carr, West Yorkshire, is arrested for the kidnap of the 9-year-old, Shannon Matthews.
• 28 March – London Heathrow Terminal 5 opened at Heathrow Airport to British Airways with many problems with the IT system, coupled with insufficient testing and staff training, which caused over 500 flights to be cancelled.
• 30 March – A plane crashed into a row of houses in Farnborough, Hampshire, killing two pilots and three passengers.
• 31 March – The inquest into the death of Diana, Princess of Wales heard that there is "not a shred of evidence" that The Duke of Edinburgh or MI6 ordered her death.

  April

• 2 April – An embryo that was a cross between a human and a cow survived a third straight day after being fertilised at Newcastle University. A director for embryonic stem cell laboratories at the Australian Stem Cell Centre said that the "99 per cent human" embryo could improve research within the field of human diseases. The Catholic Church of England and Wales however said that the creation was "monstrous" and says that the later destruction of it is unethical.
• 6 April – The Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007 came into force.
• 7 April – The inquest into the death of Diana, Princess of Wales recorded a verdict of accidental death, caused by the heavy drinking, drug abuse and speeding of her chauffeur Henri Paul, who died in the crash along with Diana and Dodi Fayed.
• 8 April – Karen Matthews, the mother of the kidnapped 9-year-old girl, Shannon Matthews, was arrested for organising her daughter's kidnap.

  May

• 1 May
• * The London mayoral election was held. The Conservative candidate Boris Johnson defeated the incumbent Labour candidate Ken Livingstone.
• * The London Assembly election also took place, with Brent and Harrow being the only constituency to change hands. Meanwhile, the British National Party gained a seat, their first outside local councils.
• * Local elections were held in England and Wales. The night saw the governing Labour party fall to third place in the popular vote on 24%, behind the Conservatives on 44% and the Liberal Democrats on 25%.
• 11 May – Manchester United secured their tenth Premier League title in 16 years with a 2–0 win at Wigan Athletic on the final day of the league season. Ryan Giggs, who scored one of United's goals, became the first player to win 10 English league titles.
• 15 May – Halifax Town A.F.C., a former Football League side, were expelled from the Conference National with multimillion-pound debts.
• 17 May – The FA Cup Final took place at Wembley Stadium between Portsmouth and Cardiff City with Portsmouth winning 1–0.
• 20 May – Joey Barton, a player for Newcastle United Football Club, was sentenced to six months in prison after being convicted of assault and affray.
• 21 May – The first all-English European Cup final saw Manchester United beat Chelsea on penalties after a 1–1 draw in Moscow's Luzhniki Stadium.
• 22 May – Construction work began on the Olympic Stadium being built for the 2012 games.

  June

• 4 June – Gretna F.C., just relegated from the Scottish Premier League, went out of business with debts of £4 million.
• 12 June – Halifax Town, who were in the Blue Square Premier League until their recent expulsion due to financial problems, went out of business after 97 years. They were members of the Football League for most of their history until 2002.
• 13 June – Shadow Home Secretary David Davis resigns as an MP over the government's plans to detain terror suspects for up to 42 days.

  July

• 11 July – Former Shadow Home Secretary David Davis wins the Haltemprice and Howden by-election triggered by his resignation last month.
• 18 July – The surge in Conservative support continued as the latest MORI poll put them 20 points ahead of Labour on 47%. With an election due within the next two years and possibly next year, David Cameron was well on course to become the next prime minister of the United Kingdom. With an economic crisis beginning and fears of a recession and mass unemployment rising, it was widely expected that his popularity would continue to grow. Further bad news for the economy shows that it contracted by 0.1% in the second quarter of this year – ending 16 years of unbroken economic growth.
• 22 July – The London Motor Show was held, a highlight being Vauxhall's launch of its new Insignia that replaced the Vectra and was due on sale later in the year.

  August

• 1 August – Barry George was acquitted of the murder of Jill Dando.
• 3 August – British motorcyclist Craig Jones was involved in a serious accident during the 2008 Supersport World Championship at Brands Hatch; he died of his injuries the following day.
• 8–24 August – Great Britain competed at the Olympics in Beijing. The team won 19 gold, 13 silver and 15 bronze medals and finished fourth in the medal table, the best performance for the Great Britain team in a century.
• 17 August – A light aircraft approaching Coventry collided with a microlight, all five people on board the two aircraft were killed.
• 19 August – Following legal suppositions at Birmingham Crown Court, Judge Frank Chapman ruled that Anthony Hall, charged with the 1961 murder of Jacqueline Thomas should not stand trial for the crime, and that the charge should be stayed because it was "just too long ago", and Hall would not receive a fair and balanced trial.
• 21 August – Home Office announcement that an investigation is being launched after a consultancy firm lost the data of 84,000 prisoners and 43,000 criminals.

  September

• 6 September – Eight people killed when storms hit the UK causing flash flooding in many areas.
• 6–17 September – Great Britain competed at the Paralympics in Beijing.
• 12 September – Labour MP Siobhain McDonagh is sacked from her role as an assistant government whip after publicly announcing that she had written to Labour's General Secretary calling for a leadership contest at the forthcoming party conference.
• 14 September – Amid the financial crisis, rise in unemployment and threat of recession, the Labour government's popularity was reported to have fallen dramatically. As recently as January, they had enjoyed a lead of up to 10 points over the Conservatives in the opinion polls, but the latest Ipsos MORI poll put them 16 points behind the Conservative Party which had a 45% approval rating.
• 16 September – Minister of State for Scotland David Cairns resigns after writing to Prime Minister Gordon Brown requesting a leadership debate.
• 24 September – Labour's Secretary of State for Transport Ruth Kelly resigns stating the need to spend more time with her family.

  October

• October
• * St Hilda's College, Oxford, ceased to be the last single-sex college of the University of Oxford by admitting male undergraduates.
• * Toyota launched another Avensis at the 2008 Paris Motor Show to be built at TMUK.
• 2 October – Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Ian Blair announced his resignation with effect from 1 December 2008, citing a lack of support from Mayor of London Boris Johnson.
• 3 October – Peter Mandelson returns to the Westminster cabinet as Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform as part of a reshuffle following Ruth Kelly's resignation.
• 6 October – Footballer Luke McCormick, a former goalkeeper for Plymouth Argyle, was sentenced to seven years in prison for causing death by dangerous driving.
• 8 October – The government announced a bank rescue package worth some £500 billion as a response to the ongoing financial crisis.
• 13 October – The House of Lords votes against a measure in the Counter-Terrorism Bill that would have enabled the government to detain suspects for up to 42 days without charge.
• 14 October – The abolition of Key Stage Three National Curriculum Tests for 14-year-old school pupils known as SATS which were first introduced in 1991.
• 18 October – An episode of The Russell Brand Show aired, featuring a series of prank phone calls to the actor Andrew Sachs by comedians Russell Brand and Jonathan Ross, leading to a media row.
• 21 October – Nathaniel Rothschild accuses Conservative Shadow Chancellor George Osborne of soliciting to party funds a donation from Russian Oligarch Oleg Deripaska when they were both guests of Mr Rothschild in Corfu in August 2008. The allegations appear in a letter written by Mr Rothschild to The Times newspaper and are denied by George Osborne.
• 24 October – The Office for National Statistics revealed that Britain's economy shrunk by 0.5% in the quarter from July to September – the first quarterly detraction since 1992.
• 26 October
• * Severe storm in the Lake District causes extensive flooding while 2500 runners were taking part in a fell race, all participants were later accounted for.
• * A weak earthquake in Hereford and Worcestershire measuring 3.6 on the Richter Scale.
• 27 October – Employment and Support Allowance replaced new claims for Incapacity Benefit and Income Support on the basis of incapacity to work for most claimants.

  November

• 2 November – Lewis Hamilton became the youngest ever Formula One World Champion.
• 6 November – Labour party won the Glenrothes by-election.
• 18 November – The names and contact details of more than 12,000 members of the far-right British National Party are published online, breaching data protection laws.
• 27 November – Conservative Shadow Immigration Minister Damien Green is arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to commit mis-conduct in a public office. He was released on bail after questioning.

  December

• 4 December
• * Karen Matthews, 32, was convicted of the kidnapping her 9-year-old daughter, Shanon, who was kidnapped in Dewsbury, West Yorkshire, on 19 February 2008.
• * Lapland New Forest, a Christmas themed park in Dorset closed after scores of complaints about the poor quality of its attractions.
• 16 December – Sean Mercer, 18, was found guilty of murdering 11-year-old Rhys Jones who was shot dead in Croxteth, Liverpool, in August last year. Mercer was sentenced to life imprisonment at the trial judge recommended that he serve at least 22 years before parole can be considered. This is likely to keep Mercer in prison until at least 2030 and the age of 40.
• 18 December
• * Woolworths announced their 807 UK stores will close by 5 January 2009, putting some 27,000 people out of work.
• * Robert Napper pleaded guilty to killing Rachel Nickell, who was stabbed to death on Wimbledon Common on 15 July 1992.
• 19 December – MFI ceases trading, closing all 111 of its stores and leaving its 1,400 workforce redundant. The furniture retailer had been in business since 1964, and had used the MFI name since 1971.
• 27 December – The first wave of Woolworths store closures sees 200 stores shut their doors, with the closure to be completed in the new year unless a buyer for the company is found in the next few days.

  Undated

• Forced marriage protection orders available in England, Wales and Northern Ireland under terms of the Forced Marriage Act 2007.
• Sales of new cars in Britain defy the deteriorating economic conditions, with well over 2.5 million sales this year compared to barely 2.4 million last year. The Ford Focus enjoys its tenth successive year as Britain's best selling new car.

  Publications

• Iain M. Banks' novel Matter.
• Sebastian Faulks' James Bond novel Devil May Care.
• Jacqueline Walker's part family memoir, part novelisation, Pilgrim State.

  Births

• 11 February – Frankel, racehorse

  Deaths

January

• 2 January – George MacDonald Fraser, author
• 3 January
• * Natasha Collins, actress and model
• * Jimmy Stewart, racing driver
• 4 January – Graham Percy, artist
• 7 January – Raffaello de Banfield, composer
• 9 January – John Harvey-Jones, businessman
• 15 January
• * John D. Lawson, scientist
• * Jason MacIntyre, racing cyclist
• 17 January
• * Tony Dean, racing driver
• * Carole Lynne, actress
• 18 January – Bertram James, World War II airman, survivor of The Great Escape
• 19 January – Morris Maddocks, bishop
• 21 January – Billy Elliott, footballer
• 22 January – Kevin Stoney, actor
• 25 January – Evelyn Barbirolli, oboist, wife of Sir John Barbirolli
• 26 January – Bryan Jennett, neurosurgeon
• 30 January
• * Jeremy Beadle, television presenter, writer and producer
• * Miles Kington, journalist and humorist

  February

• 2 February – Edward Wilson, actor
• 4 February
• * Rose Hacker, writer and activist
• * Peter Thomas, Baron Thomas of Gwydir, politician
• 6 February
• * Oliver Foot, actor
• * Tony Rolt, racing driver and soldier, last surviving participant of the world's first World Championship Grand Prix
• 7 February
• * Andrew Bertie, Grand Master of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta
• * Tamara Desni, German-born actress
• 8 February – Jane Lumb, model and actress
• 10 February – Chris Townson, musician
• 12 February – Geoffrey Lewis, professor of Turkish at Oxford University
• 18 February – Jack Lyons, financier and philanthropist
• 19 February
• * Mary Barclay, actress
• * Emily Perry, actress
• * David Watkin, cinematographer
• 21 February
• * Archie Hind, novelist
• * Sunny Lowry, first woman to swim the English Channel
• 22 February – Steve Whitaker, artist
• 24 February – Pearl Witherington, World War II secret agent
• 28 February – Mike Smith, singer

  March

• 2 March – Paul Raymond, publisher and property developer
• 3 March – Norman Smith, singer and record producer
• 7 March
• * Leon Greenman, anti-fascist campaigner and author, only British survivor of Auschwitz
• * Francis Pym, politician
• 8 March – Carol Barnes, newsreader
• 11 March
• * Alun Hoddinott, Welsh composer
• * Michael J. Todd, police officer, Chief Constable of Greater Manchester Police
• 12 March – Tom Tuohy, chemist, averted potential disaster at Windscale
• 16 March – John Hewer, actor
• 18 March
• * Andrew Britton, novelist
• * Anthony Minghella, film director
• 19 March
• * Sir Arthur C. Clarke, science fiction author and inventor
• * Philip Jones Griffiths, photojournalist
• * Paul Scofield, actor
• 20 March
• * Eric Ashton, rugby player and coach
• * Brian Wilde, actor
• 21 March – Denis Cosgrove, geographer
• 23 March – Neil Aspinall, record producer and business executive
• 25 March – Tony Church, actor
• 28 March – Michael Podro, art historian
• 29 March – Allan Ganley, jazz drummer

  April

• 1 April – Jim Finney, football referee
• 2 April – Paul Arden, author
• 3 April – Andrew Crozier, poet
• 7 April – Mark Speight, television presenter
• 8 April
• * Tim Beaumont, Baron Beaumont of Whitley, politician and clergyman
• * Graham Higman, mathematician
• 10 April
• * Francis Coleman, orchestral conductor
• * Dickson Mabon, politician
• 11 April
• * Willoughby Goddard, actor
• * Joan Jackson, muse of poet John Betjeman
• 12 April – Cecilia Colledge, Olympic figure skater
• 15 April
• * Hazel Court, actress
• * Brian Davison, drummer
• 17 April
• * Richard Chopping, illustrator
• * Gwyneth Dunwoody, politician
• 18 April – Michael de Larrabeiti, author
• 24 April – Tristram Cary, composer
• 25 April – Humphrey Lyttelton, jazz musician and broadcaster
• 28 April
• * Diana Barnato Walker, aviator, first British woman to break the sound barrier
• * Sir Derek Higgs, banker and businessman
• 29 April – Sir Anthony Kershaw, politician

  May

• 1 May
• * Bernard Archard, actor
• * Mary Berry, musicologist and nun
• 10 May – John Barraclough, air marshal
• 13 May – Jill Adams, actress
• 14 May
• * Frith Banbury, actor and theatre director
• * Derek Goodwin, ornithologist
• * John Forbes-Robertson, actor
• 15 May – Robert Dunlop, motorcycle racer
• 16 May
• * David Mitton, producer and director
• * Peter Rolfe Vaughan, engineer
• 17 May
• * Jolyon Brettingham Smith, composer and radio presenter
• * Wilfrid Mellers, composer and music critic
• 18 May – Tom Burlison, Baron Burlison, footballer and trade unionist
• 22 May – Paul Patrick, gay rights campaigner
• 23 May – Nigel Anderson, soldier, landowner and politician
• 24 May – Rob Knox, actor
• 27 May – David Butler, screenwriter
• 28 May
• * Beryl Cook, artist
• * Elinor Lyon, children's writer
• 30 May
• * Rodney Gordon, architect
• * Nat Temple, bandleader

  June

• 1 June – Al Jones, folk singer-songwriter
• 4 June – Jonathan Routh, co-star of Candid Camera
• 5 June – Frank Blackmore, traffic engineer, inventor of the mini-roundabout
• 6 June – Trevor Wilkinson, sports car manufacturer, founder of TVR
• 10 June – David Brierly, actor
• 13 June
• * Bruce Lester, actor
• * John Malcolm, actor
• * Dennis Weatherstone, businessman and banker
• 17 June – Henry Chadwick, theologian
• 19 June
• * David Caminer, computer pioneer
• * Bomber Wells, cricketer
• 21 June – Freddie Williams, businessman
• 26 June – Tony Melody, actor

  July

• 1 July
• * Mel Galley, guitarist
• * Robert Harling, typographer
• 2 July – Elizabeth Spriggs, actress
• 3 July
• * Ernie Cooksey, footballer
• * Clive Hornby, actor
• 4 July – Charles Wheeler, journalist
• 7 July – Fred Yates, painter
• 13 July – John Raymond Hobbs, pathologist
• 14 July
• * Bryan Cowgill, television executive
• * Hugh Lloyd, actor
• 17 July – John Hunt, Baron Hunt of Tanworth, civil servant
• 19 July
• * Sarah Conlon, Northern Irish campaigner on behalf of Guildford Four and Maguire Seven
• * Ann Lambton, historian
• * Dave Pearson, painter
• 21 July – Donald Stokes, Baron Stokes, industrialist, chief executive of British Leyland
• 26 July – Chas Messenger, cyclist
• 27 July
• * Graeme Crallan, heavy metal drummer
• * Russell Johnston, politician
• 29 July – Eric Varley, politician
• 30 July – Peter Coke, actor

  August

• 1 August – Pauline Baynes, artist
• 3 August – Roger Dean, guitarist
• 4 August – Craig Jones, motorcycle racer
• 6 August – Simon Gray, playwright
• 9 August
• * Peter Coe, athletics coach, father of Sebastian Coe
• * Archie Elliott, Lord Elliott, judge
• 10 August – Terence Rigby, actor
• 11 August – Sir Bill Cotton, producer
• 12 August – Michael Baxandall, art historian
• 13 August – John MacDougall, politician
• 14 August
• * Sandy Bruce-Lockhart, Baron Bruce-Lockhart, politician
• * Lita Roza, singer
• 18 August – Bob Humphrys, broadcaster, brother of John Humphrys
• 19 August – Leo Abse, lawyer and politician
• 20 August – Eric Longworth, actor
• 25 August – John Thoday, geneticist
• 29 August – Geoffrey Perkins, comedy producer, writer and performer
• 31 August – Ken Campbell, actor and raconteur

  September

• 1 September – Ian Edward Fraser, World War II sailor and VC recipient
• 2 September
• * Dame Alison Munro, civil servant and headmistress
• * Julia Pirie, spy
• * Denis Rooke, engineer
• 7 September – Peter Glossop, opera singer
• 9 September
• * Nina Lawson, wig-maker for the Metropolitan Opera
• * Bheki Mseleku, jazz musician
• 10 September
• * David Chipp, journalist
• * Vernon Handley, orchestral conductor
• * Gary O'Donnell, soldier
• 12 September – Marjorie Thomas, opera singer
• 14 September – Ralph Russell, scholar
• 15 September – Richard Wright, pianist and songwriter
• 16 September – John Fancy, World War II airman
• 19 September
• * David Jones, film director
• * Dave Needham, boxer
• 20 September – William Fox, actor
• 21 September – Brian Pippard, physicist
• 23 September – William Woodruff, historian
• 25 September – Jimmy Sirrel, footballer and football manager
• 29 September – Jock Wilson, World War II soldier and D-Day veteran

  October

• 3 October – George Thomson, Baron Thomson of Monifieth, journalist and politician
• 4 October
• * Ted Briggs, World War II sailor, last survivor of the sinking of HMS Hood
• * Peter Vansittart, writer
• 6 October – Peter Avery, scholar
• 7 October – Peter Copley, actor
• 8 October – Bob Friend, newscaster
• 11 October – Russ Hamilton, singer
• 13 October – Christopher Wicking, screenwriter
• 14 October
• * Barrington J. Bayley, science fiction writer
• * Ray Lowry, cartoonist
• * Pat Moss, racing driver, daughter of Alfred Moss
• 20 October
• * Pat Kavanagh, literary agent
• * John Ringham, actor and playwright
• 23 October
• * Derek Brewer, mediaevalist
• * Kevin Finnegan, boxer
• * F. W. Walbank, scholar of Greek history
• 25 October
• * Ian McColl, footballer and football manager
• * Maurice Stonefrost, civil servant
• 27 October
• * Chris Bryant, screenwriter and actor
• * Roy Stewart, actor
• 31 October – John Pearse, guitarist

  November

• 3 November
• * John Adams, World War II naval officer
• * Brooks Mileson, businessman
• 4 November – Syd Lucas, World War I survivor
• 5 November – Sir Paul Greening, naval officer and courtier
• 11 November – Jack Scott, television weather forecaster
• 12 November
• * Mitch Mitchell, drummer
• * Margaret Moncrieff, cellist
• 14 November – Sir Bernard Feilden, conservation architect
• 16 November – Reg Varney, actor
• 17 November – James Baddiley, microbiologist
• 23 November – Richard Hickox, orchestral conductor
• 25 November
• * Leonard Goodwin, pharmacologist
• * Michael Lee, rock drummer
• * Brian Pearce, Marxist historian and translator
• * Dudley Savage, radio presenter
• 26 November – Andreas Liveras, businessman
• 28 November – Hugh Laddie, judge
• 29 November – Robert Wade, chess player
• 30 November – Naomi Datta, geneticist

  December

• 1 December
• * James Bree, actor
• * John Wall, lawyer and blind rights campaigner
• 2 December – Patrick Maitland, 17th Earl of Lauderdale, peer
• 3 December – Derek Wadsworth, jazz trombonist and composer
• 4 December – Richard Van Allan, opera singer
• 6 December – Sir Curtis Keeble, diplomat, Ambassador to the Soviet Union
• 7 December – John Ellis Williams, Welsh author
• 8 December
• * Oliver Postgate, animator, puppeteer and writer
• * Bob Spiers, television director
• 13 December – Kathy Staff, actress
• 15 December – Davey Graham, guitarist
• 16 December – Richard Coleman, actor
• 18 December
• * Peter Malam Brothers, World War II pilot
• * Jack Douglas, actor
• * Hannah Frank, sculptor
• 19 December – Sir Bernard Crick, political theorist
• 20 December – Adrian Mitchell, poet and novelist
• 23 December – Eric Wilson, lieutenant-colonel, last British Army recipient of the Victoria Cross from the Second World War
• 24 December – Harold Pinter, playwright
• 25 December – Colin White, military historian
• 27 December – Patricia Kneale, actress
• 28 December – Sir Michael Levey, art historian