What happened in the UK in 1990?
1990 was an action-packed year in the UK, with events that changed the face of the country. Break down the year into the biggest political, sports and entertainment news; This is what happened…
First, it was the year the literal breakthrough was made in the channel tunnel; Construction workers drilling the last piece of rock that separated the British and French halves of the project. TV footage showed workers celebrating as they stood face to face in the middle of the tunnel before walking to have their passports stamped in the opposite country (the first time someone had walked between the two countries since the Ice Age! ).
Politically, the ruling Conservative Party endured a far from ideal year. Demonstrations against the poll tax they had previously implemented led to the worst riots seen in London in a century; with more than 100 people injured and nearly 350 arrested. Her longtime figurehead, Margaret Thatcher, took responsibility for this, among other things, and resigned as Prime Minister, to be replaced by John Major.
As for sports, 1990 is best remembered for the World Cup in Italy ’90. Entering the tournament surrounded by controversy, and having announced that he would leave afterwards, Bobby Robson led England to the semi-finals of the competition, where they lost on penalties to eventual world cup champions West Germany. However, perhaps the biggest winners were the ‘Three Tenors’ (specifically Pavarotti) who became world stars thanks to their singing performances throughout the tournament.
Other stars who arrived in 1990, this time from the United States, came in the form of the yellow-skinned ‘Simpsons’. By the end of the year, everyone was familiar with Homer, Bart, Marge, Lisa, and Maggie, and the catchphrase ‘Eat My Shorts’. Also came from the United States ‘Baywatch’ by David Hasselhoff and Pamela Anderson. As lifeguards in Los Angeles, they ran scantily clad and saved a few lives; everyone was happy and the show was a great success.
The biggest movie of 1990 was “Home Alone,” which starred as a little boy (Macaulay Culkin) who woke up to find his Christmas wish had come true and his family was missing. That year also saw the release of ‘Pretty Woman’, starring Julia Roberts and Richard Gere, which was about a love story between a street worker and a wealthy and high-flying businessman.
Musically, ‘Hanging Tough’ by boy band ‘New Kids on the Block’ was the first of 17 chart-topping singles throughout the year; the biggest seller of which was the recording of The Righteous Brothers’ ‘Unchained Melody’ (which Madonna achieved her seventh number one single with ‘Vogue’ and topped the album chart for 9 weeks (selling 3.6 million copies) with his greatest hits release ‘The Immaculate Collection’ The number one went to Cliff Richard and his single ‘Saviour’s Day’, making him the only person to have a number one in the ’50s, ’60s, ’70s, ’80s and ’90s.
