1976

1976
Bette Davis was interviewed by Tony Bilbow on BBC2's Film Night. Supermind broadcast. The Bay City Rollers' 1976 New Year's Day Special broadcast on Radio 1. Tony Capstick appeared on Radio 2's Folkweave. Hail, Horrors, Hail - featuring Feaella Fielding and Valentine Dyall - broadcast on Radio 4. The Half-Open University broadcast on Radio 3. The first episode of Clayhanger and The Student Rector - Gordon Brown broadcast on Thames. Lindsay Shonteff's Spy Story - starring Michael Petrovitch, Philip Latham, Don Fellows, Nicholas Parsons, Toby Robins, Tessa Wyatt, Derren Nesbitt and Bernard Kay - premiered.
Film 76 featured Barry Norman's interviews with Liza Minnelli, Burt Reynolds and Gene Hackman. Cribbins-Livings & Cobroadcast on BBC2. The first episode of The Georgian House broadcast on Thames. The Chieftains' 'Mna Na H Éireann (Women Of Ireland)'/'The Morning Dew', Bob Marley & The Wailers' 'Jah Live'/'Concrete' and Tamiko Jones' 'I'm Spellbound'/'TJ's Magic' released.
The first appearance of Morbius in Doctor Who. England beat Australia twenty three-six in a Rugby Union international at Twickenham. Barry Corless, Mike Lampkowski and David Duckham scored tries for the hosts. Herbie Flowers appeared on Radio 1's Top Twelve. Radio 2's Star Sound featured a Review Of 75: The Best Of The Guests.
The first episodes of Read All About It and The Prince & The Pauper - featuring Nicholas Lyndhurst in the title role(s) - broadcast. The Fivepenny Piece appeared on That's Life performing 'Without A Doubt They Tell Us Owt (They Must Think That We Know Nowt)'. Killing Trade broadcast in BBC2's The World About Us strand. Radio 1's Insight looked at the legacy of pirate radio. An adaptation of Brief Encounter - starring Richard Burton and Sophia Loren - and the first episode of A Place To Hide broadcast on LWT.
The first episode of Paddington broadcast. Former Beatles road manager Mal Evans was shot dead by Los Angeles police after refusing to drop what the police only later determined was an air rifle.
Pupils at Heaton School in Newcastle went on strike after the headmaster, Henry Askew, proposed that, in the name of 'equality', 'uncouth and nasty' girl pupils would be caned as well as boys. 'If I'm ever due the cane, I will run home,' one - allegedly - 'uncouth and nasty' girl told the Evening Chronicle. Askew's announcement was followed by two days of demonstrations when two hundred teenage girls 'went on the rampage', including running onto a football pitch during a game and stealing the ball. Way to go, sisters! Presumably, they were all home in time for the first episode of Rentaghost.
Tompkinson's School Days, the pilot episode of Michael Palin and Terry Jones's Ripping Yarns broadcast on BBC2. The first episode of Kenneth Cope's Striker broadcast on BBC1. Stan Bowles missed a penalty and Tommy Craig scored one as Newcastle United beat Queens Park Rangers two-one in an FA Cup Third Round replay. The first episode of Life & Death Of Penelope broadcast on Thames.
The first episode of When The Boat Comes In broadcast. Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai died. John Peel played Jonathan Richman's 'Roadrunner' for the first time on Radio 1.
Barry Norman previewed The Sunshine Boys and The Return Of The Pink Panther in Film 76. The first episode of BBC2's Get The Drift broadcast. The first episodes of A Bouquet Of Barbed Wire and Yes - Honestly broadcast on LWT. Elton John's 'Grow Some Funk Of Your Own'/'I Feel Like A Bullet (In The Gun Of Robert Ford)', Jesse Green's 'Nice & Slow'/'Easy', Gloria Gaynor's 'How High The Moon?'/'My Man's Gone', Cherry People's 'And Suddenly'/'Imagination', Be-Bop Deluxe's 'Ships In The Night'/'Crying To The Sky', The Milestones Featuring Butch Baker's 'The Joker'/'Jucie Brucie' and The Sweet's 'The Lies In Your Eyes'/'Cockroach' released.
Tim Aspinall's You Talk Too Much broadcast as part of BBC2's Centre Play strand. Graham Chapman's Out Of The Trees broadcast. George Burns and Walter Matthau were the guests on Parkinson. Martha Reeves appeared on Radio 1's Top Twelve. In the First Division, Tottenham Hotspur won three-two at Derby County, Liverpool and Ipswich Town drew three-all at Anfield and Newcastle United beat Everton five-nil.
Billy Connolly was one of the panellists on Read All About It. Les Bas Fonds shown in BBC2's Sunday Cinema strand. The Bee Gees featured on Radio 1's Insight. The first episode of Yus My Dear broadcast on LWT. Ready When You Are, Mister McGill broadcast in the Red Letter Day strand.
Dame Agatha Christie died. The first episode of State Of Play broadcast on BBC2.
Mike Leigh's Nuts In May broadcast as part of the Play For Today strand. Be-Bop Deluxe apeared on The Old Grey Whistle Test.
George and Kathy Lutz fled from their home on Ocean Avenue in Amityville, Long Island, after having moved in on 18 December, claiming to have been terrorised by 'several unexplainable paranormal phenomena.' The Lutzes' unsubstantiated claims would go on to inspire the story of The Amityville Horror. In response to a strike by four thousand postal workers in Madrid which has stopped delivery of mail, the Spanish government issued an order drafting all strikers into military service, subject to court martial if they failed to report for duty.
Would-be Gerald Ford assassin Sara Jane Moore was sentenced to life in The Slammer. Reviews on BBC2's Film Night included David Castell, Jane Mercer and Chris Petit.
In a case that was to become something of a cause celebre, electrician and amateur boxing coach Liddle Towers was arrested outside the Key Club in Birtley for being drunk and disorderly. After 'a struggle' he was put into a black maria by six policemen, taken to Gateshead police station and - he later alleged - given a right hard braying by The Law. He died on 9 February at Dryburn Hospital from his injuries. The first episode of Landscapes Of England broadcast on BBC2. Crown Heights Affair's 'Every Beat Of My Heart'/'Long Disco Version', Barbara Pennington's 'Running In Another Direction'/'Running Away' and The Who's 'Squeeze Box'/'Success Story' released. It goes in and out and in and out and in and out ...

The first episode of Play Rugby broadcast on the day that Wales gave England a damned good shellacking at Twickenham. The Welsh team would go on to win the Grand Slam for the seventh time in their history. BBC2's, Centre Play featured Derek Fuke's 'modern ghost story' Mirror, Mirror. Stoke City played a league game at Port Vale's Vale Park as repair work was being carried out to the roof of the Butler Street Stand at the Victoria Ground, after it had been blown off during severe winds a fortnight earlier. In Stuttgart, the trial of Andraes Baader, Ulrike Meinhof, Gudrun Ensslin and Jan-Carl Raspe - the leaders of the Red Army Faction - was taking place. Also on trial, in the US, was kidnapped heiress Patty Hearst, charged with bank robbery after alleged 'indoctrination' by her captors, The Symbionese Liberation Army. The arrival of Argentine sappers in the Falkland Islands to build an airstrip brought a predictably rabid response from the islanders. Government Chief Whip Bob Mellish used a radio broadcast to appeal to John Ryman, the Labour MP for Blyth who hadn't been seen at Westminster 'for several months', to attend the Commons for a crucial vote on devolution. Ryman, who was facing court proceedings over allegations about false election expenses, said that he would not be 'cajoled or browbeaten' into voting. Two people were killed and thirteen injured when a bomb was thrown into a pub on Belfast's New Lodge Road. James Martin, detained for four months in Zaire for alleged 'mercenary activities', was freed. The Soviet Union planned to recommence nuclear tests just as Strategic Arms Limitation Talk were due to start. Liz Taylor revealed that she and Richard Burton had decided to remarry after she was told she may have had cancer. Ten members of the 'Free George Davis Campaign' held a weekend vigil outside Wandsworth Prison. MPLA Forces continued to rout the demoralised Western-backed FLNA army in the Angolan civil war. Right-wing Falangist militia stormed into a Muslim district of Beirut only eight hours after the latest ceasefire had come into force. The Child Poverty Action Group called for an end to 'spying' on claimants by social security officers. Jaws was the most watched movie in Britain. The Blue Peter cat, Jason, died. Three thousand spectators at a cricket match in Perth were convinced they had seen a trio of lady streakers. But, one of them turned out to be 'female impersonator' Stephen Burns who was charged, along with his two - genuine - lady friends, with 'exposing their naked persons in public.' Fox's 'S-S-S-Single Bed' released.
The Scottish Labour Party formed because of disaffection with the then Labour Government's failure to secure a devolved Scottish Assembly. Where It's At shown on BBC2's Sunday Cinema strand. One-Hit Wonders broadcast in Radio 1's In Concert.
The first UK TV showing of And Soon The Darkness. The government of Iceland delivered an ultimatum, threatening to break all diplomatic relations with the UK if Britain did not withdraw all Royal Navy warships from Iceland's 'fishing zone' within the two hundred miles of the Icelandic coast. The first episode of the TV version of Hello Cheeky and the World In Action episode How To Sell An Airforce Part One broadcast on Thames.
Eric Coltart's Doran's Box broadcast as part of the Play For Today strand. Peter Sutcliffe committed his second known murder, Emily Jackson, in Leeds. Labour MP Dennis Canavan's Commons private members bill to ban corporal punishment in all schools was defeated by over sixty votes. Tory MP Patrick Cormack described anti-punishment arguments as 'ludicrous, specious, do-gooding nonsense.'

The first episode of The Glittering Prizes broadcast on BBC2. The first episode of Kizzy broadcast. The initial commercial Concorde flight took place. Goals from Alan Gowling, Glenn Keeley and Geoff Nulty gave Newcastle United a three-two aggregate victory over Tottenham Hotspur in the semi-final of the League Cup. Sun journalist Bob Cass, commentating on the match for the local commerical station, Metro Radio, memorably reacted to an offside decision given against Malcolm MacDonald with the observation, 'Offside? Was he shite!'
The Waltz broadcast in the Omnibus strand. How Others Saw Us broadcast in BBC2's Worldwide strand.
David Bowie's Station To Station, Bee Gees' 'Fanny (Be Tender With My Love)'/'Country Lanes', Tina Charles' 'I Love To Love'/'Disco Fever', War's 'Low Rider'/'So', Ayshea's 'The Flowers Will Never Die'/'The Best Years Of My Life' and The Four Seasons' 'December 1963 (Oh What A Night)'/'Slip Away' released.
Substitute Roger Davies' goal saw Derby County beat Liverpool in the FA Cup Fourth Round; The Rams' reward was a tie against Southend United, victors over Cardiff City. Other qualifiers to round five include Division Three's Crystal Palace, who overcame Leeds - currently second in the First Division table - at Elland Road and Fourth Division Bradford City, responsible for ending the cup run of non-league Tooting & Mitcham. Kettering Town became the first British football club to play with a sponsor's name printed on their stri, after signing a deal with Kettering Tyres. UFO and City Boy appeared on Radio 1's In Concert. Grease Monkeys broadcast in BBC2's Centre Play strand.
Trilby broadcast in the Play Of The Month strand. Victoria Wood apeared on That's Life. And, as usual, was about as funny as an afternoon at the genital torturers. How Did It Sound To Beethoven? broadcast on BBC2. Sun Records profiled on Radio 1's Insight.
Lance Gibbs equalled Freddie Trueman's record of three hundred and seven test wickets playing for the West Indies against Australia in the fifth test at Adelaide. The World In Action episode How To Sell An Airforce Part Two broadcast.
Packman's Barn broadcast in the Play For Today strand. Supertramp's concert at the Hammersmith Odeon featured on The Old Grey Whistle Test.
Break-In broadcast. The first episode of The Tomorrow People serial One Law broadcast on Thames.
Twelve Provisional IRA bombs exploded in London's West End. A Portrait Of Michael Bentine broadcast on BBC2.
Slade's 'Let's Call It Quits'/'When The Chips Are Down', LJ Johnson's 'Your Magic Put A Spell On Me'/'Spellbound', The Boogie Man Orchestra's '(Theme From) Lady, Lady, Lady (Are You Crazy For Me) (Parts 1 & 2)', Bunk Dogger's 'Wrap It Up'/'Twenty-Twenty', Frenzy's 'Poser'/'Things You Do (To Me)' and Steeleye Span's 'Hard Times Of Old England'/'Cadgwith Anthem' released.
The Vegan Society produced the Open Door documentary To A Brighter Future. Liverpool thrashed West Ham United four-nil at Upton Park on Match Of The Day.
The first UK TV showings of They Call Me Mister Tibbs! in the Film Of The Week strand and Pather Panchali in BBC2's Sunday Cinema strand. The Sound Of New Orleansbroadcast in Radio 1's Insight.
The Chinese Central Committee issued a Top-Priority Directive, officially transferring Deng Xiaoping to work on 'external affairs' and, thus, removing Deng from the party's power apparatus. King Coal Revived broadcast in BBC2's Horizon strand. The World In Action episode Cut Off broadcast.
John Hopkins's A Story To Frighten The Children broadcast as part of the Play For Today strand. Homosexuality: Public Disgrace broadcast in BBC2's The Man Alive Report strand.
The opening ceremony of the Innsburk Winter Olympics was broadcast. The first episode of The Mike Read Show broadcast on BBC2. Ter. Riff. Ic.

Franz Klammer won the Men's Downhill at the Winter Olympics on the same day that Blue Peter broadcast the episode where John Noakes tried to go down the Cresta Run in a bobsleigh and, ended up, going down the last bit of it on his arse. A huge earthquake devastated several towns in Guatemala. Two British frigates were involved in stand-offs with Icelandic fisherman. Equatorial Guinea's dictator, Francisco Macías Nguema, was accused of human rights violations by refugees from the country. Annie Macguire's appeal against her conviction for possession of nitroglycerine was told that prosecution forensic evidence was 'unreliable.' Which it was but Annie and her friends still ended up having to do several further years in pokey before this gross miscarriage of justice was acknowledged. The RSPCA announced it considered angling to be a 'cruel' sport. Particularly for those children who had to spend all day, bored shitless, on riverbanks watching their dads doing it.
Prince Bernhard of The Netherlands, the husband of Queen Julian, was implicated in a bribery scandal in testimony by an official of the Lockheed Corporation. Leonard Peltier, the Native American activist and one of the FBI's Ten Most Wanted, was arrested in Canada after being located hiding in a cabin in Alberta. The Newcastle United Cup Squad Featuring Bobby Webber's 'The Black & White Army'/'On The Way To Wembley', The Mirettes' 'He's Alright With Me'/'Your Kind Ain't No Good' and Eddie & The Hot Rods' 'Writing On The Wall'/'Cruisin' (In The Lincoln)' released.
The first appearance of The Krynoid in Doctor Who. Elton John and Michael Caine featured on Parkinson. The Weekend broadcast in BBC2's Centre Play strand. George Melly appeared on Radio 1's Top Twelve.
Insight, 'a series which takes a close look at the people and developments that have influenced today's pop music,' broadcast on Radio 1. 'Since Rock 'n' Roll began there have always been the exceptional talents who could combine laughter with music. Looking back over twenty years of comedy in music, one of today's young humorists, Jasper Carrott.' Martin Scorsese's Taxi Driver premiered. The first episode of BBC2's Terra Firma broadcast. Sharon Duncan-Brewster born in London.
The first episode of Jumbo Spencer broadcast. The Prince of Wales assumed command of a ship for the last ten months of his naval career, the coastal minehunter HMS Bronington. The World In Action episode Chrysler & The Cabinet - How The Deal Was Done broadcast.
Keeley Clare Julia Hawes born in Marylebone. Emmylou Harris and Streetwalkers appeared on The Old Grey Whistle Test.
John Curry won gold for Britain in the Olympic figure-skating. The MPLA seized power in Angola. Allegations that British troops tortured Republican internees during 1971 threatened Anglo-Irish relations. Obese paedophile Cyril Smith was quizzed over comments he made concerning the pressure group Aims For Freedom & Enterprise about whom he was critical just months after having written to them seeking finance for the Liberal Party. One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest premiered in the UK. A range of food and fuel price increases were to be held at five per cent. A voting mix-up saw the government defeated in a motion to reduce the salary of Industry Secretary Eric Varley by a thousand quid. Clydeside shipbuilders leader Jimmy Reid quit the Communist party citing disenchantment. Freddie Laker replied angrily to the government's decision to cancel his proposed Skytrain Transatlantic service. Daily Express editor Alastair Burnet left the newspaper to join ITN. Anti-monarchist MP Willie Hamilton apologised for libelling the Prince of Wales' former tutor Edward Millward, a leading figure in Plaid Cymru. Barbet Schroeder's Maîtresse - starring Gérard Depardieu, Bulle Ogier, André Rouyer and Nathalie Keryan - premiered.
Actor Sal Mineo was stabbed to death by a mugger after parking his car outside of his apartment in West Hollywood. Lionel Ray Williams, a pizza deliveryman with a long criminal record, was later convicted of Mineo's murder. Scrolls From The Son Of A Star broadcast in BBC2's Chronicle strand. Raul De Anda's La Gran Aventura Del Zorro premiered.
The Small Back Room shown in The Friday Film broadcast. The African Parliamentary Union was established by an agreement signed in Abidjan, capital of the Côte d'Ivoire, as a means of communication between parliaments and legislatures of the various member nations. Asleep At The Wheel's 'Bump Bounce Boogie'/'Fat Boy Rag', Little Feat's 'Long Distance Love'/'Romance Dance' and Magic Featuring Tony Burrows' 'Never Gonna Fall In Love Again'/'Changing' released.
In a memorable FA Cup Fifth Round tie at Burnden Park, Bolton Wanderers drew three-three with Newcastle United, for whom Malcolm Macdonald scored two contenders for goal of the season. The tie would go to two subsequent replays before United eventually progressed with a two-one win at Elland Road on 23 February. Chelsea lost three-two at home to Malcolm Allison's Crystal Palace whilst Manchester United won at Leicester City. Edward Gibbon: The Decline & Fall Of The Roman Empire broadcast on BBC2. In The Labyrinth broadcast in the Centre Play strand.
The first episode of Dominic - Hangman's Hollow - broadcast on LWT.
Sweet's Give Us A Wink released.
The first episode of One Man & His Dog broadcast on BBC2. The Jumping Bean Bag broadcast as part of the Play For Today strand.
The first episode of The Freddie Starr Show broadcast on BBC2. Pete Walker's House Of Mortal Sin - starring Susan Penhaligon, Stephanie Beacham, Anthony Sharp, Norman Eshley and Sheila Keith - premiered. John Peel played Television's 'Little Johnny Jewel' on Radio 1 for the first time. The first episode of The Tomorrow People serial Into The Unknown broadcast on Thames.
Iceland severed diplomatic relations with the UK. Over fish. James Mason was interviewed on BBC2's Film Night.
One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest previewed on Film 76. Fury shown in The Friday Film strand. An Evening With John Denver broadcast on BBC2. With guests Danny Kaye and Jacques Cousteau. Muhammad Ali won his first bout since October's Thrilla in Manila, knocking out Belgium's Jean-Pierre Coopman in the fifth round. Rod Stewart's 'It's All Over Now'/'Handbags & Gladrags', Daryl Hall & John Oates' 'Sara Smile'/'Soldering', T Rex's 'London Boys'/'Solid Baby', The World Column's 'So Is The Sun'/'It's Not Right' and Manchester City FC's 'Boys In Blue'/'Funky City' released.
Twelve senior detectives working for the Metropolitan police were arrested after being indicted on charges of accepting bribes from pornography distributors in Soho between 1960 and 1974. So You Wanna Be A Rock 'N' Roll Star broadcast in BBC2's Second House strand focusing on The Kuursal Flyers. Two Men From Derbybroadcast in the Centre Play strand. Curved Air appeared on Radio 1's In Concert.
Israel turned over to Egypt the remaining section of the Sinai peninsula which had been agreed upon in the Sinai Interim Agreement. Jerome Rose Plays Liszt broadcast on BBC2. Jimi Hendrix profiled on Radio 1's Insight.
The first UK TV showing of Point Blank. In her trial for bank robbery, Patty Hearst followed the advice of her attorney and invoked the Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination, refusing forty two times to answer questions posed by the prosecution. LS Lowry died, aged eighty eight.
NASA announced missions for the first four astronauts for the Approach and Landing Tests of the space shuttle Enterprise, with Apollo 13 veteran Fred Haise as commander and Gordon Fullerton as pilot for the first test. The crew for the second series of practice landings was designated as Richard Truly and pilot Joe Engle, who would later be assigned to the second space shuttle mission, STS-2. Clay, Smeddum & Greenden broadcast in the Play For Today strand. Widowmaker appeared on The Old Grey Whistle Test. A week after its release, The Eagles' Their Greatest Hits compilation became the first L in history to be certified platinum by the RIAA. The first episode of Rock Follies broadcast on Thames.
A Song For Europe broadcast. 'Save Your Kisses For Me' by Brotherhood of Man, was selected as the UK entry in The Eurovision Song Contest.
Joe McGrath's I'm Not Feeling Mysef Tonight - starring Barry Andrews, James Booth and Sally Faulkner - premiered. Cardus On Cardus broadcast on BBC2.
Farewell My Lovely previewed on Film 76. Spartakiada broadcast in BBC2's Enetertainment Worldwide strand.
The TV show featuring the least accurate title ever, Max Boyce Entertains, broadcast. Dennis Tueart's overheard kick gave Manchester City victory in a classic League Cup Final against Newcastle. It would be City's last major trophy for thirty five years. Linda Lewis featured in Radio 1's Top Twelve.
The first episode of The Flight Of The Heron broadcast. Search For The Great Apes broadcast BBC2's The World About Us.
The first episode of Our Mutual Friends broadcast on BBC2. Home Secretary Merlyn Rees ended Special Category Status for those sentenced for terrorist crimes relating to the civil violence in Northern Ireland. In the Philippines, production began on Francis Ford Coppola's Apocalypse Now. It would take over two years to complete. Ted Bundy stood trial for the Carol DaRonch kidnapping. On the advice of his attorney, John O'Connell, Bundy waived his right to a jury due to the negative publicity surrounding the case. After a four-day bench trial and a weekend of deliberation, Judge Stewart Hanson found him extremely guilty of kidnapping and assault. In June he was sentenced to one-to-fifteen years in the Utah State Slammer. James Kenelm Clarke's Exposé - starring Udo Kier, Linda Hayden and Fiona Richmond and Vera Plívová-Simková's Páni Kluci - starring Michal Dymek, Petr Vorísek, Magdalena Reifová, Jitka Chalupníková and David Vlcek - premiered. The World In Action episode The Republic Of Rhodesia broadcast.
Love Letters On Blue Paper broadcast in the Play For Today strand. Rory Gallagher featured on The Old Grey Whistle Test. Gus Trikonis's Nashville Girl - starring Monica Gayle, Glenn Corbett, Roger Davis and Marcie Barkin - premiered.
The first episode of The Barry Humphreys Show broadcast on BBC2. The first episode of Rocky O'Rourke broadcast on BBC1.
Peter Sykes's To The Devil A Daughter - starring Richard Widmark, Christopher Lee, Natasha Kinski, Honor Blackman and Denholm Elliott - premiered. The Maguire Seven were found guilty of possessing explosives used in IRA terrorist activity; their sentences would, eventually, be quashed in 1991. László Ranódy and Gyula Mészáros' Árvácska - starring Zsuzsa Czinkóczi, Anna Nagy and Sándor Horváth - premiered.
James Kenelm Clarke's Exposé - starring Udo Kier, Linda Hayden, Fiona Richmond, Patsy Smart and Karl Howman - starring. Queens Of Harmony broadcast in BBC2's Entertainment Worldwide strand. Max Romeo & The Upsetters' 'War In A Babylon'/'Revelation Dub', Sailor's 'Girls, Girls, Girls'/'Jacaranda', Hot Chocolate's 'Don't Stop It Now'/'Beautiful Lady', John Miles' 'Music'/'Putting My New Song Together', Silver Convention's 'Get Up & Boogie'/'Son Of A Gun', Marboo's 'What About Love?'/'I Remember Sunday Morning', The Sharonettes' 'Broken-Hearted Melody'/'Instrumental', Gary Jackson & The Chantelles' 'Sugar Dumpling (Parts 1 & 2)', Dooley Silverspoon's 'Game Players'/'Believe In Me' and The Beatles' 'Yesterday'/'I Should Have Known Better' released along with reissues of all of The Beatles 1960s singles.
The first episode of Saturday Night At The Mill broadcast. Third Division Crystal Palace reached the FA Cup semi-finals, beating Sunderland one-nil at Roker Park. Fourth Division giant-killers Bradford City lost by the same score at home to Southampton. Derby County beat Newcastle United four-two at the Baseball Ground, with two goals from Charlie George, leading to the long-running Gallowgate End chant 'Gordon Lee's Black & White Army/Tried so hard but they couldn't beat Derby.' Gallagher & Lyle and Sailor featured on Radio 1's In Concert.
India's government released opposition leader Charan Singh, who had been under house arrest for more than eight months since Prime Minister Indira Gandhi declared a state of emergency. The Cree Way broadcast in BBC2's The World About Us strand.
The first UK TV showing of The Walking Stick. Three construction workers were killed while preparing for the Olympics in Montreal working on the Olympic Stadium, when a concrete slab broke from its supporting cables and caused them to fall to their deaths. The World In Action episode 1936-1976 A Life Of Change broadcast.
Willie Rough broadcast in the Play For Today strand. The Who's Keith Moon collapsed onstage ten minutes into a performance at the Boston Garden.
The first episode of Barry's Took's adaptation of One-Upmanship - starring Richard Briars - broadcast on BBC2. An episode of Arena focused on the new art-form of video art. Harold Wilson's proposed budget, which featured a cut in public spending of three-billion pounds, failed to pass the House of Commons, after thirty seven left-wing members of Wilson's Labour Party abstain from voting and two others joined the Tories to vote down the measure. Jacques Besnard's Et Si Tu N'En Veux Pas - starring Françoise Pascal, Jean Roche, Joëlle Coeur and Nanette Corey - premiered.
Richard Lester's Robin & Marion - starring Sean Connery, Audrey Hepburn, Robert Shaw, Nicol Williamson, Denholm Elliott, Ronnie Barker, Kenneth Haigh, Ian Holm and Richard Harris - premiered. Lust For Life shown in BBC2's Midweek Cinema strand. The Man Who Fell To Earth previewed on Film Night.
Johnny Concho shown in The Friday Film strand. Frank Lloyd Wright broadcast on BBC2. Elton John's 'Pinball Wizard'/'Harmony', Quicksilver Messenger Service's 'Gypsy Lights'/'Witches' Moon', Brotherhood Of Man's 'Save Your Kisses For Me'/'Let's Love Together', ABBA's 'Fernando'/'Hey Hey Helen', Andrea True Connection's 'More, More, More (Parts 1 & 2)', Man's 'Out Of Your Head'/'(I'm A) Love-Taker', 10CC's 'I'm Mandy Fly Me'/'How Dare You?', Shawne Jackson's 'Get Out Of The Kitchen'/'Don't Wait For Tomorrow', Sheer Elegance's 'Life Is Too Short Girl'/'Love Is The Reason Why', Steve Bent's 'I'm Going To Spain'/'Doobie Dow Song', Johnnie Taylor's 'Disco Lady'/'You're The Best In The World' and Jasper Carrott's 'Bickenhill Rovers Skin'ead Supporters Song'/'Car Insurance' released. Denis Héroux and Géza von Radványi's Die Hinrichtung (aka Born For Hell) - starring Mathieu Carrière, Debra Berger, Christine Boisson, Myriam Boyer, Leonora Fani, Ely Galleani and Carole Laure - premiered.
Manchester United beat Leeds United three-two on Match Of The Day. Trotsky Is Dead broadcast in BBC2's Second City Firsts strand. Spirit of Place: Lawrence Durrell's Greece broadcast. Ronnie Lane's Slim Chance featured in Radio 1's In Concert.
James Hunt won the Daily Mail Race Of Champions at Brands Hatch as the BBC's regular coverage of Formula One began. Pirosmani shown in BBC2's Sunday Cinema strand.
The Pawnbroker shown in The Monday Film strand. The Edelin Affair broadcast in BBC2's Horizon strand. The World In Action episode The Boss File broadcast.
Harold Wilson resigned as Prime Minister in rather curious circumstances never fully explained but with subsequent allegations of 'dark doings' involving elements of the security services. Wilson's Prime Minister's Resignation Honours included many businessmen and celebrities, along with his political supporters. His choice of appointments caused lasting damage to his reputation, worsened by the - never proved - suggestion that the first draft of the list had been written by his political secretary Marcia Williams on lavender notepaper (it became known as 'The Lavender List'). At Exeter Crown Court during the trial of Andrew Newton, charged with possessing a firearm, Norman Scott made the allegation that he had been Jeremy Thorpe's gay lover which was widely reported in the press.
Liverpool narrowly defeated Sportgemeinschaft Dynamo Dresden at Anfield in the Quarter Final of the UEFA Cup. In the Cup Winners Cup, West Ham United defeated Alles Door Oefening Den Haag on away goals. The first episode of The Molly Wopsies broadcast on Thames.
Nic Roeg's The Man Who Fell To Earth - starring David Bowie, Rip Torn, Candy Clark and Buck Henry - premiered. After two attempts by the IRA to explode bombs in London's underground, Scotland Yard assigned one thousand police to patrol the network. The move came days after nine people were injured and a train engineer shot dead in an attack at the West Ham station.
The first episode of BBC2's Battle Of The Sexes broadcast. After a long period of speculation, it was announced that Princess Margaret was separating from Lord Snowdon after sixteen years of marriage. Electric Light Orchestra's 'Nightrider'/'Daybreaker', Noel Redding Band's 'Roller Coaster Kids'/'Snowstorm', Red Vincent Hurley's 'When'/'Just A Little Love', Eddie Carlton's 'It Will Be Done'/'Instrumental', Carpenters' 'There's A Kind Of Hush (All Over The World)'/'(I'm Caught Between) Goodbye & I Love You', James Fountain's 'Seven Day Lover'/'Malnutrition', Jethro Tull's 'Too Old To Rock 'N' Roll: Too Young To Die'/'Rainbow Blues' and The Sound Stage Orchestra's 'Grandstand'/'Holy Mackerel' released.
Patty Hearst was found guilty of armed robbery of a San Francisco bank. Given a seven year stretch in The Big House she was eventually freed after twenty two months. The Visitor broadcast in BBC2's Second City Firsts strand.
The first UK TV showing of The Raging Moon in the Film Of The Week strand. Just Brass broadcast on BBC2. 'A British view of popular music seen through the pages of Melody Maker, which is fifty years old this year, by its editor Ray Coleman and John Peel' broadcast in Radio 1's Insight. The first UK broadcast of the Columbo episode Troubled Waters on LWT.
Filming of Star Wars began in Tunisia. In the aftermath of the shock resignation of Harold Wilson, where Labour went from there was the subject of the World In Action episode In Labour.
The Pedler broadcast in the Play For Today strand. The Cupboard Of Crug-y-Bar broadcast in BBC2's Inside Story strand.
Argentina's military forces deposed president Isabel Perón and replaced her government with a junta. Bryan Forbes's The Slipper & The Rose - starring Richard Chamberlain, Gemma Craven, Annette Crosbie and Edith Evans - premiered. England beat Wales two-one at The Racecourse Ground, Wrexham in a friendly international to celebrate the centenary of the Welsh FA. Debutants, Liverpool's Ray Kennedy and Crystal Palace's Peter Taylor were on target for the visitors with Alan Curtis scoring for Wales. Taylor became the first Third Division player capped by England since Johnny Byrne in 1961. An experimental England side included six other new caps: Trevor Cherry of Leeds, Liverpool duo Phil Neal and Phil Thompson (and, his enormous nose), Manchester City's Mike Doyle, Phil Boyer of Norwich City and Dave Clement of Queen's Park Rangers whilst Ipswich's Mick Mills won his first cap in four years. Don Revie had been notorious during his time as Leeds manager for finding any excuse to withdraw his players from international duty. Now, he found himself on the receiving end of the club versus country controversy, as managers continually pulled players out of his squad at the last mmoment, often for the most dubious of reasons.
Wings At The Speed Of Sound released. The Ordination & Installation Of The Archbishop Of Westminster broadcast on BBC2.
The first episode of A Secret England broadcast. Maggie Wadey's An Accident Of Class & Sex broadcast as part of BBC2's Playhouse strand. Tony Butler's 'The Tony Butler Story'/'The Name Of The Game', General Johnson's 'All In The Family'/'Ready, Willing & Able', Sparks' 'I Want To Hold Your Hand'/'England' and Thin Lizzy's Jailbreak released. In which Phil Lynott excitedly told listeners 'tonight there's gonna be a jailbreak, somewhere in this town.' The jail, perhaps? Queen Elizabeth became the first world leader to send an e-mail, after being invited to click on the command to transmit a message while she and Prince Philip were dedicating the new Royal Signals and Radar Establishment at Malvern. The e-mail, sent via ARPANET, the predecessor to the Internet, was composed by RSRE director Peter Kirstein read 'This message to all ARPANET users announces the availability on ARPANET of the Coral Sixty Six compiler provided by the GEC 4080 computer at the Royal Signals and Radar Establishment.' The first episode of Four Idle Hands broadcast on Thames.
The explosion of a terrorist bomb injured eighty five in London (one fatally) after having been hidden by the IRA inside a bin at Olympia, where fifteen thousand people were attending the Ideal Homes Exhibition. The first branch of The Body Shop opened in Brighton. The first UK broadcast of Peter Watkins' Edvard Munch on BBC2. Russ Ballard featured in Radio 1's Top Twelve strand.
The first episode of Go With Noakes broadcast. Otter broadcast in BBC2's The World About Us. Women In Pop broadcast in Radio 1's Insight.
Alfred Hitchcock's The Birds shown in The Monday Film strand. The World In Action episode The Threat Of Nuclear War broadcast.
Early Struggles broadcast in the Play For Today strand. Germaine Greer and Doctor Kit Pedler were guests on BBC2's The Book Programm.
The passenger carrier Northeast Airlines (known as BKS Air Transport until 1970) made its last flights before being merged into British Airways. Jack Jones broadcast on BBC2. The first UK broadcast of Luke's Kingdom on Thames.
Apple Computer Company was formed by Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak in California. The body of Debbie Smith - aged seventeen and last seen in Salt Lake City in early February - was found near the Utah International Airport. Though listed as a victim of the serial killer Ted Bundy by some subsequent sources, her murder remained officially unsolved. Astronomer Patrick Moore spoke on Radio 2, on the subject of the 'Jovian–Plutonian gravitational effect', an April Fool's Day prank. As Pluto passed behind Jupiter, Moore claimed, a 'gravitational alignment' would reduce the Earth's gravity for a few moments. Anyone who jumped into the air at exactly 9.47am would experience 'a strange floating sensation.' Moore's reputation was such that the BBC received hundreds of calls from listeners who claimed to have observed the non-existent effect.

The - excellent - movie adaptation of The Likely Lads - starring Rodney Bewes, James Bolam Brigit Forsyth and Mary Tamm - premiered. 'In The Chocolate Box Of Life, the top layer's already gone and somebody's nicked the Orange Creme from the bottom!' Wings' 'Silly Love Songs'/'Cook Of The House', Rubettes' 'You're The Reason Why'/'Julia', Earl Jackson's 'Soul Self Satisfaction'/'Lookin' Thru The Eyes Of Love' and The Funkees' 'Abraka'/'Ole' released.
Brotherhood Of Man won The Eurovision Song Contest with the turgid 'Save All You Kisses For Me'. Manchester United and Southampton reached the FA Cup Final after two-nil victories over Derby County and Crystal Palace respectively. Elkie Brooks featured on Radio 1's In Concert. Alex De Renzy's Femmes De Sade - starring Samantha Morgan - premiered.
Barry Norman previewed Mahogany and interviewed Jack Nicholson on Film 76. Borsalino shown in BBC2's Sunday Cinema strand.
Howard Hughes died. James Callaghan was elected as leader of the Labour Party and became Prime Minister. The (first) Tiananmen Square Incident took place in Beijing. Ingmar Bergman's Face To Face premiered. The World In Action episode Nuts & Bolts Of The Economy: Healey's Eight & A Half broadcast.
Dennis Potter's challenging Brimstone & Treacle was originally scheduled to be broadcast as part of the Play For Today strand. But, it had been cancelled a fortnight earlier by the BBC's Director of Television Programmes Alasdair Milne who said he found it 'nauseating' though 'brilliantly made'. Although, really, it was because some BBC executives, including Milne, were shit-scared about what Mary Whitehouse and the Daily Scum Mail would say about it. It was replaced by another Potter play, Double Dare. Brimstone & Treacle was remade as a - not particularly good - movie in 1982. The original 1976 version was finally shown on BBC2 in August 1987 as part of a Banned Season of productions. The first UK broadcast of The Olympiad. Age Of Consent broadcast in BBC2's The Man Alive Report strand.
British and Commonwealth Heavyweight Champion Richard Dunn best West Germany' Bernd August for the European title left vacant by Joe Bugner at the Royal Albert Hall. Dunn'svictory set up a world title shot against Muhammad Ali six weeks later. During which he got the hiding of his life. Scotland beat Switzerland one-nil in a friendly international at Hampden Park with an early goal by debutant Willie Pettigrew of Motherwell. Other players making their debuts were Patrick Thistle keeper Alan Rough, Newcastle United's Tommy Craig, Frank Gray of Leeds United, Glasgow Rangers duo Alex Macdonald and Bobby McKean and Des Bremner of Hibernian. The Wheels Of War broadcast in BBC2's Chronicle strand.
Noel Edmonds introduced Top Of The Pops featuring performances from ABBA, Hot Chocolate, The Brotherhood Of Man, Sheer Elegance, Paul Nicholas, Linda Lewis, The Four Seasons, 10CC and The Bay City Rollers. The star Epsilon Geminorum was occulted by the planet Mars.
Ewart Alexander's The Button Man broadcast as part of BBC2's Playhouse strand. Alfred Hitchcock's final movie, Family Plot and Alan J Pakula's All The President's Men premiered. Peter Hain, leader of the National League of Young Liberals was found very not guilty of stealing four hundred and ninety knicker from Barclays Bank. It would later be confirmed that the charge was the direct result of covert operations by South African agents trying to discredit Hain because of his anti-apartheid campaigning. And, because they were nasty racist bastards, obviously. The Gilling Sword, dating from the early Tenth Century, was found by nine-year-old Gary Fridd, in North Yorkshire. Fridd was allowed to keep the Anglo-Saxon sword after the government chooses not to classify it as a national treasure. Al Bano & Romina Power's 'We'll Live It All Again'/'Na Na Na', Melba Moore's 'This Is It'/'Stay Awhile', RB Hudmon's 'How Can I Be A Witness?'/'If You Don't Cheat On Me (I Won't Cheat On You)', Judd & Miss Munro's 'You Got It'/'Where Does Love Begin?', Babe Ruth's 'Elusive'/'Say No More', Five Hand Reel's 'Reel Reggae'/'The Knight & The Shepherd's Daughter', Bonnie Raitt's 'I'm Blowing Away'/'Run Like A Thief', Slade's 'Nobody's Fool'/'LA Jinx' and Waterloo & Robinson's 'My Little World'/'Carry On' released. The first episode of The Fosters broadcast on LWT.
Ian McEwan's Jack Flea's Birthday Celebration as part of BBC2's Second City Firsts strand. Deaf School featured on Radio 1's In Concert. The First Division saw an avalance of goals: Wolverhampton Wanderers beat Newcastle United five-nil, Manchester City defeated Derby County four-three, Queens Park Rangers beat Middlesbrough four-two, Sheffield United defeated West Ham United three-two and Ispwich Town thrashed Manchester United three-nil. Big Fayia & Afro National's 'Rosaline'/'Blackpool' released.
Eric Till's adaptation of It Shouldn't Happen To A Vet - starring John Alderton, Colin Blakely, Lisa Harrow and Bill Maynard - premiered. The first UK TV showing of Star Spangled Girl
in BBC2's Sunday Cinema strand. The Beatles - Again! broadcast in Radio 1's Insight.
The first UK broadcast of Agaton Sax. The first episode of Why Call This Friday Good?. The first UK TV showing of The Flare-Up. The Vision Of The Blind broadcast in BBC2's Horizon strand. The World In Action episode When In Rome investigated alleged bribery in the Italian Government by oil companies in order to influence policies.
Peter Hunt's Shout At The Devil - starring Lee Marvin and Roger Moore - premiered. Samuel Beckett's Rough For Radio - starring Billie Whitelaw, Harold Pinter and Patrick Magee - broadcast on Radio 3. Buffy Saint Marie featured on The Old Grey Whitle Test. The first epsiode of Plays For Britain - The Lifeswappers - broadcast on Thames.
The first episode of John Macnab broadcast. The first episodes of BBC2's I See What You Mean and The Traditional World Of Islam broadcast.
Kojak & Co broadcast in BBC2's Worldwide strand. The first episode of Omnibus In Hollywood broadcast. Anne-Karine's 'Mata Hari'/'Please Don't Go Away', Archie Bell & The Drells' 'The Soul City Walk'/'Let's Groove Part 1', Debbie Taylor's 'I Don't Wanna Leave You'/'Just Don't Pay', Jeff Perry's 'Love Don't Come No Stronger (Than Yours & Mine)'/'I've Got To See You Right Away', The Three Degrees' 'Toast Of Love'/'Do It (Use Your Mind)', Joni Mitchell's 'In France They Kiss On Main Street'/'Boho Dance', Fairfield Parlor's 'Bordeaux Rose'/'Baby Stay For Tonight', Kiss' 'Shout It Out Loud'/'Sweet Pain' and Mary Cristy's 'Thank You For Rushing Into My Life'/'We Can't Hide This Time' released.
The first episode of No Strings broadcast as part of the Comedy Playhouse strand. Alan Plater's Practical Experience broadcast in BBC2's Playhouse strand. The Rolling Stones' 'Fool To Cry'/'Crazy Mama' and Hush's 'Glad All Over'/'Spitfire' released.
Liverpool moved back to the top of the First Division after they beat Stoke City five-three and second placed Queens Park Rangers suffered a three-two defeat to Norwich City. Watford's two-one victory over Swansea City in the Fourth Division saw the club debut of Luther Blissett - the first of five hundred and three games for The Hornets in a career that lasted until 1992. In the process he broke Duncan Welbourne's appearance record for the club, established in 1974. Black Bird Shout broadcast in BBC2's Second City Firsts strand. Renaissance featured in Radio 1's In Concert.
The Chester Mystery Plays broadcast as part of the Play Of The Month strand. The Drifters profiled in Radio 1's Insight. The Animals Nobody Loved broadcast in BBC2's The World About Us strand.
John Arlott's Long High Summer broadcast on BBC2. The Good, The Bad & The Ugly shown in The Monday Film strand.
George Harrison appeared - unannounced - as part of The Mounties Chorus during a performance of 'The Lumberjack Song' by the Monty Python's Flying Circus team at New York's City Centre. Sylvia Plath was profiled on BBC2's The Book Programme.
Where Water Is Plentiful broadcast. Dennis Potter's Where Adam Stood broadcast on BBC2. Lipstick's 'Come Back Beatles'/'The Fab Four-Four' released.
Diddy David Hamilton introduced Top Of The Pops and performances from Jimmy James & The Vagabonds, John Miles ('Music was his first hit and it will be his last'), Harpo, Sheer Elegance, The Rubettes, Gilbert O'Sullivan, ABBA and The Brotherhood Of Man. End Of The Game and Just A Year broadcast on BBC2.
The first UK broadcast of Starsky & Hutch. The Ramones released their eponymous debut LP. The Rolling Stones' Black & Blue, Tina Charles' 'Love Me Like A Lover'/'Disco Love', Diana Ross's 'Love Hangover'/'Kiss Me Now', Candi Staton's 'Young Hearts Run Free'/'I Know', Sandi Sheldon's 'You're Gonna Make Me Love You'/'Baby You're Mine' and Pussycat's 'Mississippi'/'Do It' released. The first episode of John Peel's Where It's At broadcast on Radio 3. Jesús Franco's Frauengefängnis - starring Lina Romay, Paul Muller, Monica Swinn and Martine Stedil - premiered.
The first UK broadcast of QB VII - starring Ben Garaza and Anthony Hopkins. Saturday Night Live producer Lorne Michaels made an on-air offer to pay The Beatles (a popular beat combo of the 1960s, you might've heard of them) three thousand dollars to reunite, live, on the show. In a 1980 interview, John Lennon revealed that he and Paul McCartney were watching the show together at Lennon's apartment at The Dakota and considered getting a taxi to the SNL studio 'for a gag' but were 'too tired.' When George Harrison appeared on the show later in the year, he asked his quarter of the offered money. Malcolm Macdonald played his final game for Newcastle, scoring twice in a three-nil win at Tottenham. During the summer he would sign for Arsenal for a fee of a-third-of-a-million quid. Walses lost two-nil in Yougoslavia in the first leg of their European Championship Quarter-Final. Momčilo Vukotić and Danilo Popivoda scored. Jasper Carrott featured on Radio 1's Top Twelve.
The first UK broadcast of The Yugoslav Way. Trobriand Cricket broadcast on BBC2. Buddy Holly was profiled on Radio 1's Insight. The first episode of The Ghosts Of Motley Hall broadcast on LWT.
Sid James died on stage at The Sunderland Empire during a performance of the play The Mating Season. If ... shown in The Monday Film strand. The World In Action episode Out Of Mind investigated concerns that there were people in mental institutions that should not be in there and should be given a chance to live in society.
Gold! Gold!! Gold!!!, the first episode of The BBC1 Documentary strand broadcast. Rick Wakeman & The English Rock Ensemble performed 'extracts from King Arthur & The Knights Of the Round Table and The Six Wives of Henry VIII' to the (presumably utterly traumatised) citizens of The Maltings in Farnham on The Old Grey Whistle Test. And, to think, there are still people that will try to convince you that the 1970s were preferable to the Middle Ages. At least in the latter, a plague would come along every few years to put you out of your misery.
Liverpool recovered from two goals down to beat Club Bruges three-two in the first leg of the UEFA Cup Final at Anfield. Spice Island, Farewell! broadcast on BBC2. The first episode of Westway broadcast on Thames.
Pan's People performed their final routine on Top Of The Pops before being replaced by a new dance troupe, Ruby Flipper. Wot Cheor, Jack broadcast in BBC2's Network strand.
Bob Marley & The Wailers' Rastman Vibration, Wings' 'Silly Love Songs'/'Cook Of The House' and David Bowie's 'TVC 15'/'We Are The Dead', Catherine Ferry's 'One, Two Three'/'Petit Jean', Tony Burrows' 'Oh My Jo'/'Girl You've Got Me Going', Harold Melvin & The Bluenotes' 'Tell The World How I Feel About 'Cha Baby'/'You Know How To Make Me Feel So Good', Rae & The Wee Arra People's 'Viva El Rangers'/'The Parkhead Blues!', Mistura Featuring Lloyd Michels' 'The Flasher'/'Life Is A Song Worth Singing', Su Kramer's 'You've Got The Power (Parts 1 & 2)', The Moments' 'Nine Times'/'When The Morning Comes', Showaddywaddy's 'Trocadero'/'Teenage Love Affair' and The Les Humphries Singers' 'Sing Sang Song'/'Just Sit Down At The Old Piano' released.
Second Division Southampton beat Manchester United in the FA Cup final. The last episode of Dixon Of Dock Green was broadcast after twenty one years of 'evening all.' BBC2's adaptation of Peter Terson's Zigger Zagger broadcast. The first episode of Stuart Grundy's four-part Radio 1 series David Bowie broadcast. With the government and TUC on the verge of agreeing the next stage of pay policy, Dennis Healey said that the deal could bring Britain within eighteen months to a world in which shopping was 'no longer a nightmare.' Former Californian Governor and out-of-work actor Ronald Reagan won a landslide victory over President Ford in the Texas Republican primary. Noise from Concorde was said to be 'a danger to hearing' in a report commissioned by a pressure group. The Daily Express was officially rebuked by the Press Council over allegations that the Government, 'smarting under a left-wing backlash', had ordered there were to be no more 'conspiracy trials' following the prosecutions over the Guildford and Woolwich pub bombings.

Having recently expressed the somewhat controversial opinion that Britain would 'benefit' from 'fascist leadership', David Bowie arrived back in the UK at Victoria Station for the start of his Isolar Tour in an open-top Mercedes and was reported by some witnesses to have given 'a Nazi salute' to the crowd. Bowie claimed, plausibly, that photographers had merely caught him 'mid-wave'. Radio 1 At Mallory Park - presented by Annie Nightingale and David Hamilon - broadcast.
The Graduate shown in The Monday Film strand. Paul McCartney & Wings started their Wings Over America Tour in Fort Worth. This was the first time that Macca has performed in America since The Beatles' last tour in 1966. The World In Action episode Nuts & Bolts Of The Economy: Patent 18070/72 broadcast.
Liverpool came from a goal down to beat Wolverhampton Wanderers three-one and won the Football League title. They finished a point ahead of runners-up Queens Park Rangers. Les Amants De Verone shown in BBC2's Tuesday Cinema strand.
The first episode of Star Turn - presented by Bernard Cribbins - broadcast. West Ham United lost four-two to Anderlecht in the European Cup Winners' Cup final at the Heysel Stadium in Brussels. The Widowing Of Mrs Holroyd broadcast on BBC2.
An earthquake hit the Friuli area in Italy, killing more than nine hundred people. The Aquanauts broadcast in BBC2's Network strand. Scotland defeated Wales three-one at Hampden Park in the Home International championships. Willie Pettigre, Bruce Rioch and Eddie Gray were on-target for the hosts, Arfon Griffiths replying with a penalty for Wales. Don Masson of Queens Park Rangers made his Soctland debut.
The episode of Starsky & Hutch - Death Notice - in which David Soul sang 'Black Bean Soup' broadcast in the UK for the first time. Play Things broadcast in BBC2's Playhouse strand. Don Estelle's 'If You'd Really Cared'/'Not Now', Carol Woods' 'Heading Down Fools Road'/'Once More Down Fools Road', Creative Source's 'Don't Be Afraid (Take My Love)'/'Pass The Feelin' On', Bob Marley & The Wailers' 'Johnny Was (Woman Hold Her Head & Cry)'/'Cry To Me', Heavy Metal Kids' 'She's No Angel'/'Hey Little Girl', Mud's 'Shake It Down'/'Laugh, Live, Love' and Walter Murphy & The Big Apple Band's 'A Fifth Of Beethoven'/'California Strut' released.
England beat Wales one-nil in the Home International championship at Ninian Park. Peter Taylor scored for the second consecutive international. Three players made their England debut, Sunderland's Tony Towers and the Manchester United duo, Brian Greenhoff and Stuart Pearson. Scotland defeated Northern Ireland three-nil at Hampden Park with goals from Archie Gemmill, Don Masson and Kenny Dalglish. Bruce Rioch missed a penalty. Mike Nesmith and Richard Dlgance featured on Radio 1's In Concert. The first episode of BBC2's A Country Of Nations broadcast.
Ulrike Meinhof of the Red Army Faction was found hanged in an apparent suicide, in her Stuttgart-Stammheim prison cell.
Cliff Owen's The Bawdy Adventures Of Tom Jones - starring Nicky Henson, Trevor Howard, Terry-Thomas, Arthur Lowe, Georgia Brown and Joan Collins - premiered. Gladys Knight & The Pips profiled on Radio 1's Insight.
Julian Pettifer's Spirit Of 76 broadcast. The Songs Of Victoria Wood - As She Sees It broadcast on BBC2. It was shite. The World In Action episode Nuclear Waste In The Irish Sea broadcast.
The Patti Smith Group performed 'Horses' and 'Hey Joe' on The Old Grey Whistle Test. Jeremy Thorpe extremely resigned as leader of the Liberal Party. England beat Northern Ireland four-nil in the Home International championship at Wembley. Mick Channon scored twice with additional goals from Gerry Francis and Stuart Pearson.
The first episode of Barry Cunliffe's A Throne Of Kings broadcast. Bayern München won their third consecutive European Cup, beating one of the cult sides of the 1970s, France's Saint Etienne one-nil at Hampden Park. Two months after his resignation as Prime Minister, Harold Wilson summoned BBC journalists Roger Courtiour and Barrie Penrose to his office and, effectively, offered to become their 'Deep Throat' in the matters of South African involvement in British affairs, alleged coup d'état plots against the elected government in 1968 and 1974 and attempts by MI5 to destabilise Wilson's government following the 1974 General Erection. Wilson claimed that plans had existed to install Lord Mountbatten as interim Prime Minister following such a coup. He also claimed that ex-military leaders had built up private armies in anticipation of 'wholesale domestic liquidation' and that 'elements' within MI5 had spread 'black propaganda' to right-wing journalists suggesting that Wilson and his private secretary Marcia Williams were lovers and Soviet agents, apparently with the intention of helping the Conservatives win the 1974 Erection. The extent of any South African interference was never established and the journalists couldn't make much headway with the security services, but Penrose and Courtiour, acting upon one of Wilson tips, did uncover a completely different scandal, the alleged homosexual affair between Norman Scott and the now-former leader of the Liberals, Jeremy Thorpe, a case which had been, thus far, assiduously covered up by Thorpe's friends in government. Their book, The Pencourt File (published in August 1978) would eventually lead to Thorpe's arrest and trial for conspiracy to murder. The Real Thing's 'You To Me Are Everything'/'Keep An Eye (On Your Best Friend)' released.
Jacques Tati was profiled in Omnibus.
Jumbo broadcast in BBC2's Playhouse strand. Max Bygraves Says I Wanna Tell You A Story broadcast. Liverpool Express's 'You Are My Love'/'Never Be The Same Boy', Rhythm Heritage's 'Barretta's Theme'/'My Cherie Amour', Philly Devotions' 'Hurt So Bad (parts 1 & 2)', Doris Jones' 'He's So Irreplaceable'/'Never Gonna Give Him Up', LJ Johnson's 'Dancing On The Edge Of A Dream'/'Dancing Round The World', Nils Lofgren's 'Cry Tough'/'Share A Little' and Heatwave's 'Ain't No Half Steppin'/'Special Offer' released.
England two-one lost to Scotland at Hampden Park in the Home International championship. After Don Masson had equalied Mick Channon's early strike, Kenny Dalglish scored the winner when his shot went between the legs of Ray Clemence. Old Man March Is Dead broadcast in BBC2's Centre Play: Commonwealth Season strand.
French Without Tears broadcast in the Play Of The Month strand. Stanley Long's Adventures Of A Taxi Driver - starring Barry Evans, Judy Geeson, Adrienne Posta and Robert Lindsay - premiered.
John Noakes collapsed during a live episode of Blue Peter 'due to exhaustion'. The first episode of Billy Dainty Esquire broadcast on Thames. The World In Action episode The Dark Societies broadcast.
Daryl Hall and John Oates appeared on The Old Grey Whistle Test.
Liverpool won their second European trophy, drawing one-one with Club Bruges to complete a four-three aggregate victory in the UEFA Cup Final. Jack Gold's Aces High - starring Malcolm McDowell, Christopher Plummer, Simon Ward and Peter Firth - premiered. John Peel played The Ramones' 'Judy Is A Punk' for the first time on Radio 1. Over the following days, Peel would play the majority of The Ramones debut LP, beginning with three songs on the 20 May show. The first episode of Dangerous Knowledge broadcast on Thames.
The Sun and The Earth broadcast in The Sky At Night strand.
One Potato, Two Potato shown in The Friday Film strand. The first episode of BBC2's The Man Who Meant Well broadcast. David Bowie's Changesonebowie and The Goodies' 'Bounce!'/'Good Ole Country Music' released.
Wales, having qualified for a major football tournament finals for the first time since 1958, drew one-all with Yugoslavia in the second leg of the European Championship Quarter-Final at Ninian Park, having lost the first leg two-nil in Zagreb. Wales hindered their chances before kick-off by upsetting the referee, Rudi Glöckner, an East German. The FAW calamatiously raised the flag of West Germany. Glockner's subsequent performance suggested he wasn't a man to easily forgive such a mistake. The game ended in a pitch invasion and a riot with kids gettin' fisted and aal sorts which later saw the Wales banned from the next European Championship. Home Sweet India broadcast in BBC2's Centre Play strand.
England's opening game in the USA Bicentennial Cup Tournament ended in a one-nil defeat to Brazil in Los Angeles. Substtitue Roberto scored the final with virtually the last kick of the game. Loot shown in the Sunday Cinema strand.
Muhammad Ali chinned Richard Dunn in the fifth round of their - grossly mismatched - World Heavyweight Championship fight in München. The World In Action episode The Trials Of Popovic broadcast.
Mad Dogs & Smugglers broadcast. Charles Jarrott's Escape From The Dark - starring Alastair Sim, Peter Barkworth, Maurice Colbourne, Susan Tebbs, Andrew Harrison and Chloe Franks - premiered.
Syke Trek broadcast. Horizon Special: The Great British Drought broacast on BBC2.Marcello Andrei's Scandalo In Famiglia - starring Gloria Guida, Gianluigi Chirizzi and Lucretia Love - premiered.
The first episode of Second Verdict broadcast.
The first UK broadcast of Centennial. England came from two goals down at half-time to beat Italy three-two at Yankee Stadium in New York in a the USA Bicentennial Cup Tournament. Mick Channon scored twice with Phil Thompson (and his enormous nose) heading the winner. Torino's Francesco Graziani had, earlier, scored twice for the Italians. England fielded a young side including four debutants, Chelsea's Ray Wilkins, Manchester Unied's Gordon Hill and two goalkeeper's, Arsenal's Jimmy Rimmer and Joe Corrigan of Manchester City who played a half each. Bryan Ferry's 'Let's Stick Together (Let's Work Together)'/'Sea Breezes', Child's 'River Of Love'/'Too Late To Say Goodbye', Rod Stewart's 'Tonight's The Night (It's Gonna Be Alright)'/'The Balltrap' and The Caddies (Henry Cooper, Tony Dalli, Bruce Forsyth, Kenny Lynch, Glen Mason, Ed Stewart, Jimmy Tarbuck)'s 'Follow The Fairway'/Glen Mason's 'Lee Trevino' released.
The first UK broadcast of the TV movie Honky Tonk. A Kind Of Marriage broadcast in BBC2's Centre Play strand. Whispering Bob Harris introduced one of the oddest-matched bills in the history of Radio 1's In Concert - Ariel Bender's Widowmaker and Jasper Carrott. The first UK broadcast of the Columbo episode A Matter Of Honor [sic] on LWT.
Barry Norman presented a report on the Cannes Film Festival in Film 76. People Of The Poppy broadcast in BBC2's The World About Us. Showmanship In Pop broadcast in Radio 1's Insight. The first episode of Big Boy Now! broadcast on LWT.
The first episode of Mike Yarwood - In Persons broadcast. The Who Put the Boot In Tour - so-called in reference to the venues being major football stadia - began with a show at Charlton's The Valley which would feature in the Guinness Book Of Record for what was, at the time, the loudest rock and/or roll jig ever. The volume from fifty meters away from the stage was measured at an ear-and-sphincter-shattering one hundred and twenty decibels. England completed their participation in the USA Bicentennial Cup Tournament with a three-one victory in an unofficial international against Team America at the JFK Stadium, Philadelphia. The Football Association, asked about the status of this match, said it was to be regarded as 'a training game' and that caps would not be awarded to the players. The Team America side included Bobby Moore, Tommy Smith, Giorgio Chinalia and Pele. Kevin Keegan scored twice and Gerry Francis added a third.
England's cricket captain, Tony Greig, was interviewed at Hove by BBC's Sportsnight for broadcast the following evening as a prelude to forthcoming test series against the West Indies. England had announced their side would include the recalled forty five year old Brian Close. During the interview Greig said, regarding the opposition, 'if they get on top they are magnificent cricketers. But if they're down, they grovel. And I intend, with Closey and a few others, to make them grovel.' It was a hugely unfortunate choice of words - as Greigy himself, quickly, came to realise. A South African-born Caucasian, using an emotive term like 'grovel' in relation to a team of black men didn't sit well with pretty much anyone. As Trevor McDonald said in his biography of Vivian Richards, although it almost certainly didn't occur to Greig at the time, 'to publicly threaten [to humiliate] the West Indies was probably the closest any cricketer ever came to making a formal declaration of war.' 'We thought, "this guy needs to be put in his place"' Michael Holding told the author David Tossell many years later. It should be remembered that 1976 - the longest, hottest summer in Britain for decades - was one that climaxed with the Notting Hill riots and a general increase in racial tension. Not insignificantly one of ITV's most popular sitcoms of the era was Vince Powell and Harry Driver's Love Thy Neighbour which concerned a bigot, Eddie Booth (played by Jack Smethurst), living next door to Jamaican Bill Reynolds (Rudolph Walker). With a script littered with the casual usage of words like 'nig-nog' and 'sambo' the programme, nevertheless, had a huge audience. On the other hand, some commentators have noted that Greig - albeit in a very ham-fisted and awkward fashion - did have a point concerning the West Indies then-current form. The previous winter the Caribbean stars had been thrashed five-one in Australia and, just two months previously, with a three-spinner attack they had lost a test at home to India after setting their opponents a world record target of four hundred and six in the fourth innings. From then on Clive Lloyd had decided that if spinners could lose him games he would rely on pace, pace and more pace. 'Grovel! Greig! Grovel' became a regular chant for jubilant West Indies supporters at test grounds all summer in what turned out to be a memorable series - and one in which it was England that would be doing all the grovelling. The UK and Iceland officially ended the Cod War.
Dolly Parton featured on BBC2's Sing Country.
Tony Blackburn introduced Top Of The Pops with performances by The Glitter Band, New Edition, JJ Barrie, Our Kid, Cliff Richard, Mud, Thin Lizzy, Dolly Parton and The Rolling Stones. Harley Cokeliss's The Battle Of Billy's Pond - starring Ben Buckton, Andrew Ashby, Talfryn Thomas, Ann Beach, Geoffrey Hinsliff, Geoffrey Palmer and Miriam Margolyes and Jaroslav Novotný's Dalskabáty, Hříšná Ves Aneb Zapomenutý čert - starring Jirina Bohdalová, Jaroslav Moucka, Josef Vetrovec, Bedrich Prokos, Kveta Fialová, Jana Paulová and Jarmila Smejkalová - premiered.
An outstanding two hundred and thirty two from Viv Richards helped the West Indies to a first innings total of four hundred and ninety four in the first test at Trent Bridge as England's bowlers toiled for two days in the scorching heat. A century from David Steele, eighty two from Bob Woolmer and some obstinate defence by John Edrich and Brian Close on the final day gained England a draw. Mike Brearley made his test debut. The Sex Pistols played their first date outside London, at Manchester's Lesser Trade Hall. The show was attended by Tony Wilson, who would subsequently give the band their first TV slot on his Granada arts programme So It Goes, Stephen Morrissey (who wrote a glowing review for Melody Maker) and future members of Buzzcocks (Pete Shelley and Howard Devoto promoted the gig), Joy Division and The Fall. Max Baer Jnr's adaptation of Ode To Billiy Joe - starring Robby Benson and Glynnis O'Connor - premiered. Giving a - not particularly convincing - explanation as to why Billy Joe McAllister jumped off the Tallahatchie Bridge. Morecambe & Wise's '(We Get Along So Easily) Don't You Agree?'/'Positive Thinking', Manhattans' 'Kiss & Say Goodbye'/'Wonderful World Of Love', Marlena Shaw's 'It's Better Than Walking Out'/'Be For Real', Jill Baby Love's 'My Way Or Hit The Highway'/'Instrumental', The Exciters' 'Swallow Your Pride'/'Pride Comes Before A Fall', Parliament's 'Tear The Roof Off The Sucker (Give Up The Funk)'/'P Funk', Jimmy Soul Clark Band's 'Sweet Darlin (Parts 1 & 2)', Sammy Hagar's 'Flamingos Fly'/'Urban Guerilla', The Jaywalkers' 'Can't Live Without You'/'Heartbroken Memories' and Electric Light Orchestra's 'Strange Magic'/'Showdown' released. The first UK broadcast of Steven Spielberg's Something Evil broadcast. Sweeping Plains broadcast in BBC2's Centre Play strand. The Russ Ballard Band featured on Radio 1's In Concert. The first UK broadcast of the Columbo episode A Case Of Immunity on LWT.
Ross Markham Noble born in Cramlington.
Film 76 Special broadcast. Richard Donner's The Omen - starring Gregory Peck, Lee Remick, David Warner, Billie Whitelaw, Patrick Troughton and Leo McKern - premiered. Joe Meek profiled in Radio 1's Insight (postponed from 23 May). The first episode of Murder broadcast on LWT.
The Bay City Rollers featured on BBC2's The Musical Time Machine. The first episode of Bill Brand and the World In Action episode Proposition Fifteen broadcast on Thames.
The Mystery Of Loch Ness broadcast.
Making Votes Count broadcast.
The Roussos Phenomenon broadcast on BBC2. Noel Edmonds introduced Top Of The Pops featuring The Surprise Sisters, The Real Thing, The Sensational Alex Harvey Band, Flintlock, Osibisa, Archie Bell & The Drells, Bryan Ferry and The Wurzels.
T-Rex's 'I Love To Boogie'/'Baby Boomerang', Vic Blackwell's 'Liverpool Are The Team'/'The Disco Under The Street', Isley Brothers' 'Harvest For The World'/'Let Me Down Easy', Hot Chocolate's 'Man To Man'/'Eyes Of A Growing Child' and The BBC Radiophonic Workshop's 'Music From The Changes (Parts 1 & 2)' released. Constable Observed broadcast on BBC2. Zebedy Colt's The Farmer's Daughters premiered.
Tudor Gates's Intimate Games - starring George Baker, Anna Bergman and Ian Hendry - premiered. Apply, Apply, No Reply broadcast in BBC2's Centre Play strand. Joe Davian's Domination Blue - starring Vanessa Del Rio, Paula Morton, Sharon Mitchell and Holly Bush - premiered.
England beat Finland four-one in a World Cup Qualifier in Helsinki. Kevin Keegan scored twice with further goals from Stuart Pearson and Mick Channon. Cliff Richard and Bruce Welch appeared on Radio 1's Insight. Alan Parker's No Hard Feelings shown in BBC2's Sunday Cinema trand. The first episode of Operation Patch broadcast on LWT.
The trial began at Oxford Crown Court of The Black Panther Donald Neilson charged with assorted disgraceful badness. What's Wrong With The Sun? broadcast in BBC2's Horizon strand. The World In Action episode A Calculated Risk broadcast.
The Soweto uprising in South Africa began; it would end with the deaths of over one hundred people in the township at the hands of sick racist bastards. Welsh referee - and full-of-his-own-importance berk - Clive The Whistle Thomas sent off Johan Neeskens and Vim Van Hanegem as the Netherlands were beaten three-one by Czechoslovakia in highly controversial circumstances in the semi-final of the European Championships. During extra time, Thomas had failed to spot a clear foul by Antonín Panenka on Johan Cruyff, after which Zdenek Nehoda scored the decisive goal for the Czechs. The Dutch were so furious about the decision, Van Hanegem stroppily refused to kick off afterwards giving Thomas the, gleeful, opportunity to produce another red card.
Clifford Makins and Ted Dexter's Testkill published. The Lancashire Witches broadcast on BBC2, narrated by Robert Hardy.
The first of series of rapes took place in Rancho Cordova, Sacramento - approximtely fifty were committed between 1976 and July 1979. They were the work of a perpetrator dubbed 'The East Area Rapist' by the media. In 2018, Joseph DeAngelo - The Golden State Killer - confessed to being responsible for these crimes as well as many others. Owing to California's statute of limitations on pre-2017 rape cases, DeAngelo could not be charged with 1970s rapes, but he was charged with thirteen related kidnapping and abduction attempts. Barge Race At Blackwater brodcast on BBC2. Starbuck's 'Moonlight Feels Right'/'Lash Larue', Tavares' 'Heaven Must Be Missing An Angel (Parts 1 & 2)', Curved Air's 'Desiree'/'Kids To Blame', Queen's only half-way decent single 'You're My Best Friend'/'Thirty Nine', Nils Lofgren & Grin's 'Soft Fun'/'Slippery Fingers' and Billy Lee Riley & His Little Green Men's 'Flyin' Saucers Rock & Roll'/'Betty & Dupree' released. In the case of the latter, a mere twenty years after it first appeared in the US.
Seaside Special feature Ken Dodd, The Goodies and the cast of Are You Being Served? Barry Collins' The Witches Of Pendle broadcast on BBC2.
Czechoslovakia beat West Germany on penalties to win Euro 76 after Uli Hoeneß virtually sent the ball into orbit from his spot kick. The game had ended two-two after extra time thanks to Bernd Hölzenbein's last-minute equaliser. The US Navy evacuated Western citizens from war-torn Beirut. Emperor Haile Selassie may have been murdered according to allegations made in Ethiopia. An armed gang robbed an Arab Prince, the brother of the Ruler of Qatar, in London's Hilton Hotel. Several opposition politicians were arrested as Jamaica declared a State of Emergency. Britain's only steam-operated railway, between Loughborough and Leicester, was to close. Former White House Chief of Staff Bob Halderman published his memoirs in which he claimed that President Nixon's 'tragic mistake' was not granting a blanket pardon to everyone involved in Watergate.
Panorama profiled Valéry Giscard d'Estaing, the President of France and examined the recent violence in Soweto. From Avalon To Sedgemoor broadcast in BBC2's Network strand. The first episode of The Feathered Serpent and the World In Action episode A Question For Europe broadcast on Thames.
The second test at Lord's was drawn. England scored two hundred and fifty, with Andy Roberts taking five for sixty. Gordon Greenidge scored eighty four and Clive Lloyd fifty, but Derek Underwood took five for thirty nine and John Snow four for sixty eight, to bowl West Indies out for one hundred and eighty two. The third day was washed out, but England batted through the fourth and were finally bowled out for two hundred and fifty four, with Roberts taking his second five-wicket haul in the match. Needing three hundred and twenty three to win, West Indies reached two hundred and forty one for six, with one hundred and thirty eight for Roy Fredericks. Having missed the first test with glandular fever, this was England fans' first sight of Michael Holding. However, he was clearly still less than fully fit and picked up only three wickets in the match.
Michael Anderson's Logan's Run, Robert Moore's Murder By Death - starring Alec Guinness, David Niven, Maggie Smith, Elsa Lancaster, Peter Sellers, Peter Falk and Truman Capote and Jesús Franco's Frauengefängnis premiered.
Whilst filming an episode of European Superstars at Bracknall Sports & Leisure Centre, Kevin Keegan famously fell off his bike. The crash occurred when Keegan was racing against the Belgian footballer Gilbert Van Binst. Keegan was leading the overall competition but admitted prior to the race that 'I'm more used to a car than a bike.' At the first corner Van Binst moved ahead and Keegan, already wobbling heavily clipped the Belgian's back wheel. Carnage ensued. 'Keegan's gone! That is a terrible crash' shouted David Vine, as Kev hit the cinder track and then slid for an alarmingly long distance. Shaken, and with nasty abrasions to his arm and back which now looked as red as his Liverpool shirt, Kevin's cause was not helped by the close attentions of co-commentator Ron Pickering who noted 'Hell of a bump, wasn’t it?' No shit, Ron! When the episode was finally broadcast by the BBC, on 1 December, the audience must have been near enough every single person in Great Britain judging by the frequency with which the incident has been referenced over the years. At London's Roundhouse, The Ramones made their UK live debut watched - according to legend - by just about everybody who would be anybody in the subsequent British punk movement. It was another mad hot day in this hottest of summers, with temperatures reaching the high eighties in London. Speaking at an EEC conference in Luxembourg, the Chancellor Dennis Healey brushed aside warnings from the US treasury about the 'need for changes' in the British economy. French President Valéry Giscard d'Estaing returned from a 'frank but cordial' summit with Prime Minister Callaghan. An injunction banning The Sunday Times from printing an article on the background to the Thalidomide tragedy was lifted. Labour won the Rotherham by-election but with a much reduced majority. The Civil Service was considered to be 'almost entirely free' from high-level corruption, 'essentially because its bureaucratic machinery ensures few decisions rest with individuals.' Thirteen members of the Third World Action Group were fined three hundred Swiss francs by a Berne court for libel after they used the title 'Nestlé Kills Babies' for one of their publications. Egypt and Syria restored diplomatic relations. GLC member Tony Banks told the Coordinating Committee that they should investigate ways of helping London football clubs in financial difficulties. Particularly his beloved Chelsea, obviously. Passenger charges of up to £13.50 could be levied at Heathrow to reduce congestion. Risks from asbestos were to be 'studied' by the Health and Safety Commission. If present trends in Britain's inner cities continued the country could 'experience serious social disorder' in under five years Graham Lomas of London Social Services told a conference. Brenda Thompson, a headmistress from Hackney, published a book in which she claimed children who stay up late to watch television are often 'badly behaved and irritable.' Henk Van Der Linden's Dik Trom Weet Raad premiered.
Cornwall Summer broadcast. Lynsey de Paul, The Seekers and Roger Whittaker appeared on BBC2's The Vera Lynn Show. The Beatles' 'Back In The USSR'/'Twist & Shout', Eddie & The Hot Rods' 'Wooly Bully'/'Horseplay (Weary Of The Schmaltz)', Uriah Heep's 'One Way Or Another'/'Misty Eyes', Steely Dan's 'Kid Charlemagne'/'Green Earrings', Bob Marley & The Wailers' 'Roots, Rock, Reggae'/'Them Belly Full (But We Hungary)' and Elton John & Kiki Dee's 'Don't Go Breaking My Heart'/'Snow Queen' released.
The first UK broadcast of the TV movie The Godchild. Alan Parker's Bugsy Malone - starring Jodie Foster and Scott Baio - premiered. Rick Wakeman & The English Rock Ensemble appeared on Radio 1's In Concert.
Peter Collinson's The Sell Out - starring Oliver Reed, Richard Widmark and Gayle Hunnicutt and Lindsay Shonteff's The Swordsman - starring Linda Marlowe and Alan Lake - premiered. Blue-Eyed Soul featured in Radio 1's Insight.
Charlie Bubbles shown in The Monday Film strand. The World In Action episode Nuts & Bolts Of The Economy: Someone's Got To Do It broadcast.
The Battle Of The Somme broadcast in The BBC1 Documentary strand. The first episode of Kenneth Clark's Rembrandt broadcast on BBC2.
Clint Eastwood's The Outlaw Josey Wales premiered. Who Said That? broadcast on BBC2. The first episode of Killers - The Stinie Morrison Case broadcast on Thames.
Champions All broadcast. In Deepest Britain broadcast on BBC2. Paul Wendkos' Special Delivery - starring Bo Svenson, Cybill Shepherd and Mel Scott - premiered. The first UK broadcast of The Bionic Woman on Thames.
Is Anybody There? The Search For Life In Outer Space broadcast. Nazareth's 'You're The Violin'/'Loretta', Hawkwind's 'Kerb Crawler'/'Honky Dorky', The Andrea True Connection's 'Party Line'/'Call Me' and Adrienne Posta's 'Cruisin' Casanova (Theme From Adventures Of A Taxi Driver)'/'Sing Me' released.
The first UK TV showing of Hitchcock's Psycho in The Great American Picture Show strand. The first episode of Private Affairs broadcast on BBC2. In Gregg Versus Georgia, the US Supreme Court ruled that the death penalty was not 'inherently cruel or unusual' and was a constitutionally acceptable form of punishment overturning the Furman Versus Georgia case of 1972. The great heatwave in the United Kingdom, which was currently suffering from drought conditions, reached its peak with some of the hottest temperatures ever recorded in Britain. The first episodes of The XYY Man and Nobody Does It Like Marti broadcast on LWT.
The BBC marked America's Bicentennial with two classic Westerns, True Grit and Davy Crockett as well as the special Uncle Sam Celebrates. As Americans celebrated the two hundredth anniversary of George Washington's revolution and President Ford told the US to be 'the model of liberty' in its third century, Israeli commando's carried out a daring raid on Entebbe airport in Uganda, freeing over one hundred hostages and giving five Palestinian and two West German hijackers a damned good shooting. In Tel Aviv, Israeli Defence Minister Shimon Peres accused the Ugandan President, Idi Amin, of 'collusion' with the hijackers. Taiwan announced a boycott of the forthcoming Olympics because the People's Republic of China exerted pressure on the Montreal organising committee. The ROC refused a proposed compromise that would have allowed Taiwan to use the ROC flag and anthem. Taiwan did not participate in the games again until 1984. Nine people, including four children, were killed in a coach crash on the M4 near Swindon. Five catholic priests were murdered in Argentina, apparently by the military authorities in reprisal for a recent bombing at a police station. Edward Heath made a stinging attack on his successor, Margaret Thatcher and her 'tactics' in the House of Commons. Many Liberals reportedly felt that the forthcoming party leadership content between John Pardoe and David Steel was in danger of descending into a slanging match. At the NUM conference in the Isle of Man, Yorkshire Miner's leader Arthur Scargill challenged a ruling by NUM president Joe Gormley that resolutions calling for pay increases could not be debated. Scotland Yard was attempting to extradite Stephen Raymond from Switzerland in connection with a two million pound currency theft at Heathrow. There was finally a break in the hot weather with flash floods in Wales and Hampshire though the drought - which was hitting Europe as well as Britain - was reported to be threatening attempts to reduce the EEC's 'dairy mountain.' Adolfo Suarez was King Juan Carlos's choice for the new Prime Minster of Spain. The US Viking space probe landed on Mars. Princess Anne was chosen for the British Three Day Event team at the forthcoming Olympics. Her husband, Captain Mark Phillips, was the reserve. Bet that caused a row. At The Black Swan pub in Sheffield, London five-piece The Clash played their first gig, supporting another group from the capital, The Sex Pistols. The times, they were about to change. And, not a moment too soon.
The first UK TV showing of Bonnie & Clyde in The Great American Picture Show strand. Jumping For The Jelly Beans broadcast on BBC2. The World In Action episode Mutiny On The Motorway broadcast.
Peace, Perfect Peace broadcast in The BBC1 Documntary strand. Roy Orbison Sings broadcast. Up The Organisation broadcast on BBC2. Mali Rhys Harries born in Cardiff.
Montreal - A Royal Pursuit broadcast. David Steel became leader of the Liberal Party.
On the first day of the third test at Old Trafford, Mike Selvey on his test debut reduced the West Indies to twenty six for four. Thanks to a remarkable one hundred and thirty four by Gordon Greenidge (with help from debutant Collis King) the tourists recovered to two hundred and eleven.
The second day of the Third Test saw England skittled out for seventy one with Andy Roberts, Michael Holding and Wayne Daniel in terrifying form. A cartoon in the Sun the following morning had Tony Greig ringing the golfer Tony Jacklin - who had scored a poor round of seventy six at The Open - and asking if Jacklin would like to 'swap scores!' David Bowie's 'Suffragette City'/'Stay', Lou Rawls' 'You'll Never Find Another Love Like Mine'/'Let's Fall In Love All Over Again', Horace Faith's 'I Can't Understand It'/'Gimme Good Lovin', Kiss' 'Beth'/'God Of Thunder', Larry Williams & Johnny Guitar Watson's 'Too Late'/'Two For The Price Of One', Sheer Elegance's 'It's Temptation'/'Topsy Turvy Land' and Peter Tosh's 'Legalize It'/'Brand New Second Hand' released.
After the West Indies had batted again - a dazzling four hundred and eleven for five declared with Greenidge and Viv Richards both scoring centuries - there were eighty minutes left for play on Saturday evening as John Edrich and Brian Close, with a combined age pushing eighty five, walked out in the oppressive Manchester heat. What followed was one of the most sustained pieces of hostility ever witnessed on a sport field. Andy Roberts could generate awesome pace, but Mikey Holding was even faster. He had missed the first test through glandular fever and wasn't fully fit during the second. This was the first time on the tour that he had bowled at full speed. Close - as he had done thirteen years earlier at Lord's against another West Indies pace pair, Wes Hall and Charlie Griffiths - stood tall and took everything they bowled at him, as did Edrich. The two left-handers survived a barrage of short-pitched bowling and were both hit on several occasions. Hard. The sight of Close almost-but-not-quite sagging at the knees as he took a rising ball from Holding in the chest remains sickeningly vivid. ('Close is going to be a mass of bruises when he gets back to the pavilion' said Jim Laker with obvious sympathy concerning his former England colleague.) Anger was directed by many in the crowd (and, subsequently in the press) at the umpires, Lloyd Budd and Bill Alley, who seemed reluctant to intervene against what was, clearly, intimidatory and dangerous bowling. A moment of humour interrupted the carnage as a besuited fan ran onto the field with an oversided bat and handed it to Edrich who, for a moment, seemed keen to used it. The torture ended when spinner Albert Padmore bowled the final over of the day. The disappearance of Dora Bloch the seventy four year old British woman who vanished in Uganda following the Entebbe hijacking caused outrage after President Amin denied all knowledge of her fate. Four mercenaries - three Britons, including Costos 'Callan' Georgiou and the alleged CIA-spy, Daniel Gearheart - were executed in Angola after President Neto rejected international pleas for clemency. A general strike brought Australia to a standstill. The master of a Soviet tanker went missing on Tyneside as the ship was about to launch from Swan Hunters. Jimmy Carter met Walter Mondale and John Glenn as he searched for a running-mate for November's presidential elections. Home Secretary Roy Jenkins had George Davis, jailed for armed robbery, released by 'Exercise of the Royal Prerogative' because of doubts over evidence presented by police at his original trial. The severe drought was said to be depleting fish stocks and forest fires started in Surrey and Hampshire. Conservative MP Ian Sproat described 'horrifying levels of scrounging and fiddling on Social Security' whilst the Association of Careers Officers was told some jobless teenagers were being thrown out of their homes by parents who saw them as 'layabouts.' Johnny Miller narrowly beat nineteen year old Severiano Ballesteros in The Open at Royal Birkdale. Aldo Moro resigned as Prime Minister of Italy. Vanessa Redgrave won 'substantial damages' in a libel action against the Daily Mail. UK immigration policies were 'fundamentally racist' according to Liberal peer Lord Avebury. Enoch Powell described Britain as 'committing political suicide' over its membership of the EEC. A survey claimed caravans were not to blame for traffic queues. Jeremy Clarkson disagreed. Colosseum appeared on Radio 1's In Concert.
An explosion in Seveso, Italy, caused extended pollution to a large area in the neighborhood of Milan, with many evacuations and a large number of people affected by the toxic cloud. The first UK TV showing of Visions Of Eight in BBC2's Sunday Cinema strand. The Barry Humphreys Show broadcast. Made In Scotland broadcast on Radio 1's Insight.
Seven people were shot and killed and two others wounded in a mass shooting on the campus at California State University, Fullerton. The first episode of The Gun broadcast on BBC2. The World In Action episode Run For Your Life saw several MPs put through a fitness programme.
West Indies won the third test by four hundred and twenty five runs when England were dismissed for one hundred and twenty six. Andy Roberts finished with six for thirty seven. The top scorer was 'Extras' with twenty five. The Golden Trashery Of Ogden Nashery broadcast on BBC2.
Radio 4's Murder International strand began with David Fisher's adaptation of Muriel Spark's The Portabello Road. Calamity Jane shown in The Wednesday Film. Look, Stranger: A Man Of Natural Influence broadcast on BBC2.
The Grand Prix Night Of The Stars broadcast. The First Olympics broadcast in BBC's Chronicle strand.
The first episode of BBC2's Orde Wingate broadcast. Albert Spaggiari and his gang broke into the vault of the Société Generale Bank in Nice. Werner Hedman's I Løvens Tegn - starring Ole Søltoft, Karl Stegger and Arthur Jensen and Richard Franklin's Fantasm - starring John Holmes, Uschi Digard, Candy Samples, Rene Bond and Roxanne Brewer - premiered. Ramones' 'Blitzkrieg Bop'/'Havana Affair', Fidels & The Keymen Strings' 'Try A Little Harder'/'Instrumental', Showaddywaddy's 'Take Me In Your Arms'/'Go Johnny Go', David Dundas' 'Jeans On'/'Sleepy Serena' and The Bee Gees' 'You Should Be Dancing'/'Subway' released.
The opening ceremony of the Montreal Olympics broadcast. Some African countries - along with Guyana and Iraq - announced a boycott of the games when the International Olympic Committee would not support, as had other international sporting organisations, the banning from competition of those countries whose athletes had participated in sporting events in South Africa. The New Zealand rugby team had recently toured South Africa and caused all this bother. Hideous hippies Caravan featured on Radio 1's In Concert.
Fourteen year old Romanian gymnast Nadia Comăneci earned the first of seven perfect scores of ten on the parallel bars at the Olympics. Nadia would go on to win three gold medals, including the individual event. The organisers of the Olympics had been assured that a score of ten was impossible and, thus, the scoreboard only had three digits. Nadia's score was, therefore, shown as '1.00.' In women's gymnastics three gold medals were also won by Nellie Kim of the Soviet Union. James Hunt won the British Grand Prix at Brands Hatch although two months afterwards, Hunt was disqualified due to a technicality and Niki Lauda was awarded the victory. There were reports of a cabinet rift on spending cuts. The government rejected a ten-point plan to reduce prison overcrowding. Six constituency parties tabled motions to conference that all members of the Labour party should have a vote in future elections for party leader. Robert Relf of Leamington, jailed for putting a sign outside his home saying 'for sale to an English family only', had the sign stolen. Radio 1's Insight focused on the Tyneside music scene. The first episode of Forget-Me-Not broadcast on LWT.
Boris Onishchenko, a member of the Soviet Union's Modern Pentathlon Olympic team, was disqualified after it was discovered that he had rigged his fencing épée to register hits when there wasn't one. Because of this, the USSR team was also disqualified. Great Britain - Adrian Parker, Danny Nightingale and Jim Fox - went on to win the gold medal. Donald Nielson, received four life sentences for murder. The left-wing Tribune Group warned that further cuts in public expenditure could lead to a government defeat in the Commons. Angus Ogilvy offered to resign from the Rank Organisation after being criticised for his role as a Lonrho director in a Department of Trade report. Willie Hamilton MP challenged the government to reveal what contributions it had made to the World Wildlife Fund. Yachtsman Rodney Pattinson failed in his bid for gold at a third successive Olympics, finishing fourth in the Flying Dutchman class. Disciplinary action was taken against the headmaster and five teachers at the William Tyndale Junior School in Islington over teaching methods. A court was told bank robbers Keith and Kenneth Littlejohn used toothpaste to disguise saw marks on the bars of their cell as they escaped from Mountjoy prison. Leslie Paisner, a London solicitor whose part in a legal dispute between Sir James Goldsmith and Private Eye was criticised in the High Court, resigned from his partnership. Six Newcastle schoolboys and three girls were charged with criminal damage in scenes described as 'resembling the storming of a medieval castle.' The Western Isles finally received colour television, seven years after the rest of Britain. Future reggae star Dennis Bovell had a conviction for affray quashed by the appeals court. The National Film Development Fund was set up to help the ailing British film industry. Demetri Demetrious, a Cypriot who tried to persuade a police officer to steal secrets from Special Branch was jailed for eighteen months. The son of actors Tim Carlton and Wanda Ventham was born in Hammersmith. The poor wee nipper got saddled with the moniker Benedict Timothy Carlton Cumberbatch. Angela Mellissa Griffin born in Leeds. The World In Action episode A Question Of Standards broadcast.
NASA's Viking 1 successfully landed on Mars. Japanese Olympic gymnast Shun Fujimoto broke his knee on the floor exercise but, due to the closeness in the standings with the USSR, hid the extent of the injury. He was able to complete his performance on the rings with a perfect triple somersault dismount to help his team win the gold medal. He raised his arms after a perfect finish before collapsing in agony. The dismount worsened his injury, dislocating his broken kneecap and tearing ligaments. Fujimoto stated that he had not wanted to 'let his team down'. When asked whether he would such a thing again, he replied: 'No, I would not!'

John Elliot's The Madness broadcast on BBC2. The first UK TV showing of Elvis - That's The Way It Is.
David Eady's Night Ferry - starring Graham Fletcher-Cook, Jayne Tottman, Engin Eshref, Bernard Cribbins, Aubrey Morris and Carole Rousseau - premiered.
Lasse Viren retained his Olympic ten thousand metres title. Brendan Foster won Britain's only track and field medal at the games, a bronze. Five days later, the remarkable Viren also retained his five thousand metres gold. Wings' 'Let 'Em In'/'Beware My Love', Dave Edmunds' 'Here Comes The Weekend'/'As Lovers Do', Alice Cooper's 'I Never Cry'/'Go To Hell', Paper Lace's 'I Think I'm Gonna Like It'/'Lost Love', Can's 'I Want More'/'More' and Jonathan Richman & The Modern Lovers released.
Breaststroker David Wilkie became the first British swimmer to win an Olympic gold medal since Anita Lonsborough in 1960. Trinidad's Hasley Crawford beat Jamaica's Don Quarrie in a memorable one hundred metres final. The malfunctioning mechanical arm on the Viking 1 probe was freed to enable the taking of Martian soil samples. The Conservatives Northern Ireland spokesman, Airey Neave, responding to the assassination of Britain's ambassador to Eire, Christopher Ewart-Biggs, called for 'an all-out war' on the IRA. Home Secretary Roy Jenkins appealed to 'moderate and sensible' majority of British people to 'avoid confrontation' with those who are 'openly and unapologetically racist or fascist.' New Zealand Prime Minister Robert Muldoon defended his government's policy of non-interference in sporting links with South Africa. In a television interview, Edward Heath denied he was 'a bad loser' but, was less-than-enthusiastic when asked if his successor would make a good Prime Minister. A curate from Edgeworth was jailed for thirty days in Yugoslavia after 'becoming involved in a dispute between police and a girl travel courier.' BBC's Seaside Special - presented by Tommy Cannon and Bobby Ball - featured the first TV appearance of magician Paul Daniels. Though, sadly, not the last. Graham Parker & The Rumour featured on Radio 1's In Concert. Status Quo headlined a date at Cardiff Castle with support from The Strawbs, Curved Air, Hawkwind and Welsh rockers Budgie, compered by John Peel.
Ed Moses broke the world record to win the Olympic four hundred metres hurdles gold. William Blake broadcast on BBC2. The Midlands pop scene past and present profiled on Radio 1's Insight. The first broadcast of the Columbo pilot Prescription: Murder on LWT. It had previously been broadcast on BBC1 in 1970.
In Los Angeles, Ronald Reagan announced his choice of liberal Senator Richard Schweiker as his vice presidential running mate, in an effort to woo moderate Republican delegates away from President Gerald Ford. Channel Television became the final ITV region to begin broadcasting in colour although it wasn't until the following year that all of its local programmes were made in colour. The World In Action episode The Plutonium Economy broadcast.
Two impressive innings from Tony Greig almost led England to an improbable victory in the fourth test at Headingley. But, he eventually ran out of partners and the West Indies won by fifty five runs. Alan Knott also scored a century (as did Gordon Greenidge for the tourists). Bob Willis, briefly, gave the West Indies a taste of their own pacey medicine, taking five second innings wickets. Chris Balderstone and Peter Willey made their test debuts. Britain broke diplomatic relations with Uganda in response to the hijacking of Air France Flight 139. Delegates attending an American Legion convention at The Bellevue-Stratford Hotel in Philadelphia, began falling ill with a form of pneumonia: this would eventually be recognised as the first outbreak of Legionnaires' Disease and ended in the deaths of twenty nine attendees.
An earthquake flattened Tangshan in China killing almost aquarter of a million people. The UK broke diplomatic relations with Uganda in response to the hijacking of Air France Flight 139.
In New York, the serial killer Son Of Sam (David Berkowitz) carried out the first in a series of gun attacks which would terrorise the city for the next year. Alberto Juantorena of Cuba became the first man to win both the four hundred and eight hundred metres golds at the same Olympics. When, according to David Coleman, he 'opens his legs and shows his class.' Robert Young's Keep It Up Downstairs - starring Diana Dors, Jack Wild, Willie Rushton, Aimi MacDonald, Sue Longhurst, Neil Hallett, Mary Millington and Françoise Pascal - premiered.
The first episode of Morecambe and Wise's It's Childsplay broadcast. Orde Wingate: Military Genius Or Brilliant Maverick? broadcast on BBC2. Bruce Jenner won the gold medal in the Olympics men's decathlon. Eddie & The Hot Rods' Live At The Marquee EP ('Ninety Six Tears', 'Get Out Of Denver'/'Gloria', '(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction') and Johnny Jones & The King Casuals' 'Purple Haze'/'Horsing Around' released.
NASA released the infamous 'Face on Mars' image, taken by Viking 1. Lasse Virén, having achieved the five and ten thousand metre track double, finished fifth in the Olympic marathon just failing to equal Emil Zátopek's 1952 achievements. Sugar Ray Leonard won Light-Welterweight Boxing gold, Leon Spinks the Light-Heavyweight title and his brother, Michael, the Middleweight gold. Teofilio Stevenson retained his Olympic Heavyweight title. Alan Plater's A Tyneside Entertainment broadcast on BBC2.
BBC2 celebrated the fortieth anniversary of the BBC's television service with Forty Years. At the German Grand Prix at the Nürburgring, Niki Lauda's Ferrari swerved off the track and burst into flames with Lauda trapped in the wreckage. Fellow drivers arrived at the scene but, before they were able to pull Lauda from his car, he suffered severe burns to his head and inhaled hot toxic gases that damaged his lungs. He returned to racing only six weeks (and three races) later, appearing at the Monza press conference with his fresh burns still heavy bandaged. In Lauda's absence, the race was won by James Hunt. Fire destroyed the pierhead of the world's longest pier in Southend. Scotland Yard's anti-corruption detectives began an investigation into allegations that a drug squad informer, Cornelius Buckley, acted as an agent provocateur, entrapping two men into committing a criminal offence. Several airlines pressed the government to 'clarify' its policy on licensing long-distance routes. Classroom violence and truancy were said to be 'the inevitable products of the educational system' according to a study by the Alternative Society Organisation. Leyland announced radical changes in the design, comfort and handling of MGB sports cars. Rebel priest Monsignor Marcel Lefebvre stated his intention to defy the Pope and continue to celebrate a traditional, Latin Mass. Idi Amin responded to Britain's decision to break off diplomatic relations with Uganda by issuing dire warnings to the country's remaining Britons. Brian De Palma's Obsession - starring Cliff Robertson, Geneviève Bujold and John Lithgow - premiered.
Festival Forty - a month-long series of archive repeats of 'outstanding and memorable programmes' to mark BBC TV's fortieth birthday began on BBC2 with an episode of It's A Square World. The first episode of Great Alliance broadcast. The World In Action episode Coup D'Etat broadcast.
The Operation broadcast in The BBC1 Documentary strand. Festival Forty: The 1966 World Cup Final, Attica! and the first episode of Illusionists broadcast on BBC2.
The first episode of the wildlife series Man & Boy - featuring a very young Simon King - broadcast. Gazooka Summer broadcast on BBC2.
The first episodes of Sailor and Ralph McTell Sings broadcast. Julia Jones's Back Of Beyond broadcast as part of the Play For Today strand. Eric Clapton made a drunken declaration of support for Enoch Powell ('Enoch was right ... get the foreigners out, get the wogs out, get the coons out') at a concert in Birmingham, an incident which eventually led to the formation of the Rock Against Racism movement. Big Ben's clock suffered internal damage and stopped running for over nine months.
Former Postmaster General John Stonehouse was sentenced to seven years in The Slammer for fraud, theft and forgery. ABBA's 'Dancing Queen'/'That's Me', The Rubettes' 'Under One Roof'/'Sign Of The Times', Be-Bop Deluxe's 'Kiss Of Light'/Funky Phaser & His Unearthly Merchandise's 'Shine' and Tina Charles' 'Dance Little Lady Dance'/'Why?' released. Martin Tapák's Stratená Dolina, The Lost Lowlands - starring Jozef Kroner, Stella Zázvorková and Michal Docolomanský - premiered.
The Sounds Of Scotland: Pop Music Special broadcast, featuring Rod Stewart, Gallagher & Lyle, Lonnie Doneganand some other, less famous, Scotsmen. Bedtime For Bonzo and Storm Warning shown in BBC2's The Other Ronald Reagan strand. Viking 2 entered into orbit around Mars.
An Affair Of State broadcast, in which Robert Hardy re-examined the Peterloo Massacre. The first episode of Generation To Generation featured Allan and Maddy Prior. Piano Lessons broadcast in BBC2's Centre Play strand.
Cantilena broadcast on BBC2 featuring a performance of Vivaldi's Sinfonia in G.
The Rise Of The Red Navy broadcast in the The BBC1 Documentary strand.
The first episode of AJP Taylor's The War Lords broadcast. Vikings On Mars broadcast in The Sky At Night strand. The Sandpipers broadcast on BBC2.
The first episode of Word Of Mouth broadcast on BBC2. The Modern Lovers' eponymous debut LP - recorded with John Cale in 1972 and featuring the original versions of 'Roadrunner', 'Pablo Picasso' and 'Astral Plane' - and Hot Chocolate's 'Heaven Is In The Back Seat Of My Cadillac'/'Sex Appeal' released. Liverpool paid a club record two hundred thousand quid to sign centre forward David Johnson from Ipswich Town.
Ten Out Of Ten broadcast. A Man Of Morality broadcast in BBC2's Centre Play Showcase strand. Rod Stewart's 'The Killing Of Georgie Parts 1 & 2'/'Fool For You' and Sid Barnes' 'I Hurt On The Other Side'/The Robbins' 'Good Lovin' released.
The first in a series of Midnight Movies double bills - Masters Of Terror - began on BBC2, featuring Phantom Of The Opera and Doctor Jekyll & Mister Hyde. Emmylou Harris and The Hot Band featured on Radio 1's In Concert. Liverpool beat Southampton one-nil in the Charity Shield at Wembley. Nick Lowe's 'So It Goes'/'Heart Of The City' the first record on Stiff released.
Charlie Gillett's Radio London show Honky Tonk featured the radio debut of Elvis Costello (then going under the name DP Costello) via his self-recorded demo tape including performances of 'Wave A White Flag', 'Mystery Dance', 'Poison Moon' and 'Blame It On Cain'. The following day, Costello delivered a copy of the tape to the offices of the newly opened independent label Stiff Records which would, ultimately, lead to his signing. Ocean's Eleven shown in the Sinatra In Hollywood strand. JB Priestley's The Linden Tree broadcast in the Play Of The Month strand. A Wily Couple broadcast in BBC2's Centre Play strand.
Festival Forty: Monty Python's Flying Circus broadcast on BBC2, introduced by Graham Chapman.
Despite a double century by Dennis Amiss, the West Indies won the fifth test at The Oval by two hundred and thirty one runs. This was thanks to two astonishing spells of pace bowling on a flat, unhelpful pitch by Michael Holding who ended the match with figures of eight for ninety two and six for fifty seven. As Prince Far-I would note soon afterwards in his 'Tribute To Michael Holding', 'Him fulla bowling! Heavy, heavy bowling!' Mikey even managed to upstage Viv Richards whose innings of two hundred and ninety one was a thing of rare and spectacular beauty. Geoff Miller made his test debut. This was also the match in which it was alleged that Brian Johnston, commentating on Test Match Special, told listeners that 'the bowler's Holding, the batsman's Willey.' Johnston mentioned the story in his 1979 collection of anecdotes, Rain Stops Play and numerous listeners claim to this day to have heard him say it. But, subsequent searches of the BBC's sound-archives have failed to find the piece of commentary in question, suggesting that it was either said during an unrecorded piece for the World Service, or (sadly) that the story was apocryphal. A tsunami killed seventeen hundred people in the Philippines. Shopkeepers reported 'widespread vegetable hoarding' after price rose due to the continuing drought. A survey suggested immigrant dependants legally entitled to enter the UK were often denied permission by staff who either didn't understand the rules or did but showed 'a clear racial bias.' Steven Biko was arrested in South Africa. He would die in custody four weeks later in highly suspicious circumstances. A strike by stage staff brought the National Theatre to a standstill. A teacher was bound over after being convicted of possessing an offensive weapon (a brick) during a demonstration outside Winson Green jail in Birmingham.
Roy Virgin scored eighty two as Northampton beat Hampshire by two wickets in the Semi-Final of The Gillette Cup. At Edgabston, Lancashire beat Warwickshire by six wickets; Barry Wood's man of the match performance included taking three wickets and scoring a century.
Future convicted sex offender Dave Lee Travis introduced Top Of The Pops featuring Hot Chocolate, Five Thousand Volts, Johnny Wakelin, Jesse Green, Twiggy, David Dundas, Bryan Ferry, Elton John & Kiki Dee. The Chris Barber Band In Concert broadcast on BBC2.
Don Siegel's The Shootist - starring Lauren Bacall, James Stewart, Ron Howard and, in his final movie, John Wayne - premiered. The Squad broadcast in BBC2's Centre Play Showcase strand. Elvis Presley With The Jordanaires' 'The Girl Of My Best Friend'/'A Mess Of Blues', Tommy Hunt's 'Loving On The Losing Side'/'Sunshine Girl' and Max Romeo's 'Chase The Devil'/'Croaking Lizard' released.
The First Division season opened with a surprise win for promoted Bristol City against Arsenal at Highbury. Champions Liverpool beat Norwich City, but runners-up Queens Park Rangers lose four-nil at home to Everton. Aston Villa also scored four against West Ham whilst there were four two-two draws involving Leicester and Manchester City, Manchester United and Birmingham, Leedsand West Brom and Newcastle and Derby. BBC2's Masters Of Terror showed The Devil Doll and Frankenstein Created Woman. Bruce Johnston appeared on Radio 1's My Top Twelve.
The Rediffusion Gateshead Games broadcast. John Elliot's Sisters broadcast in the Centre Play strand.
The first UK brodcast of Boy & Horse. If You Knew Susie, Suan Hampshire's documentary about dyslexia broadcast. The Complete Victor Borge broadcst on BBC2.
Don't Shoot the Ref!: A Portrait Of Jack Taylor brodcast in The BBC1 Documentary strand. In Uruguay, the army captured Marcelo Gelman and his pregnant wife, Maria. Gelman was later excuted and his wife was never traced. They became two of the thirty thousand desaparecidos, the people who were forcibly 'vanished' during the reign of the military junta.
Arena: Edinburgh International Festival 1976 broadcast on BBC2. Jacques Chirac resigned as Prime Minister of France; he was succeeded by Raymond Barre.
The first known outbreak of Ebola virus occurred in Yambuku, Zaire. In the first of three one day internationals, West Indies won the toss and put England in to bat, with ODI debuts for England's Graham Barlow, Ian Botham, Graham Gooch and John Lever. Hostile bowling by Andy Roberts (four for thirty two) and Holding (two for thirty eight) restricted England to two hundred and two for eight, Barlow top scoring on eighty. England were unable to stop Viv Richards in the West Indian reply. He scored an unbeaten one hundred and nineteen off one hundred and thirty three balls to win the match with fourteen overs to spare. In his first international appearance, nineteen year old Botham scored one and bowled only three overs of long-hops and full tosses, taking the wicket of Lawrence Rowe but costing twenty six runs. Things could only get better.
Hawkwind's Astounding Sounds, Amazing Music and The Real Thing's 'Can't Get By Without You'/'(He's Just A) Moneymaker', Millie Jackson's 'A House For Sale'/'There You Are', Skip Jackson's 'Teddy Bear'/'Stay With Me, Lay With Me' and The Brighouse & Rastrick Brass Band's 'The Floral Dance'/'Bachelor Girls' released. Del Henney's Fair Tradin' On The Dancin' Ground broadcast in BBC2's Centre Play Showcase strand.
England put West Indies into bat at Lord's in the second ODI. Viv Richards again scored heavily, with ninety seven, but West Indies were unable to bat out their overs, scoring two hundred and twenty one, with England's spinners taking most of the wickets. Despite eighty eight from debutant Derek Randall, the West Indian bowlers, particularly Andy Roberts (four for twenty seven), again dominated. Weather interruptions pushed the match into the reserve day, when West Indies won by thirty six runs. John Miles featured on Radio 1's Top Twelve.
The Screen On The Green cinema in Islington presented a Midnight Special show with The Clash (playing their third gig) and Buzzcocks (playing their second) supporting The Sex Pistols in a showcase event organised by Malcolm Maclaren. If everyone who has, subsequently, claimed to be there actually had been, the audience would have been bigger than Woodstock. On BBC2 David Frost introduced the finale of the Festival Forty series, What Do You Think Of It So Far?
With tensions stoked by - alleged - 'arbitrary harassment' and arrests of young black attendees by plod, the Notting Hill riot kicked-off - big-style - over the Bank Holiday in London. West Indies won the third ODI by fifty runs.
Going Up broadcast in The BBC1 Documentary strand. The Royal Hunt Of The Sun shown in BBC2's Tuesday Cinema strand. The first episode of Cilla's World Of Comedy broadcast on Thames.
Kevin Connor's At The Earth's Core - starring Doug McClure, Peter Cushing and Caroline Munro - premiered. The first UK broadcast of Reach For Tomorrow on BBC2.
The Viking 2 spacecraft landed at Utopia Planitia on Mars, taking the first close-up color photos of the planet's surface. Digging With A Camera broadcast in BBC2's Chronicle strand. The first episode of The Howerd Confessions broadcast on Thames.
Devils Of Darkness shown in he Friday Film strand. Only Looking broadcast in BBC2's Centre Play Showcase strand. The first episodes of Lucky Feller and Victorian Scandals broadcast on LWT. Smokie's 'I'll Meet You At Midnight'/'Miss You', The Pink Fairies' 'Between The Lines'/'Spoiling For A Fight', Nils Lofgren's 'It's Not A Crime'/'Share A Little', Roogalator's 'All Aboard'/'Cincinatti Fatback', Terry Reid's 'Ooh Baby (Make Me Feel So Young)'/'Brave Awakening' and Climax Blues Band's 'Couldn't Get It Right'/'Fat Maybellene' released.
The first episodes of The Duchess Of Duke Street and Spike Milligan's memorably mental The Phantom Raspberry Blower Of Old London Tower The Two Ronnies serial broadcast. A man of the match performance by Peter Willey helped Northamptonshire to a four wicket victory over Lancashire in the final of the Gillette Cup at Lord's. Buffy Sainte Marie featured on Radio 1's In Concert. The first episode of The Many Wives Of Patrick - Come In Number Six - broadcast on LWT.
The first episode of Lorna Doone broadcast. The Whitefriars Of Aylesford broadcast on BBC2.
Frank Sinatra brought Jerry Lewis's former partner Dean Martin onstage, unannounced, at the Jerry Lewis MDA Telethon in Las Vegas, reuniting the popular comedy team for the first time in over twenty years. Soviet Air Force pilot Viktor Belenko landed a MiG-25 jet fighter at Hakodate, on the island of Hokkaidō in Japan and requeste political asylum in the United States. Steeleye Span's 'Rave On', 'The King'/'False Knight On The Road' released. Mario Pinzauti's Mandinga premiered. The first episode of George & Mildred and The Sweeney episode Selected Targets broadcast on Thames.
Disaster Below broadcast. The first UK TV showing of LH615 Operation Munich in BBC2's Tusday Cinema strand.
The first episode of The Fall & Rise Of Reginald Perrin broadcast. England drew one-all with the Republic of Ireland in a friendly international at Wembley. Manchester United teammates Stuart Parson and Gerry Day were on target for the respective sides. Derby County's Charlie George, ignored by Alf Ramsey during his peak years with Arsenal, was given a belated call-up to the national side by Don Revie, but produced a lacklustre display in his only appearance in an England shirt that lasted just over an hour before he was substituted by Gordon Hill. Scotland defeated Finald six-nil at Hampden Park. Andy Gray scored twice with further goals from Bruce Rioch, Don Masson (a penalty), Kenny Dalglish and Eddie Gray. Sir Mortimer: Digging Up People broadcast in BBC2's Chronicle strand.
Mao Zedong died of a heart attack. The first episode of Summer Of 76 broadcast on BBC2.
A British Airways Trident and a Yugoslav DC-9 collided in mid-air near Zagreb, killing all one hundred and seventy six aboard. Sea Change broadcast in BBC2's Centre Play Showcase strand. Heatwave's 'Super Soul Sister'/'Turn Out The Lamplight', Doris Jones' 'Stranded In The Wilderness'/'Theme From The Wilderness', LJ Johnson's 'Ain't No Values On Your Love'/'I'm Staring In Space', Tyla Gang's 'Styrofoam'/'Texas Chainsaw Massacre Boogie' and Steeleye Span's 'London'/'Sligo Maid' released.
Liverpool won three-two at Derby in the First Division. Legal? Decent? Honest? Truthful? broadcast on BBC2. The Bothy Band and Gay and Terry Woods aeared on Radio 1's In Concert.
Norman Cohen's Confessions Of A Driving Instructor - starring Robin Askwith, Antony Booth, Bill Maynard, Doris Hare, Sheila White, Windsor Davies, Liz Fraser, Irene Handl, George Layton and Lynda Bellingham - premiered. The first UK TV showing of The Go-Between.
The first episodes of Noah & Nelly In ... Sky/Ark and Potter's Picture Palace broadcast. The Sweeney episode Selected Targets broadcast on Thames.
Jack Rosenthal's Bar Mitzvah Boy broadcast in the Play For Today strand. The Weather Machine broadcast on BBC2.
In the first round, first leg of the European Cup, Liverpool beat Crusaders of Northern Ireland two-nil at Anfield. Southampton thrashed Marsailles four-nil in the European Cup Winners Cup. In the UEFA Cup, Manchester United lost one-nil at Ajax Amsterdam, Derby County beat Fin Hars twelve-nil (with hat-tricks for Leighton James and Charlie George and five goals for Kevin Hector), a Brian Kidd goal saw Manchester City defeat Juventus and Queens Park Rangers beat Norwegian side Brann four-nil (Stan Bowles scored three). A Dream Come True broadcast in BBC2's Arena strand.
Beginning with The Night Of The Pencils, a series of kidnappings and forced disappearances followed by torture, rape and murder of students under the Argentine military dictatorship took place. AJ Taylor's Fabric Of An Age broadcast on BBC2. The first episode of The Crezz broadcast on Thames.
The first NASA space shuttle, Enterprise, was unveiled to the public in Palmdale, California. City Of Fear broadcast in BBC2's Centre Play Showcase. Martin Ritt's The Front premiered. Sailor's 'Stiletto Heels'/'Out Of Money', T Rex's 'Laser Love'/'Life's An Elevator' and Deaf School's 'What A Way To End It All'/'Nearly Moonlit Night Motel' released.
The episode of The Two Ronnies featuring the 'Four Candles' sketch broadcast. The Lively Arts - In Performance broadcast on BBC2. The Murray Head Band featured in Radio 1's In Concert. LWT's Aquarius focused on british reggae.
The first episodes of BBC2's The Lively Arts - The Vet Who Writes Books, a profile of James Herriot, Plays From 'A' and Robert Erskine's documentary preview to I, Claudius, In Nineteen Hundred Years broadcast. The Picture Of Dorian Gray broadcast in the Play Of The Month strand.
The first episode of I, Claudius - A Touch Of Murder - broadcast on BBC2. The 100 Club Punk Festival on Oxford Street ignited the careers of several influential bands - The Sex Pistols, The Clash, Buzzcocks, The Damned and Subway Sect. Siouxsie & The Banshees (with Sid Vicious on drums) made their live debut at the event. The first episode of The Cedar Tree and The Sweeney episode Visiting Fireman broadcast on Thames.
The first UK broadcast of The Water Margin on BBC2. The Goodies episode Lips Or Almighty Cod broadcast. Bet Your Life broadcast in the Play For Today strand.
The TV debut of Bill Nighy in an episode of Softly Softly: Task Force. West Bromwich Albion winger Willie Johnston was sent off, reportedly for 'aiming a kick' at the referee, as his side were knocked out of the League Cup by Brighton & Hove Albion. Rogue Male - starring Peter O'Toole - broadcast on BBC2.
The first episode of Oceans broadcast. Anthony Burgess interviewed on BBC2's The Book Programme.
The first episode of Well, Anyway broadcast on BBC2. Amsterdam Affair shown in The Friday Film strand. Doctor Feelgood's 'Riot In Cell Block Number Nine'/'Johnny B Goode', Feathers' 'Lost Summer Love'/'Instrumental', The Three Degrees' 'What I Did For Love'/'Macaroni Man', Mud's 'Nite On The Tiles'/'Time & Again' and Tavares' 'Don't Take Away The Music (Parts 1 & 2)' released.
Dudley Moore was the guest on Parkinson. Lina Braake shwon in BBC2's Film International strand. Shakin' Stevens & The Sunsets featured on Radio 1's It's Rock 'N' Roll.
The Lively Arts' Rod Stewart profile Rod The Mod Has Come Of Age broadcast on BBC2. A Shot In The Dark shown in The Sunday Film strand.
The first episode of Max Bygraves Says "I Wanna Tell You A Story" broadcast on BBC2. The first episodes of Chorlton & The Wheelies and Nobody's House, The Sweeney episode Tomorrow Man and the World In Action episode Unemployment - Who Cares? broadcast on Thames.
Bernard Kops's Rocky Marciano Is Dead broadcast in the Play For Today strand. The Goodies episode Hype Pressure broadcast. Stevie Wonder's Songs In The Key Of Life released. The first episode of Dickens Of London broadcast on ITV.
David Halliwell's Meriel: The Girl Ghost broadcast as part of BBC2's Playhouse: The Mind Beyond strand. Muhammad Ali fought Ken Norton for the third time. The bout, at Yankee Stadium, resulted in Ali winning a heavily contested decision which was loudly booed by some of the audience. Afterwards, he announced he was retiring from boxing to practice his faith. But, then he changed his mind.
The first episode of BBC2's First Impressions broadcast. William Levey's Slumber Party '57 - starring Janet Wood, Noelle North, Debra Winger, Bridget Holloman and Cheryl Smith - premiered.
The first episode of Children Of The Snow Country broadcast. BBC2's Open Door was made by the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament. Sheer Elegance's 'I'll Find You Where You Are'/'Cost Of Living' released.

The first episode of Multi-Coloured Swap Shop broadcast. The Gamekeeer broadcast on BBC2. Brian Protheroe featured on Radio 1's Top Twelve. Cliff Roquemore's The Human Tornado - starring Rudy Ray Moore, Lady Reed, Jimmy Lynch and Gloria Delaney - premiered.
The Year Of The Ladybirds broadcast in BBC2's The World About Us strand. The McKenzie Break shown in The Sunday Film strand.
Alan Plater's Seven Days That Shook Young Jim broadcast. James Cameron's The Great Sit-Down broadcast in BBC2's Yesterday's Witness In America strand. The InterCity 125 high-speed train was introduced. This being, of course, The Age Of The Train. The Sweeney episode Taste Of Fear and the World In Action episode Nuts & Bolts Of The Economy: Delta's Dilemma broadcast on Thames.
Joan Armatrading appeared on The Old Grey Whistle Test. The Goodies episode Daylight Robbery On The Orient Express broadcast.
The Cultural Revolution in China concluded upon the capture of the Gang of Four. Double Echo broadcast in BBC2's Playhouse: The Mind Beyond strand.
Danny La Rue - This Is Your Lunch broadcast. Filthy albino kiddie-fiddler Jimmy Savile introduced Top Of The Pops featuring Pussycat, T Rex, Paul Nicholas, Smokie, Rick Dees & His Cast Of Idiots, The Manhattans and ABBA. Beyond The Eye broadcast in BBC2's Take Another Look strand. Rainer Werner Fassbinder's Satansbraten (aka Satan's Brew) - starring Kurt Raab, Margit Carstensen, Helen Vita, Volker Spengler and Ingrid Caven - premiered.
The inquest into the death of Liddle Towers returned a verdict of 'justifiable homicide'. This was widely criticised, causing considerable disquiet over both the integrity of Northumbria Police and of police behaviour and accountability in general. The verdict was appealed and, in June 1978, was set aside by the Queen's Bench Divisional Court, which ordered a new inquest. That, held in Bishop Auckland in October 1978, reached a verdict of 'death by misadventure.' John Schlesinger's Marathon Man - starring Laurence Olivier, Dustin Hoffman, Roy Scheider and William Devane - premiered. Alan Tew Orchestra's 'The Sweeney'/'The Prowler', Child's 'Maybe Baby Someday'/'Rock 'N' Roll Singer', Boney M's 'Daddy Cool'/'No Woman No Cry', Lew Lewis & His Band's 'Boogie On The Street'/'Caravan Man' and Sparks' 'Big Boy'/'Fill 'Er Up' released.
The first UK broadcast of The Quest strring Kurt Russell and Tim Matheson. The Cannibals shown in the Film International strand. Long-haired type person Ted Nugent featured on Radio 1's Top Twelve.
The first episode of Katy broadcast. The Lively Arts documentary The Unlikely Lads - a profile of Dick Clement and Ian La Frenais - broadcast on BBC2.
ABBA's Arrival and ELO's A New World Record released. Finn Henriksen's Piger I Trøjen 2 - starring Berrit Kvorning, Klaus Pagh, Dirch Passer, Ulla Jessen, Magi Stocking, Marianne Tønsberg and Birger Jensen - premiered. The Sweeney episode Bad Apple and the World In Action episode A School For Thought broadcast on Thames.
The first UK broadcast of The Gemini Man featuring Ben Murphy. The first episode of The Great Grape Ape Show broadcast. The Goodies episode Black & White Beauty broadcast. Joe Bugner severely chinned Richard Dunn in the first round of their 'grudge match' for the British, Commonwealth and European Heavyweight title. The Gang Of Four - Mao's widow Jiang Qing, Zhang Chunqiao, Yao Wenyuan and Wang Hongwen - were arrested for treason in China. Estimates of oil output from BP's Forties field would 'boost the economy' according to the Energy Secretary, Tony Benn. BBC Director-General Charles Curran retired. Clifford Reed, a father accused of cutting his daughter's throat, told Lincoln Crown Court that he believed she was 'possessed by the devil.' Three of Richard Nixon's former advisors - John Mitchell, John Ehrlichman and Bob Haldeman - jailed for their parts in the Watergate cover-up lost their appeals.
England beat Finland two-one in a World Cup Qualifier at Wembley. England took the lead with a third minute goal from Denis Tueart, but finished to chants of 'Rubbish' from the disgruntled home crowd. The Finns equalised early in the second-half before Joe Royle headed a - not entirely deserved - winner from Mike Channon's cross. Scotland lost their opening World Cup Qualifier, two-nil, to European champions Czechoslovakia in Prague. Antonín Panenka and Ladislav Petráš scored. Andy Gray and Anton Ondrus were sent off shortly before half-time for fighting. Northern Ireland gained a surprise two-two draw against The Netherlands in Rotterdam. Leading through an early Chris McGrath goal, the Irish went being following a two-minute spell in which Ruud Krol and Johan Cruyff netted only for Derek Spence to score a dramatic equaliser two minutes from time. The Love Of A Good Woman broadcast on BBC2's Playhouse The Mind Beyond strand.
The final appearance of Ruby Flipper on Top Of The Pops. The Reasonable Militant broadcast on BBC2.
The Five-Man Army shown in The Friday Film strand. The first episode of BBC2's Indoors Outdoors broadcast. Sweet's 'Lost Angels'/'Funk It Up', Showaddywaddy's 'Under The Moon Of Love'/'Lookin' Back', Boston's 'More Than A Feeling'/'Smokin', Carol Woods' 'Your Face Keeps Haunting Me'/'Haunting Memory' and Sparks' Big Beat released.
West Bromwich Albion thrashed Manchester United four-nil at The Hawthorns on Match of The Day. Burl Ives and Michael Crawford were guests on Parkinson. Derby County belatedly recorded their first League win of the season when they thrashed Tottenham Hotspur eight-two at the Baseball Ground. West Bromwich Albion beat Manchester United four–nil. The Jam made their first important London live performance, setting up their gear in Soho Market and playing an energetic set to a crowd of onlookers that included The Clash - having breakfast in a cafe over the road - and reporters from the Sniffin' Glue fanzine (co-editor Danny Baker) and Melody Maker. The good press generated by this eventually led to the band being signed by Polydor. Soyuz Twenty Three was the second Soviet manned space flight to the Salyut Five space station. Cosmonauts Vyacheslav Zudov and Valery Rozhdestvensky arrived at the station, but an equipment malfunction did not allow docking and the mission had to be aborted. The crew returned to Earth, but landed on partially frozen Lake Tengiz, the first splashdown in the Soviet space programme. While there was no concern about any immediate threat to the crew, the capsule sank under the surface of the frozen lake and recovery took nine hours owing to fog and other adverse conditions. The first episode of Nigel Kneale's Beasts - Special Offer - and the first UK broadcast of Happy Days on LWT.
Murder By Death and The Shootist were amongst the movies previewed on Film 76. The Auditionbroadcast in BBC2's Plays From A strand.
Sunderland manager Bob Stokoe handed in his resignation, saying that he believed a new manager would give the club a better chance of First Division survival. Despite a poor start which had seen the club marooned at the bottom of the table with no wins, Stokoe was still incredibly popular among the Joker Park faithful. Douglas Hurd's Losla? broadcast in BBC2's Politics Now strand. The World In Action episode Mister Cork Examines The Books saw an ordinary accountant given the theoretical task of being Chancellor of the Exchequer and giving his take on the current financial situation of the country.
Roy Kendall's Housewives Choice broadcast in the Play For Today strand. The Goodies episode It Might As Well Be String broadcast on BBC2. The first episode of The New Avengers - The Eagle's Nest - broadcast on Thames.
Peter Clifton and Joe Massot's The Song Remains The Same - starring Led Zeppelin - premiered. Get yer hair cut! The Daedalus Equations broadcast in BBC2's Playhouse The Mind Beyond strand. John Peel played The Damned's 'New Rose' on Radio 1 for the first time.
The first appearance of Legs & Co. on Top Of The Pops. Cearbhall Ó Dálaigh, the President of Ireland, resigned after being publicly insulted by the Minister for Defence, Paddy Donegan. Pál Gábor's A Járvány - starring László Baranyi, Péter Barbinek, Ion Bog and Anna Chodakowska - premiered.
The first punk rock single, The Damned's 'New Rose'/'Help', Barbara Pennington's 'Twenty Four Hours A Day'/'I Can't Erase The Thoughts Of You' and The Bee Gees' 'Love So Right'/'You Stepped Into My Life' released.
The final appearance of Lis Sladen in Doctor Who (until 1983) in episode four of The Hand Of Fear. Painting Was Damned Hard Work: LS Lowry broadcast on BBC2. Demis Roussos featured on Radio 1's Top Twelve. During Barty's Party broadcast in the Beasts strand.

In torrential rain James Hunt finished third in the Japanese Grand Prix at Fuji behind Mario Andretti to win the world championship after Niki Lauda retired on the second lap due to the severe weather conditions making the track too dangerous. He later said 'my life is worth more than a title.' Dominic Behan's To Glasgow With Love broadcast in BBC2's Plays From 'A' strand. Economist Milton Friedman said that Britain was 'on the verge of collapse' resulting from 'excessive government spending.' The New York Times endorsed Jimmy Carter in the forthcoming Presidential elections. Three people were killed in Soweto when police fired rubber bullets on a crowd at the funeral of a student who died in detention. William Whitelaw criticised the Children and Young Persons Act of 1969 saying that it left courts powerless and had become 'a charter for young thugs.' Talks took place in Geneva between the Rhodesian government and African nationalist leaders including Robert Mugabe, Joshua Nkomo and Canaan Banana. The Emergency Water Resources Committee considered a report which suggested the public were better able to cope with rationing than standpipes in the street. Brighton Dolphiarium saw the first birth of a baby dolphin in captivity in Britain. Herbert Ross's The Seven-Per-Cent Solution - starring Nicol Williamson, Robert Duvall, Alan Arkin, Georgia Brown, Samantha Eggar, Charles Gray, Jeremy Kemp, Joel Grey, Laurence Olivier and Vanessa Redgrave - premiered. The first episode of The Muppet Show and the first UK broadcast of the Columbo episode Last Salute To The Commadore on LWT.
Opening Night At The National broadcast. The Bulls-Eye War broadcast in BBC2's Horizon strand. The Sweeney episode May the World In Action episode Campaigning By Night broadcast on Thames.
Colin Welland's Your Man From Six Counties broadcast in the Play For Today strand. The Goodies episode 2001 ... And A Bit broadcast. Peter Frampton featured on The Old Grey Whistle Test.
Stones broadcast in BBC2's Playhouse: The Mind Beyond strand.
The first episode of The Big Time broadcast. Elton John's 'Sorry Seems To Be The Hardest Word'/'Shoulder Holster' released.
Colorado authorities charged Ted Bundy - currently in jail in Utah for kidnapping - with Caryn Campbell's January 1975 murder. The first UK broadcast of Holmes & Yoyo. Eddie & The Hot Rods' 'Teenage Depression'/'Shake', Dave Edmunds' 'Where Or When?'/'New York's A Lonely Town', Elton John's 'Sorry Seems To Be The Hardest Word'/'Shoulder Holster', Curved Air's 'Baby Please Don't Go'/'Broken Lady' and Electric Light Orchestra's 'Livin' Thing'/'Fire On High' released.
The first episode of The Shirley Bassey Show broadcast. Liverpool were the First Division leaders, three points ahead of a chasing group which comprised Manchester City, Ipswich Town, Newcastle United, Leicester City and Middlesbrough. West Ham United were bottom, with Sunderland and Bristol City making up the bottom three. The King Of Darts broadcast in BBC2's Network strand. The Climax Blues Band featured in Radio 1's In Concert. Buddyboy broadcast in the Beasts strand.
Carry On England - starring Kenneth Connor, Windsor Davies, Patrick Mower, Judy Geeson, Joan Sim, Jack Douglas, Peter Butterworth, Melvyn Hayes, Peter Jones, Julian Holloway, Johnny Briggs and Diane Langton - premiered. The first UK broadcast of The Shadow on BBC2. Girl With Flowers In Her Hair broadcast in the Plays From A strand.
The first episode of Go - USA broadcast. The Birth Of Television broadcast. The Hot-Blooded Dinosaurs broadcast in BBC2's Horizon strand. The World In Action episode Yesterday's Truants broadcast.
The first episode of The Government Inspector broadcast. Saudi Rules, OK? a documentary on Jimmy Hill's venture in Saudi Arabian football broadcast as part of BBC2's Summer Of 76 strand. The Goodies - Almost Live broadcast. Jimmy Carter became the US President defeating Gerald Ford in the General Erection.
Brian De Palma's adaptation of Stephen King's Carrie - starring Sissy Spacek, John Travolta and Piper Laurie and Joel M Reed's Blood Sucking Freaks - starring Seamus O'Brien, Viju Krem and Niles McMaster - premiered. The Man With The Power broadcast in BBC2's Playhouse: The Mind Beyond broadcast.
The Arts In Action broadcast in the Omnibus strand. Labour's Harry Cowans retained the Newcastle Upon Tyne Central parliamentary seat in a by-erection caused by Ted Short's elevation to The Lords, albeit. with a much reduced majority. The Conservatives won the Walsall North seat vacated by the resignation of John Stonehouse. They also took Workington with Richard Page narrowly defeating Labour's Dale Campbell-Savours. The Labour Government's majority was, as a consequence, reduced to two. Suez broadcast on BBC2.
In Enemy Country shown in The Friday Film strand. Firework Fiesta: An Entertainment For Bonfire Night broadcast on BBC2. John Llewellyn Moxey's Nightmare In Badham County - starring Deborah Raffin, Lynne Moody, Chuck Connors and Fionnula Flanagan - premiered. Alan Moorhouse's 'When The Boat Comes In'/'The Happy Hussar', Gentlemen & Their Lady Featuring Danny Mitchell's 'Like Her (Parts 1 & 2)', Be Bop Deluxe's Hot Valves EP ('Maid In Heaven', 'Bring Back The Spark'/'Blazing Apostles', 'Jet Silver & The Dolls Of Venus'), Richard Hell's '(I Could Live WIth You In) Another World'/'(I Belong To The) Blank Generation', 'You Gotta Lose', Mud's 'Lean On Me'/'Greacian Lament' and Rod Stewart's 'Get Back'/'Trade Winds' released.
John Sealey's The Ups & Downs Of A Handyman - starring Barry Stokes, Sue Lloyd, Bob Todd, Gay Soper, Chich Murray and Valerie Leon - premiered. Ipswich Town moved up to second in the First Division with a seven–nil thrashing of West Bromwich Albion. Tottenham Hotspur suffered another heavy defeat, five–three at struggling West Ham United. The Spirit Of The Beehive shown in BBC2's Film International strand. ELO featured on Radio 1's In Concert. Baby broadcast in the Beasts strand.
E For Electronics broadcast in The ABC Of Music featuring the work of the BBC Radiophonics Workshop. The Song Remains The Same and F For Fake were previewed on Film 76. Oneof them was really good. The other really wasn't. Marcel Ophuls' The Mmeory Of Justice broadcast on BBC2.
The first UK TV showing of Taking Off in The Monday Film strand. Tom Clarke's Billion Dollar Bubble broadcast in BBC2's Horizon strand. The Sweeney episode Sweet Smell Of Succession and the World In Action episode Living Dangerously broadcast on Thames.
The first episode of The Emigrants, Chances For The Children broadcast. Montreal Memories broadcast on BBC2.
The episode of Superstars in which, during the pistol shooting round, Stan Bowles managed to shoot the table was broadcast. After a night out on the lash with fellow international jet-set playboy, James Hunt, the pair had to run a steeplechase with massive hangovers! Stan also sank his canoe - as did John Conteh and Malcolm Macdonald - and ended up with the worst ever score in the history of the programme, a mere seven points. Legend! The Cultural Common Market broadcast in BBC2's Arena.
The infamous Gwen Troake's Banquet episode of The Big Time broadcast which, single-handedly, destroyed what was left of Fanny Craddock's TV career. Julie Covington's 'Don't Cry For me Argentina' released. Peter Walker's Schizo - starring Lynne Frederick, John Leyton and Stephanie Beacham - premiered.
The first appearance of The Rutles on UK television performing 'I Must Be In Love' on an episode of Rutland Weekend Television. The clip had previously been shown in America - on 12 October on Saturday Night Live. The first eisode of The Discoverers broadcast. Steely Dan's 'Haitian Divorce'/'Sign In Stranger', Queen's 'Somebody To Love'/'White Man', Tommy Hunt's 'One Fine Morning'/'Sign On The Dotted Line', 'Loving You Is', Plummet Airlines' 'Silver Shirt'/'This Is The World' and ABBA's 'Money, Money, Money'/'Crazy World' released.
The third episode of the Doctor Who story The Deadly Assassin ended with Chancellor Goth (Bernard Hosfall) holding Tom Baker's head underwater in an attempt to drown him. It came in for criticism, particularly from the whinging 'clean-up TV' busybody Mary Whitehouse who completely lost her shit over the incident. She often cited this scene in interviews as one of the most frightening in Doctor Who, her reasoning being that children would not know if The Doctor survived until the following week. But, he did. Mike Harding appeared on Radio 1's Top Twelve. Henry Herbert's Emily - starring Koo Stark, Sarah Brackett and Victor Spinetti - premiered. What Big Eyes broadcast in the Beasts strand.
Brian Glover's Summer Season broadcast as part of BBC2's Second City Firsts strand. Headmistress Janet Dines was cleared of caning fourteen-year-old Lynne Simmonds at Northwich Girls' Grammar School. Dines, pleaded not guilty to assault, after Simmonds was 'caught eating crisps during a Maths lesson.' Under cross-examination, Lynne admitted cheating and lying, telling a teacher she was pregnant 'for a joke', telling 'blue jokes' during scripture lessons, 'making up fanciful tales' about her sexual prowess in order to disrupt the class, blowing raspberries behind the teacher's backs, telling lies to cover up her failure to do homework and taking a teacher's pen and offering it for sale at one pound. The scallwag.
The Royal Variety Performance broadcast. Marian Anderson & Lazar Berman At The United Nations broadcast on BBC2. The first episode of Pauline's Quirks and the World In Action episode The Killing Of Uganda broadcast Thames.
Endeavour broadcast in The Emigrants strand. Cajun Moon and Be-Bop Deluxe appeared on The Old Grey Whistle Test along with a filmed interview with Brian Wilson. Sergio Garrone's Lager SSadis Kastrat Kommandantur premiered.
With a team featuring six changes from their previous match, England suffered a major set-back in their attempt to reach the World Cup Finals when they were beaten two-nil by Italy in Rome. A goal in each half from Giancarlo Antognoni and Roberto Bettega - one of six Juventus players in the Italian side - was enough to settle the tie. Scotland beat Wales one-nil at Hampden Park in their Qualification group through an Ian Evans own goal. Elia Kazan's The Last Tycoon and Claude Bernard-Aubert's La Fessée Ou Les Mémoires De Monsieur Léon Maître-Fesseur premiered.
Renee MacRae and her infant son, Andrew, disappeared from their home in Inverness. Their case was the United Kingdom's longest-running missing persons case and within Scotland was as notorious as Glasgow's Bible John murders. In September 2022, William MacDowell was found guilty of the murder of MacRae and her son. Their bodies have never been found.
George Harrison's Thirty Three & A Third, The Laurie Johnson Orchestra's 'The New Avengers Theme'/'A Flavour Of The New Avengers', Man's 'Bananas (Parts 1 & 2)', Robin Trower's 'Caledonia'/'Messin The Blues', Tina Charles' 'Doctor Love'/'Kiss Of Life', John Valenti's 'Anything You Want'/'That's The Way Life Goes', Willie Mitchell's 'The Champion (Part 1 & 2)', Smokie's 'Living Next Door To Alice'/'Run To You' and The Vibrators' 'We Vibrate'/'Whips & Furs' released. John Peel played 'Anarchy In The UK' on Radio 1 for the first time.
Richard Fleischer's The Incredible Sarah - starring Glenda Jackson and Daniel Massey - premiered. The Long Climb Of The Keswick Brothers broadcast in BBC2's Network strand. The Kursaal Flyers and Alberto y Los Trios Paranoias featured in Radio 1's In Concert. The Dummy broadcast in the Beasts strand.
The first episode of Little Lord Fauntleroy broadcast. An adaptation of John Osborne's Look Back In Anger broadcast as part of the Play Of The Month strand. Rocky premiered in New York.
Kennedy's Been Shot broadcast. A Child Of Our Own broadcast in BBC2's Horizon strand. The Sweeney episode Down To You, Brother, the first episode of Yanks Go Home and the World In Action episode The National Party (investigating the extreme right-wing) broadcast on Thames.
Thirteen Thousand Miles Away broadcast in The Emigrants strand. Linda Ronstadt featured on The Old Grey Whistle Test.
England's last remaining representative in the UEFA Cup, Queens Park Rangers, beat Fußball-Club Köln three-nil. Abide With Me broadcast on BBC2. Jean-Claude Roy's Mädchenpensionat - starring Corinne Lemoine, Danielle Altenburger and Martine Audouart - premiered.
In San Francisco, The Band held their farewell concert, The Last Waltz filmed by Martin Scorsese for the - really pretentious - movie of the same name. Barely eighteen months after winning the First Division title, Derby County manager Dave Mackay resigned following a piss poor start to the season, which had left the club just a single point off the bottom of the table. Reserve team coach Colin Murphy took over as caretaker manager.
Stevie Wonder's 'I Wish'/'You & I', Archie Bell & The Drells' 'Where Will You Go When The Party's Over?'/'I Swear You're Beautiful', Jethro Tull's 'Ring Out, Solstice Bells', 'March, The Mad Scientist'/'A Christmas Song', 'Pan Dance' and 'Anarchy In The UK'/'I Wanna Be Me' by The Sex Pistols released. And, the world was never, quite, the same again. The first episode of BBC2's Oh, To Be In England broadcast. Fairport Convention appeared on A World Of Music.

Sidney Lumet's Network premiered. The first UK TV showing of Football & The Good Old Days in BBC2's Film International strand. Joe Burgner featured on Radio 1's Top Twelve.
Tony Bicat's Glitter - starring Toyah Wilcox and Phil Daniels - broadcast as part of BBC2's Second City Firsts strand. The first UK TV showing of The Execution Of Private Slovik. Hitchcock's Torn Curtain shown in the Paul Newman Superstar strand.
The Thomas Crown Affair shown in The Monday Film strand. Secrets Of A Coral Island broadcast in BBC2's Horizon strand. The Sweeney episode Pay Off and the World In Action episode The Long Arm of The Dina broadcast on Thames.
Orpheus With His Lute broadcast. Rainbow Over The Thames broadcast on BBC2. The first UK TV showing of The Beast In The Cellar in Thames's Tuesday Thriller strand.
The Sex Pistols and their entourage - including Siouxsie Sioux - appeared at short notice on ITV's London regional magazine programme The Today Show. Broadcast live and uncensored at 6pm, that was rather asking for trouble. The Pistols were a late replacement for EMI labelmates Queen who dropped out because Freddie Mercury reportedly had toothache. Egged on by the odious host, Bill Grundy, to 'say something shocking' a completely bladdered Steve Jones, complied: 'What a fuckin' rotter!' The shit, as it were, promptly hit the fans. And Grundy, whose TV career was, effectively, ended by this. God, it was funny, though!
The Daily Mirror's infamous headline The Filth & The Fury - referring to The Pistols/Bill Grundy debacle was published. Chung Sun's Du Hou Mi Shi - starring Ping Chen, Hua Yue, Wei Szu and Eva Lin - premiered.
A Pink Floyd cover shoot for their forthcoming Animals LP in South London went awry when a large inflatable pig broke free of its moorings over Battersea Power Station and drifted out of sight. Two days before Smile Jamaica, the reggae concert organised by Prime Minister Michael Manley to help ease tension between the island's warring political groups, Bob Marley, his wife Rita and his manager Don Taylor were wounded in an assault by gunmen at Marley's Kingston home. The first episode of Brensham People broadcast on BBC2. 10CC's 'The Things We Do For Love'/'Hot To Trot', Linda & The Funky Boys' 'Climbing The Steps Of Love'/'Baby, Are You Satisfied?', Judy Collins' 'Bread & Roses'/'King David', The Drifters' 'You're More Than A Number In My Little Red Book'/'Do You Have To Go Now', Sparks' 'I Like Girls'/'England' and Liverpool Express's 'Every Man Must Have A Dream'/'Call Me Your Love' released.
Match Of The Day featured two First Division games with a whopping total of sixteen goals as Malcolm Macdonald scored a hat-trick for his new club, Arsenal, in a five-three victory over his old club, Newcastle and Kenny Burns also bagged three as Birmingham won six-two at Leicester. Dennis Waterman featured on Radio 1's Top Twelve. The IMF agreed to a two billion pound loan to Britain. Labour announced they were to investigate alleged Trotskyite infiltration of the party. Twenty nine passengers were taken ill during a London to Sydney flight. Composer Benjamin Britten died. MP Maureen Colquhoun admitted to hitting a parking attendant following a row. 'I bonked him one,' she noted. Clashes took place in Paris between police and striking workers. A hanger fire destroyed half of Australia's anti-submarine aircraft. Elizabeth Taylor married for the seventh time, to future US Senator John Warner. A silent vigil in Moscow lead by dissident physicist Andrei Sahkarov ended in a violent mêleé with members of the KGB. The Sex Pistols Anarchy Tour - with support bands The Clash, The Damned and Johnny Thunders & The Heartbreakers - was supposed to begin two days after the Bill Grundy incident. However, the first three gigs - at Norwich University, King's Hall Derby and Newcastle City Hall - were instantly cancelled. The latter prompted a furious response from the promoters. 'I hate Newcastle councillors for what they have done to The Kids,' Dave Cork of Endale Associates told the Journal. The newspaper reported the rest of Cork's statement contained four-letter words and, therefore, could not be printed. Councillor Arthur Stabler, Chairman Newcastle's Arts Committee, said that the cancellation was 'to protect youngsters in the audience.'
Bound For Glory - starring David Carradine as Woody Guthrie - premiered. Dreamboat broadcast in BBC2's Second City Firsts strands.
The Anarchy Tour finally got underway with a legendary performance by The Pistols and their support acts at Leeds Polytechnic. It was attended by future members of Soft Cell, Danse Society, The Cult and The Gang Of Four. Motörhead's 'White Line Fever'/'Leaving Here' was scheduled for release on Stiff Records but was cancelled when United Artists intervened as the band were still under contract to them, despite the label's refusal to issue their debut LP. The final episode of I, Claudius broadcast on BBC2. The Sweeney episode Loving Arms and the World In Action episode The Lawbreakers broadcast on Thames. Aleksandr Mitta's Сказ про то, как царь Петр арапа женил premiered.
Arthur Hiller's Silver Streak - starring Gene Wilder and Richard Pryor - premiered. Federico Fellini's Casanova - starring Donald Sutherland - premiered.
Dave Boy Green stopped Jean-Baptiste Piedvache in the ninth round to win the European light-welterweight title. Who Are The SNP? broadcast. Brecht In Newcastle broadcast in BBC2's Arena strand.
Tony Peers - Comedian broadcast in The Big Time strand.

John Peel broadcast his first 'Punk Special' on his Radio 1 show featuring a session by The Damned and records by The Sex Pistols, The Ramones, Eddie & The Hot Rods, Pere Ubu, Television, The Saints and The New York Dolls. Wings Over America released. Frank Agrama's Queen Kong - starring Robin Askwith, Rula Lenska, Valerie Leon and Linda Hayden - premiered. Abdication broadcast. Rose Royce's 'Car Wash'/'Water', Racing Cars' 'They Shoot Horses Don't They?'/'Four Wheel Drive', David Soul's 'Don't Give Up On Us'/'Black Bean Soup', Ruby Andrews' 'I Got A Bone To Pick With You'/'I Don't Know How To Love You' and The Goodies' 'Elizabeth Rules UK'/'Blowing Off' released.
Norman J Warren's Satan's Slave - starring Michael Gough, Candace Glendenning and Barbara Kellerman - premiered. Despite the postponement of several to flight football matches in England, Match Of The Day still managed to select one of the best games to cover, Coventry City's four-two win over Everton. Liverpool remained top of the First Division with three-one victory over Queens Park Rangers. Bottom placed Sunderland lost two-nil at Birmingham.
Muddy Waters, Howlin' Wolf and BB King featured in the Sticking With The Blues episode of The Devil's Music. Percy & Kenneth broadcast in BBC2's Second City Firsts strand.
Horizon's Halfway To 1984 and the first episode of The Lady Of The Camellias broadcast on BBC2. The first episode of You've Got To Be Joking - featuring Cardew Robinson, Duggie Brown, Bernie Clifton and Tom O'Connor - broadcast on Radio 2. The Sweeney episode Lucky Lady and the World In Action episode Made In Hong Kong - Child Labour broadcast on Thames.
Spare The Road And ... broadcast in the Signs Of Trouble strand. Racing Cars and Heart featured on The Old Grey Whistle Test. Television In Black Africa broadcast in BBC2's Worldwide strand.
Denis Healey announced to Parliament that he had successfully negotiated a £2.3bn loan from the International Monetary Fund and that Britain was, as a consequence, no longer completely bloody skint. The Pink Panther Strikes Again - starring Peter Sellers, Herbert Lom, Lesley-Anne Down, Burt Kwouk and Leonard Rossiter - and Derek Jarman's Sebastiane - premiered.
Stuart Rosenberg's Voyage Of The Damned premiered.
New York, New York broadcast in the Omnibus strand. Jonathan Miller and Nigel Kneale featured on BBC2's The Book Programme: Tales Of Horror. John Guillermin's remake of King Kong and Werner Herzog's Herz Aus Glas premiered. Brensham People broadcast on BBC2.
A Star Is Born - starring Barbara Streisand and Kris Kristofferson - and The Cassandra Crossing - starring Sophia Loren, Richard Harris, Burt Lancaster, Ava Gardner, Martin Sheen and OJ Simpson - premiered. The Steve Gibbons Band appeared on Radio 1's In Concert.
The Bloxham Tapes and Films Of The Year broadcast. William Wilson broadcast in BBC2's Centre Play for Christmas strand.
The first UK TV showing of Shaft in The Monday Film strand. Presumably it took so long because they say that cat Shaft is a bad mutha. The Mystery Of King Arthur & His Round Table broadcast in the Horizon strand. The Sweeney episode On The Run broadcast on Thames.
Peter Bogdanovich's Nickelodeon - starring Ryan O'Neal, Burt Reynolds, Tatum O'Neal and Brian Keith - premiered. Winter In Oxfordshire broadcast in BBC2's In Deepest Britain strand.
The Winter Warrior broadcast. Dickens's The Signalman broadcast as part of the A Ghost Story For Christmas strand. The Enthusiast broadcast on BBC2. England won the first of a five test series against India at Delhi by an innings and twenty five runs. Dennis Amiss scored one hundred and seventy nine in England's innings of three hundred and eighty one. Debutant John Lever (who had earlier scored fifty) took ten wickets in the match and Derek Underwood five as England dismissed the hosts twice with only Sunil Gavaskar providing any substantial defiance. Graham Barlow made his test debut.
Leaving Lily broadcast on BBC2. A new volcano, Murara, erupted in Zaire. Causing all manner of discombobulationand malarkey.
The first of the annual Festive Fifty broadcast as part of The John Peel Show which also featured Rod Stewart in concert. The Town That Dreaded Sundown premiered. Princely Toys broadcast on BBC2. Pete At The Palladium broadcast on Radio 2. Brain Of Britain Meets Many A Slip broadcast on Radio 4. Misrule! broadcast on Radio 3.
John Thaw and Dennis Waterman appeared on the Christmas episode of The Morecambe & Wise Show. James MacTaggert's adaptation of Alice Through The Looking Glass - starring Sarah Sutton - broadcast on BBC2. John Sturges's The Eagle Has Landed - starring Michael Caine, Donald Sutherland, Robert Duvall, Jenny Agutter, Donald Pleasence, Anthony Quayle, Jean Marsh and Judy Geeson - premiered in Stockholm. The Grand Babylon Hotel broadcast in Radio 4's Afternoon Theatre strand.
The first episode of The Val Doonican Music Show broadcast. The Barry Humphreys Show and Of Chips ... & Putts ... & Things broadcast on BBC2. Eddie Braben's The Show With Ten Legs broadcast on Radio 2. Stanley Baxter's Christmas Box and Tommy Cooper's Guest Night broadcast on LWT.
Time Brooke-Taylor, Graeme Garden and Bill Oddie presented Disney Time. The First Division saw four-nil victories for Liverpool (against Stoke and Menchester United (versus Everton), Middlesbrough beat Manchester city three-two whilst the first Tyne-Wear league derby since 1971 featured Newcastle beating Sunderland two-nil. Amidst loads of geet tasty violence. Irina Rodnina Champion Of Champions broadcast on BBC2. R
Trevor Preston's dramatisation of James & The Giant Peach broadcast on BBC2. John Arlott's The Fiery Summer broadcast.
The first episode of The Phoenix & The Carpet and the Omnibus film Pleasure At Her Majesty's broadcast. The first UK broadcast of The Conspiracy Of Fiesco In Genoa on BBC2. Frankie Howerd's Tittertime and the first episode of The Dame Of Sark broadcast on Thames.
Robert Muller's adaptation of The Hunchback of Notre Dame - starring Warren Clarke - broadcast on BBC2. The first UK TV showing of Five Easy Pieces.
A Jubilee Of Music and Welcome 77 broadcast. Vintage 76? broadcast on BBC2. The Saints' '(I'm) Stranded'/'No Time' and Roy Hudd's 'The Hole In The Elephants Bottom', 'The End Of My Old Cigar'/'Polly Perkins' released.