25 Apr 1945—25 Apr 1945: Berlin surrounded by Russian troops
30 Apr 1945—30 Apr 1945: Hitler commits suicide
8 May 1945—8 May 1945: VE Day (Victory in Europe)
9 May 1945—9 May 1945: Channel Islands liberated
26 Jun 1945—26 Jun 1945: UN Charter signed in San Francisco
16 Jul 1945—16 Jul 1945: First ever atomic bomb exploded in a test in New Mexico (although there were
other forms of atomic device before that, such as the Pile at Stagg Field, first critical on
2nd Dec 1942)
26 Jul 1945—26 Jul 1945: Labour win UK General Election - Churchill out of office
29 Jul 1945—29 Jul 1945: BBC Light Programme starts
6 Aug 1945—6 Aug 1945: Atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima
9 Aug 1945—9 Aug 1945: Atomic bomb dropped on Nagasaki
15 Aug 1945—15 Aug 1945: VJ Day (Victory in Japan)
2 Sep 1945—2 Sep 1945: Japanese surrender signed aboard USS Missouri
24 Oct 1945—24 Oct 1945: United Nations Organisation comes into existence
4 Nov 1945—4 Nov 1945: UNESCO founded
5
1946
1946—1946: Transition to National Health Service starts in Britain (came into being 5th July 1948)
1946—1946: Alistair Cooke starts his regular 'Letter from America' on BBC radio - until 2004
1 Jan 1946—1 Jan 1946: First civillian flight from Heathrow Airport
1 Mar 1946—1 Mar 1946: Bank of England nationalised
6
1947
1947—1947: Most severe winter in Britain for 53 years at start of the year - heavy snow and much
flooding later
1947—1947: First British nuclear reactor developed
1 Jan 1947—1 Jan 1947: Coal Mines nationalised
23 Feb 1947—23 Feb 1947: International Organization for Standardization (ISO) founded
1 Mar 1947—1 Mar 1947: International Monetary Fund begins financial operations
1 Apr 1947—1 Apr 1947: School leaving age raised to 15 in Britain
26 Oct 1947—26 Oct 1947: British military occupation ends in Iraq
20 Nov 1947—20 Nov 1947: Marriage of Princess Elizabeth (later Elizabeth II) and Philip Mountbatten in
Westminster Abbey
7
1948
1948—1948: British Citizenship Act : all Commonwealth citizens qualify for British passports
1948—1948: Transistor radio invented
1948—1948: Long-playing record (LP) invented by Goldmark
1 Jan 1948—1 Jan 1948: British Railways nationalised
5 Jul 1948—5 Jul 1948: National Health Service (NHS) begins in Britain
29 Jul 1948—29 Jul 1948: London Olympics begin
8
1949
1949—1949: Maiden flight of the Bristol Brabazon (broken up in 1953 for scrap)
1949—1949: De Haviland produces the Comet - first jet airliner
15 Mar 1949—15 Mar 1949: Clothes rationing ends in Britain
4 Apr 1949—4 Apr 1949: Twelve nations sign The North Atlantic Treaty creating NATO
9
1950
19 May 1950—19 May 1950: Points rationing ends in Britain
26 May 1950—26 May 1950: Petrol rationing ends in Britain
11 Jul 1950—11 Jul 1950: 'Andy Pandy' first seen on BBC TV
9 Sep 1950—9 Sep 1950: Soap rationing ends in Britain
28 Dec 1950—28 Dec 1950: The Peak District becomes the Britain's first National Park
10
1951
3 May 1951—3 May 1951: Festival of Britain and Royal Festival Hall open on South Bank, London
28 May 1951—28 May 1951: First Goon Show broadcast
20 Dec 1951—20 Dec 1951: Electricity first produced by nuclear power, from Experimental Breeder Reactor
11
1952
1952—1952: Contraceptive pill invented
1952—1952: Britain explodes her first atomic bomb, in Australia
1952—1952: Radioactive carbon used for dating prehistoric objects
1952—1952: Bonn Convention: Britain, France and USA end their occupation of West Germany
6 Feb 1952—6 Feb 1952: King George VI dies
21 Feb 1952—21 Feb 1952: Identity Cards abolished in Britain
2 May 1952—2 May 1952: First commercial jet airliner service launched, by BOACComet between London
and Johannesburg
5 Jul 1952—5 Jul 1952: Last tram runs in London (Woolwich to New Cross)
16 Aug 1952—16 Aug 1952: Lynmouth (North Devon) flood disaster
6 Sep 1952—6 Sep 1952: DH110 crashes at Farnborough Air Show, 26 killed
3 Oct 1952—3 Oct 1952: End of tea rationing in Britain
1 Nov 1952—1 Nov 1952: The first H-bomb ever ('Mike') was exploded by the USA - the mushroom cloud
was 8 miles across and 27 miles high. The canopy was 100 miles wide. Radioactive mud fell
out of the sky followed by heavy rain. 80 million tons of earth was vaporised.
25 Nov 1952—25 Nov 1952: Agatha Christie's 'The Mousetrap' opens in London