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1944 in the United Kingdom:

Other years

1942 | 1943 | 1944 | 1945 | 1946

World War II

UK during World War II

Events from the year 1944 in the United Kingdom.

Incumbents

• Monarch - George VI of the United Kingdom
• Prime Minister - Winston Churchill, coalition

Events

• 10 February - PAYE (Pay as you earn) system of tax collection introduced.^[1]
• 26 February - World War II: Last heavy air-raids on London.^[2]
• May - The Education Act creates a 3-tier secondary education system of Secondary Modern, Technical, and Grammar schools, with entrance determined by success in the Eleven Plus exam.^[2]
• 1 June - World War II: The BBC transmits a coded message (the first line of a poem by Paul Verlaine) to underground resistance fighters in France warning that the invasion of Europe is imminent.
• 5 June - World War II: Final preparations for D-Day take place in the South of England.
• 6 June - World War II: Battle of Normandy begins - Operation Overlord, code named D-Day, commences with the landing of 155,000 Allied troops on the beaches of Normandy in France.^[1]
• 13 June - World War II: The first V-1 Flying Bomb attack on London takes place.^[1]
• 21 August - American, British, Chinese, French and Soviet representatives meet to plan the foundation of the United Nations.^[1]
• 7 September - The Belgian government leaves the UK and returns to Belgium following the liberation of Brussels on September 3.
• 8 September - World War II: The first V-2 Rocket attack on London takes place.^[1]
• 17 September - World War II: Restrictions imposed by the Blackout are relaxed.^[1]
• 9 October - Prime Minister Winston Churchill and Soviet Union Premier Joseph Stalin begin a nine-day conference in Moscow to discuss the future of Europe.
• 12 November - World War II: Sinking of the German battleship Tirpitz by RAF Lancaster bombers.^[1]
• 3 December - World War II: The Home Guard is stood down.
• 24 December - World War II: V-1 Flying Bomb attack kills 27 in Oldham, having been aimed at Manchester.^[2]

Publications

• Agatha Christie's novels Towards Zero and Death Comes as the End.

Births

January - June

• 9 January - Jimmy Page, English guitarist (Led Zeppelin)
• 27 January
  • Mairead Corrigan, Northern Irish activist, recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize
  • Nick Mason, English drummer (Pink Floyd)
• 3 February - Dave Davies, British musician (The Kinks)
• 13 February - Jerry Springer, English-born television host
• 14 February - Alan Parker, English film director
• 17 February - Karl Jenkins, Welsh composer
• 24 February - Nicky Hopkins, British musician (died 1994)
• 1 March - Roger Daltrey, English musician (The Who)
• 7 March - Ranulph Fiennes, adventurer
• 11 March - Don Maclean, British comedian
• 6 April - Felicity Palmer, English soprano
• 27 April - Michael Fish, British TV weatherman
• 5 May - John Rhys-Davies, Welsh actor
• 8 May - Gary Glitter, English singer
• 12 May - Sara Kestelman, British actor
• 20 May - Joe Cocker, British singer
• 25 May - Frank Oz, English puppeteer and film director
• 28 May - Patricia Quinn, Northern Irish actress
• 24 June
  • Jeff Beck, British musician
  • John "Charlie" Whitney, British rock guitarist (Family)

July - December

• 21 July - Tony Scott, English film director
• 27 July - Tony Capstick, English comedian, actor, and musician (died 2003)
• 2 August - Jim Capaldi, British drummer, singer, and songwriter (Traffic) (died 2005)
• 11 August - Ian McDiarmid, Scottish actor
• 26 August - Prince Richard, Duke of Gloucester
• 31 August - Roger Dean, British artist
• 22 September - Frazer Hines, British actor
• 26 September - Anne Robinson, British television host
• 30 September - Jimmy Johnstone, Scottish footballer
• 9 October - John Entwistle, English bassist (The Who) (died 2002)
• 15 October - David Trimble, Northern Irish politician, recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize
• 28 October - Ian Marter, British actor (died 1986)
• 10 November - Tim Rice, lyricist, writer and broadcaster
• 6 December - Jonathan King, British music producer
• 21 December - Bill Atkinson, English footballer

Deaths

• 8 May - Ethel Smyth, composer and a leader of the women's suffrage movement (born 1858)
• 19 August - Henry Wood, conductor (born 1869)
• 13 September - W. Heath Robinson, cartoonist and illustrator (born 1872)
• 23 October - Charles Glover Barkla, physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1877)
• 26 October -
  • William Temple, Archbishop of Canterbury (born 1881)
  • The Princess Beatrice, the last surviving child of Queen Victoria (born 1857)
• date unknown - Hugh Lowther, 5th Earl of Lonsdale, sportsman after whom the brand Lonsdale is named (born 1857)

References

See also