2008 in the United Kingdom

Events from the year 2008 in the United Kingdom.

Designation

2008 National Year of Reading is a year-long celebration of reading, in all its forms.

Incumbents

*Monarch - HM Queen Elizabeth II
*Prime Minister - Gordon Brown, Labour Party

Events

January

* January 4 - An unforecasted blizzard creates havoc across eastern Northern Ireland, with falls of 8 inches in one hour.
* January 7 - RMS Queen Elizabeth 2 and MS Queen Victoria leave Southampton for last and first world cruises respectively.
* January 9 - Israeli diamond magnate Lev Leviev buys a new-build house in Hampstead, London for a record £35 million.
* 12 January - The city of Liverpool officially becomes European Capital of Culture for 2008, a title it will share with Stavanger, Norway.
* 17 January - Number of people affected by novovirus stomach bug in the UK reaches an estimated 3 million.
* 24 January - Peter Hain resigns as Secretary of State for Work and Pensions over irregular donations. [cite web|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/politics/7206812.stm|title="Hain quits jobs 'to clear name'", BBC News|accessdate=2008-01-26]
* 31 January - Conservative Party MP Derek Conway suspended from the House of Commons for 10 days over payments made to his son from his parliamentary allowances. [cite web|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/politics/7219040.stm|title="MPs suspend Conway from Commons, BBC News|accessdate=2008-02-04]
* 31 January - Four men are jailed for 15 years each for their part in the 2006 Securitas raid, the UK's biggest cash robbery.

February

* 6 February - The England National Football team defeat Switzerland 2–1 in Fabio Capello's first game as manager at Wembley Stadium in London.
* 17 February - The Government announced that the Northern Rock bank would be temporarily taken into public ownership.
* 21 February - A jury at Ipswich Crown Court finds Steve Wright, 49, guilty of murdering five prostitutes in a spree during late 2006. [cite web|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/suffolk/7256402.stm|title="Wright guilty of Suffolk murders", BBC News|accessdate=2008-04-05]
* 22 February
** Steve Wright is sentenced to life imprisonment with a recommendation that he should never be released. [cite web|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/suffolk/7258115.stm|title="Suffolk killer will die in prison", BBC News|accessdate=2008-04-05]
** Mark Dixie, 37, is found guilty of the September 2005 murder of Surrey model Sally Anne Bowman (18). He is sentenced to life imprisonment at the Old Bailey, where the trial judge recommends that he serves at least 34 years before parole can be considered. [cite web|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/london/7254628.stm|title="Man gets life for model's murder", BBC News|accessdate=2008-04-05]
* 26 February - Levi Bellfield, 38, is found guilty of murdering two women in London in sexually-motivated attacks; the first in 2001, the second in 2004. He receives a life sentence with a recommendation that he should never be released.
* 27 February - An earthquake with an epicentre in Lincolnshire is felt across most of Britain, with several buildings suffering substantial damage.

March

* March 12 - The British Budget is unveiled by Alistair Darling as his first in the position of Chancellor of the Exchequer.
* March 30 - A plane crashes into a row of houses in Farnborough, London, England, killing two pilots and three passengers. [cite web|url=http://news.sky.com/skynews/article/0,,30100-1311171,00.html|title=No Survivors After Jet Slams Into Homes|accessdate=2008-03-30]

April

* 2 April - A cross human-cow embryo survives a third straight day after being fertilized at Newcastle University, England. A director for embryonic stem cell laboratories at the Australian Stem Cell Centre said that the "99 per cent human" embryo could improve research within the field of human diseases. The Catholic Church in England however said that the creation was "monstrous" and says that the later destruction of it is unethical. [cite web|url=http://www.news.com.au/story/0,23599,23476268-38200,00.html?from=public_rss|title=News.com.au|accessdate=2008-04-05]
* April 6 - The Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007 came into force. [ cite web | title=Understanding the Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007 | publisher=Ministry of Justice | url=http://www.justice.gov.uk/docs/manslaughterhomicideact07.pdf | format=pdf | accessdate=2007-10-17 ]

May

* 1 May
** The London mayoral election was held. Conservative candidate Boris Johnson defeats the incumbent Labour candidate Ken Livingstone. [cite web|url=http://www.londonelects.org.uk/|title=London Elects|accessdate=2008-01-06]
** Elections to the London Assembly are also held, with Brent and Harrow being the only constituency to change hands. Meanwhile, the British National Party gain a seat, their first outside of local councils.
** Local elections are held in England and Wales. The night saw the governing Labour party fall to third place in the popular vote on 24%, behind the Conservatives on 44% and the Liberal Democrats on 25%.

August

* 8 August–24 August - Great Britain compete at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing. The team wins 19 gold, 13 silver and 15 bronze medals finishing 4th in the medal table. It is the best performance for the Great Britain team in a century. [cite web |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/olympics/7568116.stm|title=GB Olympians power to new heights|accessdate=2008-08-19 |publisher=BBC Sport |date=2008-08-19]

eptember

* 6 September–17 September - Great Britain compete at the 2008 Summer Paralympics in Beijing.

Publications

* Iain M. Banks' novel "Matter".

Deaths

* 2 January - George MacDonald Fraser, author (born 1925)
* 3 January - Jimmy Stewart, racing driver (born 1931)
* 9 January - John Harvey-Jones, businessman (born 1924)
* 19 January - Morris Maddocks, bishop (born 1928)
* 30 January - Jeremy Beadle, television presenter, writer and producer (born 1948)
* 28 February - Mike Smith, singer (born 1943)
* 8 March - Carol Barnes, newsreader (born 1944)
* 18 March - Anthony Minghella, film director (born 1954)
* 19 March - Arthur C. Clarke, science fiction author and inventor (born 1917)
* 19 March - Paul Scofield, actor (born 1922)
* 23 March - Neil Aspinall, record producer and business executive (born 1941)
* 1 April - Jim Finney, football referee (born 1924)
* 13 April - Mark Speight, television presenter [Speight's body was found on this date after he had been missing since April 7.] (born 1965)
* 25 April - Humphrey Lyttelton, jazz musician and broadcaster (born 1921)
* 23 May - David Mitton, producer and director (born 1939)
* 24 May - Rob Knox, actor (born 1989)
* 28 May - Beryl Cook, artist (born 1926)

References