1997
News
- 2.5 million people take part in a phone-in vote as part of an ITV debate on the British monarchy. A 2-1 majority vote in favour of retaining the institution.
- Diana, Princess of Wales, calls for an international ban on landmines.
- The Labour Party under Tony Blair defeat the incumbent Conservative government under Prime Minister John Major in a landslide result, winning 418 seats.
- Moors Murderer Myra Hindley is informed by Home Secretary Michael Howard that she will never be released from prison.
- An international survey shows that British rail fares are the most expensive in the world and have risen by 12% since privatisation.
- 31 August – Reports emerge in the early hours of the morning that Diana, Princess of Wales, has been injured in a car crash in Paris which has claimed the life of Dodi Fayed, the Harrods heir. Within four hours, it is confirmed that Diana has died in hospital as a result of her injuries. The United Kingdom and much of the rest of the world is plunged into widespread mourning.
- The UK transfers sovereignty of Hong Kong, the largest remaining British colony, to the People’s Republic of China as the 99 years lease on the territory formally ends.
Entertainment
- Chris Evans resigns from BBC Radio 1 after his request for a four-day week is refused. Since joining the station as a breakfast-time DJ in 1995 Evans had boosted audience numbers by 700,000.
- East 17 singer Brian Harvey is dismissed from the band after publicly commenting that the drug Ecstasy is safe.
- Channel 5, Britain’s fifth terrestrial television channel and its first new one since the launch of Channel 4 in November 1982, is launched.
- Katrina and the Waves win the Eurovision Song Contest with the song Love Shine a Light, the first time the UK has won the competition since 1981.
- 27 June – Publication of J. K. Rowling’s first Harry Potter novel, Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone.
Music
- The new Oasis album, Be Here Now, is released – selling a record of more than 350,000 copies on its first day.
- The Spice Girls continued their success from 1996, once again getting three number ones. The first was the double A-side songs “Mama” and “Who Do You Think You Are”; the latter of which was the Comic Relief single for 1997.
- By far the biggest-selling single of the year, though, came from Elton John. In August, Diana, Princess of Wales, was killed in a car crash. At her funeral, John played a rewritten version of “Candle in the Wind” known as “Candle in the Wind 1997”, a song originally written about Marilyn Monroe.
Number #1 Hits of 1997
| Artist | Title |
| Tori Amos | Professional Widow |
| White Town | Your Woman |
| Blue | Beetlebum |
| L.L. Cool J | Ain’t Nobody |
| U2 | Discotheque |
| No Doubt | Don’t Speak |
| Spice Girls | Who Do You Think You Are/Mama |
| The Chemical Brothers | Block Rockin’ Beats |
| R. Kelly | I Believe I Can Fly |
| Michael Jackson | Blood On The Dance Floor |
| Gary Barlow | Love Won’t Wait |
| Olive | You’re Not Alone |
| Eternal Feat. Bebe Winans | I Wanna Be The Only One |
| Hanson | Mmm Bop |
| Puff Daddy & Faith Evans | I’ll Be Missing You |
| Oasis | D’You Know What I Mean? |
| Will Smith | Men In Black |
| The Verve | The Drugs Don’t Work |
| Elton John | Candle In The Wind ’97 |
| Spice Girls | Spice Up Your Life |
| Aqua | Barbie Girl |
| Various Artists | Perfect Day |
| Teletubbies | Teletubbies Say Eh-Oh |
| Spice Girls | Too Much |
Sport
- Derby County F.C. move into their new Pride Park stadium, but their inaugural match against Wimbledon in the FA Premier League is abandoned in the second half due to floodlight failure.
- Stoke City F.C. move into their new Britannia Stadium, which is officially opened by football legend Sir Stanley Matthews.
- Manchester United won their second consecutive title, despite a spell in the autumn where they lost three games and conceded 13 goals. They won the title by seven points, as Newcastle, Arsenal and Liverpool fell away in the closing weeks.
