50 Fun Facts About 1981

Which Lloyd Webber musical, set to poems Eliot wrote for his godchildren, opened in the West End in May?

Cats premiered at the New London Theatre on 11 May 1981, setting verse from Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats to music. A poem Eliot had cut as 'too sad for children', about Grizabella, gave Lloyd Webber the idea for a full show.

Which reggae star died in Miami on 11 May, aged 36, having refused to have a cancerous toe amputated?

Bob Marley was diagnosed in 1977 with a melanoma under a toenail and declined amputation, citing his religious beliefs. A flight home from Germany was diverted to Miami, where the cancer had spread to his lungs and brain.

Who took over the CBS Evening News the Monday after Walter Cronkite's final sign-off on 6 March?

Dan Rather forced CBS's hand with a rival offer from ABC, and Roger Mudd, long the heir apparent to Cronkite, left for NBC after being passed over.

Which country, a democracy again only since 1974, became the tenth member of the European Communities?

Greece joined on 1 January 1981, and that October elected Andreas Papandreou, whose socialists had promised a referendum on membership; once in office he dropped the pledge and Greece stayed in.

Which probe, launched in 1977, flew past Saturn in August, then went on to Uranus and Neptune?

Voyager 2 rode a rare alignment of the outer planets, using each giant's gravity to fling it on to the next; no other spacecraft has visited Uranus or Neptune.

Which syndicated show, launched on 14 September, is TV's longest-running showbiz news programme?

Entertainment Tonight opened the way for a wave of imitators, among them its own spin-off The Insider, and its 10,000th episode in January 2020 brought the Guinness title.

Which singer, born in Houston on 4 September, lost on Star Search as a child with the group Girl's Tyme?

Beyoncé's Girl's Tyme lost on Star Search and was later dropped by a label before releasing an album; only after that double setback did the group, renamed Destiny's Child, break through.

Which tennis great, born in Basel on 8 August, was a ball boy at the Swiss Indoors in 1992 and 1993?

Roger Federer was handed a medal by champion Michael Stich after the 1993 final, like every ball boy, then came back to win his hometown tournament ten times.

Which tennis player, born in Saginaw, Michigan, on 26 September, went on to win 23 major singles titles?

Serena Williams won her 23rd, the 2017 Australian Open, in the early weeks of pregnancy, beating her sister Venus in the final.

Which Salman Rushdie novel about India's passage from colonial rule to partition won the Booker Prize?

Midnight's Children drew a libel action from Indira Gandhi over a single sentence, which Rushdie agreed to cut; it was later voted the best Booker winner of the prize's first 25 years.

Which machine, advertised as the only computer that fit under an airline seat, was the first successful portable?

The Osborne 1 sold on value: its $1,795 price included software worth about $1,500 on its own, which made up for a screen just five inches across.

Which instrument, built at IBM Zurich by Gerd Binnig and Heinrich Rohrer, earned them the 1986 Physics Nobel?

The scanning tunneling microscope reads a surface with a tip ending in a single atom, so sensitive that the first one sat on a magnet floating over a superconductor to escape vibration.

Which space shuttle, first launched in April, became in November the first crewed spacecraft to fly to orbit twice?

Columbia went back up seven months after its debut, but one of its three fuel cells failed and the planned five-day flight was cut to two; its two-man crew still met most of their goals.

Which race, first run on 29 March, saw Dick Beardsley and Inge Simonsen cross the line holding hands?

The London Marathon was the idea of Olympic champion Chris Brasher, inspired by running New York's in 1979; more than 20,000 people applied for the first race and 6,255 finished it.

Which horse, back from a career-threatening injury, won the Grand National under cancer survivor Bob Champion?

Aldaniti and Bob Champion's win was filmed as Champions, with John Hurt as the jockey and the horse playing himself; when the pair came back in 1982, they fell at the first fence.

Which crossing near Hull, opened to traffic on 24 June, was the world's longest of its type for 17 years?

The Humber Bridge has towers that stand 36 mm farther apart at the top than at the base, to allow for the curvature of the Earth; Japan's Akashi Kaikyō Bridge took its record in 1998.

Which Australia captain told his brother Trevor to bowl the last ball underarm against New Zealand?

Greg Chappell wanted to stop number-ten batsman Brian McKechnie hitting the six New Zealand needed to tie the World Series Cup final at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. Trevor rolled the ball along the pitch, in the style of bowls.

Whose 8 for 43 at Headingley bowled Australia out for 111 after Ian Botham's 149 not out?

Bob Willis bowled down the slope after captain Mike Brearley switched his end, and England became only the second Test side ever to win after following on. Botham had shared stands of 117, 67 and 37 with the last three batsmen.

Which biochemist, namesake of the cell's citric acid cycle, died in Oxford on 22 November aged 81?

Hans Krebs sent his discovery of the cycle to Nature in 1937 and was turned down for lack of space, so it ran in a Dutch journal instead; it won him a Nobel Prize in 1953.

Which ex-heavyweight champion, the Brown Bomber, died near Las Vegas hours after watching a title fight?

Joe Louis was buried at Arlington after President Reagan waived the rules, and Max Schmeling, the German rival he had knocked out in a single round in 1938, helped pay for the funeral.

Which country, renamed from British Honduras in 1973, became independent from the UK on 21 September?

Belize waited years for independence because Guatemala claimed its territory, and about 1,500 British troops stayed on afterwards to deter an invasion.

What did Labour's 'Gang of Four' launch on 26 March, two months after issuing the Limehouse Declaration?

The Social Democratic Party was founded by Roy Jenkins, David Owen, Bill Rodgers and Shirley Williams, centrists who had quit Labour over the influence of Militant and the hard left. Jenkins had been President of the European Commission.

Which physician became Norway's first female prime minister on 4 February, serving until October?

Gro Harlem Brundtland lost office that October but returned twice as prime minister, and chaired the UN commission whose 1987 report gave 'sustainable development' its best-known definition.

Which BBC sitcom, first shown on 8 September, follows Peckham trader Del Boy and his half-brother Rodney?

Only Fools and Horses had the working title Readies; John Sullivan held out for a name from an obscure old saying, 'only fools and horses work for a living', to suit a hero who dodges tax and honest work.

Which 11-part Granada serial, shot at Castle Howard with Jeremy Irons, premiered on ITV on 12 October?

Brideshead Revisited, adapted from Evelyn Waugh's novel, used Castle Howard's grounds and public rooms as the Flyte family's Baroque mansion. The shoot went on a long hold when Irons left to make The French Lieutenant's Woman.

Which BBC children's series, first screened in 1981, is set in Greendale and features a black-and-white cat called Jess?

Postman Pat's Greendale was inspired by Longsleddale, a real valley near Kendal, and Mrs Goggins's post office by the one in the Kendal street where creator John Cunliffe was living.

Which group won Eurovision in Dublin with 'Making Your Mind Up' and a skirt-ripping dance routine?

Bucks Fizz had been put together only that January to sing the song, and beat Germany by just four points; Cheryl Baker was recruited because she had been to Eurovision in 1978 with Co-Co.

Who first swept all four general-field Grammys in one night, with 'Sailing' named Record of the Year?

Christopher Cross did it with his debut album, which beat Pink Floyd's The Wall and a Sinatra set to Album of the Year; no one swept the four again until Billie Eilish in 2020.

Which Lionel Richie–Diana Ross duet from a Brooke Shields film spent nine weeks at US number one?

Endless Love outgrew its film: the Brooke Shields romance did modest business, while the song became the biggest hit of either singer's career and tops Billboard's ranking of duets.

Who won Best Supporting Actor as Hobson, valet to Dudley Moore's drunken millionaire, in the comedy Arthur?

John Gielgud turned Hobson down twice, wary of the valet's strong language, before taking the part that won him his only Oscar.

Who played General Zod, the Kryptonian villain freed from the Phantom Zone, in Superman II?

Terence Stamp's ruthless Zod leads three Kryptonian criminals unwittingly set free by Superman; the film was finished by Richard Lester after Richard Donner was fired, with Lester re-shooting most of it to earn the credit.

Which team won its 14th NBA championship by beating the 40–42 Houston Rockets in six games?

The Boston Celtics won with Larry Bird struggling to score: Cedric Maxwell carried them with 28 points and 15 rebounds in a Game 5 rout and was named Finals MVP.

Which film, seen on a double bill with Xanadu, won Worst Picture at the first Golden Raspberry Awards?

Can't Stop the Music and Xanadu, watched as a double feature, inspired John Wilson to start the Razzies, first held on March 31, 1981, in his living-room alcove to honour the worst of 1980.

Which Heisman winner was MVP of Super Bowl XV as Oakland became the first wild-card team to win the title?

Jim Plunkett had been released by San Francisco and was a backup until starter Dan Pastorini broke his leg five games in; he then won nine of the last eleven games and four playoff rounds.

Which US sport played a season split into two halves in 1981 after a seven-week players' strike?

Baseball's split season misfired: the Cincinnati Reds finished with the best overall record in the game yet missed the playoffs, having come second in each half.

Which American won her third Wimbledon singles title without dropping a set, beating Hana Mandlíková in the final?

Chris Evert Lloyd never won Wimbledon again: Martina Navratilova took the next six titles, beating her in the 1982, 1984 and 1985 finals.

Which English club won its first European trophy, beating AZ '67 5–4 on aggregate in the UEFA Cup final?

Ipswich Town won the home leg 3–0, then lost 4–2 in Amsterdam and held on by a single goal; a year later manager Bobby Robson left to take charge of England.

Which Dutch act topped the US chart with a Beatles medley whose 41-word title is the longest of any number one?

Stars on 45's single chained a Beatles segment with Shocking Blue's 'Venus' and the Archies' 'Sugar, Sugar', and US legalities required every song used to be listed in the title, hence its 41 words.

Which Scottish singer, chosen after a Blondie submission was rejected, sang the theme to the 12th Bond film?

Sheena Easton was suggested by United Artists on the strength of her US number one 'Morning Train'; Bill Conti had written 'For Your Eyes Only' with Donna Summer or Dusty Springfield in mind. It earned an Oscar nomination for Best Song.

Which band's version of John Lennon's 'Jealous Guy', never a single in his lifetime, hit UK number one?

Roxy Music added the song to their set on tour in Germany after Lennon was murdered, then released it as a tribute; it became the only UK number one of the band's career.

Which debut single did R.E.M. put out on the short-lived Hib-Tone label, later re-recording it for Murmur?

'Radio Free Europe' was cut as a raw, fast version; Michael Stipe mumbled because he had not finished the lyrics, and the first pressing even left off Hib-Tone's contact address. The band re-recorded it for their 1983 debut album.

Which REO Speedwagon album, home of 'Keep On Loving You', spent 15 weeks at number one in the US?

Hi Infidelity marked the band's turn from hard rock to pop after 1979's Nine Lives, and it paid off: the album was the biggest seller of 1981 in America and has passed ten million copies.

Which John Lennon song, a UK number six in 1975, finally reached UK number one for four weeks in January?

Imagine returned to the chart after Lennon was murdered in December 1980, and when it left the top after four weeks, the single that replaced it was his own 'Woman'.

Which 'Cat's in the Cradle' singer died on 16 July while driving to a free benefit concert on Long Island?

Harry Chapin played more than half his concerts as benefits and was posthumously awarded the Congressional Gold Medal for his work against hunger; his best-known lyric began as a poem by his wife, Sandy.

Which composer of 'Stardust' and 'Georgia on My Mind' died in Rancho Mirage on 27 December, aged 82?

Hoagy Carmichael first cut 'Stardust' as a brisk jazz instrumental that drew little notice; it took off only after Mitchell Parish added words and Isham Jones slowed it to a ballad.

Which Terry Gilliam fantasy, co-written with Michael Palin, was financed by George Harrison's HandMade Films?

Time Bandits was shot in England, Morocco and Wales; HandMade Films had been set up in London for Harrison to produce Life of Brian, with the aim of making more films with Python talent.

Who played Marion Ravenwood, the tough Nepal bar owner, in Raiders of the Lost Ark?

Karen Allen had impressed Spielberg as an independent character in Animal House, and Raiders went on to be the highest-grossing film of 1981 at about $354 million worldwide, playing in some theatres for over a year.

Which All Creatures Great and Small actor first appeared as the Doctor in the final scene of Logopolis in March?

Peter Davison, who had played vet Tristan Farnon, took over when the Watcher merged with Tom Baker's Fourth Doctor; the closing credits of the final episode even had Baker's face removed.

Which actress, born in Jerusalem on 9 June under the surname Hershlag, won an Oscar as a ballerina in Black Swan?

Natalie Portman took her grandmother's maiden name when she was cast as a child in Léon, to protect her family's privacy; her father is an Israeli fertility doctor and her mother an American artist.

Elizabeth Jordan Carr, born in Norfolk, Virginia, on 28 December, was America's first baby born by what method?

In-vitro fertilization reached America through a second career: Howard and Georgeanna Jones began the Norfolk programme in 1978, after his mandatory retirement from Johns Hopkins, and Carr was about the 15th such baby in the world.