1950s History: Key Events, Politics And Culture

Coronation, rationing ending, rock and roll starting, and the first television in the street.

Below: the key events of the 1950s, the politics of the decade, the culture people still talk about, and what ordinary life looked like.

Written for quizzes, reminiscence sessions, school projects and anyone working out what a relative lived through.

Key events of the 1950s

• The Festival of Britain opens on the South Bank in 1951.
• Elizabeth II accedes in February 1952 and is crowned in June 1953.
• Everest is climbed and Roger Bannister runs the four-minute mile (1954).
• Food rationing finally ends in July 1954.
• The Suez Crisis in 1956 humiliates the government and ends Eden's career.
• The Munich air disaster kills eight Manchester United players in February 1958.

Politics and government

• The Conservatives return in 1951 and stay in power for the rest of the decade.
• Churchill, Eden, Macmillan: three prime ministers in eight years.
• Macmillan's 'never had it so good' speech in 1957 catches the mood exactly.
• The Clean Air Act 1956 follows the Great Smog of December 1952.
• CND is founded in 1958 and the first Aldermaston march follows.

Culture and entertainment

• ITV launches in 1955 and breaks the BBC's monopoly.
• Rock and roll arrives: Bill Haley, Elvis, and skiffle in every front room with a tea chest.
• The Goon Show on radio and the first Carry On film (1958).
• The angry young men: Look Back in Anger (1956) and Saturday Night and Sunday Morning (1958).
• Teddy boys become the first British youth subculture the papers panicked about.

Everyday life

• Television sets spread fast, mostly rented, mostly bought for the Coronation.
• New towns and slum clearance move families out of terraces and into estates.
• The first motorway section, the Preston bypass, opens in 1958.
• Twin tubs, fridges and Formica start to appear in ordinary kitchens.

Years covered in the 1950s

• 1950 - Petrol came off the ration, the Festival of Britain was being built and there was no chart yet. Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-1950
• 1951 - The Festival of Britain, a Conservative return and still no singles chart. Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-1951
• 1952 - A new Queen, the Great Smog and the first ever singles chart in November. Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-1952
• 1953 - The coronation, Everest, the Matthews final and sweets off the ration. Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-1953
• 1954 - Rationing finally ended and Roger Bannister ran a mile in under four minutes. Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-1954
• 1955 - ITV launched, rock and roll arrived and Britain got its first television adverts. Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-1955
• 1956 - Suez, Elvis arriving in the chart and the start of skiffle. Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-1956
• 1957 - You've never had it so good, the Munich disaster still to come and skiffle everywhere. Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-1957
• 1958 - Munich, the first motorway and Cliff Richard's 'Move It'. Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-1958
• 1959 - The Mini, the M1 and the last year before the sixties. Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-1959
• That is every 1950s year we have written up so far: 1950 to 1959.

How to use this

• Quiz round: read an event and ask for the year, or read a year and ask for the prime minister.
• Reminiscence: ask where they were for one of the events above. The answers are always better than the facts.
• School project: pair this page with the decade calendar for a year-by-year timeline.
• Anyone born in 1950 turns 50 in 2000, 60 in 2010 and 70 in 2020.

Shop prints and posters

How to write it so it lands

• Pair this with the decade calendar if you need the events in year order.
• For a reminiscence session, read one event and let the conversation go wherever it goes.
• Politics and everyday life rarely moved at the same speed. Both sections are here for that reason.

Where to shop next

• Look back to 1950
• Look back to 1951
• Look back to 1952
• Look back to 1953
• Look back to 1954
• Look back to 1955
• Look back to 1956
• Look back to 1957
• Look back to 1958
• Look back to 1959
• 1950s calendar: year by year
• 1950s trivia: fun facts
• 1950s art and artists
• 1950s films and directors
• 1950s music: albums and artists
• 1950s fashion: clothes, hair and accessories
• The 1950s: the whole decade
• Retro gift guide: the 1950s
• 1950s party playlist
• Wartime and 1950s party games
• Playground games by region
• Clapping games and skipping rhymes
• Seaside and beach games
• Sweets that disappeared
• Decade books: best novels, authors and reading trends
• Decade art: artists, styles and trends by era
• Decade films: best movies and directors by era
• Decade fashion: clothes, hair and accessories by era
• Music by decade: albums, artists and songs
• Decade calendar: every year from 1920
• Decade trivia: fun facts by era
• Decade trivia game: play for points
• Decade quiz: test your memory
• Nostalgia gift shop
• Milestone birthday cards
• Planning the party? Birthday party ideas
• How to make a balloon arch
• Photo booth prop ideas
• All guides

Frequently asked questions

What were the most important events of the 1950s?

The Festival of Britain opens on the South Bank in 1951. The full list above covers the events that defined the decade.

What was happening politically in the 1950s?

The Conservatives return in 1951 and stay in power for the rest of the decade. The politics section above covers the governments, laws and arguments of the decade.

What was life like in the 1950s?

Television sets spread fast, mostly rented, mostly bought for the Coronation. The everyday life section above covers homes, money, work and shopping.

What was popular culture like in the 1950s?

ITV launches in 1955 and breaks the BBC's monopoly. There are fuller guides to the decade's music, films, television and fashion linked from this page.

Can I use this for a quiz or a school project?

Yes, freely. Print it, read it out, copy it - no permission needed. We make greeting cards and prints; these pages are free.