2000s Calendar: Every Year, Events, TV And Music

The 2000s in order, one year at a time.

Each year below gives the headline event, what people were watching and what they were listening to, with a link to the full page for that year.

Good for a quiz round, a reminiscence session or working out what to put in a milestone birthday card.

2000

• 2000 - The Millennium Dome, the fuel protests and Big Brother arriving from nowhere.
• News: The Millennium Dome opened on 1 January and struggled with visitor numbers all year.
• Screen: Big Brother launched on Channel 4 in July, and Craig Phillips won the first series.
• Music: 'Can We Fix It?' by Bob the Builder was the Christmas number one.
• Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-2000

2001

• 2001 - Foot-and-mouth, 11 September and the first iPod.
• News: The foot-and-mouth outbreak closed footpaths and delayed the general election to June.
• Screen: Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone and The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring both opened.
• Music: 'It Wasn't Me' by Shaggy and 'Can't Get You Out of My Head' by Kylie Minogue were the year's biggest singles.
• Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-2001

2002

• 2002 - The Golden Jubilee, the death of the Queen Mother and Pop Idol fever.
• News: The Golden Jubilee was celebrated in June, with a concert at Buckingham Palace.
• Screen: Freeview launched in October and replaced ITV Digital.
• Music: Will Young's 'Anything Is Possible'/'Evergreen' was the year's best-selling single after he won Pop Idol.
• Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-2002

2003

• 2003 - Iraq, a record-breaking heatwave and England winning the Rugby World Cup.
• News: The invasion of Iraq began on 20 March, after a protest march in London in February that was the largest in British history.
• Screen: The Return of the King and Finding Nemo filled cinemas.
• Music: 'Where Is the Love?' by the Black Eyed Peas was one of the year's biggest singles.
• Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-2003

2004

• 2004 - Strictly and The X Factor both started, and the year ended with the tsunami.
• News: The Indian Ocean tsunami on 26 December killed well over two hundred thousand people.
• Screen: Strictly Come Dancing and The X Factor both began.
• Music: 'Do They Know It's Christmas?' by Band Aid 20 was the Christmas number one.
• Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-2004

2005

• 2005 - The Olympic bid, the 7 July bombings and the Ashes coming home.
• News: London was awarded the 2012 Olympics on 6 July.
• Screen: Doctor Who returned in March with Christopher Eccleston.
• Music: Downloads began counting towards the official singles chart in April.
• Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-2005

2006

• 2006 - Arctic Monkeys, the Wii and another World Cup penalty shoot-out.
• News: Scotland's smoking ban came into force in March.
• Screen: Life on Mars, The Inbetweeners' precursors and Torchwood arrived; Big Brother was still huge.
• Music: Arctic Monkeys' debut album became the fastest-selling debut in British chart history at the time.
• Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-2006

2007

• 2007 - The iPhone, the smoking ban, the floods and the run on Northern Rock.
• News: The smoking ban came into force in England on 1 July.
• Screen: Gavin & Stacey began on BBC Three.
• Music: Rihanna's 'Umbrella' spent ten weeks at number one over a very wet summer.
• Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-2007

2008

• 2008 - The banking crash, a brilliant Olympics and Lewis Hamilton on the last corner.
• News: Lehman Brothers collapsed in September and the financial crisis deepened.
• Screen: The Dark Knight and Mamma Mia! were the films of the year.
• Music: Alexandra Burke's 'Hallelujah' was the Christmas number one and the year's best-selling single.
• Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-2008

2009

• 2009 - Recession, MPs' expenses and a Christmas number one campaign that worked.
• News: The MPs' expenses scandal ran from May and ended several political careers.
• Screen: Avatar opened in December and became the highest-grossing film ever at the time.
• Music: Rage Against the Machine's 'Killing in the Name' beat The X Factor to the Christmas number one after an online campaign.
• Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-2009

Pop culture milestones of the 2000s

• 2000 - Big Brother launched on Channel 4 in July, and Craig Phillips won the first series. 'Can We Fix It?' by Bob the Builder was the Christmas number one.
• 2001 - Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone and The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring both opened. 'It Wasn't Me' by Shaggy and 'Can't Get You Out of My Head' by Kylie Minogue were the year's biggest singles.
• 2002 - Freeview launched in October and replaced ITV Digital. Will Young's 'Anything Is Possible'/'Evergreen' was the year's best-selling single after he won Pop Idol.
• 2003 - The Return of the King and Finding Nemo filled cinemas. 'Where Is the Love?' by the Black Eyed Peas was one of the year's biggest singles.
• 2004 - Strictly Come Dancing and The X Factor both began. 'Do They Know It's Christmas?' by Band Aid 20 was the Christmas number one.
• 2005 - Doctor Who returned in March with Christopher Eccleston. Downloads began counting towards the official singles chart in April.
• 2006 - Life on Mars, The Inbetweeners' precursors and Torchwood arrived; Big Brother was still huge. Arctic Monkeys' debut album became the fastest-selling debut in British chart history at the time.
• 2007 - Gavin & Stacey began on BBC Three. Rihanna's 'Umbrella' spent ten weeks at number one over a very wet summer.
• 2008 - The Dark Knight and Mamma Mia! were the films of the year. Alexandra Burke's 'Hallelujah' was the Christmas number one and the year's best-selling single.
• 2009 - Avatar opened in December and became the highest-grossing film ever at the time. Rage Against the Machine's 'Killing in the Name' beat The X Factor to the Christmas number one after an online campaign.

Holidays and annual dates

• 1 January - New Year's Day, a bank holiday across the UK (2 January too in Scotland).
• 25 January - Burns Night.
• 14 February - Valentine's Day.
• 1 March - St David's Day.
• 17 March - St Patrick's Day.
• Mothering Sunday - the fourth Sunday of Lent, so it moves with Easter (March, sometimes late February).
• Good Friday and Easter Monday - the first Sunday after the first full moon on or after 21 March sets the date.
• 23 April - St George's Day.
• First Monday in May - the early May bank holiday (added in 1978).
• Last Monday in May - the spring bank holiday (fixed to that Monday in 1971).
• Third Sunday in June - Father's Day.
• 12 July - a bank holiday in Northern Ireland.
• First Monday in August - the summer bank holiday in Scotland.
• Last Monday in August - the summer bank holiday in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.
• 31 October - Halloween.
• 5 November - Bonfire Night.
• 11 November - Armistice Day, with Remembrance Sunday on the second Sunday of the month.
• 30 November - St Andrew's Day, a bank holiday in Scotland.
• 25 and 26 December - Christmas Day and Boxing Day.
• 31 December - New Year's Eve, Hogmanay in Scotland.

Shop birthday cards

How to write it so it lands

• For a guess-the-year round, read the three lines for a year and hide the date.
• For a card, use the year they were born rather than the decade.
• In a reminiscence session, stop on whatever gets a reaction rather than finishing the list.

Where to shop next

• 2000s history: events, politics and culture
• 2000s timeline: key dates and events
• 2000s music: songs, genres and trends
• 2000s films and directors
• 2000s books, films and TV
• 2000s books: novels and authors
• 2000s art: artists and styles
• 2000s fashion: styles, designers and trends
• 2000s food: dishes, restaurants and trends
• 2000s travel: destinations and holidays
• 2000s technology: gadgets and computers
• 2000s shopping guide: what to buy
• 2000s games: board, card and video
• 2000s trivia: fun facts
• 2000s quiz: questions and answers
• 2000s party playlist
• The 2000s: the whole decade
• Retro gift guide: the 2000s
• The decade before: the 1990s
• The decade after: the 2010s
• All decade guides in one place
• Card messages by occasion: every guide in one place
• Card hub: cards, badges and messages by occasion
• Decade history by era
• Decade calendars: every year from 1920
• Decade timelines: key dates and events by era
• Decade music: songs, genres and trends
• Decade films: best movies and directors
• Decade books: novels, authors and reading trends
• Decade art: artists, styles and trends
• Decade fashion: styles, designers and trends
• Decade food: dishes, restaurants and eating trends
• Decade travel: destinations and holidays
• Decade technology: gadgets and computers
• Decade shopping guides
• Decade games: board, card and video games by era
• Decade trivia: fun facts by era
• Decade quizzes: questions and answers by era
• Decade trivia game: play for points
• Decade quiz: test your memory
• Shop art prints and posters
• Shop greetings cards
• Shop birthday cards
• Shop funny cards
• Milestone birthday cards
• Nostalgia gift shop
• Retro party supplies
• Look back to 2000
• Look back to 2001
• Look back to 2002
• Look back to 2003
• Look back to 2004
• Look back to 2005
• Look back to 2006
• Look back to 2007
• Look back to 2008
• Look back to 2009
• 00s quiz questions
• Dial-up, MSN and MySpace
• Adverts we can still recite
• Decade music round questions
• Decade guides: books, films and TV by era
• Guess the year quiz
• Care home reminiscence quiz
• Planning the party? Birthday party ideas
• How to make a balloon arch
• Photo booth prop ideas
• Funny Father's Day cards
• Pin badges
• All guides

Frequently asked questions

What happened in the 2000s?

The Millennium Dome, the fuel protests and Big Brother arriving from nowhere. The calendar above runs through every year from 2000 to 2009, with the main event, the television and film, and the music for each one.

What was on television in the 2000s?

Each year on this page lists what people were watching that year. For the full television and film picture, open the year page itself.

Where do these facts come from?

They are the same checked facts used on our year pages - real, dateable events only. The official UK singles chart begins in November 1952, so earlier years list popular songs rather than chart positions.

Do you sell anything to do with this decade?

We make greeting cards, art prints and pin badges in the UK, including milestone birthday cards. This page is free to read and free to copy.