1990 in history
Here are some light-hearted facts about 1990, designed to serve as a prep sheet for a radio feature on 1990.
I created this page because when I needed some notes to create a few talking points about 1990 in Ireland I couldn't find any suitable sources, so I thought I'd share what I did find. It applies to 1990 in Britain too.
You can also look at years other than 1990:
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1990
George H. W. Bush was serving as President of the US, and in this year he made his famous speech about broccoli - good for audio
Milli Vanilli had their Grammy award revoked after four days. The recording skipped in front of an audience of 80,000 people at a supposedly live MTV performance. An estimated 10 million buyers of their music were eligible to claim a refund.
British and French construction workers met for the first time in the Channel Tunnel.
England's controversial poll tax is launched.
John Major replaced Margaret Thatcher as the Prime Minister.
The World Cup was held in Italy. The Republic of Ireland did especially well, progressing to the last eight, despite not winning a match. Its penalty shoot-out with Romania produced commentator George Hamilton's famous "the nation holds its breath" quote - good for audio
Paul Gascoigne was seen crying after being ruled out the World Cup final.
A ban on the Trade of ivory is introduced.
The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles arcade game is a huge success. [NB: this wasn't the release; it was released the previous year.]
Nelson Mandela was released after 27 years of imprisonment in South Africa, and awarded the freedom of Dublin.
The Irish Pound coin was introduced into circulation to replace the note of the same denomination.
Mary Robinson was elected the seventh President of Ireland, and the first female, replacing Patrick Hillery.
1990 Launches
A Usenet page [an old discussion forum] was created in this year listing 'actresses with beautiful eyes'. It went on to become the massive movie website 'IMDb'.
The Renault Clio was sold for the first time.
The first version of Adobe Photoshop was released.
Marathon changed its name to Snickers to create a global brand.
Aldi opens its first British store in Stechford, Birmingham.
The first Poundland store opened in Burton upon Trent.
Dublin's Western Parkway opened. It would become the first part of the M50; the part between Blanchardstown and Tallaght.
1990 in Film
Ghost was the biggest film of the year.
Other big films include Pretty Woman, Home Alone, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, The Hunt for Red October, Total Recall, Die Hard 2 and Driving Miss Daisy.
Home Alone, Dances with Wolves and Edward Scissorhands were also released in this year.
1990 in TV
Big TV shows of the year (not premiers): Only Fools and Horses, It'll Be Alright on the Night, Inspector Morse, Roseanne and Cheers.
The Generation Game, Mr Bean, Beverly Hills 90210, Have I Got News For You, The Fresh Prince of Bel Air, You've Been Framed!, One Foot In The Grave, Art Attack, Twin Peaks and Keeping Up Appearances aired on TV for the first time.
Winning Streak aired for the first time.
Vic Reeves Big Night Out introduced us to his double act with Bob Mortimer.
While these facts about 1990 have been checked against third-party sources (and have been used on air before!), they are provided in good faith to inspire your research and no guarantee is made about their accuracy or their uniqueness. You can use the facts however you wish: most people just take a couple of points they remember and talk around then.
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