| 1st January 1961 | The farthing, used since the 13th century, ceases to be legal tender in the United Kingdom. |
| 9th January 1961 | British authorities announce that they have discovered a large Soviet spy ring in London. |
| 20th January 1961 | John F. Kennedy becomes the 35th President of the United States. |
| 9th February 1961 | The Beatles perform for the first time at the Cavern Club in their hometown, Liverpool. |
| 8th March 1961 | Max Conrad sets a new world record by circumnavigating the earth on the ‘New Frontiers’ aeroplane in eight days, eighteen hours and forty-nine minutes. |
| 13th March 1961 | Black and white five pound notes cease to be legal tender in the United Kingdom. |
| 12th April 1961 | Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin becomes the first human in space. |
| 6th May 1961 | Tottenham Hotspur FC becomes the first team in the 20th century to win the league and FA Cup double. |
| 28th May 1961 | Peter Benenson's article "The Forgotten Prisoners" is published in several internationally read newspapers. This is later considered the founding of the human rights organisation, Amnesty International. |
| 4th July 1961 | The Soviet submarine ‘K-19’ suffers a reactor leak in the North Atlantic. |
| 10th August 1961 | Britain applies for membership in the European Economic Community. |
| 13th August 1961 | Construction of the Berlin Wall begins, restricting movement between East Berlin and West Berlin and forming a clear boundary between East Germany and West Germany. |
| 10th September 1961 | German driver Wolfgang Von Trips crashes his Ferrari into the stand during the Formula One Italian Grand Prix on the circuit of Monza. Fourteen spectators are killed and Von Trips also dies in the accident. |
| 25th October 1961 | The first edition of the satirical magazine “Private Eye“ is published in Britain. |
| 27th October 1961 | A stand-off between Soviet and American tanks in Berlin heightens Cold War tensions. |
| 9th November 1961 | Neil Armstrong records a world record speed of 6,587 km/hr in a ‘X-15’ rocket plane |
| 11th December 1961 | The Vietnam War officially begins, as the first American helicopters arrive in Saigon along with 400 United States personnel. |
| 19th December 1961 | Goa is officially ceded to India after 400 years of Portuguese rule. |