| 4th February 1962 | The Sunday Times becomes the first newspaper to print a colour supplement. |
| 18th April 1962 | The Commonwealth Immigration Bill removes free immigration from the citizens of member states of the Commonwealth of Nations. |
| 30th May 1962 | The 1962 FIFA World Cup opens in Chile. It is the first time that the competition is held on the continent of South America for twelve years. |
| 11th June 1962 | Frank Morris, John Anglin and Clarence Anglin become the only successful escapees from the Alcatraz Island prison. There is no conclusive evidence that they survived this escape. |
| 17th June 1962 | Brazil beats Czechoslovakia 3-1 to win the 1962 FIFA World Cup. |
| 1st July 1962 | A heavy smog develops over London. |
| 6th July 1962 | Irish broadcaster Gay Byrne presents the first edition of “The Late Late Show“. Byrne goes on to present the talk show for thirty-seven years, making it the longest running talk show in the world. |
| 12th July 1962 | The Rolling Stones perform their first formal gig at London's Marquee Club. They are the opening act for Long John Baldry. |
| 13th July 1962 | Prime Minister Harold Macmillan dismisses one third of his Cabinet in what the press dubs the ‘Night of the Long Knives‘. |
| 5th August 1962 | The South African government arrests Nelson Mandela in Howick and charges him with incitement to rebellion. |
| 5th August 1962 | Marilyn Monroe, American actress (b. 1926) dies from an accidental overdose. Many conspiracy theories immediately surround her death, involving both John and Robert Kennedy. A general consensus also emerges that her death was probable suicide, but a lack of evidence prevents it from being officially recorded as such. |
| 16th August 1962 | The Beatles’ drummer Pete Best is fired and replaced by Ringo Starr. |
| 23rd August 1962 | John Lennon secretly marries Cynthia Powell. |
| 12th September 1962 | President John F. Kennedy delivers a speech at Rice University, reaffirming that the United States will put a man on the moon by the end of the decade |
| 5th October 1962 | “Dr. No“, the first ever James Bond film, premieres in United Kingdom cinemas. |
| 5th October 1962 | The Beatles release their first single, “Love Me Do“. |
| 29th November 1962 | An agreement is signed between Britain and France to develop the Concorde supersonic airliner. |
| 10th December 1962 | David Lean's epic film “Lawrence of Arabia“ premieres in London. The cast includes Peter O' Toole, Omar Shariff, Alec Guiness, Jack Hawkins and Anthony Quinn. |
| 14th December 1962 | U.S. spacecraft ‘Mariner II’ flies by Venus, becoming the first probe to successfully transmit data from another planet. |