1972 Newspaper Headlines
Notable 1972 headlines include the anti-British riots in Ireland, the Staines aircraft disaster, and the death of the Duke of Windsor. It was a particularly tragic year for Ireland, as the IRA planted 22 bombs in Belfast, which exploded and killed 9 people, injuring 130. It was also the year of Bloody Sunday, when British troops invaded Belfast and Derry.
Read about all these page-turning events in our collection of 1972 newspaper articles, featuring stories from the nation’s longest running newspapers such as The Guardian, The Times, and The Sun. An authentic 1972 newspaper is a wonderful keepsake gift idea for anyone with a special connection to this year, or anyone interested in historical events.
30th January 1972
The British Army kills thirteen unarmed nationalist civil rights marchers in Derry, Northern Ireland.
2nd February 1972
Anti-British riots take place throughout Ireland. The British Embassy in Dublin is burned to the ground, as are several British-owned businesses.
3rd February 1972
The 1972 Winter Olympics open in Sapporo, Japan.
9th February 1972
The British government declares a state of emergency over a miners’ strike.
24th March 1972
“The Godfather” is released in cinemas in the United States.
22nd April 1972
Sylvia Cook and John Fairfax finish rowing across the Pacific.
18th May 1972
Four troopers of both the Special Air Service and Special Boat Service are parachuted onto the RMS Queen Elizabeth 2 in the Atlantic, after a bomb threat and ransom demand. The threat turns out to be a hoax.
28th May 1972
Duke of Windsor, formerly King Edward VIII (b. 1894) dies.
18th June 1972
Staines Air Disaster: 118 people die when a Trident 1 jet airliner crashes two minutes after take-off from London Heathrow Airport.
18th June 1972
West Germany beats the Soviet Union 3-0 to win the 1972 European Football Championships.
21st July 1972
Twenty-two bombs planted by the Provisional IRA explode in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Nine people are killed and 130 seriously injured.
29th July 1972
A national dock strike begins in Britain.
31st July 1972
Bloody Sunday: British troops move into the ‘no-go’ areas of Belfast and Derry in Northern Ireland, ending Free Derry.
4th August 1972
Dictator Idi Amin declares that Uganda will expel 50,000 Asians with British passports within three months.
26th August 1972
The 1972 Summer Olympics are held in Munich, West Germany.
5-6th September 1972
Munich Massacre: Eleven Israeli athletes are murdered at the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich after eight members of the Arab terrorist group ‘Black September’ invade the Olympic Village; five guerrillas and one policeman are also killed in a failed hostage rescue.
16th October 1972
Rioting inmates cause a fire that destroys most of Maze Prison.
30th November 1972
Cod War: British Foreign Secretary Sir Alec Douglas-Home says that Royal Navy ships will be stationed to protect British trawlers off Iceland.
26th December 1972
Former United States President Harry S. Truman dies in Kansas City, Missouri.
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