Born in 1933
Turns 93 in 2026
Gifts for someone born in 1933
1933 Front PageTheir name. The news from their year.Unframed from £21.50Add their name
Their birth chartThe sky as astrology reads it, cast for one birth.Unframed from £21.50
The Years We Were BornThe whole family, together in years.Unframed from £21.50
Our Story timelineTheir life, told in your words.Unframed from £21.50
Front Page: United Kingdom edition. The year is filled in; add their name in the editor. “Your name” is a placeholder. Light news is selected. A new keepsake, not an original newspaper.
BACK TO 1933 · United Kingdom
A little history to go with their gift.
Edwin Armstrong developed wide-band FM at Columbia University, England’s Ashes victory brought controversy over Bodyline bowling, and Who’s Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf? escaped from a Disney film. Radio, sport and popular music all found new audiences.
What happened in 1933?
Armstrong advances wide-band FM radio
At Columbia University in New York, Edwin Armstrong developed wide-band FM in 1933 to reduce static.
Columbia University Department of Electrical Engineering · IEEE Communications Society
Bodyline Turns Cricket Into A Diplomatic Row
England won the 1932–33 Ashes series 4–1 as its fast leg-theory bowling, known as Bodyline, provoked Australian protest.
Radio Luxembourg sends a signal across Europe
Radio Luxembourg put a powerful long-wave signal on air on March 15, 1933, carrying broadcasts beyond the Grand Duchy's borders.
Firsts and new ideas
Zworykin introduces the Iconoscope
Vladimir Zworykin introduced RCA's Iconoscope at an engineering meeting in Chicago in 1933.
The first drive-in theater opens
Richard M. Hollingshead opened the first park-in theater near Camden, New Jersey, in 1933. Visitors watched films from their cars.
Number ones and music in 1933
Chart positions belong to the country and chart named in each record.
Tango brings Argentine music into sound film
Tango!, released in Buenos Aires in 1933, brought Argentine talk and song into a feature film.
Quincy Jones is born in Chicago
Quincy Jones was born in Chicago on March 14, 1933, beginning a life that would connect jazz, film scores and popular music.
Prices and everyday money in 1933
United Kingdom figures in the money of the time. Units and sources matter: these are not today's prices.
| Item or measure | Then | Unit and source |
|---|---|---|
| Average weekly earnings per person in the United Kingdom (Bank of England series) | £1 18s 2d per week | GBP per week Bank of England (series republished by Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis FRED) |
| sugar (annual average) | 2d | equivalent 1 lb (calculated from ONS per kg) Office for National Statistics |
| flour (annual average) | 3d | equivalent 2 lb (calculated from ONS per 1.5 kg) Office for National Statistics |
| bread (annual average) | 2d | equivalent 1 lb (calculated from ONS 800 g source measure; not historical loaf size) Office for National Statistics |
Planning the birthday
Someone born in 1933 turns 93 in 2026. Before their birthday they are one year younger. Choose the birth year for the print; add the full date in the editor if you know it.
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