Happy Birthday Milton Keynes

Now here’s a bit of fun. I am planning to publish my book MILTON KEYNES THE CITY OF LEGEND early in the New Year but I keep getting ideas for more legends to include. I have now researched the UK number one hit for every year of our City;s birthday. Here's the birthday hits for our first seven years. The first seven of fifty-five and still counting.

What was Number One in the UK Charts on the day you were born ?  For me it was Goodnight Irene by Frank Sinatra. Hardly rock and roll but Bristol City FC have rocked and rolled it into there club anthem. GREAT.

What was at number one in the charts on the day Milton Keynes was born ? Monday 23^rd January 1967.

It was the boy band The Monkeys with I’m A Believer.

Micky Dolenz who had appeared as a child in the kid’s TV show Circus Boy, Michael Nesmith, Peter Tork and Davy Jones. Davy Jones had played Ena Sharples Grandson in the very early years of Coronation Street. The Monkeys had their own TV show which sort of ran alongside their music,

What a great piece of music for the New City of Milton Keynes to be born to.

To celebrate Milton Keynes first birthday at number one was none other than the Fab Four – John, Paul, George and Ringo – The Beatles with Hello Goodbye. Did you know that Harold Wilson who gave us the New City of Milton Keynes was a great Beatles fan ?

Happy FIRST birthday Milton Keynes.

The Beatles had a hit with this song but to wish Milton Keynes a super happy second birthday it was The Marmalade with Ob-la-di-ob-la-da.

Our toddler New City had a lot of fun dancing to that.

Some time ago I was struggling to process an on-line passport application so called the helpline. This guy on the other end asked me my date of birth. “Thee, eleven, fifty,” I replied then added the word, “Unfortunately !”

“Unfortunately !” He smiled down the phone. “What are you talking about, you grew up when the best bands were playing.”

Well yes I did. I am sixteen years older than our New City but the same could be said for Milton Keynes. Just look at, or should that be just listen to, the amazing third birthday number one on Friday 23^rd January 1970

Love Grows Where My Rosemary Goes by Edison Lighthouse

Harold Wilson is the Father of Milton Keynes, who is our city’s Granddad ? Do you know ?  It was Clive Dunn, he of Corporal Jones fame in Dad’s Army. Here he is on Saturday 23^rd January 1971 wishing Milton Keynes a very Happy Fourth Birthday.

Granddad by Clive Dunn

Our fifth birthday hit could well have been written specially for our New City as it turned five. Speaking of bringing people from all over to sing in perfect harmony, wasn’t that a metaphor for the plan of Milton Keynes Development Corporation ?

The wold’s biggest brand Coca Cola took the song and recorded it as I’d Like To Buy The World A Coke. Once upon a time Coca Cola had a vast plant at the back of Willen Lake. Way across a wide region orbiting Milton Keynes if you wanted to buy a Coke it came from our New City.

Happy Fifth Birthday Sunday 23^rd January 1972

I’d Like To Teach the World To Sing by The New Seekers

By 1973 and its sixth birthday Milton Keynes was starting to step off the paper of its strategic plan and was happening. As new roads were built and the early houses on estates such as Galley Hill, Tinkers Bridge and Netherfield started to appear on former farmland it was clear this New City was going to be a blockbuster.

Tuesday Six years old 23^rd January 1973

Blockbuster  by The Sweet

In an early twist of our kaleidoscope I speak about living on a giant building site with rivers of mud flowing everywhere from the developing sites in our New City. Wednesday 23^rd January 1974 as Milton Keynes was celebrating its seventh birthday it was everywhere. You needed to be very careful where you put your feet as you walked about anywhere and everywhere.

Perhaps appropriate our seventh birthday hit was this.

Tiger Feet by Mud