May 1976

[May 1], 1976 (Saturday)

• Neville Wran becomes the 35th Premier of New South Wales, after narrowly winning the state election.
• The UK's premier football tournament is won by Southampton F.C., who defeat Manchester United in the FA Cup Final at Wembley Stadium.

  [May 2], 1976 (Sunday)

• The German cargo ship Nordhuk runs aground off Eilean Trodday in the Inner Hebrides and is wrecked. All twelve crew are rescued by the Stornoway Lifeboat.

  [May 3], 1976 (Monday)

• Eleven people are killed when a de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter 300 operated by de Havilland Canada suffers the failure of its No. 2 engine on takeoff from Monze Airport in Zambia and crashes 1 kilometer beyond the end of the runway.
• The Wings Over America tour by Paul McCartney's band opens in Fort Worth, Texas, the first time McCartney has performed in the United States since The Beatles' 1966 concert at Candlestick Park.

  [May 4], 1976 (Tuesday)

• Schiedam train disaster: The international Rhine Express boat train collides with Stoptrein 4116 from Rotterdam, killing 24 people and seriously injuring another five.
• The first LAGEOS satellite is launched, from Vandenberg Air Force Base in the United States.
• Born: Anza, South African-Japanese singer and actress, in Cape Town, as Ōyama Anza.

  [May 5], 1976 (Wednesday)

• In the 1976 European Cup Winners' Cup Final at the Heysel Stadium in Brussels, R.S.C. Anderlecht of the Netherlands defeat West Ham United F.C. of England by 4 goals to 2.

  [May 6], 1976 (Thursday)

• 1976 Friuli earthquake: An earthquake with a magnitude of 6.5, centring on the town of Gemona del Friuli in north-eastern Italy, kills 978 people were killed and injures a further 2,400; 157,000 people are estimated to have been left homeless.

  [May 7], 1976 (Friday)

• Died: Alison Uttley, 91, English children's writer

  [May 8], 1976 (Saturday)

• Elias Sarkis, a Lebanese politician with the support of Syria, defeats the incumbent Suleiman Frangieh in a presidential election held by the Lebanese Parliament, but Frangieh refuses to step down.
• Born: Martha Wainwright, Canadian singer-songwriter, in Montreal, daughter of Loudon Wainwright III and Kate McGarrigle

  [May 9], 1976 (Sunday)

• Died: Ulrike Meinhof, 41, German militant leader, found hanged in her prison cell

  [May 10], 1976 (Monday)

[May 11], 1976 (Tuesday)

• A tanker truck carrying more than 7,000 gallons of anhydrous ammonia falls from a freeway in Houston, Texas, resulting in the deaths of 7 people and injuries to 200 others.
• Amendments to the Federal Election Campaign Act are signed into United States law by President Gerald Ford.
• Died: Alvar Aalto, 78, Finnish architect and designer

  [May 12], 1976 (Wednesday)

• Spanish tanker Urquiola explodes and catches fire in A Coruña harbour; two of the ship's thirty-nine crew are killed.
• Died: Rudolf Kempe, 65, German orchestral conductor

  [May 13], 1976 (Thursday)

• The first of two lunar eclipses of 1976 takes place, and is visible in South America, Europe, Africa, Asia and Australia.

  [May 14], 1976 (Friday)

• Died: Keith Relf, 33, English rock musician, electrocuted while practising at home

  [May 15], 1976 (Saturday)

• The 7th World Series of Poker concludes in Las Vegas, United States.

  [May 16], 1976 (Sunday)

• In the 1976 Stanley Cup Finals, between the Philadelphia Flyers and the Montreal Canadiens, ends in victory for Montreal, giving them a 4–0 win over the series.
• The Vuelta a España cycle race is won by José Pesarrodona of Spain.

  [May 17], 1976 (Monday)

• Adventurer Tim Severin leaves Dingle in Ireland for America, in an attempt to trace the route of the legendary 6th-century monk Brendan, travelling in a leather boat.

  [May 18], 1976 (Tuesday)

• David Bowie's Isolar tour ends in the Pavilion de Paris, the last of 65 dates.

  [May 19], 1976 (Wednesday)

• Keith Richards of the Rolling Stones is involved in a car crash near Newport Pagnell, UK, and is arrested for being found in possession of an illegal substance.

  [May 20], 1976 (Thursday)

• Born: Ramón Hernández, Venezuelan baseball player, in Caracas

  [May 21], 1976 (Friday)

• Yuba City bus disaster: The worst bus crash in United States history occurs near Martinez, California, when the brakes fail on a school bus and it crashes on a freeway ramp, killing 29 passengers and injuring the other 24.

  [May 22], 1976 (Saturday)

• Died: Oscar Bonavena, 33, Argentine boxer, shot by security guard Willard Ross Brymer, who is later convicted of manslaughter

  [May 23], 1976 (Sunday)

• The 1976 German Open tennis tournament ends with victory for Eddie Dibbs in the Men's Singles and Sue Barker in the Women's Singles.
• The 1976 Yugoslavian motorcycle Grand Prix takes place at the Opatija Circuit, and is won by Olivier Chevallier of France.

  [May 24], 1976 (Monday)

• The first scheduled Concorde flights to Dulles Airport in the United States begin running, three times a week.
• A wine competition nicknamed "The Judgment of Paris", is held in Paris, France, by Steven Spurrier. The contest involves a blind wine tasting, as a result of which some Californian red and white wines emerge as superior to their French equivalents.

  [May 25], 1976 (Tuesday)

• Born: Nadine Heredia, Peruvian politician, in Lima; Stefan Holm, Swedish athlete, in Forshaga

  [May 26], 1976 (Wednesday)

• Died: Martin Heidegger, 86, German philosopher

  [May 27], 1976 (Thursday)

• Outgoing UK prime minister Harold Wilson's controversial Resignation Honours list is published. Among those honoured are businessman Eric Miller, who gains a knighthood but would commit suicide a year later while being investigated for fraud, and Joseph Kagan, who was elevated to the peerage; Kagan was the developer of the textile used in the Gannex raincoats which Wilson habitually wore.
• Died: Ruth McDevitt, 80, US actress

  [May 28], 1976 (Friday)

• The Ukrainian SSR football knockout competition begins, with five matches played.

  [May 29], 1976 (Saturday)

• The European Women's Basketball Championship, held in France, is won by the Soviet Union.

  [May 30], 1976 (Sunday)

• The Indianapolis 500 motor race, held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in the United States, is shortened to 255 miles because of bad weather, and is won by Johnny Rutherford, who walks into Victory Lane instead of driving his car there.

  [May 31], 1976 (Monday)

• Born: Colin Farrell, Irish actor, in Castleknock, Dublin
• Died: Jacques Monod, 66, French scientist and Nobel Prize laureate