Gordon Brown succeeds Tony Blair as leader of the Labour Party and prime minister of the United Kingdom

Prince William marries Kate Middleton in London's Westminster Abbey in a ceremony watched by millions of viewers around the world

The founder of WikiLeaks, Julian Assange, breaks bail and seeks asylum in the Equadorian embassy in London

In an unwelcome shock to the Anglican church in England, a measure debated in the synod to allow women bishops is supported by the Bishops and Clergy but defeated by the Laity

Scientists at Cambridge university prove that there is quadruple helix DNA in humans, promising potential protection against cancer

In a London street two men hack to death a British soldier, Lee Rigby, and tell passers-by that they are avenging Muslims killed by the army

The Guardian, a UK newspaper, publishes the first of many scoops based on the secret files of NSA and GCHQ, leaked by Edward Snowden

Andy Murray wins the Men's Singles at Wimbledon, becoming the first Briton to do so since Fred Perry in 1936

Same-sex marriage is legalized in England and Wales

The House of Commons defeats David Cameron on his plan to support US military intervention in Syria

An ISIL terrorist bombing attack at an Ariana Grande concert in Manchester, England, kills 22 people and injures more than 500 others

A fire at Grenfell Tower in London, England, kills 72 people and injures more than 70 others after spreading rapidly through cladding panels

Former Russian double agent Sergei Skripal and his daughter, Yulia, are poisoned by the Novichok nerve agent in Salisbury, England

The wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle was held at St George's Chapel, England, with an estimated global audience of 1.9 billion