Peter Hain
A lifelong anti-apartheid campaigner from South Africa who became a key architect of peace and devolution in British politics.
Born 1950 (age 76)·British politician·Birthday: February 16·Baby Boomers
Biography
Peter Hain's political consciousness was forged in the heat of the anti-apartheid struggle. As a teenager, his family was forced to flee South Africa because of his parents' activism, an experience that defined his trajectory. In Britain, he became a fiery young protestor, famously disrupting South African rugby and cricket tours. This outsider activism evolved into a formidable insider career with the Labour Party. As a Member of Parliament and later a Cabinet minister, he brought a campaigner's zeal to government. His most significant contribution came as Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, where he helped steer the fragile peace process towards the historic restoration of devolved government in 2007. A complex figure, Hain's journey from picket lines to the Privy Council embodied a lifelong commitment to radical change, both on the streets and in the halls of power.
Baby Boomers
1946–1964
The largest generation in history at the time. Shaped by postwar prosperity, the Vietnam War, the sexual revolution, and Watergate. They questioned every institution their parents built — then ran them.
Peter was born in 1950, placing them squarely in the Baby Boomers. The events that shaped this generation — postwar prosperity, civil rights, Vietnam, and the counterculture — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Peter Was Born
The biggest hits of 1950
#1 Movie
Cinderella
Best Picture
All About Eve
#1 TV Show
Texaco Star Theatre
Peter's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1950Born
Korean War begins
Gas: $0.27/galHome: $7,354Min wage: $0.75/hrPresident: Harry S. Truman"Goodnight Irene" — Gordon Jenkins & The WeaversBest Picture: All About Eve
1955Started school
Rosa Parks refuses to give up her bus seat
Gas: $0.29/galHome: $9,550Min wage: $0.75/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Rock Around the Clock" — Bill Haley & His CometsBest Picture: Marty
1963Became a teenager
JFK assassinated in Dallas; Martin Luther King's 'I Have a Dream' speech
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $13,100Min wage: $1.25/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"Sugar Shack" — Jimmy Gilmer & The FireballsBest Picture: Tom Jones
1966Could drive
Star Trek premieres on television
Gas: $0.32/galHome: $14,200Min wage: $1.25/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"The Ballad of the Green Berets" — SSgt Barry SadlerBest Picture: A Man for All Seasons
1968Could vote
Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert Kennedy assassinated
Gas: $0.34/galHome: $14,950Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"Hey Jude" — The BeatlesBest Picture: Oliver!
1971Turned 21
Voting age lowered to 18 in the US
Gas: $0.36/galHome: $18,100Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Joy to the World" — Three Dog NightBest Picture: The French Connection
1980Turned 30
John Lennon shot and killed in New York
Gas: $1.19/galHome: $47,200Min wage: $3.10/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"Call Me" — BlondieBest Picture: Ordinary People
1990Turned 40
Hubble Space Telescope launched; Germany reunifies
Gas: $1.15/galHome: $79,100Min wage: $3.80/hrPresident: George H.W. Bush"Hold On" — Wilson PhillipsBest Picture: Dances with Wolves
2000Turned 50
Y2K passes without incident; contested Bush-Gore election
Gas: $1.51/galHome: $119,600Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"Breathe" — Faith HillBest Picture: Gladiator
2010Turned 60
Deepwater Horizon oil spill; iPad launched
Gas: $2.79/galHome: $147,800Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Barack Obama"Tik Tok" — KeshaBest Picture: The King's Speech
2020Turned 70
COVID-19 pandemic shuts down the world
Gas: $2.17/galHome: $248,800Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Donald Trump"Blinding Lights" — The WeekndBest Picture: Nomadland
2026Age 76 today
Gas: $3.91/galPresident: Donald Trump
Key Achievements
- Served as Secretary of State for Northern Ireland from 2005 to 2007, overseeing the St Andrews Agreement that restored devolved government.
- Was a leading figure in the 1970s Stop the Seventy Tour campaign, which successfully disrupted South African sports tours to the UK.
- Served twice as Secretary of State for Wales and also as Secretary of State for Work and Pensions.
- Was appointed a life peer in 2015, becoming Baron Hain of Neath in the County of West Glamorgan.
Did You Know?
In the 1970s, he was known as 'Hain the Pain' for his effective disruptions of apartheid-era South African sports tours.
He authored a biography of the Welsh singer and political activist Paul Robeson.
His family left South Africa when he was 16 after his mother was jailed and his father banned for their anti-apartheid activities.
“You can't compromise with racism. You have to confront it.”
