20 October 1973: The Queen opens the Sydney Opera House

Queen Elizabeth officially opened the much-delayed and massively over-budget Sydney Opera House on this day in 1973.

Queen Elizabeth opening the Sydney Opera House
(Image credit: © Fairfax Media via Getty Images via Getty Images)

Danish architect Jørn Utzon's competition-winning design for the Sydney Opera House, complete with iconic rooftop “shells”, pushed the boundaries of what could, or rather couldn't, be built in the 1950s and 1960s to the limit. As The Times journalist Murray Sayle reported on 20 October 1973, the day the Queen opened the Sydney Opera House, “Utzon's shells simply could not be built by twentieth-century technology – a humbling reminder that there are still some things on earth beyond our capabilities”.

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Chris Carter
Wealth Editor, MoneyWeek

Chris Carter spent three glorious years reading English literature on the beautiful Welsh coast at Aberystwyth University. Graduating in 2005, he left for the University of York to specialise in Renaissance literature for his MA, before returning to his native Twickenham, in southwest London. He joined a Richmond-based recruitment company, where he worked with several clients, including the Queen’s bank, Coutts, as well as the super luxury, Dorchester-owned Coworth Park country house hotel, near Ascot in Berkshire.

Then, in 2011, Chris joined MoneyWeek. Initially working as part of the website production team, Chris soon rose to the lofty heights of wealth editor, overseeing MoneyWeek’s Spending It lifestyle section. Chris travels the globe in pursuit of his work, soaking up the local culture and sampling the very finest in cuisine, hotels and resorts for the magazine’s discerning readership. He also enjoys writing his fortnightly page on collectables, delving into the fascinating world of auctions and art, classic cars, coins, watches, wine and whisky investing.

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