Twitter have just unveiled their trends of 2016 for the UK. These reveal the biggest talking points of the year, and it’s an unsurprising bunch – England’s loss to Iceland in the Euros, Brexit, Leicester’s victory in the Premier League, the loss of many beloved famous faces, and the big TV moments of the year. Here are seven highlights from the worlds of music and TV:
1. Harry Styles’ reference to Taylor Swift’s song ’22’ was the second most-retweeted tweet of the year, with more than 700,000 retweets – it was pipped to the post by one from a famous Spanish gamer:
I don't know about you, but I'm feeling 22.
— Harry Styles. (@Harry_Styles) February 1, 2016
2. That infamous iguana scene from Planet Earth 2 was among the top 10 videos of the year:
Possibly the greatest scene in documentary history. Incredible. #PlanetEarth2 pic.twitter.com/01dDjDJcdX
— Luke. (@MrLukeJohnston) November 7, 2016
3. The top 10 most-followed UK celebrities include all of One Direction except for Niall Horan. Harry Styles is at the top, followed by Adele. Wayne Rooney is the only footballer on the list:
4. Gary Lineker’s Twitter game was strong, whether he was talking about football or politics:
The worst defeat in our history. England beaten by a country with more volcanoes than professional footballers. Well played Iceland.
— Gary Lineker (@GaryLineker) June 27, 2016
The treatment by some towards these young refugees is hideously racist and utterly heartless. What's happening to our country?
— Gary Lineker (@GaryLineker) October 18, 2016
Beef brisket for lunch. It's not about this or that sort of brisket. It's about a red, white and blue brisket. The right sort of brisket.
— Gary Lineker (@GaryLineker) December 7, 2016
5. Globally, Game of Thrones was the only TV show to make the top 10 trending topics of 2016 – but in the UK it was only the sixth most trending TV show, falling behind reality TV shows like Celebrity Big Brother, The Great British Bake Off and Love Island, all of which trounced news programmes like Question Time and Prime Minister’s Questions.
6. Mick Jagger’s tribute to David Bowie was one of the most widely shared:
We had so many good times together. He was my friend, I will never forget him. 2/2 pic.twitter.com/9xfPj88x8b
— Mick Jagger (@MickJagger) January 11, 2016
…as was J.K. Rowling’s to Alan Rickman:
There are no words to express how shocked and devastated I am to hear of Alan Rickman's death. He was a magnificent actor & a wonderful man.
— J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) January 14, 2016
7. Finally, this was the most retweeted video of the year, because… cats:
Oh my God… pic.twitter.com/If507fxar5
— Ian Deveney (@DeKroonCat) July 15, 2016
…this was also among Twitter’s roundup:
How do I tell them?? #Brexit pic.twitter.com/6Y7hRIKINi
— James Offer (@joffley) June 24, 2016