The top stories of 2023 from sofa wars to Barbie …how many can you remember? Test yourself with topical quiz

AS THE year comes to a close there’s no better time to reminisce on the top stories of 2023.

From sofa wars to Barbie and shocking scandals to milestone moments, it’s certainly been another eventful year.

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The Coronation of King Charles III was one of the standout moments of 2023[/caption]

SWNS

SWNS

England’s Lionesses had a memorable World Cup campaign before falling at the final hurdle last summer[/caption]

With this in mind, why not test your memory on the top stories from this year with this topical quiz.

Do you know what date the Kings Coronation took place? What chocolate bar Cadbury discontinued, or what Ken’s famous line was in the Barbie movie?

Let’s hope you’ve been paying attention.

The quiz was developed by digital magazine and newspaper app, Readly, which also polled 2,000 adults to discover their favourite stories of the year.

King Charles’ coronation came top, with Boris Johnson resigning as an MP coming second.

Despite losing, England’s Lionesses making the final of the World Cup was also a highlight.

More than 50 years after they split, the release of the “last ever” song by The Beatles, “Now and Then”, was popular.

As was coverage of another pop icon, Sir Elton John, thanks to his final UK performance when he headlined Glastonbury.

Barbie topping the box office, the rise of AI, and the return of reality TV show Big Brother also went down well with the 2,000 adults polled.

Other notable moments making the top 30 list included Donald Trump’s mugshot, a pill which halves the risk of breast cancer, and Twitter becoming X. 

But the topic of Prince Harry and Meghan is something that 48 per cent of the participants no longer want to hear about. 

Love Island, Phillip Schofield, and YouTube personalities also fall into this category for many of those who polled.

Chris Couchman, head of content at Readly, said: “It seems that year on year, news is becoming even more shocking and there have been so many highs and lows this year.

“Yet, it’s nice to be able to recap on the year we’ve had – with Nigel Farage going on I’m A Celebrity to a Parkinson’s patient able to walk 6km without problems after a spinal implant.

“The diversity of the news in 2023, from the unexpected and shocking to the heartwarming, truly reflects the dynamic nature of the world we live in.”

The study also found 66 per cent of everyone polled consider themselves “up to date” with current news and events.

The cost-of-living crisis came out as the biggest talking point of 2023 (52 per cent), followed by the Israel-Hamas war (45 per cent) and AI (24 per cent).

There were also 74 per cent of pollers who “couldn’t quite believe” some of the stories reported in the media during the past 12 months.

As such, the deaths of Matthew Perry (29 per cent), Paul O’Grady (23 per cent), and Sinead O’Connor (18 per cent) were the biggest shocks of the year.

However, 61 per cent would much rather read about positive events.

And although 61 per cent of people think 2023 has been a memorable year, 19 per cent consider other years to be more so, with 2020 coming out on top.

News broadcasts on TV were found to be the place where 54 per cent get their news and current events information from, whilst 44 per cent get their news from digital magazines and newspapers.

Interestingly, 37 per cent tune into the radio and 29 per cent simply rely on word of mouth.

The research carried out through OnePoll found sports (32 per cent), politics (25 per cent) and entertainment (24 per cent) were the topics those polled most enjoy reading or hearing about.

It also emerged that 17 per cent suspect they’ve read a piece of news this year that was AI generated.

And 30 per cent expect AI to dominate the news agenda even more during the next 12 months than it has done in 2023.

Chris Couchman from Readly, a magazine app with more than 7,600 titles, added: “Looking ahead, we anticipate another year of compelling stories and transformative developments.

“Here’s to a year that doesn’t pass by too quickly, allowing us all to savour the moments and embrace the exciting possibilities that lie ahead.

“May 2024 bring us more moments that captivate, challenge, and inspire, ensuring there is always something to look forward to.”