How well read are you with this year’s world of news from sports, politics, entertainment, celebrities, and tech? Take this quiz to find out how much attention you were paying in 2022.
It comes as Britain's favourite news moments of 2022 include the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee, the Lionesses winning the Euros, and the Will Smith and Chris Rock slap.
A study of 2,000 adults revealed 20% were hooked on reading about the constant concession of Prime Ministers.
And 17% were shocked the UK came second in the Eurovision song contest, while one in ten (11%) couldn’t believe Matt Hancock entered the “I’m a Celebrity” jungle.
Other top moments include Liz Truss getting outlasted by a lettuce (20%), David Beckham queueing to see the Queen’s coffin (17%), and the dog that turned itself in to a police station after being spooked by fireworks (14%).
The research, commissioned by digital magazine and newspaper app Readly, which created the Readly Quiz of the Year 2022, found nearly three-quarters of adults (71%) think 2022 has been a particularly memorable year in terms of news.
Chris Couchman, head of content at Readly said: “2022 has certainly been a year of ups and downs – with war, Covid recovery, inflation, and now strikes.
“We have mourned some of the nation's most popular characters, whilst winning one of the World’s top tournaments.
“The concern around COVID-19 has been taken over by the cost-of-living crisis.
“If we were told we’d see three Prime Ministers this year, and also our monarch's reign would come to an end, you wouldn’t believe it – but it seems no news is surprising these days.”
In a typical month this year, 11% of respondents have had ten or more conversations about memorable events with friends, family, and colleagues.
And just over seven in ten (71%) consider themselves in the loop with current news events – with news broadcasts on TV (46%), newspapers (34%), and the radio deemed the most common ways of getting this kind of information.
Nowadays, though, Brits also like to get their news in other forms – with 42% saying they are listening to podcasts, while 14% are getting it through digital magazines.
The Trojan Horse Affair (16%), BBC Good Food with Tom Kerridge (14%), and Desert Island Dishes (12%) were among the most popular podcasts respondents listen to.
And the OnePoll study also revealed the topics that adults don't want to hear any more about – including Love Island (38%), Prince Harry and Meghan Markle (36%), and I’m a Celebrity (34%).
These were followed by YouTube personalities (32%), Cristiano Ronaldo (31%), and cryptocurrencies (29%).
The Queen came out on top as the most shocking death of the year (37%), with Dame Olivia Newton John (20%) and Robbie Coltrane (19%) close behind.
And of the last 10 years, 2022 and 2020 were voted the most memorable for news events by 12% of respondents.
The research also found that sports (31%), politics (31%), and entertainment (29%) are the topics people prefer to read most about.
But three-quarters (74%) of people said they can’t quite believe some of the stories that are reported in the media, and a further 25% often find themselves “doomscrolling” their social channels.
When looking at the year ahead, 27% think there will be more positive news in 2023 than this year.
Chris Crouchman, of Readly, which saw 286,000 digital issues read 146 million times on the platform this year, said: “Some of the news this year has been difficult to take in – but this has been coupled with happy, heart-warming events that have united the nation, and for which we have seen much appetite across our portfolio of digital magazines and newspapers.
“Our data insights shows that reading has spiked in categories such as news and politics, craft and DIY, and TV, film and cinema this year.
“Whilst celebrity, motoring, and lifestyle were the top read categories in the UK, people are also reading more about weddings, travel, and crafting hobbies this year.
“It will be interesting to see what 2023 brings – let’s hope it’s less doom and gloom and more upbeat, positive news that we can all look forward to.”
TOP FAVOURITE NEWS STORIES OF 2022:
- The Queen's Platinum Jubilee
- Lionesses winning the Euros
- Having three Prime Ministers in one year
- Liz Truss getting outlasted by a lettuce
- Ukraine winning Eurovision – with the UK coming second
- David Beckham queuing to see the Queen's coffin
- The football World Cup taking place in Qatar
- The dog that turned itself in to a police station after getting spooked by fireworks
- Kate Bush's “Running Up That Hill” becoming the popular song in the world
- The Will Smith and Chris Rock slap
- NASA successfully crashes a spaceship into an asteroid
- Johnny Depp and Amber Heard defamation case
- Matt Hancock going into “I’m a Celebrity”
- David Tennant becomes the “new” Doctor Who
- Elon Musk buying Twitter
- Liverpool being announced as the host of the 2023 Eurovision Song Contest
- The Wagatha Christie trial – Rebecca Vardy vs Coleen Rooney
- The return of Glastonbury – headlined by Paul McCartney
- Neighbours ends – and is then brought back by Amazon
- The release of Top Gun: Maverick
- Holly and Phil queue jumping
- Nigels from across the world gather at a Worcestershire pub after the name became officially extinct
- The new series of Stranger Things
- Cristiano Ronaldo's interview with Piers Morgan
- Kanye getting dropped by Balenciaga and Adidas
- Joe Lycett appears to shred £10k cash in row over David Beckham's Qatar deal
- The ABBA Voyage virtual concert residency
- Just Stop Oil activists throw soup at Van Gogh painting
- The sign for Cock Bridge, a village in Scotland, being stolen so many times that “tamper proof” ones were erected
- The rise of TikTok
