2016 – Where do we start?

While it’s easy (oh-so easy) to dismiss the past 12 months as a sh*tshow from start to finish, it’s important to acknowledge that among Trump’s triumph and the Brexit blow-out, the past year has also given us some pretty amazing events.

From the Irish fans doing us proud at the Euros to Brianna Parkins speaking out at The Rose of Tralee, 2016 gave us A LOT to talk about on Facebook.

And oh, how we talked.

Today, Facebook released the most discussed moments in 2016, and it looks like Ireland was on much the same page as the rest of the world when it came to the moments which stopped us in our tracks.

Ireland:

  1. US Presidential Election
  2. Irish General Election
  3. Brexit
  4. Olympics
  5. UEFA Euro 2016
  6. David Bowie
  7. Easter Rising
  8. GAA All-Ireland Final 2016
  9. Rose of Tralee
  10. Six Nations Championship

Global:

  1. US Elections
  2. Brazilian Politics
  3. Pokemon Go
  4. Black Lives Matter
  5. Rodrigo Duterte
  6. Olympics
  7. Brexit
  8. Super Bowl
  9. David Bowie
  10. Muhammed Ali

"The range of topics in this year’s top ten shows the breadth of subjects discussed on Facebook, from elections to major sporting events and, of course, key moments on the Irish calendar like the All-Ireland finals," Head of Facebook Gareth Lambe said.

“It was a big year for politics and it is no surprise that the top three most talked-about topics were the Irish and US elections and Brexit.”

“During the summer, we had the Euros and Olympics – at which Ireland was well represented by both our athletes and supporters – with many stand-out moments captured on Facebook.”

And when not busy weighing in on global politics, we also found time to make the most of Facebook’s new feature, Facebook Live, which became available to everyone in April of this year.

From the Byrne Brothers dancing in Eyre Square to checking in with Mrs Brown’s Boys, our top four Facebook Live videos have been revealed, and we’re clearly a patriotic bunch.

Here are the top four…

1. The Byrne Brothers, Byrne Brothers Dancing in Eyre Square  

2. TG4, Irish dancers in Inis

3. The Irish Sun, Ronan Keating duets with his daughter Ali
 

4. Mrs. Brown’s Boys TV Series, Mrs. Brown's Boys Live

Ah memories, but we’re looking forward to closing the door on 2016 all the same…