A is for Assisted dying
On 29 November, after more than four hours of debate, MPs voted to pass the assisted dying bill by 330 votes to 275. Brought by Kim Leadbeater, the MP for Batley and Spen, this bill could see those with six months or less to live given the legal right to end their own lives. The former presenter and journalist, Esther Rantzen, who is herself signed up to Dignitas, led a public charge in support of the bill. But with the NHS and social care systems already buckling under huge pressure, is the UK really ready for such a serious change in the law? Megan Kenyon
B is for Badenoch
The new(ish) Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch ascended party ranks at warp speed, having only been elected as an MP in 2017. The gaffe-prone former Spectator employee once admitted to illegally hacking into Harriet Harman’s website to alter content to “say nice things about Tories”. Nonetheless she has wooed the party selectorate with assured performances on culture war issues. That’s an impressive achievement. Badenoch is a first-generation migrant and the first black leader of any major party in the UK. But since she assumed the role, it’s Reform that has capitalised on Labour’s dismal start in government. Jonny Ball
C is for Charli XCX
I have committed more words to these pages about Charli XCX than I ever imagined possible. But the international superstar (“still a young girl from Essex”) was the cause célèbre of 2024. And her album Brat was proof of a singular creative principle: to last in our culture you must be convention-defying, not zeitgeist-riding. Mainstream music may be dominated by girls with guitars and forlorn Taylor Swift impressions, but Charli’s loud, bass-heavy, Asbo-pop (“should we do a little key?/Should we have a little line?”) was the soundtrack to the year. Finn McRedmond
D is for Deepfakes
From fake explicit pictures of Taylor Swift to a fabricated clip of Sadiq Khan telling the British public to “get a grip”, deepfakes have caused havoc this year. These artificially generated images, videos or audio clips fool the viewer in to believing they’re observing the real thing. While they have gained ground in 2024, this particularly nefarious form of misinformation is likely to cause more issues in the coming years. And as the technology used to create them advances, the lines between fiction and reality could become even more blurred. Megan Kenyon
E is for Eras
2023 was really Taylor Swift’s moment in the sun, by 2024 we were used to the act: impossibly famous and beloved woman embarks on the biggest stadium tour of all time, and the crowd goes wild. In December the Eras tour finally ended to little fanfare, after 149 shows across five continents. Has her star burned too bright? I wouldn’t count on it. So long as she continues producing songs to a calibre that’s on a different cosmic plain to her peers, Swift will remain hegemonic. Finn McRedmond
F is for Farage
Keir Starmer’s Labour won 63 per cent of Commons’ seats with 34 per cent of the vote. Nigel Farage’s Reform has less than 1 per cent of seats despite winning one in seven votes. If support for Britain’s ablest political communicator is under-represented in Westminster Palace, it’s manifest on modern life’s truer stages: the streets and the screens. December this year was the first month people asked seriously if Farage will be the next prime minister – it won’t be the last. George Monaghan
G is for Gisèle Pelicot
When Gisèle Pelicot waived her right to anonymity as the victim of France’s biggest-ever rape case, her name was seared into popular consciousness. Over the course of a decade, Pelicot’s husband Dominique drugged her at their home in the town of Mazan, southern France, and raped her, and invited other men from surrounding towns and villages to do so as well. In a gruelling four-month trial, Pelicot revealed her astounding strength of character. By going public, her hope is to change how victims of sexual violence are treated. As she told the court: “It is not for us to have shame – it’s for them.” Megan Kenyon
H is for Hamas
It has been more than a year since the 7 October attack on Israel and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s vow of “mighty vengeance” against Hamas. This year, the conflict between Hamas and Israel has intensified; the death toll in Gaza has passed 45,000. The group ends the year leaderless and scattered after the death of Yahya Sinwar in October. But recent reports suggest that a ceasefire between the two sides could be imminent. Hamas said in a statement a deal could be possible if Israel stops setting new conditions. Megan Kenyon
I is for Incumbents
Half the world’s population went to the polls in 2024. And it wasn’t a great year for the guys in charge. Donald Trump swept back to power, the Conservatives suffered the worst defeat in their history, and figures as politically diverse as Emmanuel Macron and Narendra Modi were deprived of their majorities. As the post-Covid inflationary spiral ate away at take-home pay, voters looked to punish incumbents irrespective of left-right affiliations. Proliferating geopolitical crises have also added to the economic malaise and a gloomy world outlook. At least it isn’t just us. Jonny Ball
J is for Jeremy Clarkson
For the first three quarters of 2024, Jeremy Clarkson was having a relatively quiet year. That was until Rachel Reeves announced the reduction of inheritance tax relief for farming families in the Budget. “Rachel Reeves. I literally daren’t comment,” Clarkson initially posted on X. Two hours later, he couldn’t help but comment: “Farmers. I know that you have been shafted today.” And like the very capable populist he is, the comments spurred action. Farmers twice took to central London to protest, with Clarkson – who previously admitted the tax relief was “critical” to him buying his own TV-famous farm – becoming the de facto leader of the movement. Harry Clarke-Ezzidio
K is for Khartoum
Fighting in the Sudanese capital, Khartoum, has been ongoing for more than 18 months after a power struggle broke out between the main two factions of the country’s military regime. Since then, the conflict has evolved into what the UN has described as “one of the worst humanitarian nightmares in recent history”. Twenty-five million people have been displaced from their homes across Sudan, tens of thousands have died, and famine and disease have ravaged the population. As 2024 draws to a close, this merciless, consuming war continues to rage. Megan Kenyon
L is for Labour
After 14 years wallowing in opposition, Labour returned to power in July. Things can only get better, right? Not quite. Though the party’s 174-seat majority is broad, it is also shallow. Just about every type of voter who put their faith in Keir Starmer’s party now seemingly has an issue with the government: farmers on inheritance tax, pensioners on the winter fuel payment cut. This victorious year has ended on a dour note, with Reform closing the gap on both main parties in the polls, and Starmer forced to make what many have termed a “reset” of his government, just five months into a five-year term. Harry Clarke-Ezzidio
M is for Macron
Following June’s legislative elections, France’s hung parliament has proved to be more than just a headache for Emmanuel Macron. The country is on to its fourth prime minister this year. Macron, only halfway through his second term as president, is batting off pressure from all sides. Marine Le Pen’s National Rally is making gains on the right and calls for Macron’s resignation followed the ousting of latest PM Michel Barnier in December. As the year ends, France’s political turbulence has yet to subside, and there is a question mark over the longevity of its president’s tenure. Megan Kenyon
N is for Netanyahu
On 21 November, Judges at the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel’s prime minister. The move was met with outrage across the country. This has been a year in which Netanyahu’s self-styled role as Israel’s protector has been called into serious question. Internally, he faces trial for corruption and bribery charges (which he has emphatically denied) and has been accused of being a danger to democracy. Historically, Netanyahu has proved himself to be a resilient political operator, but are these challenges too much? Megan Kenyon
O is for Oasis
It almost felt like a cultural display of Newton’s third law. As the glitter and glitz of the Eras tour (as Finn writes above) achieved an apogee, something like its musical opposite loomed into view: two dark, feuding, glowering Mancs in cagoules, reuniting for the first time since 2009. Oasis have a rare hold on our collective ear: if something like the Great British Songbook exists, they have made several contributions. To millions, the announcement of their return prompted an equally rare and enviable emotion: joy. Nicholas Harris
P is for Post Office scandal
Although the Post Office scandal came to a head in 2024, its origins go back a quarter of a century. The faulty Horizon IT software, first introduced to postal services in 1999, led to accounting shortfalls that saw 900 subpostmasters convicted of theft, fraud and false accounting through to 2015. This year, the passing of the Post Office Compensation Act gave those affected means of redress, while the ITV dramatisation brought the scandal to an audience of millions, leading to the former prime minister Rishi Sunak describing it as “one of the greatest miscarriages of justice in our nation’s history”. Harry Clarke-Ezzidio
Q is for Queens, New York
Donald Trump’s victory on 5 November was so resounding that even the deep blue hue of New York City has begun to fade. The US pollster Nate Silver noted that “almost no place has seen a bigger increase in Trump support than the five boroughs [of New York City]”. In Queens, the city’s easternmost and largest borough – and Trump’s birthplace – 38 per cent of voters cast their ballot for the US president-elect compared with only 21.8 per cent in 2016. Though traditionally liberal, New Yorkers did not escape unscathed from inflation – the crucial issue that drove US voters to re-elect their former president. Queens is just a small example of a cosmic shift taking place in the US in 2024. Megan Kenyon
R is for Riots
Violent civil disorder is a comparably rare occurrence in Britain. But an unlucky 13 years on from our last spate of rioting, something even uglier reared its head. After the stabbing of three little girls in Southport and a frenzy of misinformation and speculation about the attacker, England faced a week of ethnic-sectarian conflict on its high streets. Politicians and commentators found the events impossible to parse. And, with the alleged murderer still on trial, the anger his actions unleashed is unlikely to fade. Nicholas Harris
S is for Syria
Following the launch of a major surprise offensive by the Islamist militant group, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham and allied rebel factions, more than 50 years of the Assad family’s rule in Syria came to an end. A civil war in the country has been ongoing since 2011, killing over half a million people and displacing millions more from their homes. Though Bashar al-Assad’s reign of terror is over (the toppled president has now fled to Moscow), Syria’s future remains in flux. A new era for this war-torn nation is emerging. Megan Kenyon
T is for Trump
An old man was shot in the head, and 84 seconds later was on his feet with his fist raised to his adorers, crying, “Fight! Fight! Fight!”; they screamed “USA! USA! USA!” Come November, the American nation elected him president in the hope it might become strong, safe and great again. In January he will become the most powerful human on Earth for a second time, now with a loyal and organised team dedicated to imposing his vision on the world. George Monaghan
U is for Ukraine
In February 2025, it will have been three years since Russian troops marched across the border and into Ukraine, sparking a bloody conflict from which there has been little relief. The Ukrainian position has worsened this year, as Russia has, little by little, gained ground. Desertion among Ukrainian soldiers is on the rise and the election of Trump as US president has fuelled concern and uncertainty for president Volodymyr Zelensky. Hopes of a ceasefire in early 2025 are intensifying – but what comes next for Ukraine remains chillingly unclear. Megan Kenyon
V is for Valencia
The Spanish province of Valencia was overcome by apocalyptic flash flooding in October which killed at least 214 people and left dozens unaccounted for. The crisis is one of the worst natural disasters in modern Spanish history and saw towns across the region swept by mud and rubble. Valencian officials have faced criticism after they took 12 hours to respond to a red weather warning, and the King and Queen of Spain were pelted with mud on a visit to the region. The floods’ intensity is a direct result of climate change in the Mediterranean and is a warning of extreme weather events to come. Megan Kenyon
W is for Welby
This Christmas is to be Justin Welby’s last as Archbishop of Canterbury. On 12 November, Welby resigned after the findings of a report into the Church’s handling of serial allegations of physical and sexual abuse by John Smyth. The report criticised Welby for failing to adequately address the abuse, which he was officially informed about in 2013. So ends the tenure of a consummate Church moderniser (women bishops were finally allowed under him). The race for Lambeth Palace and for Welby’s successor will begin in earnest in the new year. Megan Kenyon
X is for X
If you couldn’t bear the grovelling and fled to BlueSky in 2024, you likely weren’t a direct witness to X owner Elon Musk’s courtship of Trump. The wooing worked: Trump returned to the platform on his way to winning back the White House, and appointed Musk to co-lead one of his government departments; Musk anointed himself “First Buddy”. “I can’t get him out of here,” Trump recently quipped about the tech billionaire. Will their honeymoon period end on X in 2025? You’ll need to dig out your old login details to find out. Harry Clarke-Ezzidio
Y is for Yimby
In case you’re not addicted to X/Twitter, Yimby stands for “yes in my back yard”, and it’s the name for a broad group of wonkish, very online, pro-building policy nerds angry at our complex planning system. They’ve hit the mainstream, with their ideas adopted by the Labour front bench and seemingly the entire think tank world. For the Yimbys, there’s nothing worse than a Nimby, who have, they say, have been given easy vetoes over development, exacerbating the housing crisis and making infrastructure upgrades like HS2 impossibly expensive. Jonny Ball
Z is for The Zone of Interest
The Zone of Interest, which won best picture at this year’s Academy Awards, exposes Rudolf Franz Ferdinand Höss, the commandant of Auschwitz, as the father of a relatively conventional bourgeois family. For much of the film the Hösses are celebrating birthdays, squabbling and enjoying their garden. Jonathan Glazer took from Martin Amis’s novel of the same title “the courage to portray the executioners as utterly normal people”. The result, said David Sexton in his New Statesman review, “leaves you feeling both utter dismay and your own implication alongside the perpetrators, rather than the victims.” George Monaghan
[See also: The 20 best books of 2024]
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