From the royal wedding to World Cup mania: The biggest news stories of the year in 2018

Megan White31 December 2018

2018 was an enormous year in the world of news, from the nation united in joy for Meghan Markle and Prince Harry's wedding, to Britain facing months of chaos over Brexit, here's a look back at the biggest stories of the year.

January

Trump abandons UK visit

Donald Trump scrapped plans to visit the UK for the opening of a new £750m embassy. He backed out due to fears he would not be welcome in the country, and the possibility of mass protests.

Mr Trump confirmed the decision on Twitter but put it down to his disapproval of the location and price of the new embassy.

He wrote: "Reason I canceled my trip to London is that I am not a big fan of the Obama Administration having sold perhaps the best located and finest embassy in London for “peanuts,” only to build a new one in an off location for 1.2 billion dollars.

"Bad deal. Wanted me to cut ribbon-NO!"

News Review of The Year 2018 - In Pictures

1/21

Carillion collapse

377 workers will be made redundant
PA

The UK’s second-largest construction company collapsed in January after it found itself £1.5bn in debt.

It went into liquidation with £7bn in liabilities, leaving the government to step in and ensure work on its 420 public sector contracts continued.

The collapse is set to cost taxpayers £148m, and its pension pot will have to be compensated by the Pension Protection Fund.

February

Parkland school shooting

The shooting in Florida was the deadliest high school massacre ever to happen in the US
AP

17 students and staff members were killed when former Stoneman Douglas High School student Nikolas Cruz opened fire at his former school in Parkland, Florida.

17 more were injured during the deadliest high school shooting in US history, and the deadliest mass shooting of 2018.

It led students to form protest group Never Again MSD and sparked nationwide gun control protests.

Beast from the East

UK Weather: Beast from the East freeze - In pictures

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The UK was battered by blizzards, strong winds and widespread disruption when the Beast from the East combined with storm Emma to create some of the worst weather Britain had experienced for decades.

Red weather warnings were issued across the country, with roads and rail grinding to a standstill and up to 20 inches of snow falling on high ground.

17 people died during the extreme cold spell, which lasted from February 24 until March 4.

A mini Beast from the East followed two weeks later.

March

Salisbury poisonings

Amber Rudd visits police cordon in Salisbury

Sergei and Yulia Skripal suddenly collapsed in the centre of Salisbury on March 4, sparking an international diplomatic incident.

Samples tested at nearby Porton Down revealed the father and daughter had been poisoned with a Novichok nerve agent, which was believed to have come from Russia.

Russian spy 'poisoning': Sergei and Yulia Skripal spent weeks fighting for their lives in hospital
PA

Large areas of the sleepy cathedral town, including the Zizzi where they had eaten, were sealed off while police investigated.

It led to 153 Russian diplomats being expelled from 29 countries.

Cambridge Analytica

Mark Zuckerberg: 'sorry' for Cambridge Analytica Facebook 'breach of trust'

The company was exposed in March for harvesting data from more than 50 million Facebook profiles without people's consent.

The data was used to predict the choices of and influence voters. The scandal emerged after whistleblower Christopher Wylie went public.

It caused a massive drop in Facebook's value and sparked international criticism of Mark Zuckerberg and the firm's working practices.

Zuckerberg was eventually forced to testify before congress.

March for Our Lives after Parkland shooting

People across the US marched in support of stronger gun controls
AP

Hundreds of thousands of students joined the March for Our Lives in Washington DC on March 24 following the Parkland school shooting.

They called for stronger gun control measures, and asked for measures which had been introduced in Florida, such as banning bump stocks and raising purchase ages, to be rolled out across the country.

Satellite protests also took place in New York City, Los Angeles, Portland and Chicago.

April

Royal Baby Louis is born

Baby Louis is about to celebrate his first Christmas 
Matt Porteous/Kensington Palace via AP

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge’s third child, baby Louis, was born on March 23, weighing 8lb 7oz.

Korea summit

Kim Jong Un steps into history at South Korea summit

Kim Jong-un and Moon Jae-in met for a historic summit between the North and South to discuss the 2018 Winter Olympics and denuclearisation.

The April 27 summit was the first time since the end of the Korean War in 1953 that a North Korean leader entered the South's territory.

May

Harry and Meghan's wedding

Royal Wedding 2018: The best pictures you might have missed

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Harry and Meghan Markle tied the knot in front of millions on May 19 with a stunning ceremony at St George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle.

Former Suits actress Meghan became The Duchess of Sussex and wore a custom designed Clare Waight Keller for Givenchy dress, followed by a Stella McCartney halterneck number in the evening.

June

Amesbury poisonings

Dawn Sturgess died in July
PA

On June 30, Charlie Rowley and Dawn Sturgess were admitted to Salisbury District Hospital after falling ill in nearby Amesbury.

Police quickly established that they had been contaminated with the same nerve agent as the Skripals almost four months earlier.

Charlie Rowley fell ill in June following exposure to the nerve agent Novichok
AFP/Getty Images

They had found a small “Nina Ricci” perfume bottle, which Mr Rowley had attached a small spray dispenser to and given to Ms Sturgess, who had sprayed it on her wrists.

She died on July 8, with Mr Rowley regaining consciousness two days later.

World Cup mania

England fans celebrate World Cup quarter-final victory

1/26

England’s World Cup journey kicked off on June 18 with a 2-1 victory against Tunisia, turning the nation into football experts and filling up pubs for the rest of the month.

Our incredible 6-1 win against Panama, including a hat trick from Kane, felt like it united the nation.

The team even managed to win one game, against Colombia, on penalties, despite our reputation for bombing out in shootouts.

Despite it finally feeling like football was coming home, England were knocked out on July 11 in a 2-1 semi-final defeat by Croatia.

July

Thai footballers cave rescue

Thai cave rescue news football team and coach found ALIVE after being trapped in flooded Tham Luang cave for nine days

The world watched avidly as the junior football team trapped in Tham Luang Nang Non cave in Chiang Rai, Thailand, were rescued.

The 12 team members, aged 11 to 17, and their 25-year-old assistant coach, entered the cave on June 23 before it was flooded, trapping them inside.

It took more than 10,000 people 18 days to finally rescue all the boys. One diver died during the rescue effort.

Trump’s UK visit

2018 Trump Protests in London - In pictures

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The President’s trip to Britain in July caused widespread protests, with a Trump Baby blimp being launched in Parliament Square in his honour.

Tens of thousands lined the capital’s streets, prompting Mr Trump to hold all his meetings outside London.

While he was at his Scottish golf resort, Turnberry, Greenpeace launched their own protest, with a paraglider swooping past the terrace holding a banner which said “Trump: Well below par.”

August

House of Fraser collapse

At least 10 stores will close next year after the chain went into administration 
Getty Images

The retail giant collapsed into administration on August 10 after months of struggle, but was saved by Mike Ashley’s Sports Direct chain for £90 million.

10 stores are set to close next year, with many more at risk of closure as Mr Ashley restructures the business.

Mr Ashley said he wanted to turn the firm into the "Harrods of the high street."

September

Russians named as poisoning suspects

Suspects in Skripal poisoning claim they went to Salisbury to 'visit cathedral'

On September 5, British authorities identified two Russian nationals using the names Alexander Petrov and Ruslan Boshirov as suspects, claiming they were active Russian military intelligence officers.

The two were later identified as GRU Colonel Anatoliy Chepiga, a Hero of the Russian Federation, and Dr Alexander Mishkin.

The pair gave an interview to Russian TV in which they claimed they had merely visited Salisbury to see the Cathedral’s famous spire.

October

Jamal Khashoggi murdered

A demonstrator holds a poster of Jamal Khashoggi outside the Saudi Arabia consulate in Istanbul where he was killed 
AFP/Getty Images

The Washington Post columnist was murdered on October 2 during a visit to the Saudi Arabian embassy in Istanbul.

The journalist, who was an outspoken critic of the kingdom’s government, was attacked moments after going into the consulate to collect documents for his upcoming wedding.

Mystery has surrounded the events which led to his death, with Saudi Arabia accepting he died in the building. The investigation into his death is still ongoing with Saudi Arabia's leaders facing international condemnation.

People’s Vote march attracts 700,000

Hundreds of thousands of protesters attended a march through London seeking a referendum on the final Brexit deal, including politicians and celebrities.

Eugenie’s wedding

Sarah Ferguson and Princess Beatrice arrive at Royal Wedding

1/13

Princess Eugenie of York and Jack Brooksbank tied the knot on October 12 at St George’s Chapel in Windsor.

Guests included members of the Royal Family, celebrities, musicians and models.

Meghan and Harry royal baby announcement

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex announced that they were expecting on October 15, and that the baby is due in Spring.

They made the announcement as they landed in Australia for their first royal tour together.

The baby will be seventh in line to the throne.

November

Government resignations

Brexit secretary Dominic Raab also resigned from the Cabinet
AFP/Getty Images

Beginning with Jo Johnson, former transport minister, waves of resignations hit Theresa May’s Government in November.

Ministers, aides and private secretaries all stepped down amid rows over the Prime Minister’s Brexit deal.

California wildfires

California wildfires

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California suffered from its most destructive ever wildfires, with more than 1.89 million acres covered and 104 deaths.

Thousands of homes, including those of Miley Cyrus, Neil Young and Gerard Butler, were destroyed.

December

Brexit sparks leadership crisis for PM

Theresa May on March 29, 2017, after she announced Article 50 had been triggered
PA

The Government was thrown into even more chaos in December when at least 48 MPs submitted letters of no confidence in Theresa May to the 1922 Committee, prompting a vote over her leadership.

The letters came flooding in after Mrs May agreed the terms of Britain's withdrawal from Europe.

She survived the vote with a majority of 83, with 200 voting for her and 117 voting against.

She secured victory after announcing that she would not run for PM in the next General Election planned for 2022, but her Brexit plan has not yet been agreed on by MPs and the UK is facing the prospect of leaving the bloc with no deal in place.