Sweet and spicy
On January 7, 2023, Kevin McCarthy was elected House speaker. On September 29, McCarthy's bill to fund the government failed to pass the House after Democrats and 21 hard-right House Republicans refused to support it. On October 3, McCarthy was vacated from his position—the first time in US history that the House of Representatives had removed its speaker from office.
In a story that garnered world attention, the US military on February 4 shot down within American territory an object the size of three school buses officials believed was a high-altitude surveillance balloon originating from China.
Taylor Swift commenced her massive Eras Tour on March 17 in Glendale, Arizona. As of November 2023, it is the highest-grossing tour of all time from its first 60 concerts alone. She has since also announced 2024 tour dates in the US and internationally. In December 2023, Time magazine named Swift "Person of the Year."
On March 3, Donald Trump became the first former US president to be indicted for a crime. Trump is pictured arriving for his arraignment at Manhattan Criminal Court on April 4 in New York City.
Members of the Writers Guild of America (WGA)—representing 11,500 screenwriters—went on strike beginning May 3. Joining the labor dispute was the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP). One of the longest stoppages in Hollywood entertainment history was eventually resolved on September 27.
Director-General of the World Health Organization Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus announced on May 5 that the COVID-19 pandemic is no longer a global health emergency after three years and two months.
Argentine ace Lionel Messi shocked many soccer lovers by joining Inter Miami. He signed for the Major League Soccer club on June 7, and was officially "unveiled" in July.
The world held its breath on June 18 after the Titan, a submersible operated by OceanGate, disappeared while making a dive to the wreck of the Titanic. Four days after the vessel went missing, officials found debris about 1,600 ft (487 m) from the historic shipwreck in the Atlantic Ocean. The five crew onboard Titan perished in a catastrophic implosion.
Deadly wildfires fueled by strong winds and tinder-dry conditions swept through Maui over August 8–11, killing at least 100 people and nearly destroying the entire town of Lahaina. Numerous islanders were left homeless in the tragedy, estimated to have caused US$5.5 billion dollars-worth of damage.
On September 6, the World Meteorological Organization released data indicating that June-August 2023 was the hottest three-month period in recorded history across the Earth. On September 14, NASA declared the summer of 2023 was Earth's hottest since global records began in 1880.
On October 7, Hamas launched a surprise attack from the Gaza Strip into Israel. The deadly incursion left 1,200 Israeli military personnel and civilians dead, with Hamas fighters also taking 248 people hostage. The atrocities prompted the ongoing Israel-Hamas War.
The United States' deadliest mass shooting of 2023 took place on October 25 in Lewiston, Maine, when a rampaging gunman embarked on a killing spree that left 19 people dead.
Actor Mathew Perry was found dead on October 28, the victim of an apparent drowning. Perry, best known for portraying Chandler Bing in the popular TV series 'Friends' (1994–2004), was 54 years old.
An estimated 35,000 people were killed in Turkey and neighboring Syria after a 7.8-magnitude earthquake struck the region in the early hours of February 6. There were more than 30,000 aftershocks in the three months that followed.
The world was intrigued and skeptical in equal measure when on September 14 ufologist Jaime Maussan presented Mexico's congress with the supposed mummies of two aliens found in Peru, creatures he claimed were "non-human beings that are not part of our terrestrial evolution."
In a wanton act of environmental vandalism, the world-famous Sycamore Gap Tree in Northumberland, England, was felled in the early morning of September 28. The sycamore was at least 150 years old and also known as Robin Hood Tree after it featured in a key scene in the 1991 film 'Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves.' Its cutting down by person or persons unknown led to an outpouring of anger and sadness.
In a case that stunned the United Kingdom, former neonatal nurse Lucy Letby was convicted of the murder of seven infants and attempted murder of six others. She was sentenced on August 21 to life imprisonment with a whole life order, the most severe sentence possible under English law.
Former UK prime minister Boris Johnson shocked Britain on June 9 by quitting after receiving the results of an investigation by MPs over misleading statements he made to Parliament about the so-called COVID-19 'Partygate' scandal.
The coronation of Charles III and his wife, Camilla, as king and queen of the United Kingdom and the other Commonwealth realms, took place at Westminster Abbey in suitable pomp and splendor on May 6. It was the first coronation in Great Britain in nearly 70 years.
Prince Harry's controversial memoir 'Spare' was released on January 10. According to Guinness World Records, it became "the fastest selling non-fiction book of all time" on the date of its release.
Oscar-winning actor Kevin Spacey was cleared on July 26 of all charges after a four-week trial in London on claims of sexual assault. The allegations covered a period between 2004 and 2013, when Spacey served as artistic director at the Old Vic theater in the British capital.
On September 16, it emerged that comedian and actor Russell Brand had been accused of the sexual assault of four women. Brand released a video denying "serious criminal allegations."
It was announced on July 26 that singer-songwriter and activist Sinéad O'Connor had died. She was 56. Best known for her cover of Prince's 'Nothing Compares 2 U,' O'Connor had lost her son in 2022, a tragedy she hadn't been able to come to terms with. The cause of her own death has never been revealed, though police confirmed it wasn't being treated as suspicious.
Hollywood actor Ryan O’Neal, star of 'Love Story' (1970) and 'Paper Moon' (1973), died on December 8 in Santa Monica, California. He was 82.
Sources: (Guinness World Records) (CNN) (AP) (BBC) (The Guardian) (Rolling Stone) (NPR) (France24) (Los Angeles Times)
See also: The stars we've lost (so far) in 2023
A kindergarten (pictured) situated in the Solomianskyi district was one of several buildings damaged by the biggest Russian drone attack on Kyiv since its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Officials said more than 75 Iranian-made Shahed drones were fired at the capital on November 26, with all but one shot down. At least five people were injured, including an 11-year-old child.
Early Dutch versions of author Omid Scobie's new book 'Endgame,' released on November 28, named King Charles and the Princess of Wales as the senior royals who allegedly spoke about the skin color of Meghan and Harry's unborn child. Scobie (pictured) initially blamed a "translation" mistake, and the Dutch publishers, Xander Uitgevers, immediately withdrew and pulped copies. The names do not appear in the English version.
A temporary truce in the Israel-Hamas War that saw the exchange of a number of Israeli hostages for Palestinian prisoners ended abruptly on December 1. Israel said it had hit more than 400 targets in Gaza within a day of the ceasefire collapsing. By the end of 2023, Israel has killed more than 20,000 Palestinians.
It was a crime that horrified France and the rest of the world. On October 16, 2020, a French secondary school teacher, Samuel Paty, was killed and beheaded in Conflans-Sainte-Honorine, a suburb of Paris, by Islamic terrorist Abdoullakh Anzorov. Anzorov was shot and killed by police minutes later. But it was only on December 8, 2023, that a French court convicted six teenagers for their role in the murder. They had been accused of having been on the lookout for Paty and identifying him to the killer in exchange for money.
On August 23, a jet carrying members of the Wagner Group crashed 60 mi (100 km) north of Moscow. Among the victims was Yevgeny Prigozhin. The crash prompted speculation that the jet was destroyed on the orders of Russian president Vladimir Putin, after Prigozhin had led the Wagner Group rebellion exactly two months prior.
The world's eyes fell on Rostov-on-Don on June 23–24 when the Wagner Group took control of the Russian city during a rebellion after a period of increasing tensions between the Russian Ministry of Defense and Wagner leader Yevgeny Prigozhin. The rebellion was over as quickly as it had begun, but Russian president Vladimir Putin denounced Wagner's actions as treason.
As 2023 draws to a close, it's worth looking back at the stories from the past 12 months that have shocked, horrified, bewildered, and amazed the public. With this in mind, click through and revisit the news that made global headlines this year.
Shocking and sensational news stories from 2023
News that made global headlines
LIFESTYLE Current affairs
As 2023 draws to a close, it's worth looking back at the stories from the past 12 months that have shocked, horrified, bewildered, and amazed the public. With this in mind, click through and revisit the news that made global headlines this year.