By Eliza Bruce-Jones, Second Year, English Literature
The news is constantly filled with negative stories about the world. Wars in Ukraine, the Middle East, Syria and Sudan. Political issues arising in every continent. Every day, there’s a new tragedy displayed in the constant cycle of Breaking News. 2024 itself was certainly not shy of hardships, but nestled amongst the questionable moments of the failings of the human race are moments of great, heartwarming and restorative stories that have the potential to propel us into the next quarter of the century with positivity and hope. So, I’ve collated some of my most notable moments from 2024:
1. Nobel Prizes in AI
The developments of AI have circled social media with the likes of celebrities such as Kim Kardashian posting videos with their new Tesla robots. Nobel prizes were given to John J. Hopfield, Geoffrey Hinton, Demis Hassabis and John Jumper for various incredible developments in AI. Whilst AI can seem an unsettling concept, we must applaud the ingenious scientific developments the world has engaged in. For now, though, I’ll continue saying please and thank you to ChatGPT.
2. Conspiracies on Princess Kate and cancer developments.
In other scientific developments, cancer has been in the news when it was revealed that Princess Kate was undergoing treatment for the disease and has since concluded her final bout of chemotherapy. In 2024, research into cancer has bounded forward and a vaccine targeting certain types of cancer has been developed, providing hope and possibilities for everyone going into 2025 and beyond.
3. Littler’s Darts Victory
On the 15th of December, the Paddy Power World Darts Championship began and resulted in 17-year-old Luke Littler, being crowned as the youngest ever champion on January 3rd after beating the three-time world champion Michael van Gerwen 7-3. He crashed into the darts scene with force – all before legally being able to buy a pint.
4. Ray Gun
Littler wasn’t the only sportsperson to make headlines with the Paris Olympics. Simone Biles’ return to gymnastics was outshone by internet sensation Ray Gun’s indescribable breakdancing performance. Despite receiving severe backlash, her performance solidified the otherwise overlooked breakdancing sport in the Olympics and proved that participating in the Olympics perhaps isn’t quite as elite as we initially thought. Regardless, she provided that which is often so difficult to find in headlines, a laugh.
5. Hardest Geezer (aka Russ Cook)
Despite accusations that he strapped a Garmin to a dog and then would ‘run a bit when the dog got tired’, Russ Cook, aka Hardest Geezer easily takes the greatest sporting moment of 2024 for me. Facing health issues, being robbed at gunpoint and food poisoning, after 352 days, Cook became the first person to run the whole length of Africa raising (as of 7th January 2025) £1,024,672.69.
6. Politics
Politics in 2024 has been unpredictable. 13 years of Tory political ruling came to an end as Keir Starmer took power. Donald Trump overcame two assassination attempts to beat Kamala Harris, becoming the 47th president and leaving us with the hope that he behaves with rationale and integrity with the world’s interest in mind. 2024 has been a brilliant year for democracy as more than half of the world’s population, in over eighty countries, have chosen new leaders.
7. Gisèle Pelicot
The world was shaken by the horrific Gisèle Pelicot case. She had the incredible, brave ability to maintain her integrity as she waived her anonymity, coming to terms with what Domnique and the 50 other men did to her. This 72-year-old woman, in my opinion, is one of the most notable and brave people to date, rocketing the taboo of rape and abuse into conversation. Although the trial concluded on 16th December, her case will lead a revolution in accountability for years to come. I view her decision and incredible strength as a great societal transformation for 2024 and beyond.

8. UBLHC’s active change
In Bristol, UBLHC penned an open letter, with several demands, but one clear goal – to make campus, and particularly sports societies, safer for survivors of sexual violence. The open letter was signed by over 3,000 students and caused the SU to conduct a review which created 46 new recommendations which have now been implemented.
9. Raye and the Brits
Raye crashed into the music scene with the same force as her music. She poeticised her experiences into music through her style as can be noted by her performance where she sat in her underwear in a concert whilst singing ‘Ice Cream Man’, a song about sexual exploitation. She, like Pelicot, exposes the impacts and instances of male sexual violence against women for all generations to listen and learn. Her accumulation of six/ seven nominated awards in the March Brits could not have been more well-deserved.
10. The Era’s Tour and Oasis
In 2024 Taylor Swift ended her Era’s tour after 152 shows. I was in Edinburgh for the weekend that she came and it was clear that the city was electrified – so much so that seismic activity was detected from 6km away. Whilst her tour has concluded, there is no doubt that she will continue to rise; it is up to Oasis to follow in 2025 – so long as the brothers remain civil.
11. What to even title this?
From the extraordinary Wonka Experience in Glasgow (unfortunately the concept of it remains ‘Unknown’) to Baby Reindeer and its subsequent consequences, one thing remains clear: no year is predictable, and we can only guess what 2025 will bring. The best news of all, however, is that Nessa and Smithy got married.