2016: The year in shake-ups and surprises check out number 15 and you will be surprised:
1. Donald Trump - President-elect of U.S.
Almost no one — except, perhaps, the candidate - expected Donald's Trump's victory in the U.S. presidential election. The businessman — a controversial figure best known in recent years for his reality TV appearances - beat his Democratic rival Hillary Clinton despite losing the popular vote by almost 3 million votes. But although it was one of the biggest, it was by no means the only shock of 2016. We look at some of the most surprising, heartbreaking and downright amazing events of the year gone by.
2. David Bowie Dies at 69
Music legend and cultural icon David Bowie (real name David Robert Jones), who had been a titanic figure in popular culture since the late 1960s, passed away on January 10 after an 18-month battle with liver cancer. Following his death, thousands of fans gathered at impromptu shrines around the world to commemorate one of the great showmen and influencers of the 20th century.
3. Gawker.com is forced into bankruptcy and closure
After 14 years as one of the pre-eminent purveyors of gossip and celebrity culture Gawker.com, the flagship site of Gawker Media, closed in June. Gawker Media had lost a $140 million lawsuit brought by former wrestler Hulk Hogan (real name Terry Bollea) over a sex tape featuring Bollea which Gawker had published and which Bollea claimed had invaded his privacy. Bollea's lawsuit was allegedly funded by Peter Thiel, the billionaire investor and PayPal founder who had, notoriously, backed several lawsuits against Gawker since the site outed him as gay in 2007.
4. Maria Sharapova receives a two-year suspension
In June 2016, Maria Sharapova was suspended for two years for testing positive for meldonium, a heart drug that was added to WADA's (the World Anti-Doping Authority) list of banned substances in January. Sharapova claimed that meldonium was prescribed to her by a family doctor in 2005 and she has been using it for more than a decade. The panel later reduced her suspension to 15 months on appeal.
5.Prince dies at 57
Prince, the flamboyant musician and performer who enthralled fans for decades with his style and musical innovation, died at his recording studio Paisley Park in Minnesota, U.S. after an accidental overdose of the powerful opioid painkiller fentanyl. The artist, who was a master of reinvention and was famous for his multi-instrumental talent and the sheer volume of his song-writing, released his final album, "Hit n Run Phase Two," in December 2015.
6. Taiwan inaugurates first female President
In May 2016, Taiwan's Tsai Ing-wen (C) was sworn in as president. Her win was only the second ever victory for a Democratic Progressive Party candidate after almost 70 years of government by the Kuomintang (Nationalist Party of China).
7.Bob Dylan wins Nobel Prize for Literature
In October 2016, U.S. singer Bob Dylan was awarded the 2016 Nobel Prize for Literature, making him the first ever musician to win the prestigious award. The 75-year-old legend received the prize "for having created new poetic expressions within the great American song tradition." The surprises didn't stop there, though: after the announcement by the Nobel Committee, Dylan (real name Robert Zimmerman) declined to comment for almost two weeks, then refused to travel to Sweden to receive the honor. Rock singer Patti Smith eventually accepted it on his behalf.
8.Pakistan famed Afghan woman deported
In Nov. 2016, Sharbat Gula, the famous Afghan girl from National Geographic's Cover photographed in Pakistan's refugee camp, was deported from Pakistan after being convicted of staying in the country illegally. She was later welcomed by Afghanistan's President Ashraf Ghani after which president and his wife hosted a reception for her at the presidential palace. Ghani also handed her keys to a fully furnished apartment.
9.Kim Kardashian robbed in Paris
In October 2016, reality star Kim Kardashian (inset), in Paris to attend Paris Fashion Week, had her luxury apartment in the Hotel de Pourtales on Rue Tronchet invaded by five armed men. The intruders robbed Kardashian, who is married to musician Kanye West, of the millions of dollars worth of jewelry and luxury items. She did not suffer any injuries and the thieves have yet to be caught.
10.Chicago Cubs win the World Series
Surprising the whole world, the Chicago Cubs finally won the Major League Baseball World Series, defeating the Cleveland Indians 8-7 to win the series 4-3. The win brings to an end one of the most notoriously long waits for silverware in sporting history: the Cubs had won back-to-back World Series titles in 1907 and 1908 but had not won baseball's biggest prize since.
11. Brangelina split
On Sept. 20, 2016, Angelina Jolie revealed she’d filed papers to divorce Brad Pitt. The pair had been married since 2014 and a couple since 2005. The filing marks the end of one of Hollywood's most influential couples, although their lengthy dispute over custody of their six children looks set to continue for some time.
12.Bono - Glamour Women Of The Year 2016
How did the first man honored as one of the Glamour Women of the Year react? When the U2 singer, who supports such causes as Poverty Is Sexist, accepted his award, he said, "I know how ridiculous it is for me to be on this stage, accepting this award. But if I didn't know how ridiculous it was, I did have the blessed Internet to remind me."
13.Brazilian and South Korean Presidents Impeached
The impeachment of Brazil's first female president, Dilma Rousseff (L), was the culmination of months of controversy within the highest level of Brazilian politics. Rousseff, who was found guilty of breaking budgetary laws, was formally impeached on Aug. 31.
Some months later, in December 2016, President of South Korea Park Geun-hye (R) was impeached and her powers suspended following allegations that she had been involved in a scheme to extort money from Korea's biggest businesses.
14. Pokemon Go success
The augmented reality game Pokemon Go became a colossal success when it was released as a free-to-play applicaton for iOS and Android in June. The game, which involves users interacting with virtual Pokemon in real-world environments, has been praised for blurring the boundaries between virtual and physical play.
15.Demonetization rocks India
In a move aimed to crack down on the country's notorious "black money" economy — the network of kickbacks, corruption and black market revenue that costs the state millions in lost taxes - Indian prime minister Narendra Modi announced on national television that all 500 rupee and 1,000 rupee banknotes would be invalid from midnight of that night. But the secrecy surrounding the announcement meant that many banks suffered severe cash shortages as citizens rushed to change their money.
16.Panama Papers reveal extent of global tax evasion
Panamanian law firm Mossack Fonseca found itself a household name in April when a collective of journalists and major newspapers published the first stories from the data leak nicknamed the "Panama Papers." The papers revealed the tax and financial arrangements of many prominent figures in the worlds of politics, entertainment, business and sport.
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