With the public stuck at home through most of the year, people have had to find their amusement where they can.
As we reach a year of lockdown, here are some of the things that kept life bearable.
– Must-see TV
With nowhere to go for large parts of the year cultural events were largely limited to the TV or laptop screen, and that meant a resurgence of the appointment to view, with terrestrial shows like I May Destroy You on BBC, ITV’s The Quiz and Channel 4’s It’s A Sin uniting the nation around the virtual water cooler.
Elsewhere, streaming shows like The Crown, The Queen’s Gambit and The Last Dance became big hits for Netflix, while the serendipitously-timed launch of Disney+ last March brought with it Star Wars spin-off The Mandalorian and, later, Marvel oddity WandaVision.
– Gaming
– Baking
Perhaps chief among them was baking – indeed, there was a period in 2020 when it was impossible to turn on Facebook or Instagram without seeing a picture of a friend or relative’s attempts at banana bread or sourdough.
Such was the uptick in home baking that it caused a shortage of flour last spring.
Relatively plentiful supplies on supermarket shelves during the latest lockdown may suggest the trend has run its course for many.
– Meal kits and takeaways
As the year progressed, more and more food outlets began to produce meal kits to allow their customers to continue to experience restaurant-quality food at home.
From pizzas to burgers to fine dining, it turns out there is nothing you cannot produce in your own kitchen with a little nudge from the professionals.
– Sea shanties
The close-harmony nautical folk songs proved to be the perfect genre for a TikTok trend which saw users repeatedly layer their own vocals on top of others’ videos.
And this was one social media trend to break through into the mainstream, making a star of Nathan Evans – the Scottish postal worker whose version of Wellerman started it all.
He has now made multiple TV appearances and reached number two in the UK singles chart.
