H.Bomberguy, whose real name is Harry Brewis, was motivated to undertake the challenge after a recent campaign against Mermaids that was spearheaded by television writer Graham Linehan.

The campaign, which has since been deleted, had called for UK National Lottery funding to the tune of £500,000 to be recalled from Mermaids. The organisation had been labelled an “aggressive group” and the National Lottery chose to undertake a review of the grant in December 2018.

A response to ‘woefully misinformed’ media discussion

In response, Brewis decided to set up the stream to try and raise money for the organisation, which provides information about gender nonconformity in children and young people.

He wrote: “I chose to support this charity because as a person living in Britain, I find the media discussion surrounding this issue in my country, especially in its tabloids, to be woefully misinformed. And I’d like to do my bit to help support the people who do the hard work of contributing to people’s thinking on an important issue.

“I chose Mermaids in specific because when they were designated some funding by the National Lottery, Graham Linehan, a comedy writer who did some work on a good show, uh, 20 years ago, who happens to be very normal man who’s just just very angry about trans people all day nowadays, went on Mumsnet and told them to email a lady from the National Lottery en masse and now the funding is under review.

“So well done, Graham! You have a massive audience and the power to choose to fight for progress in all the many forms we need in the world right now and you used it to make sure some children won’t have access to helpful resources.”

Special guests joined the Donkey Kong stream

US Democratic congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez joined in on the stream after numerous requests for her to do so on Twitter. As well as one of the US’s biggest political rising stars, Brewis was also joined by Doom co-creator John Romero, Chelsea Manning and game composer Grant Kirkhope, who voiced the titular gorilla in Donkey Kong 64.

Lemons into lemonade ?? https://t.co/fzi4knRPxV

— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) January 20, 2019

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Despite the country’s absence from the tournament, this year’s World Cup topped the list. The contest, which saw France claim victory over Croatia in host country Russia, was Ireland’s most popular search term.

Staying with sport, November’s rugby match between Ireland and New Zealand also gripped the nation, coming in at number seven. Intrigue around actor and now-royal Meghan Markle also reached fever pitch with her wedding to Prince Harry taking place earlier this year.

Nobody knows what the backstop is

Politics also dominated the conversation this year, with the most popular ‘How to’ question being ‘How to register to vote’ and both the Eighth Amendment and blasphemy making an appearance in the ‘What is?’ categories.

The issue of what exactly the backstop is in relation to Brexit popped up in the latter category, too. Data protection queries were also on the minds of the people, with many wondering what GDPR actually entailed.

In the world of cinema, Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper’s performances in the fourth remake of A Star Is Born seem to have captivated audiences, with the film coming in at number eight in the overall searches chart. Black Panther was the second most searched film and Bohemian Rhapsody rounded out the top three.

Entertainment icons also made an appearance this year, albeit in a morbid fashion, with the passing of Avicii, Dolores O’Riordan and Stan Lee all hitting the top 10.

Bleeding radiators and vegan meals

The extreme weather was a running theme, with many Google users searching for ways to bleed radiators during the Beast from the East, and banish fruit flies during our unusually warm summer.

Looking at Irish eating habits, vegan recipes made their first appearance in the top 10 of Google’s food-related searches and it looks like many were on a health kick, with ‘healthy dinner recipes’ and ‘Operation Transformation recipes’ appearing high in the charts.

Google Ireland top search terms of 2018

1. World Cup
2. Avicii
3. Meghan Markle
4. Paddy Jackson
5. Dolores O’Riordan
6. Eurovision
7. Ireland v New Zealand
8. A Star Is Born
9. Cheltenham
10. Stan Lee

Man using Google search. Image: Y-Boychenko/Depositphotos

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As another year draws to a close, Google Ireland has released its most popular search terms in the country for the last 12 months.

October’s Hurricane Ophelia was the most popular trending topic of the year, which came as no surprise considering the impact it had on every resident’s life. Extreme weather abroad also piqued the interest of Google users here in Ireland later in the list, with the Caribbean’s Hurricane Irma coming in sixth place overall.

Wake up and smell the covfefe

US president Donald Trump nabbed the second spot this year, climbing two spaces from the 2016 end-of-year results.

The riddle that was ‘covfefe’ also occupied the minds of Irish Google users, and plenty wanted to know more about what DACA (the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) was when Trump called for its repeal this year. Irish users were also interested in cryptocurrency, along with the rest of the world, with ‘What is bitcoin?’ coming in third place in the ‘What is?’ search category.

The ultimately fruitless World Cup qualifying matches between the Republic of Ireland and Denmark were the top sporting event and third most popular trending topic overall. The second most searched sporting event was, of course, the controversial Mayweather v McGregor fight, with plenty of fans asking Google how they could tune in.

The top movie search of the year in the country was Christopher Nolan’s Dunkirk, followed by the Stephen King horror It and Beauty and the Beast, rounding out the top three cinematic searches. La La Land, which had been a global phenomenon, missed out and sits at the No 4 slot.

In terms of what Irish users were craving for dinner, it seems like hearty fare was the order of the year with spaghetti bolognese, chilli con carne and beef stroganoff the most popular recipe searches.

Ireland on a mission for the perfect slime recipe

In a somewhat left-field turn of events, the most popular how-to search in Ireland saw people on the hunt for the perfect recipe for slime. The slime video craze had been bubbling under the surface of the mainstream internet for a while now, and it looks like it has finally hit the surface.

Fionnuala Meehan, head of Google Ireland, said: “Each year, Google’s Year in Search provides a fascinating snapshot into what we cared about collectively as a country over the preceding 12 months, and this year is no different.

“Hurricane Ophelia was obviously the big event of 2017 and Irish people turned to Google as a trusted source of vital updates all throughout the incident.

“We’ve also discovered our love of period movies over musicals, our affection for beefy recipes and, of course, the continuing enigma that is slime!”

Ireland’s top 10 Google search terms of 2017

1. Hurricane Ophelia
2. Donald Trump
3. Ireland v Denmark
4. 13 Reasons Why
5. Fidget Spinner
6. Hurricane Irma
7. Bus Éireann Strike
8. Mayweather v McGregor
9. Eurovision
10. Harvey Weinstein

Google logo. Image: JPStock/Shutterstock

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Lists like these are always a fascinating look at popular culture in the country, and one man was certainly on people’s minds.

The Conor McGregor Song by Mick Konstantin, a teacher from Co Kildare, took the top spot on the chart (excluding music videos from major labels) and a live version of the same song also snuck into the top 10 at No 6. Regardless of your opinion of the man himself, his influence on the public consciousness is undeniable.

As well as a musical tribute to the Crumlin fighter, there were also appearances from artists such as Ed Sheeran, Christy Dignam, Finbar Furey and Harry Styles, the latter having released his debut album earlier in 2017. Coláiste Lurgan’s rendition of Despacito (as Gaeilge) proved to be a huge hit among Irish audiences, slipping into the charts at No 4.

A special mention needs to be given to the Fleming family from Co Kerry, whose bat-related hijinks caught the attention of US presenter Jimmy Kimmel. He spoke to them on his chat show in September to discuss their harrowing and hilarious run-in with a stubborn flying creature.

In terms of the music video charts, Ireland has yet to fall out of love with Ed Sheeran, with the video for his hit song The Shape Of You nabbing the No 1 spot.

Ireland’s top 10 YouTube videos

At number 10, one Irish family told their batty story:

Ed Sheeran video playing on YouTube. Image: Jasni/Shutterstock

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Facebook has revealed that the most discussed subjects among Ireland users included (in no particular order): the Manchester Arena bombing, the Conor McGregor v Floyd Mayweather fight, Storm Ophelia, the death of Martin McGuinness, U2 performing at Croke Park and the recent death of Chester Bennington from Linkin Park.

‘This year, the list reflects the breadth and diversity of subjects discussed on Facebook’
^{– GARETH LAMBE}

The moments of 2017’s Year in Review were determined by comparing keyword volume year over year and observing daily keyword spikes between 1 January and 1 November as well as reviewing Facebook product usage during top moments of the year.

The social network has also created a personalised Year in Review video that will start appearing in all users’ news feeds from today (6 December).

“Every day, people turn to Facebook to connect with friends, family and the wider community to talk about important moments, support each other in times of crisis and get together,” said Gareth Lambe, head of Facebook Ireland.

“This year, the list reflects the breadth and diversity of subjects discussed on Facebook. Communities came together to support one another in times of crisis – for example, during Storm Ophelia and the Manchester Arena bombing – while the March for Choice was an example of how people used Facebook to get together. People also came together to react and talk about big moments like the World Cup qualifier, the McGregor fight and U2 playing Croke Park.”

Among the top events that people attended via Facebook were (in no particular order): Longitude, the 6th Annual March for Choice, Ireland v Denmark, BoxedOff Festival and Gonna Jump Down to Tesco for Cans, Want Anything?

The top videos of 2017 on Facebook

Conor McGregor “The Notorious” – Mayweather vs McGregor

Flowers, balloons and toys on St Ann’s Square in Manchester, a tribute to the victims of the Manchester Arena attack. Image: Anna Mente/Shutterstock

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The social media platform revealed that the most tweeted news subject in Ireland was #RepealThe8th followed by #Brexit, #Ophelia, #IrishWater and the #TuamBabies controversy.

The storm-whipped Irish love a cup of tea and some telly to whinge about most evenings and so, #vinb (Tonight with Vincent Browne) was the most tweeted about TV programme, followed by #Eurovision, #rtept (Prime Time) , #cbb (Celebrity Big Brother) and the #latelateshow.

Sports topics that topped the Irish public conversation were: #RealMadrid, #MUFC, #COYBIG, #LFC and #MayoGAA while the most tweeted about sporting events of the year were: #WRWC2017, #MayweatherMcGregor, #AllIrelandFinal, #IREvENG and #Superbowl.

Unsurprisingly, Conor McGregor (aka @TheNotoriousMMA) was the most tweeted sports star handle of the year followed by @WayneRooney, @Carra23, @GaryLineker and @FlyodMayweather.

From an international news perspective, #Trump continued to trump everyone else with his bizarre antics and tweets followed by #Syria, #GE2017, the tragedy in #Manchester and #Resist.

The most shared tweets of 2017

The true meaning of sport:

Witness to a special moment between Galway manager Micheál Donoghue and his father Miko as he shows him the Liam McCarthy for the first time pic.twitter.com/fHppFCgGtb

— Morgan Treacy (@MorganTreacy) September 4, 2017

‘Repeal the 8th’ march in Dublin in March 2017. Image: Remizov/Shutterstock

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If all that wasn’t enough, there’s the looming prospect of Singles’ Day breaking out of China. Both Black Friday and Cyber Monday pale in comparison to Singles’ Day. This year, on 11 November, online shoppers bought merchandise worth more than $25bn across Alibaba’s platforms, totting up 812m orders within 24 hours, and Alibaba Group CEO Daniel Zhang recently said: “We want the ‘China phenomenon’ to spread to the whole world.”

Infographic: Statista

We can’t stop the deals rush, but we can shop savvily.

Plan before you buy

Be it Black Friday, Cyber Monday, Singles’ Day or whatever else comes to take their place, the pressure on shoppers at this time of year can be intense. The smartest consumer advice that can ever be offered amid a bombardment of advertising convincing you that now is a good time to buy, buy, buy is this: no one ever saved money with a discount on something they never planned to buy in the first place.

Double-check the price

That said, there are some shoppers who wait for this time of year to roll around to pick up an intended purchase for a better price. If you do intend to tackle tech shopping from Black Friday up to Cyber Monday, it’s worth taking this tip from the Irish Independent’s Adrian Weckler on board and compare prices using platforms such as PriceSpy.ie. You might just find that some Black Friday buys aren’t all that they’re built up to be.

Control your impulses

It’s important to also keep your trigger finger in check. Despite your best frugal intentions, it can be hard for even a savvy shopper not to get caught up in the Black Friday buyer mania. A 2016 Thanksgiving and Holiday Survey from Statista asked what impulse buys were most likely to entice US shoppers and found that 43pc of respondents would make an impulse purchase of clothing, textiles or shoes if a good offer caught their eye.

The only way to prevent impulse shopping is to take your time. Resolve not to complete the checkout process without stepping away from the computer for a moment. Put your wallet in another room before you go online and you may find that the seconds-long trip to retrieve it makes you rethink that purchase.

Remember: any e-commerce facility set up to make payments easier – such as one-click PayPal orders or saving your credit card details for faster processing next time – is all about making you spend less time deciding how you spend your money. You owe it to yourself to think before you buy.

Infographic: Statista

Now, take this advice in hand and prepare your wallet, because I know what you really came here for: the deals.

1. Inspirefest

For one day only on Black Friday, you can get an extra 10pc off a Super Early Bird ticket to Inspirefest 2018. Simply visit the website on 24 November and use the code ‘BLACKFRIDAY’ when making your purchase. This offer lasts only as long as Super Early Bird tickets are still available, so get yours before they’re all snapped up, and get ready to join us for the sci-tech event of the year.

For one day only! An extra 10% off Super Early Bird Tickets this #BlackFriday #earlychristmaspresent – https://t.co/5MBdD3JJus pic.twitter.com/XkG7P5Hu5K

— Inspirefest 2018 (@InspirefestHQ) November 22, 2017

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With more Twitter followers than the rest of the top 10 combined, Mullingar singer Niall Horan is Ireland’s leading online star.

With 30m followers, Horan leaves the likes of Conor McGregor, Sheamus, Rory McIlroy and Dara Ó Briain in the shade, with only three people enjoying even 10pc of the former One Direction star’s following.

The full list is:

• Niall Horan (@NiallOfficial) – 30m
• Conor McGregor (@TheNotoriousMMA) – 4.1m
• Sheamus (@WWESheamus) – 4.1m
• Rory McIlroy (@McIlroyRory) – 3.1m
• Jack Septic Eye (@Jack_Septic_Eye) – 2.8m
• Dara Ó Briain (@daraobriain) – 2.4m
• The Script (@thescript) – 2.1m
• Daithi De Nogla (@DaithiDeNogla) – 1.2m
• U2 (@U2) – 1.1m
• Danny O’Donoghue (@TheScript_Danny) – 1.1m

Horan’s most retweeted tweet got shared 752,000 times, and he posted it just after he applied for X Factor, the show that launched his One Direction stardom.

applied for xfactor,hope it all wrks out

— Niall Horan (@NiallOfficial) January 17, 2010

Though, as this is Twitter, ‘followers’ aren’t necessarily ‘people’.

For example, in the hours after US President Donald Trump’s most recent error-filled tweet, spawning the ‘convefe’ buzz, millions of bot accounts are thought to have begun following his account.

By using the Twitter Audit tool online, a quick check last week of Trump’s personal account – @realDonaldTrump – shows that just 51pc of his followers are real.

Twitter is doing its best to appeal to a wider market. For example, in markets where unreliable networks mean any apps that can put a strain on connectivity are unattractive, it has revealed a new tool. In a blog post, the company revealed that Twitter Lite would be accessible through a mobile web app taking up just 1MB of storage on a device.

Compared to the regular Twitter app, Twitter Lite minimises data usage, and loads quickly on slower connections.

Niall Horan. Image: lev radin/Shutterstock

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One area of contention has been Trump’s access to his own Twitter account, something he had built quite a reputation for prior to being named as the 45th president of the US.

Unlike his predecessor Barack Obama, Trump has been keen to keep control of his own account rather than handing it over to his PR team, resulting in some controversial tweets on varied topics, from gun control to Snoop Dogg.

Trump’s latest tweet, sent late at night, has generated new discussion, leading to multiple memes being created online.

It is assumed that the tweet was sent in error, with suggestions that ‘covfefe’ is actually ‘coverage’, and is a follow-up to a previous retweet from Fox & Friends dismissing links between Jared Kushner and Russia.

In the hours that have followed, #covfefe is trending on Twitter, with people either asking what it is, or simply using it as a stick to beat Trump with.

Conservatives tomorrow

"I never heard of #covfefe before."

"It's a perfectly cromulent word." pic.twitter.com/OkwTcYGzXC

— Ocular Nervosa (@ocularnervosa) May 31, 2017

Is Trump buying Twitter followers?

Perhaps even more damning are the allegations that half of Trump’s Twitter following (31m accounts) is made up of mindless bots.

By using the Twitter Audit tool online, a quick check of the Trump’s personal account – @realDonaldTrump – shows that just 51pc of his followers are real.

On Twitter, the issue of buying followers is one that hasn’t gone away, despite the company’s best efforts, and a few hundred dollars can buy you access to services to artificially boost follower numbers.

Image: TwitterAudit

While accounts such as Trump’s are a major target for bots, it marks a huge surge in fake accounts for the US president. About a year ago, FiveThirtyEight found that of his then 8m followers, just 8pc of them were bots.

This is in comparison to Obama’s 89.2m followers, of which close to 80pc are real, according to Newsweek.

It remains to be seen who is behind the Trump bot surge, but, given last night’s (30 May) activity, at least half of his human audience is listening.

Donald Trump’s Twitter account. Image: chrisdorney/Shutterstock

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Police are understood to have responded to reports of an explosion shortly after 10.33pm at the arena.

The venue has the capacity to hold 21,000 people.

It is understood that the attacker died in the explosion.

The blast is believed to have occurred as concertgoers were leaving the building.

As the impact of the attack continues to be felt and people seek answers and news of loved ones, this is how it is unfolding through social media.

Greater Manchester Police warning people to stay away from Manchester Arena as officers respond to "incident" amid reports of an explosion

— Sky News Newsdesk (@SkyNewsBreak) May 22, 2017

Manchester Arena sport and concert venue. Image: Alastair Wallace/Shutterstock

Updated, 9.03am, 23 May 2017: An earlier version of the opening line incorrectly stated that this terror attack took place in Paris.

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