TWEETS OF THE YEAR
Who left the internet in a twitter this year? Marion McMullen uncovers both laughter and tears in the UK’s top 10 retweeted posts
1 A CALL for free chicken nuggets is the most retweeted post of 2017 on Twitter. Carter Wilkerson asked US food chain Wendy’s how many retweets he needed for a year’s supply of nuggets back in April. His request has now been shared on the social media site more than 3.42 million times – the most retweeted in the site’s history – and he has his nuggets.
2 AMERICAN singer Ariana Grande’s heartfelt response to the terror attack following her Manchester concert touched the country as the US star said she was “broken.”
3 FOOTBALLER Jermain Defoe’s “sleep tight little one” tribute to Bradley Lowry was the third most retweeted UK post of the year. The young Sunderland fan had formed a bond with the striker during an awareness campaign for cancer in children, but died of neuroblastoma in July.
5 FOOTBALLER Andy Johnson, inset, completed the top five with a message to #EndTheStigma surrounding mental health and to support Everton star Aaron Lennon after he was detained under the mental health act. He donated 10p for every retweet to charity Mind in Aaron’s name.
6 TV presenter Jeremy Clarkson posted a picture of his attempt to dab back in July when he was on holiday in Mallorca. The dab dance move photo of the Grand Tour star was accompanied by the caption: ‘Dab on it wagwan x.’ It led to his own daughter Emily tweeting: “Who did this???”
7 PC DAVE Wise raised awareness for suicide prevention in October when he tweeted the UK’s suicide prevention helpline and asked people: “Will you retweet and possibly save a life?”
8 SIX foot seven inch tall Stoke striker Peter Crouch was pictured alongside two giraffes and joked of spending “time with family”.
9 @LUCIDWHIM also used Twitter to raise awareness for breast cancer with this graphic on how to check for lumps.
4 FORMER US president Barack Obama was fourth among UK users with his message of equality that “no-one is born hating another person because of the colour of his skin or his background or her religion.” It has been retweeted more than 1.7 million times.
10 A CHEEKY caption on a Jeremy Corbyn video clip back in July led to lots of retweets for @officialwinemom. It simply commented on the footage of the Labour leader with: “when you walk back into the sesh after throwing up”. The politician boasts 1.63 million followers on his own Twitter account.