Twelve offbeat stories you might have missed in 2024

26 December 2024, 12:21 | Updated: 26 December 2024, 12:29

It's been a whirlwind year for news, with 2024 serving up some of the most bizarre, outrageous and shocking stories imaginable.

While much of the world has been focused on the usual headlines, a host of strange stories may have slipped under the radar.

From mysterious phenomena to unconventional internet trends, 2024 was a year overflowing with odd antics.

In case you're catching up, here’s a collection of the offbeat tales you might have missed this year.

Gary's Barlow's massive son

Following the re-election of Donald Trump, the slightly gloomy world of social media was swept up in a frenzy after an innocent family photo of Gary Barlow and his son surfaced online.

The image, shared on Instagram, was viewed well over six million times - spawning thousands of memes.

In it, the father-and-son duo had their arms around each other as Daniel towered over Gary.

However, many have now been surprised to discover Daniel's actual height - which is reported to be 6'2.

Ed Davey falls into Lake Windemere

The Liberal Democrats election campaign saw their leader attempt a number of stunts designed to capture public attention and get their key message into spotlight.

While the party largely focused on substantive policies, they used several creative and sometimes theatrical tactics to make a splash in the media and get voters talking.

Some of these included bungee jumping, zooming down a water slide, jet skiing, paddle boarding on Lake Windemere, water aerobics, joining an orchestra, and playing a massive game of Jenga.

Tapeworm eggs found in brain of man who ate undercooked bacon

A man from the US - who had a habit of eating undercooked bacon - has been found with tapeworm eggs in his brain.

Scans revealed tapeworm larvae in the brain of the 52-year-old man who had a history of migraines, according to the American Journal of Case Reports.

The man, who is unnamed, admitted to a habit of eating "lightly cooked, non-crispy bacon" for most of his life. He visited his doctor after his migraines recently became worse.

Scans showed the tapeworm larval cysts in his brain, which cause cysticercosis.

Cysticercosis is a condition caused by the the larval form of a pork tapeworm which use pigs as a host.

Humans become infected when they ingest water or food contaminated with tapeworm cysts, the journal states.

Doctors believe the man infected himself due to "improper handwashing".

RFK Jr admits being behind mystery of dead bear dumped in Central Park

Robert F Kennedy Jr released a strange video where he confessed to dumping a dead bear over a decade ago, staging the scene to appear as if a cyclist had run over the animal.

It appeared to be an attempt to get ahead of an anticipated negative story from the New Yorker.

In the video, Kennedy recounts to actor Roseanne Barr how he found the animal while on a falconry expedition in New York's Hudson Valley, after it had been struck and killed by another driver.

He has now been nominated by Donald Trump to be the next US health secretary.

Raygun

Raygun - real name Rachael Gun - went viral after her unorthodox breakdance routine in a colourful tracksuit divided the internet at the Paris Olympic Games.

Gunn was eliminated from the B-Girls competition after scoring zero, prompting both ridicule and praise for her unique style.

The 36-year-old university lecturer, lost all three of her Olympic battles in viral fashion - including the sprinkler and kangaroo-inspired hopping – generating waves of memes and abuse.

'They're eating the dogs'

At the Presdiential Debate back in September, Republican candidate Donald Trump made headlines around the world after making the extraordinary claim that Haitian immigrants in Ohio were eating people's cats and dogs.

Local officials have said there is no evidence that the Haitians are eating anyone's pets.

During the debate in Philadelphia, Mr Trump said of immigrants in the town of Springfield: "They're eating the dogs. They're eating the cats. They're eating the pets of the people that live there."

Kamala Harris, the Democrat vice-president, laughed, labelling him "extreme".

Moo Deng, Haggis and Pesto become viral superstars

Many stars were born on social media this year - but some were bigger and cuter and fluffier than others.

Moo Deng became a viral sensation with thousands of visitors flocking to see the pygmy hippo at Khao Kheow Open Zoo in Thailand.

Another teeny tiny hippo who captured our hearts was Haggis who lives at Edinburgh Zoo.

Then there was Pesto, the obscenely fluffy king penguin.

Pesto reached an audience of billions and attracted travellers from around the globe to Melbourne’s Sea Life Aquarium.

Lettuce crashes Liz Truss on stage

Liz Truss has stormed off the stage of an event after activists dropped a lettuce banner during her speech.

Led By Donkeys posted a video of the stunt on X, formerly Twitter, of the moment the former Prime Minister realises she is being trolled at an event at the Beccles Theatre in Suffolk.

The banner featured a lettuce with googly eyes and a quote saying "I crashed the economy".

She then walks off while audience members clap and does not return.

The ex-PM - who lasted 49 days - has been associated with lettuces ever since the Daily Star live-streamed an iceberg lettuce to see if it would outlast her premiership back in October 2022. It did.

Lookalike contests take off

Lookalike contests have officially taken over.

It all started with a Timothée Chalamet competition in New York in October, which even attracted the real actor himself - and prompted an arrest.

Since then, similar contests around the globe have attracted crowds of young people hoping to see doppelgangers of stars such as Harry Styles, Dev Patel and Paul Mescal.

A recent one in New York was even held for lookalikes for Luigi Mangione, the alleged killer of the United Healthcare CEO, Brian Thompson.

Grandmother 'hauled off a Jet2 flight by armed officers for refusing to pay £9 for a frozen tuna bap'

A grandmother has claimed she was hauled off a Jet2 flight after refusing to pay £9 for a frozen tuna sandwich.

Lily Ifield, 79 was heading to Turkey for a four-day break for her birthday when she was served what she described as a ‘soggy’ and ‘cold’ sandwich on the flight.

She refused to pay £9 for the item, and was told by cabin crew that ‘this isn’t a restaurant, it’s a plane’.

Cabin crew arranged for police to escort her from the plane when it landed in Bodrum.

Ms Ifield, from Ware, Hertfordshire told The Sun: “The police were standing at the entrance to the plane, waiting with guns like we were master criminals.

“We had no idea what we had done. I was turning round to people, saying "I think I've been arrested over a sandwich”.”We were being treated like convicts over a bap,” she added.

They said police let her go when they realised what the matter was about.

“They were clearly so embarrassed,” she said.

Conker King vindicated after cheating allegations

The winner of the men's World Conker Championships was exonerated - after he faced allegations of cheating in the competition.

David Jakins, known as "King Conker", won the tournament in Northamptonshire last Sunday for the first time after competing since 1977.

A spokesperson for the competition says the 82-year-old "has been cleared of suspicion, and his name is being engraved on the trophy."

Jakins was under investigation after he was discovered with a steel chestnut in his pocket at the annual World Conker Championships.

He won the title for the first time at the competition held in Southwick, Peterborough last Sunday.

Jakins, a retired engineer, told LBC the allegations were a "load of nonsense".

Giant runaway pumpkin causes chaos on streets of Ohio after breaking free

Ohio police officer 'attacked' by giant pumpkin

This is the hilarious moment a runaway inflatable pumpkin caused chaos for drivers on the streets of Cleveland, Ohio.

The police force shared the footage of officers struggling to contain the 20ft inflatable vegetable.

The enormous Halloween decoration was disrupting motorists after it blew onto Wolf Road and Saddler Road due to windy weather.

After the item was contained, the force confirmed it was returned to its owner.