The dramatic rescue of the Chilean miners from their underground trap in October has emerged as the runaway winner as the British public’s Event of 2010, receiving almost double the number of votes given to ‘the General Election and change of government’ option, which was seen as the second most popular story of the year.
- 35% of Brits stated the Chilean miners being freed was their Event of 2010
- 18% chose the General Election
- The ‘Heavy snow’ seen earlier in the year and over the Christmas period saw 9%
- The volcanic ash cloud from the Icelandic Eyjafjallajokull volcano, which successfully paralysed European airspace back in April, came next with 8%
- While the BP oil spill won fifth place with 7%
The heart-warming and dramatic story of the rescue of 33 Chilean miners after they had been trapped for over 10 weeks underground captivated the world’s attention, with live coverage of their eventual rescue broadcast across the globe. It seems this popularity has endured; among Brits anyhow.
Other events that made the cut were:
- The Royal engagement of Prince William and Kate Middleton with 6%
- The student protests against the proposed rise in university tuition fees with 5%
- The spending cuts with 5%
- The 2010 football FIFA World Cup in South Africa with 4%
- The devastating earthquake in Haiti with 3%
See the survey details and full results for the YouGov Awards 2010 here
