Daniel Craig appeared on the big screen in 2021 for the fifth and final time as James Bond when the delayed No Time To Die received a cinema release.
Meanwhile, Hollywood A-lister Tom Cruise brought some glamour to North Yorkshire after he was spotted filming in the region in April.
In March, Johnny Depp was refused permission to bring an appeal against a damning High Court ruling that he assaulted ex-wife Amber Heard and left her in “fear for her life”.
The actor had asked the Court of Appeal to grant permission for him to challenge the ruling, with the aim of having its findings overturned and a retrial ordered.
Top Gun star Cruise waved to members of the public as he filmed scenes at a heritage railway in North Yorkshire in the UK in April.
The 58-year-old joined crew filming in the village of Levisham on the North York Moors. It appeared to involve the use of a modified train and tracks for what was thought to be a new Mission: Impossible film.
A legal fight between two former Sex Pistols band members and frontman Johnny Rotten over the use of their songs in a television series started at the High Court in London in July.
In an August ruling, Anthony Mann found ex-drummer Paul Cook and guitarist Steve Jones were entitled to invoke “majority voting rules” against the ex-singer in relation to the use of Sex Pistols material in TV drama Pistol, directed by Danny Boyle.
The Rolling Stones star Charlie Watts was hailed as “one of the greatest drummers of his generation” following his death in August at the age of 80.
The musician had been a member of the rock group since 1963 and played on classic tracks including (I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction, Paint It Black, Jumpin’ Jack Flash and Brown Sugar.
Reality TV kept the nation hooked throughout the year, with the big-hitting shows still pulling in millions of viewers. Italian engineer Giuseppe Dell’Anno triumphed in The Great British Bake-Off, while Emmerdale star Danny Miller was crowned the winner of I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! after a Storm Arwen-disrupted stint in the Welsh castle.
There were also problems on Strictly Come Dancing, with injury reducing the final show to just two contenders, with soap actress Rose Ayling-Ellis winning the glitterball trophy with professional dance partner Giovanni Pernice.
