Joe Exotic, Jordan North, Covid-19 and how to make KFC in the top Google searches of 2020

It's been an unusual year to say the least and what we've all been googling reflects that with Covid, I'm a Celeb and Tiger King all being searched for.

Google have released the statistics about what people in the UK have been searching for in 2020

The data shows Jordan North’s position as a new household name. He is Google’s fourth top trending celebrity of 2020 following his popularity on ITV’s I’m A Celebrity, with Philip Schofield, Carol Baskin and Joe Exotic claiming the top three spots.

Top celebrities googled in 2020

1. Philip Schofield
2. Carole Baskin
3. Joe Exotic
4. Jordan North
5. Elon Musk
6. Prince Harry
7. Kanye West
8. Ruthie Henshall
9. Johnny Depp
10. Tom Hanks

How often did Covid get googled?

It comes as no surprise that “coronavirus” is the UK’s top trending search, with the pandemic dominating most aspects of 2020 life.

Top Trending Searches

1. Coronavirus
2. US election
3. Caroline Flack
4. Coronavirus symptoms
5. Coronavirus update
6. Premier League
7. Boris Johnson
8. Eat Out to Help out
9. Kobe Bryant
10. Kim Jong-un

The Covid theme continues in the “How to…?” list, where “How to make a facemask”, “How to make hand sanitiser” and “How to cut your own hair” were amongst the most popular searches. Even "How to cook eel?" made the list after viewers were inspired by the campmates attempts to use the ingredient on I'm A Celebrity.

The most googled How to... questions:

1. How to make a face mask?
2. How to make hand sanitizer?
3. How to make bread?
4. How to get tested for corona virus?
5. How to cut your own hair?
6. How to cook eel?
7. How to cut men's hair?
8. How to boost immune system?
9. How to self isolate?
10. How to treat coronavirus?

We all tried making restaurant style food

Restaurants closing motivated people to don their aprons and recreate their favourite cult dishes, frequently searching recipes for KFC chicken, Ikea meatballs and Wagamama’s Katsu curry.

Meanwhile, Britain’s lockdown baking obsession was reflected in the second most searched question: “Where does vanilla flavouring come from?”

Most Googled recipes:

1. Bread recipe
2. Beef bourguignon recipe
3. School cake recipe
4. KFC recipe
5. White bread recipe
6. American pancakes recipe
7. Wagamama katsu curry recipe
8. Sourdough starter recipe
9. IKEA meatball recipe
10. Soda bread recipe

What are the lyrics to that TikTok song?

The new TikTok phenomenon meant Cardi B’s WAP lyrics were the most searched song lyrics in the UK, while the lyrics for We’ll Meet Again trended second following the death of Vera Linn and the VE Day celebrations.

1. WAP lyrics
2. We'll Meet Again lyrics
3. Godzilla lyrics
4. The Box lyrics
5. Rule Britannia lyrics
6. Dance Monkey lyrics
7. No Time to Die lyrics
8. Break My Stride lyrics
9. Land of Hope and Glory lyrics
10. Savage Love lyrics

A reflection of what's popular

Discussing the meaning behind our top searches, Google trends expert, Kirstin Wright, said, “The 2020 Year in Search lists not only reveal the most popular trends from the past 12 months, but also give insight into the biggest events in the news, politics, sports, entertainment and popular lockdown trends.

Hear the latest news on Clyde 1 on FM, DAB, smart speaker or the Rayo app.

• Google
• Jordan North