Celebrity deaths drew fans online during the first six months of this year with radio presenter Gerry Ryan, designer Alexander McQueen and actor Corey Haim, among the most popular search terms on Google.
The sudden death of Ryan in April sparked a 1,150 per cent increase in searches for him on Google, making it the fastest rising search term in Ireland over the past six months. In the weeks following his death searches increased by over 3,750 per cent, new data shows.
The complicated love lives of those in the spotlight also proved popular with Boyzone frontman Ronan Keating and footballer Ashley Cole also included in the most popular search terms rankings for the first half of 2010 after news of alleged affairs made the news.
The placing of the 1901 census online in June attracted amateur genealogists online while the musical phenomenon Glee, the World Cup and Cheltenham races were also among the top search queries in Ireland.
The Icelandic volcanic ash cloud dominated news headlines from April to June - and the list of top search terms. Ryanair was the fourth most popular query on Google over the past six months while other related travel terms ranked highly as travellers went online for information. The ash cloud also ranked as the top search term in Google News from January to June.
Among the most recent popular product searches on Google were the iPhone 4, the HTC Desire and the iPad. Other popular products include running shoes, binoculars and sleeping bags.
Fastest Rising Searches in Ireland January – June 2010
Gerry Ryan +1,150%
Glee +1050%
World Cup 2010 +700%
Ryanair.ie +650%
RTE Player +250%
YouTube music +100%
Facebook login +70%
Hotmail sign in +70%
NCT +70%
TV Shack +70%
Fastest Rising Search in Ireland
January Haiti
February Ashley Cole
March Cheltenham
April Gerry Ryan
May Ronan Keating
June 1901 Census
