Proof that an adopted daughter of former Libyan dictator Muammar Gadafy was still alive despite claims she had been killed in the 1986 US bombing of his Tripoli compound was the most-read story on irishtimes.com last year.
The exclusive story by Irish Times foreign affairs correspondent Mary Fitzgerald confirmed rumours that had circulated for decades that Hana Muammar Gadafy did not die in the raid as had been claimed by her adoptive father.
Ms Fitzgerald's story, which came from documents she recovered from a section of Gadafy's Bab al-Azizia compound, which was captured by rebels, was picked up extensively internationally by foreign media including the Washington Post, the London Times and the Daily Telegraph, among others.
The second most popular story online was another Irish Times exclusive about a 100-year-old letter to Santa Claus that was found up a chimney in Terenure.
The letter, penned in 1911, included a request for a “baby doll and a waterproof with a hood and a pair of gloves and a toffee apple and a gold penny and a silver sixpence and a long toffee”. The article also received widespread international attention.
In a year that was one of the most dramatic and eventful this century with the Arab Spring, Occupy Wall Street movements, the phone-hacking scandal and general and presidential elections at home, the euro zone debt crisis provided a constant refrain.
Caroline Madden’s story about a surge in world markets as a result of a promise by German chancellor Angela Merkel that private investors would not have carry the burden of Greek debt was the third most read story.
The fourth, on a similar theme, was economist Morgan Kelly’s doom-laden prophecy in which he recommended that Ireland should repudiate much of its banking debt and bring its fiscal debt immediately into balance.
Foreign editor Peter Murtagh’s story about Kate Fitzgerald, who took her life shortly after penning an anonymous column about her depression, was the fifth-most-read story. It was also the one that attracted the most controversy, with criticism of the manner in which her original article was amended online.
Science editor Dick Ahlstrom’s story about the ability of astronomers to detect artificial light in faraway planets was the sixth most read story, while a fake Trinity lecturer who appeared on the college’s website as a lecturer named Dr Conan T Barbarian was the seventh most read story.
It was a year with many weather events and a story about severe flooding in Dublin following a month’s worth of rain in a single day on Monday, October 24th was the eighth most popular story on the website.
On another astronomical theme, the report that there are 13 signs of the zodiac not 12 was the ninth-most popular story.
The top 10 was completed by a story about a website called beautifulpeople.com that Irish men, along with their Polish counterparts, were the least likely to be deemed “sufficiently beautiful” before gaining admission to the site.
The site recommended that Irish men stop sending in photos of themselves that they have taken in the pub and indulge in a bit of a makeover before submitting themselves to the rigours of beautifulpeople.com.
It was another successful year for irishtimes.com with a 20 per cent increase in page views.
Irishtimes.com top 20 stories for 2011
1 Gadafy daughter who 'died' in 1986 alive
2 Dear Santa Letter sent 100 years ago found up chimney (December 21st)
3 Hopes for 'Greek miracle' as Merkel changes position (June 18th)
4 Ireland's future depends on breaking free from bailout (May 7th)
5 She radiated talent, energy, beauty. She took her own life at the age of 25 (November 26th)
6 Light from alien cities could signal intelligent life out there (November 5th)
7 Trinity ‘expels’ barbarian teacher (September 15th)
8 Severe flooding disrupts travel (October 24th)
9 Zodiac now 13-strong as Ophiuchus signs in (January 17th)
10 Are Irish men really the joint ugliest in the world? (June 10th)
11 Charges initiated against Pope for crimes against humanity (February 23rd)
12 Michaela Harte strangled, Mauritius police report (January 11th)
13 Former Thin Lizzy guitarist Moore dies (February 6th)
14 Change the date for big savings (April 4th)
15 Severe weather warning issued, (September 11th)
16 Dolphins kept vigil on Irishman's body (June 18th)
17 Rugby player 'woke up gay' after stroke (November 9th)
18 'I refuse to let you force my children to walk behind a hearse' (December 12th)
19 James the first on 'Irish Times' baby name list (January 10th)
20 Inside the dragon's den in Dublin 14 (September 15th)
