Vanessa Thorpe

Vanessa Thorpe Arts and media correspondent · 4-min read

King Louis XV's rhinoceros was the star of the court of Versailles. Fed on a diet of bread, its tough hide was regularly massaged with oil.

After wowing the court of Versailles over 200 years ago, the jet-black beast is back in the spotlight at the Science Museum

Not every Welsh valley can reverberate with choral singing and declaimed poetry, despite the stereotype.

Michael Sheen among big names in call for action as leading figure warns there will be little left of the sector in 10 years

Georges Simenon’s pipe-smoking, trenchcoat-clad, shabby sleuth has been given a Parisian makeover

The flashing sequins, lurex and chiffon always put Christmas pantos in the shade, to say nothing of the glitterball prize.

The comic, who is the show’s first blind contestant, won viewers’ hearts with wit and bravery

Week-long ‘Olympics of the mind’ next summer will showcase cutting-edge film, gigs, talks and much more

Some made a splash in politics, social media, sport or the arts. Others took a brave personal stand. Observer writers and critics pick the names on everyone’s lips this year