Is serious art dying? The year’s biggest cultural crowd-pullers included a film about a mass-produced doll and a moanathon from a junior member of the Royal Family.
Brickbats, barbs and Barbie: 2023 in culture
Mega must-sees: Taylor Swift sold more tickets in a day than Vermeer did in four months. Glossary
Agog - Very eager or curious to hear or see something.
National Theatre - A theatre group based in London.
Vermeer - A Dutch Baroque Period painter recognised as one of the greatest painters of the 17th Century.
King Lear - As William Shakespeare (1564-1616) was penning his great tragedy, the plague spread across London and reached his own house, killing his landlady, Marie Mountjoy.
Glastonbury - An English town known worldwide today for its yearly music festival.
Atomic bomb - A bomb that rapidly releases nuclear energy.