The highs and lows of 2023 know no bounds as celebs have managed to give us scandal, heartbreaks and notably – quite the number of fallouts from the sublime to the ridiculous.
From an actress being embroiled in a free cake scandal to loyal fans unearthing problematic behaviour of their favourite singer's rumoured new flame, there truly has been something for every pop culture enthusiast.
With that said, let’s have a look at all the drama 2023 has delivered below:
The Swifties Call Out Matt Healy
Matty Healy was put under the cosh earlier this year after it was reported that he was dating Taylor Swift following her split from Joe Alwyn.
Whatever you think of Healy smoking or eating raw meat on stage, Swifties - die-hard fans of Swift - had a bigger bone to pick with him and were quick to show their disdain as they began to unearth his controversial behaviour in April.
At first, it was his response - or lack thereof - to racist comments made about Ice Spice, who had collaborated with Swift, that found him in hot water with her loyal fanbase.
Back in February, The 1975 frontman appeared as a guest on Adam Friedland’s podcast and mentioned the Princess Diana rapper, whom he claimed he tried to message on Instagram.
In the episode, Friedland and comedian Nick Mullen then joked if Ice Spice, who is of Nigerian and Dominican descent, was an Innuit Spice Girl and imitated Chinese and Hawaiian accents, Healy could be heard laughing.
Following a backlash to the episode, it was removed from Spotify and Apple Music with the 34-year-old reportedly apologising to the US rapper during his show in Auckland, New Zealand.
But there was more and what pushed Swifts fans over the top of his already questionable behaviour was when he was quoted saying that dating the 12-time Grammy winner would be “ de-masculinating”.
His 2015 interview with Q Magazine in which he addressed speculation of him reportedly romancing the pop superstar then - went viral in April for the offensive remarks.
He said: “If I had gone out with Taylor Swift I would’ve been, ‘F**king hell! I am NOT being ‘Taylor Swift’s boyfriend.” You know, ‘F**K. THAT.’ That’s also a man thing, a de-masculinating, emasculating thing.”
Soon after his controversies came to light, Swift and Healy's fleeting romance coincidentally came to an end and she has since found romance with NFL star Travis Kelce.
Sharon Osbourne VS. Ashton Kutcher
2023 took an unexpected turn when Sharon Osbourne revealed her passionate dislike for Ashton Kutcher.
During an appearance on E! News with her daughter Kelly Osbourne, the Talk TV star was asked to name the rudest celebrity she's ever met and shared, “The guy that’s married to an actress and he used to do That 70s Show.”
To which, her daughter questioned, “Oh, Ashton Kutcher? Really?” prompting the former X Factor judge to share: “Yes. Oh, rude, rude, rude, rude little boy.”
Much to the shock of Kelly, she asked: “really?”. Reiterating her dislike of the Hollywood star, Sharon added: “Yes. Dastardly little thing.”
While she didn’t elaborate on the origins of their beef, Page Six reported that it wasn’t the first time she had come for Kutcher.
While on Larry King in 2018, she said, "I didn’t get on with one guy, that Ashton Kutcher. Didn’t get on with him at all” before claiming he had a “bad attitude” and was "p**sed" because she forgot his name.
Nella Rose and Fred Sirieix’s Rumble in the Jungle
I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here! was full of drama this year but nothing tipped camp quite over the edge than when YouTuber Nella Rose and First Dates’ Fred Sirieix found themselves in a tête-à-tête.
Early in the series, the 26-year-old star fell out with Sirieix when he told her he was old enough to be her father.
Rose, who has lost both her parents, did not say anything at the time but later confronted Sirieix, 51, saying: “Don’t bring up my dead parents, are you stupid?”
Amidst their fight, the influencer said she didn’t want to interact with him for the rest her time in the jungle as his words had offended her. Yet later they made up.
Despite making up and moving on from the tumultuous moment, their argument in camp racked up nearly 900 Ofcom complaints. Following their jungle stint, the pair have urged the public to move on from it as they have done so.
The One With Hailey Bieber, Selena Gomez and Eyebrows
One of the more bizarre celebrity feuds to emerge this year involved Hailey Bieber, Selena Gomez and eyebrows – yes, you read that correctly.
The two women have consistently been pitted against one another since 2018, when the model married Justin Bieber six months after his split from on-again off-again girlfriend Gomez.
Since then, their respective fandoms have accused each star of subtly throwing shade at the other – and fans went into overdrive in February when Bieber and her friend Kylie Jenner were accused of mocking Gomez following an eyebrow lamination fail with photos that zoomed in on their eyebrows.
Their posts sparked fury among the singer’s loyal fanbase and quickly snowballed into what was arguably their respective fandoms' biggest rivalry with each other - all because of eyebrows.
Amidst the pseudo-feud, both sides of the coin tried to quell the online flames, with Jenner arriving in the comments section of a TikTok discussing the alleged shade.
She wrote: “This is reaching. No shade towards Selena ever and I didn’t see her eyebrow posts! U guys are making something out of nothing. This is silly.”
Acknowledging the frivolity, Gomez directly responded to Jenner’s comment, “Agreed @kyliejenner It’s all unnecessary. I’m a fan of Kylie!”
In the wake of the fallout, Gomez took a brief social media break before urging her fans in March to stop sending Bieber “hate” after learning the Rhode founder was receiving death threats.
Now six months on, it appears that the Only Murders in the Building star can see the funny side of their fans’ feud as she seemingly made a cheeky reference to her drama-inducing lamination fail while launching a new brow product for her Rare Beauty line.
Catherine Tyldesley’s Cake-Gate
Former Corrie star Catherine Tyldesley delivered one of the wildest feuds in the UK celebrity sphere this year. It all started when a Yorkshire-based baker refused to make more than 100 cakes for celebrity's 40th birthday party for free.
Rebecca Severs, owner of Keighley's Three Little Birds Bakery, took to Facebook to claim that free cakes had been requested by Leeds-based event management agency Nvrland in exchange for social media and a magazine plug.
Sharing several screenshots in her social media post, Severs revealed that the planners requested a main cake, a smaller cake and 100 cupcakes for an at-that-point unnamed celebrity celebrating a 40th birthday party – but refused to do so as she couldn't feed her staff with Instagram "likes".
In the wake of the fallout, MailOnline reported that celebrity behind the bash was Tyldesley, an actor known for playing Eva Price in Coronation Street and as a contestant on 2019’s Strictly Come Dancing.
On the defence, the soap star took to Instagram to deny the cake-gate claims and hit out at the “cake lady”, writing she hoped the baker “got the exposure she was craving.”
In light of the claims, Nvrlnd told the outlet its email had been “completely misconstrued”. Founder Victoria Eames said: “We would never expect any business to be out of pocket and nor would our client.”
Meanwhile, Three Little Birds bakery told them that it had been blown away by support and was fully booked for cake orders until mid-September.
Lizzo's Legal Run-In
2023 started out as a career-defining year for Lizzo as she picked up her fourth Grammy win, the coveted Record of the Year for her track About Damn Time.
But by August, things took a sour turn when three of her former backing dancers, Arianna Davis, Crystal Williams and Noelle Rodriguez, filed a lawsuit against the global superstar and her production company, Big Grrrl Big Touring (BGBT) .
The trio claimed they were subject to sexual, religious and racial harassment, disability discrimination, assault and false imprisonment, among other allegations. All of which Lizzo and members of her team have vehemently denied.
Responding to the accusations at the time, Lizzo said the claims were “too outrageous to not be addressed”.
“I’m hurt but I will not let the good work I’ve done in the world be overshadowed by this. I want to thank everyone who has reached out in support to lift me up during this difficult time,” she wrote on Instagram.
However more was to come as another former member of staff, fashion stylist Asha Daniels, accused Lizzo and other members of her touring team of illegal retaliatory termination, racial and sexual harassment, and a hostile work environment.
Ms Daniels also alleged that she was forced to work 20 hours a day, seven days a week while on tour with the star in Europe – something the singer and her team have vehemently denied, alleging the stylist had “never actually met or even spoke with Lizzo”.
On December 15, a lawyer representing Lizzo reportedly filed a motion to dismiss the “meritless and salacious” complaint in the Los Angeles Superior Court arguing that it is “defective” as the allegations have no connection to California, where it was filed, according to Music News.
According to the filing, Ms Daniels lives in New York and worked with Lizzo on tour in Europe.Lizzo’s legal counsel are also claiming that the former “disgruntled” employee “failed to perform the work that she was assigned” before she “refused to show up for work”.
Britney Spears Spars with Victor Wembanyama's Shoulder
Britney Spears has been embroiled in a few family feuds this year - namely calling out her little sister Jamie Lynn Spears in her explosive memoir.
Yet, there was one face-off fans weren't expecting when she claimed she was assaulted by a security guard after approaching French basketball star Victor Wembanyama at the ARIA Resort & Casino’s Catch restaurant.
Back in July, the singer took to Instagram to recall the incident and said she had been on the way to dinner with her now estranged-husband Sam Asghari when she had recognised Wembanyama and went to “congratulate him on his success”.In her statement she claimed that she had “tapped” Wembanyama on the shoulder to get his attention before being “backhanded” in the face.
Wembanyama, the top pick in this year’s NBA draft, told US broadcasters at the time that a person had “grabbed” him “from behind” while he was in a crowded hall walking to a restaurant.
The sports star said: “I just know the security pushed her away. I don’t know with how much force… and I didn’t stop to look, I kept walking to enjoy the nice dinner.”
Wembanyama added that he did not think the incident was a “big deal” and when he returned to his hotel room he found out Spears was involved.
He also said: “It turns out it was Britney Spears but I didn’t know, I never saw her face.”
Following the incident, Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department (LVMPD) confirmed there would be no charges filed following a brief investigation of the altercation.
The police explained that CCTV showed the Circus singer had inadvertently hit herself in the face after her hand was pushed off the NBA star's shoulder.
