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Wales: A look back at what made headlines in 2023

As 2023 draws to a close take a look back at the stories that made the headlines in Wales this year.

31 December 2023

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Danny Mendoza wears glasses and blue t-shirt and has grey stubble

I need dad near home, says dementia patient's son

Ryan Reynolds surrounded by players and their families on the pitch

Ryan Reynolds and Wrexham players celebrate promotion

Actor Ryan Reynolds poses with fans for selfies

Reynolds takes selfies with fans before crunch game

Monica Stott has embraced "extreme day trips"

Blogger takes holidays abroad lasting just one day

Riley, a young boy wearing a cap and a black hoodie, and Ryan Reynolds, who wears a cord jacket. They are both giving thumbs up to the camera.

'Ryan making dream come true means everything'

Riley smiles and holds a laptop screen with Ryan Reynolds and Blake Lively on it.

Meeting Deadpool 'means everything' to boy, 9

Fred Sirieix in BBC Radio Wales studio

Prison restaurants cut reoffending - Fred Sirieix

Robber aiming gun at worker

Watch: Armed robber points gun at garage cashier

Eva Longoria and McElhenney standing in the executive box

Desperate Housewives star watches Wrexham win

An adult curlew standing in grass beside a wire fence

High-tech help for Wales' most threatened bird

Moment farmer shoots two XL bullies caught on video

Autistic man hopes for love amid online dating woe

Cows wandering through street

Watch: Runaway cows dent cars in village

Pigs digging up front garden

'Oh my God': Watch pesky pigs tear up garden

Ryan Reynolds supports cancer firewalk fundraiser

Ryan Reynolds on victory parade bus

Thousands of Wrexham fans celebrate at victory parade

Ryan Reynolds, Co-Owner of Wrexham, and Rob McElhenney, Co-Owner of Wrexham, celebrate with players

Ryan Reynolds takes selfies on Wrexham winners' bus

Watch: The view from the Wrexham parade bus

Jay Fear was given a glove from the film and said his family would remember meeting the actor forever

Reynolds invites terminally ill fan to film set

Wrexham celebrates long-sought promotion

Rowenna Hoskin, who has short curly hair and is wearing a plaid shirt, holds up a photo of lab-grown meat, which is also the background of the video. A black and white cow is on the left with its mouth open.

Would you eat lab-grown meat?

Lab-grown meat in supermarkets could be just around the corner, but would you try it?

A selfie of Richard and Ruth on Barry's famous Trinity Street where Gavin & Stacey was filmed

Ruth Jones takes Richard E Grant on tour of Barry

The actors are filming in Wales as they prepare to co-star in The Other Bennet Sister.

A composite image of four Lana Del Ray fans standing outside the Principality Stadium.

'We got 30 minutes' sleep queuing for Lana Del Rey'

Excitement is building for the opening night of Lana Del Rey's UK and Ireland tour.

Sam sat in a radio studio. He is wearing a black headphones, a purple cap, cream shirt and white top.

Actor lands top role with help from his nan

Sam Locke, 24, from Merthyr Tydfil makes his feature film debut in Danny Boyle's 28 Years Later.

Swarm of bees outside a cream building.

Thousands of bees buzz around church centre

One woman says she was too nervous to leave her car, describing the sight as "pretty mad".

Bethan James with large birthday balloons in shape of numbers one and two wearing sequinned party dress

'Sepsis symptom recognition must improve'

Bethan James's family say doctors must admit mistakes so lessons can be learned.

Two jet aircraft seen in silhouette against a mostly blue sky

RAF birthday flypast over WW2 veteran's home

John Martin, a former wireless operator, had two jets fly over his home to mark his 103rd birthday.

Man standing at the door to a police station, with a weapon in his hands.

Moment man attacks police station

Alexander Dighton tried to murder a police officer while armed with Molotov cocktails.

Race Across the World contestants Fin and Sioned smile at eachother inside a kitchen.

'We brought a part of Wales on Race across the World'

Fin Gough and Sioned Cray, from Carmarthenshire, had no contact with home during their two-month travels.

Mark Drakeford who has grey hair and glasses, wearing a grey suit jacket, shirt and red tie, pointing his finger and looking to the side with an angry expression. Behind him, sat nehind a wooden Senedd desk, is colleague Jan hut who also has short grey hair and glasses and is wearing a mint green blazer and blue and white floral blouse. She is looking at Drakeford with a concerned expression.

Drakeford loses temper with Plaid leader

Drakeford accuses Rhun ap Iorwerth of being "very bad at listening" as he is heckled.

A black and white photo of the outside of a large building with many windows and the word 'Hoover' across the front.

A look back at Hoover factory as demolition due

Hoover opened its Merthyr site in 1948, with operations there ending in 2009.

Woman in a purple coat lying on the grass after being hit by a HGV, which is visible to the right hand side of the shot. It is a blurry image.

Moment HGV driver mounts kerb and hits pedestrian

Glen Brady, distracted by his sat-nav, swerved across the carriageway and mounted the pavement.

A man with short brown hair and a beard, wearing a light blue t shirt speaks in front microhphones

'I'm myself when I'm in Wales' says Love Island winner

Liam Reardon, who won the show in 2021, said Merthyr Tydfil has a close-knit community.

Jessica Thomas looking at the camera. She has her hair scraped back in a ponytail and is wearing a light green top.

No remorse shown over inheritance fraud - daughter

Jessica Thomas reflects on how her mother spent £50,000 in inheritance money left to her and sister.

Michael Sheen with white-grey hair and a beard sat on his sofa. He is wearing a grey t-shirt.

Actor Michael Sheen co-writes first children's book

Spark the dragon sees his nest destroyed in a storm and he needs somewhere else to live.

Amanda holds her baby son Jack in her arms. She is wearing a pink top and glasses, and he is wearing blue dungarees.

'I'm going to outlive our child, there are no words'

Jack is one of only 16 children in the world with a genetic condition so rare it doesn't have a name.

Craig holding his son and daughter's hands, with his wife to the right hand side. A crowd of people stand behind them.

Funding rejected for dad's cancer-fighting drug

Craig Maxwell, 41, is receiving treatment after being diagnosed with incurable lung cancer in 2023.

A man stroking his yellow labrador in a garden with brown garden fencing around them.

Should retiring police dogs get a pension?

Retired police dogs currently receive no pension meaning the veterinary costs fall to the owner.

A man with brown hair and beard with a ring through his nose and lip piercing wears a brown top

Parking price rise branded ridiculous and expensive

Visitors and residents react to a steep increase in car parking charges in west Wales town.

A side by side image of the same man - a weather presenter, Derek Brockway, and behind him is a weather map. On the left he is in colour, wearing a blue suit, light blue shirt and a colourful tie, on the left he is in the same outfit but the image is in black and white. The left shows an AI version of him and the right is the real Derek.

What impact can AI have on our weather forecasts?

Derek Brockway has been a weather presenter for the BBC for decades, but could AI cost him his job?