2016 news review: Your most read stories

Find out the most read articles.

January

Teenagers killed in single car collision - The tragic account of how two 17-year-old males were killed in a single car collision on the Cladymilltown Road, between Markethill and Newtownhamilton in Co Armagh.

DUP MLA William Irwin, spoke to the News Letter from the scene: "This is such a tragedy with the lives of two young local lads lost in an instant, it really is such a horrific loss for the families of both young men."

Tragic Omagh farmer 'affected by pressure and stress of work' - A close friend of tragic Omagh farmer Derek Walker told the News Letter how “the pressures of farming greatly affected his health”. Mr Walker, a 34-year-old father-of-two, died suddenly at his home on January 4.

February

Police investigate after body discovered in Co Down - Police were investigating the circumstances surrounding the death of a man whose body was found in a house in the Ballygowan Park area of Banbridge.

Anger as RUC memorial plaque moved from station’s public area - The removal of a plaque for murdered RUC officers away from members of the public in Londonderry fuelled anger and concerns about the “rewriting of history”. The tribute to fallen RUC officers was recently taken down from display on the ground floor of the Strand Road station – angering bereaved relatives and the Police Federation.

March

Warning to parents after Co Londonderry baby died sleeping in bed beside mother - Court report recounts how five-month-old Charli Belle Doherty died after being taken into bed to sleep by her mother, who had recently returned from her hen night and was set to get married the following week

Steady decline in number of Protestant civil servants concerns Orange Order - The Northern Ireland Civil Service was once dominated by Protestants, but a steady decline in their numbers has led the Orange Order to write a report on the trend and request action to reverse it.

April

Tributes paid to tragic Scott McNeill who died after collision - Tributes were paid to 21-year-old Scott McNeill from Dromara who died after a two vehicle collision in Carryduff.

Hundreds pay tribute to tragic schoolboy John Irwin - Mourners pay their respects to tragic 16-year-old schoolboy John Irwin who died after collapsing. Staff and pupils from John’s school, City of Armagh High School, were among the mourners at St John’ Parish Church, Middletown.

May

Ryan Farquhar ‘seriously ill’ and returned to intensive care - Ulster road racer Ryan Farquhar was readmitted to the intensive care unit at the Royal Victoria Hospital in Belfast.

NW200: Ryan Farquhar’s team issues positive update - An official statement issued by Ryan Farquhar’s KMR Kawasaki team says doctors are very optimistic that the injured racer will make a full recovery.

June

Sinn Fein man gloats over Northern Ireland’s Euro 2016 defeat - A Sinn Fein councillor is condemned after posting a tweet gloating about Northern Ireland’s brave Euro 2016 defeat y Wales. Councillor Enda Fanning, who represents Templeogue-Terenure in Dublin, referred to Northern Ireland as the ‘GSTQ’ers’ or God Save the Queeners, as he congratulated Wales on their 1-0 victory in Paris.

Body found in Lisburn - A man's body was found on the Lagan towpath.

July

My wife lived for her family, says heartbroken husband of crash victim Lorraine Clyde - Husband of road crash victim Lorraine Clyde tells the News Letter how his beloved wife lived fpor her family.

Seamus Elliott seriously injured in crash at Faugheen road races - The father of Ulster road racer Seamus Elliott tells how he is praying his son will pull through after he was seriously injured in a crash at the Faugheen 50 meeting in Co Tipperary.

August

Businessman described as a 'scrooge' by Sunday World to get £50,000 damages - A Co Down businessman described in a newspaper as a “Scrooge” after his hotel went into administration is to be awarded £50,000 in libel damages, a High Court judge ruled.

PERSEID METEOR SHOWER: 200 shooting stars to dart through night sky - The Perseid meteor shower promised to be even more spectacular than usual this year. The annual space show was then underway and was set to peak when up to 200 shooting stars per hour - double the usual amount - are set to dart acros

September

Farm accident victim is named - The death of a man in his 30s in a farming accident has once again served to highlight the hazardous nature of the whole industry, an MP has declared.

UUP MP Tom Elliott Mr Elliott named the dead man as James Irwin, and said he had been planning to get married “in the near future”.

Irish league player hospitalised by assault is named - Footballer Niall Grace is described as being in a critical condition after a late night assault. Mr Grace is a member of Institute FC, based in south-east Londonderry.

October

School put on lockdown after ‘killer clown’ prank - A Co Londonderry school was put on lockdown following sinister threats from so-called ‘killer clowns’ on social media. Coleraine Grammar School was forced to keep its students in over their lunch break and close its gates after a message was posted on Instagram around 9.30am.

‘Killer clown’ craze on its way to Northern Ireland? - Police have warned pranksters who are posing as ‘killer clowns’ to terrify children that they could face arrest. The craze for dressing in horrifying clown costumes to jump out on unsuspecting passers-by has swept the country after taking off in American colleges.

November

Tragic Co Down teenager gives gift of life to four others - Tragic teenager Cameron Baxter, who died after spending nine days in a coma, has provided the gift of life to at least four people. The 18-year-old from Castlewellan, Co Down, who was training to be an outdoor instructor, died as the result of a fall at Greenhill YMCA.

LOUGHGALL: How the SAS wiped out ‘invincible’ IRA unit in just 10 minutes - Cross-border brigades contained the IRA’s top killers. It was the extreme that suppressed less radicalised views within the organisation.