2018: what lies ahead

AS one year comes to an end, another one kicks off. So what’s in store for 2018? 

JANUARY 8: GOLDEN GLOBES

Hollywood’s second-best awards show sometimes acts as a predictor for Oscars success, but the 2018 event will have an added level of interest, given it will be the movie industry’s first big gathering since the Harvey Weinstein and other sexual harrassment and assault scandals of 2017. Expect some barbed comments from host Seth Meyers, and a statement or twenty from, oh, pretty much everyone.

JANUARY 22: A NEW ERA FOR TODAY

Lisa Wilkinson’s defection from Nine to Ten was one of the big surprises of 2017. Her replacement as Today co-host, Georgie Gardiner, starts on January 22, while Lisa is set to join The Project. Expect heavy analysis of the show’s ratings in the days and weeks afterwards.

JANUARY 27: COUNTDOWN WITH A DIFFERENCE

When Triple J announced it was moving the date of its annual Hottest 100 countdown from Australia Day to January 27, critics derided the move as political correctness gone mad, while supporters said it was a fitting recognition of the fact that Australia Day is not a day that all people feel they can celebrate.

JANUARY 31: LOOK UP

A total lunar eclipse, also called a Blood Moon, will be visible from Australia, as well as North America, eastern Asia and the Pacific Ocean. According to timeanddate.com it will begin at 9:51pm on January 31 and will be at its maximum at 12.29am on February 1. It will last a total of 5 hours and 17 minutes.

F EBRUARY 8: RETURN TO THE BEAR PIT

Federal politicians will return to Canberra for the resumption of Parliament. Expect more developments in the citizenship saga, and a focus on power prices and cost of living pressures.

FEBRUARY 9: WINTER OLYMPICS

The Winter Olympics come to South Korea for the first time from February 9-25, but there are concerns that the Games’ close proximity to North Korea could prompt some kind of rogue action from dictator Kim Jong-un.

MARCH: SHEERAN BACK FOR OZ TOUR 

Everyone’s favourite ranga (sorry, Harry, but those “family” comments were a tad insensitive) is back in Australia as part of his mammoth Divide world tour. Not many one-man bands can fill stadiums, but music superstar Ed Sheeran has always been one out of the box. Expect sellout crowds and armies of fans going wild for the down-to-earth troubadour.

MARCH 3: MARDI GRAS TURNS 40

It’s always a good party, but the 2018 Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras Parade could be the biggest one yet. Participants and spectators will be celebrating not just the 40th anniversary of the event, but also the passage of same-sex marriage legislation - with a couple set to tie the knot during the parade itself. Cher has also confirmed she will be there.

MARCH 17: SOUTH AUSTRALIA GOES TO THE POLLS

South Australia’s state poll could break new ground for an Australian election, with Nick Xenophon’s team leading in the polls and possibly set to break the dominance of the major parties. Expect a tough campaign.

MARCH 18: RUSSIA GOES TO THE POLLS

President Vladimir Putin, whose approval ratings have topped 80 percent, is set to win a fourth term in the March 18 election. A victory would put the 65-year-old on track to become Russia’s longest-serving leader since Josef Stalin. Opposition leader Alexei Navalny

announced that a slew of rallies would be held across the country on January 28 to protest the Central Election Commission’s decision to bar him from the race. We hate to say it, but expect bloodshed.

APRIL: A ROYAL ARRIVAL

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge — and the rest of the world — are expecting Britain’s newest royal to arrive sometime in April. The newborn, brother or sister to Prince George and Princess Charlotte, will automatically become the fifth in line for the throne.

APRIL OR MAY: SUPER SATURDAY

Five by-elections could be held on a Saturday early next year for federal politicians facing questions over their citizenship - or even more if the citizenship crisis expands in 2018.

All eyes will be on the outcome which could potentially see the Turnbull Government pick up a few extra seats and strengthen their position in the lower house given the narrow margins that some of the MPs in question hold their seats by. A date for the election will be set for just over a month after the High Court rules on their cases.

APRIL 4: THE DREAM CONTINUES

April 4 marks 50 years since the assassination of trailblazing US civil rights activist, Martin Luther King Jr. Coming on the back of the rise to prominence of the Black Lives Matter movement, expect to see a lot of soul-searching coming out of the US around this time.

APRIL 4: LET THE GAMES COMMENCE

The 21st Commonwealth Games are set to take the Gold Coast to a whole new level of excitement between April 4 and 15. Expect to see pronouncements about the Gold Coast’s “coming of age”, tourists, and an Aussie gold rush.

MAY 7: DEADLINE DOOMSDAY

The clock has been ticking for the Prime Minister ever since he rolled Tony Abbott as Liberal leader in September 2015, citing a streak of 30 bad Newspolls in a row as a reason for the leadership challenge. At the time of writing, Mr Turnbull has so far racked up 25 Newspolls in a row where Labor is ahead of the Coalition, and if this trend continues unbroken, the 30th Newspoll could be published on either May 7, or May 21.

MAY 8: BUDGET NIGHT

Scott Morrison will hand down his third budget on Tuesday, May 8. Always a key political date of the year, this one could have a whole new twist if the PM has not turned the opinion polls around by this stage (see above).

MAY 19: HARRY AND MEGHAN TIE THE KNOT

In a big year for the Royal family, Prince Harry’s wedding to American actress Meghan Markle at Windsor Castle is sure to be the standout moment. Expect a lot of photos, and the dress to sell out.

MAY 25: GOING SOLO

Solo, the second standalone film in the Star Wars series not to be part of the official saga (the first was 2016’s Rogue One), is set to debut. The new film, starring Alden Ehrenreich in the title role and Game of Thrones’ Emilia Clarke, charts the early adventures of the character played by Harrison Ford. Expect: Appearances by a young Chewbacca and Lando Calrissian, a

lot of hype and a ton of merch.

JUNE 14: WORLD CUP

The world’s biggest sporting event, the FIFA World Cup, kicks off in Russia, with 32 nations battling it out for supremacy. Italy didn’t quality, but Australia did.

JULY 18: HERE WE GO AGAIN ...

Mamma Mia: Here We Go Again, the sequel to the 2008 movie musical of ABBA hits, will debut worldwide on July 18. Despite mixed reviews for the original, expect this one to be a box office hit.

 

AUGUST: ANOTHER ELECTION LOOMS

There’s a strong prospect Australians will be heading to the polls for a federal election in the second half of 2018.

The next election must be held between August 4, 2018 and mid-May, 2019 for Senators from the states whose term will be up in June 2019.

It’s likely a simultaneous election for House of Representatives MPs and Senators from the Territories will be held at the same time.

OCTOBER: 

She’s copped a bit of drubbing from haters on Instagram lately, but Taylor Swift is one of music’s troupers. And the star will be back in Oz in 2018, doing what she does best — filling stadiums and giving the fans a night to remember. Swift kicks off her Reputation world tour in the US in May. She will perform in Perth, Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane.

OCTOBER: MERCURY RISING

The European and Japanese space agencies will launch their joint mission -​​ BepiColombo, which is going to probe Mercury, our Solar System’s closest planet to the Sun in 2025.

OCTOBER 20: HARRY HEADS DOWN UNDER 

When Prince Harry announced that Sydney would be the host city for the 2018 Invictus games, he described Sydney as “iconic” and “sports-mad” with a proud military heritage.

The Prince founded the Games, an international sporting event for military veterans who have suffered an injury or illness.

Harry is reportedly keen to attend the Sydney Games with Meghan Markle, in what will be their first royal tour as a married couple.

NOVEMBER: GAME OF THRONES FINALE 

Filming of the final season of Game of Thrones has begun, but fans may have to wait until late 2018 or even early 2019 for it to be broadcast.

According to HBO sources, production on the Season 8 may end up being very long, running from October to as late as August 2018.

“As shows get bigger and more complicated, I have to follow the producers’ lead and let go of, ‘It’d be nice to have it every year,’” HBO programming president Casey Bloys said.

NOVEMBER 11: ONE HUNDRED YEARS SINCE THE END OF THE GREAT WAR

The centenary of Armistice Day will be commemorated the world over. In Canberra, the home of the Australian War Memorial, there will be displays, activites and installations in the five-week period from October 5 to November 11. The centrepiece to the commemorations will be the installation of 62,000 knitted red poppy flowers on the memorial’s grounds. Each poppy represents an Australian life lost in the First World War, who are individually listed on the memorial’s Roll of Honour.

In Britain, 1,400 bell ringers are to being recruited in 2018 to mark the centenary. They will represent the 1,400 British bell ringers who died in the conflict.

Bells in churches and cathedrals across England will ring out on November 11 and Big Ben will also strike to mark the centenary of Armistice Day.