Perhaps the most unlikely person to have internet virality thrust upon them was British academic Robert Kelly. Photo / Still
So many of us conduct our lives online these days that the clips and memes that spread like wildfire become a pretty defining part of our year.
This year didn't disappoint with some pretty memorable videos permeating internet cables all over the globe.
So for the sake of some Friday afternoon lols, we thought we revisit some of the most memorable and most shared videos that took over the internet in 2017, reports News.com.au.
Bad lip reading videos have become an internet mainstay for some cheap laughs. Usually they were dubbed over clips from players in NFL games but the day Donald Trump was sworn in as leader of the free world was a moment that, for some, desperately required a bit comic relief. And that's exactly what this did.
Perhaps the most unlikely person to have internet virality, and subsequent fame, thrust upon them was British academic Robert Kelly.
He was being interviewed live about the impeachment of South Korean president Park Geun-hye, when his children burst in behind him causing a scene before his wife busted in trying to frantically save the day.
READ MORE:
• Robert Kelly's live BBC interview gatecrashed by kids
The clip is so relatable and just so damn funny it deserved the untold number of views it racked up, turning "BBC dad" into an internet hero.
This video of incredibly elaborate ping pong trick shots lacks the authenticity of the BBC dad and is packed full of some pretty incessant product placement.
But given how much time and effort would have gone into pulling some of these shots off, it's no surprise the clip has been watched nearly 100 million times. And some of them are pretty impressive.
YouTube's most watched clip this year went to a strange man dressed in an oyster suit in a Thai singing competition.
Yep, in 2017 it wasn't Justin Beiber but rather a strange-looking creature singing/rapping a song that roughly translates to Love You Until the World Turns Into Dust.
That's how you get 190 million views.
Australian thrillseekers were warned by authorities in October after a clip which showed half a dozen people sliding down Tweed's Clarrie Hall Dam in northern NSW went viral.
After receiving plenty of views, authorities condemned the filmmakers saying it's been a problem for years — which you quickly realise after seeing the number of clips posted to YouTube.
"It's illegal, it's prohibited, you can be charged with trespassing. It's a stupid thing to do," a spokesperson for the council told news.com.au.
Of course we agree, but it does look like fun.
New York Times: Gripping new thriller looks at a woman whose life is upended by a novel.