10 Years of Belfast Live: 10 of the biggest stories of 2015

This week we have been celebrating 10 years of Belfast Live and it is fair to say that a lot has changed in Northern Ireland over the past decade, but some things have stayed the same.

When we launched, Peter Robinson was First Minister and there was significant disagreement within the Executive over how to handle UK-wide welfare reforms, Game of Thrones was filming across Northern Ireland and the Northern Ireland football team qualified for Euro 2016.

Since then, we have moved out of our former Holywood Road offices, our team has grown exponentially, and we have become the largest read news site in Northern Ireland. The video below from our launch a decade ago details how "a modern city deserves a modern way to get it's information", and that is still something we stand by today as we continue to embrace new mediums of storytelling from podcasts to TikTok.

However, what hasn't changed is our commitment to bringing you the latest news and the biggest stories. With that in mind, here are 10 of the biggest stories that we covered during the first year of Belfast Live.

Mum-of-two goes into hiding after shop visit ends in social media humiliation

This story by Leona O'Neill was published on 24 August 2015 and told of a young mum with a serious skin condition who had gone into hiding after being humiliated on social media after buying an outfit for her pal’s wedding.

Then, aged 28, Ciara Moore suffered from Psoriasis, a skin condition that causes red, flaky patches of skin. But when she returned home from a shopping trip to the QUIZ store in Derry’s Richmond Centre she discovered that at least one member of staff at the store had made slurs about her condition and ridiculed her appearance on social media.

The comments were shared widely on Facebook and met with an angry response in Derry. Such was the scale of anger, there were calls for a boycott and protests outside the store.

At the time, a spokesperson for QUIZ Clothing apologised for the incident.

They saidd: “We would like to outline the comments made do not reflect QUIZ and are not officially sanctioned by QUIZ in any manner whatsoever.

“We are deeply sorry for any upset caused by this employee posting a personal Facebook comment and advise that the matter is being dealt with at its highest level internally and we will be taking all actions necessary in this instance. We at QUIZ value customer service above all and will be in contact with the customer to resolve this matter to their satisfaction.”

You can read the full story here.

Ibiza death: Alan Drennan DID suffer injuries to his head and face Irish coroner has told family

This story by Jilly Beattie told how a 21 year old mechanic who died less than 24 hours of arriving in Ibiza had suffered injuries to his head, scalp and face, despite a postmortem carried out in Spain stating there were no evidence of injuries.

Alan had travelled to the island with friends and had been escorted off the plane by authorities responding to a complaint. With Alan in police custody, his friends collected his suitcase and took it to their hotel and later met with Alan, who reported being beaten by police at the airport.

Photos taken at the time apparently showed evidence of a gash on his head and arm, and he told his friends he had been beaten on his back too.

Determined to have a good holiday and with Alan appearing upbeat, the group brushed off the incident and partied through Saturday night until around 7am on Sunday.

Two hours later when they went together a shop to buy soft drinks, Alan said he felt very unwell, thirsty and desperately want to sleep. Tragically he was unwittingly exhibiting tell-tale signs of a head injury. Alan's body was later discovered in his hotel room by a cleaner.

You can read the full story here.

Praise for Translink bus driver who stopped to deliver a coat to homeless man standing in the rain

This story by Chris Sherrard told of a bus driver on the 10H route through West Belfast who stopped the bus to give a homeless man a winter coat.

A university student who was on the bus at the time had taken to social media to share what had happened.

You can read the full story here.

Rory McIlroy hits back at Twitter troll over supporting Ireland rugby team

This story from Sheena McStravick told of how Rory McIlroy hit back at Twitter trolls after he was pictured at enjoying Northern Ireland's victory over Greece at Windsor Park alongside his then girlfriend and boxer Carl Frampton.

With Northern Ireland safely qualified for the Euros, McIlroy turned his attention to Ireland's big game against France in the Rugby World Cup, only to be slated for it by a Twitter Troll.

Tweeting a picture from the stands in Cardiff as he watched the game, Rory was trolled by "Anthony" telling him to "make his mind up" referring to the fact McIlroy had been at the football on the Thursday night.

But Rory wasn't going to let him get away with it, responding, "Why can't I like football and rugby?" followed by a few strategically placed emoticons.

Piers Morgan praised Rory for standing up to the troll.

You can read the full story here.

West Belfast lad in intensive care after diving into pool at Ibiza apartments and breaking his back in two places

This story by Lisa Smyth told of a young plumber from West Belfast who broke his back after jumping head-first into the shallow end of the swimming pool at apartments in Ibiza.

Sean Paul McCabe had been told he was seconds away from being paralysed after the devastating accident.

The young man faced an anxious wait for potentially life-saving surgery to repair his broken spine - located next to his heart - because he forgot to buy travel insurance.

Sean Paul's parents booked flights to Ibiza as soon as they heard the news and a gofundme was set up to support the family.

You can read the full story here.

Majority of MLAs vote for same sex marriage - but DUP petition of concern means no law change

This story by Maurice Fitzmaurice and David Young tells how a week after Same-Sex Marriage legislation was signed in the Republic of Ireland, a majority of MLAs voted in favour of it in Stormont for the first time, but there was no change in the law after the DUP used a controversial petition of concern to scupper the move.

The ‘petition’ tabled by the DUP at the outset of the debate in Parliament Buildings, meant the proposal would only succeed if a sufficient number of both unionist and nationalist MLAs backed it

While not enough unionists voted yes, the slim overall majority (50.5%) in favour has nevertheless been hailed as a symbolic victory by campaigners for same sex marriage in the region. 105 MLAs took part with 53 voting in favour and 51 against while Ulster Unionist leader Mike Nesbitt abstained.

It is the first time a majority has backed the proposal on what was the fifth occasion the issue had been voted on in the Assembly.

You can read the full story here.

Carl Frampton furious over ticket fiasco after tout sites snare loyal fans in take-it or leave-it deal

This story by Jilly Beattie told how Carl Frampton hit out at online sites which scooped up batches of tickets and offered them for sale at up to £7,000 each.

The move ensured that many loyal fans had been unable to get their hands on tickets for the Manchester fight against Scott Quigg.

Social media went into overdrive as gutted fans said they had faced forking out as much as £7,000 to buy one ticket after they were snapped up by touts for as little as £40.

You can read the full story here.

PSNI officer gets his groove on at Calvin Harris gig

Never mind RoboCop, here's RaverCop as this story from Maurice Fitzmaurice tells of a PSNI officer filmed raving at Tennent's Vital.

The officer was caught on camera as he decided to put his flashing police issue torches to good use getting into the groove at the music festival. The short video was later posted on social media.

You can read the full story here.

Big-hearted Snow Patrol frontman Gary Lightbody donates proceeds of Belfast gig to local charities

This story by Sheena McStravick told how Snow Patrol frontman Gary Lightbody revealed that proceeds from his solo gig in Belfast would be donated to charity.

The Bangor musician wowed crowds at Belfast's Waterfront Hall with what fans have described as an "emotional" and "captivating" performance.

During the show, Lightbody told fans that all proceeds from the sold out show would be donated to children's charities right here in Northern Ireland.

You can read the full story here.

Tony McCoy, Carl Frampton and James Nesbitt recognised in New Year Honours list

Tony McCoy, Carl Frampton and Jimmy Nesbitt were all recognised in the 2015 New Year Honours list.

Racing legend McCoy was awarded a knighthood in recognition of his services to horseracing.

The 41-year-old former jockey officially retired at the end of April that year when he brought the curtain down on a spectacular 23-year National Hunt career.

He counted 31 Cheltenham Festival winners, as well as two Gold Cups and one famous Grand National success, among his big-race haul.

Carl Frampton was awarded an MBE in the New Year Honours list for services to boxing and James Nesbitt said receiving an OBE would “give credence” to the cause of those left searching for loved ones following the Troubles in Northern Ireland.

The Missing star was awarded the honour in the New Year’s list for services to Northern Ireland and to acting after years of work helping families affected by the conflict.

You can read the full story here.

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