Villains of 2017

Harvey Weinstein

There have been fewer unsavoury characters this year than Harvey Weinstein. In October, more than 60 women began to tell their stories about the movie mogul sexually assaulting them while claiming that he could help their careers. The stories ranged from harassment to rape and include Hollywood A-Listers such as Cara Delevingne, Rose McGowen, Gwyneth Paltrow, and Lupita Nyong’o. Criminal investigations were launched as Weinstein was immediately kicked off the board of the Weinstein Company and has been banned from the Producers Guild for life. Meanwhile, victims' stories just keep coming.

President Bashar al-Assad’s regime has repeatedly been accused of human rights abuses

Pricewaterhouse Coopers

The Guardian

United Airlines

2017 has been quite the annus horribilis for United. Most controversially, video footage emerged in April of airline officials forcibly removing 69-year-old doctor Dao from a flight departing from Chicago. Dao had refused to give up his seat voluntarily and had his nose broken and lost two front teeth in the incident. United boss Oscar Munoz apologised for the “truly horrific event” after initially defending staff, and the airline changed its policy on booking its flight crews onto planes to avoid similar incidents in the future. Dao reached a settlement for an undisclosed sum with the airline in April. In the wake of the controversy, it is easy to forget another fiasco that blighted the airline in March, when staff in Denver blocked two young girls from boarding a flight because they were wearing leggings.

Aung San Suu Kyi

Ben Stokes