Google 2013 rankings: Paul Walker dominates UK searches

PAUL WALKER, the star of the Fast & Furious movies who was killed in a car crash in California last month, was the most searched-for person on Google this year, the search engine giant says.

The company's Zeitgeist report, which details the UK's search habits during 2013, reveals that Walker's shocking death also made him the most searched for subject this year. The actor's name was typed into more devices than the iPhone 5S and the royal baby, which were ranked at two and three respectively.

Cory Monteith, another popular actor who died unexpectedly this year, was the second most searched-for person and the fourth most searched term this year. The Canadian star of Glee was found dead from a heroin overdose in his hotel room.

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Disgraced South African athlete Oscar Pistorius is the only living person in the list of the top five most Googled people. It is rounded out by Nelson Mandela and Margaret Thatcher, who both died this year. Actor Peter Capaldi - who is very much alive - is at six thanks to the BBC's decision to cast him as the new Doctor Who.

The Independent says the fact that the year's top search terms are mostly people - and in many cases dead people - is consistent with previous Zeitgeist rankings.

The list of most-searched-for celebrities tells a familiar tale. Reality TV star Kim Kardashian is one followed by British boy band One Direction. Kardashian's figures were boosted by her engagement to rapper Kanye West and the birth of the couple's baby, North.

The event that had most British users reaching for a search engine this year was the Grand National. It was followed by Wimbledon, the Eurovision Song Contest and the Confederations Cup.

The latest Superman movie Man of Steel was the most Googled film this year, followed by Brad Pitt's poorly received zombie epic World War Z.

The questions British users most wanted answered were: What is twerking, what is my IP (internet protocol) address and what is yolo? If you're wondering about the latter, it's an acronym for You Only Live Once. We know, because we Googled it.