so we re talking about 100,000 years to get there or maybe even further. so you better pack an overnight bag. tom costello, nbc news in washington, d.c. coming up, pop goes the year. from britney to simone, squid game to the royals, the moments that stunned, shocked, and captivated us in 2021. speaking of the royals one of the most memorable stories for me over the past year was really the death of prince philip. this was a huge, historical figure, a man who stood alongside the queen for more than 70 years, who had a front row seat to so many historic events. i remember his grandchildren paying tribute to him. prince harry calling him the master of the barbecue, and prince william saying he was really the heart of this royal family. this was a covid funeral, and for a man for a family,
culture from the breakout shows and music to the moments that captured us all and of course we can t forget about britney. joining us now to recap 2021 s major entertainment headlines is brian baltazar, and we have with us brianne heldman, a senior editor at people, good to have you both with us. thank you. the breakouts in tv and music, i want to start with tv and two of the shows that come to mind. ted lasso and the squid game, two shows not at all alike at all. what was the appeal? squid game, why was it so appealing? it came out of nowhere for most of us. this is a concept that s really dark. you would fall in love with the show and then have to explain to someone it s like the systematic execution of contestants trying to win money. it s so out of nowhere, you would never think i m going to watch this dubbed over show and
billionaire space race, and, of course, free britney. as you ll see this hour, if you were looking for things to settle down a bit after 2020, it was 2021 that said hold my beer. five, four, three, two, one! in the closing moments of 2020 as the ball dropped above a sparsely populated times square, a weary nation cautiously hoped for better times. dreams that were quickly dampened. [ cheers ] 2021 was just six days old when a mob of trump supporters stormed the u.s. capitol hoping to overturn the presidential election. the images from that day, captured in the capitol rotunda.
it was the year that jeopardy! struggled to find a permanent host. welcome to the second of our three semifinal matches. reporter: that britney was finally freed from her conservatorship. and our friends reunited in that movie block busters made their loaning-awaited return along with broadway, and adele. go easy on me baby reporter: the olympic flame belatedly burned one year later than planned, as tokyo hosted the 2020 games in 2021. superstar gymnast simone biles traded high scores for high praise when she grew several events to focus on her mental health. i have to focus on my mental well-being and that s what i did. reporter: tiger woods started swinging again following a serious car crash in california. and billionaires raced to space, even captain kirk took a trip to the final frontier.
britney has said what a credit it is to the fans that fought for her. brian and brianne, thank you so much for joining us, it s a fun segment to close out the year. before we go, here s a look back at some of the most powerful pictures of the past 12 months. photo editors at nbc news.com curated a gallery of images capturing the most significant moments of 2021. that does it for our nbc news now special. good-bye, 2021, a year to remember, and forget, thanks for watching. let s hope 2022 is full of things that are unforgettable in a good way. we hope you and your family and loved ones had a wonderful holiday. happy new year. aleve-x. it s fast, powerful long-lasting relief with a revolutionary, rollerball design. because with the right pain reliever. life opens up. aleve it. and see what s possible.