2013's most memorable videos

From the Royal baby to Nelson Mandela's funeral, it has been another very busy year for news.

But it is not always the biggest international events that users of the BBC News website are interested in.

In the past 12 months, you have also been clicking on videos that capture the lighter side of life.

Here, we look back over some of the most memorable and popular videos that appeared on the BBC News website in 2013.

January

On 16 January, two people were killed and 12 others were injured after a helicopter crashed into a crane in Vauxhall, London. It happened at the height of the morning rush hour. The pilot - who was one of those killed - had asked to be diverted because of bad weather.

Police said it was "miraculous" that more people were not killed

This month also saw the BBC's Daniel Sandford gaining rare access inside the Kremlin in Moscow. Both a historic palace and the seat of power, the palace complex has hidden many secrets over the years.

Daniel Sandford explores inside Russia's seat of power

February

On 11 February Pope Benedict XVI shocked the world by announcing his decision to resign from Papal office due to his advanced age. It made him to first Pontiff to leave his post alive in nearly 600 years. At the end of the month he left the Vatican for the final time, church bells ringing as he departed by helicopter.

The Pope left the Vatican in a motorcade before boarding a helicopter to the papal retreat

And in Russia, a meteor crashed in the Urals - reportedly injuring hundreds of people. The shockwaves blew out windows and rocked buildings. The meteor landed in a lake near Chebarkul, a town in the Chelyabinsk region.

The BBC's Daniel Sandford says people described a ball of fire in the sky

March

There was bemusement in Bradford police station this month when a caped crusader walked in the door. A man dressed as Batman came in to hand over a man suspected of handling stolen goods. Initially the identity of the man was a mystery, as the BBC's Danny Savage explained...

Who is the Bradford batman?

But later in the month it emerged that Batman was Stan Worby, 39, a takeaway delivery driver - and in December he was found guilty of burglary himself.

April

April 2013 saw the death of Margaret Thatcher, Britain's first and only female Prime Minister. More than 2,000 dignitaries from 170 countries attended her funeral, which was conducted with full military honours.

Last respects paid at Lady Thatcher's funeral in a day of solemn ceremony

There was tragedy in the US when two bombs exploded at the finish line of 2013's Boston Marathon, killing three people and injuring more than 260. The blasts shattered the carnival atmosphere of one of the biggest sporting events in the US, causing panic and confusion.

At the time of this piece the cause of the explosions had yet to be identified

Following a two-day manhunt, Dhozkhar Tsarnaev was found hiding inside a boat in a backyard garden. The other suspect, his brother Tamerlan Tsarnaev, was killed during a shootout with police the night before.

Back in the UK, there was a lighter moment later in the month when the BBC's Jon Kay reported on a tiny alleyway which had been painted with double yellow lines. Swindon council painted the lines down a road which would not even accommodate the smallest car.

Swindon's over-zealous parking restrictions

May

Footage that emerged from China in March caused shock around the world: firefighters rescuing a newborn baby boy who was lodged inside a sewage pipe. Residents of an apartment building in Jinhua city, Zhejiang province, called rescuers after they hearing the infant's cries. Firefighters had to saw through a section of the pipe to reach the boy.

Martin Patience's report from Beijing contains some distressing scenes

Later in the month Chinese officials announced that they were treating the case as an accident after the baby's 22 year-old mother said he had slipped into the toilet and down the pipe as she gave birth. The child - who received minor cuts and bruises - was released from hospital into the care of his grandparents.

June

The BBC's New Broadcasting House in central London received a special guest in June when the Queen arrived to officially open the new building. In a moment that presenter Simon McCoy described as "one of the most bizarre bits of television that the BBC has produced for some time", she peered through the glass of the main TV news studio as Julian Worricker and Sophie Long looked on from inside.

The Queen got a good view of the BBC News Channel studio

July

The news that Royal-watchers around the world had been waiting for finally arrived in July, when the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge emerged from St Mary's Hospital in London bearing their new baby son. Addressing crowds outside, Prince William said his son - whose name was later revealed to be George - had his wife's "looks" and "a good pair of lungs".

The world gets its first glimpse of the new Prince

August

There was widespread revulsion in August when horrifying pictures emerged from the suburbs of Damascus, Syria of what was believed to be a massive chemical weapons attack. Opposition groups in the country accused the country's security forces of killing hundreds of people in the attacks, but the Syrian government denied any involvement.

The BBC's Frank Gardner says the footage shows people gasping for breath and convulsing

Later in the year a report by UN investigators confirmed that the deadly nerve gas sarin was used in the attack, but did not determine whether the government or rebels had used the weapons. In the aftermath of the attack there was widespread condemnation of the Syrian government, and international action against President Bashar al-Assad's regime was only avoided when he allowed international inspectors to begin destroying the country's chemical weapons as part of an agreement brokered between the US and Russia.

September

After the sinking of the Costa Concordia cruise liner in January, experts had been waiting for months before beginning the painstaking operation of righting the ship. In September - in an operation that lasted 18 hours and used cables and metal boxes filled with water - the ship was finally rolled onto a platform. Dramatic time-lapse footage showed how the salvage operation unfolded.

This time-lapse footage shows the first day of the Costa Concordia salvage operation

October

In October a powerful storm named St Jude caused chaos across parts of Europe. Four people died after the storm battered many parts of Britain, leading to 625,000 homes losing power, and rail and flight cancellations. At the height of the storm, a top wind speed of 99mph was recorded on the Isle of Wight.

Footage from across the south shows the storm's impact, as Robert Hall reports

November

Audiences around the world reacted with both shock and amusement in November at the news that the Mayor of Toronto, Rob Ford, had been filmed smoking crack cocaine while in office. Ford admitted to smoking the drug - and then later in the month a new video emerged which showed him threatening to kill someone. BBC News brought together a selection of the comments he made to the media in reaction to the various revelations.

Toronto Mayor Rob Ford: In his own words

December

2013 ended with the sad news of the death of Nelson Mandela, aged 95, on 5 December. South Africa's first black president was remembered at a large memorial event attended by dignitaries from around the world including US President Barack Obama. Later his body was laid to rest in a family burial plot following a state funeral service.

The traditional Xhosa ceremony was held in Mr Mandela's ancestral home, Qunu

And in the UK, there was something of a tabloid frenzy as two sisters went on trial accused of defrauding Nigella Lawson and her former husband Charles Saatchi. During her evidence, Lawson admitted she took cocaine with her previous husband John Diamond and in the later years of her marriage to Mr Saatchi. Francesca and Elisabetta Grillo were cleared of the charges - with Lawson describing her time in the witness box as "deeply disturbing".

The BBC's Luisa Baldini was inside court when Ms Lawson admitted taking cocaine Read more