The year that TV changed

FROM analogue to digital, Keith Urban to Ricky Martin, Melissa Doyle to Samantha Armytage, there was a seismic shift on TV this year.

Miley twerking.

FROM analogue to digital, Keith Urban to Ricky Martin, Melissa Doyle to Samantha Armytage, there was a seismic shift on TV this year.

With the rise of social media, viewers were never more engaged in what was big on the box than in 2013, whether glued to the Aussie Ashes victory, or Asher Keddie's Gold Logie win.

There were reality stars born, a killer shark franchise unleashed and more seriously, the world's major moments unfolding live on TV.

Here's the calendar of what had us talking on screen and off it:

JANUARY

Unlikely realtiy star...Redfoo

SUMMER on the telly in Australia means tennis. While the Open trophies went to Novak Djokovic and Victoria Azarenka, it was her boyfriend Redfoo who emerged the first unlikely reality star of the year. Impressing Channel 7 bosses from the sidelines, the LMFAO front man was signed to the judging panel of The X Factor.

Kicking off the news year, Oprah Winfrey clinched the scoop of the year with her confessional with fallen cycling star Lance Armstrong who finally admitted he was a drugs cheat and had doped his way to victory in the Tour de France.

FEBRUARY

Pulling in a record TV audience and $4 million per 30 second ad, the Super Bowl was less about the game (won by the Baltimore Ravens) and more about the sensational half-time show by Beyoncé, who reunited with Destiny's Child to deliver a high voltage set, just before a real power outage hit and left the stadium in darkness.

On a flat note for the pop diva, Beyoncé hit the headlines too for miming the national anthem during the inauguration of US President Barack Obama.

MARCH

Australia's TV cameras turned to the Vatican for the Papal inauguration of Pope Francis.

In sad news, we mourned the passing of an Australian TV icon, news veteran Peter Harvey who lost his battle with cancer. As a lasting tribute by his colleagues at Nine News, Harvey's booming "voice of God" continues to introduce the 6pm bulletin.

APRIL

Asher Keddie

It was third time lucky for Offspring star Asher Keddie who won the Gold Logie after as many nominations, while retired news anchor Brian Henderson was inducted in the TV Hall of Fame.

Voted Australia's most popular light entertainment, Channel 9's The Voice returned for its second season with Latin sensation Ricky Martin replacing Keith Urban as coach. The series would be won by Team Seal's Harrison Craig.

Also on the winners list were Dan and Steph Mulheron, who cooked their way to victory on Channel 7's My Kitchen Rules.

In shocking news, a terror attack targeting the Boston Marathon left three spectators dead, while one police was killed in a shootout with bombing suspect Tamerlan Tsarnev. In dramatic news footage, the arrest of his brother, Dzhokhar was broadcast live to air.

MAY

It was war of the roses on Nine's Celebrity Apprentice, with PR queen Roxy Jacenko clashing with former swim star Stephanie Rice, who went on to win the title, from track champion John Steffensen.

JUNE

Melissa Doyle.

The breakfast TV battle saw great change in 2013, set off by the shock exit of Melissa Doyle as co-host on Sunrise, replaced by Samantha Armytage (credited with an instant ratings spike for the Channel 7 show).

Meanwhile, fans of fantasy series Game Of Thrones reacted angrily to the bloody plot twist in the Red Wedding Episode, triggering an outpouring of grief on Twitter over the killing off of three main characters and (spoiler alert!) his dog.

JULY

Prince William and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge with their new-born baby boy.

In the cult TV moment of the year, schlock telemovie Sharknado revived the careers of 90210's Ian Ziering and American Pie's Tara Reid.

After helping to redevelop the biggest block in the series history, twin sisters Lysandra and Alisa Fraser nailed a win on The Block (pocketing $295,000 in auction profits and $100,000 bonus).

The world's media went ga ga for Prince George, the first son of Prince William and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge. With all lenses trained on him, the wee one waved a royal hand above his wrap to acknowledge his fans.

AUGUST

Miley twerking.

Tragedy hit Ten's drama series Offspring with an unofficial national day of mourning declared among fans of hot doc, Patrick Reid (struck by a car and later dying of a brain injury). Actor Matt Le Nevez will return to the show next year for ghostly cameos.

In the 'It-can't-be-unseen' moment of the year, pop tart Miley Cyrus "twerked" her way into infamy on the VMAs, dancing up on should-know-better singer Robin Thicke (the vision became one of the viral hits of the year).

SEPTEMBER

Dami Im.

Australians voted in a new Federal Government, generating hours of debate and the best piece of 'gotcha' journalism in years when Ten's John Hill stumped Liberal candidate Jaymes Diaz on his party's six-point plan on immigration.

Breaking Bad wrapped after five seasons, going out on a high - winning the best drama Emmy and plaudits by many as the best series since The Sopranos. For those still feeling the void, the good news is a spin-off, Better Call Saul is already in pre-production.

From the sublime to the ridiculous: one of the monster ratings hits of the year belonged to The Man With The Biggest Testicles. The controversial documentary about Las Vegas man Wesley Warren Jr and his extreme scrotum elephantitis was so popular it scored a second airing on Seven.

Korean-born pop singer Dami Im teamed with Dannii Minogue to triumph on The X Factor, wowing audiences with her soaring vocals and topping the charts with her winner's single, Alive.

OCTOBER

Live coverage of the NSW bushfires which blazed through the Blue Mountains, southern highlands and Central Coast captured Mother Nature in all her fury.

NOVEMBER

When it comes to TV news, there is no bigger deal than Ron Burgundy and the team from Channel 4 were back promoting Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues. From taking over The Project, to the hilarious tribute by David Campbell and Sonia Kruger on Mornings, the Ron was the Don.

The changes continued on breakfast TV, with the arrival of Wake Up and its sister show, Studio 10. Not quite the revolution as advertised, with ratings off to a slow start. Wake Up co-host Natasha Exelby was the first casualty, axed as producers began resuscitation efforts.

DECEMBER

Ashes success.

The world mourned the death of political hero and former South African president Nelson Mandela. His public memorial was marked by an impressive oration by President Obama and made more memorable by the scandal over the fake sign language interpreter.

And it was Christmas come early for Australian cricket fans, after Michael Clarke lead the national test team to victory in Perth against old foe England to regain the Ashes. In a further boost to the game, the T20 format Big Bash League proved a ratings hit for Channel 10.