Oh, and in a shocking development that absolutely nobody saw coming, Vladimir Putin was re-elected as Russian president.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle tied the knot, and the world held its collective breath as 12 boys and their football coach were rescued from the depths of a Thai cave complex.

The West Coast Eagles ruled the roost, while the Roosters flew high as eagles. And Australian cricket hit its nadir in a May cheating scandal, with the repercussions still being felt today.

But none of these cracked the Brisbane Times top 20.

They may not have been the biggest stories of 2018, or the most important, but barring any major breaking events happening before the clock strikes midnight on New Year's Eve, these were the top 20 most-read stories on the Brisbane Times this year:

When a central Queensland cattle farmer rode his motorbike over a brown snake in February, it reacted pretty much as one would expect a snake to react in such a situation.

It got a bit bitey.

The 34-year-old was bitten on the leg - through his jeans, mind you - and was airlifted to hospital.

A tragedy in north Brisbane, where a family was killed in a Pavonia Street house fire.

It was later confirmed to be a murder-suicide. (Lifeline: 13 11 14)

Some good advice from Olivia Maragna, just in time for your annual trip to the accountant.

Oh my.

After spending his time harrassing worshippers at south-east Queensland mosques, Baptist pastor Logan Robertson was shown the door.

The unrepentent pastor was deported back to his native New Zealand. We hope he finds peace there.

There have been a few stories this year about the former member for Fairfax's legal problems.

This one, in April, related to a criminal charge over a timeshare scheme that was operating out of his Sunshine Coast resort. Palmer claimed the charges were policially motivated and vowed to fight them.

Queensland's new container refund scheme certainly was popular with readers (see number 3, further down the list).

West End shoppers were in for a nasty surprise in June, when the floor beneath them started to buckle and collapse.

Luckily, nobody was injured. But they may have been reaching for the toilet paper in the Coles aisles after this experience.

Libspill! Part one. Where Queensland's own Peter Dutton put his chips on the table in an attempt to bring down Malcolm Turnbull's prime ministership.

But the wily Turnbull, even as his prime ministership tatered on the brink, extended his final days just long enough to peel off Dutton's support.

In the end, the Dutton coup was well and truly baked, having made a hash of his political manoeuvrings, and it was Morrison who would end up emerging triumphant (see number 8).

It was Queensland's worst fire emergency in recent memory.

Bushfires in the tropics used to be almost unheard of, particularly to the extent the state endured just last month.

Almost 140 fires burnt across the state and almost 10,000 people were ordered to evacuate their homes.

This is John Birmingham at his brutal best.

As another Akubra-wearing bloke would say: "Do yourself a favour."

A sad story from the high seas, where Brisbane mother Natasha Schofield went overboard about 300 kilometres off New Caledonia.

Her husband tried, in vain, to grab on to her legs as she went over. The Highgate Hill couple were travelling with their three children, aged between 12 and 16. (Lifeline: 13 11 14)

The biggest surprise here is that Scott Morrison's August ascension to the prime ministership - the biggest political story of the year by far, didn't make it further up the list.

Perhaps leadership spills just aren't that interesting for a fatigued electorate these days.

Few stories resonate with readers as much as those that highlight the dangers pedestrians face, particularly in the CBD.

That was tragically brought home in May, when a woman was struck by a bus as she crossed Ann Street, at the intersection with Wharf Street.

She was later identified as 51-year-old Anne Marie Stent and tributes quickly flowed in for the mother-of-two.

The accident also led to some backlash for former premier Campbell Newman, who complained about the effect it had on traffic.

Just a few weeks ago, Brisbane's inner west was brought to a shutdown thanks to two armed men, who kept police at bay for about six hours in an Auchenflower siege.

The two men had been wanted over property offences in Brisbane's south. But they got themselves into more trouble when they shot at detectives and barricaded themselves in an apartment at the Chasely Apartments Hotel.

A 33-year-old man was charged with 21 offences, including possession of a firearm, unlawful possession of weapons, unlawful use of a motor vehicle and stealing, burglary, break and enter and dangerous operation of a motor vehicle.

His 29-year-old companion was charged with 17 offences.

Northern Territory rangers had been hunting this 600-kilogram, 4.71-metre salty, believed to be about 60 years old, for about a decade.

In July, they finally got him.

A cracking story courtesy of our colleagues at the Katherine Times.

The closure of the popular Alfred & Constance struck a chord with Brisbane Times readers, perhaps distraught at the loss of one of their favourite watering holes as Damian Griffiths' hospitality empire crumbled.

The good news for them is that Alfred & Constance has reopened under new ownership.

Queenslanders, it seems, have taken to the 10¢ container refund scheme. This is one of two stories related to the scheme that have made an appearance in this top 20.

This helpful guide to where readers could cash in their plastic drink containers, beer bottles and aluminium cans proved to be a real hit.

This story was only four paragraphs long, but the accident in central Queensland certainly resonated with readers.

And it's not hard to see why, given its freakish nature.

The 51-year-old man was helping a bogged driver when his towing strap snapped, smashed through the back window of his vehicle and hit him in the head.

When Anneka Bading filmed herself with a GoPro swimming at Victoria's MacKenzie Falls, she inadvertently recorded a tragedy unfolding behind her.

Interestingly, this story never featured prominently on the Brisbane Times home page. It was through social media that this compelling story, from our colleagues at The Age, captured so many readers.