This month

The start of the Chinese Year of the Dragon is celebrated in central London with a festival and parade from Chinatown to Trafalgar Square.

Sunday 1 January

The Queen publishes her New Year Honours list. Last year, actors David Suchet and Sheila Hancock, composer Howard Goodall, golfer Graeme McDowell and singer and singer and political activist Annie Lennox were recognised for their outstanding achievement and service across the UK.

Tuesday 10 January

Parliament returns from winter recess. The House of Commons and the House of Lords spring back into life as MPs return to Westminster following their three-week Christmas break.

Tuesday 24 January

Nominees for the 84th Academy Awards are announced from the Samuel Goldwyn Theatre in Los Angeles, as Hollywood prepares to honour the best films of 2011.the city's Excel centre for the 54th show, which promises action, stalls and over 1,000 boats and yachts for water lovers to enjoy.

Friday 27 January

People across the world share the memory of the millions murdered in the Holocaust and subsequent genocides in Cambodia, Rwanda, Bosnia and Darfur on Holocaust Memorial Day.