Top 10: What’s the funniest way to kick off the new year?
Explore creative and hilarious New Year celebrations, from costume parties to meme reviews, ensuring unforgettable laughs and memories.
Kick off the new year with humour by hosting a themed costume party or lip-sync battle. Photo: Shutterstock This week’s question: “Which month would you eliminate from the calendar, and why?” To take part, drop us a line via this form by 12pm on Wednesday, January 22. Tell us your name, age and school.
Athena Chan Lai-wan, 16, Pui Kiu College: Kicking off the new year with humour can set a fun tone for the celebrations. One amusing idea is to host a “New Year, New Me” costume party, encouraging everyone to dress up as the most outrageous version of themselves. This could include exaggerated hairstyles or wild outfits that playfully reflect their resolutions.
Kristie Wong Sum-ue, 12, St Mary’s Canossian College: Hosting a “Meme Review Party” is an entertaining way to celebrate the new year. Guests can save their favourite memes from the past year, and everyone takes turns sharing them. You can set up a projector or a big screen to display the memes for everyone to see. To add to the fun, have a friendly competition where guests vote on categories like “Funniest Meme”, “Most Relatable”, or “Best Viral Moment”. Encourage everyone to come dressed as their favourite meme or internet trend. This way, you can enjoy some good humour while going into the new year together.
Tsang Hong-ching, 16, Pui Kiu College: Undoubtedly, the funniest way to kick off a new year is by gathering with friends or family and taking turns telling jokes. Those who run out of jokes will be eliminated, and we will see who will be the final winner. I’m sure that this novel game can make everyone laugh out loud.
What we want to achieve in the first month of 2025
Mak Yee-yam, 14, SKH Tsang Shiu Tim Secondary School: A lip-sync battle would be the funniest way to kick off the new year. During the battle, the host can play hilarious and gleeful songs about the new year, like Taylor Swift’s “New Year’s Day”, and let participants show off their best lip-sync skills. Participants can also lip-sync with the celebrities on TV during the countdown. The battle can be held at home with your family and friends. With you and your friends bursting into laughter, this activity will be the most amusing and unique way to start the new year and leave unforgettable memories. I look forward to lip-synching with my friends.
Charis Chan, 15, Malvern College Hong Kong: The funniest way to kick off the new year would be to write a letter to myself, pretending it is the end of 2026. Since it’s now just the start of 2025, my New Year’s resolutions are not fully set. It would be funny at the end of 2026 to see what I thought I could accomplish when I was daydreaming at the start of 2025.
Ava Tee Yuet-yee, 12, St Paul’s Convent School: A fun way to welcome in the new year would be at a “Resolution Roast”, where friends dramatically present their resolutions and then get playfully roasted with quips about how they will most likely fail. Another option can be to do a “New Year’s Eve Brunch” on December 31, serving breakfast foods to confuse your guests. On a lighter note, design some outrageous, wild future predictions and let everyone read them out loud with a straight face. You can also prepare a time capsule with items representing silly moments of the past year and promise not to open it for 10 years. To make the party unforgettable, you should run a dance competition using the most hilarious moves, including the chicken dance and the worm. Whichever way you celebrate, adding humour to your new year’s festivities will surely create lasting memories and laughter.
Cheryl Ho Yan-ting, 12, St Mary’s Canossian College: I want to convince as many people as possible that I am a time traveller from the end of this year and tell them wacky things that will happen in the new year. Then, when people ask me about it the next day, I will make a confused expression and ask, “What time travel?” and tell them they were hallucinating and I stayed home. They would wonder what would happen in the new year and have things to look forward to.
Eric Chen Yat-kai, 14, SKH Tsang Shiu Tim Secondary School: Start by showing up at your New Year’s party dressed as a “time traveller” from 2025, complete with a ridiculous outfit – think neon lights, goggles and an oversized clock. Announce dramatically, “I’m here to prevent you from making the same mistakes of 2024!” Then, give completely absurd advice, like “Invest in pizza-flavoured toothpaste” or “Start wearing socks on your hands.” As the clock strikes midnight, jump up and scream, “It’s happening! Time is looping!” Everyone will be caught off guard.
Abraham Liu Ming-tak, 14, SKH Tsang Shiu Tim Secondary School: New year, fresh start! The funniest way to kick off the new year is holding a themed costume party. Why? This party has a theme where everyone dresses up as their most outrageous and unimaginable version of themselves in 10 years. Just imagine! Seeing your male classmate full of masculine “aura” dressed up as Little Red Riding Hood, with a long scarlet cape and short dress. You may also see your female classmate dressed up as a secret agent with black sunglasses and a black suit, just like the character played by Will Smith in Men in Black. Don’t you think that’s a hilarious and amusing way to kick off the new year?
Charissa Tsui, 14, St Paul’s Convent School: I will be pranking my younger brother by setting his phone date back to December 31, 2024. He will be convinced that he has time-travelled and will celebrate all day. Just imagine his excitement as he cheers and reveals his new-found “time travel” status. But his mind will be completely blown when he finds out that the next day is still not 2025. Just imagine the look on his face – priceless!