2011 IAAF World Athletics Championships - Mixed bag for Brits

THE 13^th IAAF World Athletics championships concluded on Sunday in Daegu, South Korea and it was a championship to remember.  Some major shocks, close finishes and stunning individual performances came together over nine days of thrilling and compelling action.  Great Britain’s athletes returned last night to the UK after a mixed championship.  They managed to earn seven medals, matching the target set out by the coach of UK Athletics, Charles van Commenee.  However, some form was very patchy from many ‘banker’ gold medal hopefuls and big improvements and decisions have to be made soon, especially with London 2012 less than a year away.

     Great Britain come home with two gold medals, four silvers and one bronze; the biggest haul of medals at any world championships since 1993 in Stuttgart.  On the face of it, this sounds very good, considering we finished sixth in the medals table and only behind the powers of America, Jamaica, Kenya, Russia and Germany; probably all expected to be ahead of us.  However, does the Daegu haul put us on the right track for the Olympics next summer?

DELIGHT: Mo Farah recovered from 10,000m heartbreak in style

     First, the positives and they come from Mo Farah and Di Greene, who produced their golden moments in clinical style.  Farah was bravely beaten into silver position in the men’s 10,000m by a late burst from Ibrahim Jeilan of Ethiopia.  On Sunday, he refused to be denied in his success at the 5,000m.  Mo is now the best ever long-distance runner Great Britain has ever had and he can hold his head up high.  In the 5,000m, he ran the race perfectly, especially when you consider the tactics the Kenyan and Ethiopian athletes are likely to employ on dangers outside their continent.  In Di Greene, Britain has its best hurdler since the days of Sally Gunnell.  He was in peak form throughout the championship and he burst through right at the end on Thursday night to claim gold in the men’s 400m hurdles.  The winning time of 48.26secs was enough to see off his main threat, Javier Culson from Puerto Rico.  With hard work and persistence, these two athletes have to be proud of what they have achieved in South Korea.

     The surprise of the championships from a British perspective was Hannah England’s shock, but rewarding silver medal in the women’s 1500m.  She was completely off the radar and getting into the final was an achievement in itself.  The shock on her face as she crossed the line was one of the pictures of the championships.  With 200m to go, it looked like Hannah had been run out of it, but she went wide and as athletes began to tire in the finishing straight, she kicked for home and got her just rewards.  Well done Hannah on a stunning performance!  Andy Turner also did well to win bronze in the men’s 110m hurdles, although there was some luck in his medal.  Turner crossed the line in fourth, but the winner on the track; Cuban Dayron Robes was disqualified following a clash on the penultimate hurdle with Liu Xiang of China, which promoted Turner into the bronze medal position.  For me, it was unfortunate, but Xiang would have won the race had it not been for the clash, so it was the right decision to disqualify Robes.

     Other silver medals came from expected gold medal hopefuls.  Phillips Idowu was unable to hang onto his triple jump championship, as he was beaten by a sensational jump from a young starlet.  21-year old Christian Taylor, from the United States produced a massive leap of 17.96m to deny Idowu gold.  It was a shame for Phillips, as he produced a series of consistent jumps and at any other world championship gone by, his best jump of just over 17.70m would have won him gold.  You just have to hand it to Taylor, who nailed it just right on the day.  Britain’s golden girl Jessica Ennis had to settle for silver too, in the women’s heptathlon.  Despite getting a higher points total than she managed to win gold in Berlin two years ago, Ennis had to settle for silver, behind the Russian Tatyana Chernova.  However, Jess will be disappointed with a clumsy 100m hurdles and a shocking javelin, which was her ultimate downfall.  Sometimes you can’t get it right all the time and there is no doubt that Jessica Ennis will win many more heptathlons, but one bad event will cost you in this high class field.  It is something you might get away with at the Commonwealth Games, but not at the world Championships.

     Big disappointments for Britain were the failure to get any male or female sprinters into the finals of the men’s and women’s 100m, 200m, 400m and 800m.  It is an abject failure to say the least, with the biggest sporting event in this country less than a year away.  Dwain Chambers false started in his 100m semi-final and knocked himself out of participation in the final.  With his Olympic ban for failing a drugs test back in 2003 still likely to stand, we might have seen the controversial Chambers at a major championships for a final time.  Having achieved a bronze medal in Berlin, Jenny Meadows was a massive disappointment in the women’s 800m, getting knocked out in the semi-final stage.  Meadows was definitely a medal contender, so her early demise from these championships were a real letdown.  Despite having struggled with injuries, Martin Rooney’s form is so erratic; you wonder why he even bothers.  He failed at the semi-final stage of the individual 400m and didn’t look much better in the relays.  No wonder why the Korean journalists thought he was Wayne Rooney, it says it all!  Finally, the relay squads have a lot to answer for.  Only the 4x400m women can feel satisfied, running a solid race to fourth without any mistakes.  Once again, questions will be pointed at the 4x100m men’s team, which once again; yep you guessed it, dropped the baton!  Marlon Devonish needs to work on his target practice too.  Why did he throw the baton at team-mate Harry Aikines-Aryeetey.  For someone so experienced as Devonish, it was a ridiculous action!  Maybe it is time for UK Athletics to cut money in our relay squads and invest it in other areas of the team, as excuses run thin and they are certainly out of them. 

SHOCK: Bolt realises it's too late as he faces a DQ in the 100m

     Away from Britain and it was a miserable championships for Usain Bolt; he only won two gold medals!!  Bolt’s amazing false start in the 100m final, when the gold medal was already being engraved in his name shook the world.  It was training partner and countryman Yohan Blake who won the prestigious sprint gold.  Bolt recovered from his blip to dominate the 200m, then be part of the Jamaican squad that broke the world record in the 4x100m relay; fittingly the final event of the championships.  35-year old Kim Collins, the 100m champion back in Paris in 2003, rolled back the years with two bronze medals and there was also a bronze (200m) and silver (4x100m) for the talented Christophe Lemaitre of France.  Lemaitre is definitely Europe’s best hope of stopping the Jamaican/American domination.  Jamaica’s Veronica-Campbell Brown won the women’s 200m; the title that had eluded her throughout her lengthy and successful career as Allyson Felix failed in her quest to take a sprint double.  Felix had to settle for silver in the women’s 400m and bronze in the 200m.  Finally, the individual performance of the championships has to go to Australia’s Sally Pearson, who broke her PB in the semi-finals of the women’s 100m hurdles, then went onto smash it again and take a championship record in the final just three hours later.  It was a popular success with the hundreds of Australian fans that had made the short journey to Daegu.

     Also, this was the first IAAF World Athletics championships not to be covered live on TV by the BBC.  Channel 4 won the rights last summer and to the 2013 championships in Moscow too.  However, they badly need an experienced sports presenter.  Whilst Michael Johnson’s analysis was fantastic as ever and was backed up by strong commentary from the likes of John Rawling, Rob Walker and Katherine Merry, the anchor let them down.  Ortis Deley was a nightmare for the first three days.  Who decided to hire him!!  He knows next to nothing about athletics and eventually, the bumbling host was axed into a tame reporting role three days into the championships.  The mistakes on the YouTube video (see below) speak volumes for themselves.  Rick Edwards, best known as the guy from T4 who introduces Hollyoaks, Friends and One Tree Hill to teenage morning viewers, did a solid job and carried the baton on without ever being remarkable.  If Channel 4 is serious about sport like they say they are, it’s time to sign someone up who has been there in sports presenting, done it and can lead the way.

     Daegu 2011 will go down as a memorable championship for many people.  Great Britain have made significant strides forward, but improvements still have to be made, with London less than a year away now.  No more excuses, it’s time to deliver!

TV classics - Brookside

By Jason Wright (Entertainment Expert)

BROOKSIDE was a soap opera that whether you loved it or hated it, it just couldn’t be ignored.  Set in Brookside Close, a fictional cul-de-sac of houses in Liverpool, it launched in November 1982, along with the arrival a brand new terrestrial channel, Channel 4.

     In its early years, it was seen as a cheap, heartless version of Coronation Street, the only other prime-time soap at the time of its launch.  It was also heavily criticised by the Mersey public itself because they felt it was a distasteful portrayal of average scouse life.  However, creator Phil Redmond vowed to win over the critics and started doing what ITV couldn’t; browsing through the real-life stories with the aim of incorporating them into Brookie in some way.  It worked and the show’s ratings went through the roof.  Brookside helped launched the careers of many actors and actresses including Ricky Tomlinson, Amanda Burton, Paul Usher, Claire Sweeney, Anna Friel and Barry Sloane.

     By 1990, with ratings increasing to over seven million, the show was rewarded with an extra episode and an extension in the set was made with the arrival of Brookside Parade.  This allowed room for an extra restaurant, a bar and in a first for British soap, a petrol station on the promenade.

STAR: Anna Friel's career took off with some juicy storylines on the Close

     February 1993 brought a change of direction in Brookside with its most famous plot in history.  The troubled Jordache family changed forever when Beth (Anna Friel) stabbed abusing dad Trevor (Bryan Murray) when attacking his wife Mandy (Sandra Maitland).  In an act of defiance, they buried his body underneath their patio and it wasn’t until little less than two years later when it was dug up.  Mandy and Beth were jailed for life and the viewing figures struck 10 million for the first (and perhaps only) time in history.  The complex plotline also brought along Britain’s first pre-watershed lesbian kiss between Beth and family friend Margaret Clemence (Nicola Stephenson) in January 1994.  With that, along with often scenes of drug abuse, alcohol addiction and grudges, many formed by perhaps Brookie’s most-known character, Jimmy Corkhill (Dean Sullivan), the soap was able to deal with hard-hitting issues in a unique way and receive critical acclaim for it.

     Phil Redmond quit the soap in 1998, to focus more on building up potential on the recently-launched Hollyoaks.  His final produced scenes centred on Brookside Parade being blown up in a gas leak, but it turned into an anti-climax with no loss of life.  The departure of Redmond was another hammer blow for the show as it had been rated by experts as having become too dramatic and intense for pre-watershed airing.  A new production team aimed to try and stem the recent flow of tough storylines but the plan instead went in the opposite direction.

     By 2000, the soap was in crisis.  Channel 4 persuaded Redmond to come back and offer Brookie a much needed lifeline.  For its 20th anniversary, Redmond decided that a fortnight-long siege plot would hopefully drum up the much-needed support.  The episodes were somewhat explosive and distressing to say the least with every cast member held captive in their own houses by escaped convict Terry ‘Psycho’ Gibson and his henchman.  It was mass carnage with two people being killed (one being pushed through a window!), two raped and others being beaten up.  The shocking events culminated with Gibson, having finally been trapped by armed police, using a machine gun to strike down a police helicopter.  It crashed into the petrol station, engulfing Brookside in a massive fireball, and claiming the life of another innocent victim.

     Needless to say, the plot failed miserably.  Though it did record the best ratings in a while (2 million compared the norm then of around 500,000), it came under attack by critics for the way it had been handled.  There are far too many similarities with the far more successful plane crash in Emmerdale in 1993.  Regulator at the time, ITC (Independent Television Commission) received thousands of complaints from viewers who had been left traumatised and physically unwell by the horrific episodes.

     With no alternatives left, Channel 4 threw in the towel and cancelled the show.  Redmond expressed his disappointment by saying: “It happens.  Life must move on and we all have to come to terms with that.”  First, Brookside was scaled down into a Saturday omnibus show, before moving in mid-2003 into a late night midnight/1am programme.

     The soap bowed out with little fanfare or mention in November 2003.  It fell to Jimmy Corkhill to utter the last words and paint a D on the street sign to read BROOKSIDE CLOSED!  Brookie’s demise was Hollyoaks gain, as a week after Brookie’s swansong, the Chester-based soap went into a weekly format, slowly starting its transition into top-quality soap.

DEMISE: Brookside got the chop from the TV schedules in 2003

     Brookside however will live on as an innovative soap to many people and is still mentioned of today.  It’s difficult to say whether it would have survived another few years than what it got if it hadn’t taken a wrong turn in direction but whatever the case, the writing was on wall already when Redmond tried to rescue the show from oblivion.  The legacy of the close will remain for years to come.

TV classics - The Crystal Maze

IN A new feature, it is time to take a dip back into looking through the classics of yesteryear on television.  It begins with the fantastic gameshow concept Channel 4 came up with in 1990, The Crystal Maze.

    Beginning in February 1990, the show lasted five years, with six series and a selection of kids Christmas specials also aired.  The show was made by Chatsworth Television and it became a huge hit almost overnight, attracting a regular weekly audience of 6million viewers.  The Crystal Maze came at a time when Channel 4 needed to attract a viewing figure which would frighten the main terrestrial heavyweights, BBC and ITV.  The star of Rocky Horror show Richard O’Brien was persuaded to host the show, which at the time, was the biggest arena around for any kind of gameshow.  Filmed at The Shepperton Studios, the maze itself cost £250,000 to construct and is the size of two football pitches.

     The set was constructed into four different zones, offering the team players a variety of challenges and obstacles to negotiate their way to the ultimate prize for winning a game, a precious, shiny, silver crystal.  The ‘Aztec’ zone was often referred to as the most popular zone with the fans.  Aztec was based on a small, parasitic village that had the feel of Egypt to it!  Futuristic was seen as the zone which offered the ‘modern’ world which we live in today.  Clearly, the producers ideas of what the world would look like in 2011, back in 1990 were completely different!  Nevertheless, it gave everyone, including the competitors a feel of future land.  The Medieval zone is set in a castle area, and is where ‘Mumsie,’ played by Sandra Caron was based.  Often, O’Brien would pay a visit, even if a game featuring her would not take place in the episode.  The least popular zone was Industrial, which was set around a chemical factory.  Being scientific was the name of the game, but this zone was dropped for the more popular and demanding Ocean zone in 1993.  Of course, at the centre of the maze was The Crystal Dome, where after the physical, mental and skilful challenges of the four zones before them, the climax would take place.  The Dome was where the teams of six would compete to find out if they won or lost the ultimate game.

DOME: Another team take on the maze, guided by Richard O'Brien

    The teams would be led by a captain, with a vice-captain taking over should the captain get locked in.  A time limit to complete each game was set by Richard O’Brien and it would be within the limit that the challenger would compete in either a skill, mental, physical or mystery game to earn a crystal.  If a crystal was won, five seconds would be gained in The Crystal Dome and the more time in the Dome would give a better chance of overall success.  If time ran out and the challenger failed to get out of the game in time, they would be locked in and it would up to the rest of the team to decide whether to buy the individual out, or keep them stewing to reflect over the grave mistake they’d made.  If they went ahead with the buying option, a crystal would have to be sacrificed.  Teams who went around The Crystal Maze had varying degrees of success.  In 1992, one team was so bad, they only won one crystal and consequently, five seconds of time in The Crystal Maze.  Even O’Brien gave them little hope when he let the contestants into the Dome; “I would wish you good luck, but I’m not going to bother, because it’s a waste of time.”  Unsurprisingly, the hapless team lost!  In the Dome itself, the team had to collect as many gold credits as they could, and avoid collecting silver credits.  Every silver slip that went through the letterbox would deduct a gold token off the team’s final tally.  Should the team earn a final total of 100 gold tokens, after deductions, all the members of the team would win a mediocre prize.  Even if a team lost, they would still go home with a crystal engraved; ‘I cracked the Crystal Maze!’

    In 1993, Richard O’Brien left the show just before the Christmas special.  It was a mysterious and confusing exit and was a body blow to the show’s popularity.  In an interview many years, O’Brien gave the reason for his decision to leave;

"The Crystal Maze was a road I walked down; I never imagined I'd go down that particular byway. I liked it but even at the time I thought - I never saw myself doing this kind of work. So I did it for four years and thought I better get out while I am ahead, while I am remembered fondly."

    Ed Tudor-Pole was his replacement, but he never lived up to expectations.  Tudor-Pole was dismal and struggled to fill O’Brien shoes.  As with most shows, changes were made to rules, as were the costumes and by the time of August 1995, The Crystal Maze had become a pale shadow of its former glory.  Once Chatsworth Television’s contract with Channel 4 expired, The Crystal Maze was consigned to the history books on 10 August 1995.

     Despite its unfortunate demise in the 90s, there are some dedicated fans (including myself) that are campaigning for an eventual return.  ITV has been rumoured in the past to be bringing the show back, especially in 2009, but these talks ended up reaching a dead end.  The Crystal Maze’s popularity remains very strong though.  Challenge, now on Freeview shows classic episodes every weeknight at 6pm and in two polls conducted by online site UKGameshows.com, The Crystal Maze came out on top as ‘The Greatest Gameshow of All Time’ in 2006 and 2010. 

     The Crystal Maze is considered to be ‘a highly ambitious high-risk show which paid off handsomely.’  I’d certainly agree with that.  It might have fallen from grace, but its popular cult following, even today, means it will always have a strong legacy.

Sports One - The rubbish version of Sky Sports!

By Simon Wright (Humour and Personal Piece)

MY LACK of use of video calling device Skype and Sean Lock’s hilarious stand-up at last week’s Channel 4 Comedy Gala got me thinking this week.  I'd have a laugh at sport and create a new sports channel that simply can’t compete with the might of Sky Sports, with some added tweaks.  Sport One is the latest innovation for addicted sports fans that simply can’t enough of sport, no matter how bad the quality is.  If we compare the events Sky Sports has to Sport One, let’s see what humour I can come up with, to see if there is any competition between the two.

SKY SPORTS LIVE TELEVISED RIGHTS

Football

Sky Sports has the broadcasting rights to 115 live games from the best league in the world, the Barclays Premier League.  All the matches, including the big head-to-heads (Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester United and Liverpool) are screened exclusively live on the channel and are in glorified HD.  Some of the games are also available in 3D.  Sky Sports also has live rights to Npower Football League action, La Liga, the Carling Cup, the UEFA Champions League and Euro 2012 qualifiers featuring England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.

Cricket

Sky Sports is the only place where cricket fans can see live coverage of all of England’s test summer matches at home, including encounters this summer with Sri Lanka and India.  Sky Sports also has the rights to the Cricket World Cup, the 20:20 cup and various other forms of the cricket game.

Rugby Union

A pioneer of rugby union coverage, Sky Sports is the only place to see live Heineken Cup rugby, the European rugby equivalent of the UEFA Champions League.  They also screen all of England’s home winter internationals, summer internationals and the prestigious Tri-Nations series involving the Southern Hemisphere sides.

Rugby League

Since 1996, Sky Sports is the home of top class rugby league, featuring the Super League, the tri-nations series between New Zealand, Great Britain and Australia + the Rugby League World Cup.

Golf

If you love your golf, Sky Sports is the place for it.  From 2011 onwards, Sky has three of the four golfing majors live, the US Masters, US Open and USPGA Championship, as well as various events from the European and American tours.

Tennis

Follow Andy Murray’s progress throughout the year with the key ATP Masters series events from Indian Wells, Monte Carlo, Paris and Rome amongst others.  Also, the US Open is exclusively live.

Motor Racing

Is not a leading foray with Sky Sports, but they do have live rights to the Indy Racing League, which includes the prestigious Indianapolis 500 and live NASCAR.

SPORT ONE LIVE TELEVISED RIGHTS

Football

If you love your football and I mean love it more than drinking a cold pint of Carling, then Sport One is the place for you.  Sport One has live and exclusive coverage of the UK Pub League, featuring the leading pub teams from across the country.  They are with you every step of the way, with some 200 live matches screened in standard definition only from some of the filthiest pitches across the country.  It isn’t just pubs that get the live coverage deserved in football rights.  Sport One also has live and exclusive rights to the Ford Pub Cup, sponsored by the all-new Toyota POWERDRIVE!  The winner of this prestigious competition doesn’t get a place in Europe, as the team get to share a brand-new Toyota between them, which I have been assured will not carry any dodgy accelerator parts!  There is also live coverage of the Primary Schools Lunchtime League, the Periodista Liga (featuring the best journalists in Spain), the 7UP Cup with the final infront of three people on the racecourse in Northamptonshire and coverage of the 2012 0ver 40’s European Championship, with qualifiers featuring the best sides in Europe; Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Andorra, San Marino and Armenia!  Sport One offered to do a new football drama on a fictional football club, starring England legends, but the legends turned it down as they were worried it was going to be the real-life drama of Sky One’s Dream Team (which ran from 1997-2008).

Cricket

At Sports One, they don’t do live cricket, as it is simple too bearable to watch.  So, they show highlights packages every summer of the Umpire Associations Division, again featuring the best teams from England.  They can umpire the game, but can they play it?  The winner of the division at the end of a hard-fought season gets a lifetime supply of bananas from ASDA for their efforts!  There is live coverage however of the Six Balls Cup, as teams aim to make the most of playing cricket in just a single over; the quickest form of cricket around.  Sports One will also follow the England Builders Cricket Association, as they tour the world to play seven tests against Estonia and Georgia this winter!  Let’s see if that entire sleeping and regular coffee break pattern comes into any fruition here!

Golf

Sports One don’t cover golf, because simply they are more interested in sport that actually matters!

Motor Racing

The new concept of motor racing has arrived.  Created and supported by the Daily Express, it’s the Daily Express Counties Cup of Motorsport.  22 counties across England (ranging from Northamptonshire and Nottinghamshire, to Staffordshire and Lancashire) come up against one another, racing on some of the finest go-karting tracks and streets in the country.  The season finale on a gravel pit in the Channel Islands is a must see.  Other prestigious motorsport events are the Tesco Car Park 500, as 501 cars compete for 500 parking spaces, with the one left at the end being declared the winner!  Of course, let’s not forget the British Lawnmowing Championships, as Britain’s best lawnmowers take part in 20 events across the country to find out just who is; Britain’s Best Gardener!

Tennis

Andy Murray had to start somewhere and tennis is thriving at the moment, especially with Wimbledon around the corner.  Sports One will not be covering the SW19 championships, due to its crammed scheduling, so instead, it brings you the Fictional Lookalike Tennis tour, with the likes of Ian Beale, Scary Spice from the Spice Girls and Fabio Capello taking part.  They will do well to beat Mojo the Helper Monkey, who has been ranked no.1 for the past seven years.  Wonder if he got any inspiration from Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer’s dominance of the ATP tour!  Of course, in the Fictional Characters Tennis tour, there are four grand slams; the Butterfinger Open from Springfield, USA (Homer Simpson has won four years running!), the Traffic Jam Open held at Spaghetti Junction, Ice Cream Open, in the land of Ice Creams and the Sauce Open, held in the pleasant countryside of Emmerdale, in the Yorkshire Dales.

Horse Racing

Whilst the Cheltenham Gold Cup, Royal Ascot, The Epsom Derby and the Grand National take the highlights of the horse racing calendar, nothing can beat the football mascot national, which sees all 92 mascots taking part in a series of legendary jumps and chases across the UK.  From Towcester and Yarmouth, to Wolverhampton and Newcastle – which mascot will come out on top and win a lifetime seat on the board at their football club!

OTHER EVENTS

Other events to be screened on Sports One are;

The YouTube Amateur Rugby Union Premiership (The best secondary school rugby around)

The European Tag Rugby Cup, sponsored by Heinz (Winner gets a lifetime supply of Heinz Baked Beans).

The More Fun than Watching Paint Dry World Snooker Championship (The best painters in the world meet every year to see who is good enough at snooker and replace the Dulex dog as its main advertising campaigner.  (The Dulex dog is being knighted for his services to television broadcasting, and his owners have decided to retire him at the top.)

The University Wrestling Festival (Screw the League Tables, The best University students fight it out in the three-day wrestling event to see who really is The Best University in the UK)

The Water Pistol Championships (Target practice is of the essential, just what can you knock out of the hands of your competitors)

So, forget Sky Sports, because if you love your sports, it has to be Sports One.  The new channel is coming soon to Freeview, so you don’t have to miss out!  Enjoy the wild and wacky side of sport!

NOTE: Sports One is a fake sports channel and IS NOT A REAL LIFE channel!

Big Brother returns - Are you watching?

By Jason Wright (Entertainment Expert)

LAST Wednesday, the deed was done; one of Britain’s worst kept television secrets was exposed.  After being buried last summer by Channel 4, rivals Channel 5 have now resurrected Big Brother from its grave, to return later this year.

FORCE: Richard Desmond has taken a gamble, will it pay off?

     Richard Desmond, the multi-million newspaper investor and owner of the station, agreed a lucrative two-year deal with format makers Endemol to bring back the innovative show from oblivion, beating fierce competition from Sky1 for the show rights after Channel 4 ditched it last year.  The series will begin its rebirth with a celebrity special series, with James Cracknell, Andy Gray, Sienna Miller, Anne Widdecome and Jedward being widely mentioned to compete.  This will then be followed by the standard version of the show in which members of the ordinary public will take part to win £500,000 and a ticket to celebrity stardom.

     Marcus Bentley, who has achieved some course of fame for being the narrator of the show, with his rather dull and depressing take on events, is anticipated to return to the same role on this new version.  However Davina McCall will not reprise her role as host, deciding to concentrate on her successful Channel 4 quiz ‘The Million Pound Drop’ and possibly work on a few new projects for the broadcaster.  Speculation is thus rife as to who will be the new face of the show.  Top of the channel’s wish list is former housemate Brian Dowling whilst also being lined up is Kate Walsh, Denise Van Outen, Steve Jones and BBLB host George Lamb.  On another matter, it is unclear as to whether BBLB (Big Brother’s Little Brother) will return in this revival to air on one of Channel 5’s digital networks.

     When Big Brother launched back in 2000, it quickly became a national phenomenon.  It made several household names out of the ordinary people that dared to step into the house such as Brian Dowling, Kate Lawler and the late Jade Goody.  It also was very controversial, always hitting front-page headlines for outrageous events.  The racism row between Goody and Bollywood actress Shilpa Shetty in the 2007 celebrity series was most damaging, receiving worldwide condemnation and even then Prime Minister Tony Blair was forced to fly to India to deliver a national apology.  After that, BB went into rapid decline as people could no longer trust the show and Channel 4 finally gave it the axe in 2009, airing what would have been its final series last year.

     This is without doubt as massive coup for Channel 5 as it has long needed a signature show for which it could be easily recognised for.  Richard Desmond has said that this is only just the beginning for big changes ahead at the broadcaster.  The one question is will it pay off?  I think it will personally struggle to captivate the audience watching.  However, only time will tell. 

Cheltenham Festival Preview 2011

THE 2011 Cheltenham Festival starts tomorrow and it is set to be the most open meeting for many years.  Kicking off the week’s prestigious events will be the Supreme Novices Hurdle at 1.30pm tomorrow.  Of course, the main event is the Gold Cup itself on Friday afternoon, and after last year’s surprises – who knows what will happen.

The Cheltenham Gold Cup – Friday: 3.20pm

Imperial Commander was the shock winner of last year’s Gold Cup, but he isn’t the favourite this year.  Yet again, that honour falls to Kauto Star.  Trained by Paul Nicholls, he won in 2007 and 2009, but fell last year whilst in the midfield.  Ruby Walsh will once again take the reins, and Kauto’s form isn’t great coming here.  He was surprisingly beaten in the King George VI at Kempton in January, so he will be looking for a return to form here.  2008 winner Denman and Imperial Commander are likely to be in the race and other leading runners will be Ireland’s best hope Kempes, ridden by Tony McCoy and Long Run, who was the King George VI winner.  Can Kauto Star win the Gold Cup for a third time and cement his place as one of the greatest steeplechase horses of all time, or is another shock in store for the favourite?  My tip is for Kauto to defy his bad form and make it a third win.

HAPPYDUDE’S GOLD CUP TIP: Kauto Star

The Champion Hurdle – Tomorrow

McCoy might be the leading jump jockey of all-time, but the BBC Sports Personality of the Year winner in 2010 will not have a show ride in tomorrow’s feature race.  Binocular, who won the Champion Hurdle last year had to pull out yesterday from this year’s running list, after trainer Nicky Henderson was told that medication given for an allergy would not clear up in time for the horse to pass a standardised drugs test.  It means the field for this race is thrown wide open, with Welsh Champion Hurdle winner Oscar Whisky and Hurricane Fly among the leading contenders.  However, my tip is Peddlers Cross, who is trained by Donald McCain and arrives in Cheltenham with an unbeaten record.  I think that formidable form will be good enough to turn the tables.

HAPPYDUDE’S CHAMPION HURDLE TIP: Peddlers Cross

Queen Mother’s Champion Chase – Wednesday

 Wednesday’s big race is the Queen Mother’s Champion Chase and it is set to be a blockbuster, with one of the most eagerly awaited battles of the four-day event.  MasterMinded is the king of this race, following dominant wins in 2008 and 2009.  However, he was usurped last year by Big Zeb.  Ruby Walsh is back on MasterMinded, and although he is lacking fitness, his stunning Cheltenham record is enough for to convince me that MasterMinded will return to glory in this race this year.

HAPPYDUDE’S CHAMPION CHASE TIP: MasterMinded

Ladbrokes World Hurdle – Thursday

Walsh will also ride the favourite in the Ladbrokes World Hurdle on Thursday, as he strides to succeed on Big Bucks for the third successive year.  However, he has a much more talented field to deal with this year and I reckon this could be the surprise of the week.  I’m backing Fiveforthree to end Big Bucks ten race winning streak.  Plus, there is always an upset at Cheltenham every year in one of the feature races.

HAPPYDUDE’S WORLD HURDLE TIP: Fiveforthree

The festival reaches its centenary this year and I predict the racing to be as close as ever, the pints of Guinness to flow and the Irish to rule the roost on St. Patrick’s Day.  This is set to be a cracking Cheltenham Festival in 2011 and it starts at 12.20pm tomorrow, LIVE ON CHANNEL 4.

Product placement - Is it the future of British television?

By Jason Wright (Entertainment Expert)

BRITISH programmes have become synonymous with one thing; they have to use made-up brands and companies.  Unlike broadcasters worldwide and films, broadcasting law prohibited the use of advertisement in programmes, known as “Product Placement.”  During the 1990s, PIF’s about the use of this feature not being allowed could be regularly seen on ITV and Channel 4 on behalf of the Independent Television Commission (ITC), now OFCOM.

     Product placement is as mentioned, the use of brand advertisement within a programme, a company pays the broadcaster a cash value to have products of theirs appear in a certain programme.  It has been used for several years in US, for example on American Idol, the judges drinking glasses are sponsored by Coca Cola.  It had seemed though that nothing like this would come to Britain, until now.

     In autumn 2009, OFCOM earned a government grant to allow the prohibition of product placement to be lifted, providing certain requirements and limitations were agreed upon.  However it is only now that these changes are starting to come into force.  Last Monday, ITV1’s flagship daytime show This Morning became the UK’s first example of Product placement with Nescafe’s popular Dolce Gusto coffee maker appearing in view in the set’s kitchen.  To date, it is so far the only use of this feature but other shows, mainly the soaps will soon be expected to follow suit.  Surely, it won’t be too long before we see Heinz Tomato Ketchup used in many breakfast scenes in Corrie and PG Tips teabags purchased in the post office shop in Emmerdale.

     There are some exceptions within the law of course.  Broadcasters must display a P logo as shown at the top of this blog on the titles of the programme and also at the close of the programme and after an ad break to remind and inform viewers.  The BBC is not permitted to use product placement in any of its shows because of its government funding.  Children’s programmes, news bulletins, and programmes of a nature to current affairs, politics and religion can’t use this advertisement venture.  Likewise, companies that have products that are classed as junk food, or any alcohol, tobacco goods and companies that appeal to gambling (e.g. betting, bingo) are barred from using product placement to show their items.  This of course means, amongst others, that pints of Newton & Ridley, Corrie’s fictional beer, will still be pulled at the Rovers instead of being exchanged for the likes of Carling or Carlsberg.

     So what will this mean for advertisers and the TV programmes in general?  Well in this current financial climate, product placement may just be the saviour to those advertisements that are struggling to get their message out.  It is extremely expensive nowadays to purchase a space in a programme break to advertise and even more for those who are brave enough to advertise at cinemas.

     It will open up a whole new world for the companies that are likely to get involved as many viewers will surely be convinced to try or purchase a product that is used in a programme.

Manford quits One Show over sex allegations

THE One Show was plunged into crisis today after the resignation was confirmed by one of its show hosts, Jason Manford.  In a statement released by the comedian, 29 – he revealed his resignation is to do with tour and family commitments. 

RESIGNED: Jason Manford in happier time

However, allegations seem to hint that he has engaged in saucy sex messages with a series of woman over the internet, which he has allegedly confirmed via an interview with The Sun.   Manford was only handed the role to co-anchor the hit BBC show, following the departures of Christine Bleakley and Adrian Chiles to ITV.  His last appearance on the show came on Wednesday night, with Chris Evans standing in last night, alongside Welsh presenter Alex Jones.  It is believed that Manford’s resignation comes through with immediate effect.

Jason’s Twitter account has been suspended and there is talk that his role as a team captain on the Channel 4 panel show 8 Out of 10 Cats is also in severe jeopardy.  Manford has allegedly told The Sun of the details of how far these encounters went; "We would start off flirty, then innuendo and then a bit saucy. They were moments I thought 'I shouldn't be saying that'.  "I went on Skype with a few girls. They also sent pictures on Twitter.  It all happened on tour."

The BBC confirmed that they had accepted Manford’s resignation and will begin talks over a full-time replacement in the near future for the stand-up comedian.  Steve Jones, who is leaving T4 after Sunday’s T4 with the Stars extraganvanza, is amongst the favourites, along with Matt Baker, Richard Bacon and Tony Livesey.  Bookmakers Paddy Power are also giving odds of 16/1 for Chiles to come back to the broadcaster, at least on a short-term measure, especially if the doomed breakfast show, Daybreak gets the axe.  For now, guest presenters are expected to fill the role.

FUNNY: On his stand-up tour, can Manford's career survive

Manford insists that his marriage will overcome this flaw, and it needs with his wife pregnant with a third child.  He isn’t the first and won’t be the last celebrity to be caught in this embarrassing situation and as much as his creditability has been damaged, his respect for owning up and stepping down before getting sacked might just about salvage his career in the future.

Big Brother Disappears - Has It Gone For Good?

Big Brother is very similar to Marmite.  People either love it or hate it.  I was one of those in the latter category, but one thing that can’t be denied is that it made the significant breakthrough for reality television.  After a decade of rows, relationships and raunchiness, Big Brother departed from Channel 4’s screens on Friday night.

The last series that was recently aired was an Ultimate Edition of the show, which saw the return of some of BB’s most famous housemates including Ulrika Johnson, Chantelle Houghton and Nikki Grahame.  Friday’s show was won by Brian Dowling, who won the second series of the show, back in 2001.  Dowling was shocked to be revealed the winner by the host of the show Davina McCall, as he won the show against Grahame on a public vote.

Big Brother was created by Endemol, who are also behind other Channel 4 hit-shows 8 Out of 10 Cats and Deal or No Deal.  Its idea was to throw strangers into a house together and have them being watched by the public.  The winner of the show would earn £100,000 in cash.  Immediately from its inception in the year 2000, the show has been a major hit with many fans, though it hasn’t been any stranger to criticism from the media and government ministers. 

Big Brother has often been in the media spotlight and the tabloid newspapers have loved covering each series every summer.  Television broadcasters also have enjoyed reporting on Big Brother and it has often made the headlines.  Its most talked about moment of controversy came in the Celebrity edition of the show in 2007.  Bollywood actress Shilpa Shetty was the victim of racist abuse from fellow housemates Jo O’Meara, Danielle Lloyd and Jade Goody.  OFCOM received nearly 45,000 complaints over the incident, whilst Channel 4 received 3,000 further complaints.  The broadcaster took a lot of stick from government ministers about its lack of involvement with the show and not protecting Shilpa’s integrity.  Shilpa went onto win the series, but the show’s reputation was tarnished for good.  The Carphone Warehouse terminated its sponsorship contract with Channel 4, the Celebrity edition was postponed for a year and viewing figures slowly declined. 

The most famous housemate in Big Brother’s reign was Jade Goody.  Despite being fully involved in the Shilpa Shetty racism row, Jade was loved or loathed by the nation.  She appeared in the third series of Big Brother, and her career took off in the media industry afterwards.  She won over the hearts of many with her cancer battle and despite being brave in battling the illness and highlighting the work that cancer charities do, she passed away on March 22^nd 2009.  On Friday night, Channel 4 screened a fitting tribute to the late and brave Jade Goody.  Although she wasn’t my favourite person in the world, her fight to battle the illness was remarkable and that she took some courage and determination on her part. 

There have been 11 regular editions of the shows and over 1000 episodes in the UK, plus various editions of the celebrity format.  Its peak came in 2002, when 9.2million on average watched the series, won by Kate Lawler.  Others winners include Nadia Almada, Brian Belo, Sophie Reade and Craig Phillips. 

There has been talk that the reality show could return next year, especially if Richard Desmond can strike a deal with Endemol to bring the show to Channel Five.  However, there is no doubt that Big Brother has had a major impact on television in the 21^st century, no matter of the differing opinions.  I hope we have seen the last of it, but that’s largely down to the stale content it was producing, rather than pure bitterness.  Whatever happens next, whether it returns on a different channel or not, it has cast a major legacy and Channel 4 will do very well to find a replacement show that will take on the mantle and achieve the high ratings that Big Brother managed.  

Daring Desmond Buys Out Five

The future of Channel Five has been secured for now, after it was taken over last week by Richard Desmond, the owner of the Daily Star and the Daily Express.  Desmond’s company, Northern Shell completed its takeover with immediate effect from the German broadcaster RTL, in a deal worth an estimated £104 million.  RTL confirmed that a pick-up in the UK advertising revenue convinced them that it was the right time to sell.

Mr. Desmond, who has also indicated that he’d like to buy The Sun newspaper off Rupert Murdoch and News Corp of recent times, was delighted with his new acquisition:

“I am delighted to have taken over as ownership of the network, and know with the right leadership, drive and investment; it can go from strength to strength as a competitive broadcaster and a modern player for the big consumer.”

Richard Desmond has had a very enterprising career in the media industry since he left school with very few academic qualifications.  By the age of 21, he owned two record shops, and acquired the rights to the Daily Express in the year 2000 – through money that he had made in the adult entertainment market.  Under his ownership, the Daily Express and OK! Magazine seem to have thrived underneath his ownership, both on a content and commercial basis, which will make this move very positive for Dawn Airey, the chief executive of Five.

Channel Five was launched by the Spice Girls on March 31^st 1997, but was hit very hard by the slump in advertising revenues during the recession last year.  It has managed to rebuke several attempts and suggestions for a merger with Channel 4, but has struggled to make an impact on the major players in the terrestrial market.  Five is currently home to CSI, Flash Forward, UEFA Europa League Football and Australian soaps Home & Away and Neighbours. 

It is likely that Desmond will make significant cuts to begin with, like he has with the Daily Express.  However, he has already indicated that he wants to bring back Top of the Pops, and possibly attempt to revive Big Brother, currently in its final series with Channel 4.  It will be very interesting to see how things work out, but whilst RTL were only in the game for a moneymaking venture, Desmond’s takeover can only be seen as a positive step forward for Five.  Not only has it secured its future, which has been questionable for some time, but it will give them the stepping stone to start competing heavily with other channels in public broadcasting.           

Free-To-Air Sports TV List Deferred

A decision on the future of free-to-air sport television events to be shown in the future, including home England Ashes Test matches has been deferred until the completion of the UK digital switchover in 2013. 

In November 2009, an independent review was recommended, led by the former chief executive of the FA, David Davies.  On the proposed list, the Winter Olympics, rugby league’s Challenge Cup final and the Epsom Derby would disappear from the free-to-air list, with the Rugby World Cup, England’s World Cup qualification matches and the Ashes would be added.  At the time, the panel also recommended a secondary list of protected events, which must have highlights available as free-to-air, to be abolished.  The delayed announcement which was made on Wednesday means that the current list, last drawn up in 1998 will remain the same for the short-term at least.  This means, that Sky are likely to still hold onto the 2013 home Ashes series.  The last terrestrial broadcaster to hold live Ashes cricket on free-to-air was Channel 4 back in 2005.

It is caused a lot of concern and talk about the future of many sports.  For now at least, things will not change:

PROPOSED LISTED SPORTING EVENTS (As made by the panel in November 2009)

Olympic Games
FIFA World Cup finals
UEFA European Championship finals
Grand National
FA Cup final
Scottish FA Cup
Home and away football qualifiers for World Cup and European Championship Wimbledon Championship
Open golf championship
Cricket's home Ashes Test matches
Rugby World Cup

CURRENT LISTED SPORTING EVENTS (Last changed back in 1998)

Group A (Full live coverage protected)

Olympic Games
FIFA World Cup finals
European Football Championship finals
FA Cup final
Scottish FA Cup final (protected in Scotland)
Grand National Epsom Derby
Wimbledon tennis finals Rugby League Challenge Cup Final
Rugby World Cup final

Group B (Highlights only on free-to-air TV)

This secondary list would be scrapped.

England's home cricket Test matches
Other matches, excluding finals, at Wimbledon Championships
Other matches, excluding final, at Rugby World Cup
Six Nations matches involving home countries
Commonwealth Games
World Athletics Championships
Cricket World Cup - final, semi-finals and matches involving home nations
Ryder Cup
Open golf championship

T4 On The Beach - Strong Line-Up, Disappointing Result

Sunday afternoon saw the seaside town of Weston-super-Mare taken over by the popular one-day festival, T4 on the Beach.  Now in its 8^th year, the annual event boosts all the tourist attractions and economy in the area by nearly a third, and is a big hit with some of the top popstars across the world.  With tickets priced at £35, it was unsurprising that they were snapped up in double-quick time.  For those, including myself, at least you can take comfort from watching an afternoon of top-quality music and entertainment live on Channel 4.

The event was hosted by the popular T4 presenters, Rick Edwards, Miquita Oliver and Steve Jones, who keeps coming back to host the prestigious event every year, despite the constant rumours that suggest he is on the verge of signing an exclusive deal with the BBC.  The presenters managed to pull all the stops out to attract a dazzling line-up of talent to the 2010 festival – Quite possibly the strongest they’ve managed to attract.

On the bill were the likes of Pixie Lott, JLS, Dizzee Rascal, Scouting for Girls, Jason Derulo, the Saturdays, Plan B, Alexandra Burke, Tiny Tempah, The Hoosiers, Taio Cruz and Ellie Goulding.  It promised a lot on paper, but things are never concluded on paper, they have to happen on the day.  Sadly, this didn’t seem to be the case.  Some of the acts did themselves a load of credit.  Derulo got the crowd going, and certainly the pulses of many crazy girl heartbeats, by stripping out of his top during his live performance.  Pixie Lott’s reputation continues to grow, with another bustling live performance, and is starting to move ahead of Florence + the Machine, as the biggest breakthrough act of recent times.  Another threat for that crown comes from the gifted Ellie Goulding.  Goulding, who won the Critics Choice Award at this year’s BRITS, is going from strength and strength, and is only bound to get better, even if she hasn’t won my full support for her talent quite yet.  JLS closed the show this year, and put in another top-notch performance, even though it was limited to two songs, and their new single may lack in gaining the attention, that ‘Everybody In Love’ and ‘Beat Again’ manage to acclaim. 

Among the disappointments, were The Saturdays, who were lacking the presence of one of their members, through illness?  As a result, it showed, as the girls struggled on without her.  Derulo aside, most of the international stars seemed more interested in the girls, rather than their own performances.  The weather was grey, windy and dismal, which was disappointing, considering the recent heat haze that the country is enjoying.  Although Gok Wan did his best as a guest host, the stars of Skins, The Inbetweeners and Hollyoaks – normally full of co-stars, were also distinctly missing from the action in 2010.  T4’s surprise guest, the annoying and irritating Jedward turned up and performed.  To be honest, the less said about those twins, the better for this country.  The day they get a No.1, will be the day that music officially dies.  Fingers crossed that will never happen then!  They may be entertaining at times, but their vocal talents are simply non-existent.  Presenting is more of a possible career path; singing certainly will never fit the talk of X-Factor 2009.  Another bloke who you wouldn’t mind giving a good old slap, is Louis Spence from Pineapple Dance Studios.  Though his hard work with his studios can’t be faulted, his personality is nothing short of bordering onto pure madness. 

I had high hopes for T4 on the Beach 2010, but like many items before this year, such as England’s diabolical World Cup performance, the letdown of Britain’s Got Talent and the expected failure of the Eurovision Song Contest, it lacked some of the entertainment, musical and comedy value that it traditionally brings.  It was a disappointing outcome, for such a top-notch bill; let’s hope it bounces back next summer.