News of the World makes public apology over phone scandal

PRESSURE: The News of the World is set for a challenging time

THE NEWS OF THE WORLD has officially apologised to those celebrities caught up in the phone-hacking scandal that has dogged the newspaper for the last year.  News International, who owns the News of the World look, set to payout millions of pounds in damages to celebrities including the actress Sienna Miller, disgraced football commentator Andy Gray and the former culture secretary Tessa Jowell.

     Despite the apology made in copies of today’s newspaper, many are still questioning why it has taken so long for the word ‘sorry’ to be used.  The compensation payout still doesn’t let the phone hacking story disappear, as the police continue to investigate why this happened.  On Friday, the owners released a statement confirming their guilt;

     “News International has decided to approach some civil litigants with an unreserved apology and an admission of liability in cases meeting specific criteria.  It is now apparent that our previous enquiries failed to uncover important evidence and we acknowledge our actions then were not sufficiently robust.”

     

     The world’s largest Sunday newspaper has insisted that it will deal with compensation for cases that were involved during the years 2004 and 2006.  Currently, lawyers for News International are believed to be thrashing out these deals behind the scenes.  However, the News of the World has insisted that it will fight any cases that lack any merit or creditability.  Only last week, the chief reporter and former editor of the newspaper were arrested over the allegations of phone tampering.  Both have since been released on police bail. 

     

     Former Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott has called for the takeover bid by News International on BSkyB to be halted during the investigation process.  An angry Prescott appeared on the topical programme 10 O’clock Live on Channel 4 on Thursday night, clearly riled by the behaviour of journalists for the newspaper;

     “It doesn’t just involve the celebrity, or the successful individual.  I’m not against investigative journalism, but what the paper seems to be saying is that if a successful individual appears in the celebrity world, they are open to phone hacking!  You connect to the family, repeat their personal messages and then sell them to the damn press!  That’s what you do for a bloody living!”

        

However, if the News of the World thinks that the overdue apology will end the matter, they can think again.  Sienna Miller is already believed to have rejected the compensation package and her lawyers are seriously considering taking the paper to court.  Alongside News International omission, and more damming evidence being revealed by the Sunday Telegraph today, the police investigation by the Metropolitan Police, which has been criticised before is likely to be placed under scrutiny again.  Shadow Welsh Secretary Peter Hain told The Andrew Marr Show this morning that the investigation must be dealt with thoroughly;

    “It is a vital that a proper investigation of this takes place.  The police must pursue this till the end.  Until recent times, they have frankly, been very tardy and have not been bringing criminal proceedings when necessary.”

     

REPAIR: Is the newspaper industry going to recover?

     There is no doubt that this is a developing story that will continue to rumble on.  With a police investigation on the march, more celebrities coming forward with possible evidence and calls for all newspaper editors to reveal if they have been sending reporters into these dodgy situations, the future of the newspaper industry could be severely damaged beyond repair. 

Britain's switchover to digital - The history of multichannel TV

By Jason Wright (Entertainment Expert)

AS BRITAIN closes in on its much hyped complete switch to digital television; here is a look at the defining moments in multichannel television.

     Before it began, choice on TV was of course very limited with only BBC1, BBC2, ITV and Channel 4 around.  There was cable television around in those days, but it cost an absolute fortune to setup.  Then in 1989, all that changed with the launch of the Astra satellite and with it, Sky Television.  A selection of five channels; Sky One, Sky News, Sky Movies, Eurosport and MTV plus a wide selection of other specialist channels and European offerings was designed to give the viewer more choice.  Sky was synonymous for being the first company to offer free installation, only paying for the subscription to the channels.

NO TURNING BACK: The main content was on Sky!

     One year later, a rival satellite service was set up, called British Satellite Broadcasting (BSB).  Planned to launch before Sky, several fundamental problems put it back and the service was written on the wall from the start.  It disappeared at the end of the year, in a merger with Sky to form British Sky Broadcasting (BSkyB).  The company soon went on to end the terrestrial era of league football by earning a contract to air matches for the newly formed English Premier League in 1992.  Elsewhere, cable television was still lagging behind, but becoming more affordable with the lower prices being offered by specialist companies like NTL and Cable & Wireless.  Though these services had lower quality signals than satellite, their choice was pretty much the same.

     In 1997, the then newly-elected Labour government passed a bill to phase out analogue television by the year 2012.  To help with this, they set-up a new platform of multichannel television called Digital Terrestrial Television (DTT).  A consortium of Sky and the two biggest companies of the ITV network, Carlton and Granada, won the auction to set up a service.  However, a competition review forced Sky to drop out and led to Rupert Murdoch launching the first ever digital satellite service Sky Digital the following year.  Over 200 channels were now available at the viewer’s fingertips.

CATCHY: But ITV Digital was a doomed failure

     A few months after the launch of Sky Digital, Carlton and Granada unveiled their DTT service, On Digital.  Basically a stripped down version of cable, it concentrated in only offering the basic content that viewers would want.  This didn’t succeed, mainly due to Sky marketing it in a negative manner.  Three years after its launch, the service rebranded to ITV Digital and they wrestled away contract rights to The Football League.  A rise in subscribers didn’t come and the service collapsed less than a year later, replaced by the more popular Freeview service, offering channels without the need for subscription.

     By this time, cable had also gone digital through both NTL and Telewest’s services.  Both companies were taken over in 2007 by Virgin, thus creating Virgin Media.  They did no favours by getting into a row with BSkyB over the carriage of its channels, leading them to be removed from the Virgin service for more than 18 months.  Meanwhile, in 2006, Sky continued its trend of firsts by being the first company to offer high definition (HD) programming with Sky HD (renamed Sky+ HD two years later).  Meanwhile, Freeview had gained a service called TopUpTV that offered additional channels for a subscription cost and Freesat was launched in 2008, being the first satellite service with only free-to-air content.

     2008 saw Britain’s long-awaited move in digital only television begin.  Over a four year process, analogue will be switched off and replaced with digital signals.  It will no doubt increase choice to many people who can’t access digital services at this point in time but the question is, will it succeed?  We will have to wait until the whole process is complete.

UEFA Champions League Quarter-Finals, 1st Leg review - All over bar the shouting

THE midweek games in the UEFA Champions League produced plenty of goals and saw three out of the four ties virtually settled, with the second legs still to come.

CRUCIAL: Rooney scores the only goal at the Bridge on Wednesday

    The one tie that remains in the balance is the all-England affair, although it is advantage Manchester United after the first leg at Stamford Bridge.  Wayne Rooney can’t seem to stay out of the headlines at the moment.  This time, he did so for the right reasons.  Rooney struck the winner in United’s 1-0 success at Chelsea, to earn the Red Devils their first win in West London since April 2002.  The only goal came in the 23^rd minute.  Michael Carrick picked out Ryan Giggs with a beautifully-placed long ball.  Giggs made Jose Boswinga look silly, and by skipping easily around the back of the Portuguese defender, his pass told Rooney how to finish the silky move.  Duly, Rooney delivered and this time, he kept his celebrations to a far more dignified manner.  Chelsea struggled all night and seemed to lack the fight they should have shown, considering this is their only trophy chance this year.  Fernando Torres still looks bereft of confidence and although Patrice Evra produced a goal line to deny Frank Lampard and Ramires was denied a certain stoppage time penalty, there could be no complaints over the final outcome.  It sets up Tuesday’s second leg at Old Trafford perfectly.

DIFFICULT: Crouch's red card was a real letdown in Madrid

     However, Tottenham’s chances of progressing further look impossible, after suffering pure misery in Madrid.  From the moment Aaron Lennon was withdrawn at the last minute with a throat infection, Tottenham’s night went from bad to worse, eventually losing 4-0 in the Bernabeau.  Manchester City loanee Emmanuel Adebayor headed Real Madrid infront in the fourth minute, although Luka Modric could have dealt with the contact better on the line.  Ten minutes later, Peter Crouch got himself stupidly dismissed after two crude challenges on Marcelo.  Marcelo’s reaction to the red card was disgusting, but Crouch’s behaviour couldn’t be defended either, despite receiving some sympathy from Jose Mourinho.  A second header from Adebayor shortly after the restart had Madrid in control and as the game wore on; their movement on the ball was simply too much for a tiring Spurs outfit.  A beautiful strike from Angel di Maria painted a very grim picture with 18 minutes to go, and there was time for Cristiano Ronaldo to notch a fourth, producing the terminal blow.  Surely, Real won’t need to worry about the second leg this coming Wednesday at White Hart Lane.

     Another tie that is as good as over is the Barcelona v Shakhtar Donetsk quarter-final.  From the moment Andreas Iniesta walked through the Ukrainian defence in the second minute, the gulfing class was evident.  Barcelona won 5-1 through goals from Daniel Alves, Gerard Pique, Seydou Keita and Xavi.  At the San Siro, the draw seemed to favour Inter Milan, but they were stunned by Schalke 04, who inflicted a 5-2 loss on the defending champions.  Dejan Stankovic produced a brilliant strike in the first minute, his speculative effort from 55 yards leave Manuel Neuer rather red-faced.  Afterwards, Schalke ran riot, as their great character won through.  Some will be wondering why they are limping around in the mid-table region of the Bundesliga.  Amongst the dismantling of Inter was a 70^th Champions League goal for the incredible Raul.  Cristian Chivu, who had been sent off in last week’s Milan derby, was dismissed for two yellows in this match too. 

     Real Madrid, Barcelona and Schalke 04 are all but through to the semi-finals, but the English quarter-final remains right in the balance.  The football world’s attention switches to Old Trafford for a belting second leg this week.

F1 classic races - Malaysia

IN A new series, I will be looking back at six classic races every weekend from the country about to stage an event in the 2011 FIA Formula One World Championship.  This is my selection, of races in Malaysia between 1999 and 2010.  Enjoy the archive!

1999

WINNER: Eddie Irvine (Ferrari), 2^nd: Michael Schumacher (Ferrari), 3rd: Mika Hakkinen (McLaren Mercedes)

THE first trip to Sepang was for the penultimate round of the 1999 championship.  Ferrari looked on the ropes after a shambolic performance at the previous event at the Nurburgring, but played their wild card to great effect.  Michael Schumacher made his comeback here after breaking his leg at the British Grand Prix and destroyed the competition in Malaysia.  He took pole position by a full second, and insisted he would help Eddie Irvine’s bid to become Ferrari’s first world champion since 1979.  On raceday, Schumacher pulled over to let Irvine through early on, but David Coulthard bravely found a way past the German’s defences and set after Irvine.  Alternator problems put paid to DC’s hopes and Schumacher spent the rest of the day going as slow as possible to help out Irvine and harm Mika Hakkinen’s hopes of a second consecutive title.  After pitstops, Schumacher was ahead again and once again, did his duty for Irvine to claim the maximum points.  Hakkinen finished an exhausted third, but was champion hours later when both Ferrari’s were thrown out for illegal barge boards.  The Scuderia appealed in Paris and the FIA overturned the decision made by the race stewards in Malaysia to take the title showdown all the way down to Suzuka.  Michael Schumacher was well and truly back! 

2001

WINNER: Michael Schumacher (Ferrari), 2^nd: Rubens Barrichello (Ferrari), 3rd: David Coulthard (McLaren Mercedes)

SYNCHRONISED: Gravel trips from Ferrari couldn't stop them in 2001

When the results show a Ferrari 1-2, it suggests this was a boring race.  Far from it!  A typical Malaysian monsoon hit the track three laps into the event.  Combined with oil from Olivier Panis BAR Honda engine, Michael Schumacher and Rubens Barrichello both skated into the gravel in synchronised style.  After a chaotic pitstop, which saw Barrichello in the pits for over a minute, the Ferrari’s went on intermediate tyres.  It was a masterstroke, which left the rest of the opposition look like complete fools.  Barrichello and Schumacher went from 10^th and 11^th to 1^st and 2^nd in less than ten laps, and the rest they say is history.  David Coulthard was best of the rest.

2003

WINNER: Kimi Raikkonen (McLaren Mercedes), 2^nd: Rubens Barrichello (Ferrari), 3^rd: Fernando Alonso (Renault)

This will go down as the weekend when the young guns truly burst onto the Grand Prix scene.  At 21 years of age, Fernando Alonso took a stunning pole position in his only his second start for Renault, becoming the youngest ever driver to do so in the process.  On Sunday, 23-year old Kimi Raikkonen finally fulfilled his raw talent by recording his first career victory, and left Ron Dennis in tears.  David Coulthard was denied a shot at victory by engine failure, whilst Michael Schumacher made a meal of the first lap and smashed into the side of Jarno Trulli, causing chaos and ending Juan Pablo Montoya’s chances of serious points, as his rear wing was assaulted by Antonio Pizzonia.  Trulli and Schumacher wound up fifth and sixth, behind Barrichello and Alonso, who became the first Spaniard on a Grand Prix podium for the first time since 1956.

2004

WINNER: Michael Schumacher (Ferrari), 2^nd: Juan Pablo Montoya (Williams BMW), 3^rd: Jenson Button (BAR Honda)

Michael Schumacher may have made it two wins from two in 2004, but the day belonged to Jenson Button.  The Brit has suffered rotten luck in Malaysia in the previous two years, having been overtaken by Schumacher on the last lap himself.  This time, he managed a late engine issue to beat Rubens Barrichello across the line and join the elite of stepping onto the podium for the first time.  Juan Pablo Montoya pushed Schumacher all the way, but had to settle for second; unhappy with Barrichello holding him up just after his final stop.  Sadly, Mark Webber couldn’t convert his outstanding front row grid spot for Jaguar.  He had clutch problems at the start, a drive-through for speeding in the pits, a clash with Ralf Schumacher which punctured one of his tyres and eventually, his shambolic race ended in the kitty litter.

2005

WINNER: Fernando Alonso (Renault), 2^nd: Jarno Trulli (Toyota), 3^rd: Nick Heidfeld (Williams BMW)

PACKED: The midfield in 2005 was tough to separate

Two years after he truly made a name for himself in Malaysia, Fernando Alonso began his charge to his first ever championship with a dominant victory in Kuala Lumpur.  He started from the front and led every lap to beat Jarno Trulli, his former team-mate at Renault.  Trulli’s second place finish was Toyota’s first podium in Formula One.  Winner of the opening race Giancarlo Fisichella had a tangle with Australian Mark Webber, which ended both of their races.  This opened the door for Nick Heidfeld to register the final rostrum spot in the sister Williams.  Michael Schumacher was a very distant 7^th, Kimi Raikkonen finished out of the points following a puncture and neither BAR completed three laps, due to engine woes!

2009

WINNER: Jenson Button (Brawn Mercedes), 2^nd: Nick Heidfeld (BMW Sauber), 3^rd: Timo Glock (Toyota)

Only half points were awarded in the 2009 race, as fading light and a tropical rainstorm halted the event after just 31 laps.  However, in the racing laps that took place, there was plenty of excitement.  Jenson Button had pole position, but dropped to fourth on the first corner, as Nico Rosberg charged into the lead.  The early exchanges saw Fernando Alonso battle bravely with a Renault that simply wasn’t up to the front running pace.  Despite his best efforts, he dropped from third to seventh in the first ten laps.  Button used the pitstops to leapfrog both Rosberg and Jarno Trulli and began to pull away at the front.  His only main threat came from the other Toyota of Timo Glock.  Glock had put intermediates on when the rain began to fell, and quickly passed a load of cars that had trundled around on the extreme wets.  The German even led the race for a lap, but was passed by Button and Nick Heidfeld, who had deployed a similar tactic to his countryman.  Mark Webber, Rosberg, Trulli, Lewis Hamilton and Rubens Barrichello were involved in a frenzied battle for fourth place, eventually won by Trulli.  The race ended as Sebastian Buemi, Sebastian Vettel and Giancarlo Fisichella all flew into the gravel trap in undriveable conditions.  It was another miserable day for Ferrari, with Felipe Massa out of the points and Kimi Raikkonen put onto wets on a bone dry track!  The Finn eventually retired with a KERS related issue.  Button had set his stall out to dominate the 2009 season, and the early season races were all about him and Brawn GP. 

Spain MotoGP 2011 - Lorenzo survives in the Spanish rain

WORLD MotoGP champion Jorge Lorenzo survived an attrition-packed Spanish Grand Prix at Jerez to claim the points lead.  Lorenzo beat countryman Dani Pedrosa, on a Honda by nearly 20 seconds with Ducati’s Nicky Hayden finishing third.  However, it was clash between Pedrosa and Hayden’s team-mates that made all the headlines after the event.

     At a grey and damp Jerez, Casey Stoner got off the line perfectly from pole position to lead Lorenzo and Marco Simoncelli in the early exchanges.  Team-mate Pedrosa had an awful lap.  He slipped from second to tenth, as he struggled with a bugging arm injury.  After starting a dismal 12^th, Valentino Rossi took full advantage of the dismal conditions to move quickly into fourth place, showing his formidability on a wet track.  Meanwhile, countryman Simoncelli was right at home, as he managed to usurp a careful Lorenzo and Stoner to snatch the lead.  Rossi eased past Lorenzo for third before the moment of the race.

TANGLE: Rossi's ambitious move took Casey Stoner out

     The Italian attempted a move on Stoner for second spot.  It was ambitious to say the least and the result was Rossi went down at the first corner, and took the unfortunate Stoner with him.  It was an unbelievable moment and shows that even world champions can make a hash of overtaking attempts.  Rossi was pinned under the bikes, whilst Stoner got up quickly, ready to remount.  However, the Repsol Honda team were furious that the marshals only seemed interested in helping Rossi and not their Australian championship leader.  The Ducati of Rossi rejoined well down and field and Stoner had been cruelly eliminated through no fault of his own.

     Pedrosa started to move his way back through the field, having now got a feel for the equipment he had underneath him.  He sliced his way back upto third, but that was to become second on lap 11 when disaster struck Simoncelli.  He was pulling away from Lorenzo and the race was his for the taking, until he got a high-side on at Turn One and dropped the bike.  He was out and Lorenzo had been gifted the lead.

     Britain’s Cal Crutchlow had been having a good run and was keeping Hayden in his sights, when he became another victim of the tricky conditions.  He was fifth before falling off his Tech Speed Yamaha, eventually remounting to finish ninth.  With four laps to go, American Ben Spies passed Pedrosa to make it a Yamaha 1-2.  Pedrosa had no response, as his tyres were absolutely finished.  Luckily for him, Spies went into the gravel on the very next lap and out of the race.  This allowed the likeable Colin Edwards onto the podium, but the Texan Tornado’s bike packed up and left Colin stranded on the last lap.  

ODD: Lorenzo's celebrations seem to get more strange with each race

     Ahead of all the drama, Lorenzo took the chequered flag at the end of a thrilling race.  Pedrosa and Hayden completed the rostrum, whilst Rossi somehow recovered to fifth, before going to apologise to Stoner for their crash afterwards.  This was the case of last man standing in Jerez and Jorge Lorenzo came out on top.  If this is anything to go by, MotoGP 2011 has all the ingredients to be a very special season.

FA Barclays Premiership Report (2nd - 3rd April)

ANOTHER weekend of rollercoaster action in the Premiership, which saw the battle at the bottom tighten up even more and the championship head firmly into Manchester United’s control.

RANT: Wayne Rooney's moment of madness infront of the cameras

     Manchester United put in a championship winning performance in the second half at Upton Park.  They turned around a 2-0 half-time deficit at West Ham, to win 4-2.  However, their comeback didn’t dominate the headlines.  Instead, it was the disgraceful behaviour of Wayne Rooney, which left him with a two-match ban and condemnation from many within the game.  Rooney scored a tremendous hat-trick, with the third coming from the penalty spot.  However, he then proceeded to swear into the Sky Sports TV camera, with a rant that can’t be broadcasted on this site in case young children are reading.  It was disgusting, uncalled for and the ban is fully justified, because it is about time that footballers were punished for their foul-mouthed actions.  If Rooney is a role model for football, the game has got some serious questioning to do.  On the funny side, at least the TV camera highlighted his basic language limitations!

     Aside from Rooney’s rant, it was a satisfying weekend for Sir Alex Ferguson’s side, as he could sit back and watch his closest challengers drop points.  Chelsea’s slim mathematical hopes died at the Britannia Stadium, as they were held to a 1-1 draw by gritty Stoke City.  A brilliant early solo goal from Jonathan Walters extinguished Chelsea’s faint dreams of a title miracle, despite a classic equaliser from Didier Drogba.  The result marked Stoke’s first Premiership point against Chelsea, at the sixth attempt of asking.  On a painful day at the Emirates, two more priceless points were dropped by Arsenal.  They were lacklustre against Blackburn Rovers, who deserved their hard-fought 0-0 stalemate.  Arsenal did have chances, but they were scarce to say the least.  The flashpoint of the match was a reckless lunge on Laurent Koscieny, which led to Steven N’Zonzi being sent off.  Arsenal now languish seven points behind, with a game in hand.  It isn’t over yet, but the Fat Lady is starting to clear her throat ready for the celebrations at Old Trafford.

ROUT: Yaya Toure completes Manchester City's demolition of Sunderland

     At the bottom of the table, results tightened up so much, that only seven points cover the entire bottom half.  Sunderland’s freefall continued, as they slipped to a horrifying 5-0 loss at a rampant Manchester City.  The Black Cats have now lost six of their last seven matches.  City were emphatic, and easily put in their best performance of the Premiership season on Sunday, tightening their grip on a Champions League qualification berth for next season.  Adam Johnson returned to the team for the first time since January and an excellent finish gave Simon Mignolet no chance in the 9^th minute.  From then on, the result was in little doubt.  Carlos Tevez, David Silva, Patrick Vieira and Yaya Toure added their names to the scoresheet, despite Mignolet’s best efforts.  The young Belgian had a good game actually and couldn’t stop any of the goals.  Perhaps Sunderland’s iffy defending needs to be looked at extensively in training this week.  One win in 11 matches has also left Blackpool perilously close to the drop zone.  Ian Holloway’s side have now been installed as bookies favourites to be relegated after a 3-0 loss at Fulham.  Two goals from Bobby Zamora and a tap-in by the Nigerian Dickson Etuhu moved Fulham into the top half of the table and almost Premiership safety.  Blackpool looked a beaten team at Craven Cottage from the outset, which must concern Holloway, as the belief seems to have been sucked out of his team.     

RESPECT: All smiles before kick-off, but Hodgson got the better of Dalglish

     Revenge is the best dish served for Roy Hodgson, as he put one over his former employers Liverpool at the Hawthorns.  West Brom’s 2-1 win gives them some breathing space and moves the Baggies closer to mid-table than the bottom three.  There were plenty of chances in this match, before Martin Skrtel headed Liverpool infront.  Two Chris Brunt penalties, one in the 87^th minute took WBA away from safety and all but buried Liverpool’s chances of playing in European competition next season.  There were thrills and spills aplenty in a four goal cracker on Merseyside between Everton and Aston Villa.  The 2-2 draw keeps Villa in the thick of the relegation scrap.  Leon Osman gave Everton a half-time lead, but Darren Bent scored twice to have the visitors infront.  This came either side of a Jermaine Beckford shot, which hit the crossbar, crossed the line and wasn’t given.  Where the goal-line technology?  Oh wait, FIFA decided to ban snoods instead!  Seven minutes from time and a questionable foul on Phil Jagielka gave Leighton Baines the chance to make it 2-2 from the penalty spot.

     Birmingham climbed out of the relegation zone, as they made up for their FA Cup quarter-final exit last month against Bolton.  Kevin Phillips made a rare start and scored the opener in the 2-1 win; Birmingham’s first triumph since their Carling Cup success at the end of February.  Craig Gardner doubled the lead and Alex McLeish had Ben Foster to thank for keeping his side infront.  Foster was in great form again, producing a series of fantastic saves, which limited Bolton to a sole consolation, courtesy of Johan Elmander.  At St. James Park, Newcastle all but secured Premiership football next season, as they tore apart Wolves, winning 4-1.  Kevin Nolan, Shola Ameobi, Peter Lovenkrands and Jonas Gutierrez were on target for the Magpies.  Finally, a lacklustre game at the DW Stadium saw Wigan and Tottenham play out a 0-0 draw.  It is a vital point for Wigan in their fight against the drop, but more points dropped by Tottenham, who are starting to feel the pace of a long season in Europe and the Premiership.  It will take a mighty effort for Harry Redknapp’s men to be in the Champions League again next season.

     With no more international interruptions, the Premiership is now running till the end on a week-to-week basis.  Whilst it is too close to call to predict who will stay up and who won’t, don’t be surprised to see the bookies begin to pay out on another title success for Manchester United.

The Journalism Gang 2010/11 (University of Northampton)

HAPPY TIMES: The Journalism gang pose before xmas for Unique magazine

EASTER is fast approaching and so too is the end of another academic year.  It is almost two down, one to go.  There can be no doubt that second year has carried its trials and tribulations, for many of us.  I wanted to take the opportunity to share my favourite moments and praise some of you, hopefully giving all of you a lift with the end of second year fast approaching.

Ellie – I think it’s safe to say that Ellie and I have been down a rocky road in 2011, which tested our previously stable friendship right to the edge, or shall I say, needing emergency CPR treatment!  However, the heart hasn’t flat lined and we have a solid foundation which will take something massive to smash it completely.  Ellie is one of the sweetest and cutest individuals I’ve ever met and an amazing friend.  I know I am very lucky to have her in my life.  She is very caring and has always had belief in me and what I am capable of.  This year, she seems to be working harder than ever before and by getting two weeks of work placement with two different newspapers, no-one should criticise her dedication towards journalism.  If Ellie showed a bit more confidence in herself, she could turn into a top-notch journalist.  She also seems far happier this year, especially by being in a loving and very secure relationship with a stable boyfriend.  Ellie will never lose her wild side, and I don’t think she should, because it would take away a major part of her personality.  However, I will always value her opinion by being so close and I hope we will be able to properly rebuild the trust which admittedly has taken a battering so far this calendar year.  What I do know, is without Ellie in my life, it would be far duller, because I love the drama that it comes with!    

Farida – I love being around Farida, because it isn’t just the pickles that she can get herself into, almost quite literally!  It is the dedication she shows.  Farida is a top class writer and has already shown it in abundance.  As far as I was concerned, her feature on shoes in Northampton was a class above anything else in the spring edition of Unique magazine.  She has all the talent in the world and I know she will go onto bigger and better things.  When you throw in the funny arguments with Lauren and the hilarious quotes she comes out with in law, it makes her a complete all-round person.  I think Ellie would win the most dramatic individual award, but if there was one for all-round personality, I’d nominate Farida hands down.  She won’t stop at anything to get her story, as shown also by e-mailing almost every single media organisation ever for work placement, including a caravan magazine earlier in the year!  Although she is going through a host of bad luck at the moment, Farida has the ability to turn it around in her favour and I hope she continues to fight for every opportunity offered to her, because she is going places, big time!  Plus, let’s not forget the love for Enrique, Nicole and the Sky Blues!

Shane – I didn’t meet Shane until the start of this year, but he is a funny and great addition to the group.  Together with me and Tamika, we can have a load of fun in the Tuesday workshop and he did a very good job as our news editor, or shall I say ‘the leader’ for the xmas edition of Unique magazine.  Shane has always helped me out, whenever I need it.  He plays a brilliant role with acting, as portrayed by his role as ‘The Maskman’ in a sound demo I had to do for Film Style & Technique. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2o4QhG8dFOA&feature=channel_video_title)  Shane is an all-round nice guy and I have been very privileged to be in his company this year.  The only tip I’d give to him is, start reading the news on a regular basis!

Tamika – Tamika is a stunning individual, a very caring person and has always been there for me this year.  In fact, without her, I don’t think I could have survived the year.  Not only is it her natural beauty that stands out, but she is a hard worker, who puts in a load of effort and I think it has shone through.  Tamika is a fantastic actress (see our Sound Demo) for evidence, always offers a proper opinion on my work and has taken on the role as group leader in the ‘Parking Problems’ documentary very impressively.  She even taught me some useful editing techniques, which I didn’t know before, despite my passion for it.  She also called me an ‘editing genius,’ which is one of the sweetest compliments I have received this year.  I don’t have a bad word to say about Tamika.  I want to take the opportunity to thank her for the incredible support she has shown throughout this year, which has been a very challenging at times.

Rochelle & Emily – Rochelle and Emily, a brilliant double act who go together as well as Morecambe & Wise, Max and O.B from Hollyoaks and Hamilton & Button in Formula One.  They are better known as ‘The Twinnies!’  Without them, I know I would be in a poorer place.  The three of us have had some brilliant nights out this year, when we can have a real laugh.  Rochelle is a real sweetheart, and I don’t think she has a bad stain on her character.  She wants to succeed and show how hard-working she is.  Her blog on Tumblr is always full of wit and humour and a fun read.  Plus, she seems to have a crush on almost every celebrity bloke around!  It was Rochelle’s recommendation for me to go and watch ‘The King’s Speech,’ and I’m glad she did encourage me to watch a film masterpiece.  As for Emily, she is a brilliant friend and also a very hard-worker.  I haven’t seen much of her this year, besides DTP and the Wednesday nights out at Pennywhistle’s, but she has always been another friend who I can totally trust on and I’m privileged to have around me.  Long live ‘The Twinnies!’

Miles – I may have distanced myself from Miles more this year than last year, but I do still think he is a nice bloke.  I’ve had no problems with him, that’s for sure, even if others have.  Miles has a very strong opinion on many issues, which can sometimes be a real positive thing to have, especially in this competitive industry and it can also backfire.  The row with Hilary in DTP at the beginning of the year, which saw him kicked out of a session showed this.  Nevertheless, I’ve always got on well with Miles, no matter what others think.

Josie – Like Miles, I haven’t seen much of Josie this year, apart from the compulsory law sessions.  However, she is still another close friend and I can always rely on her for support.  The work she put in for the law presentation was very strong and I still feel a bit guilty for having not trusted her a bit more with it right at the beginning of the assignment.  Josie’s strength is definitely in Photography and I bet she is so relieved she dumped Creative Writing, because it was totally the right decision.  Her Photography is stunning and if she follows this path, there is going to be a load of success in it.  I look forward to seeing her documentary, because I think it has the potential to be top-notch.  Josie puts maximum effort into all her work and has a load of potential to do some bright things, not just in third year, but after graduation.

Lauren – Personally, I wasn’t that close to Lauren last year, but I have found her very easy to get on with and enjoy being around her, especially when it comes to those funny arguments with her partner in crime, Farida.  Lauren did some very strong pieces for both editions of the Unique magazine and will say whatever she thinks, without holding back.  There are a lot of people who do hold back on saying things, but Lauren isn’t one of those.  The way she has been totally honest with Creative Writing in telling Leigh what she thinks of him and the subject has been mightily impressive.  The highlight that sticks out in my mind of Lauren this year is the water fight with Natalie during a fire alarm drill on a freezing November Monday evening in law.  It was just pure comedy at its finest!

Chris – Chris is another individual who I’ve always got on really well with and is a clearly a fan of Twitter.  It was touching to see Shane give him 18p the other day, then for Chris to Tweet what just happened lol!  I’ve worked with Chris this year on the ‘Parking Problems’ documentary.  Despite a lack of general paperwork from him, he produced an excellent first script, which it made it very easy for me to create the voiceovers for the documentary.  Not only that, when the pressure was on and the lack of interviews was galling, Chris went out and in just over an hour, got five interviews with students, which turned our documentary from one with potential, which was likely to end up being a major disappointment into a total success.  Not only that, he then didn’t give up with speaking to a security supervisor on the car parking issue last Tuesday.  He constantly went back and forth and got the rewards with a brilliant interview in the end.  Chris’s strengths are definitely in going out and grabbing the interview required and he also did some good stuff for the xmas Unique magazine too.  By being strong in both print and TV, Chris has more of a choice than some in being very strong in two fields of journalism.

Stef – Friday mornings can be a real bummer.  Getting up for a 9am DTP session has never been a load a fun, but Stef can provide that fun and entertainment that can wake me up.  When I thought about leaving myself three weeks ago, Stef was one of those who I asked what she thought of my situation.  She gave me an honest assessment of things, and it was nice to hear it from someone who I don’t always confide in, in retrospect to the usual suspects who I turn to.  Like Lauren, Stef is not afraid of speaking out and saying it like it is and with a camera, don’t come near her!  That’s not in a bad way, but you don’t want to be off-guard and get caught out by Stef filming you for fun haha!  Luckily, I got away with it when I was at my lowest.  She is such a fun person to be around and has a real habit of making me laugh and smile.  Also, if you want random entertainment, check out her and Shamina’s video called ‘Skins,’ earlier last month, it’s brilliant. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=co_L_hm4-ag)

Natalie – To be honest, I haven’t seen much of Natalie this year, but she is still a valid member of the group.  The water fight with Lauren in law back in November stands out for me.  She also realised how useless Creative Writing was and stopped turning up to lectures from November onwards for that module.  Wish I’d kinda done the same lol!

James – Honestly, I’ve never always got on really well with James, but I still respect him and he played a significant role in the group-based law presentation before Christmas.  It sounds like he is working hard on his documentary too and like Chris, has no fear in making the phone call or going out to get the interview he needs to strengthen his work.  However, I don’t think turning up late for a load of Hilary’s workshops made him very favourable with Hilary!

Shamima – Aww, Shamima is a real sweetheart and has a heart full of two places, Northampton and Birmingham.  I think she is the most dedicated party girl on the course, though Lauren and Ellie would give her stiff competition.  If anyone has had it tough this year, it is Shamima.  She has had to go home back and forth this year, due to illness and it must have been hard for her to try and keep up with the fast pace of the excessive workload.  At Christmas, I doubted whether she would return, but I never should have.  Plus, when things aren’t going right, she can get rather angry, which she showed in the workshop last week.  Aside from the constant Facebook rape statuses that regularly appear on my News Feed, I had the privilege of interviewing Shamima for a workshop task earlier in the year.  I found out a lot more about her and I opened up to her, which is something I didn’t think I could do.  Together with Stef, they are a very popular double act and go along together like chalk and cheese.  The course needs people like Shamima, so we are all lucky to have her around.

Rheannon – Like Natalie, I haven’t seen much of Rheannon this year, along with Robyn and Amanda.  However, Rheannon was another individual who I opened up to when I had another tough time at the end of January.  She said to me “one bad week doesn’t even come close to the positive weeks you have had.  Think about it, you attend all your lectures, so your initiative mark is going to be perfect and you work so hard, it’s an inspiration to the rest of us.”  It was quite possibly the sweetest thing someone said to me all year and it was a very nice surprise that made things massively better.   

Tom – I haven’t spoken to Tom too much, but he is a good guy who again, you can’t say a bad word about, despite supporting Manchester United (boo!).  So, rubbing it in at Liverpool’s recent Premiership success against United at Anfield was nice to do in the following Tuesday workshop.  If they pull it out, he and Amy could have a brilliant TV piece for ‘Employability Week,’ and I hope they do, because they showed a lot more commitment than for example, me with a rather crappy radio piece.

Nicole – In similar regards to Shane, I only got to know Nicole this year, but she is such a nice person all round.  She works very hard and keeps herself to herself.  Some don’t recognise Nicole, but that’s because she prefers to get on with the tasks in hand, rather than be in the thick of the action.  She is always willing to improve and having read and proofed both of her pieces that got into Unique; I know she can be a very successful journalist.

Amy – Amy is in both my workshop group and in Creative Writing.  Although I don’t see much of her, she can pull some very strong pieces out of the bag.  Whilst Farida’s shoes feature was the best piece in Unique spring edition, Amy’s piece on the homeless over the festive season for Unique xmas edition was simply fantastic.  Amy has the ability to produce the unexpected, which is a good thing, because it can be seen as a real bonus to many employers, almost like a wildcard entry at a major sports tournament.  Plus, she is also a funny character and the new red hairstyle really suits her too!

The rest of you – I couldn’t mention everyone unfortunately, otherwise I would go on for hours.  However, you are all amazing people with various qualities which make you tick.  Even I have to acknowledge the contribution and eccentric attitude of Jonathan! (Gulp!)  I wish you all the best; I know you can all succeed in these remaining weeks.  Remember, the summer isn’t far away now, and you all can lookback on with pride and satisfaction if you conquer this year, which has had its challenges for all of us.

See you all at Uni, take care everyone

Simon

xxx

Dancing on Ice 2011 - The final skate-off

By Jason Wright (Entertainment Expert)

THE months of hard work and training had now really paid off.  For Sam Attwater, Laura Hamilton or Chloe Madeley, one of them would join the Dancing on Ice hall of fame as a champion.  The decision would be made entirely by the public and they had two performances to impress them.

     In the first performance, each finalist performed a “final showcase” in which they were able to produce, choreograph, and devise their own routine to a certain theme.  Along with the aid of their professional partner, they also each worked with up to four additional pros in the routine.

     First up with competition favourites Sam & Brianne with a footloose themed number, joined by Frankie Poultney, Dan Whiston, Nina Ulanova and Matt Evers.  In a show first, the showcase contained not one, not two but three headbangers, all at the same time!  Very risky, but it was pulled off and with the rest of the performance nailed to perfection, it deserved the first 10 marks of the competition.

SAFE: Laura's first performance was a bit too secure

     Next was Laura’s turn.  She and Colin were assisted by Sylvain Longchambon and Mark Hanretty, being very brave in only going for two extra pros.  Though, the setting and presentation was spectacular, the gamble didn’t seem to pay off and was considered by the judges as a little too safe.  Finally, Chloe and Michael were accompanied by Alexandra Schumann, Lukasz Rozycki, Jodeyne Higgins and Sean Rice for a Dirty Dancing inspired routine.  As with Laura, it didn’t really show much of Chloe’s strengths or expose any weaknesses but the marks were a tad unfair as it seem a little bit better than Laura’s. 

SHOWCASE SCORES

Sam & Brianne 29.5

Laura & Colin 26.0

Chloe & Michael 25.5

REVEALED: Jason removes his hat to praise Laura

For their second routine before the first elimination, each couple would re-enact a routine from a previous week and tweak it a little to ensure it got higher marks than before.  Firstly, Sam performed his Riverdance themed routine from Week 8.  Perfecting the traditional Irish dance was on his cards and it worked but was left astounded when the judges’ only gave him half mark improvements on last time.  With the highest score out of all previous routines to be done in this round, the omens were good for Laura to match Sam in earning a 10 mark.  Her dance to ‘I’m So Excited’, as first done on the ninth week, it did the job in acquiring a 10…only for it to achieve a perfect score!  The praise led to judge Jason Gardiner finally removing his hat after 12 weeks to reveal a huge growth of hair!  Last up, Chloe went back to her Bollywood inspired routine.  A huge risk considering it wasn’t her highest scoring routine of the series so it was just a case of getting as high as she could, and that was easily achieved.

PREVIOUS ROUTINE SCORES

Laura & Colin 30.0

Sam & Brianne 28.5

Chloe & Michael 28.5

TOTAL SCORES

Sam & Brianne 58.0

Laura & Colin 56.0

Chloe & Michael 54.0

CONSISTENT: However, it wasn't enough to get Chloe to skate the Bolero

Dancing on Ice had never experienced a tighter final than this before with just six points separating the final three.  Sam was still the front-runner but with Laura’s maximum score putting her right into contention and Chloe’s consistency of convincing the public, this was not going to be an easy decision as to which two couples would skate the Bolero.

     In the end, the result was as widely predicted.  Sam and Laura advanced into the skate-off for the title and Chloe exited in third place.  In the Bolero skate, Sam did his right to near-perfection whilst Laura struggled with what content to put in and that would prove to be her undoing and a sloppy first half to the routine handed Sam the title on a plate.

WINNERS: Sam and Brianne are 2011 champions

     Most people would have been convinced that Sam was simply showing off throughout most of the competition but no one could deny that his Bolero was completely the better and deserved to win.  He like Laura and Chloe came into the competition as unknowns, rarely mentioned in the public spotlight but they will prove to be all winners as their heroics have acquired them a huge fanbase and all three will move on to bigger and better opportunities.

     Overall, despite a thrilling final, the verdict on the series has been very lacklustre with many people saying these huge changes to the show’s format hasn’t worked and it has in fact, sent the show backwards.  ITV will undoubtedly want to call an urgent meeting of the producers to discuss what went wrong and decide on how to make it better next year.  I’m not one to judge on this issue but I think I have to be fair and say it could have done better and maybe this format can do another series and then decide which direction the show is heading from then.

     However, amongst the rather criticism and questionable choice of the public, everyone has congratulate Sam Attwater for becoming Dancing on Ice Champion 2011.  Once again, the pre-competition favourite has triumphed in sensational fashion.