Wow, what a day. And what a medium Twitter is. To explain, here's the full story.
On weekday mornings I normally take hold of the previous days Sloppy Star and read it whilst having breakfast. Today was no different, and as I sat down at the kitchen table with my crumpets with Bovril on (try it, it's good) I flicked through the paper as usual, browsing the letters page with interest before working my way through to the cryptic crossword which is a nice warm-up for my brain. It is Monday, and on Mondays there's a special football segment in the middle of the paper. It concentrates on all the local teams - AFC Telford, Shrewsbury Town, Wolves - and then the Midlands teams further afield, Villa, Birmingham, WBA etc. After all the match reports and tables there's an opinion page, and strike me down if it isn't penned by Ron "Big Ron" Atkinson.
Or is it? You see, most of these things are ghost-written, with the paper's journalist phoning the chosen "famous person" up and constructing a piece around what that person says on the phone. I do not know whether Atkinson writes these things himself or not - I doubt it - but in the interest of simplicity, let us assume he does.
So I'm sitting eating my crumpets and drinking my tea as I cast my eye over Atkinson's main piece. It's about Wayne Rooney, and "Sweargate" which I'm sure you know all about by now. The line taken by Atkinson's piece is an interesting one - that Rooney does these things because he's angry and frustrated, mainly because his relationship with the Manchester United supporters has broken down after the contract negotiations a few months ago. This is a fair angle - there are a number of United supporters who have lost faith/love in Rooney. I read United forums and messageboards, and I follow enough United fans on Twitter to know there's a myriad (great word) of opinions about our Scouse Number 10. So there I was enjoying the column when I read the fifth paragraph. And I read it over and over and over, until every word had sunk in. I quote verbatim:
"I noticed that when United were trailing West Ham 2-0 in the first half and Rooney went over to take a throw-in nearby them, a chant of 'You're not fit to wear the shirt' broke out.
After reading it for the fifth time, I frowned. You see, I watched the game on television, and hadn't heard that chant. I had not read ANYWHERE anyone saying that chant was aired, nor ANYONE talking about it anywhere in the media. All those forums and messageboards I mentioned? I had a quick browse on them - nothing. On Twitter? Nope. Not a sausage.
And then I read another article by Big Ron which further complicated the mystery. I'll quote verbatim again:
"Yet again we find ourselves marvelling at Super Kev (Phillips). I was at Birmingham on Saturday..."
Birmingham vs Bolton, which kicked off at 15:00. The West Ham United vs Manchester United game kicked off at 12:45, so from this we can conclude that Atkinson wasn't at the game in London, and instead (presumably) watched the game from a TV set. Okay, that's fine, but how then did he hear a chant that I didn't? I'm always keeping an ear out for what the United crowd are singing when I'm watching.
So this is when I went to Twitter. I got in touch with two guys who work for manutd.com who are on there, and asked them if they knew anyone who was actually at the game, supporting United in the away end. They didn't, but both were kind enough to publicise my question to all of their followers. Soon I was absolutely drowned in responses (and follows, amusingly) and in the frenzy I shook my head wryly and realised that if anyone ever tries telling you that Twitter isn't useful, they're talking out of their arse.
I got swamped with replies, too many to mention - although I'll tally them up later - but the gist of all of them was exactly the same: "That never happened. Anyone who says that either misheard or is lying." But Big Ron seemed pretty definite. Let's have it again:
"I noticed that...a chant of 'You're not fit to wear the shirt' broke out."
There's no room for leeway there - no "I think I heard" or "I thought I noticed" - none of that. It's a definitive statement. Shame it's not true. I'm used to people writing/talking about United. As us Reds say "United - loved, hated, but never ignored" and over time I've had to accept that people who hate the club will write or say stuff which I won't agree with. But to just blatantly lie is really poor form, in my opinion. It may not be a big thing, granted, but it portrays United fans in a bad light. Some of them may not like Rooney, agreed, and some have criticised certain players for not being good enough, but an orchestrated chant of "You're not fit to wear the shirt"? No. Never.
Which is why once I've published this blog post, and gone to get some dinner, I'm e-mailing The Slop. They really are living up to their nickname if they can't even be bothered to check facts.
Showing posts with label Twitter. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Twitter. Show all posts
Tuesday, 5 April 2011
Thursday, 10 March 2011
The One Where I Could Share A Kebab With Dido
Well gosh my giddy aunt, what a fuss!
"Twit Relief" isn't even a day old, yet already it's caused so much commotion and uproar on Twitter. For those not on the social networking site, and are perhaps unaware of what I'm talking about, let me guide you through this.
We are in Comic Relief territory, with Red Nose Day itself coming up next Friday (Important Ewar note! I hope to be live-blogging the event. Make sure to set your alarms and join me for that) so charity fund-raising and shenanigans are on-going. Now the good people at Comic Relief wanted to do something a bit special, a bit more interesting than getting Lenny Henry to run a marathon in a dog costume, or John Barrowman to take a bath in baked beans. So they came up with "Twit Relief".
The premise of it is this: Comic Relief have recruited over 100 "famous" people (I hate that phrase and I'll touch on that later) and put them up on eBay listings with the public allowed to bid on them. Winning bids go to the charity, obviously. The main crux of the matter was Twitter-based. The chosen "famous" person would 'follow' the auction winner on Twitter, would 're-tweet' them and talk to them on there. That was good, but a bit hollow, so they've also put up various other goodies and prizes for the winner - I'll list a few in a minute, some are genuinely awesome.
It's all for charity, and it's just a bit of silliness yet Twitter has gone slightly potty over this today. I thought this would be a better blog entry if I kept my opinion out of it initially, and presented some opinions from supporters and critics. So, here's a selection:
Well hot damn! Every tweet I read on this and every opinion I take in just makes my mind even more muddled. I acknowledge every tweet above, and I can certainly see what the critics are saying. You see, this doesn't look great. I mentioned earlier how I hated the phrase "a famous person". Because who is famous? Someone might get a degree in Broadcasting, put on a suit, walk to BBC Studios and present a live gameshow/chat show/panel show. Does that make them somehow better than you or I? Not really, in my opinion. It means they have a job in the public eye.
I think in relation to Twitter, this is even more interesting. When I load up my Twitter program called Tweetdeck, it always strikes me how the people I care about, the people I'm really interested in, the people who's tweets I always read and look forward to reading, are the so called riff-raff, the people who aren't famous. I follow about 600 people, and I follow "famous people" (eurgh) and "non-famous people" (eurgh) but I guarantee you it's the latter that are more interesting. If someone put a gun to my head and asked me to 'unfollow' half of those 600, and leave me with 300, I wouldn't unfollow @Vicky1978, @PBC13, @benjaminjudge, @Sidekick28, @spotify_tapes (well, maybe I would), @MFoxx2 and SO MANY others I could name. It'd be Kim Kardashian, it'd be Kylie Minogue, it'd be Charlie Sheen. Oh, they're famous, but they're fucking boring/insane.
For me, what I love about Twitter isn't the latter. It's the former - making new friends, talking to people I wouldn't have ever met otherwise and enjoying the creativity of others. I've sent Christmas cards to people I like on Twitter, which was pretty cool. All of this is why I find the whole "Winner of this auction will have Boy George following them!!" a bit shit. A) So what, and B) He was in an 80s band who did a few catchy songs but that's it. He's not a super-human. My boy "G" was right in his tweet which you see above - what an awfully hollow, empty "validation".
The list hasn't been finalised yet - they seem to be putting one auction an hour up on this site http://bit.ly/eclf64 - but there are so many people I like taking part. Christian O'Connell, Richard Curtis, Nick Frost, Miranda Hart, Alexander Armstrong, Chris Addison, Krishnan Guru Murphy, Graham Linehan, Emma Kennedy, Marcus Brigstocke and others. These are good people! And Linehan's tweet is relevant - it's for charity, it raises serious money, these guys are doing what they can. And some of the prizes ARE great - a walk-on extra part in Curtis's next film, an actual bloody Morph(!), rugby coaching session with Martin Corry, signed IT Crowd script, passes to Silverstone and many more. There's something for everyone.
All of which leads me to feel even more confused than I did at the start of this blog post. So it's over to you - this a good idea, or patronising and ill-thought out?
"Twit Relief" isn't even a day old, yet already it's caused so much commotion and uproar on Twitter. For those not on the social networking site, and are perhaps unaware of what I'm talking about, let me guide you through this.
We are in Comic Relief territory, with Red Nose Day itself coming up next Friday (Important Ewar note! I hope to be live-blogging the event. Make sure to set your alarms and join me for that) so charity fund-raising and shenanigans are on-going. Now the good people at Comic Relief wanted to do something a bit special, a bit more interesting than getting Lenny Henry to run a marathon in a dog costume, or John Barrowman to take a bath in baked beans. So they came up with "Twit Relief".
The premise of it is this: Comic Relief have recruited over 100 "famous" people (I hate that phrase and I'll touch on that later) and put them up on eBay listings with the public allowed to bid on them. Winning bids go to the charity, obviously. The main crux of the matter was Twitter-based. The chosen "famous" person would 'follow' the auction winner on Twitter, would 're-tweet' them and talk to them on there. That was good, but a bit hollow, so they've also put up various other goodies and prizes for the winner - I'll list a few in a minute, some are genuinely awesome.
It's all for charity, and it's just a bit of silliness yet Twitter has gone slightly potty over this today. I thought this would be a better blog entry if I kept my opinion out of it initially, and presented some opinions from supporters and critics. So, here's a selection:
Got too much cash? Crave the empty validation of forcing a minor celebrity to read your mooings? #twitrelief: parting fools and their money. (@ViveLeSteve)
#twitrelief will do nothing but force those celebs who ignore your messages anyway, to reply once and then forget you exist. (@Orbette)
Isn't the #twitrelief outcry a touch hypocritical? Let those who have never followed a celebrity cast the first stone.. (@McGuireDavid)
It's the self-important, self-serving nature of the people doing it that grates. (@Philaldo9)
Those complaining about #twitrelief, you know it's for charity, right? Clean water programs, that kind of thing? (@Glinner)
Well hot damn! Every tweet I read on this and every opinion I take in just makes my mind even more muddled. I acknowledge every tweet above, and I can certainly see what the critics are saying. You see, this doesn't look great. I mentioned earlier how I hated the phrase "a famous person". Because who is famous? Someone might get a degree in Broadcasting, put on a suit, walk to BBC Studios and present a live gameshow/chat show/panel show. Does that make them somehow better than you or I? Not really, in my opinion. It means they have a job in the public eye.
I think in relation to Twitter, this is even more interesting. When I load up my Twitter program called Tweetdeck, it always strikes me how the people I care about, the people I'm really interested in, the people who's tweets I always read and look forward to reading, are the so called riff-raff, the people who aren't famous. I follow about 600 people, and I follow "famous people" (eurgh) and "non-famous people" (eurgh) but I guarantee you it's the latter that are more interesting. If someone put a gun to my head and asked me to 'unfollow' half of those 600, and leave me with 300, I wouldn't unfollow @Vicky1978, @PBC13, @benjaminjudge, @Sidekick28, @spotify_tapes (well, maybe I would), @MFoxx2 and SO MANY others I could name. It'd be Kim Kardashian, it'd be Kylie Minogue, it'd be Charlie Sheen. Oh, they're famous, but they're fucking boring/insane.
For me, what I love about Twitter isn't the latter. It's the former - making new friends, talking to people I wouldn't have ever met otherwise and enjoying the creativity of others. I've sent Christmas cards to people I like on Twitter, which was pretty cool. All of this is why I find the whole "Winner of this auction will have Boy George following them!!" a bit shit. A) So what, and B) He was in an 80s band who did a few catchy songs but that's it. He's not a super-human. My boy "G" was right in his tweet which you see above - what an awfully hollow, empty "validation".
The list hasn't been finalised yet - they seem to be putting one auction an hour up on this site http://bit.ly/eclf64 - but there are so many people I like taking part. Christian O'Connell, Richard Curtis, Nick Frost, Miranda Hart, Alexander Armstrong, Chris Addison, Krishnan Guru Murphy, Graham Linehan, Emma Kennedy, Marcus Brigstocke and others. These are good people! And Linehan's tweet is relevant - it's for charity, it raises serious money, these guys are doing what they can. And some of the prizes ARE great - a walk-on extra part in Curtis's next film, an actual bloody Morph(!), rugby coaching session with Martin Corry, signed IT Crowd script, passes to Silverstone and many more. There's something for everyone.
All of which leads me to feel even more confused than I did at the start of this blog post. So it's over to you - this a good idea, or patronising and ill-thought out?
Wednesday, 16 February 2011
The Curious Case of Justin Bieber
Hello again. Thanks for coming back!
The other day I was reading a magazine and eating a piece of pork pie (without piccalilli, sadly) when my eyes fell on something I found fascinating. It was this simple sentence: "The most Googled person in the world is Justin Bieber."
I slowly put down my heavenly piece of pastry and meat, and pondered something. You see, I had absolutely no fucking idea what Justin Bieber is all about.
I'm serious. Oh, I know WHO he is. I'd recognise him if he walked past me in the street - although I wouldn't give a toss - but I had no bally clue as to what he calls his profession. Film star? Singer? Nickelodeon child sensation? Comedian? Nobel Prize winner? Usually, this wouldn't bother me. Even though I'm "only" 24, I fully understand and appreciate that modern culture is whizzing past me at a rate. I'm very comfortable not knowing what a Miley Cyrus is, or who The Wanted are, or what exactly the point of Lady GaGa is. But Bieber bothered me, because to be the most Googled person on the planet you surely have to have something about you. Right?
So, I decided to go delving, and put my findings on here to a) show everyone how in touch I am, and b) to hopefully help you out if you're stuck with a Bieber fan (called a "Belieber" I believe).
I started, like every student would, with Wikipedia. The oracle of truth told me that Justin Drew Bieber was born in Ontario, Canada in March 1994. He put up videos of himself on video website Youtube, where he was spotted by a chap called Scooter Braun who quickly became his manager. Justin Bieber is now classed as a "pop-R&B singer". So I then decided to listen to some of his songs.
I loaded up "Baby" - which Wiki tells me is his most famous song on the hit parade - on Youtube, to find it's been watched over 463 MILLION times. Just think about that for a moment. The record is featuring someone called "Ludacris", who clearly has a problem with spelling. Sadly, I have a problem with the song, as (perhaps predictably) it is dreadfully shit. I then gave "One Time" (217 million views) a whirl. It isn't much better.
Judging by those two songs, Bieber is standard "teeny bopper" fare - he's a rosy cheeked little scamp that girls love, his songs are shallow and un-intelligent and he peddles out "love" songs even though he does not understand the true meaning of the word. The reception he receives from his female audience is not unusual - the world has seen it with the Osmonds, David Cassidy, David Essex, a young Michael Jackson and so on. But "Bieber Fever" seems so much more prominent, so much more aggressive and even disturbing. Lily Allen once had a laugh about him on her Twitter page, which meant that when it became public that she had lost her baby, a few "Beliebers" felt the need to repay the compliment in a slightly unacceptable manner.
What's the deal with this kid? I'm not too sure, but I have a theory. As mentioned at the start, Bieber is essentially where he is because of the internet. In the days of David Cassidy for example, girls went hysterical over him, but there was no place for them to pour out their emotions. They could have his poster on his wall, they could tell their friends on the playground, they could go to his concerts. That was about it. With Bieber, these nuts now have a way to express their (crazy) feelings - it's all the Bieber nonsense on Twitter, it's Facebook, it's all the fan websites, it's the reason for the 'most Googled' crown. Why do "hardcore" Bieber fans get unbelievably precious, aggressive and hostile? It's because they seemingly think they are "his biggest fan", and they must do/say things which reflect this. Death threats to Selena Gomez? She happens to know Bieber - this cannot continue!
Away from Bieber, there is a bigger link here - that of the cult of the celebrity. When I see people reading magazines such as "OK" and "Hello" I feel a wave of anger, followed by a bigger wave of sorrow and depression. Let's take a look at Digitalspy's front page - for this website, these things count as news:
"Bleakley 'turned down Brits invite'"
"Agron: 'Nicks visit makes Glee cast cry'"
"Neeson: 'I ran away from Richardson death'"
"Emma Watson 'growing hair for career'"
and so on. That last one is particularly galling - the idea that the length of Emma Watson's hair is anything to do with anyone on the planet except herself is just really, really sad. And you can ignore it, but you know full well in the next issue of "Heat" there'll be paparazzi pictures of Watson sporting slightly longer hair, and probably a "celebrity stylist" analysing the look and declaring judgement on it.
I love Twitter. Honestly, I think it's fucking great, but the downside to it is how it does allow people to indulge in all this celebrity nonsense. Francesca "Frankie" Sandford is a member of girl band The Saturdays (who I like, I'll admit) and I'm currently perusing the recent tweets that others have sent her. It's a bit depressing, and awfully needy. There's loads of tweets asking her to follow this random person back (she won't, understandably), a few from blokes telling her they love her, a few asking her to add them on their BlackBerry (seriously), one saying "I think I'd die if you replied to me Frankie!!" (you wouldn't, grow up) and one saying "the things I would do to meet Frankie". I have no problem with anyone tweeting/replying her, or any other "famous" person, but it really should be something worthwhile*. I daren't look at people's tweets to Bieber.
I've written more than I intended to and I'm as bored as you are, so let's wrap it up. Do I feel sorry for Justin Bieber? In a way, I do. Yes, he has money and fame etc, but I imagine his life to be one enormous pressure cooker, and I think it's unfair to heap all of this bullshit on him when he's 16. He goes along with it, of course, because I'm sure it beats going to school and being "ordinary" - and men in suits force him to go along with it, but in the long run I think it's extremely dangerous. Earlier on I mentioned how his songs are shallow - I think it's because he hasn't had a life. All the time that "Bieber fever" rages, he never will.
* I'm conveniently forgetting the projects that Dan and I run on Twitter every summer when I say that.
The other day I was reading a magazine and eating a piece of pork pie (without piccalilli, sadly) when my eyes fell on something I found fascinating. It was this simple sentence: "The most Googled person in the world is Justin Bieber."
I slowly put down my heavenly piece of pastry and meat, and pondered something. You see, I had absolutely no fucking idea what Justin Bieber is all about.
I'm serious. Oh, I know WHO he is. I'd recognise him if he walked past me in the street - although I wouldn't give a toss - but I had no bally clue as to what he calls his profession. Film star? Singer? Nickelodeon child sensation? Comedian? Nobel Prize winner? Usually, this wouldn't bother me. Even though I'm "only" 24, I fully understand and appreciate that modern culture is whizzing past me at a rate. I'm very comfortable not knowing what a Miley Cyrus is, or who The Wanted are, or what exactly the point of Lady GaGa is. But Bieber bothered me, because to be the most Googled person on the planet you surely have to have something about you. Right?
So, I decided to go delving, and put my findings on here to a) show everyone how in touch I am, and b) to hopefully help you out if you're stuck with a Bieber fan (called a "Belieber" I believe).
I started, like every student would, with Wikipedia. The oracle of truth told me that Justin Drew Bieber was born in Ontario, Canada in March 1994. He put up videos of himself on video website Youtube, where he was spotted by a chap called Scooter Braun who quickly became his manager. Justin Bieber is now classed as a "pop-R&B singer". So I then decided to listen to some of his songs.
I loaded up "Baby" - which Wiki tells me is his most famous song on the hit parade - on Youtube, to find it's been watched over 463 MILLION times. Just think about that for a moment. The record is featuring someone called "Ludacris", who clearly has a problem with spelling. Sadly, I have a problem with the song, as (perhaps predictably) it is dreadfully shit. I then gave "One Time" (217 million views) a whirl. It isn't much better.
Judging by those two songs, Bieber is standard "teeny bopper" fare - he's a rosy cheeked little scamp that girls love, his songs are shallow and un-intelligent and he peddles out "love" songs even though he does not understand the true meaning of the word. The reception he receives from his female audience is not unusual - the world has seen it with the Osmonds, David Cassidy, David Essex, a young Michael Jackson and so on. But "Bieber Fever" seems so much more prominent, so much more aggressive and even disturbing. Lily Allen once had a laugh about him on her Twitter page, which meant that when it became public that she had lost her baby, a few "Beliebers" felt the need to repay the compliment in a slightly unacceptable manner.
What's the deal with this kid? I'm not too sure, but I have a theory. As mentioned at the start, Bieber is essentially where he is because of the internet. In the days of David Cassidy for example, girls went hysterical over him, but there was no place for them to pour out their emotions. They could have his poster on his wall, they could tell their friends on the playground, they could go to his concerts. That was about it. With Bieber, these nuts now have a way to express their (crazy) feelings - it's all the Bieber nonsense on Twitter, it's Facebook, it's all the fan websites, it's the reason for the 'most Googled' crown. Why do "hardcore" Bieber fans get unbelievably precious, aggressive and hostile? It's because they seemingly think they are "his biggest fan", and they must do/say things which reflect this. Death threats to Selena Gomez? She happens to know Bieber - this cannot continue!
Away from Bieber, there is a bigger link here - that of the cult of the celebrity. When I see people reading magazines such as "OK" and "Hello" I feel a wave of anger, followed by a bigger wave of sorrow and depression. Let's take a look at Digitalspy's front page - for this website, these things count as news:
"Bleakley 'turned down Brits invite'"
"Agron: 'Nicks visit makes Glee cast cry'"
"Neeson: 'I ran away from Richardson death'"
"Emma Watson 'growing hair for career'"
and so on. That last one is particularly galling - the idea that the length of Emma Watson's hair is anything to do with anyone on the planet except herself is just really, really sad. And you can ignore it, but you know full well in the next issue of "Heat" there'll be paparazzi pictures of Watson sporting slightly longer hair, and probably a "celebrity stylist" analysing the look and declaring judgement on it.
I love Twitter. Honestly, I think it's fucking great, but the downside to it is how it does allow people to indulge in all this celebrity nonsense. Francesca "Frankie" Sandford is a member of girl band The Saturdays (who I like, I'll admit) and I'm currently perusing the recent tweets that others have sent her. It's a bit depressing, and awfully needy. There's loads of tweets asking her to follow this random person back (she won't, understandably), a few from blokes telling her they love her, a few asking her to add them on their BlackBerry (seriously), one saying "I think I'd die if you replied to me Frankie!!" (you wouldn't, grow up) and one saying "the things I would do to meet Frankie". I have no problem with anyone tweeting/replying her, or any other "famous" person, but it really should be something worthwhile*. I daren't look at people's tweets to Bieber.
I've written more than I intended to and I'm as bored as you are, so let's wrap it up. Do I feel sorry for Justin Bieber? In a way, I do. Yes, he has money and fame etc, but I imagine his life to be one enormous pressure cooker, and I think it's unfair to heap all of this bullshit on him when he's 16. He goes along with it, of course, because I'm sure it beats going to school and being "ordinary" - and men in suits force him to go along with it, but in the long run I think it's extremely dangerous. Earlier on I mentioned how his songs are shallow - I think it's because he hasn't had a life. All the time that "Bieber fever" rages, he never will.
* I'm conveniently forgetting the projects that Dan and I run on Twitter every summer when I say that.
Thursday, 30 September 2010
Project Alniro #2
Hello. For regular readers of this blog, you'll know what this is all about. If you're not a regular reader, you can either visit here for the comprehensive lowdown on Project Alniro, OR you can read this very brief round-up:
Myself and two friends set up a Twitter account, drew up a list of over 200 celebrities, and then tweeted them, asking these good folk whether they provided the acting prowess of a Mr Al Pacino, or a Mr Robert DeNiro (is waiting). Once we had tweeted all the people on our list, we would tally the results and I would put them up on this little blog here.
So, let's do just that. Ladies and gentleman (and at this point I'd like to welcome all the visitors who have reached here from my advertising on Digital Spy - pleased to meet you!) here are a whole bunch of celebrities telling us who they prefer - Pacino, or DeNiro.
*NOTE All of these answers are listed in alphabetical order, and have been copied in full. I have not edited a single letter of any of them*
KRISS AKABUSI
Kriss Kezie Uche Chukwu Duru Akabusi MBE is a former athlete, winning a silver medal at the 1984 Olympic Games, and a gold medal at the 1991 World Championships. He is now perhaps best known for bringing the phrase "awooga" into the English lexicon. (@krissakabusi)
"Pacino every single time!"
Pacino 1-0 DeNiro
ALEXANDER ARMSTRONG
One half of Armstrong and Miller, Alexander Armstrong presents 'Pointless' on BBC2, a slightly odd but watchable quiz show. He also enjoys Pimms. (@Xanneroo)
"I think De Niro to be the more nuanced of the pair"
Pacino 1-1 DeNiro
RICHARD BACON
Now a Radio 5 Live presenter, Richard was sacked from his role at 'Blue Peter' after *rest of sentence deleted by nervous lawyer* (@richardpbacon)
"both"
(Ewar's decision - in a case of "both" or "neither" vote shall not be counted either way) Pacino 1-1 DeNiro
MANDIRA BEDI
Mandira is probably best known to the people of Britain as the co-host of ITV4s coverage of the last IPL cricket tournament. She is a Bollywood actress, and, in my opinion, really rather gorgeous. (@mandybedi)
"Its Pacino all the way, tho i love Deniros sense of comic timing.. :)"
Pacino 2-1 DeNiro
ANGELLICA BELL
A former CBBC presenter, Angellica is that cheerful lass who pops up on 'The One Show' occasionally, and now co-hosts segments of 'The Zone' with her partner, Michael Underwood. (@angellicabell)
"DeNiro! I have always fancied him and he's a GREAT actor!"
Pacino 2-2 DeNiro
CLARA AND MITCH BENN
Mitch Benn is splendid, although it's difficult to describe EXACTLY what he does. Folk-ish music player, stand-up comedian, radio personality, TV panel show extraordinaire, song writer...he's a very talented man. My father once complimented him, describing him as 'relevant'. Clara is his wife, and seems to be jolly lovely indeed. (@MitchBenn @MsClara)
"Both DeNiro."
Pacino 2-4 DeNiro
CHRIS BOARDMAN
One of my heroes growing up, Chris Boardman is possibly the most famous professional cyclist to come out of England. Chris won 3 stages of the Tour de France, and was World Time Trial Champion in 1994. (@Chis_Boardman)
"Pacino."
Pacino 3-4 DeNiro
MARCUS BRIGSTOCKE
Marcus is a bit like Mitch, in that he crops up in so many different places it's difficult to pin him down in terms of what he actually is. I think of him as a stand-up comedian who has branched out into other areas. You may have seen Marcus on 'Argumental'. (@marcusbrig)
"recently... Paccino. Over all - too close to call but De Niro does more damage with each new film."
(CONTROVERSY! In Ewar's mind, Marcus contradicts himself here. "Recently Pacino, but in terms of recent films, De Niro" seems to be his argument. I do not understand this. Thus, his vote is null and void. If you don't like that - tough. It's my game. Scores still the same.) Pacino 3-4 DeNiro
NED BOULTING
One for the sports fans, I suspect. Ned is a presenter for ITV sports coverage, most notably cycling but also darts, as well as being a reporter in Africa itself during the 2010 World Cup. (@nedboulting)
"well it's de Niro."
Pacino 3-5 DeNiro
ALASTAIR CAMPBELL
I'm sure you all know who Mr Alastair Campbell is. I'm a fan of his, largely because he revels in winding people up as much as I do. If you haven't seen it already, please do youtube search for 'alastair campbell and adam boulton'. (@campbellclaret)
"de Niro"
Pacino 3-6 DeNiro
IAIN CARTER
I'm sorry, I'm a huge sports fan. Hence all the sports journalists/presenters you're seeing on this list. Iain Carter is Radio 5 Live's golf correspondent, and he's ruddy good. (@iaincartergolf)
"Pacino"
Pacino 4-6 DeNiro
KELLY CATES
Like Ned, Kelly also popped up on ITVs coverage of the 2010 World Cup. I don't want to do her any disservice whatsoever, but maybe it's fair to say she's best known as Kenny Dalglish's daughter. (@KellyCates)
"maybe 1% in it but I go for Pacino because of Godfather 2"
(This is Ewar's favourite answer, as it would be, pretty much word for word, what he would say) Pacino 5-6 DeNiro
HELEN CHAMBERLAIN
'Soccer AM'. Let's be honest, when you think of Hells Bells Chamberlain, you think of 'Soccer AM' on Sky Sports. I've met Helen, and she's a lovely, lovely person. (@HellsBellsy)
"I'm no movie buff but Pacino for me. All down to the premiere of Any Given Sunday when he walked out & my date shouted "F*cking hell! It's Al P'f*cking'cino!" Still makes me laugh now."
(Second favourite answer) Pacino 6-6 DeNiro
IAN COLLINS
A real mainstay on talkSPORT radio, Ian Collins first came to my attention with his excellent 'Creatures of the Night' show. He is a Chelsea FC supporter, which is unfortunate. (@collinslateshow)
"I'll go DeNiro. No contest."
Pacino 6-7 DeNiro
NAT COOMBS
Nat now appears on ESPN, although he's perhaps best known for his presenting of 5's NFL coverage in the last two years. (@NatCoombs)
"To quote Dean Wormer from the mighty 'Animal House', each of them is outstanding in their own way". But, gun to head? Pacino."
Pacino 7-7 DeNiro
VICTORIA COREN
Daughter of the much missed Alan, Victoria has earnt over $1m playing cards. No, really! That is some life. She also presents 'Only Connect' on BBC Four, which my father loves. (@VictoriaCoren)
"I'm the wrong person to ask. I prefer Christopher Biggins to either."
Pacino 7-7 DeNiro (Biggins 1)
GARY DELANEY
It's amazing what you learn from Wikipedia isn't it? I knew Gary was a stand-up comedian, but I didn't know he was in a relationship with Sarah Millican. So there we go. (@GaryDelaney)
"De Niro, but I've never seen Pacino so ignore me."
(Never seen a Pacino film?!) Pacino 7-8 DeNiro
DANNY DICHIO
This was my friend Dan's suggestion. I've no idea why we put Danny Dichio on our list, but he bothered to answer us so fair play. If you're not a football fan, Danny played over 400 games in his career and scored 92 goals. According to Wikipedia. (@DannyDichio)
"very difficult!! But I've got to say Bobby De Niro"
Pacino 7-9 DeNiro
NEIL GAIMAN
Probably the most "famous" person who replied to us. Neil Gaiman, as I'm sure you know, is a novelist, and a bloody successful one as well. One of my favourite books of all time, 'Good Omens', was co-written by the great man. (@neilhimself)
"Pacino. De Niro was already in STARDUST."
(CONTROVERSY! As I mentioned earlier, the Twitter account was manned not just by myself, but also by my two friends - Dan and the mysterious G. You would think it would be easy to ask a celebrity a simple question like "Pacino or DeNiro", wouldn't you? However, Dan screwed up, and ended up asking Neil Gaiman which actor he would rather appear in a film adaptation of one of his scribblings. Hence his answer there.
My first thought was to declare Gaiman's vote as null and void. However, as I would go for Pacino, and Dan for DeNiro, I'm letting it stand. Screw you - its my ball, and I'll take it home!) Pacino 8-9 DeNiro
DAVE GORMAN
Are you Dave Gorman? No? Fair enough. He is though, and for most people Dave Gorman came to their attention with his quest to find people with the same name as him. Most recently, you might have seen him presenting the BBC 2 programme 'Genius', which is very good indeed. (@DaveGorman)
"I'm not sure you should be betting on my opinion of anything. But if you are, I'll negotiate for a cut of the proceeds."
(Sometimes in our tweets we told the celebs we were doing this for a bet, and not because we are incredibly sad with nothing better to do or nothing to contribute to society. Scores remain the same.) Pacino 8-9 DeNiro
We're now halfway through the celebrity answers. I don't know about you, but this seems a good time to take an interval, both for you and for myself. Let's all go and get some food and have a wee. Not at the same time. For your interval entertainment, I give you this:
And....we're back. Let's crack on again.
KRISHNAN GURU-MURTHY
What a man, what a legend. I'm sure you know Krishnan from Channel 4 News, where he co-forms the perfect 1-2 punch alongside another legend, Jon Snow. (@krishgm)
"Fifteen yrs ago you'd have said De Niro. But now Pacino has got better and De Niro got worse. Insomnia v Analyze That obvious"
Pacino 9-9 DeNiro
DAVID HARMON
A name perhaps not recognisable to too many folk, David is a cycling commentator on Eurosport, and for the past few years has done a sterling job on the Tour de France. (@spokesmen)
"de Niro...obvously"
Pacino 9-10 DeNiro
DOMINIC HOLLAND
Dom is a stand-up comedian, yet every time I see him on my tellybox nowadays he's on 'The Wright Stuff', a show for people who can't cope with Newsnight, hosted by the ghastliness that is Matthew Wright. (@Domholland)
"de niro - cos he can do menacing (cape fear) and v funny (meet parents) Pacino is clichetastic
Pacino 9-11 DeNiro
EAMONN HOLMES
You know who Eamonn Holmes is, c'mon. (@EamonnHolmes)
"prob De Niro - because of Bananarama !"
Pacino 9-12 DeNiro
LYNSEY HOOPER
Lynsey is an exciting young journalist with a promising career ahead of her. Quiz TV, ITV News reports, hosting Sky Sports News online, goal updates live at football grounds for Final Score...she's certainly adaptable, and is pretty cool. (@lynseyhooper)
"Would have to be DeNiro for me"
Pacino 9-13 DeNiro
DAVE LAMB
You probably wouldn't recognise Dave Lamb by his name or his face, but I'm sure you would recognise his voice if you heard it. Ever seen the hit Channel 4 show 'Come Dine with Me'? Dave is the narrator who keeps that whole show afloat with his acerbic comments. (@Therealdavelamb)
"that's a tough one. Scent of a woman versus midnight run (not the obvious ones I'll grant you) I'll go Pacino, by inches."
Pacino 10-13 DeNiro
DAVID "BUMBLE" LLOYD
The man who makes Sky's cricket coverage splendidly brilliant, David "Bumble" Lloyd is former England player and coach. He supports Accrington Stanley FC. (@BumbleCricket)
"Pacino"
Pacino 11-13 DeNiro
LUCY MANGAN
Do you read The Guardian? No? Probably the right idea. If you do, however, you'll know that Lucy has a column in The Guardian's magazine every Saturday, and chips in with various things in the main paper throughout the week. I understand lecturer extraordinare The Plashing Vole has a bit of a thing for her. (@LucyMangan)
"De Niro, De Finitely."
Pacino 11-14 DeNiro
ROBBIE MCEWEN
Aussie. Cyclist. Sprinter. Tough son of a gun. 12 stage winner in the Tour de France. That's our Robbie. (@mcewenrobbie)
"i prefer De Niro"
Pacino 11-15 DeNiro
HAYLEY MCQUEEN
Former MUTV and now Sky Sports News presenter, perhaps it is slightly unfair to say she's most famous for being Gordon McQueen's daughter? (@HayleyMcQueen)
"De Niro, why my opinion counts is beyond me but that is my opinion none the less."
Pacino 11-16 DeNiro
SARAH-JANE MEE
Two Sky Sports News presenters in a row, and, let's be honest, two very yummy ladies indeed. (@meesj)
"De Niro x"
(A kiss from Sarah-Jane there, which now sits in my Twitter Hall of Fame alongside the kiss I got, virtually, from Katherine Jenkins. I am the Alpha male, clearly.) Pacino 11-17 DeNiro
JUSTIN MOORHOUSE
Another stand-up comedian, although perhaps Justin is best know for his role in the unbelievably brilliant TV series 'Phoenix Nights' or the film 'Looking for Eric'. (@justinmoorhouse)
"I'd go De Niro"
Pacino 11-18 DeNiro
JACQUI OATLEY
Miss Jacqui Oatley made history. No, really, she did, when she became the first female to commentate on a game for 'Match of the Day'. Jacqui supports Wolverhampton Wanderers FC. (@JacquiOatley)
"Flamin eck - that's like trying to choose between your parents! But I'll have to go Pacino."
(Third favourite answer) Pacino 12-18 DeNiro
IAIN O'BRIEN
Former fast bowler for New Zealand, Iain now plays over here in England, for Middlesex CCC, and seems like a jolly decent bloke. (@iainobrien)
"probably De Niro..."
Pacino 12-19 DeNiro
ANDI PETERS
The man, the myth, the legend. Andi Peters. (@andipeters)
"I think Pacino..."
Pacino 13-19 DeNiro
SIMON RIMMER
Celebrity chef and Tim Lovejoy's right hand man on 'Something for the Weekend', Simon has also popped up on the ghastly 'Hole in the Wall'. (@simonrim)
"Pacino, but I don't have a strong opinion"
Pacino 14-19 DeNiro
ZOE SALMON
Zoe is, like, well fit, you know? Former 'Blue Peter' presenter, all-round babe. (@Zoe_Salmon)
"De Niro purely 4 his versatility - need I mention the Fockers?!"
Pacino 14-20 DeNiro
DI STEWART
Another name perhaps unfamiliar to non-sports fans. Di has fronted Sky's golf coverage for a few years now, and (I believe) is with pro golfer Nick Dougherty, him and his mad hair. Well done to him. (@DiSkySports)
"does 'Scent of a Woman' answer your question.."
(Yes it does Di!) Pacino 15-20 DeNiro
SUZANNE VIRDEE
Suzanne hosts 'Midlands Today' in the early evenings, alongside the broadcasting legend that is Mr Nick Owen. (@suzannevirdee)
"I always get them mixed up!"
(Not particularly helpful. Scores remain the same.) Pacino 15-20 DeNiro
DAN WALKER
Dan is the host of BBC's 'Football Focus' every Saturday lunchtime, and what a good host of that he is. (@danwalkerbbc)
"Pacino...every time."
Pacino 16-20 DeNiro
GREGG WALLACE
"COOKING...DOES NOT GET...TOUGHER THAN THIS!!!!!" is what Gregg likes to shout every episode of 'Masterchef'. Viewers will know him as the bald one with glasses, who likes puddings. (@puddingface)
"Pacino."
Pacino 17-20 DeNiro
RAV WILDING
Phwoar! I've got to be honest, even as a straight male, Rav Wilding sets the old heart pumping a little bit. Ex-Army, ex-Police force, now the presenter of 'Crimewatch'. I lied earlier, when I said I was clearly the Alpha male. No sir - Rav Wilding is the Alpha male. Let it be written in stone. (@Rwildthing)
"de Niro"
Pacino 17-21 DeNiro
LADIES AND GENTLEMAN, WE HAVE REACHED THE END.
FINAL SCORE: AL PACINO 17 - 21 ROBERT DE NIRO
So, what can we make of all this, if anything? I thought it would be a landslide for DeNiro, to be honest, and I was pleasantly surprised that it was as close as it was, until DeNiro pulled away a bit towards the end. What I found particularly interesting was that even though I love both, a competitive nature set in. As Dan clearly prefers DeNiro, I found myself rooting for Pacino - the underdog in my eyes.
I expected DeNiro to win as he is seen as more "mainstream" nowadays - as some people alluded to, 'Meet the Parents/Fockers' introduced him to a whole new audience from those who know him from 'Raging Bull' and so on. Personally, I hate those films - they're just not DeNiro in my book, and I possibly would even go as far as saying "he sold out a bit". Nevertheless, he is brilliant, and so is Pacino. As Kelly Cates said, there's about 1% in it, maybe less.
I would like to take this moment to thank my aides for this project - Dan and G. If you're not a regular reader of this blog, and you're on Twitter, give them a follow, they're both splendid:
Dan - @spotify_tapes
G - @vivelesteve
And I'm Ewar - @ewarwoowar86
To see the madness directly, and to see who didn't reply, feel free to check out @ProjectAlniro.
If you've read all of this - you're mad. Get some help. Nevertheless, many thanks, and goodbye!
Myself and two friends set up a Twitter account, drew up a list of over 200 celebrities, and then tweeted them, asking these good folk whether they provided the acting prowess of a Mr Al Pacino, or a Mr Robert DeNiro (is waiting). Once we had tweeted all the people on our list, we would tally the results and I would put them up on this little blog here.
So, let's do just that. Ladies and gentleman (and at this point I'd like to welcome all the visitors who have reached here from my advertising on Digital Spy - pleased to meet you!) here are a whole bunch of celebrities telling us who they prefer - Pacino, or DeNiro.
*NOTE All of these answers are listed in alphabetical order, and have been copied in full. I have not edited a single letter of any of them*
KRISS AKABUSI
Kriss Kezie Uche Chukwu Duru Akabusi MBE is a former athlete, winning a silver medal at the 1984 Olympic Games, and a gold medal at the 1991 World Championships. He is now perhaps best known for bringing the phrase "awooga" into the English lexicon. (@krissakabusi)
"Pacino every single time!"
Pacino 1-0 DeNiro
ALEXANDER ARMSTRONG
One half of Armstrong and Miller, Alexander Armstrong presents 'Pointless' on BBC2, a slightly odd but watchable quiz show. He also enjoys Pimms. (@Xanneroo)
"I think De Niro to be the more nuanced of the pair"
Pacino 1-1 DeNiro
RICHARD BACON
Now a Radio 5 Live presenter, Richard was sacked from his role at 'Blue Peter' after *rest of sentence deleted by nervous lawyer* (@richardpbacon)
"both"
(Ewar's decision - in a case of "both" or "neither" vote shall not be counted either way) Pacino 1-1 DeNiro
MANDIRA BEDI
Mandira is probably best known to the people of Britain as the co-host of ITV4s coverage of the last IPL cricket tournament. She is a Bollywood actress, and, in my opinion, really rather gorgeous. (@mandybedi)
"Its Pacino all the way, tho i love Deniros sense of comic timing.. :)"
Pacino 2-1 DeNiro
ANGELLICA BELL
A former CBBC presenter, Angellica is that cheerful lass who pops up on 'The One Show' occasionally, and now co-hosts segments of 'The Zone' with her partner, Michael Underwood. (@angellicabell)
"DeNiro! I have always fancied him and he's a GREAT actor!"
Pacino 2-2 DeNiro
CLARA AND MITCH BENN
Mitch Benn is splendid, although it's difficult to describe EXACTLY what he does. Folk-ish music player, stand-up comedian, radio personality, TV panel show extraordinaire, song writer...he's a very talented man. My father once complimented him, describing him as 'relevant'. Clara is his wife, and seems to be jolly lovely indeed. (@MitchBenn @MsClara)
"Both DeNiro."
Pacino 2-4 DeNiro
CHRIS BOARDMAN
One of my heroes growing up, Chris Boardman is possibly the most famous professional cyclist to come out of England. Chris won 3 stages of the Tour de France, and was World Time Trial Champion in 1994. (@Chis_Boardman)
"Pacino."
Pacino 3-4 DeNiro
MARCUS BRIGSTOCKE
Marcus is a bit like Mitch, in that he crops up in so many different places it's difficult to pin him down in terms of what he actually is. I think of him as a stand-up comedian who has branched out into other areas. You may have seen Marcus on 'Argumental'. (@marcusbrig)
"recently... Paccino. Over all - too close to call but De Niro does more damage with each new film."
(CONTROVERSY! In Ewar's mind, Marcus contradicts himself here. "Recently Pacino, but in terms of recent films, De Niro" seems to be his argument. I do not understand this. Thus, his vote is null and void. If you don't like that - tough. It's my game. Scores still the same.) Pacino 3-4 DeNiro
NED BOULTING
One for the sports fans, I suspect. Ned is a presenter for ITV sports coverage, most notably cycling but also darts, as well as being a reporter in Africa itself during the 2010 World Cup. (@nedboulting)
"well it's de Niro."
Pacino 3-5 DeNiro
ALASTAIR CAMPBELL
I'm sure you all know who Mr Alastair Campbell is. I'm a fan of his, largely because he revels in winding people up as much as I do. If you haven't seen it already, please do youtube search for 'alastair campbell and adam boulton'. (@campbellclaret)
"de Niro"
Pacino 3-6 DeNiro
IAIN CARTER
I'm sorry, I'm a huge sports fan. Hence all the sports journalists/presenters you're seeing on this list. Iain Carter is Radio 5 Live's golf correspondent, and he's ruddy good. (@iaincartergolf)
"Pacino"
Pacino 4-6 DeNiro
KELLY CATES
Like Ned, Kelly also popped up on ITVs coverage of the 2010 World Cup. I don't want to do her any disservice whatsoever, but maybe it's fair to say she's best known as Kenny Dalglish's daughter. (@KellyCates)
"maybe 1% in it but I go for Pacino because of Godfather 2"
(This is Ewar's favourite answer, as it would be, pretty much word for word, what he would say) Pacino 5-6 DeNiro
HELEN CHAMBERLAIN
'Soccer AM'. Let's be honest, when you think of Hells Bells Chamberlain, you think of 'Soccer AM' on Sky Sports. I've met Helen, and she's a lovely, lovely person. (@HellsBellsy)
"I'm no movie buff but Pacino for me. All down to the premiere of Any Given Sunday when he walked out & my date shouted "F*cking hell! It's Al P'f*cking'cino!" Still makes me laugh now."
(Second favourite answer) Pacino 6-6 DeNiro
IAN COLLINS
A real mainstay on talkSPORT radio, Ian Collins first came to my attention with his excellent 'Creatures of the Night' show. He is a Chelsea FC supporter, which is unfortunate. (@collinslateshow)
"I'll go DeNiro. No contest."
Pacino 6-7 DeNiro
NAT COOMBS
Nat now appears on ESPN, although he's perhaps best known for his presenting of 5's NFL coverage in the last two years. (@NatCoombs)
"To quote Dean Wormer from the mighty 'Animal House', each of them is outstanding in their own way". But, gun to head? Pacino."
Pacino 7-7 DeNiro
VICTORIA COREN
Daughter of the much missed Alan, Victoria has earnt over $1m playing cards. No, really! That is some life. She also presents 'Only Connect' on BBC Four, which my father loves. (@VictoriaCoren)
"I'm the wrong person to ask. I prefer Christopher Biggins to either."
Pacino 7-7 DeNiro (Biggins 1)
GARY DELANEY
It's amazing what you learn from Wikipedia isn't it? I knew Gary was a stand-up comedian, but I didn't know he was in a relationship with Sarah Millican. So there we go. (@GaryDelaney)
"De Niro, but I've never seen Pacino so ignore me."
(Never seen a Pacino film?!) Pacino 7-8 DeNiro
DANNY DICHIO
This was my friend Dan's suggestion. I've no idea why we put Danny Dichio on our list, but he bothered to answer us so fair play. If you're not a football fan, Danny played over 400 games in his career and scored 92 goals. According to Wikipedia. (@DannyDichio)
"very difficult!! But I've got to say Bobby De Niro"
Pacino 7-9 DeNiro
NEIL GAIMAN
Probably the most "famous" person who replied to us. Neil Gaiman, as I'm sure you know, is a novelist, and a bloody successful one as well. One of my favourite books of all time, 'Good Omens', was co-written by the great man. (@neilhimself)
"Pacino. De Niro was already in STARDUST."
(CONTROVERSY! As I mentioned earlier, the Twitter account was manned not just by myself, but also by my two friends - Dan and the mysterious G. You would think it would be easy to ask a celebrity a simple question like "Pacino or DeNiro", wouldn't you? However, Dan screwed up, and ended up asking Neil Gaiman which actor he would rather appear in a film adaptation of one of his scribblings. Hence his answer there.
My first thought was to declare Gaiman's vote as null and void. However, as I would go for Pacino, and Dan for DeNiro, I'm letting it stand. Screw you - its my ball, and I'll take it home!) Pacino 8-9 DeNiro
DAVE GORMAN
Are you Dave Gorman? No? Fair enough. He is though, and for most people Dave Gorman came to their attention with his quest to find people with the same name as him. Most recently, you might have seen him presenting the BBC 2 programme 'Genius', which is very good indeed. (@DaveGorman)
"I'm not sure you should be betting on my opinion of anything. But if you are, I'll negotiate for a cut of the proceeds."
(Sometimes in our tweets we told the celebs we were doing this for a bet, and not because we are incredibly sad with nothing better to do or nothing to contribute to society. Scores remain the same.) Pacino 8-9 DeNiro
We're now halfway through the celebrity answers. I don't know about you, but this seems a good time to take an interval, both for you and for myself. Let's all go and get some food and have a wee. Not at the same time. For your interval entertainment, I give you this:
And....we're back. Let's crack on again.
KRISHNAN GURU-MURTHY
What a man, what a legend. I'm sure you know Krishnan from Channel 4 News, where he co-forms the perfect 1-2 punch alongside another legend, Jon Snow. (@krishgm)
"Fifteen yrs ago you'd have said De Niro. But now Pacino has got better and De Niro got worse. Insomnia v Analyze That obvious"
Pacino 9-9 DeNiro
DAVID HARMON
A name perhaps not recognisable to too many folk, David is a cycling commentator on Eurosport, and for the past few years has done a sterling job on the Tour de France. (@spokesmen)
"de Niro...obvously"
Pacino 9-10 DeNiro
DOMINIC HOLLAND
Dom is a stand-up comedian, yet every time I see him on my tellybox nowadays he's on 'The Wright Stuff', a show for people who can't cope with Newsnight, hosted by the ghastliness that is Matthew Wright. (@Domholland)
"de niro - cos he can do menacing (cape fear) and v funny (meet parents) Pacino is clichetastic
Pacino 9-11 DeNiro
EAMONN HOLMES
You know who Eamonn Holmes is, c'mon. (@EamonnHolmes)
"prob De Niro - because of Bananarama !"
Pacino 9-12 DeNiro
LYNSEY HOOPER
Lynsey is an exciting young journalist with a promising career ahead of her. Quiz TV, ITV News reports, hosting Sky Sports News online, goal updates live at football grounds for Final Score...she's certainly adaptable, and is pretty cool. (@lynseyhooper)
"Would have to be DeNiro for me"
Pacino 9-13 DeNiro
DAVE LAMB
You probably wouldn't recognise Dave Lamb by his name or his face, but I'm sure you would recognise his voice if you heard it. Ever seen the hit Channel 4 show 'Come Dine with Me'? Dave is the narrator who keeps that whole show afloat with his acerbic comments. (@Therealdavelamb)
"that's a tough one. Scent of a woman versus midnight run (not the obvious ones I'll grant you) I'll go Pacino, by inches."
Pacino 10-13 DeNiro
DAVID "BUMBLE" LLOYD
The man who makes Sky's cricket coverage splendidly brilliant, David "Bumble" Lloyd is former England player and coach. He supports Accrington Stanley FC. (@BumbleCricket)
"Pacino"
Pacino 11-13 DeNiro
LUCY MANGAN
Do you read The Guardian? No? Probably the right idea. If you do, however, you'll know that Lucy has a column in The Guardian's magazine every Saturday, and chips in with various things in the main paper throughout the week. I understand lecturer extraordinare The Plashing Vole has a bit of a thing for her. (@LucyMangan)
"De Niro, De Finitely."
Pacino 11-14 DeNiro
ROBBIE MCEWEN
Aussie. Cyclist. Sprinter. Tough son of a gun. 12 stage winner in the Tour de France. That's our Robbie. (@mcewenrobbie)
"i prefer De Niro"
Pacino 11-15 DeNiro
HAYLEY MCQUEEN
Former MUTV and now Sky Sports News presenter, perhaps it is slightly unfair to say she's most famous for being Gordon McQueen's daughter? (@HayleyMcQueen)
"De Niro, why my opinion counts is beyond me but that is my opinion none the less."
Pacino 11-16 DeNiro
SARAH-JANE MEE
Two Sky Sports News presenters in a row, and, let's be honest, two very yummy ladies indeed. (@meesj)
"De Niro x"
(A kiss from Sarah-Jane there, which now sits in my Twitter Hall of Fame alongside the kiss I got, virtually, from Katherine Jenkins. I am the Alpha male, clearly.) Pacino 11-17 DeNiro
JUSTIN MOORHOUSE
Another stand-up comedian, although perhaps Justin is best know for his role in the unbelievably brilliant TV series 'Phoenix Nights' or the film 'Looking for Eric'. (@justinmoorhouse)
"I'd go De Niro"
Pacino 11-18 DeNiro
JACQUI OATLEY
Miss Jacqui Oatley made history. No, really, she did, when she became the first female to commentate on a game for 'Match of the Day'. Jacqui supports Wolverhampton Wanderers FC. (@JacquiOatley)
"Flamin eck - that's like trying to choose between your parents! But I'll have to go Pacino."
(Third favourite answer) Pacino 12-18 DeNiro
IAIN O'BRIEN
Former fast bowler for New Zealand, Iain now plays over here in England, for Middlesex CCC, and seems like a jolly decent bloke. (@iainobrien)
"probably De Niro..."
Pacino 12-19 DeNiro
ANDI PETERS
The man, the myth, the legend. Andi Peters. (@andipeters)
"I think Pacino..."
Pacino 13-19 DeNiro
SIMON RIMMER
Celebrity chef and Tim Lovejoy's right hand man on 'Something for the Weekend', Simon has also popped up on the ghastly 'Hole in the Wall'. (@simonrim)
"Pacino, but I don't have a strong opinion"
Pacino 14-19 DeNiro
ZOE SALMON
Zoe is, like, well fit, you know? Former 'Blue Peter' presenter, all-round babe. (@Zoe_Salmon)
"De Niro purely 4 his versatility - need I mention the Fockers?!"
Pacino 14-20 DeNiro
DI STEWART
Another name perhaps unfamiliar to non-sports fans. Di has fronted Sky's golf coverage for a few years now, and (I believe) is with pro golfer Nick Dougherty, him and his mad hair. Well done to him. (@DiSkySports)
"does 'Scent of a Woman' answer your question.."
(Yes it does Di!) Pacino 15-20 DeNiro
SUZANNE VIRDEE
Suzanne hosts 'Midlands Today' in the early evenings, alongside the broadcasting legend that is Mr Nick Owen. (@suzannevirdee)
"I always get them mixed up!"
(Not particularly helpful. Scores remain the same.) Pacino 15-20 DeNiro
DAN WALKER
Dan is the host of BBC's 'Football Focus' every Saturday lunchtime, and what a good host of that he is. (@danwalkerbbc)
"Pacino...every time."
Pacino 16-20 DeNiro
GREGG WALLACE
"COOKING...DOES NOT GET...TOUGHER THAN THIS!!!!!" is what Gregg likes to shout every episode of 'Masterchef'. Viewers will know him as the bald one with glasses, who likes puddings. (@puddingface)
"Pacino."
Pacino 17-20 DeNiro
RAV WILDING
Phwoar! I've got to be honest, even as a straight male, Rav Wilding sets the old heart pumping a little bit. Ex-Army, ex-Police force, now the presenter of 'Crimewatch'. I lied earlier, when I said I was clearly the Alpha male. No sir - Rav Wilding is the Alpha male. Let it be written in stone. (@Rwildthing)
"de Niro"
Pacino 17-21 DeNiro
LADIES AND GENTLEMAN, WE HAVE REACHED THE END.
FINAL SCORE: AL PACINO 17 - 21 ROBERT DE NIRO
So, what can we make of all this, if anything? I thought it would be a landslide for DeNiro, to be honest, and I was pleasantly surprised that it was as close as it was, until DeNiro pulled away a bit towards the end. What I found particularly interesting was that even though I love both, a competitive nature set in. As Dan clearly prefers DeNiro, I found myself rooting for Pacino - the underdog in my eyes.
I expected DeNiro to win as he is seen as more "mainstream" nowadays - as some people alluded to, 'Meet the Parents/Fockers' introduced him to a whole new audience from those who know him from 'Raging Bull' and so on. Personally, I hate those films - they're just not DeNiro in my book, and I possibly would even go as far as saying "he sold out a bit". Nevertheless, he is brilliant, and so is Pacino. As Kelly Cates said, there's about 1% in it, maybe less.
I would like to take this moment to thank my aides for this project - Dan and G. If you're not a regular reader of this blog, and you're on Twitter, give them a follow, they're both splendid:
Dan - @spotify_tapes
G - @vivelesteve
And I'm Ewar - @ewarwoowar86
To see the madness directly, and to see who didn't reply, feel free to check out @ProjectAlniro.
If you've read all of this - you're mad. Get some help. Nevertheless, many thanks, and goodbye!
Sunday, 8 August 2010
Project Alniro #1
There are some questions in life that fascinate me. Questions that split opinion. That leave grown men genuinely undecided. That make you give one answer, then wake up the next day and give the other. Questions such as:
- Roger Federer or Rafael Nadal?
- The Office or Phoenix Nights?
- David Dickinson or Tim Wonnacott?
- How are babies made?
In answer to those - Federer. Phoenix Nights. Tim Wonnacott (OBVIOUSLY). No idea.
One of these questions that has puzzled mankind for many a year is, of course, the classic - Marmite or Bovril? Long-term readers of my blog will remember this, but for those of you who have joined in the fun and games here in the past 12 months, let me recap for you:
In August, 2009, Dan and I decided one night to think up a question and send it to Kristen Bell on Twitter. You know Kristen Bell, right? Veronica Mars? Heroes? Forgetting Sarah Marshall? So I tweeted her a stupid question, and then sighed - she wouldn't answer, and even if she did, it would probably be about a week later.
She replied 15 minutes later. And that got us thinking - because if Kristen Bell, a Hollywood starlet, could reply to a stupid question within minutes from a mere mortal like me, how much more fun could we have with Twitter? So we decided to put out the legendary "Marmite or Bovril" question to as many celebrities as we could. We had a decent response, amazingly - Jonathan Ross, Katherine Jenkins, Dave Gorman, Andi fucking Peters amongst others. To see all the responses, please do see here.
Fast forward 12 months, to right now, August 2010. The boredom of the university summer break has yet again set in, and so we decided to give another Twitter project a whirl. But this time, bigger. Better. More intense. You see, what I've noticed is that in the past 12 months, Twitter has really taken off. So much so, that when Dan and I went through the lists of who we follow, we ended up with just over 200 "celebrities". How about that for a nice, big sample size?
And so we needed a suitable question. Last year, we tweeted William Shatner the Marmite/Bovril conundrum. He didn't reply, the cunt, but that may be because as a North American, living in North America, he didn't understand what we were going on about. So this time around, we realised that our question had to be one that men and women of all ages, and all nationalities, could wrestle with. And then one night it came to me:
Al Pacino or Robert De Niro?
It's a very tough one, as I love both. It's probably De Niro, but in my mind he loses points for those dreadful comedy films he did with Ben Stiller and Barbra Streisand. Not cool, Bobby! Al Pacino is amazingly consistent - there aren't many bad Pacino films/performances, but perhaps he lacks the sheer number of all-time outstanding movies that De Niro has appeared in.
Al Pacino:
- Scarface
- Carlito's Way
- The Godfather I and II
- Scent of a Woman
- The Devil's Advocate
- Any Given Sunday
Robert De Niro:
- Mean Streets
- The Godfather II
- Taxi Driver
- The Deer Hunter
- Raging Bull
- Once Upon A Time in America
As I said, it's probably De Niro, but it's well worth asking the question. Which is what, over the next few days/weeks, we're going to do. On our list we have 203 celebrities - not all of them will reply, sadly, but we're hoping for a healthy return and a close run contest.
In my next blog post I'll be posting all the replies from the celebrities who have been kind enough to reply. If however you do want to follow the project as we go along, you can follow the madness over at the Twitter page we've set up for it: http://www.twitter.com/ProjectAlniro
We're starting today, and we're starting with A. First up is Chris Addison. Let the great debate begin!
Thursday, 7 January 2010
A Good Day
Hello folks.
I've had a good day. I had to brave the journey into Wolverhampton to drop off an essay, and despite being a tad nervous about the trip there and back it went splendidly well:
Number of times I slipped over - 0
Number of snowballs thrown at me by little scrotes - 0
Trains on time - 2
Once in Wolvo, I dropped off the essay to a rather pretty blonde in the office, picked up some splendid books (many thanks Ben), tried to bribe a lecturer and then went shopping.
Here's something you don't know ladies - you think men don't like being dragged around the shops, right? That's not quite true - what we don't like is being dragged around women's shops.
Shoes. Handbags. Dresses. Underwear. Shoes. Make-up. Perfume. Cosmetics. More bloody shoes. This is what we do not like. Think of it in this simple term - we're far more interested in you taking your underwear off then trying it on for an hour in a humid shop changing room area.
But, shops. Proper shops. By golly, I'm a fan. I emerged from the high street after a fun hour with new XBox games, new books, new darts, food and drink. I would have stayed longer, but a) I had a train to catch and b) I had no room left in my bag. A shame, as I would love a new jumper and some new jeans.
I then have arrived home to find that Liz McClarnon, that lovely little Atomic Kitten sexpot, is following me on Twitter.
It's been a good day. I'm now going to read the Sloppy Star's letters page. Fingers crossed for a Slarkie special!
Wednesday, 19 August 2009
The Final Word
It looks like the replies from the celebs to our "Marmite or Bovril" teaser have finally dried up, so instead of updating the previous post with the rest of the responses (I've edited my last post now accordingly), I thought I would collate our findings here and then wrap all of this nonsense up with a nice little bow on top. So, without further ado, here are some celebrities, declaring whether they prefer Bovril or Marmite (or vegemite):
Alexander Armstrong - "oh it's probably bovril but we don't usually have any in the house so I make do with marmite"
Andi Peters - "Marmite for me."
Angellica Bell - "my friend it has to be MARMITE over bovril all the way!"
Caitlin Moran - "absofuckinglutely Marmite, my friend"
Chris Addison - "The answer is Yes! I do!"
Dave Gorman - "Marmite. Obviously."
Dawn Porter - "marmite. Bovril manufacturers should be locked up!"
Francesca Sandford - "marmite till I die!! marmite till I die!!"
Jonathan Ross - "Marmite for sandwiches and toast, bovril to drink."
Katherine Jenkins - "Neither really! If I had to say one it would be Bovril x"
(You can see quite clearly at the end there that Katherine Jenkins sent me a kiss. I think that conclusively proves that this has not been one massive, pathetic waste of time.)
Krishnan Guru-Murphy - "marmite"
Miranda Hart - "Bovril over Marmite every time."
Mitch Benn - "Marmite, cos it gives me an excuse to eat toast, & I love toast. Regard it as more a butter delivery system than anything else"
Peter Serafinowicz - "I don't really like either of them. Plese both send me £20."
Phil Tufnell - "marmite all day long."
Sam Matterface - "marmite everytime! I hate bovril"
Sarah Cawood - "bovril to drink, marmite to spread!!"
Simon Mayo - "obviously, Marmite is sooooo much better. Does that help?"
Suzi Perry - "marmite but love both"
Tim Minchin - "marmite, if i must choose. vegemite is obviously the preferred option."
And finally, our very own Cynical Ben - "Marmite on toast. Bovril in a flask on a windswept mountain. Both sit happily in the pantheon of world's greatest foods."
So, there we have it. Even though I would choose Bovril, I have to accept that Marmite has stormed away with the victory. Congratulations Marmite. So, what has all this proved? Well, not a lot, except I've saved all the replies and it will raise a smile sometime in the future, and it just confirmed to me how much I love Twitter, where someone famous will gladly answer the most banal of questions.
They won't read this, but I wish to thank the 20 celebrities who took a moment to reply. All just a bit of fun, but I now look upon them favourably compared to others who couldn't be bothered. Yeah I'm looking at you, William Shatner. You and your cereal! Also much kudos to Kristen Bell, who got this madness underway. That's the end of the matter now, I promise!
Tuesday, 18 August 2009
I'm Back!
I wanted to come back from my blogging holiday with a bit of a bang, and here's what I can offer up...see what you think.
So, last night, much like every night, I was talking shit on MSN with my great buddy, Merciless Public. I had just told him about someone sending a 'tweet' on Twitter to a celeb, when a plan beginned to form in our minds. Before I go any further, you need to understand that A) We are both incredibly sad B) We both love Twitter and C) I think Merciless had had a bit to drink.
We were forming a plan, but we needed to see if it worked or not. Consider this the test run, if you will. My eyes flicked down the list of celebrities I 'follow' and my eyes rested on Kristen Bell.
Kristen Bell (once described by another friend as being "as cute as a button") is an American actress - you'll probably know her for playing Veronica Mars, although she's also been in Heroes, Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Gossip Girl and The Shield.
I had found my celebrity. I had thought up a test question. Now all I had to do was ask her:
@IMKristenBell Hey Kristen! Having a bet with a friend - can you help? What would Veronica Mars love more - a squid or an octopus? Thanks!
I sent it, and sighed. A) She wouldn't reply and B) Even if she did, it could be in a few days. Ten minutes later, I got a reply.
IMKristenBell an octopus...because that is the mascot of the detroit redwings. yeah. believe it or not, it isn't a red wing.
I've no idea what she's going on about there, but the speed of her response and her cordiality confirmed to us that our plan could work. Thankyou Kristen -not only are you as cute as a button, but apparently you are a really nice person as well, or so I've heard on the grapevine. Anyway, Merciless and I then hatched our plan. We would 'tweet' lots of celebrities, asking them a question, just one small question:
Bovril or Marmite?
We started this nonsense about midnight Monday evening/Tuesday morning. At the time of writing this, it's now 4:30pm, Wednesday. To see ALL the responses we've had (and there's a few) please scroll on up the page, and indulge in the banal-ness. Thankyou please!
Monday, 8 June 2009
Stat-porn explosion
The Plashing Vole is quick to criticise Twitter, but it's proved mildly useful today. The genius that is Lee Mack was looking for blogs, and I'm not one to pass up some cheap publicity. So I went ahead and plugged mine, and also alerted Merciless Public to it as well.
Well, I'm pleased to say that Lee Mack (who is wonderful, go and see him, leemacklive.com) came through in the clutch, and whacked up this blog addy on his twitter feed.
And now my stat-porn has fucking exploded, but I'm not complaining. First Ana Ivanovic, now this. Join me next time, when Dizzee Rascal tells The Guardian that he has this as his homepage.
Friday, 17 April 2009
Oops!
Apologies for this, my 4th post today. I promise this will be the final posting until Monday. However, whilst I was lounging around playing my PSP, my thoughts wandered and I realised that I had forgotten my main promise when I started this blog - that if you followed me, and you have a blog, I will advertise it for you in my own little way, free of charge. So, without any further ado:
http://cynicalben.blogspot.com/
Some readers will know this blog perfectly well already, but for those of you who don't, his name is Ben, and I'm assuming he's cynical. He's also friends with a Vole, and seems a class guy. My friend Merciless Public, via 'twitter', said thus about him:
"but that cynical Ben guy is top class. See his comments on Vole's blog?"
So if you don't want to take my word for it, take Merciless Public's. Phew! Glad I remembered that. Now to continue beating the crap out of the Kansas City Royals, baseball's equivalent of West Bromwich Albion.
http://cynicalben.blogspot.com/
Some readers will know this blog perfectly well already, but for those of you who don't, his name is Ben, and I'm assuming he's cynical. He's also friends with a Vole, and seems a class guy. My friend Merciless Public, via 'twitter', said thus about him:
"but that cynical Ben guy is top class. See his comments on Vole's blog?"
So if you don't want to take my word for it, take Merciless Public's. Phew! Glad I remembered that. Now to continue beating the crap out of the Kansas City Royals, baseball's equivalent of West Bromwich Albion.
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