Slightly odd press shots of our time

By | March 29, 2016

A new irregular series bought to you from the makers of “Boring Press Release Quotes Of Our Time”. Anyway, I find this one for Drive is a bit weird, as if little thought has gone into what layering images of celebrities looking straight ahead but from the side on top of each other looks like.

drive

Anyway I’m quietly hopeful that the show will be entertaining in so much as I think celebrity motor racing has some untapped potential, and whatsmore like Strictly Come Dancing it’s a “fun” skill, the sort of thing you might get some decent celebrities to have a go at. Our celebrites will be taking on various driving challenges in various different vehicles (banger racing in episode one, Tuesday 5th April, 9pm, ITV) with the aim of avoiding the night race and elimination.

Celebrity Real Life Elimination Mario Kart would likely be a ratings sensation, my fear here is that this might be overformatted where instead of challenges it should probably concentrate more on big free-for-all races. From the description it sounds a bit more like Eternal Glory But In A Car, something that regrettably we got bored of. Perhaps the Night Test will be one lap round the Top Gear track, but with the green light going on at any point between two seconds and two hours. I hope they’ve got the balance right, it’s certainly quite a fun celebrity line-up.

In other news Dermot’s back on The X Factor, evidently having got bored of the other opportunities offered since quitting and definitely not being politely shoved out the door last year.

Show Discussion: Can’t Touch This

By | March 25, 2016

canttouchthisSaturdays, 6:10pm,
BBC1

On this most Easter of weekends, how appropriate to see the spirit of Total Wipeout rise again on Saturday night with new physical obstacle course show Can’t Touch This, fronted by TV’s Zoe Ball and top Diversity dance-troupe member and Release the Hounds wimp Ashley Banjo. Don’t Scare the Hare‘s Sue Perkins provides commentary.

Can’t Touch This is a show with a simple premise – if you touch it you win it, but between the contestants and their prizes are a number of wacky rounds and obstacles. And we’ve been promised injuries so it’s properly serious. There’s also a car to be won in the endgame which is unusual for a BBC show, in fact I reckon it might be the first time it’s happened on the channel.

The BBC could do with a new Saturday evening entertainment hit as The Getaway Car hasn’t really taken off. Is this it? Do let us know what your think in the comments.

Edit: I’m informed a car was played for on Win Your Wish List, but not won. Aww.

Wacky Lotto Results

By | March 24, 2016

If there’s one thing we love at Bother’s Bar it’s a wacky lottery result in lieu of actual news. Take last night’s Lotto for example, the numbers were 7, 14, 21, 35, 41, 42 and the Bonus was 43.

This led to a slightly bizarre situation where as the only guaranteed prize (other than the free tickets for matching 2, and except in exceptional circumstances) 114,232 people won £25 for matching three balls. 7,879 people won £51 for matching four balls (towards the lower end of what you’d expect with four balls, the estimated prize is around £100). But spare a thought for the 4,082 five ball winners, normally you’d expect to win £1,000 estimated, instead winning just £15 each –  a lower prize than matching fewer balls.

How has this happened? The Lotto pays out according to a defined prizepool structure, 2% of the Lotto pools fund goes to the five ball winners, split equally. Normally this would be split by around 50-100 people, but yesterday it was split by over 4,000.

This is a freak result, albeit not unheard of, but look at the numbers involved – five of them are multiples of seven, if that 41 was a 28 you’d probably be looking at over 4,082 jackpot winners winning £6,096 each – thank goodness  for rollovers otherwise it’d be more like twenty quid. That’s always the danger of going for patterned numbers, if you win you’re almost certainly going to be winning less.

Monday round-up

By | March 21, 2016

Where I go through my Twitter and point out some things you might have missed. It’s time to begin now count it in, 5, 6, 7, 8:

  • Think Tank started today on BBC1, there’s a show discussion post for it. It’s not that bad but not the sort of thing I feel the need to catch up on. Do “join the conversation” and “have your say”, as Bill Turnbull probably said on BBC Breakfast. Once.
  • It’s vaguely science so it’s Dara! He’s fronting Dave’s TV adaptation of popular interactive videogame based live comedy Go 8 Bit. Celebrities, challenges and comedy all promised, as well as retro and new stuff. We’re excited that Ellie Gibson has been tapped up as commentator, for our money one of Eurogamer’s finest and funniest writers when she worked for them (currently writing and fronting the Scummy Mummies podcast with Helen Thorn), although she was wrong about Sonic 4. Whatsmore Dave’s track record in this sort of thing (School of Hard Sums, Taskmaster) is really pretty good. If you want to see it filmed SRO Audiences have tickets, it films next month at Wembley.
  • The second series of Bother’s Bar surprise hit For What It’s Worth is adding a studio audience which will hopefully give the show a bit more of an atmosphere to go with its fun Antiques Bullseye format. That films in Salford end of April/May, tickets Lost in TV.
  • Ant vs Dec this week is a mini-motorbike race round ITV Towers. Tickets Applause Store.
  • There’s still opportunity to get tickets for Bang On The Money filming at Maidstone this weekend. The show sees teams do physical and mental challenges involving trying to hit targets bang on. Hosts Rickie and Melvin giving decent #hostholdingaquestioncard on the tickets page, also Applause store.
  • Can’t Touch This starts Saturday night on BBC1, a show discussion post awaits.
  • Hurrah! Wild Things returns to Sky One on April 10th for an extended eight week run. New games and new animal costumes promised.
  • Bother’s Bar favourites Jackbox Games have announced Drawful 2 will be coming out in the Spring and the Jackbox Party Pack 3 will be out later this year. Expect another Bother’s Bar Game Night in due course, although not before Schlag den Star on April 9th.
  • FINALLY Comedy Central UK are showing Billy On The Street from the beginning from tonight at 10:30pm. In theory a popular culture gameshow but really with a heavy emphasis on comedy, Billy Eichner accosts members of the public and asks them largely subjective questions for amazing prizes, although it’s a lot better than I’ve made that sound, and genuinely the first example of a vox pop style show that’s genuinely funny and worth your time.

And that’s all the weather! FOR NOW.

danielsesc2

Show Discussion: Think Tank

By | March 20, 2016

Think_TankWeekdays 2:15pm,
BBC1

New quiz fronted by popular grumpy Scotsman and beekeeper Bill Turnbull featuring a cast of regular contributors (it says here) called the Think Tank who have answered hundreds of questions beforehand and who may or may not be of use to the three daily contestants hoping to win a bit of money.

There’s a four minute preview clip here. It looks like another polite basically sound but no-octane quiz format from the masters of polite basically sound but no-octane quiz formats 12 Yard.

Whatever our misgivings with 12 Yard’s output, we do appreciate them playing along with our greatest legacy #hostholdingaquestioncard so there is that. This is now the third game called Think Tank that’s been done in the UK, which might be a record.

Paul Daniels

By | March 17, 2016

danielsI was sad to hear of the passing of Paul Daniels this morning, a magician I enjoyed watching growing up but also a masterful host of Every Second Counts and Wipeout (and also Odd One Out but I was a bit young). By turns comically grumpy, then demonstrating ballet moves using a Barbie doll as a model (I always thought he was a better host and had a better grasp of the tension of Wipeout than the late great Bob Monkhouse).

He is also the inspiration for #hostholdingaquestioncard. Which isn’t even a question card really.

Edit: Challenge showing Paul Daniels eps of Wipeout, Celebrity Blockbusters (as contestant) and Blankety Blank (as panellist) between noon and 5pm on Sunday.

Edit edit: Incredible.

danielswipeout