BotherSOP Freeroll on Sunday

By | December 14, 2011
16 Comments

Hello Gang, just a reminder that it’s the BotherSOP Freeroll on Sunday night at 8pm on Poker Stars, where we’re basically just trying out the Home Game software. The winner will win £11, which will buy you into the first two events of the BotherSOP 2012 in January.

You will need to be a member of Brig’s Poker Club to play – it is free and easy:

– If you don’t already have it, download the free PokerStars software from www.pokerstars.com
– Open the main poker lobby, then click on the Home Games tab
– Click the ‘Join a Poker Club’ button
– Enter my Club ID number: 466738
– Enter my Invitation Code: onlyconnect

Don’t leave it to the last minute as I will need to approve you joining the club (although I can’t think of any reason why I wouldn’t) before you can register for the tournament. I say it’s a freeroll, it will in fact cost you 5.50 in play money (so don’t hilariously blow it). Needless to say, I’m hoping to win so I don’t have to pay out anything, so bring your A game.

Unfortunately it’s going to clash with the first episode of Home For The Holidays on Sunday night, but that means we can chat about it LIVE! in the chatbox.

I’m hoping to have the trophy ready for you very soon.

A couple of things

By | December 14, 2011
5 Comments

Hello kids, sorry, slow updates this week (it’s basically Christmas party season, you know how it is I’m sure), although fingers crossed we’re getting a report on the Play Your Cards Right pilot on Friday. Anyway, a few things that have been bought up that probably require wider recognition:

  • The Exit List is premiering in the ITV Tuesday night flopzone on January 10th. This is a shame, I thought it was alright from the game I saw being filmed. I do not know how it is being edited and I largely suspect there are not many winners, is my initial impression given this news, but I do think it is a lot better than the rubbish High Stakes.
  • However the The Exit List press release people ought to learn how to count, the maze was 24 rooms in the pilot, but it’s 26 rooms in the actual broadcast show – that second row of five has become a second row of seven. It is never a good sign when your press releases aren’t accurate, is it?
  • Fear Factor IS BACK! and it’s done very well, two episodes last night averaging a 3.4 rating in the demo between them (and picking up on the second episode). The show hasn’t changed much, although I’m not entirely convinced it’s more extreme than before – a couple of set pieces are combined, and the explosions are bigger, but the claims feel like more mouth than trousers. It is still plenty entertaining if you like that sort of thing (and it is very much the sort of thing we quite like) and it’s nice to see Joe Rogan is still basically being a hilarious twat.
  • Meanwhile You Deserve It (shall we take to calling it Clue or No Clue?) scored a 0.9 rating at the same time. Proof, if proof were needed, that watching people eat scorpions is scientifically about four times more entertaining than charity.

Fantasy X Factor

By | December 11, 2011
4 Comments

The winners revealed! Well done to this year’s champion, and Bother’s Bar’s biggest ever prize winner Helen!

I will be in touch with the winners shortly. In the meantime, why not join us for the BotherSOP Freeroll next weekend! It only clashes with Home For The Holidays and some of the last Black Mirror. Um. Still, think of the EXCITING LIVE DISCUSSION.

In other news, if you like cryptic clue things that are much too hard for the likes of me, Richard Osman off of Pointless is doing a quiz thing.

Board of Excitement 11th to 17th December 2011

By | December 11, 2011
17 Comments

It’s almost the end of the year, but there are a few interesting things in store yet:

  • The Cube – on at the earlier time of 6:30 this evening.(6:30pm, Sunday, ITV1)
  • The X Factor Grand Final – Two hours. I will be watching Black Mirror on C4 afterwards based on reality TV (15 Million Merits) before calculating the Fantasy X Factor result, so be warned. (7:30pm, Sunday, ITV1)
  • Connecting Wall Night – for no discernable reason, eight teams will be taking part in an Only Connect Connecting Wall tournament. It sounds like there are going to be eleven throughout the evening plus some celeb anecdotes, so if you’re a fan of the third best round of Only Connect, you’re in for a treat. (8:30pm and 10pm. Monday, BBC4)
  • Fear Factor – Rather brilliantly, this is back on US screens on Monday, and Joe Rogan has returned to host. Technology has improved since they stopped making the show originally, so the stunts are expected to be more exciting and terrifying. (Monday, NBC)
  • Countdown – last episode of Spelling with Stelling. (3:10pm, Friday, C4)
  • Vernon Kay’s Play Your Cards Right – The pilot for this films on Friday. (Friday, London Television Studios)
  • One Man Army – Go HOT! (9pm, Friday, Discovery UK)
  • Winter Wipeout – Despite having a Summer series already in the can, here’s an even newer winter series. How Christmassy! (6pm, Saturday, BBC1)
  • Schlag den Raab – it’s the last one of the year. Expect Christmas trees. (7:15pm GMT, Saturday, Pro Sieben or naughty internet streaming, hopefully.)

Bother’s Bargains

By | December 9, 2011
8 Comments

Well sort of, I can only really tell you where things are cheapest:

The Cube Boardgame
Well possibly interesting, although possibly not, it looks like the best place to buy this is in fact your local John Lewis (or online) which is selling it for £20.24.

This compares rather favourably to Amazon, which is still charging £27 for it. In fact loads of places are doing it cheaper. Edit: Spooky, it’s jumped to £32.50 whilst I was sorting this out. You can still buy new from elsewhere for £27.99 though.

Pointless
Again, John Lewis appears to be your friend here where it is going for £20.

Amazon don’t seem to have it in stock at all. But it does have Zero, an American game that’s clearly inspired by it.

The Million Pound Drop
Amazon fare better here, it’s only £15. Only two stars though, and that’s because the favourable review is for Amazon’s returns policy by the looks of things.

John Lewis have it for £19.99.

QI: The Board Game
This is new out this year. Amazon have the edge on John Lewis. £17.49 at Amazon, although Stephen Fry’s face on the cover appears to be scaring kids.

It’s £19.95 at John Lewis.

Dragon’s Den: The Boardgame
John Lewis has this going for £19.95.

Amazon doesn’t have it itself, but does have it “from £18.75” from different sellers.

So there we are. Basically if you can’t be bothered to wait, go down your local branch of John Lewis, clearly.

A couple of other things of note:

There are now countless amounts of All-Star Family Fortunes skeins, but this one for £17.99 includes face-off buzzers, which is quite exciting. We can’t find the one with the big electronic board, though.

Forget yer Zeldas and yer Call of Duties, There’s an Eggheads DS game coming out next Friday! I hope you get to “be” CJ. There are also two different versions of the board game. Or at least two different boxes. Here is box one, here is box two.

OR! Why not party like a celebrity with your very own I’m a Celebrity Which Witchety Grub? Game? 10 white chocolate grubs. Seven are toffee, three are tripe. Christmas fun for all the family!

It’s the Take Me Out game we’ve ALL been waiting for!

Meanwhile here’s a book there’s a fairly decent chance I wrote loads of.

Is there anything else interesting you’ve spotted, punters?

Lose a Million

By | December 8, 2011
1 Comment

Well here’s fun (although not quite as much fun as I remember), someone’s put up an episode of Chris Tarrant non-hit Lose a Million on Youtube.

Quite like the end game. The final round is quite a good idea, although I don’t know how they decided the very important order of play. First two rounds drag on a bit.

Stephen Leahy and Andrew O Connor devised this, they also devised Incredible Games which had a game with a ghost schoolmaster just like round two but without the clever juxtapositions. And then The Two Ronnies nicked it for that seventies Mastermind sketch.