Posts from date: June 2010

Video of the week #21

Waggy’s World-Cup Watchdog #2 – To be the best you've got to beat the best

Germany lose to Serbia and this is a good thing. Spain lose to Switzerland, this also is a good thing. Or is it? You see, I quite like rooting for winners. I grew up watching Stephen Hendry pot his way to victory in practically every major tournament. I enjoyed watching Michael Schumacher destroy the competition for five years on the bounce, I find it astonishing that Valentino Rossi can dominate motorcycling so consistently. And yes, I like watching Brazil win the world cup.

I understand the logic behind supporting the weaker football teams; on the basis that we would avoid the defeated better ones later in the competition. But what kind of tournament would we have won by niftily avoiding the likes of footballing super powers; Brazil, Argentina, Italy, Spain, Holland, Germany or Portugal.. Sure, a second star perhaps but not one we can be genuinely proud of.

Now consider how interesting Euro 2008 was with no England. We still watched the games but simply rooted for different teams...personally I was very happy to enjoy a quality final between Germany and Spain. And should we not qualify for the final sixteen this year I for one will be hoping for a Brazil vs Argentina final - and I hope the last eight are the best in the world, not by some hapless chance or refereeing blunder, but just by being the best.

A win is a win, but a world champion is something else altogether

Waggy’s World-Cup Watchdog #1 - If only they took it seriously

I'm not a football man, never have been. I dislike the professional footballer in almost every way, and the type of person who worships it too. However there's something about the world cup that piques the curiosity of even the most indifferent among us. And we all know what curiosity will bring you... a world cup party in your flat! So there I am sharing gasps and desperation with several others, exchanging comment on such footballing matters as; how dynamic our defenders were, or how Rooney wasn't tracking back enough..etc.. when we tie 1-1 with United States’ soccer team. Not a result that took many by surprise, if our prediction league is anything to go by, and yet serious debate ensued.

The debate itself revolved around a central theme of talent. Pundits and fans alike seem to believe that Brazil ought to not only win every game they play, but to do so with a certain style. Now consider our 1-1 draw against USA - a country that has at some point dominated such a vast array of sports including the following; golf, swimming, snowboarding, gymnastics, athletics, boxing, basketball, ice hockey, baseball, and cycling.

My question is this. Is it that Brazilians are inherently better at football because they are biologically more suited to the sport? Or is it a simple case of being the most passionate about it. Surely if it’s the latter then it’s only a matter of time before USA become dominant in football too. My supposition is if USA realise how much money can be generated from being good at football, they’ll have all the “passion” they need. It’s then only a matter of time before resources catch up – and by this I mean; man power, facilities, sport science, youth development, investment and infrastructure.

With time, it won’t only be Brazil that lives with these expectations. Soon enough USA will have to contend with the same thing.

World Cup: First Viewing Figures

England finally kicked off their World Cup campaign on Saturday evening with a 1-1 draw against the mighty USA. Although ITV would have been disappointed with the much publicised HD slip up, viewing on ITV1 would have pleased the broadcaster. England’s 1st game of the 2010 competition drew an average audience of 17 million during the match, a 66% share of viewing, peaking at a touch over 20 million. The programme, which ran from 18:15 to 21:45, attracted an average of 13 million, a 56% share. These numbers are the largest attracted for football since England took on Sweden in the 2006 World Cup.

The opening game of the competition, again on ITV1 saw Mexico take on host nation South Africa. Generally afternoon kick off’s attract smaller audiences, especially when none of the ‘glamour teams’ are involved. Friday’s game drew an audience of 4.2 million, the first match of the 2006 World Cup, which featured Germany and Costa Rica, attracted 5.5 million, however, this kicked off 17:00, so you would expect audiences to be larger.

The late game on Friday saw France take on Uruguay. For those who didn’t see, it was a particularly boring match, that said, the BBC’s first game of the tournament attracted an average 6.2 million, greater than the like for like match in 2006, Poland v Ecuador, which gained an audience of 5.7 million.

Sunday saw three further games, including the opening Germany match. In what was probably the pick of the competition so far, Germany demolished an Australian side, backed by some as dark horses, 4-0. ITV’s second peak game of the weekend predictably delivered a smaller audience than the England game, but was still widely viewed, with an average of 7.5 million viewers, a 31% share.

The success, or failure, of the World cup from a broadcast point of view rests heavily on the progress of England. On Saturdays showing, a quarter final exit, as many people predict may be the best we can hope for. If we can however progress further, Saturday’s viewing figures are sure to be beat....

Video of the week #20

Bye Bye Big Brother

So who watched the first Big Brother on Wednesday? Did you watch it because of it being the final season or because you genuinely love Big Brother?

I didn't actually watch it and no I am really not bothered! In the past, when it was half way into the series I would start watching BB and become addicted right through to the end, however year after year they seem to shove in absolute weirdo's which were very awkward to watch. Each year getting worse!

For example - the visually impaired guy, (cant remember his name as it really is irrelevant), I don't know about you but I found him very painful to watch - rude and abrasive and wondered if the sole reason he got into the Big Brother house was down to him being blind. I wanted to hate him as he got on my nerves but couldn't because I felt sorry for him being such an idiot!

Then there were the twins (one dated that Brian guy who didn't know who William Shakespeare was) - again strange creatures. The list of freaks is endless.

In the first few series BB put contestants in who were just normal people but a little bit stupid ie: that welsh Helen girl! But as the years rolled on they threw in wild card circus freaks - I think that's when we saw the BB viewing figures start to decline. Personally I would prefer to watch stupid people and laugh at them rather than idiots who are trying to break out of the norm and annoy me.

All this aside, last night’s C4 90 minute show averaged 4.6 Million viewers, around a 12% fall on 2009. Big Brother attracted a total share of 19.5% of all TV, well below the 43% Britain’s Got Talent delivered. Last year’s launch had a 21% share.

Are we obsessed with around the clock surveillance?

I am not ashamed to admit, I am "telly Addict". I recently read that Big Brother (BB) bosses have announced that a live internet feed is to return for fans from the 9th of June, but at a cost. Last year channel 4 dropped the usual 24-hour streaming so devotees were only able to monitor the show on TV. For those early adopters who have embraced the sky+ revolution, this meant thousands of us up and down the country were able to fit in spying on our beloved big brother house mates in our own time. Never missing out key moments such as when In the first series of Big Brother. The scandalous moment in the shows history when 'Nasty' Nick Bateman was kicked out because he had influenced nominations. TV history .... needless to say, I was one of these Big brother obsessives watching religously! However in recent years I have felt that the show has began to lose its spark!

Channel4 decision to "milk" as much as possible out of the last series is understandable but may lead to the BB brand becoing commoditised. Making it no different than, Im a celebrity get me out of here. If fans forked out for daily, weekly or whole-series passes.Channel 4 said charges would go towards covering the increased costs of providing the service. Streaming will cost 49p by the day, £1.99 for a week or £14.99 for the entire 13-week series at the official site www.channel4.com/bigbrother. This will be a real financial test of our obsession with around the clock surveillance? Given this will be the last ever series on channel4, who can actually blame them.

Video of the week #19