The first race of the new Formula One season is just hours away. With impecipable timing, here is a look forward to this year’s season. This post is written by Thomas Brampton. You can read Thomas’ review of the 2010 season here.
Thomas’ F1 2011 Season Preview
Well, after a two week delay, we are finally ready to go for F1 2011. The season now starts in Australia and the big question is; can this season be as good as last? From an overall perspective the answer is surely no. 2010 was one of the best seasons of F1 racing ever, so it would be ridiculous to expect another season that good. However, while the title race has a lot to live up to, the new elements in Formula one this year means that the individual races should match last season in terms of excitement. Or maybe they’ll just be more chaotic then last season.
Last week I was given a super Memetastic award. As part of me receiving this fantastic award I had to list five things about myself, four of which were lies. thanks to everyone who voted. I can now exclusively reveal that the true statement is that I own a large collection of pencil sharpenings. Indeed, I collected them when I was around 10 years old and to this day I still keep them in a large jar in my parents’ house. With regards to the four false statements:
I have never tried chocolate coated chicken wings, but I do like to eat chicken cooked in Coca-Cola.
I am a rather slow reader, even when the books are the right way up. I have never tried to read a book upside down.
I have only ever owned one car (about seven years ago now). It was blue.
As for who I will pass the Memetastic award onto, I have decided that everyone who voted on my poll (you know who you are) shall get the award. Congratulations!
So here we are. After nine weeks of counting down through some of the very best British sitcoms, it is almost time to reveal my number one. It has been a long journey, but an enjoyable one all the same. Researching and writing about these programmes has made me appreciate British sitcoms even more than I did before I started this list. Click below to find out which British sitcom has claimed the top spot.
While I was thinking of what song to feature this week, Patrick Stacey sent me a demo of a song called Come live with me he is working on. This is the same guy whose music video I featured in a few months ago. If you have any feedback, leave a comment for him on YouTube.
Ok, here is the deal. Having decided to reduce the number of posts I publish on this blog each week, I thought that writing posts would be easy. It isn’t. While struggling to find something to write about today, I saw that Sandra of Wizards and Ogres and Elves…oh my! fame has presented me with a Memetastic award. This means that I should do a few things:
You must proudly display the award in a post.
You must list five things about yourself and four of the five must be Lies. (your readers must guess which one is the truth)
And you must then pass this prestigious award on, to five deserving bloggers.
Ok, first of all, I am not usually a fan of these things (e.g. send this message to 20 other people or else…). In this instance however, it seems like a bit of fun, so here we go!
That was my amazing award, here is the poll. Remember, only one of these five statements is true.
I will reveal the true statement and announce the five people I have chosen to receive the Memetastic award in a few days. Stay tuned!
I have to admit, since I came up with the idea for this list, I have been torn as to which order my top two British sitcoms would be in. Whilst it was very close, I have finally made up my mind.
Number two – Blackadder
As a series, Blackadder is set across six centuries of British History. The first series depicts the end of the Middle Ages, the fourth (and final) series depicts the trenches of the First World War. Along the way we get the chance to visit a number of other notable periods in history, including the Elizabethan era and the Regency period. Despite the vast timescale over which this sitcom is set, the two central characters (Edmund Blackadder and Baldrick) remain the same. As the series progress, these two characters represent the descendants of the ones that have gone before. In each series, Edmond Blackadder is a member of the ruling class and associates himself with some very notable figures in British history. From the second series onwards (which is when I started watching), his sole focus is to improve his own lot in life. To do this he will use any means, no matter how deceitful or cowardly. Baldrick on the other hand is Blackadder’s servant. Whilst Blackadder is clever and cunning, Baldrick is incredibly stupid (the roles are somewhat reversed in the first series). Also accompanying Blackadder in each series is an aristocrat whose pomposity far outweighs their intelligence.
I think perhaps that of all the British sitcoms on this list, Blackadder is the one that would get onto most other people’s top ten list. The reason for this is that unlike many of the sitcoms I have listed, Blackadder has an almost universal appeal. The star of the show is of course Blackadder himself and it is from him that most of the laughs (usually via some desperate attempt to gain riches or avoid death) come. A wealth of remarkable supporting characters including Queen Elizabeth I, Melchett and Lord Flashheart make this a truly complete comedy package.
As the title says, this is my last postaday2011 post. I have decided to stop the postaday2011 challenge for a number of reasons. I am currently writing up my PhD thesis, with all the work I have to do for my thesis, writing a new post every day is becoming a bit too much. Also, I want this blog to focus a bit more on quality and less on quantity. Finally, the time it takes to write a post every day means that I have recently not been able to visit and comment on other people’s blogs. There are many great blogs out there and I think it only fair to give them the time other people give mine.
Since starting the postaday2011 challenge on the 1st January, I have managed a total of 68 posts. Thanks to everyone that has visited my blog during this time and left comments. From now on, I aim to post on this blog around four times a week (perhaps Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday). I hope that you continue to visit.
On Sunday, I watched the first part of a new series on the BBC called Wonders of the Universe. It is presented by physicist Brian Cox and features such though provoking concepts as the nature of time (which was the focus of the first episode) and where we come from. If you live in the UK, you can catch Wonders of the Universe on iPlayer here; I really suggest you do so.
At number three is a cult comedy that I have loved since I was about twelve years old.
Number three – Red Dwarf
Red Dwarf is set on a mining spaceship in deep space 3,000,000 years in the future. The main character is Dave Lister who, due to a radiation accident on board the spaceship (from which he was protected), is the last remaining human in the universe. Accompanying Lister is a bunch of eccentric misfits. Arnold Rimmer was responsible for the radiation accident that killed the rest of the crew; including himself. Rimmer was resurrected as a hologram by the ship’s onboard computer (Holly) to keep Lister sane. This is despite the fact both men despise each other. Cat is a humanoid that, over 3,ooo,ooo years, has evolved from the cat that Listed illegally stowed onto the spaceship. Kryten is a mechanoid who is rescued by the crew in Series Two from a crashed spaceship upon which he served. Finally is Kristine Kochanski, a navigation officer originally killed in the radiation accident who was found in an alternative dimension in Series Seven.
Like all good comedies, Red Dwarf is all about the main characters and the relationships between them. What really makes Red Dwarf stand out from other British comedies however, are the unique situations in which the crew often find themselves. The science fiction setting (which is taken very seriously by the show) allows Red Dwarf to explore such themes as time travel, artificial realities and parallel universes. Perhaps the only real criticism that I can level at Red Dwarf are the inconsistencies between series, with the Eighth Series perhaps not as funny as the rest. I am pleased to hear that recently, another series (the first full series since the Eighth Series in 1999) has recently been announced for 2012.
I had a nice lie-in this morning following a not so peaceful Friday night. So nice in fact that I forgot that today was the day that the Bath half marathon took place. I emerged from my building around 1pm to find hundreds of people running down the road. Stopping to watch for a while before I had to conduct the daily drop-in session, it struck me how expressional each face that ran past was. It was like each face had its own story to tell as to why that person was running the half marathon.
Well, after a two week delay, we are finally ready to go for F1 2011. The season now starts in Australia and the big question is; can this season be as good as last? From an overall perspective the answer is surely no. 2010 was one of the best seasons of F1 racing ever, so it would be ridiculous to expect another season that good. However, while the title race has a lot to live up to, the new elements in Formula one this year means that the individual races should match last season in terms of excitement. Or maybe they’ll just be more chaotic then last season.
