2017

The Dead Pool Review of the Year 2017

January

The year began with veteran actor John Hurt signing off at the age of 77, TV star Mary Tyler Moore saying goodbye aged 80 and Bollywood actor Om Puri leaving us too soon at the age of 66.

We also bid farewell to the art critic John Berger, ‘Allo ‘Allo star Gorden Kaye, British singer-songwriter Peter Sarstedt, Exorcist author William Peter Blatty and French actress Emmanuelle Riva. We also lost Graham Taylor, ex-England football manager, Lord Snowdon, Princess Margaret’s former husband  and John Wetton, Derbyshire-born singer-songwriter with Asia and King Crimson and American actor Miguel Ferrer.

February

The year’s shortest month saw Battlestar Galactica star Richard Hatch die at 71, jazz crooner Al Jarreau silenced at 76 and Aliens star Bill Paxton die suddenly at the age of 61.

We also saw stage actor Alec McCowen and Twin Peaks actor Warren Frost bow out, both at 91, and The Archers’ Sara Coward, Japanese manga artist Jiro Taniguchi and pop star turned priest Peter Skellern all die at 69.

We also lost Tara Palmer-Tomkinson, socialite and television presenter and Sir Ken Morrison, president of Morrisons and South African rugby union player Joost van der Westhuizen.

March 

The third month of 2017 brought the deaths of rock and roll legend Chuck Berry, Inspector Morse creator Colin Dexter and Caribbean poet Derek Walcott.

Others to leave us included British artist Howard Hodgkin, Sister Sledge singer Joni Sledge, novelist and playwright David Storey, and Robert James Waller, the American novelist best known for The Bridges of Madison County.

Also we lost John Surtees, the only man to win the Formula One and motorcycle Grand Prix titles and Ronnie Moran, former Liverpool captain and caretaker boss, the Northern Irish PIRA commander and ‘politician’ Martin McGuinness and American banker David Rockefeller.

April

TS Eliot called April the cruellest month, something with which fans of Silence of the Lambs director Jonathan Demme, Happy Days star Erin Moran and British actor Tim Pigott-Smith are sure to agree.

James Bond actor Clifton James, broadcaster Brian Matthew, US comedian Don Rickles and Russian poet Yevgeny Yevtushenko also took their leave in April aged 96, 90 and 84 respectively.

May

Among those who left us in May were imposing US actor Powers Boothe, Soundgarden singer Chris Cornell and Sir Roger Moore, the much-loved star of seven James Bond films.

Rock and roll trailblazer Gregg Allman, Blue Peter presenter John Noakes, Catweazle actor Geoffrey Bayldon, Darling Buds of May star Moray Watson, Italian DJ Roberto Concina – better known as Robert Miles – and actor Michael Parks, a favourite of Quentin Tarantino and Kevin Smith, also died this month. We finally got rid of Ian Brady too! Yay!

June 

In the month Britain went to the polls, we sadly lost Paddington creator Michael Bond, US actress Glenne Headly and Last of the Summer Wine actor Peter Sallis.

Others to die in June included Coronation Street’s Roy Barraclough, Rocky director John G Avildsen, film critic Barry Norman, Animal House star Stephen Furst, Swedish actor Michael Nyqvist, model/actress Anita Pallenberg, classical conductor Jeffrey Tate and Adam West of TV Batman fame. We also lost Brian Cant, actor and presenter of Play School and Cheick Tiote, ex-Newcastle United footballer at the young age of 30. We also said goodbye to the German politician Helmut Kohl.

July

The suicide of Linkin Park lead singer Chester Bennington cast a tragic pall over a month that also saw the deaths of legendary French actress Jeanne Moreau and the American playwright and actor Sam Shepard.

Others to bow out in July included True Blood star Nelsan Ellis, Home Alone actor John Heard, Ed Wood Oscar-winner Martin Landau, children’s TV star Carol Lee Scott, former Doctor Who companion Deborah Watling and zombie maestro George A Romero. We also lost Hywel Bennett, the actor who starred in TV show Shelley at the age of 73. With a cackle and a swish of her besom, off went Grotbags actress Carol Lee Scott too.

August

Three show business legends left us in August – country singer Glen Campbell, entertainer Bruce Forsyth and comedy star Jerry Lewis – at the ages of 81, 89 and 91 respectively.

We also bid a fond farewell to science-fiction author Brian Aldiss, US comedian Dick Gregory, All Creatures Great and Small actor Robert Hardy and the horror director Tobe Hooper. American bodybuilder Richard Piana’s body finally gave up on him and we said nothing as Predator actor Sonny Landham quietly walked back into the jungle.

September 

Coronation Street actress Liz Dawn, Playboy founder Hugh Hefner and the actor Harry Dean Stanton, of Alien and Repo Man fame, were among the dearly departed this month.

Others to take their leave included Steely Dan co-founder Walter Becker, theatrical giant Peter Hall, quiz show host William G Stewart, The Ginger Man author JP Donleavy, Scorsese regular Frank Vincent and country singer Don Williams. We also lost Jake LaMotta, world middleweight boxing champion and inspiration for the film Raging Bull and Tony Booth, actor who played Mike Rawlins in the BBC sitcom Till Death Us Do Part .

October

Ain’t That A Shame? That’s what many people thought in October when they learned that rock and roll singer Fats Domino, Benson actor Robert Guillaume and musician Tom Petty had left us.

The Irish comedian Sean Hughes, French screen star Danielle Darrieux , British actress Rosemary Leach, Guernsey-born character actor Roy Dotrice and AC/DC producer George Young were among others to die this month.

November

The music world was hit hard in November by the deaths of Partridge Family star David Cassidy, 21-year-old rapper Lil Peep and AC/DC’s Malcolm Young, who passed away less than a month on from his brother George.

Others to depart included Magnum PI actor John Hillerman, The Likely Lads star Rodney Bewes, Duty Free actor Keith Barron, Scooby-Doo voice performer Heather North and the Russian baritone Dmitri Hvorostovsky. We also lost Antonio Carluccio, Italian TV chef and founder of the Carluccio’s chain of restaurants. American criminal  and cult leader Charles Manson finally got what he deserved as well.

December

As the year drew to a close, we said goodbye to bubbly TV presenter and Twitter cunt Keith Chegwin, France’s biggest rock star Johnny Hallyday and Bollywood veteran Shashi Kapoor.

We also lost Heather Menzies-Urich, the actress who played Louisa Von Trapp in The Sound of Music; Leon Bernicoff, one of the regulars on Channel 4’s Gogglebox; and British actor Alfie Curtis, whose Dr Evazan character memorably threatened Luke Skywalker in the first Star Wars film. We also lost Christine Keeler, model and showgirl who was at the centre of the “Profumo Affair” in the 1960’s, Max Clifford, disgraced celebrity publicist and Heinz Wolff, scientist and presenter of The Great Egg Race.


Dead Pool 31st December 2017

Welcome my fellow poolers to the last edition of 2017. With a few hours left to go, unless something tragic happens, or someone spots a mistake, I can provisionally declare the winner of The Dead Pool 2017 as Martin G! I’m sure we would all like to congratulate him on his feat of prophesy! Martin correctly guessed seven deaths and accumulated a score of 586 points with his Woman still in the bag.

Also, a big well done to Laura U; last years Angel fo Death was leading for most of the year but was pipped at the end with only 17 points between her and Martin.

Finally, I hate to mention poor old Christine A at the very bottom of the table, who was the only person who failed to score this year, lets hope she gets a better streak of luck in 2018.

As per usual, I only have a handful of your lists, I assume you’re all still frantically researching your new ones and will get them to me by midnight 😀

Look Who You Could Have Had:

  • Heather Menzies, 68, Canadian-born American actress (The Sound of Music, Logan’s Run, Piranha), brain cancer.
  • Thomas Hunter, 85, American actor (The Hills Run Red, Death Walks in Laredo, The Magnificent Tony Carrera).
  • Sue Grafton, 77, American author (“B” Is for Burglar, Keziah Dane, The Lolly-Madonna War), cancer.
  • Rose Marie, 94, American actress (The Dick Van Dyke Show, The Hollywood Squares, The Doris Day Show).
  • Jim Baikie, 77, British comic book artist (Judge Dredd, Skizz, Jinty)
  • Alfie Curtis, 87, British actor (Star Wars, The Elephant Man, Cribb).

In Other News 

The sister of Australian actress Jessica Falkholt has died after a car crash which also killed their parents and another man.  Jessica is in a coma and remains in critical condition, officials have not said whether she is aware of her family’s deaths.. Falkholt, 27, appeared on TV soap Home and Away in 2016, playing the character of Hope Morrison. The accident happened on the highway near Ulladulla, New South Wales. Home and Away cast members have been sending support to the actress, who appeared in several films and TV shows. A spokesperson for Channel Seven, the Australian broadcaster of the show, said the news was difficult to comprehend and “especially tragic” given the Christmas period. Falkholt’s stint on the long-running series came to an end in November 2016. She stars in the US film Harmony, set for release next year. Motorists who witnessed the crash helped pull the sisters from the burning wreckage, local media reported. They were airlifted to Sydney hospitals. Police said the three people who died – the sisters’ parents and the 50-year-old drive of the other car – had suffered intense burns. Assistant Commissioner Michael Corboy called the crash “an absolute tragedy” and pleaded for motorists in the state to drive safely. He said police were investigating whether the car which hit the Falkholts’ vehicle had been on the wrong side of the road.

In other news, there isn’t any. However tomorrow you will be treated to a massive, well researched and in depth memoriam to all the stars we said goodbye too during 2017. I promise it wont be just a copy and paste from the BBC… *ahem…

On This Day

  • 1759 – Arthur Guinness signs a 9,000 year lease at £45 per annum and starts brewing Guinness.
  • 1879 – Thomas Edison demonstrates incandescent lighting to the public for the first time, in Menlo Park, New Jersey.
  • 1907 – The first New Year’s Eve celebration is held in Times Square (then known as Longacre Square) in Manhattan.
  • 2014 – A New Year’s Eve celebration stampede in Shanghai kills at least 36 people and injures 49 others.

Deaths

Last Week’s Birthdays

Eliza Dushku (37), Russ Tamblyn (90), Fred Ward (75), Tracey Ullman (58), Michael Nesmith (75), Patti Smith (71), Jude Law (45), Jon Voight (79), Ted Danson (70), Danny McBride (41), Lilly Wachowski (50), Bernard Cribbins (89), Marianne Faithfull (71), Noomi Rapace (38), Denzel Washington (63), Sienna Miller (36), Joe Manganiello (41), Maggie Smith (83), Stan Lee (95), Nichelle Nichols (85), John Amos (78), Gérard Depardieu (69), Kit Harington (31), Jared Leto (46), Shane Meadows (45), Phil Spector (78), Sissy Spacek (68), Helena Christensen (49), Annie Lennox (63), Shane MacGowan (60) and Carol Vorderman (57).


Dead Pool 24th December 2017

Welcome to the penultimate edition of the 2017 Dead Pool. With one week left to go, things are really tight at the top of the league table, one death could swing the result. Those of you at the top echelon of the table should start wishing for an errant turkey bone if you want to win or perhaps we should unleash the evil flying monkeys once more, just out of spite.

Again, thank you all who have donated towards the running costs, it’s most appreciated and keep working on those lists for 2018!

Look Who You Could Have Had:

  • Sharon Laws, 43, British racing cyclist, cervical cancer.
  • Keely Smith, 89, American singer (“That Old Black Magic”, “I’ve Got You Under My Skin”, “Bei Mir Bist Du Schoen”), Grammy winner (1959), heart failure.
  • Terence Beesley, 60, British actor (EastEnders, The Phantom of the Opera, War & Peace).
  • Bruce McCandless II, 80, American astronaut (STS-41-B).
  • Leon Bernicoff, 83, British reality show participant (Gogglebox).
  • Bob Givens, 99, American animator (Looney Tunes, Tom and Jerry, Garfield and Friends).
  • Heather North, 71, American actress (Scooby-Doo, Days of Our Lives, The Barefoot Executive), cardiac arrest.

In Other News

Peru’s former President Alberto Fujimori has been taken from prison to a hospital because of low blood pressure and abnormal heart rhythm. His doctor was quoted by local media as saying cardiologists had advised the 79-year-old needed urgent treatment. Fujimori – who was in power from 1990 to 2000 – is serving a 25-year sentence for human rights abuses. He is admired by some Peruvians for combating Maoist rebels. His critics consider him a corrupt dictator. In 2007, Fujimori was sentenced to six years in jail for bribery and abuse of power. In 2009, he was sentenced to another 25 years in prison for human rights abuses committed during his time in office, including authorising killings carried out by death squads. He has been in and out of hospital for a variety of health problems in recent years.

After years of speculation that Val Kilmer had been dealing with health issues, the actor decided to finally open up about what exactly he’s been going through. Kilmer’s two-year fight with throat cancer has “taken its toll,” he told our Dead Pool reporter, the procedure on his trachea has made his voice raspy and left him short of breath. Confusion has surrounded the state of the actor’s health since he denied Michael Douglas’s claim that he had cancer in a November 2016. Kilmer elaborated on his denial. “(Douglas) was probably trying to help me ’cause press probably asked where I was these days and I did have a healing of cancer, but my tongue is still swollen altho (sic) healing all the time,” he wrote. “Because I don’t sound my normal self yet people think I may still be under the weather.”

John McCain has been hospitalised yet again as he continues to undergo cancer treatment. “As ever, he remains grateful to his physicians for their excellent care, and his friends and supporters for their encouragement and good wishes,” McCain’s staff said in a statement on Wednesday, via The Hill. “Senator McCain looks forward to returning to work as soon as possible.” McCain, 81, is looking increasingly frail and it’s said he has not spoken up in recent GOP meetings the way he had before. One source said that McCain always used to speak up in these meetings, and that he hasn’t at all recently. The source was not commenting on McCain’s mental acuity, but on his energy level, and pointing out that his lack of participation was not normal. One well known side effect of cancer treatments is fatigue. McCain is five months into treatment for brain cancer. He was diagnosed in July with a primary glioblastoma, a type of brain tumour. He underwent surgery to remove a blood clot associated with the tumour at the Mayo Clinic in Phoenix, and lab results from that surgery confirmed the presence of brain cancer associated with the blood clot.

On This Day

  • -01 – A cheating wife and her carpenter husband fail to book accommodation in Bethlehem. Both end up in a stable and she pushes out a baby that became the cause of most wars in history and gave the clergy and excuse to molest children on an epic scale which was only rivalled by Gary Glitter visiting Vietnam and Jimmy Savile being employed at the BBC.
  • 1818 – The first performance of “Silent Night” takes place in the church of St. Nikolaus in Oberndorf, Austria.
  • 1865 – The Ku Klux Klan is formed.
  • 1913 – The Italian Hall disaster in Calumet, Michigan results in the deaths of 73 Christmas party participants (including 59 children) when someone falsely yells “fire”.
  • 1914 – World War I: The “Christmas truce” begins.
  • 1980 – Witnesses report the first of several sightings of unexplained lights near RAF Woodbridge, in Rendlesham Forest, Suffolk, England, United Kingdom, an incident called “Britain’s Roswell”.

Deaths

Last Week’s Birthdays

Harry Shearer (74), Carla Bruni (50), Ralph Fiennes (55), Vanessa Paradis (45), Samuel L. Jackson (69), Jane Fonda (80), Kiefer Sutherland (51), Julie Delpy (48), Phil Donahue (82), Jonah Hill (34), Jenny Agutter (65), Nicole de Boer (47), Lucy Pinder (34), Jake Gyllenhaal (37), Alyssa Milano (45), Kristy Swanson (48), Jennifer Beals (54), Richard Hammond (48), Steven Spielberg (71), Brad Pitt (54), Katie Holmes (39), Ray Liotta (63), Christina Aguilera (37), Sia (42), Robson Green (53), Keith Richards (74), Bill Pullman (64), Milla Jovovich (42), Laurie Holden (48), Ernie Hudson (72), Eugene Levy (71) and Bernard Hill (73).


Dead Pool 17th December 2017

Welcome all. Let’s begin with thanking everyone who has donated towards the running costs this year. You are absolutely amazing, especially from those of you who aren’t rolling in money, it’s most appreciated, especially before xmas. Still a tiny bit more to go to cover all the costs, but I realise payday is a little way away and hopefully some newbies will venture a couple of quid, who knows.

Now, let’s remind you all that you have 15 days to finalise your list for 2018, as always I’ll be panicking that nobody is taking part and you will all send them in 3 minutes before the deadline, hopefully… If you’re stuck for names, I suggest you flick through a few DeadPool.rip pages for inspiration, the birthday lists are there for a reason! 😛 And for the first time ever, you are now able to submit your entry by web form, which can be found on the website or by following this link 2018 Entry Form I know, I spoil you!

And lastly, lets award some points, Dave J correctly guessed that Spains oldest ever living person would die, thus giving him an astounding 34 points which just nudges him up to third place. So as you see, it’s all to play for!!

Look Who You Could Have Had:

  • Keith Chegwin, 60, English television presenter (Multi-Coloured Swap Shop, Cheggers Plays Pop) and actor (Macbeth), idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis.
  • Suzanna Leigh, 72, British actress (Paradise, Hawaiian Style), liver cancer.
  • Yurizan Beltran, 31, American pornographic actress, suspected drug overdose.
  • Warrel Dane, 56, American rock singer (Sanctuary, Nevermore), heart attack.
  • Ana María Vela Rubio, 116, Spanish supercentenarian, oldest Spanish person ever.
  • Heinz Wolff, 89, German-born British scientist and television presenter (The Great Egg Race), heart failure.

In Other News

Former South African athlete Oscar Pistorius has been hurt in a prison brawl, less than two weeks after his sentence for the killing of girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp was more than doubled. The disgraced Paralympian was  allegedly involved in a fight over the use of a public phone, a prison department spokesman told Dead Pool Towers. Pistorius, jailed for 13 years and five months, sustained a bruise, he added. No other serious injuries were reported, the spokesman said. Let it be noted that a love kiss is also classed as a bruise. “It is alleged that he was involved in an altercation with another inmate over the use of a public phone in the special care unit where both offenders are detained at Attridgeville Correctional Centre,” the spokesman, Singabakho Nxumalo, added. The department has launched an investigation, in terms of standard procedure, to “establish the facts and to ensure that appropriate action is taken as incidents of assaults are not allowed”, he said. The brawl took place on 6 December, 10 days after South African prosecutors successfully argued Pistorius’ “shockingly light” six-year sentence should be increased.

Comedian Peter Kay has cancelled all future work projects, including his stand-up tour, “due to unforeseen family circumstances”. “This decision has not been taken lightly and I’m sure you’ll understand my family must always come first,” he wrote on Twitter. Kay said he was “very sorry” and that he hoped the media and public would respect his family’s privacy. The 44-year-old was due to start his first tour in eight years next April. The star of Phoenix Nights and Car Share currently holds the record for the biggest-selling comedy tour of all time after playing to 1.2 million people in 2010 and 2011. His next tour, which had 112 dates listed in the UK and Ireland, was due to have begun in Birmingham and was scheduled to run into 2019. There was a rush for tickets when they went on sale in November. Those who successfully booked seats have been told they will get refunds from their original point of purchase. But the announcement won’t affect the final two episodes of his BBC One sitcom Car Share, which he and co-star Sian Gibson announced last month.

And finally, seventeen runners collapsed with hypothermia at a charity mud run in near-freezing temperatures. Two ambulances were called to the annual Christmas Mud Run in St Davids, Pembrokeshire, as another runner had to be stretchered off with a broken ankle.  About 200 competitors took part in the event run by Man-Up UK on Saturday. Organisers blamed near-freezing weather conditions  and poor preparation by some of the runners taking part in the four-mile race this year. Competitors had to wade through waist-high mud pits, clamber over obstacles and climb up rocky waterfalls during the race, which is in its eighth year. Man-Up UK director Fintan Godkin – himself an Ironman finisher and marathon runner – said it was the first time the charity race had seen so many casualties. “They were dropping like flies,” he said. “At the finish line, 17 people were reported to have signs of hypothermia. We immediately wrapped them in space blankets, duvets, anything we could get our hands on to keep them warm and gave them hot drinks. “Some collapsed soon after crossing the line and others were collapsing in the showers. “Of the 17, four needed further treatment from paramedics who arrived in two ambulances. One had to be taken to hospital because her blood pressure had dropped very low, but she was discharged from Withybush Hospital later that evening.” Mr Godkin said the runner who broke her ankle had fallen badly as she approached a 20-ft (6.1m) slide near the start of the course. He said temperatures on the day were between 4C and 7C. “Not as cold as some years and certainly not cold enough for us to have considered cancelling.” Mr Godkin added: “In eight years, we’ve had 1,750 competitors and this is the first time we’ve had to call an ambulance, I’ve never seen so many snowflakes in my life.”

On This Day

  • 1903 – The Wright brothers make the first controlled powered, heavier-than-air flight in the Wright Flyer at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina.
  • 1969 – Project Blue Book: The United States Air Force closes its study of UFOs.
  • 1989 – The Simpsons first premieres on television with the episode “Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire”.
  • 2003 – The Soham murder trial ends at the Old Bailey in London, with Ian Huntley found guilty of two counts of murder. His girlfriend, Maxine Carr, is found guilty of perverting the course of justice.

Deaths

Last Week’s Birthdays

Miranda Otto (50), Christopher Biggins (69), Charlie Cox (35), Helen Slater (54), Don Johnson (68), Garrett Wang (49), Vanessa Hudgens (29), Natascha McElhone (48), Miranda Hart (45), Ginger Lynn (55), Ted Raimi (52), Vicki Michelle (67), Christopher Plummer (88), Steve Buscemi (60), Dick Van Dyke (92), Jamie Foxx (50), Taylor Swift (28), Jennifer Connelly (47), Mädchen Amick (47), Bill Nighy (68), Sarah Douglas (65), Kenneth Cranham (73), Connie Francis (79), Dionne Warwick (77) and Kenneth Branagh (57).


Dead Pool 10th December 2017

Afternoon all, welcome to a bumper two week edition of The Dead Pool. Seems like the evil flying monkeys decided to venture out to cull a few celebrities to make up for the dearth of deaths last week. With last minute rewrites due to the death of Max Clifford and the collapse of Chris Rea, its certainly been an interesting Sunday morning.

Lets begin with awarding some points! 154 points to Mark for correctly guessing that King Michael of Romania would finally succumb to the Winter cold; which now propels him up to the third place spot!!!

I really hope that you are working on your list for 2018, this year has been exceptional! With all but one of us scoring and many records being broken, I hope that 2018 can be as successful.

Look Who You Could Have Had:

Week ending 3rd December

Week ending 10th December

In Other News 

Singer Chris Rea is said to be in a stable condition in hospital after collapsing during a performance. Fans posted on Twitter that they saw the 66-year-old “fall backwards” mid-song at the New Theatre Oxford. Rea, who is known for his hits “Driving Home for Christmas” and “Road to Hell”, is on tour to promote his new album. A concert due to take place in Brighton on Sunday has now been cancelled. A decision has not yet been made on a concert due in Bournemouth on Tuesday. Darren Fewins, who was in the audience in Oxford, said Rea had been on stage for about 45 minutes when he collapsed halfway through a song. He told the Press Association that Rea, who was born in Middlesbrough, was “playing the best I have ever seen” before his fall. South Central Ambulance Service said it was called at 21:30 GMT to an incident at the venue and that one patient had been taken to hospital. Staff at the theatre tweeted that they “appreciate everyone’s patience” and will update people with news when they have it. Rea had his pancreas removed in 2001 after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. He suffered a stroke in 2016, but recovered to launch an album in September and embark on his tour around Europe from October. He told BBC Breakfast in August this year that he still felt the effects of the stroke. “I’m fine when I’m sitting down. I’ve just got a little bit of balance – it’s a bit dodgy, just in case anyone thinks I’m drunk on-stage.”

Last week the production on the new Freddie Mercury biopic has been suspended so director Bryan Singer can deal with “a personal health matter”. The film, titled Bohemian Rhapsody, will tell the story of the late Queen frontman’s life. Twentieth Century Fox told the BBC work had been temporarily halted “due to the unexpected unavailability” of Singer. The director’s representative said it was “a personal health matter concerning Bryan and his family”. However, since the story aired last week, the director has now been fired due to “unreliable behaviour”. In a statement, Twentieth Century Fox said Bryan Singer was no longer the director of the film. A source told DP Towers  that the main reason for the firing was “a pattern of unreliable behaviour on the set”. But Singer said his firing came while he was ill and that the studio was “unwilling to accommodate” him during his illness. The Hollywood Reporter reported on Monday that Singer had clashed with lead actor Rami Malek and failed to show up for filming on multiple occasions.

A Wolverhampton man who cemented his head inside a microwave said he “doesn’t care” what people think. Jay Swingler, 22, had to be freed by firefighters after the stunt, filmed for his YouTube channel, took a dangerous turn. He said emergency services’ time was not wasted, because “they saved my life”. West Midlands Fire Service said it took an hour to free the man after they were called to a house in Fordhouses, Wolverhampton. Friends had managed to feed an air tube into the 22-year-old’s mouth to help him breathe, the service said. Watch Commander Shaun Dakin said the man “could quite easily have suffocated or have been seriously injured”. Mr Dakin said: “He and a group of friends had mixed seven bags of Polyfilla which they then poured around his head, which was protected by a plastic bag inside the microwave. “The oven was being used as a mould and wasn’t plugged in. The mixture quickly set hard and, by the time we were called, they’d already been trying to free him for an hour and a half.” West Midlands Fire Service said it would not charge the £650 deployment fee as his life was in genuine danger.

Have you ever been so bored with sex that you have considered getting close with a ghostly spirit? That might sound utterly ridiculous and impossible, but according to a woman from Bristol, it is real. Amethyst Realm claims to have had sex with 20 different ghosts in the past 12 years and that they are better than men in the bedroom. The 27-year-old appeared on a recent episode of This Morning where she discussed her experiences. Realm, who is a “spiritual guidance counsellor” states that it all began when she and her then-fiance moved to a new house where she noticed there was a presence or entity. Talking to Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby, Realm said: “It started as an energy, then became physical. There was pressure on my thighs and breath on my neck. I just always felt safe. I had sex with the ghost.” Although she could never see the ghost she claims that she could definitely feel it. She says that she had an affair with the spirit for three years until her partner caught her in the act. Since then she has moved on to other ghosts and has even looked into the possibility of phantom pregnancies.

Japanese authorities are trying to identify eight people whose badly decomposed remains were found on a wooden boat that washed up on a  beach. The discovery took place in the northern Akita prefecture. Crew-less boats or vessels with bodies on board, known as “ghost ships” and thought to be North Korean fishing boats, regularly wash up in Japan. They have usually been found on the western coast, which faces North Korea. In the latest incident, Japanese broadcaster NHK said the boat, measuring about 7m (23ft) long, was found on a beach near Oga city on Sunday. The vessel was missing a rotor blade and navigational devices. On Monday officials found the remains of eight people, some reduced to bones, while inspecting the boat. Kyodo news agency reported that the coast guard suspected the boat and its occupants had come from North Korea. The discovery is the latest in a string of similar incidents. On Friday, a wooden boat carrying eight men – alive and in reasonably good health – washed up at Yurihonjo city. The men said they were North Koreans fishing for squid, who had ended up drifting into Japanese waters when their boat experienced difficulties.

On This Day

3rd December

  • 1984 – Bhopal disaster: A methyl isocyanate leak from a Union Carbide pesticide plant in Bhopal, India, kills more than 3,800 people outright and injures 150,000–600,000 others (some 6,000 of whom would later die from their injuries) in one of the worst industrial disasters in history.
  • 1992 – A test engineer for Sema Group uses a personal computer to send the world’s first text message via the Vodafone network to the phone of a colleague.
  • 1994 – The PlayStation was released in Japan

10th December

  • 1799 – France adopts the metre as its official unit of length.
  • 1868 – The first traffic lights are installed, outside the Palace of Westminster in London. Resembling railway signals, they use semaphore arms and are illuminated at night by red and green gas lamps.

Deaths

3rd December

10th December

  • 1896 – Alfred Nobel, Swedish chemist, invented Dynamite & founded the Nobel Prize (b. 1833)
  • 1928 – Charles Rennie Mackintosh, Scottish architect and painter (b. 1868)
  • 1967 – Otis Redding, American singer-songwriter and producer (b. 1941)
  • 1978 – Ed Wood, American director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1924)
  • 2005 – Richard Pryor, American comedian, actor, and screenwriter (b. 1940)
  • 2006 – Augusto Pinochet, Chilean general, 30th President of Chile (b. 1915)

Last Week’s Birthdays

Up to 3rd December – Lucy Liu (49), Britney Spears (36), Connie Booth (73), Nelly Furtado (39), Woody Allen (82), Sarah Silverman (47), Deep Roy (60), Bette Midler (72), Ben Stiller (52), Ridley Scott (80), Mandy Patinkin (65), Billy Idol (62), Diane Ladd (82), Don Cheadle (53), Jeff Fahey (65), Gena Lee Nolin (46), Simon Amstell (38), Karen Gillan (30), Ed Harris (67), Judd Nelson (58), Jon Stewart (55), Martin Clunes (56), Armando Iannucci (54), Sharlto Copley (44), Bill Nye (62), Rita Ora (27), Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson (29) and Tina Turner (78).

Up to 10th December – Judi Dench (83), John Malkovich (64), Kirk Douglas (101), Beau Bridges (76), Michael Dorn (65), Donny Osmond (59), Kim Basinger (64), Teri Hatcher (53), Nicki Minaj (35), C. Thomas Howell (51), Kristofer Hivju (39), Ellen Burstyn (85), Judd Apatow (50), Tom Hulce (64), Nick Park (59), Frankie Muniz (32), Marisa Tomei (53), Jeff Bridges (68), Tony Todd (63), Tyra Banks (44), Pamela Stephenson (68), Jay Z (48), Julianne Moore (57), Brendan Fraser (49), Amanda Seyfried (32), Daryl Hannah (57), Jean-Luc Godard (87) and Ozzy Osbourne (69).


Dead Pool 26th November 2017

Afternoon Poolers. Surprisingly, no points this week, we were pretty sure some of you had Charles Manson, however he slipped through the net this year. Not to worry though, there are plenty more potentially dead celebrities on the casting couch.

Look Who You Could Have Had:

In Other News

Manchester United captain Michael Carrick has revealed he has not played since September because of an irregular heart rhythm. The 36-year-old has played just once this season, in the 4-1 win against Burton in the Carabao Cup third round on 20th September. Carrick says he “felt strange” during the second half of the game and after tests had a cardiac ablation procedure. He said in a statement: “I’m healthy and back training hard with the team.” The England midfielder says he was “monitored closely” and “aiming to be back in contention for selection soon.” The British Heart Foundation says an ablation is a treatment that aims to control or correct certain types of abnormal heart rhythms. Carrick joined Manchester United from Tottenham in 2006 and has won five Premier League titles, the Champions League, Europa League and Fifa Club World Cup with the club.

Ant McPartlin has returned to television screens following his stint in rehab – with I’m a Celebrity co-host Declan Donnelly joking he had been replaced. The presenting duo opened with a joke talking about Ant’s return. “It’s me and the gorgeous Holly Willoughby!” joked Dec. “Wait, no! Guys that’s the wrong script! You’ve put the wrong script in!” He followed with: “No one was sure if you’d make it!’” McPartlin thanked fans for their support and said: “I was always going to make it, come on. I’m back my friend”, as the two hugged. McPartlin in June admitted to going into rehab for painkiller addiction. The problem is believed to have stemmed from a knee operation in 2015. The presenter, 42, who celebrated his birthday over the weekend, tweeted to fans: “Aaaaaaannnddd, we’re off!! It’s good to be back. Enjoy! A”.

Scotland Yard is investigating a new allegation of sexual assault made against Kevin Spacey. The claim was made on Friday and alleges an assault took place on a man in Lambeth in 2005. It was made the same day the Old Vic released the results of an internal investigation – the theatre said it received 20 personal testimonies of alleged inappropriate behaviour!!! This new claim is in addition to a 2008 assault being investigated by the Met. Scotland Yard confirmed officers from the Child Abuse and Sexual Offences Command are investigating the complaint. The theatre said it “truly apologises” for not creating a culture where people felt able to speak freely after those affected said they “felt unable to raise concerns”, and that he “operated without sufficient accountability”. Sounds exactly the same as the BBC’s statement once Jimmy Savile was outed.

And finally, British model Demi Rose Mawby has been left fearing for her safety after being repeatedly propositioned by delivery men. The 22 year old – who was romantically linked to Kylie Jenner’s ex Tyga – said she was “really pissed off” and would no longer have packages delivered to her London home. The Birmingham-born model said she had twice been propositioned by delivery men after she gave her name, address and phone number when ordering goods for her new address. “I’m sick of it, it’s not safe for me, I don’t understand what I’m meant to do. I’m just a girl – I just want to get things ordered. Today or tomorrow I could open the door to the wrong person.” Demi Rose said a delivery man asked for her phone number after he dropped off a cat climber at her home on Thursday. She said it happened as she accepted the delivery in her gym gear – and he abused her personal details to text her even after she rebuffed his advances. Demi Rose tweeted: “I’ve been safe so far but that’s what why I’m stopping all deliveries to my house because it does take one sick person to go a step further.” The model has rocketed to fame over the past few years and has been dubbed the UK’s “Queen of Instagram”. I wonder if the thought that the delivery man didn’t even know who she was entered her mind?

On This Day

  • 1922 – Howard Carter and Lord Carnarvon become the first people to enter the tomb of Pharaoh Tutankhamun in over 3000 years.
  • 1970 – In Basse-Terre, Guadeloupe, 1.5 inches (38.1 mm) of rain fall in a minute, the heaviest rainfall ever recorded.
  • 1976 – “Anarchy in the U.K.”, the debut single of the Sex Pistols, is released, heralding the arrival of punk rock.
  • 1983 – Brink’s-Mat robbery: In London, 6,800 gold bars worth nearly £26 million are stolen from the Brink’s-Mat vault at Heathrow Airport.
  • 2003 – The Concorde makes its final flight, over Bristol, England.

Deaths

  • 1860 – Benjamin Greene, English brewer, founded Greene King (b. 1780)
  • 1926 – John Browning, American weapons designer, founded the Browning Arms Company (b. 1855)
  • 1996 – Michael Bentine, English actor and screenwriter (b. 1922)

Last Week’s Birthdays

Christina Applegate (46), Billy Burke (51), John Larroquette (70), Bruno Tonioli (62), Mark Frost (64), Sarah Hyland (27), Katherine Heigl (39), Stephen Merchant (43), Denise Crosby (60), Billy Connolly (75), Dwight Schultz (70), Conleth Hill (53), Miley Cyrus (25), Kelly Brook (38), Ricky Whittle (35), Michelle Gomez (51), Scarlett Johansson (33), Mark Ruffalo (50), Mads Mikkelsen (52), Jamie Lee Curtis (59), Terry Gilliam (77), Tom Conti (76), Goldie Hawn (72), Alexander Siddig (52), Björk (52), Carly Rae Jepsen (32), Sean Young (58), Bo Derek (61), Ming-Na Wen (54), Joe Biden (75), Jodie Foster (55), Meg Ryan (56), Terry Farrell (54) and Robert Beltran (64).


Dead Pool 19th November 2017

It’s a bumper edition this week, after the previous issue was rather lacklustre in content, the Dead Pool Towers editorial team had to keep more stories out than in! No points to be awarded this week, with exactly six weeks to go! I hope you’re all busy researching your lists for 2018!

Look Who You Could Have Had:

  • Ila Jones, 114, American supercentenarian.
  • Henry Badenhorst, 51, South African businessman, co-founder of Gaydar, suicide by jumping.
  • Keith Barron, 83, English actor (Duty Free; Upstairs, Downstairs; The Nigel Barton Plays).
  • Lil Peep, 21, American singer and rapper, drug overdose.
  • Gary the Goat, 6, Australian celebrity goat, euthanised.
  • Hiromi Tsuru, 57, Japanese voice actress (Dragon Ball, Metal Gear Solid, Ghost Sweeper Mikami), aortic dissection.
  • Ann Wedgeworth, 83, American actress (Three’s Company, Evening Shade, Steel Magnolias), Tony winner (1978)
  • Dik Mik, 72–73, English keyboard player (Hawkwind).
  • Malcolm Young, 64, Scottish-Australian musician and songwriter (AC/DC), dementia.

In Other News

Paul O’Grady has become poorly again. He was filming his ITV documentary For the Love of Dogs, in India, and of course he picked up an infection from one of the dogs he was handling. The Scouse wimp later collapsed and was rushed for emergency treatment at a hospital. Paul was told by doctors he was at risk of kidney failure, but sadly they were able to save him. Every time we write about Paul, hundreds of followers extol how much they hate him. One summed up the mood with: “Come on Paul please look after yourself we can’t lose you, you are too precious, it’s six weeks until January”. The Cheshire-born entertainer rose to fame with his outrageous alter ego, the sharp-tongued Lily Savage. Last week he had This Morning hosts Eamonn Holmes and Ruth Langford in stitches as he regaled them with tales of his country life, although he couldn’t do anything about the rescue dog he’d brought with him from Battersea Dogs’ Home doing a wee on the hay bale he was sitting on! Oh the hilarity!!!

David Cassidy, the actor known for playing Keith on The Partridge Family, was hospitalised for multiple organ failure and is in critical condition. The actor has been in the hospital for three days. He is in need of a liver transplant and has kidney failure. Cassidy’s health is rapidly deteriorating, but that he is “conscious now and surrounded by family.” The news comes after the actor revealed in February that he has dementia. The 67-year-old actor-singer said at the time that his family has a history of dementia and he had sensed “this was coming.” Cassidy, whose song hits include “I Think I Love You” and “Cherish,” said he would stop touring to focus on his health and “enjoy life.” Look how well that went..

Serial killer Rose West is said to be ‘seriously ill’ behind bars. The 63-year-old, who was convicted of killing 10 women, is allegedly ‘not in a good way’ after coming down with an illness that ‘may kill her’. According to insiders, she has been escorted to the prison medical centre in HMP Low Newton, Durham, for treatment. An insider said: ‘She is very ill. Her medical records are closely guarded, and she has a very small circle of staff and fellow inmates in jail, so hardly anyone knows exactly what’s wrong with her. ‘The rumour is that it’s very serious, and could even finish her off. West’s life is planned to the letter, because her notoriety makes her very vulnerable to attacks from fellow inmates. ‘It also means that when she requires medical attention or prescribed drugs, the entire wing is locked down so she is not attacked while visiting the doctor or pharmacist.’ Rose West hit the headlines alongside husband Fred when nine bodies were found at their home in Gloucester. Among the dead was their 16-year-old daughter Heather. Rose West – who tried to blame her husband for the murders – was sentenced to life in prison in 1995. Fred hanged himself on New Year’s Day 1995 while awaiting trial.

In other prison news, Charles Manson has been hospitalised and, as one source familiar with his situation says, “it’s not going to get any better for him.” We’re told Manson was  rushed to a Bakersfield hospital three days ago, and has been wheeled around on a gurney for various treatments … escorted by five uniformed cops. We’re told the 83-year-old Manson, who lays still covered in blankets, looks ashen. Our sources say Manson’s health has been steadily deteriorating and, as it was put to us, “It’s just a matter of time.” Manson had serious health issues back in January as well, when he was hospitalised for severe intestinal bleeding and needed surgery to repair a lesion … but was deemed too weak by doctors and sent back to prison. Let’s hope he lasts until January!

US civil rights activist Jesse Jackson has been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. “My family and I began to notice changes about three years ago,” Mr Jackson, aged 76, wrote in a statement. “After a battery of tests, my physicians identified the issue as Parkinson’s disease, a disease that bested my father.” Parkinson’s is an incurable neurological disease that can cause tremors and affect coordination. “Recognition of the effects of this disease on me has been painful, and I have been slow to grasp the gravity of it,” Mr Jackson said. He said the diagnosis was “not a stop sign but rather a signal that I must make lifestyle changes and dedicate myself to physical therapy in hopes of slowing the disease’s progression”. Mr Jackson fought for civil rights alongside Martin Luther King Jr in the 1960s. He was twice a candidate for the Democratic Party’s presidential nomination, in 1984 and 1988.

And finally, junior competition drag racing has been banned in Western Australia pending a police investigation into the death of an eight-year-old Perth girl at the weekend. Anita Board was killed after she lost control of her vehicle at the end of her solo run at Perth Motorplex and crashed into a cement barrier during the Goldenstates Junior Dragster event on Saturday. She died in Princess Margaret Hospital for Children on Sunday. Anita turned eight on Thursday, the minimum racing age under the rules of the drag-racing association. Racers aged between eight and ten must not exceed 60 mph, but it is understood the top speeds of vehicles driven by beginners are much lower. The premier Mark McGowan, who is in China, and sports minister, Mick Murray, both said they were unaware young children could participate in such events. “I was very surprised … but in saying that, from my understanding, it was well controlled but an unfortunate accident,” Murray told reporters. “We can’t wrap our kids up in cotton wool, but we do need to make sure that we are protecting them and that they aren’t taking unnecessary risks,” he said. Makes me wonder why my parents, during the 80’s when paedophiles and guns were allowed, insisted that I was seventeen to drive….

On This Day

  • 1911 – The Doom Bar in Cornwall claimed two ships, Island Maid and Angele, the latter killing the entire crew except the captain.
  • 1969 – Apollo program: Apollo 12 astronauts Pete Conrad and Alan Bean land at Oceanus Procellarum (the “Ocean of Storms”) and become the third and fourth humans to walk on the Moon.
  • 1994 – In the United Kingdom, the first National Lottery draw is held. A £1 ticket gave a one-in-14-million chance of correctly guessing the winning six out of 49 numbers.

Deaths

Last Week’s Birthdays

Chloë Sevigny (43), Linda Evans (75), Owen Wilson (49), Delroy Lindo (65), Margaret Atwood (78), Rachel McAdams (39), Tom Ellis (39), Martin Scorsese (75), Sophie Marceau (51), Danny DeVito (73), Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio (59), RuPaul (57), Jonathan Ross (57), Maggie Gyllenhaal (40), Missi Pyle (45), Martha Plimpton (47), Gemma Atkinson (33), Gigi Edgley (40), Jonny Lee Miller (45), Beverly D’Angelo (66), Edward Asner (88), Petula Clark (85), Sandahl Bergman (66), Paul McGann (58), Gerard Butler (48), Whoopi Goldberg (62), Jimmy Kimmel (50), Ryan Gosling (37), Anne Hathaway (35), Wallace Shawn (74), Max Grodénchik (65), Charles Manson (83) and Neil Young (72).


Dead Pool 12th November 2017

Welcome peeps, another week flies by, alas no points to be awarded. I was asked the question a couple of weeks ago, who has scored the most on our little Dead Pool. Well, since we changed over to the current scoring format, I can now reveal that our top scorer of all time is Laura from 2016 with an astounding 654 points. That year she correctly guessed her Cert and Woman, and also got the first death of the year. A few of her chosen were rather young to die as well. So that’s the benchmark people! Also, some of you may be wondering who has guessed the most deaths in a year, well, this achievement has been broken this year, Martin now holds this record with seven deaths out of a possible thirteen. Also a claim to fame, the only person to have correctly guessed a Maverick is Stu back in 2014, although listing the third heaviest man of all time was a tiny bit outside the brief of a Maverick.

Look Who You Could Have Had:

  • Karin Dor, 79, German actress (You Only Live Twice, Topaz).
  • Roy Halladay, 40, American baseball player (Toronto Blue Jays, Philadelphia Phillies), Cy Young Award winner (2003, 2010), plane crash.
  • Carl Sargeant, 49, Welsh politician, AM (since 2003).
  • John Hillerman, 84, American actor (Magnum, P.I., Chinatown, Blazing Saddles), Emmy winner (1987).
  • Chuck Mosley, 57, American singer (Faith No More, Bad Brains) and songwriter (“We Care a Lot”), complications from alcoholism.
  • Antonio Carluccio, 80, Italian chef, restaurateur and television presenter (Two Greedy Italians), fall.
  • Shyla Stylez, 35, Canadian pornographic actress.

In Other News 

As reported a few weeks ago on The Dead Pool, the chances of us all dying of The Black Death has just been upped a notch as Malawi has been put on high alert over fears the plague, which has killed at least 140 people in Madagascar, could hit the East African country. It is now the tenth nation in Africa to be put on alert over concerns surrounding the Black Death, which was behind one of the devastating pandemics in history, wiping out a third of Medieval Europe in the 1300s. South Africa, Mauritius, Mozambique, Seychelles, Tanzania, La Reunion and Mayotte, Kenya, Ethiopia and Comoros have all been warned to prepare for a potential outbreak of the deadly disease. The plague has swept across the island nation since late summer, moving beyond the areas where it traditionally occurs, with at least 2,034 suspected or confirmed cases reported between 1 August to 8 November, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO). The WHO has pledge £3.8m to fight the disease and prepare surrounding countries for potential spread, but it says it could take months to bring the outbreak under control.

And because it’s a very slow news week, have a comic instead.

On This Day

  • 1912 – The frozen bodies of Robert Scott and his men are found on the Ross Ice Shelf in Antarctica.
  • 1970 – The Oregon Highway Division attempts to destroy a rotting beached Sperm whale with explosives, leading to the now infamous “exploding whale” incident.
  • 1990 – Tim Berners-Lee publishes a formal proposal for the World Wide Web.

Deaths

Last Week’s Birthdays

Leonardo DiCaprio (43), Demi Moore (55), Stanley Tucci (57), Calista Flockhart (53), June Whitfield (92), Hugh Bonneville (54), Roland Emmerich (62), Tracy Morgan (49), Neil Gaiman (57), Ennio Morricone (88), Lou Ferrigno (66), Tony Slattery (58), Gretchen Mol (45), Tara Reid (42), Matthew Rhys (43), Richard Curtis (61), Gordon Ramsay (51), Lorde (21), Joni Mitchell (74), Emma Stone (29), Sally Field (71), Ethan Hawke (47), Thandie Newton (45), Rebecca Romijn (45), Lori Singer (60), Maria Shriver (62), Nigel Havers (66), Famke Janssen (53), Tilda Swinton (57), Robert Patrick (59), Sam Rockwell (49), Tatum O’Neal (54), Elke Sommer (77), Tamzin Outhwaite (47), Armin Shimerman (68), Art Garfunkel (76) and Chris Addison (46).


Dead Pool 5th November 2017

Welcome to the not so special Bonfire Night edition! As stars, politicians and celebrities are falling to sexual harassment allegations, perhaps we should now be listing the men as potentials for the near future. Careers destroyed and reputations in tatters from the touch of a knee to much, much more could easily push one or two over the edge! Will you list the naked Chris Evans? The ‘I’m not gay I just like small boys’ Kevin Spacey? Or the rapist Weinstein? Obviously these are all ‘alleged’ assaults and unproven as of yet, (just covering my arse legally) but it’s a tempting thought, there’s 92 points going if Spacey decides the pressure it too much…

Look Who You Could Have Had:

  • Deon Stewardson, 66, South African actor (Wild at Heart), suicide.
  • Kim Joo-hyuk, 45, South Korean actor (The Servant, My Wife Got Married, Confidential Assignment), traffic collision.
  • Brad Bufanda, 34, American actor (Veronica Mars, A Cinderella Story, Co-Ed Confidential), suicide by jumping.
  • Paddy Russell, 89, British television director (Doctor Who, Out of the Unknown, The Omega Factor).
  • Isabel Granada, 41, Filipino actress and singer, aneurysm.

In Other News

After a long and drawn out dispute, the body of the Moors murderer Ian Brady has been secretly cremated and his ashes disposed of at sea in the middle of the night. Court documents reveal that Brady’s body was incinerated without ceremony in Southport on Wednesday 25th October. His ashes were placed in a weighted biodegradable urn, driven to Liverpool Marina and dispatched at sea on Thursday 26th October at 2.30am. Earlier in October, a senior judge ordered that responsibility for supervising the disposal of Brady’s body be taken out of the hands of his solicitor and executor of his will, Robin Makin, and placed with Tameside borough council. Brady’s body was collected from the mortuary at Royal Liverpool hospital by a Tameside council official at about 9pm. Under police escort, the corpse was taken to Southport crematorium, where the cremation began at 10pm exactly. No music or flowers were allowed. In a joint statement responding to the news that Brady’s body had been disposed of, Tameside and Oldham councils said: “We are pleased that this matter is now concluded and we are grateful for the support and professionalism shown … to ensure Ian Stewart-Brady’s body and remains were disposed of expediently at sea in a manner compatible with the public interest and those of the victims’ relatives.”

After more than a week of being in coma, actress Isabel Granada has succumbed to brain hemorrhage due to aneurysm in Qatar. She was 41. The remains of the ’80s teen star will be brought back to the Philippines by her hubsand on Wednesday. According to him, while he and the actress were at a friend’s wake in Australia, the actress said she would like her body to be cremated, but the decision still lies on the actress’ mother. A day before she suddenly collapsed and went on coma, Isabel posted this on Facebook, as if she had a premonition: “As you turn your attention to Christ Jesus, feel the Light of His Presence shining upon you. Open your mind and heart to receive His heavenly smile of approval. Let His gold-tinged Love wash over you and soak into the depths of your being. As you are increasingly filled with His Being, you experience joyous union with Him. He suffuses your soul with Joy in His Presence; at His right hand there are pleasures forevermore.” Yeah, well…

Oh, just when you thought it was safe to live your life again, it appears that a deadly outbreak of a rare and highly fatal virus has broken out in eastern Uganda and five cases have already been identified, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has confirmed. The disease, known as Marburg virus disease (MVD), is similar to Ebola and can be lethal in up to 90 per cent of cases. Emergency screening has begun at the Kenya-Uganda border in Turkana after three members of the same family died of the disease in Uganda. The outbreak is thought to have started in September when a man in his 30s, who worked as a game hunter and lived near a cave with a heavy presence of bats, was admitted to a local health centre with a high fever, vomiting and diarrhoea. He did not respond to antimalarial treatment and his condition rapidly deteriorated. He was quickly taken to another hospital in the neighbouring district, but died shortly after arriving. His sister, in her 50s, died shortly afterwards and a third victim passed away in the treatment unit of a local health centre. Several hundred people are believed to have been exposed to the virus, which is among the most virulent pathogens known to infect humans. Early symptoms include fever, chills, headache, and myalgia. The news comes as Madagascar faces a deadly outbreak of plague, which has already claimed the lives of 127 people. The outbreak has been compared with the Black Death, when plague swept across Europe and Asia in the 13th century, killing more than 50 million people in what is now considered one of the worst pandemics in human history. Two thirds of the recorded cases in Madagascar are caused by the pneumonic plague, which can be spread through coughs and sneezes and without treatment, can kill within 24 hours. The outbreak has prompted warnings that it could spread to nine nearby countries, including UK holiday hotspots Mauritius and the Seychelles. Best stay at home then…

On This Day

  • 1605 – Gunpowder Plot: Guy Fawkes is arrested.
  • 1912 – Woodrow Wilson is elected the 28th President of the United States, defeating incumbent William Howard Taft.
  • 2006 – Saddam Hussein, former president of Iraq, and his co-defendants Barzan Ibrahim al-Tikriti and Awad Hamed al-Bandar, are sentenced to death in the al-Dujail trial for their roles in the 1982 massacre of 148 Shi’a Muslims.
  • 2007 – Android mobile operating system is unveiled by Google.
  • 2009 – U.S. Army Major Nidal Malik Hasan murders 13 and wounds 32 at Fort Hood, Texas in the deadliest mass shooting at a U.S. military installation.

Deaths

  • 1987 – Eamonn Andrews, Irish radio and television host (b. 1922)
  • 1991 – Robert Maxwell, Czech-English captain, publisher, and politician (b. 1923)

Last Week’s Birthdays

Matthew McConaughey (48), Ralph Macchio (56), Loretta Swit (80), Kate Capshaw (64), Dolph Lundgren (60), Roseanne Barr (65), Kendall Jenner (22), Dylan Moran (46), Lulu (68), Adam Ant (63), David Schwimmer (51), Stefanie Powers (75), Toni Collette (45), Jenny McCarthy (45), Anthony Kiedis (55), Lyle Lovett (59), Larry Flynt (75), Peter Jackson (56), Erica Cerra (38), Stephen Rea (71), Vanilla Ice (50), Debbie McGee (59), Clémence Poésy (35), Jessica Hynes (45), Henry Winkler (72), Ivanka Trump (36), Juliet Stevenson (61), Winona Ryder (46), Rufus Sewell (50), Richard Dreyfuss (70) and Dan Castellaneta (53).


Dead Pool 29th October 2017

Welcome once again to a pointless edition of The Dead Pool. Only two months left to go, it’s still too close to call at the top end of the table. Luckily I bumped into the top two contenders last night and both have agreed, that in the unlikely event of a draw, the winner will be decided by a ‘gin-off’, rules to be made up at the time. Wont that be fun 😀

Look Who You Could Have Had:

  • Rosemary Leach, 81, English actress (A Room with a View, The Roads to Freedom, The Plague Dogs).
  • George Young, 70, Scottish-born Australian musician (The Easybeats), songwriter (“Friday on My Mind”, “Love Is in the Air”), and producer (AC/DC).
  • Fats Domino, 89, American Hall of Fame pianist and singer-songwriter (“Blueberry Hill”, “Ain’t That a Shame”, “I’m Walkin'”).
  • Robert Guillaume, 89, American actor and singer (Benson, The Lion King, Sports Night), Emmy winner (1979, 1985), prostate cancer.
  • John Mollo, 86, British costume designer (Star Wars, Alien, Gandhi), Oscar winner (1977, 1982), complications from vascular dementia.

In Other News

Robbie Williams has said he cancelled a recent tour due to “very worrying” test results that saw him admitted to an intensive care unit. Williams, who released his album Heavy  Entertainment Show last year, cancelled three gigs in Russia in September 2017. He has since uploaded a video to YouTube where he explained that the cancellations were due to an illness. “I’ve been recovering from an illness now for the last five weeks,” he said in the video. “Unfortunately that illness kicked in just at the end of my tour, a tour which was going so well. Then I got some test results. They were very worrying and I ended up in ICU, so I couldn’t go. “I haven’t pulled out of a tour for bad health since 1998 so you know if I can’t do it then there’s something going on that I just can’t do.” Williams said his recovery had led to him becoming vegan and take up pilates: “I do yoga every day and have a really big burger on a Sunday,” So, not quite vegan then….. “I’m not feeling 100 per cent but I’m getting there, and I know I’m going to be better than ever,” he said.

The UK’s top civil servant, Sir Jeremy Heywood, has been receiving treatment for cancer. The Cabinet Office said Sir Jeremy, who has been cabinet secretary since 2012, was diagnosed in June. In a statement, it said the 55-year old had received treatment over the summer and the early autumn which “went well”. Sir Jeremy, it added, had continued his “normal duties” during this period with the full support of his doctors and remained “totally focused” on doing so. As cabinet secretary and head of the civil service, Sir Jeremy is responsible for advising the prime minister and cabinet on the business of government, including the UK’s withdrawal from the EU. The Cabinet Office said it would be making no further comment on “this private matter”. Sir Jeremy, who is sometimes characterised in the media as the most powerful figure in the British government, has worked closely with four prime ministers during a 25-year career in Whitehall.

Remember old King Bhumibol Adulyadej who died just over a year ago? Well, after a year of mourning, and I do mean mourning, Thailand basically shut down, no colour TV allowed, everyone had to wear dark colours or the fashion police really would put you in jail, no fun was allowed to be had upon pain of death. Children were literally not allowed to play!!! Anyhow, the old chap has finally been cremated and the new king has picked out parts of his father’s remains so they could be enshrined as relics. The new monarch Maha Vajiralongkorn presided over the burning of his father’s remains in a golden crematorium at a late-night ceremony in Bangkok, as part a spectacular five-day funeral. After bathing the charred bones, he placed them into golden urns in preparation for blessings by monks. Then he lead a procession of the ashes through the streets of Thailand’s capital. Bhumibol’s remains have now been transferred to spiritually significant locations for Buddhist rites that will prepare them to be enshrined on the final day of an elaborate funeral that has transfixed the nation. Personally, when you find me dead in my chair, half eaten by the cat, a bin liner will do, then just leave me out for the dustmen.

On This Day

  • 1618 – English adventurer, writer, and courtier Sir Walter Raleigh is beheaded for allegedly conspiring against James I of England.
  • 1929 – The New York Stock Exchange crashes in what will be called the Crash of ’29 or “Black Tuesday”, ending the Great Bull Market of the 1920s and beginning the Great Depression.
  • 1969 – The first-ever computer-to-computer link is established on ARPANET, the precursor to the Internet.
  • 1998 – Space Shuttle Discovery blasts off on STS-95 with 77-year-old John Glenn on board, making him the oldest person to go into space.

Deaths

  • 1618 – Walter Raleigh, English admiral, explorer, and politician, Lieutenant Governor of Jersey (b. 1554)
  • 2011 – Jimmy Savile, English radio and television host, lover of children (b. 1926)

Last Week’s Birthdays

Gwendoline Christie (39), Julia Roberts (50), Joaquin Phoenix (43), Matt Smith (35), Annie Potts (65), John Cleese (78), Robert Picardo (64), Kelly Osbourne (33), Seth MacFarlane (44), Cary Elwes (55), Jon Heder (40), Keith Urban (50), Hillary Clinton (70), Katy Perry (33), Nancy Cartwright (60), Kevin Kline (70), F. Murray Abraham (78), Emilia Clarke (31), Ryan Reynolds (41), Sam Raimi (58), Ang Lee (63), ‘Weird Al’ Yankovic (58) and Cat Deeley (41).


Dead Pool 22nd October 2017

Afternoon everyone! Another edition hits the stands, alas no points to award this week. We are now on the 10-week countdown and things are still pretty tight at the top of the leader board, one death of a Cert/Woman/Maverick is all that is needed to clinch the top spot for many of you. If you haven’t already, now is a good time to start researching your list for 2018 and also tell your friends, as the more people who take part, the more fun it can be.

Look Who You Could Have Had:

  • Roy Dotrice, 94, British actor (Amadeus, A Moon for the Misbegotten, Game of Thrones), Tony winner (2000).
  • Sean Hughes, 51, Irish comedian (Never Mind the Buzzcocks, Sean’s Show) and actor (The Last Detective).
  • Gord Downie, 53, Canadian musician (The Tragically Hip) and activist (Lake Ontario Waterkeeper, residential school reconciliation), glioblastoma.
  • Brent Briscoe, 56, American actor (Twin Peaks, A Simple Plan, Sling Blade) and screenwriter.
  • Umberto Lenzi, 86, Italian film director (Cannibal Ferox, Nightmare City, Ghosthouse).
  • Honorine Rondello, 114, French supercentenarian, nation’s oldest living person.
  • Rosemary Leach, 81, English actress (A Room with a View, The Roads to Freedom, The Plague Dogs).
  • Judith McGrath, 70, Australian actress (Prisoner, A Country Practice, All Saints).

In Other News

Ginger pop star Ed Sheeran has broken his right arm, putting his upcoming tour dates in jeopardy. “I’ve had a bit of a bicycle accident,” wrote the star on his Instagram page, posting a picture of his arm in a cast. “I’m currently waiting on some medical advice, which may affect some of my upcoming shows. Please stay tuned for further news.” The 26-year-old was on a break from his world tour, but was due to resume with a gig in Taipei next week. He has a further 14 dates scheduled this year, including concerts in Japan, South Korea and Thailand, before kicking off the Australian leg of his tour in March 2018.    Sheeran famously plays his concerts solo – using just a guitar and a loop pedal to layer up songs. Losing the use of his right arm would make such a set-up impractical – but, speaking to BBC News earlier this year, Sheeran said he would never consider playing with a backing band because he’s a wanker who wants all the glory for himself. “I don’t feel like there’s anything interesting or new about seeing a singer-songwriter with a band behind them,” he said, sure The Beatles had nothing going for them… “I don’t feel like if I suddenly got a band, everyone would go, ‘Wow!’. I actually feel it’d take away from me.” Yeah, more talented musicians on the stage….

In another bike related event, but a bit more hardcore than falling off your bloody bycycle, Gerard Butler was rushed to hospital after he got run off the road on his motorbike. The Hollywood actor was riding his motorbike on the streets of LA when he got cut up by a woman trying to park her car.  She reversed into his bike and he “did a somersault about 30ft in the air”. The 47-year-old actor revealed he has five fractures in his right foot and a fracture in his left foot, along with a painful knee injury. “The more I think about it I got quite lucky because I went through the air. I did like 30 feet and did a somersault and smashed right down. “I guess I could have landed a lot of ways that it could have gone went worse. I got a few fractures on my feet and I messed up my knee.” Not only this, he actually put himself into anaphylactic shock after injecting himself with the venom of 23 bee stings.  Butler told the ITV chat show Lorraine: “I had heard of this guy injecting bee venom, because apparently it has many anti-inflammatory compounds. So, I’m like: ‘Come, come to New Orleans where we’re filming.’ So, he gives me a shot, and I go: ‘Oh, that’s interesting’ – because it stings. “Then he gives me 10 shots, and then I have the worst reaction. I kind of enter this anaphylactic shock. It’s awful, creepy crawlies all over me, swelled up, heart’s going to explode. But I go through it, and then I find out he gave me 10 times too much.” Butler was immediately taken to hospital, but admitted that four days later he decided to give the remedy another go. “I decide to do it again because, I think: ‘Maybe I just took too much.’ So, he’s on the phone, and this time I have to go to the hospital [again].” Bee stings have been used as a remedy, known as apitherapy, for centuries, initially by placing live bees on inflamed areas and in more modern times by extracting the venom from the living bees and injecting it. Jeff Goldblum, a guest with Butler on BBC1’s The Graham Norton Show, gently mocked the Scot’s use of the remedy. “I’ve done some cockamamie things in my time but that is crazy,” he said.

Wildlife TV presenter and comedian Bill Oddie has been struck with a health condition that makes him hear music in his left ear. The acclaimed conservationist keeps hearing jumbled brass band tunes and bagpipe solos. The phenomenon, a form of tinnitus, is rarely reported because people fear the symptoms are a sign of a psychiatric illness or dementia. Other people with the condition have heard rock music or HMS Pinafore, the Gilbert & Sullivan operetta. The 76-year-old former Goodie and presenter of the BBC’s Springwatch said: “It has been going on for about four months and there is no pattern to when or why it starts. It’s a military-style band of the 1940s but not as nice as a Glenn Miller swing sound. “It varies quite a bit and it is difficult to distinguish a tune but nearly every day it involves a bagpipe solo. “At the moment I can live with it but I’d rather not. I’m intrigued and wonder how many other people have experienced something similar.” Bill first noticed the sounds earlier this year while working in the office at his London home. He added: “I thought someone had left the radio on so I followed the noise but it wascoming with me,  which was weird.”Dr Will Sedley, a lecturer in neurology at Newcastle University, said: “It is more common than you might think although we believe it goes unreported because people are worried that they will be thought of as going mad. But this is a stand-alone condition and not normally a feature of any wider disorder such as dementia.” The true horror of what is actually happening to him is pictured to the right.

On This Day

  • 1917 – Lenin calls for the October Revolution.
  • 1929 – Wall Street Crash of 1929. After a steady decline in stock market prices since a peak in September, the New York Stock Exchange begins to crash.
  • 1958 – The Smurfs, a fictional race of blue dwarves, later popularised in a Hanna-Barbera animated cartoon series, appear for the first time in the story La flute à six schtroumpfs.  
  • 2002 – Moscow theater hostage crisis: Chechen terrorists seize the House of Culture theatre in Moscow and take approximately 700 theatre-goers hostage.
  • 2012 – After 38 years, the world’s first teletext service (BBC’s Ceefax) ceases broadcast due to Northern Ireland completing the digital switchover.

Deaths

  • 1915 – W. G. Grace, English cricketer and physician (b. 1848)
  • 1950 – Al Jolson, Lithuanian-American actor and singer (b. 1886)
  • 1957 – Christian Dior, French fashion designer, founded Christian Dior S.A. (b. 1905)
  • 2001 – Josh Kirby, English illustrator (b. 1928)
  • 2014 – Alvin Stardust, English singer and actor (b. 1942)
  • 2016 – Pete Burns, English singer-songwriter (b. 1959)

Last Week’s Birthdays

Christopher Lloyd (78), Jeff Goldblum (64), Bob Odenkirk (54), Catherine Deneuve (73), Derek Jacobi (78), Jesse Tyler Ferguson (41), Everett McGill (72), Ken Watanabe (58), Kim Kardashian West (37), Viggo Mortensen (59), Danny Boyle (61), Snoop Dogg (46), Michael Gambon (77), John Lithgow (72), John le Carré (86), Zac Efron (30), Jean-Claude Van Damme (57), Pam Dawber (66), Eminem (45), Margot Kidder (69), Mark Gatiss (51), George Wendt (69), Angela Lansbury (92), Tim Robbins (59), Suzanne Somers (71), Peter Bowles (81) and Gary Kemp (58).


Dead Pool 15th October 2017

Apologies for the lateness of this weeks edition, however, you haven’t missed much, nobody of real note seems to have died. Next week is already shaping up as “a good un” with several good stories and a death of a well known comedian and it’s only Monday!!

Look Who You Could Have Had:

  • Jean Rochefort, 87, French actor (Lost in La Mancha, The Phantom of Liberty, Mr. Bean’s Holiday).
  • Bob Schiller, 98, American screenwriter (I Love Lucy, All in the Family, The Carol Burnett Show), Emmy winner (1971, 1978).
  • Grape-kun, 20, Humboldt penguin.
  • William Lombardy, 79, American chess grandmaster, heart attack.

In Other News

Marilyn Manson has discussed for the first time the “excruciating” stage accident that resulted in a leg injury and nine postponed tour dates. The singer was crushed when a giant prop gun collapsed on him during a concert in New York on 30th September. “It was terrifying,” said the rock star, who needed a plate and 10 screws in his fibula after the accident. He said that, contrary to media reports, he was not responsible for the prop toppling over. “I wasn’t trying to climb it,” said the 48-year-old. “It started to fall and I tried to push back and I didn’t get out the way in time. “I’m not sure what I hit my head on, but it did fall on to my leg and break the fibula in two places. The pain was excruciating.” It took several minutes for the stage crew to free Manson, who appeared limp and unconscious. As well as the injury to his lower leg, the star required a screw through his ankle bone. He has spent the last two weeks recovering at home in Los Angeles.

Moors Murderer Ian Brady’s remains must be disposed of with “no music and no ceremony”, a High Court judge has ruled. Two councils asked the judge to step in to ensure the disposal of the serial killer’s body did not cause “offence and distress” to his victims’ families. Sir Geoffrey Vos said Brady’s executor had failed to make proper arrangements for disposal of his remains. Brady died aged 79, on 15th May, but his remains have not yet been disposed of. Brady and Myra Hindley, who died in prison in 2002, tortured and murdered five children in the 1960s. Sir Geoffrey acted after Oldham and Tameside councils raised concerns that five months after Brady’s death his executor, solicitor Robin Makin, had failed to make proper arrangements for the disposal. In issuing directions about the body’s disposal, Sir Geoffrey said: “I decline to permit the playing of the fifth movement of the Symphony Fantastique at the cremation, as Mr Makin requested.” As of yet the cremation has not taken place and nobody seems to know what to do with the resulting ashes.

And finally, an angler who nearly died when he accidentally swallowed a fish he had just caught said he feels lucky “beyond a lottery win” to have survived. Sam Quilliam, 28, stopped breathing and suffered a cardiac arrest after the Dover sole wriggled out of his hand and “swam down” his throat. He was kissing the fish in celebration of his catch on Boscombe Pier, Bournemouth when the accident happened. Paramedics managed to retrieve the fish from his airway with forceps. Mr Quilliam described how he had caught the 14cm long Dover sole while fishing with friends on 5th October. “I went to give it a kiss before throwing it back and it literally, like a bar of soap, shot out of my hand into my mouth and basically swam down my throat,” he said. “I ran around like a headless chicken and then collapsed.” Members of Boscombe Pier Sea Anglers performed CPR on their friend when he passed out before the arrival of emergency crews. Paramedic Matt Harrison, who took seven attempts to remove the fish from Mr Quilliam’s throat, said it was his “most bizarre” call-out.

On This Day

  • 1793 – Queen Marie Antoinette of France is tried and convicted in a swift, pre-determined trial in the Palais de Justice, Paris, and condemned to death the following day.
  • 1815 – Emperor Napoleon I begins his exile on Saint Helena in the Atlantic Ocean.
  • 1863 – American Civil War: The H. L. Hunley, the first submarine to sink a ship, sinks during a test, killing its inventor, Horace L. Hunley.
  • 1888 – The “From Hell” letter allegedly sent by Jack the Ripper is received by investigators.
  • 1917 – World War I: At Vincennes outside Paris, Dutch dancer Mata Hari is executed by firing squad for spying for the German Empire.
  • 1956 – Fortran, the first modern computer language, is shared with the coding community for the first time.

Deaths

  • 1917 – Mata Hari, Dutch dancer and spy (b. 1876)
  • 1946 – Hermann Göring, German general and politician (b. 1893)
  • 1964 – Cole Porter, American composer and songwriter (b. 1891)
  • 2011 – Betty Driver, English actress, singer, and author (b. 1920)

Last Week’s Birthdays

Dominic West (48), Sarah Ferguson (58), Steve Coogan (52), Udo Kier (73), Cliff Richard (77), Sacha Baron Cohen (46), Paul Simon (76), Chris Carter (61), Hugh Jackman (49), Robin Askwith (67), Les Dennis (64), Michelle Trachtenberg (32), Emily Deschanel (41), Stephen Moyer (48), Joan Cusack (55), Jane Krakowski (49), Luke Perry (51), John Nettles (74), Dawn French (60), Rose McIver (29), Charles Dance (71), Larry Lamb (70), Martin Kemp (56), Fiona Fullerton (61), Guillermo del Toro (53), Chris O’Dowd (38), Scott Bakula (63), Brandon Routh (38), Tony Shalhoub (64), Brian Blessed (81), Sharon Osbourne (65), Matt Damon (47), Sigourney Weaver (68), Chevy Chase (74), Kristanna Loken (38), Paul Hogan (78), Karyn Parsons (51), Ardal O’Hanlon (52) and R.L. Stine (74).


Dead Pool 8th October 2017

Firstly, apologies to Martin, I missed that he had Tony Booth last week, so he’s had points awarded posthumously and now heads the leader board!!! I also took the time to go through everyones lists and found the following misses. Sarai got Jean E. Sammet back in May, 61 points. Laura got Irwin Corey back in February, 48 points. So, we’re pretty much all up to date, even with the most obscure of names.

Look Who You Could Have Had:

  • Tom Petty, 66, American Hall of Fame musician (Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, Traveling Wilburys) and voice actor (King of the Hill), heart attack.
  • Rodney Bickerstaffe, 72, British trade unionist, General Secretary of NUPE (1982–1993) and UNISON (1996–2001).
  • Liam Cosgrave, 97, Irish politician, Taoiseach (1973–1977)
  • Terry Downes, 81, British boxer, world champion (1961–1962) and actor (The Fearless Vampire Killers, Caravaggio).
  • Ralphie May, 45, American comedian.

In Other News

Swedish model, Arvida Byström, says she’s received rape and death threats after posing for an advert with hairy legs. The 26-year-old featured in an Adidas campaign promoting a new brand of trainers. She received dozens of abusive messages after the advert was released on YouTube. In an Instagram post, which is getting more and more attention, she says she was also threatened with rape in direct messages on social media. She said: “My photo from the @adidasoriginals superstar campaign got a lot of nasty comments last week.” As well as being a model, Arvida is a photographer and is well known for posing with her body hair on show. Adidas says she “questions femininity and gender standards using so-called ‘girly’ aesthetics”. In a statement, Adidas said it’s “honoured to work with creators like Arvida for their creativity, diversity and unique ideas.”

An investigation has been launched by Indiana State Police after an officer shot at a man they believed to be a gunman but was actually an actor in a film. The man in question – Jim Duff – was playing a robber in scenes filming in the city of Crawfordsville. Local police are said to have been responding to a report of a possible robbery at a brewery last week when Sgt. Matt Schroeter encountered the actor wearing a ski mask carrying what they believed to be was a gun. Duff was backing out of the brewery when police ordered him to drop the weapon. However, Duff – caught off guard – turned and an officer fired a shot, missing him. State police confirmed Duff had then dropped the gun, pulled off his mask and told authorities they were on a film set. The film’s production company Montgomery County Movies – who had failed to notify police a robbery scene was being filmed – accepted responsibility for the misunderstanding. Duff was arrested but then released after police could confirm that he was working on the film.

And finally, one for the runners who like to wear Nike apparel. In the 1980s, Nike was locked in an epic war with Reebok for control of the sneaker market. In response, Nike engaged Portland advertising firm Wieden & Kennedy to create a new campaign that would broaden its appeal. The one thing that came to mind was an event that happened around 10 years earlier. A man named Gary Gilmore received mainstream media attention after murdering two men in separate incidents in Utah. Gilmore, then 35, had endured a troubled upbringing and spent half his life in prison for a series of violent crimes including armed robbery. He’d been released from an Indiana prison and moved to live with a distant cousin in Utah in an attempt to turn his life around. But he quickly returned to his previous lifestyle and, in July 1976, robbed and murdered gas station employee Max Jensen, and then killed motel manager Bennie Bushnell the following evening. Gilmore was quickly caught, convicted and sentenced to death. Instead of trying to fight for his life, he appeared to welcome the verdict and chose to be shot by a firing squad instead of being hung. Capital punishment was suspended in the US from 1972 to 1976, so there was high interest in Gilmore’s case. So, after a last meal of steak, potatoes, milk and coffee — of which he only consumed the milk and coffee — Gilmore was put in front of the firing squad on January 17th 1977. When asked if he had any last words, Gilmore famously said: “Let’s do it!” It was a line that stuck with Wieden, and for some reason came to him as he sat trying to finalise the Nike campaign in 1988. “I remember when I read that I was like, ‘That’s amazing — how, in the face of that much uncertainty, do you push through that?’ I didn’t like the ‘let’s’ thing, I just changed that because otherwise I would have to give him credit, now I don’t really have to.” The “Just Do It” tagline first appeared in a 1988 commercial featuring 80-year-old runner Walt Stack and was wildly successful. So, the next time you slip on those trainers, remember you owe it all to a murderer!

On This Day

  • 1582 – Because of the implementation of the Gregorian calendar this day does not exist in this year in Italy, Poland, Portugal and Spain.
  • 1952 – The Harrow and Wealdstone rail crash kills 112 people.
  • 2005 – The 7.6 Mw Kashmir earthquake strikes with a maximum Mercalli intensity of VIII (Severe), leaving 86,000–87,351 people dead, 69,000–75,266 injured, and 2.8 million homeless.
  • 2014 – First person in US diagnosed with Ebola dies.

Deaths

  • 1793 – John Hancock, American merchant and politician, 1st Governor of Massachusetts (b. 1737)
  • 1967 – Clement Attlee, English soldier, lawyer, and politician, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (b. 1883)
  • 2015 – Jim Diamond, Scottish singer-songwriter (b. 1951)

Last Week’s Birthdays

Simon Cowell (58), Tim Minchin (42), Alesha Dixon (39), Ioan Gruffudd (44), Elisabeth Shue (54), Britt Ekland (75), Kate Winslet (42), Guy Pearce (50), Jesse Eisenberg (34), Karen Allen (66), Clive Barker (65), Neil deGrasse Tyson (59), Bob Geldof (66), Melissa Benoist (29), Dakota Johnson (28), Liev Schreiber (50), Susan Sarandon (71), Alicia Silverstone (41), Christoph Waltz (61), Sarah Lancashire (52), Denis Villeneuve (50), Lena Headey (44), Neve Campbell (44), Seann William Scott (41), Clive Owen (53), Gwen Stefani (48), Greg Proops (58), Lorraine Bracco (63), Avery Brooks (69), Sting (66), Tiffany (46), Julie Andrews (82), Zach Galifianakis (48) and Randy Quaid (67).


Dead Pool 1st October 2017

Its been a busy week at Dead Pool Towers, one could argue that the flying monkeys managed to escape. Points!!! With the demise of Liz Dawn, we can award 73 points to John, Nickie & Debbie and with the death of Hugh Hefner, we can award 59 points to Mark, Nickie, Paula, Ashley & Doug. Well done you lot, double bubble for Nickie for getting two deaths in one week! There’s lots to read this week, so best get on with it.

Look Who You Could Have Had:

  • Charles Bradley, 68, American singer (“Changes”), stomach cancer
  • Tony Booth, 85, British actor (Till Death Us Do Part, Coronation Street, The Contender).
  • Elizabeth Dawn, 77, British actress (Coronation Street, Crown Court, The Wheeltappers and Shunters Social Club), emphysema.
  • Eman Ahmed Abd El Aty, 37, Egyptian woman, world’s heaviest, kidney failure and intestinal shock.
  • Bobby Knutt, 71, British actor and comedian (Coronation Street, Benidorm, Emmerdale), heart attack.
  • Sir Richard Greenbury, 81, British businessman, Chairman of Marks and Spencer (1988–1999).
  • Hugh Hefner, 91, American magazine publisher (Playboy), businessman (Playboy Enterprises) and reality television actor (The Girls Next Door).
  • Monty Hall, 96, Canadian-American game show host (Let’s Make a Deal), heart failure

In Other News

Rock star Marilyn Manson was injured during a concert in New York when a large piece of stage scenery fell on him on stage. The prop – apparently two large guns held together with metal scaffolding – fell as he was performing at the Hammerstein Ballroom on Saturday. An eyewitness told the BBC that the singer lay on stage for up to 15 minutes covered by a sheet before he was carried out on a stretcher and taken to hospital. His condition is not currently known. Eyewitness Anthony  Biscardi told the BBC that fans at the concert “instantly freaked out”. “He was performing the song Sweet Dreams. Towards the middle of the song it seemed as though he tried climbing onto a prop. “The first touch of weight on those poles and it came crashing down onto him.” In videos of the incident posted online, stage crew and band members can be seen lifting the prop off the singer but he does not get back up. “He was pretty limp, almost as though he was unconscious,” Mr Biscardi said. Mr Biscardi said a black sheet was put around him until he could be taken off stage, when an announcement was made that the show was cancelled “due to injury”. The 48-year-old artist was three dates into his The Heaven Upside Down Tour. He was due to perform in Boston on Monday night.

Julia Louis-Dreyfus, the award-winning star of US TV comedy series Veep, has announced she has breast cancer, in a message posted on social media. “1 in 8 women get breast cancer,” she wrote. “Today I’m the one.” “The good news”, she said, was that she had a “glorious group” of family and friends supporting her and “fantastic” insurance through her union. The actress, 56, has also featured in Saturday Night Live, The New Adventures of Old Christine and Seinfeld. Earlier this month, Louis-Dreyfus picked up a record-breaking sixth Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a row for her role in HBO series Veep. Louis-Dreyfus’ announcement was met with an outpouring of support from other actors and celebrities.

Lady Lucan, the 80-year-old widow of Lord Lucan, has been found dead at her home in London, police have confirmed. Strangely enough, it seems that she was not famous enough in her own right to be listed in the Wiki death list, however we believe she merits a mention. Officers found her body after forcing entry to the property in Belgravia on Tuesday, but her death is not believed to be suspicious, the Met Police said. Lady Lucan was one of the last people to see her husband John Bingham, the 7th Earl of Lucan, alive before he disappeared in November 1974. A Met Police spokesperson said: “Police attended an address on Eaton Row in Westminster… following concerns for the welfare of an elderly occupant. “Officers forced entry and found an 80-year-old woman unresponsive. Although we await formal identification we are confident that the deceased is Lady Lucan.” Lord Lucan was officially declared dead by the High Court in 1999, but has reportedly been sighted in Australia, Ireland, South Africa and New Zealand. A High Court judge granted a death certificate in February last year allowing his son, Lord Bingham, to take over his title.

And finally, a couple arrested after allegedly murdering and eating up to 30 people in Russia may have used dating sites to lure their victims, it has emerged. Dmitry Baksheev and his wife, Natalia Baksheeva, were detained in the southern region of Krasnodar after pictures of a dismembered body were found on a phone, local media reports. The phone, which is said to have contained several images of Mr Baksheev posing with a female victim’s head and hands, was found by a builder who handed it into police earlier in September. Ms Baksheeva told authorities there had been at least 30 victims over the past 18 years. There are fears the 45-year-old has been feeding human meat to student pilots at the military academy where the couple worked. Remains of a woman were later found in a bag in the academy, Russian state news agency RIA Novosti reported. Seven containers of human body parts, 19 samples of human skin and remains pickled in jars were allegedly also found in the freezer and cellar of the couple’s home. One photograph dated from 1999 was found appearing to show a severed human head on a serving plate alongside fruit. The couple remain in custody on one initial murder charge while the investigation continues.

On This Day

  • 1843 – The News of the World tabloid begins publication in London.
  • 1861 – Mrs Beeton’s Book of Household Management is published, going on to sell 60,000 copies in its first year and remaining in print until the present day.
  • 1958 – NASA is created.
  • 1971 – The first brain-scan using x-ray computed tomography (CT or CAT scan) is performed at Atkinson Morley Hospital in Wimbledon, London.
  • 1982 – Sony launches the first consumer compact disc player (model CDP-101).

Deaths

  • 1975 – Al Jackson, Jr., American drummer, songwriter, and producer (b. 1935)
  • 2013 – Tom Clancy, American author (b. 1947)
  • 2014 – Lynsey de Paul, English singer-songwriter, pianist, and actress (b. 1948)

Last Week’s Birthdays

Marion Cotillard (42), Monica Bellucci (53), Eric Stoltz (56), Omid Djalili (52), Al Leong (65), Erika Eleniak (48), Ian McShane (75), Luke & Matt Goss (49), Mackenzie Crook (46), Robert Webb (45), Jerry Lee Lewis (82), Patricia Hodge (71), Naomi Watts (49), Hilary Duff (30), Mira Sorvino (50), Brigitte Bardot (83), Dita Von Teese (45), Gwyneth Paltrow (45), Avril Lavigne (33), Meat Loaf (70), Irvine Welsh (59), Linda Hamilton (61), Olivia Newton-John (69), Lysette Anthony (54), Serena Williams (36), Will Smith (49), Mark Hamill (66), Catherine Zeta-Jones (48), Michael Douglas (73), Heather Locklear (56), Michael Madsen (60), Felicity Kendal (71) and Barbara Walters (88).


Dead Pool 24th September 2017

More points to be awarded, Debbie, Shan, Martin and Doug all score 55 points with the death of the boxer Jake LaMotta, which has caused something I can’t recall happening before. A tie at the top of the leader board! Both Laura and Martin now have 521 points each. If this happens to be the final score we have no rules to decide the winner! So as we are a democratic dictatorship here, we at Dead Pool Towers will let the masses decide how such an occurrence will be decided should it happen, then ignore it all and make up another rule. So, what do you think?

Look Who You Could Have Had:

  • Suzan Farmer, 75, British actress (The Scarlet Blade, Doctor in Clover, Coronation Street).
  • Bobby Heenan, 72, American professional wrestler, manager and commentator (WWF, AWA, WCW), organ failure.
  • Ben Hammer, 92, American actor (The Beastmaster, Law & Order, Sleepers).
  • Bernie Casey, 78, American actor (Revenge of the Nerds, Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure) and football player (San Francisco 49ers).
  • Jake LaMotta, 95, American Hall of Fame boxer and comedian, inspiration for Raging Bull, complications from pneumonia.
  • Liliane Bettencourt, 94, French cosmetics businesswoman (L’Oréal) and socialite.
  • William G. Stewart, 84, British game show host (Fifteen to One) and television producer.

In Other News

Former Olympics Minister Dame Tessa Jowell has been diagnosed with brain cancer, her family have revealed. Her daughter-in-law Ella Woodward posted on social media that the Labour peer was diagnosed in May. Writing on Dame Tessa’s 70th birthday, she described the last few months as “some of the hardest of our lives”. The politician, who stood down as an MP in 2015, responded by tweeting her thanks for the “love and support” she had been shown. Ms Woodward, a food blogger who is married to the politician’s son Matt Mills, wrote on Instagram: “Matt’s Mum was suddenly diagnosed with brain cancer in May. “Her bravery, optimism, love and support for others during this process has inspired us both so much, and today we’re all pledging to try and do everything we can to make people’s lives with cancer better for longer.”

Former England captain Wayne Rooney has appeared in court and admitted drink-driving. He was arrested when police stopped a car in Wilmslow, Cheshire, in the early hours on 1 st September. The 31-year-old was banned from driving for two years and ordered to perform 100 hours of unpaid work as part of a 12-month community order. Rooney was also ordered to pay £170 when he appeared at Stockport Magistrates’ Court. The court heard Rooney was almost three times the legal limit when he was stopped by police at 02:00 BST. A breathalyser test showed his alcohol level was 104 micrograms in 100 millilitres of breath. The drink-drive limit in England and Wales is 35 micrograms per 100 millilitres of breath. In a statement issued after the hearing, the Everton footballer said: “I want publicly to apologise for my unforgivable lack of judgment in driving while over the legal limit. It was completely wrong. “I have already said sorry to my family, my manager and chairman and everyone at Everton FC. Now I want to apologise to all the fans and everyone else who has followed and supported me throughout my career. “Of course I accept the sentence of the court and hope that I can make some amends through my community service.” Are these his first steps as a possible Gazza replacement??

Robbie Williams has been forced to cancel the remaining dates of his European tour due to a mystery illness. The 43-year-old had been due to perform two concerts in Russia this week, with gigs scheduled for St Petersburg and Moscow, and was also set to appear at the closing ceremony of the New Wave singing contest in Sochi. Now though he’s had to pull out because of his health and won’t be resuming his tour until he heads to New Zealand and Australia in February next year. A statement from his publicist reads: ‘Due to illness, the final two dates of the European leg of The Heavy Entertainment Show Tour, St Petersburg and Moscow, have been cancelled. It comes just days after Robbie had opened up about his health struggles with conditions including arthritis and depression. The Take That star also spoke in depth of his mental health issues and confessed he didn’t think he’d have suffered quite as much if he hadn’t have become famous. In July the singer revealed that he’d been suffering from a rare condition called Nocturnal Sleep-Related Eating Disorder, which causes him to eat in the middle of the night whilst totally unaware he’s doing so. Many of us poolers can surely sympathise with this, I know I certainly can..

On This Day

  • 1960 – USS Enterprise, the world’s first nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, is launched.
  • 1979 – CompuServe launches the first consumer internet service, which features the first public electronic mail service.
  • 2015 – At least 1,100 people are killed and another 934 wounded after a stampede during the Hajj in Saudi Arabia.

Deaths

  • 1863 – William Debenham, English businessman, founded Debenhams (b. 1794)
  • 1945 – Hans Geiger, German physicist & academic, co-invented the Geiger counter (b. 1882)
  • 1991 – Dr. Seuss, American children’s book writer, poet, and illustrator (b. 1904)

Last Week’s Birthdays

Kevin Sorbo (59), Brad Bird (60), Sven-Ole Thorsen (73), Karl Pilkington (45), Bruce Springsteen (68), Tom Felton (30), Billie Piper (35), John Woo (71), Ruth Jones (51), Joan Jett (59), Sue Perkins (48), Nick Cave (60), Stephen King (70), David Wenham (52), Bill Murray (67), Ricki Lake (49), Alfonso Ribeiro (46), Faith Hill (50), Sophia Loren (83), Asia Argento (42), Moon Bloodgood (42), George R.R. Martin (69), Jeremy Irons (69), David McCallum (84), Jimmy Fallon (43), Victoria Silvstedt (43), Twiggy (68), Jada Pinkett Smith (46), Tim McInnerny (61), Paul Feig (55), Neill Blomkamp (38), Bruce Spence (72) and Baz Luhrmann (55).


Dead Pool 17th September 2017

Welcome all, another week passes, more celebrity bucket kicking occurs. An odd one this week, all of us missed Harry Dean Stanton, which was a surprise, however he has now begun a rather tenuous thread online as he is the second cast member from Ridley Scott’s Alien to have died this year. But get this, they have died in sequence. John Hurt who was the first to die in the film by a baby alien bursting through his chest died in January this year, now it’s Harry Dean Stanton who played Brett, was the second to die by being bludgeoned by an alien tentacle. This does not bode well for the actor who played Dallas, Tom Skerritt, who at the age of 84 is not a spring chicken, is due to be eaten by the alien offscreen… Let’s see what happens..

So, onwards we go. Points!!! Yes, with the tragic demise of supercentenarian Violet Brown, the following have scored: Paul C & Sarai both get 133 as she was their Woman, Dave gets 33 as she was listed as a Norm. Well done all, slight shift in the league table, but Laura is still tipped to be the Angel of Death for 2017.

Look Who You Could Have Had:

  • Len Wein, 69, American comic book writer and editor (Swamp Thing, Watchmen), co-creator of Wolverine.
  • Sir Peter Hall, 86, British theatre, opera and film director, director of the National Theatre (1973–1988).
  • Basi, 37, Chinese panda, world’s oldest living, cirrhosis and renal failure.
  • Gary Otte, 45, American murderer and robber, execution by lethal injection.
  • Frank Vincent, 80, American actor (The Sopranos, Goodfellas, Casino), complications during heart surgery.
  • Violet Brown, 117, Jamaican supercentenarian, world’s oldest living person, dehydration.
  • Harry Dean Stanton, 91, American actor (Alien, The Green Mile, Big Love).

In Other News

Selena Gomez has revealed that she had a kidney transplant operation this summer linked to her lupus. In an Instagram post, the singer says that her friend Francia Raisa donated an organ to her and says she wanted to explain why fans hadn’t heard much from her despite having new music out. “So I found out I  needed to get a kidney transplant due to my Lupus and was recovering,” she writes. “It was what I needed to do for my overall health.” Selena Gomez also thanked her friend, The Secret Life of the American Teenager actress Francia Raisa, in her Instagram post. “There aren’t words to describe how I can possibly thank my beautiful friend Francia Raisa,” she writes. “She gave me the ultimate gift and sacrifice by donating her kidney to me. I am incredibly blessed. I love you so much sis.” The pair first met at a Disney and ABC charity event at a children’s hospital in 2007. Her first public appearance after recovering from the surgery was in New York with boyfriend The Weeknd last Friday night. She also took time off social media last year to deal with panic attacks, anxiety and depression. The 25-year-old says her ongoing mental health problems are a side-effect of her lupus diagnosis last year. Lupus affects the body’s immune system. The symptoms of the disease include extreme tiredness, rashes (especially on the face, wrists and hands), joint pain and swelling.

Lady Gaga has been taken to hospital, and says she’s suffering with “severe physical pain”. The Bad Romance singer has cancelled her performance at the festival Rock In Rio in Brazil because of it. “I would do anything 4 u but I have to take care of my body right now,” she wrote to fans on Instagram. The 31-year-old recently revealed she’s suffering with fibromyalgia, a condition that causes intense discomfort all over the body. “Lady Gaga is suffering from severe physical pain that has impacted her ability to perform,” a statement on her Instagram page said. “As a result, she sadly must withdraw from this Friday’s Rock In Rio performance.” The singer also posted a picture of her arm with a drip in it. “Brazil, I’m devastated that I’m not well enough to come to Rock In Rio. “I ask for your grace and understanding, and promise that I will come back and perform for you soon. I’m so sorry, and I love you so much.” The musician cancelled a show in Montreal, Canada, earlier this month after falling ill. She’s due to tour the UK in October, and has recently been promoting the documentary, Gaga: Five Foot Two.

A judge has ordered the jailing of ex-pharmaceutical chief executive Martin “Pharma Bro” Shkreli while he awaits sentencing for securities fraud. Judge Kiyo Matsumoto said a Facebook post in which Shkreli offered $5,000 for a strand of Hillary Clinton’s hair showed he was a danger to the public. The former CEO, 34, had been free on $5m (£4m) bail since his 2015 arrest. Shkreli rocketed to notoriety in 2015 – and earned the nickname “Pharma Bro” – after raising the price of a lifesaving anti-parasite drug called Daraprim by 5,000% upon acquiring rights to the medication. Overnight, the price of the drug soared from $13.50 to $750 per dose. On Wednesday, Judge Matsumoto ruled that Shkreli’s post on 4th September – made shortly before Mrs Clinton began a book tour – showed he posed a danger, rejecting arguments his words were protected by US free speech laws. Shkreli – who has clashed frequently with critics on social media – had argued that the since-deleted post amounted to satire, and had been a reference to DNA sequencing. “This is a solicitation of assault in exchange for money,” the judge said. “That is not protected by the First Amendment.” Let’s see how long he lasts in prison. As “the most hated man in America” we’re pretty sure here in Dead Pool Towers that he’ll beaten by the officers a couple of times at least, ironically offered some overly-priced drugs to commit suicide with before finally succumbing to Big Hairy Brenda’s Analphylactic Shock!

On This Day

  • 1908 – The Wright Flyer flown by Orville Wright, with Lieutenant Thomas Selfridge as passenger, crashes, killing Selfridge, who becomes the first airplane fatality.
  • 1928 – The Okeechobee hurricane strikes southeastern Florida, killing more than 2,500 people. It is the third deadliest natural disaster in United States history, behind the Galveston hurricane of 1900 and the 1906 San Francisco earthquake.
  • 1976 – The first Space Shuttle, Enterprise, is unveiled by NASA.

Deaths

  • 1868 – Roman Nose, Native American warrior (b. circa 1823)
  • 1985 – Laura Ashley, Welsh fashion designer, founded Laura Ashley plc (b. 1925)
  • 1999 – Frankie Vaughan, English singer and actor (b. 1928)

Last Week’s Birthdays

Jennifer Tilly (59), Mickey Rourke (65), Danny John-Jules (57), Tom Hardy (40), Tommy Lee Jones (71), Oliver Stone (71), Prince Harry Windsor (33), Brendan O’Carroll (62), Jimmy Carr (45), Sam Neill (70), Andrew Lincoln (44), Walter Koenig (81), Jacqueline Bisset (73), Alfie Allen (31), Ian Holm (86), Linda Gray (77), Virginia Madsen (56), Brian De Palma (77), Johnny Vegas (47), Guy Ritchie (49), Colin Firth (57), Chris Columbus (59), and Amy Irving (64).


Dead Pool 10th September 2017

Not the best week to be a Country & Western singer, however nobody had either of them on their lists, so another pointless week. With little over three months left, perhaps now is a good time to start researching your list for 2018!!!

Look Who You Could Have Had:

  • Walter Becker, 67, American Hall of Fame musician (Steely Dan), songwriter and producer, Grammy winner (2001).
  • Kate Millett, 82, American feminist writer (Sexual Politics).
  • Mike Neville, 80, British television presenter (BBC North East and Cumbria, ITV Tyne Tees).
  • Don Williams, 78, American Hall of Fame country music singer (“Tulsa Time”, “I Believe in You”, “You’re My Best Friend”) and songwriter, emphysema.
  • Troy Gentry, 50, American country music singer (Montgomery Gentry), helicopter crash.
  • Blake Heron, 35, American actor (Shiloh, We Were Soldiers, Nick Freno: Licensed Teacher).

In Other News

Dave Prowse, who played Darth Vader in the original Star Wars trilogy, is calling time on public appearances. A statement on the 82-year-old’s social media accounts said he would “no longer be doing any personal appearances or conventions due to health problems” from January 2018 onwards. If you were not aware, Prowse was the man behind Vader’s mask in Star Wars, The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi. He also played the Green Cross Code man in television road safety commercials. Born in Bristol in 1935, Prowse was a successful bodybuilder and weightlifter before landing his iconic Star Wars role. His face was never seen in the films though, while his voice was dubbed by US actor James Earl Jones. Prowse, a fixture on the convention circuit since Jedi’s release in 1983, announced last year “with great sadness” that he would no longer attend international events. In 2014 he revealed he had dementia, though this did not prevent him participating in the 2015 documentary I Am Your Father, or recently appearing in a music video for singer Jayce Lewis. Don’t worry, there’s still time to get that priceless collectors signed photograph.

Lil Wayne has reportedly been taken to hospital after suffering a seizure and being found unconscious in his hotel room in Chicago. Celebrity website TMZ says the 34-year-old rapper, who has epilepsy, suffered a number of fits and had another one after arriving at A&E. He had been due to perform in Las Vegas on Sunday night. The rap star, whose real name is Dwayne Michael Carter Jr, was treated a year ago after suffering two minor seizures. Four years ago Lil Wayne spent several days at a hospital in Los Angeles. After those seizures the rapper told radio station Power 106 that he was epileptic and prone to having fits. He told DJ Felli Fel: “This wasn’t my first, second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh…I have had a bunch of seizures, you just never hear about them.” Lil Wayne says he suffers seizures because of stress, lack of rest and overworking himself. God knows what he’d be like if he had a proper job!

Family and friends have said farewell to Sir Bruce Forsyth at a private funeral. The star’s manager confirmed that the service took place last Monday. A public memorial service will be held in due course for fans to pay their respects to the entertainer, with details released in the next few weeks. There was also a tribute on Strictly Come Dancing when it returned to BBC One on Saturday evening. Sir Bruce, who co-hosted the dance show until 2014, died on 18th August at the age of 89 and gave the Dead Poolers a grand total of 2486 points, totally eclipsing the previous top scorer, Margaret Thatcher with 1945 points. Sir Bruce’s TV career stretched back to the 1950s and he became one of Britain’s best-loved entertainers thanks to shows like Sunday Night at the London Palladium, The Generation Game, Play Your Cards Right and The Price Is Right.

On This Day

  • 1961 – Italian Grand Prix, a crash causes the death of German Formula One driver Wolfgang von Trips and 13 spectators who are hit by his Ferrari.
  • 1977 – Hamida Djandoubi, convicted of torture and murder, is the last person to be executed by guillotine in France.
  • 2008 – The Large Hadron Collider at CERN, described as the biggest scientific experiment in history, is powered up in Geneva, Switzerland. We all survived.

Deaths

Last Week’s Birthdays

Adam Sandler (51), Hugh Grant (57), Henry Thomas (46), Eric Stonestreet (46), Jeffrey Combs (63), Julia Sawalha (49), Rachel Hunter (48), Martin Freeman (46), Pink (38), Heather Thomas (60), Evan Rachel Wood (30), Shannon Elizabeth (44), Toby Jones (51), Dario Argento (77), Julie Kavner (66), Doug Bradley (63), Chrissie Hynde (66), Gloria Gaynor (68), Idris Elba (45), Macy Gray (50), Carice van Houten (41), Rose McGowan (44), Michael Keaton (66), Raquel Welch (77), Werner Herzog (75), Paddy Considine (44), George Lazenby (78), Bob Newhart (88), Beyoncé Knowles (36), Charlie Sheen (52) and Jean-Pierre Jeunet (64).


Dead Pool 3rd September 2017

Welcome all, to the  special 20th Anniversary Edition of Princess Diana’s Death Edition of The Dead Pool, where we will not be mentioning her again because nobody gives a fuck nor gave a fuck twenty years ago. No points to award this week, better luck next time!

Look Who You Could Have Had:

  • Melissa Bell, 53, English singer (Soul II Soul).
  • Richard Anderson, 91, American actor (The Six Million Dollar Man, The Bionic Woman, Forbidden Planet).
  • Shelley Berman, 92, American comedian and actor (You Don’t Mess with the Zohan, Meet the Fockers, Curb Your Enthusiasm), Alzheimer’s disease.
  • Cormac Murphy-O’Connor, 85, English Roman Catholic cardinal, Archbishop of Arundel and Brighton (1977–2000) and Westminster (2000–2009).

In Other News

Veteran singer Tom Jones announced Saturday that he was reluctantly postponing a U.S. concert tour scheduled to kick off next week because of health issues. The 77-year-old Welsh crooner said on Twitter that his Autumn tour would be delayed “following medical advice. He did not reveal the state of his health or provide further details. Jones sent his “sincere apologies” to U.S. fans planning to attend the shows. A statement on his website said the rescheduled tour would take place in May and June of next year and that tickets for the postponed shows would be honoured. The surprise postponement of his tour dates prompted numerous concerned comments from fans who wished him well on Twitter. Jones’ wife of 59 years, Linda, died last year of cancer.

An Aberdeen footballer has been rescued from a river after a night out in Glasgow. Gary Mackay-Steven, 26, was suffering from the effects of hypothermia when he  was pulled from the River Kelvin by firefighters early on Sunday morning. The former Celtic winger was then taken to the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital by paramedics. Aberdeen FC confirmed the player was treated for hypothermia and was now “recovering well” at home. A club statement said: “On behalf of Gary, the club extends its thanks to the emergency services involved. “The club will not be commenting further on the matter.”

Yet another matador suffered severe injuries after he was gored by a bull and dragged around the ring on its horn. Experienced bullfighter Sergio Flores, 26, was speared in the armpit and tossed in the air by the rampaging animal during a performance in the city of San Luis Potosi, Mexico. He was carried around the ring for nine seconds as helpers frantically tried to rescue him after the 500kg bull’s horn became lodged under his arm. The audience feared the worst as Mr Flores was left motionless and bleeding heavily on the bullring floor. He was eventually carried from the ring to the stadium’s medical centre before being taken to hospital, where he was said to be in a serious but stable condition. Medics later said he had suffered two puncture wounds between his arm and chest, as well as head injuries. It was not clear if the bull was injured. Mr Flores has been bullfighting since 2007, according to Mexican newspaper El Sol de Tlaxcala.

And finally, staff and guests were forced to flee after two “out of control” pensioners rampaged through a Highland Perthshire resort hotel, a court heard. Robert Fergus, 72, ran naked with a pair of scissors in the public reception of the MacDonald Loch Rannoch Hotel and smashed a glass pane. His wife Ruth, 69, threatened to shoot a staff member after “reacting badly” to the alcohol she consumed earlier. The couple were fined £4,100 at Perth Sheriff Court. Mr Fergus, from Troon, was also ordered to pay the hotel £800 compensation to cover the cost of the damage from the incident. He had admitted behaving in a threatening and abusive manner towards four staff members, wilfully destroying property, and drink driving. Sheriff Gillian Wade told Mr Fergus: “I don’t think I need to tell you it’s a very sorry state of affairs. I have no doubt you will regret it for the rest of your life.”

On This Day

  • 301 – San Marino, one of the smallest nations in the world and the world’s oldest republic still in existence, is founded by Saint Marinus.
  • 1189 – Richard I of England (a.k.a. Richard “the Lionheart”) is crowned at Westminster.
  • 1666 – The Royal Exchange burns down in the Great Fire of London.
  • 1878 – Over 640 die when the crowded pleasure boat Princess Alice collides with the Bywell Castle in the River Thames.

Deaths

  • 1658 – Oliver Cromwell, English general and politician (b. 1599)
  • 1991 – Frank Capra, Italian-American director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1897)
  • 2012 – Michael Clarke Duncan, American actor (b. 1957)
  • 2012 – Sun Myung Moon, Korean religious leader and businessman, founded the Unification Church (b. 1920)

Last Week’s Birthdays

Keanu Reeves (53), Salma Hayek (51), Keith Allen (64), Burn Gorman (43), Lily Tomlin (78), Craig McLachlan (52), Steve Pemberton (50), Barry Gibb (71), Richard Gere (68), Chris Tucker (46), Jessica Henwick (25), Cameron Diaz (45), Peggy Lipton (71), Michael Chiklis (54), Carla Gugino (46), Rebecca De Mornay (58), Elliott Gould (79), Joel Schumacher (78), William Friedkin (82), Lenny Henry (59), David Fincher (55), Jack Black (48), Jason Priestley (48), Brian Thompson (58), Shania Twain (52), Ai Weiwei (60), Billy Boyd (49), LeAnn Rimes (35), David Soul (74), Aaron Paul (38), Peter Stormare (64), Barbara Bach (70), Paul Reubens (65) and Reece Shearsmith (48),


Dead Pool 27th August 2017

Welcome all, another week flies by and a few more notable names pass on into the ether. It’s been a bad week for bodybuilders, two of their brethren have kicked the bucket, but I suppose that stuffing your body full of steroids isn’t going to help you reach your 80’s. Surprisingly, nobody had Jerry Lewis on their lists, perhaps you all thought he was going to live forever!

Look Who You Could Have Had:

  • Brian Aldiss, 92, British science fiction writer (Helliconia, Supertoys Last All Summer Long) and editor.
  • Jerry Lewis, 91, American comedian (Martin and Lewis), actor (The Nutty Professor) and humanitarian (The Jerry Lewis MDA Labor Day Telethon), cardiomyopathy.
  • Thomas Meehan, 88, American playwright (Annie, The Producers, Hairspray), Tony winner (1977), cancer.
  • Dallas McCarver, 26, American bodybuilder, choking.
  • Rich Piana, 45, American bodybuilder and Internet personality.
  • Tobe Hooper, 74, American film director (The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, Poltergeist, Salem’s Lot).

In Other News

I know its been 8 months since we declared last years winner, however, yesterday was the first opportunity for the Dead Pool Master to award last years winner and the title of Angel of Death  2016 her prize! Yes, Laura finally got her knitted Death of Rats; expertly handmade by the talented Sarai who donated her time and expertise to our little community. Laura was obviously over the moon with her prize, to be fair, everyone who’s seen it wants one too! Laura is currently the one to beat again this year, topping the leader board with an astounding 521 points with four months left to go!

When former England rugby player Matt Dawson was bitten by a tick in a London park early last year, it caused a bacterial infection to spread through his body. “I had two days where I felt awful. Very feverish, on the sofa, crashed out,” he said. Eventually he went to hospital where he was diagnosed with Lyme disease. “It was a really scary time for me and my family. Such a tiny creature caused me to end up needing heart surgery.” After multiple heart operations and 18 months of treatment, Matt no longer has the disease. But it still affects his life: “I’m still on medication and its going to take a lot of time for the heart to fully recover. “This is not something that should be looked at like, ‘oh it’s only a tick, a tick is a bit like a flea, its fine!’,” he said.

Loose Women panellist Saira Khan has revealed how she received a death threat after criticising a Muslim preacher on Instagram. Accompanying a picture of her in a bikini, Khan wrote: “I woke up to news that A Muslim Preacher is saying that ‘plucking eyebrows’ for Muslim women is a sin – here’s my response – kiss my ass you backward prehistoric dinosaur!” The post sparked a debate in the comments, provoking supportive messages, criticism and even a death threat. The comment has now been deleted from Instagram but Khan, 47, took a screenshot and tweeted it. “Keep your fucking mouth shut! Your not a Muslim nor do you represent anything to do with Islam!!! Your white masters have given you what you desire as a sell out reporter!!! If you value your life keep the fuck out of Islam” the person wrote. Khan also flagged the comment to the Metropolitan police. A spokesman from the Metropolitan Police said: “The Met’s digital contact team @MetCC have DM’d a 47 year old woman with a view to formally reporting an allegation of malicious communications. Enquiries continue.”

On This Day

  • 1883 – Eruption of Krakatoa: Four enormous explosions destroy the island of Krakatoa and cause years of climate change.
  • 1893 – The Sea Islands hurricane strikes the United States near Savannah, Georgia, killing between 1,000-2,000 people.
  • 1896 – Anglo-Zanzibar War: The shortest war in world history (09:00 to 09:45), between the United Kingdom and Zanzibar.
  • 1956 – The nuclear power station at Calder Hall in the United Kingdom was connected to the national power grid becoming the world’s first commercial nuclear power station to generate electricity on an industrial scale.
  • 1979 – A Provisional Irish Republican Army bomb kills British retired admiral Lord Mountbatten and three others while they are boating on holiday in Sligo, Republic of Ireland.
  • 2011 – Hurricane Irene strikes the United States east coast, killing 47 and causing an estimated $15.6 billion in damage.

Deaths

  • 1576 – Titian, Italian painter and educator (b. 1488)
  • 1965 – Le Corbusier, Swiss-French architect and urban planner (b. 1887)
  • 1967 – Brian Epstein, English businessman and manager (b. 1934)
  • 1975 – Haile Selassie, Ethiopian emperor (b. 1892)

Last Week’s Birthdays

Chris Pine (37), Melissa McCarthy (47), Macaulay Culkin (37), Alexander Skarsgård (41), Sean Connery (87), Tim Burton (59), Rachel Bilson (36), Joanne Whalley (53), Tom Skerritt (84), Gene Simmons (68), Billy Ray Cyrus (56), Claudia Schiffer (47), Steve Guttenberg (59), Rupert Grint (29), Stephen Fry (60), Dave Chappelle (44), Kristen Wiig (44), James Corden (39), Ty Burrell (50), Honor Blackman (92), Carrie-Anne Moss (50), Hayden Panettiere (28), RJ Mitte (25), Kim Cattrall (61), Kenny Rogers (79), Amy Adams (43), Andrew Garfield (34), Ben Barnes (36), Misha Collins (43), Jonathan Ke Quan (46), Joan Allen (61), James Marsters (55), Ray Wise (70), John Noble (69) and Sylvester McCoy (74).


Dead Pool 20th August 2017

Welcome all to a points bonanza! With the tragic demise of everyones favourite bumbling entertainer, Bruce Forsyth, almost everyone scored! 26 of us managed to list him in one way or another, so the leaderboard has changed dramatically. I wont list everyone, but well done all. Sadly we only have two people who have yet to score this year, but fear not, with four months to go, anything can happen!

Look Who You Could Have Had:

  • Sonny Landham, 76, American actor (Predator, 48 Hrs., Lock Up), heart failure.
  • Sir Bruce Forsyth, 89, English television presenter (The Generation Game, Play Your Cards Right, Strictly Come Dancing) and entertainer.
  • Robin Griffith, 78, Welsh actor. (Llais Blodyn Tatws, Y Barwn Coch o’r gyfres Siop Siafins).
  • Liz MacKean, 52, British broadcast journalist (Newsnight), stroke.
  • Dick Gregory, 84, American comedian and civil rights activist, heart failure.
  • Sir Colin Meads, 81, New Zealand rugby union player, coach and manager, cancer.

In Other News

The former Archbishop of Westminster, Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O’Connor, is seriously ill in hospital. The church said the 84-year-old’s health had taken a “defining turn”. Cardinal Cormac became the tenth Archbishop of Westminster in March 2000, was made Cardinal in 2001 by Pope John Paul II, before retiring from his role as archbishop in 2009. As archbishop, he was the leader of the Roman Catholic Church in England and Wales. For whatever good it will do, Cardinal Vincent Nichols, the current Archbishop of Westminster, has asked for prayers. In a statement on the diocese of Arundel and Brighton website, where Cardinal Murphy-O’Connor used to be bishop, Cardinal Nichols said “these loving prayers are a source of great strength and comfort as he calmly ponders on all that lies ahead”, which most likely will be oblivion.

Earlier this week, Tom Cruise injured himself doing a stunt for the upcoming Mission: Impossible 6. Production will be shut down for around two months as a result. Variety first broke the news of the delay, which was then confirmed by the other Hollywood trades. Cruise was reportedly performing a stunt for the Christopher McQuarrie film where he had to jump between two buildings. He missed, which was the point, but on one of the takes, he landed wrong and broke his ankle. TMZ posted a video that’s likely the stunt in question. The director spoke to Empire about the whole situation and confirmed that, yes, Cruise broke his ankle. Yes, he’s okay. But no, he’s not sure how long the hiatus will be. The trades all have different estimations, from six weeks to three months. Cruise is well-known for doing his own stunts, especially in the Mission: Impossible movies. He famously hung off the side of the Burj Khalifa for the fourth film and hung off a flying plane for the fifth one. If there’s a seventh, you’d have to think that would be cut back significantly after this.

Willie Nelson was forced to cut his Salt Lake City concert short due to breathing problems, according to various reports from the scene. The 84-year-old singer was reportedly taken to a local hospital after exiting the stage during the early section of his performance at the USANA Amphitheatre. Nelson has battled multiple health complaints in recent years, but took to Twitter to calm fans by stating that he was “feeling better”, while blaming altitude sickness for his woes. “This is Willie,” he wrote. “I am sorry to have to cut the SLC show short tonight. The altitude got to me I am feeling better now & headed for lower ground.” A part of fans’ alarm comes from the various rumours Nelson has recently been plagued with; his publicist Elaine Shock was forced to release a statement that the musician was “perfectly fine”, after Radar Online quoted an anonymous source stating he was “deathly ill”. Several of his shows were cancelled at the start of the year due to a “bad cold”, but Nelson has since returned to the road. He’s also no stranger to online death hoaxes, even addressing the matter in his song ‘Still Not Dead’, off his latest album God’s Problem Child.

Silent Witness actress Liz Carr has said being attacked by a man with scissors was “very frightening” but that she was “relatively unscathed”. Carr, who plays forensic examiner Clarissa Mullery, was with her personal assistant when the assault happened near London’s Euston station. A man has been detained under the Mental Health Act, police said. “Thanks to everyone who has sent their love and good wishes following  last week’s stabbing,” Carr said. “Just to reassure you that whilst it was very frightening at the time, I came out of it relatively unscathed and was even back home later that night. “Looking forward to returning to filming on Silent Witness next week where thankfully all the violence is fake!” The 45-year-old, who uses a wheelchair, suffered minor cuts. Both women were taken to hospital and later discharged.

And finally, the grandmother who infamously tried to claim a £33million lottery jackpot by alleging she had put the ticket in the washing machine has died aged 49. ‘Lotto gran’ Susanne Hinte is believed to have had a heart attack at her home in Worcester yesterday afternoon. The grandmother-of-four contacted Camelot last year after claiming she found the winning ticket in her jeans which had been damaged in the wash. But when German-born Ms Hinte sent in the crumpled ticket, investigators from Camelot’s security team soon determined the ticket was not correct. Ms Hinte provoked a storm of criticism by the false lottery claim and later revealed she regretted the whole incident and felt suicidal. Last year she said: ‘I wanted to be dead. I couldn’t understand why all of a sudden I was hated by so many people. I didn’t do anything wrong.’ Although not famous enough for our needs, she would have scored quite nicely.

On This Day

  • 1858 – Charles Darwin first publishes his theory of evolution through natural selection in The Journal of the Proceedings of the Linnean Society of London, alongside Alfred Russel Wallace’s same theory.
  • 1940 – In Mexico City, Mexico exiled Russian revolutionary Leon Trotsky is fatally wounded with an ice axe by Ramón Mercader. He dies the next day.
  • 1940 – World War II: British Prime Minister Winston Churchill makes the fourth of his famous wartime speeches, containing the line “Never was so much owed by so many to so few”.
  • 1975 – Viking program: NASA launches the Viking 1 planetary probe toward Mars.
  • 1977 – Voyager program: NASA launches the Voyager 2 spacecraft.
  • 1989 – The pleasure boat Marchioness sinks on the River Thames following a collision. Fifty-one people are killed.

Deaths

  • 1825 – William Waldegrave, 1st Baron Radstock, English admiral and politician, Governor of Newfoundland (b. 1753)
  • 1912 – William Booth, English preacher, co-founded The Salvation Army (b. 1829)
  • 2013 – Elmore Leonard, American novelist, short story writer, and screenwriter (b. 1925)

Last Week’s Birthdays

Matthew Perry (48), Jonathan Frakes (65), Kevin Dillon (52), Diana Muldaur (79), Jim Carter (69), Edward Norton (48), Robert Redford (81), Christian Slater (48), Madeleine Stowe (59), Roman Polanski (84), Denis Leary (60), Robert De Niro (74), Sean Penn (57), Steve Carell (55), James Cameron (63), Julie Newmar (84), Madonna (59), Jennifer Lawrence (27), Ben Affleck (45), Natasha Henstridge (43), Debra Messing (49), Jim Dale (82), Mila Kunis (34), Halle Berry (51) and Steve Martin (72).


Dead Pool 13th August 2017

Oh my! Points to award and a new table leader! With  the sad passing of Glen Campbell, 69 points go to Doug and 169 to Martin as he had him down as his Cert.  Luke and Dave also score 137 with their Cert, with the death of the world oldest man, Yisrael Kristal. The top three scorers now have nothing between them, one death is enough to secure the championship.

Look Who You Could Have Had:

  • Chantek, 39, American hybrid orangutan who learned signing.
  • Haruo Nakajima, 88, Japanese actor (Godzilla, Destroy All Monsters, Seven Samurai), pneumonia.
  • Glen Campbell, 81, American singer (“Rhinestone Cowboy”, “By the Time I Get to Phoenix”) and actor (True Grit), Grammy winner (1967, 2015), Alzheimer’s disease.
  • Sitaram Panchal, 54, Indian actor (Peepli Live, Lajja, Slumdog Millionaire), kidney and lung cancer.
  • Yisrael Kristal, 113, Polish-Israeli supercentenarian, world’s oldest living man.

In Other News

Singer Sinead O’Connor has sparked fresh concern over her mental health after posting a Facebook video in which she reveals she has wanted to kill herself for the past two years. The Irish songwriter, who has been diagnosed with bipolar disorder, took to the social media site for a tearful confessional recording, opening up about how alone she has felt since losing custody of her 13-year-old son. In the video, posted from the Travelodge in New Jersey where she says she is now living, the 50-year-old said she suffers from three mental illnesses. “I’m all by myself, there’s absolutely nobody in my life. “I’m now living in a Travelodge motel in the arse-end of New Jersey. “[No one] except my doctor, my psychiatrist — who is the sweetest man on earth who says I’m his hero — and that’s about the only f**king thing keeping me alive at the moment. The fact that I’m his bloody hero … and that’s kind of pathetic.” O’Connor, who shot to fame in 1990 with the smash hit Nothing Compares 2 U, claims she is being treated “like shit” by family members who are refusing to take care of her. The thousands of comments from friends and followers on Facebook and Twitter mainly expressed concern for the singer’s well-being and urged her to seek help. Last May, the singer sparked a police investigation after she went missing after going on a bike ride with friends concerned she may have carried out her threats to take her own life.

Jeremy Clarkson will have to take a break from work for “quite some time” after contracting pneumonia, the TV presenter has said in a statement. The Grand Tour presenter was admitted to hospital on Friday after falling ill while on a family holiday in Majorca. The 57-year-old posted a message on social media saying: “To keep you up to date, I’ll be out of action for quite some time apparently.” He said it was “really annoying” as he had never had a day off work. Clarkson also thanked fans for “all the good wishes”. On Sunday, it was confirmed the former Top Gear host was being treated in a hospital on the Spanish island. Clarkson shared a photograph of tubes in his arm and his hospital identity tags around his wrist, writing: “Not the sort of bangles I usually choose on holiday.” Clarkson made light of the situation on social media, saying the show’s third co-presenter, James May, was now the only “functioning member” of the Grand Tour team, adding: “God help us.”

In what we would call a non-news story, The Queen is preparing to make Prince Charles King of England and abdicated the throne, according to reports. Queen Elizabeth, 91, intends to step aside when she turns 95. They said: “Out of the profound respect the Queen holds for the institution of monarchy and its stewardship, Her Majesty would want to make sure that she has done everything she can for her country and her people before she hands over. She is dutiful to her core. Her Majesty is mindful of her age and wants to make sure when the time comes, the transition of the Crown is seamless. I understand the Queen has given the matter considerable thought and believes that, if she is still alive at 95, she will seriously consider passing the reign to Charles.” Clarence House is making no comment about ‘Plan Regency’, which involves a piece of legislation called the Regency Act coming into force.

Ant McPartlin has revealed how his secret two-year addiction to super-strong painkilling drugs almost killed him. The 41-year-old I’m A Celebrity presenter told how he was rushed to hospital at 5am after an “insane” pills binge. “I was at the point where anything — prescription drugs, non-prescription drugs — I would take. And take them with alcohol, which is ridiculous. The doctors told me, ‘You could have killed yourself’. Ant knew the game was up as he pleaded with his wife Lisa to get him to hospital after bingeing on tramadol, morphine and alcohol while recovering from a second knee operation in June. He recalls: “It was five in the morning and I was screaming in pain so I rang Lisa. She was upstairs because I was living in the living room because I couldn’t get around. I said, ‘You’re going to have to call me an ambulance. I’m in a bad way’. Post-rehab, he’s now clean of all drugs other than paracetamol for the first time in three years — and looking healthy after losing a stone.

On This Day

  • 1868 – The 8.5–9.0 Mw Arica earthquake struck southern Peru with a maximum Mercalli intensity of XI (Extreme), causing 25,000+ deaths and a destructive basin wide tsunami that affected Hawaii and New Zealand.
  • 1961 – East Germany closes the border between the eastern and western sectors of Berlin to thwart its inhabitants’ attempts to escape to the West, and construction of the Berlin Wall is started.
  • 1964 – Peter Allen and Gwynne Evans are hanged for the Murder of John Alan West becoming the last people executed in the United Kingdom.
  • 1969 – The Apollo 11 astronauts are released from a three-week quarantine to enjoy a ticker tape parade in New York City That evening, at a state dinner in Los Angeles, they are awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by U.S. President Richard Nixon.

Deaths

  • 1910 – Florence Nightingale, Italian-English nurse and theologian (b. 1820)
  • 1946 – H. G. Wells, English novelist, historian, and critic (b. 1866)
  • 2009 – Les Paul, American musician (b. 1915)
  • 2016 – Kenny Baker, English actor and musician (b. 1934)

Last Week’s Birthdays

Cara Delevingne (25), Jim Beaver (67), Sam J. Jones (63), Chris Hemsworth (34), Anna Gunn (49), Ian McDiarmid (73), Hulk Hogan (64), Antonio Banderas (57), Rosanna Arquette (58), Kylie Jenner (20), Anna Kendrick (32), Sam Elliott (73), Rhona Mitra (41), Gillian Anderson (49), Eric Bana (49), Melanie Griffith (60), Audrey Tautou (41), McG (48), Dustin Hoffman (80), Keith Carradine (68), Charlize Theron (42), Abbie Cornish (35), David Duchovny (57) and Tobin Bell (75).


Dead Pool 6th August 2017

Several prominent names have dropped this week, however no points scored. Rather a lot of juicy news too, in fact it was rather difficult to edit this issue down to the usual size, if only every week was the same!

Look Who You Could Have Had:

  • Jeanne Moreau, 89, French actress (Elevator to the Gallows, The Lovers, Jules and Jim).
  • Jeffrey Brotman, 74, American businessman, co-founder of Costco.
  • Mariann Mayberry, 52, American actress (War of the Worlds, August: Osage County, One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest), ovarian cancer.
  • Goldy McJohn, 72, Canadian keyboardist (Steppenwolf), heart attack.
  • Robert Hardy, 91, British actor (All Creatures Great and Small, Winston Churchill: The Wilderness Years, Harry Potter).
  • Hywel Bennett, 73, Welsh actor (The Virgin Soldiers, Shelley, EastEnders).

In Other News

TV presenter Jeremy Clarkson is being treated for pneumonia after being admitted to  hospital in Majorca. The 57-year-old was on a family holiday on the Spanish island when he was taken ill. He tweeted friend Jemima Goldsmith he was “in a wheelchair, connected up to tubes, in a hospital”, and also posted a picture of himself on Instagram. A spokesman for The Grand Tour confirmed the TV presenter was being treated for pneumonia. Clarkson is the second Grand Tour host to be admitted to hospital this year. Fellow Top Gear alumnus Richard Hammond, 47, was flown to hospital in Switzerland after crashing an electric super car in Switzerland in June. The car, which was being filmed for the latest series of The Grand Tour, burst into flames after Hammond escaped the wreckage. The presenter said he thought he was going to die during the incident, during which he became airborne and crashed after completing the Hemberg Hill Climb in Switzerland. He described the experience as “like being in a tumble dryer full of bricks going down a hill”.

Controversial columnist Katie Hopkins had to be rushed to hospital after being treated by paramedics at a train station. The reality TV star was left in agony after dislocating her shoulder while carrying a suitcase onto the platform. She had to be given emergency gas and air inside Paddington, west London, before being taken to nearby St Mary’s Hospital. Katie’s husband Mark Cross told the Sunday Mirror: “This is a legacy from her years with epilepsy. The staff at St Mary’s were brilliant and managed to get her patched up in a couple of hours.” The ex-Apprentice contestant Katie, 42, was her way to Heathrow to catch a flight to LA where she appeared as a guest speaker at the Politicon conference in Pasadena. Mark added: “I’m pleased to say Katie, although in a great deal of pain and doped-up, still made her flight.” Katie was diagnosed with epilepsy at the age of 19 and last year underwent brain surgery but surgeons failed to find her brain.

The Duke of Edinburgh met Royal Marines in his final solo public engagement before he retires from royal duties. The 96-year-old announced his retirement in May, after decades of supporting the Queen as well as attending events for his own charities and organisations. Prince Philip has completed 22,219 solo engagements since 1952. Prime Minister Theresa May took to Twitter to thank him for “a remarkable lifetime of service”. She added that she hoped he “can now enjoy a well-earned retirement”. While his diary of engagements will come to an end, Buckingham Palace has said the duke may still decide to attend certain events alongside the Queen in the future.

Martin Shkreli, the hedge fund manager turned pharmaceutical entrepreneur once dubbed “the most hated man in America”, has been found guilty on three of eight federal charges that he deceived investors in a pair of failed hedge funds. The jury of seven women and five men reached their verdict on the fifth day of deliberations after a month-long federal fraud trial. Shkreli, nicknamed “Pharma Bro” for his wilfully provocative behaviour, faces up to 20 years behind bars on the charges of securities fraud, conspiracy to commit securities fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud. Prior to the trial, Shkreli boasted he would be acquitted entirely because he was “so innocent” and jurors would apologise to him. Shkreli also faces a heap of civil lawsuits. Shkreli achieved notoriety in 2015 after the 34-year-old increased the price of a life-saving drug, Daraprim, used by people with Aids, by 5,000% overnight, shortly after his pharmaceutical startup bought the commercial rights to it. Let’s see how long he lasts if he gets put in jail.

On This Day

  • 1890 – At Auburn Prison in New York, murderer William Kemmler becomes the first person to be executed by electric chair.
  • 1926 – Gertrude Ederle becomes the first woman to swim across the English Channel.
  • 1945 – World War II: Hiroshima, Japan is devastated when the atomic bomb “Little Boy” is dropped by the United States B-29 Enola Gay. Around 70,000 people are killed instantly, and some tens of thousands die in subsequent years from burns and radiation poisoning.
  • 1991 – Tim Berners-Lee releases files describing his idea for the World Wide Web. WWW debuts as a publicly available service on the Internet.

Deaths

  • 1623 – Anne Hathaway, wife of William Shakespeare (b. 1555)
  • 2005 – Robin Cook, Scottish educator and politician, Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (b. 1946)
  • 2009 – John Hughes, American director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1950)
  • 2012 – Bernard Lovell, English physicist and astronomer (b. 1913)

Last Week’s Birthdays

M. Night Shyamalan (47), Michelle Yeoh (55), Mark Strong (54), Loni Anderson (72), Lexi Belle (30), Kara Tointon (34), Billy Bob Thornton (62), Barack Obama (56), Evangeline Lilly (38), Martin Sheen (77), John Landis (67), Steven Berkoff (80), Sam Worthington (41), Kevin Smith (47), Edward Furlong (40), Joanna Cassidy (72), Jason Momoa (38), Sam Mendes (52), Michael Biehn (61), Wesley Snipes (55), Dean Cain (51), Emilia Fox (43), J.K. Rowling (52), Christopher Nolan (47), Arnold Schwarzenegger (70), Lisa Kudrow (54), Hilary Swank (43), Laurence Fishburne (56), Jean Reno (69), Richard Linklater (57), Carel Struycken (69), and Frances de la Tour (73).


Dead Pool 30th July 2017

Another pointless week, to be fair, I could walk past any of this weeks deceased and not notice them. However, they are all more famous than I am, so lets celebrate their demises by not scoring any points whatsoever! But, from reading this weeks news, we now know not to eat cherry stones as they have enough cyanide in three of them to kill you, so make sure you offer cherries to any celebrities you happen to meet, just on the off chance like..

Look Who You Could Have Had:

  • Clarence Matthews, 111, American supercentenarian, oldest living man in the US.
  • Michael Johnson, 72, American singer (“Bluer Than Blue”, “Give Me Wings”, “The Moon Is Still Over Her Shoulder”), songwriter and guitarist.
  • Barbara Sinatra, 90, American fashion model, showgirl and philanthropist.
  • Patti Deutsch, 73, American comedian and voice actress (The Smurfs, Match Game, Tattletales), cancer.
  • June Foray, 99, American voice actress (The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show, Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies, Cinderella).
  • Rob Anker, 27, English dancer (Diversity), winner of Britain’s Got Talent (2009), car crash.
  • Charlie Gard, 11 months, British infant, subject of life support and parental rights case, MDDS.

In Other News

Troubled Ant McPartlin has been allowed on trips out of rehab after making progress on overcoming his addictions. The TV favourite, 41, shocked fans last month by telling the media of his substance abuse, prescription drugs and booze issues. But smiling Ant, who has had surgery to fix an injured right knee, has been on walks to a park and shops after four weeks staying inside the clinic. A source said: “He’s doing very well considering everything he’s been through and is happy at being allowed to leave the centre with one of the staff. He is in good spirits and on the road to recovery.” Ant admitted to being hooked on painkillers he took for knee pain. He also turned to substance abuse while depressed after years of being unable to conceive with wife Lisa. Ant checked into rehab after confessing to her and TV partner Declan Donnelly about his problems and is expected to remain at the clinic for up to three months. The source added: “Ant has had no visitors — not even Lisa or Dec. “It was judged best that he battled through this on his own. It has been very tough for him, but he really wants to get better and promised to do whatever that takes. There is still a way to go, but he is making real progress.”

Olivia Newton-John’s daughter Chloe Lattanzi has revealed that cannabis oil is helping her recover from cancer. Fans everywhere were devastated when the Grease star announced the return of her cancer in May, being forced to postpone her US and Canada tour as the cancer has now spread to other areas of her body. Olivia’s daughter, Chloe Lattanzi, revealed that her mother would be trying alternative courses of medicine – including cannabis oil to try and treat her, so in all likelihood she wont be around for our lists for 2018. Chloe, Olivia’s only child, owns a legal marijuana farm in Oregon with her fiancé, and discussed how effective the cannabis oil had been. She said: “She’s using it, it inhibits cancer cell growth. It’s an amazing plant and I’m much more for natural medicine than I am for traditional western medicine. “I think a combination of both is good. My mum and I more lean towards the natural remedies.” She said in a totally impartial way that didn’t promote her money making scheme over her mothers health.

And finally, just when you thought it was safe to go out at night once more, police in the US state of Maine have arrested a drunk, one-armed clown who was brandishing a machete. Corey Berry, 31, from the town of Hollis, was spotted walking down a road in a black hooded sweatshirt and a clown mask, holding the weapon. He had duct-taped the machete to his arm, which police say had been amputated. Worried residents began calling 911 at around 18:00 on Tuesday. Local media said Mr Berry ran off into the woods, where police struggled to apprehend him as further emergency calls came in. State Trooper Adam Schmidt said the clown was highly intoxicated, but cooperative. He told police he had been inspired by previous creepy clown sightings and was trying to play a prank. While sightings have died down this year, summer and autumn 2016 saw a wave of “killer clown” stunts that spread across the US, UK, Canada, and Australia.

On This Day

  • 762 – Baghdad is founded by caliph Al-Mansur.
  • 1733 – The first Masonic Grand Lodge in the future United States is constituted in Massachusetts.
  • 1965 – U.S. President Lyndon B. Johnson signs the Social Security Act of 1965 into law, establishing Medicare and Medicaid.
  • 1971 – Apollo program: Apollo 15 Mission: David Scott and James Irwin on the Apollo Lunar Module Falcon land on the Moon with the first Lunar Rover.
  • 1975 – Jimmy Hoffa disappears from the parking lot of the Machus Red Fox restaurant in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit, at about 2:30 p.m. He is never seen or heard from again.
  • 2003 – In Mexico, the last ‘old style’ Volkswagen Beetle rolls off the assembly line.
  • 2006 – The world’s longest running music show Top of the Pops is broadcast for the last time on BBC Two. The show had aired for 42 years and as many as 30,000 children were fucked by the presenters.

Deaths

  • 1898 – Otto von Bismarck, Lawyer and politician, 1st Chancellor of Germany (b. 1815)
  • 2007 – Ingmar Bergman, Swedish director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1918)

Last Week’s Birthdays

Wil Wheaton (45), David Warner (76), Elizabeth Berkley (43), Nikolaj Coster-Waldau (47), Taylor Schilling (33), Jonathan Rhys Meyers (40), Donnie Yen (54), Bryan Fuller (48), Kate Beckinsale (44), Jason Statham (50), Kevin Spacey (58), Sandra Bullock (53), Helen Mirren (72), Nana Visitor (60), Eve Myles (39), Mick Jagger (74), Matt LeBlanc (50), Iman (62), Lynda Carter (66), Anna Paquin (35), Summer Glau (36), Jennifer Lopez (48), Danny Dyer (40), Woody Harrelson (56), Daniel Radcliffe (28), Charisma Carpenter (47), Ronny Cox (79), Slash (52) and Selena Gomez (25).


Dead Pool 23rd July 2017

After a busy week for the flying monkeys, none of us managed to score a single point. Quite a few big names on the list this week, even a very good potential Maverick, if only we could predict the future somehow…

Look Who You Could Have Had:

  • Martin Landau, 89, American actor (Ed Wood, Mission: Impossible, North by Northwest), Oscar winner (1995).
  • George A. Romero, 77, American-Canadian film director and screenwriter (Night of the Living Dead, Dawn of the Dead, Creepshow), lung cancer.
  • Harvey Atkin, 74, Canadian actor (Cagney & Lacey, Meatballs, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit), cancer.
  • Chester Bennington, 41, American singer and songwriter (Linkin Park, Dead by Sunrise, Stone Temple Pilots), suicide by hanging.
  • John Heard, 72, American actor (Home Alone).
  • Pudsey, 11, British performing dog (Britain’s Got Talent, Pudsey: The Movie, Mr Stink), blood cancer.
  • Deborah Watling, 69, English actress (Doctor Who, Take Me High, The Invisible Man), lung cancer.

In Other News

British actor Paul Nicholls, 38, was found in agony at the base of Khun Si falls after a local spotted his abandoned rental motorbike. He was found partially submerged in a rock pool, semi-conscious and with hypothermia, unable to move to safety or find food. “I am lucky to be alive,” Nicholls said. “It took such a long time to find me. It’s an understatement to say it wasn’t a great situation … The problem was I couldn’t move to get out of there.” Nicholls said his kneecap was destroyed in the fall and would need a complete reconstruction. It took two hours for emergency services to get him to International Koh Samui hospital, and his medical bills will run into tens of thousands of pounds. Nicholls debuted in EastEnders in 1996 as Joe Wicks. He quit the soap a year later and has since worked on City Central, Holby City, Secret Diary of a Call Girl and Law & Order. He also acted in the 2004 film, Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason.

Veteran US Republican Senator John McCain has been diagnosed with brain cancer and is reviewing treatment options, according to his office. The options may include chemotherapy and radiation, his doctors said. The 80-year-old politician is in “good spirits” recovering at home. He thanked those who had wished him well and said he would be back soon. The tumour was discovered during a surgery to remove a blood clot from above his left eye last week. Tissue analysis revealed that a primary brain tumour known as glioblastoma was associated with the clot. “The senator’s doctors say he is recovering from his surgery ‘amazingly well’ and his underlying health is excellent.” Senior Republicans and Democrats wished him a speedy recovery, prompting Mr McCain to tweet his thanks. Glioblastoma is a particularly aggressive brain tumour, and increases in frequency with age, affecting more men than women.

You might want to pop over to Nickie’s blog to read this excellent post about our perception on who is is still alive or is actually dead. Each year at Dead Pool Towers we have to review each persons list because invariably there will be one or two already deceased celebrities on their lists. We also get shocked at times to find out that a celebrity is still alive, having been certain that they died twenty years ago, only to find they just retired and slipped back into obscurity like the rest of us.

On This Day

  • 1903 – The Ford Motor Company sells its first car.
  • 1962 – Telstar relays the first publicly transmitted, live trans-Atlantic television program.
  • 1982 – Outside Santa Clarita, California, actor Vic Morrow and two children are killed when a helicopter crashes onto them while shooting a scene from Twilight Zone:The Movie.

Deaths

  • 1885 – Ulysses S. Grant, American general and politician, 18th President of the United States (b. 1822)
  • 1948 – D. W. Griffith, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1875)
  • 1966 – Montgomery Clift, American actor (b. 1920)
  • 1982 – Vic Morrow, American actor (b. 1929)
  • 1996 – Jean Muir, American actress (b. 1911)
  • 2002 – Leo McKern, Australian-English actor (b. 1920)
  • 2011 – Amy Winehouse, English singer-songwriter (b. 1983)
  • 2012 – Sally Ride, American physicist and astronaut (b. 1951)

Last Week’s Birthdays

Willem Dafoe (62), Clive Standen (36), Rhys Ifans (50), Terence Stamp (79), Danny Glover (71), Louise Fletcher (83), Josh Hartnett (39), Diana Rigg (79), John Francis Daley (32), Gisele Bündchen (37), Benedict Cumberbatch (41), Jared Padalecki (35), Vin Diesel (50), Kristen Bell (37), Paul Verhoeven (79), Donald Sutherland (82), David Hasselhoff (65) and Alex Winter (52).