Reappearances

[D Eadie]

but in the last week alone, i've seen people call each other tosser, cunt, twat, fucktard....

No one has called anyone a cunt or a fucktard in the last month. Douglas Wilson called Corby a twat and then retracted it. Michael called Corby a tosser in jest and it was taken as such. (Why is everyone insulting Corby?) Those are literally the only instances. In contrast, you yourself told someone to fuck off in Aptochat, not at all in jest, and you've scared off at least one other player by calling them a retard.

there's also no formal association with anyone from the show

Which has always been the case, right?

Clarification, i didn't mean they were posted in the last week, but i have read those comments in the past week, whether it was well after the event or not, i don't know. What i said to someone on Apterous from the comfort of my own home late one evening won't happen again because i won't be visiting the place any longer using my real name. That was a big mistake, and i think you know as well as i do, the retard comment was taken out of context, but thanks for bringing it to everyone's attention.

[Jon Corby]

Bullying, on the other hand, is different, and I can sympathise with why a few people have left, the prime example being the lovely Katherine, whose enthusiasm was squashed like one of the furry animals we all seem to be obsessed with when it ventures out onto a road.

Oh yeah, I remember that, I stuck up for her as well. So that's both Katherine and Rob I've defended when I thought people were out of order to them. And yet still I cop the insults

[Charlie Reams]

Clarification, i didn't mean they were posted in the last week, but i have read those comments in the past week, whether it was well after the event or not, i don't know. What i said to someone on Apterous from the comfort of my own home late one evening won't happen again because i won't be visiting the place any longer using my real name. That was a big mistake, and i think you know as well as i do, the retard comment was taken out of context, but thanks for bringing it to everyone's attention.

I just don't see how you can complain about this place being unfriendly and showing a lack of warmth when in the past week you've been totally insulting to someone you'd never spoken to before. Let's just accept that sometimes all of us say things which might be taken to be rather nastier than they really are, and also that sometimes being nasty is totally necessary and justified. No need for a mass exodus of ITV people from the forum, or from apterous, or for any kind of argument at all really. You've done a great job of contributing to this forum without letting it interfere destructively with the programme for at least the last five years, why change now?

[Charlie Reams]

Bullying, on the other hand, is different, and I can sympathise with why a few people have left, the prime example being the lovely Katherine, whose enthusiasm was squashed like one of the furry animals we all seem to be obsessed with when it ventures out onto a road.

I don't think she was bullied. I made one comment which I probably shouldn't have done, even if I was just saying what everyone else was thinking, and she got upset. I have her on MSN, I've apologised, we chat occasionally and mostly she's just not that interested in Countdown right now (busy with birdwatching, each to their own!)

[Derek Hazell]

Bullying, on the other hand, is different, and I can sympathise with why a few people have left, the prime example being the lovely Katherine, whose enthusiasm was squashed like one of the furry animals we all seem to be obsessed with when it ventures out onto a road.

I don't think she was bullied. I made one comment which I probably shouldn't have done, even if I was just saying what everyone else was thinking, and she got upset. I have her on MSN, I've apologised, we chat occasionally and mostly she's just not that interested in Countdown right now (busy with birdwatching, each to their own!)

Oh right, I've got her on MSN as well! Was just trying to keep things balanced with my analysis.

[Ian Volante]

If people are trying to be like me, I guess that's what happens when you are voted Most Awesome Person Perhaps if I start being less awesome, people won't try and emulate me... the question is how?

Be cuntier? And that's a word that should go into the "why's it not in the dictionary" thread.

The trouble with forums as ever is that sarcasm doesn't have a specific font.

[David Williams]

As Ye Sow, So Shall Ye Reap

[D Eadie]

[I just don't see how you can complain about this place being unfriendly and showing a lack of warmth

It's not like that all the time, so don't take it the wrong way, but some stuff on here makes for uncomfortable reading. Let's call it a day and put an end to this thread. No point arguing the toss backwards and forwards is there?

[Charlie Reams]

As Ye Sow, So Shall Ye Reap

lol wat

[I just don't see how you can complain about this place being unfriendly and showing a lack of warmth

It's not like that all the time, so don't take it the wrong way, but some stuff on here makes for uncomfortable reading. Let's call it a day and put an end to this thread. No point arguing the toss backwards and forwards is there?

Agreed.

[Andrew Feist]

Thanks for the sympathy votes.

There is some discussion on the "2nd chance" thread about inadequate checks and "slipping through the net". Just to clarify, I feel I need to state that I have been up front right from the start. When I emailed my application in March, I clearly stated on the form that I had appeared on Countdown on 1 Feb 2002. I referred to this in my covering email and set out the reasons why I was asking for a 2nd chance. After the filming of the finals in April, I spoke to Damian and he said there was no real reason why I couldn't appear again, particularly with the passage of time. In the email I received on 2 July from the Countdown Team inviting me to audition on 17 July, it stated "We've spoken to Damian and he's going to let you have another crack of the whip in teapot terms!"

This sounds like me, and if so I apologize 'cause in the cold light of morning it does look pretty insulting. My point (such as it was) was that I had gotten the impression (based pretty much solely on this thread, because I'm a bad person) that the office wasn't really keeping track of how often repeats were getting back on (it's easy, every time somebody asks once a month, to say "sure" and not think much more about it) and was kind of surprised to see it all in one place. This is apparently not at all the case and so I'll shut up about it.

[Jon Corby]

Bullying, on the other hand, is different, and I can sympathise with why a few people have left, the prime example being the lovely Katherine, whose enthusiasm was squashed like one of the furry animals we all seem to be obsessed with when it ventures out onto a road.

I don't think she was bullied. I made one comment which I probably shouldn't have done, even if I was just saying what everyone else was thinking, and she got upset. I have her on MSN, I've apologised, we chat occasionally and mostly she's just not that interested in Countdown right now (busy with birdwatching, each to their own!)

I know this was supposed to be a rebuttal, but aren't you actually just reinforcing Derek's point?

[Gavin Chipper]

Say what you want guys, i don't really give a hoot. Have a poll, write to Channel 4, complain to your MP, it won't make a difference.

The people who run the show are those who are paid to, not those who think they know it all.

Yeah it was my decision, and yeah it's not changing. Have said enough about it now.

Full of myself....not really, perhaps just full of too much shit that gets written on this forum.

I believe this is a word for word copy of Michael Grade's response to the Save Our Studios on-line petition we were entreated to sign on this forum.

Top post. Made me laugh anyway.

Pretty much so. Just dawned of me yesterday that a couple of us on the production team pay far too much attention to what is written on this forum.

OK, but surely you can see how this whole thing looks a bit like "Look at those nobody tossers on the forum discussing how the show should be. Not only am I not going to implement their ideas, but I'm actually going to take a step in the opposite direction just to show them." Also I still think it's wrong not to allow the auditions that had already been agreed to and arranged. I don't think anyone could accude you of bending over backwards to the wants of the forumers just for that.

I can't be arsed picking out the exact links Jon, but in the last week alone, i've seen people call each other tosser, cunt, twat, fucktard....and it does seem to be getting worse. It looks to me like a few people are trying to be like you, always looking for the cutting quip, the funny sarcastic side of things, but it ain't working, it's starting to reek of hostility and show signs of lack of warmth.

Well I've seen much the same from you over the years. I can only assume that you are now a changed man.

[Jack Morgan]

For what it's worth, despite losing on the 4th conundrum to an eventual octochamp, I don't expect to ever be on again and was uncomfortable when I discovered that people had been let back on. It's something that shouldn't be taken for granted, and it seemed to be getting that way so I think Damian has made the right decision.

I applied for the hell of it on the spur of the moment having done no practice, found apterous on the day of my audition - and how I made it through the audition I'll never know. I was obviously gutted not to have found apterous earlier and got up to a good enough standard to win - but that's my own fault. I applied on the off chance of being on tv and having an amazing experience, and I was lucky enough that I got just that. Want to say thankyou to Damian and all the team for an incredible experience that'll never be forgotten. If it so happens in 10 years that the show is still running and they'd let me back then sure, I'll give it a shot - but as far as I'm concerned it should be kept as a once in a lifetime oppertunity.

[Dinos Sfyris]

anyone claiming Dinos to be unlucky when he appeared is clearly deluding themselves, (14 word maxes from 44 rds?).

Lol its true. Thanks for drawing attention to what a fucktard I was!

Seriously though I don't think I was unlucky for a second. I appeared on my favourite show 4 times, that's a whole 3 times more than most shows allow. The whole experience was unforgettable from start to finish, the exhilarating high of meeting Dent and Vorders to the devastating low of narrow defeat. It all meant so much to me. Sure I've improved, and probably could've done a lot better now but I enjoyed the experience for what it was and, although it would undoubtedly be truly awesome, I will survive without proving myself on the show once more. I only hope everyone else who goes on the show relishes it as much, and to those that can't reappear, you can still enjoy Apterous and this forum to your heart's content. Not to mention endless visits to the studio and renditions of "We love Countdown" (We go to town)

[Dinos Sfyris]

oh and CO-events! Don't forget those either!

[D Eadie]

OK, but surely you can see how this whole thing looks a bit like "Look at those nobody tossers on the forum discussing how the show should be.

I played an active part in the whole thread and replied to everything that was asked of me. If i thought people were 'nobody tossers', would i have bothered to get involved? That whole thread had opinions from Innis, Junaid, Charlie, Ben W, Ben H, Corby, Jim Bentley, Richard Priest, Dinos, Kirk, James Robinson, Oliver G, Phil Reynolds and Kai among others. I'll let them tell you if they've ever had vibes from me that i consider them as 'nobody tossers'.

...Not only am I not going to implement their ideas, but I'm actually going to take a step in the opposite direction just to show them

What ideas, what opposite direction? Everyone had / has different opinions, some were for the 2nd chance thing for all, others were for it but only for non-champs, others were dead against it full stop. Seems to me you've got that excited about logging in, hurling a few rocks my way then running off again, that you've forgotten to write anything sensible.

[Ralph Gillions]

One straightforward, clear, hard-and-fast rule is best I think.
Once you have opened a door marked "exceptions" it gets messy.

[Gavin Chipper]

I played an active part in the whole thread and replied to everything that was asked of me. If i thought people were 'nobody tossers', would i have bothered to get involved? That whole thread had opinions from Innis, Junaid, Charlie, Ben W, Ben H, Corby, Jim Bentley, Richard Priest, Dinos, Kirk, James Robinson, Oliver G, Phil Reynolds and Kai among others. I'll let them tell you if they've ever had vibes from me that i consider them as 'nobody tossers'.

I've often got the impression that it pains you to read other people's opinions on the running of Countdown and that you view them with contempt - not specific to this thread.

What ideas, what opposite direction? Everyone had / has different opinions, some were for the 2nd chance thing for all, others were for it but only for non-champs, others were dead against it full stop. Seems to me you've got that excited about logging in, hurling a few rocks my way then running off again, that you've forgotten to write anything sensible.

People's ideas about who should be let back on. The opposite direction as in most people seemed to be generally positive about letting some people back on in certain situations and that you have not simply ignored these requests but decided to ban it altogether. It would be like if I started a thread on how I think you should get 9 points for 9 letter words and you came along and said you were now going to award 27 points.

[JackHurst]

As someone who is impartial to the whole matter of this topic, and ignorant to the dynamics of the people involved in this topic, I though I'd have a stab at putting across my take on the situation.

It doesn't seem to as if Damain has made this decision on the basis of going against the opinions of the forumites. More like he has seen a topic on the forums about an issue/talking point, realised (not necessarily from the popularity of the topic, but maybe through his own pondering) that it might be a good idea to change one of the rules of the show through the basis of his own pondering about the topic, and then taken action. Im not siding with anyone here, just putting forward my thoughts.

As for the discussion about swearing and offending people, i think its best if you only swear and tease people who you know will take it with a pinch of salt, and from what i have seen on this forums, this seems to be the case 99% of the time.

[D Eadie]

I've often got the impression that it pains you to read other people's opinions on the running of Countdown and that you view them with contempt - not specific to this thread.

Ah, well that's your problem, not mine. I couldn't care less what you think. You only ever tend to post on here whenever i say something, and then its always barbed, sarcastic, provocative and antagonisitic. You've not got ADHD by any chance?

It would be like if I started a thread on how I think you should get 9 points for 9 letter words and you came along and said you were now going to award 27 points.

Don't flatter yourself, if you started a thread i wouldn't read it.

[Charlie Reams]

It would be like if I started a thread on how I think you should get 9 points for 9 letter words and you came along and said you were now going to award 27 points.

Feature request?

Also, what Jack said. Damian makes his own decisions and he's good at it. Have some faith.

[James Robinson]

It would be like if I started a thread on how I think you should get 9 points for 9 letter words and you came along and said you were now going to award 27 points.

Feature request?

Also, what Jack said. Damian makes his own decisions and he's good at it. Have some faith.

Yeah, I second that, Charlie, Damian's been part of the Countdown family for so long, he wouldn't dare make any mistakes. You should support his decisions, Gavin. It's for the good of the show.

[Kirk Bevins]

Damian's been part of the Countdown family for so long, he wouldn't dare make any mistakes.

Huh this doesn't make sense? How do you dare to make a mistake?

[David O'Donnell]

Damian's been part of the Countdown family for so long, he wouldn't dare make any mistakes.

Huh this doesn't make sense? How do you dare to make a mistake?

Because when you dare you are more prone to making mistakes, admittedly the phraseology is hackneyed but I **dare** suggest it's valid.

[Phil Reynolds]

I've often got the impression that it pains you to read other people's opinions on the running of Countdown and that you view them with contempt

Yeah, that'll be why putting the contestants' words up on the board was brought back, why throwing unsolved conundrums over to the audience has been brought back, why reading out viewers' emails has been brought back...

[David Williams]

No second chances?

Damian makes his own decisions and he's good at it. Have some faith.

War in Iraq?

Tony makes his own decisions and he's good at it. Have some faith.

Securitisation of sub-prime lending?

Lehmans make their own decisions and they're good at it. Have some faith.

Andriy Shevchenko?

Roman makes his own decisions and he's good at it. Have some faith.

It's Damian's neck that's on the block, it's his decision, but I don't see why that means everyone falls into line. It's to Damian's enormous credit that he so obviously does give a toss what people here think, and the overwhelming majority are supportive even when they disagree. If you don't like what's being said or the people who say it, just ignore them. (Feel free to ignore this.)

[Gavin Chipper]

Ah, well that's your problem, not mine. I couldn't care less what you think. You only ever tend to post on here whenever i say something, and then its always barbed, sarcastic, provocative and antagonisitic. You've not got ADHD by any chance?

I've posted on here more than you have and generally it's not in response to you. Don't flatter yourself. Also, look through the history of our "arguments" (or whatever you want to call them). I think you'll find that it was you that started being barbed, sarcastic, provocative and antagonistic.

Also, what Jack said. Damian makes his own decisions and he's good at it. Have some faith.

I'm sure he's very good at running the show generally and getting things done on time, on budget etc. But the things discussed on here are more "large scale" and not about the smooth running of the show and I don't have to agree that he's good at all of those decisions.

Yeah, I second that, Charlie, Damian's been part of the Countdown family for so long, he wouldn't dare make any mistakes. You should support his decisions, Gavin. It's for the good of the show.

Damian having yes-men is not for the "good of the show". It makes no difference if someone on the internet happens to agree with him. This is an unofficial forum where people can basically say what they like, and that is a good thing. Having people involved in making the show coming on here can be a good thing, but we should not be expected to agree with them any more than we would anyone else.

Yeah, that'll be why putting the contestants' words up on the board was brought back, why throwing unsolved conundrums over to the audience has been brought back, why reading out viewers' emails has been brought back...

OK, it's not always like that, but there are plenty of times when the attitude I've described has come across.

It's Damian's neck that's on the block, it's his decision, but I don't see why that means everyone falls into line.

This

2016 edit - I'm not going to bump this, but I've just randomly encountered this thread again, and I'm wondering why I even had to reply to all this bullshit. Jason Witcher posted that he was being allowed back on again and this directly caused Damian to ban him from going back on. It was a direct result of forum activity. It was really off, and I stand by everything I said here. So yes, there were people talking about who should be let back on and then as a result of this Countdown decided to ban everyone coming back. Plus David Williams's comments below are pretty hypocritical.

[David Williams]

Gavin, you make it awfully hard to be vaguely supportive of what you're saying.

[Ben Hunter]

No second chances?

Damian makes his own decisions and he's good at it. Have some faith.

War in Iraq?

That's a harsh accusation.

[Gavin Chipper]

Gavin, you make it awfully hard to be vaguely supportive of what you're saying.

I've just reread my post and I don't see your point, particularly as it's you and you often agree with my points but just post in a subtler way and dip under the radar.

Edit - I was actually quite disappointed to read your post. I don't see why your piss-taking remarks which you may now claim were simply in jest are any better a way to respond to the situation than saying what I did.

[David Williams]

I'm quite prepared to believe that your sole motivation is to see Countdown improve, but what you say is less important than how it's perceived. I suspect many people view you in the same way as Damian does. You may not be trying to make friends, but nor do I think you influence people as much as you could. As you say, I'm just here for the piss-taking. If I influence anyone, that's a bonus. And I miss Zef.

If I have a target here, it's all the people here who have a recurrent dream. Damian phones to tell you he's taking three months off to appear on Celebrity Slapheads on Ice, and he wants you to stand in for him (still the same phone number by the way, Damian). You know it's not really going to happen, but best not to disagree with him.

[Ben Wilson]

And I miss Zef.

First strike.

And fwiw I can understand where Damian's coming from regarding the reappearances- it's not as if Countdown is hurting for applicants, and most of those who did reapply were of stunning form (Mubeen, Bevins, Hulme etc) who really made for entertaining viewing. That said though, you really don't want to be setting precedents or before too long every losing challenger in history will be back wanting a go, even the woefully crap ones. A line had to be drawn, so Damian drew it. Simple as.

And as for 'a forum filled with smart-alecs telling everyone how to run the show', how does this make Countdown any different from every other form of entertainment in history (well, recent history anyway)? You're always going to get the obsessive uber-fan whether or not you watch Countdown, Lost or the Fimbles.

[David Williams]

As from today, nobody, regardless of age or how unlucky they were, will be given a second shot unless we make a mistake in production that deprives them of a possible win, or decide to change the rule, which is most unlikely.

[James Robinson]

As from today, nobody, regardless of age or how unlucky they were, will be given a second shot unless we make a mistake in production that deprives them of a possible win, or decide to change the rule, which is most unlikely.

Are you suggesting that Damian is part politician, David

[David Williams]

Are you suggesting that Damian is part politician, David

I can't imagine anyone less like a politician. Damian is Sir Alex Ferguson. He can be obstinate, vile, unreasonable, inconsistent, he doesn't give a damn what anyone thinks of him. His only waking thought is what can make Countdown/MUFC more successful, and he's pretty good at it.

I really didn't understand this at the time. It just seemed to be a spiteful over-reaction to what was happening here, and if it's changed I'm pleased. From Damian's angle I would have thought Marcus was the ideal contestant - self-assured, good (but not unbeatable), and over 25. If you want a reliable source of people like that, go to people who've been on before who didn't do themselves justice first time round. They're much less likely to freeze second time.