Dr_T

Not sure what has happened here, but I did send and resend my team (resend was at 22.17 Thursday EST). I haven't been on the forums much in the last couple of days. I am willing to accept the referee's decision, but this is the team I sent: Andrew McGahan c Edmund Capon Tim Conway Gustav Gerneth Ruth Bader Ginsberg Lee Kerslake Roberta McCain Michael Murphy (Australian murderer) Jimmy Spicer Kane Tanake Jean-Louis Trintignant Reserves Norman Lloyd Jeanne Little Anne Hamilton-Byrne

My team is in. I was going to say that I consider myself the Cardiff City of the Deathlist Cup but I don't want anyone thinking I got an unfair head start.

I do like the mental image of a seal doing "jazz flippers" after being warned that the audience had the occasional autistic kiddy.

Some news for the Deathrace Also Rans Cup, the world's oldest man Masazo Nonako has died: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/jan/20/worlds-oldest-man-masazo-nonaka-dies-in-japan-at-113 345 points for me and whoever else had him and is still bothering to keep score.

Congratulations Phantom, brilliant effort that. Well done! In other news, Texan death row inmate Blaine Milam has been granted a stay of execution so even if death row inmates were allowed and even if the competition hadn't already finished there would be no score for this particular scumbag. https://www.texastribune.org/2019/01/14/texas-court-criminal-appeals-stays-execution-blaine-milam/

Here is my brave 25 1. Donald Trump 2. Queen Elizabeth II 3. Linda Nolan 4. Dick Van Dyke 5. Paul Gascoigne 6. Prunella Scales 7. Stirling Moss 8. Henry Kissinger 9. Betty White 10. Olivia Newton-John 11. Terry Jones 12. Valerie Harper 13. George Alagiah 14. Jimmy Greaves 15. Pope Benedict XVI 16. Beth Chapman 17. Carol Channing 18. Doris Day 19. Billy Connolly 20. Ruth Bader Ginsburg 21. Leslie Phillips 22. Michael Robinson 23. Bob Dole 24. Jimmy Carter 25 . Bob Hawke Subs Prince Philip June Brown Marieke Vervoort Polite applause from the Members Stand for a very patient double century...... (post count).

I like to think I have the same outlook in that I don't necessarily want these people to die but it is more like an academic exercise to predict who I think is likely. In saying that I am a very competitive person and very much have the attitude "if someone keeps score it is worth winning." Anyone in any doubt about that should talk to Mrs T about me playing Just Dance against her 10 year old nephew recently. So the reality is that there is a large element of wanting to be correct and to score points, and the fact that these people have to die to make it happen can't really be separated. In saying all this when I keep track of the progress of some of these people and especially if I start following them on Twitter I can get quite attached to them. I purposely didn't select Kate Granger the year she passed because I didn't want to be conflicted about her death. I probably wouldn't have selected SKS again had he survived 2018. Most people who know about this hobby of mine think of it as quite harmless. A small number of friends will text me to ask if I selected a particular person when someone of note cashes in. I think Mrs T thinks it quirky (and she was helping me with my last few picks for my personal 50), but I don't think she'd approve if it went beyond my current involvement.

I'm somewhat more bullish about the chances of Pity Da Foolz performing well this year. 16/20 picks are eligible for Drop 40/Unique Bonus points. Martin Plaza who is my really wild selection is unique as is Bill Hayden (who really doesn't look well). I am very surprised that Hayden didn't get selected by someone else, have all the Australian theme teams gone to the beach? I too am surprised that Bob Hawke didn't make Drop 40 (to tell you the truth if there was someone I could replace given the chance that is the one). My other non-bonus picks are Pete Frates (punters must be losing patience with his slow burn MND), Fatima Ali (just not all that famous) and Andrew McGahan (again perhaps not all that famous internationally-very well known in my neck of the woods-thought that he would've been sniffed out by enough cadaver hounds to elevate him to Drop 40). With McGahan a seemingly nailed on certainty and Fatima Ali very likely to die and being young I think they are still good selections. My mother hates me doing this....she thinks it is sick and twisted that I effectively cheer on 20 people to die. I prefer to think of all the people who I didn't select who I want to continue living (there must be 100's of these). Looking at the other contenders I think John McCririck is probably the one I was closest to picking but didn't who will be the most damaging should he die. Of course but for the forums I would never have heard of him-from the pictures I've seen of him I don't think they would have all the pieces to make an indentikit picture of him if he committed a crime. With The Honourable Robert James Lee Hawke not making the Drop 40 I think replacing Hawke with McCririck is the change I would make given the chance. Good luck to all the team managers and their selections. Thanks to Spade for devoting so much of his time to get this up and going so quickly with all of the technical difficulties.

My list comes to 15. Kirk Douglas Herman Wouk Olivia de Havilland Leah Bracknell (J) Robert Mugabe Bob Dole Javier Perez de Cuellar Bob Barker Murray Walker June Brown Bob Hawke Nobby Stiles Cleo Laine Clive James Johnny Clegg If this list goes close then there will be a great rejuvenation of the list for 2020 - a good few old favourite coffin-dodgers here. Cheers Dr_T

Here is my team to defend he title for Pity Da Foolz. Leah Bracknell J Fatima Ali Kathleen Blanco Johnny Clegg Andrew Fairlie Pete Frates Jill Gascoine Greg Gilbert Bob Hawke Bill Hayden (former Australian Governor-general) Clive James Lee Kerslake Andrew McGahan Robert Mugabe Martin Plaza (Mental as Anything) Fernando Ricksen Nobby Stiles Bill Turnbull Marieke Vervoort 5 Australians if Clive James still counts. Martin Plaza is my attempt at a unique-but very possible that an Australian theme team might pick him. He has missed some tours because of treatment for kidney cancer and some of the rhetoric in the reports sounds a little ominous. Bill Hayden had a stroke in 2014, but after being a well known atheist he was baptised Catholic last year. I guess your average politician has a fiat bit to repent on their death bed. Bob Hawke looks terrible and said in the news a few days ago that he may not live to see Labor win our upcoming election. I have selected him, but it really wouldn't surprise me to see him live 5 more years despite how awful he looks now. Good luck to everyone (competitors and selections) for DDP 2019.

Thanks for the kind messages. There was certainly a good deal of luck involved primarily with avoiding Marieke Vervoort. If I had seen one particular story I would've selected her as my joker with all the others. Being Australian was no disadvantage, the Jessica Falkholt tragedy was front page news in the lead-up to new year's and Vanessa Goodwin was a tap in. Of course it was the selection of SKS as joker which gave me the advantage. At some times during the year I thought this was a master stroke at others a mistake, but come about April it looked like bad news for him. I was saddened by his death, he seemed like he had a lot of good in him. I was also surprised and saddened by the death of Simon Ricketts, his Twitter feed showed that his good humour lasted till the end. I never thought I was much of a chance of winning until Spade posted that he considered Pity Da Foolz favourite assuming Vervoort decided to live (and so it proved). Mrs T is busy bragging to her friends about her husband's achievement and only 95% of it is tongue in cheek. I have entered PDF again for 2019 but while I expect to be vaguely competitive I have included a couple of somewhat left field local picks which will give me a bit of difference to the other contenders. Thanks to Spade for all his hard work during the year (especially the very frequent updates). My mind boggles at how long it must take to keep it all running. Perhaps I should also thank him for not entering DQSP which obviously makes it that much easier to win. Good luck to all for DDP2019. Cheers Dr T

Is there a chance that Fatima Ali won't obit? i would have selected her as my joker if I thought the QO was certain but went with Bracknell instead.

I didn't realise that Simon Ricketts had died until I posted my Deathrace team. I have been following his twitter feed for a while and I found it most unexpected. Like Stefannsob this year and Grainger in years past, I have found his death a little difficult, I think I would have enjoyed a beer with him given the opportunity. It it is only Vervoort who can beat me now (and if that happened I would slip outside the top ten-now that would be a story). So the bottle hasn't been cracked but definitely on ice. It will be a win for shoddy research, cause as I have already posted, with more thorough research I would've fallen dmown the same Vervoort rabbit hole as most of the other contenders.There were a couple of bad misses, but being Australian helped with Falkholt (which was front page news) and Vanessa Goodwin being nailed on certs. I'll check back in early new tear's day to confirm the result.k cheers Dr T

I would rather the executions not be allowed as well, but when I saw nothing in the rules I thought I would allow myself one guilty pleasure. I will happily play in the spirit of rule 2 a if no one else is picking death row'ers. So if Mary can change my team as previously explained that would be great.

I couldn't see anything in the rules about executions....has there been something in the forum I have missed? Also I didnt see rhe news this morning about Simon Ricketts. Can I replace Ricketts with Prince Philip and if executions don't score can I have Andrew McGahan as my joker and include Bob Hawke in my team? If executions are allowed the Bob can be my sub. If if none of this is possible, so be it. Sorry to be a nuisance. Cheers Dr T

Here is my team. Blaine Milam (joker) - Texan death row inmate Fatima Ali Eileen Ash Kathleen Blanco Leah Bracknell Tim Conway Andrew Fairlie Anne Hamilton-Byrne Bill Hayden R T Johnston (Texan football coach) Lee Kerslake Jeanne Little Norman Lloyd Roberta McCain Andrew McGahan Masazo Nonaka Simon Ricketts Fernando Ricksen Kane Tanaka Jean-Louis Trintignant Thanks for running this game again this year. Good luck to all participants. Happy New Year Dr T

A little harsh that However rando dementia sufferers sounds a lot better than randy dementia sufferers. Wrinkly old people trying to work out what goes in where like they were assembling Ikea furniture is a very unfortunate mental image.

I must have been visiting this site for maybe 13-14 years. Didn't start taking any notice of the forums till much later. I found deathlist when I was in my previous job. I was driving back from a field trip with a superior and we were talking about Ronnie Biggs and he thought he was dead. I thought he was still alive so when I got back to my office I googled it and there it was. The government filters wouldn't let me access the site though because it was considered "poor taste" or some similar term. Considering I have been in my current job 10 years and it was a few years before I left the old one it must be that long. So to answer your question, yes it does make me feel old.

Illnesses such cancer, heart attacks, infections, vitamin deficiencies, etc would all be treated as natural. The unnatural bonus is for accidents, murder, suicide etc. There will always be grey areas, if someone had a non-fatal stroke but hit their head on the ground after a fall....These would fall to Spade's discretion I guess (ably assisted by the forum I'm sure). There are probably enough precedents out there so that a decision can be made which is consistent with previous rulings.

Simon Ricketts had been very active on Twitter until November 18 and nothing since. Could be a clue to a downward slide or his phone might not be working. Who knows?

The unnatural death bonus only seems to apply if the external stimulus occurs in that calendar year as well. For instance, Jessica Falkholt had her car accident in 2017 but didn't die until January and thus was ineligible for the bonus. There was a precedent for this but I can' t remember who. So if Michael Schumacher dies next year he won't attract the bonus unless there is a new stimulus. I don't think I've seen that rule written as such but it certainly seems to be the interpretation of the rule. Personally I would like to see euthanasia stripped of the bonus as well but I'll leave that for the decision makers.

A group of women were doing group counseling due to obsessive compulsive disorders. He turns to the first women who was morbidly obese and says to her, "You are here because you are obsessed with food. You are so obsessed with food that you have called your daughters Candy and Honey." He then turns to the second women and says to her, "You're here cause you are obsessed with money. You are so obsessed with money that you called your daughter Penny and your son Buck." He then turned to the third women and said, "You're so obsessed with alcohol that you called your daughter Sherry and your son Jack-Daniel!" Before he gets the chance to turn to the fourth woman, she gets up and says, "Come on Dick, come on Willy, come on John Thomas, let's go home. This guy's full of shit!"

I have been out of town and too busy to follow the news or spend much time on the net so it was a surprise to get home and find Pita Da Foolz topping the table. I had almost forgotten about Lima-I had pinned my hopes on Hamilton-Byrne and Ricketts (and Willesee to a very small degree). Time for the Reaper to take a holiday.

I heard a radio interview with Michael Palin a week or two ago. He said that he sees Terry Jones a fair bit (although he should try and see him more) and they go to the local and have a pint. Palin said that while Jones doesn't say much he likes to get out and seems happy when he is there (or words to that effect..I was driving to work at the time). In short I certainly got the feeling that Jones is not scoring this year.

@SC...If your conjoined twins simultaneously shot each other on their birthday things would really be looking up. Would it be a murder suicide, a murder murder, or a suicide suicide?