TQR

Tue 8 Oct 54 Nat King Cole — When I Fall In Love 49 Dean Martin — Volare 48 Harry Belafonte — Banana Boat Song 43 Elvis Presley — King Creole 43 Johnny Duncan & The Blue Grass Boys — Last Train To San Fernando +4 33 Marty Wilde - A Teenager in Love 30 The Everly Brothers — Bird Dog 24 The Everly Brothers — Wake Up Little Susie 17 Elvis Presley — Hard Headed Woman 17 The Everly Brothers — ’Til I Kissed You 0 Debbie Reynolds — Tammy -6

Tue 8 Oct 50 Spin Doctors - Two Princes 45 The Sisters of Mercy ft. Ofra Haza - Temple of Love (1992) +4 30 Annie Lennox - Little Bird/Love Song for a Vampire 29 Whitney Houston - I Have Nothing 26 Billy Joel - The River of Dreams -6 25 Richard Marx - Hazard 24 Faith No More - I’m Easy/Be Aggressive 24 Dina Carroll - Don’t Be a Stranger 24 SWV - Right Here (Human Nature Remix)  23 Bizarre Inc ft. Angie Brown - I’m Gonna Get You 21 Mr. Big - To Be With You  20 Sub Sub ft. Melanie Williams - Ain’t No Love (Ain’t No Use)  17 Michael Jackson - Remember the Time  14 Madonna - Erotica  13 Vanessa Williams - Save The Best For Last  12 Curiosity - Hang On in There Baby Pffft. It's an unflushable turd but I'm not letting up on it.

Mon 7 Oct 54 Nat King Cole — When I Fall In Love 48 Elvis Presley — King Creole 47 Dean Martin — Volare 42 Harry Belafonte — Banana Boat Song 41 Johnny Duncan & The Blue Grass Boys — Last Train To San Fernando +4 36 Marty Wilde — A Teenager In Love 32 The Everly Brothers — Wake Up Little Susie 30 The Everly Brothers — Bird Dog 17 Elvis Presley — Hard Headed Woman 17 The Everly Brothers — ’Til I Kissed You 06 Debbie Reynolds — Tammy -5 06 Jim Dale — Be My Girl -1 06 Dean Martin — Return To Me

Mon 7 Oct 43 The Sisters of Mercy ft. Ofra Haza - Temple of Love (1992) +4 42 Spin Doctors - Two Princes 35 Annie Lennox - Little Bird/Love Song for a Vampire 30 Billy Joel - The River of Dreams -6 29 Richard Marx - Hazard 27 Whitney Houston - I Have Nothing 24 SWV - Right Here (Human Nature Remix)  23 Faith No More - I’m Easy/Be Aggressive 23 Dina Carroll - Don’t Be a Stranger 23 Bizarre Inc ft. Angie Brown - I’m Gonna Get You  21 Mr. Big - To Be With You  20 Sub Sub ft. Melanie Williams - Ain’t No Love (Ain’t No Use)  17 Madonna - Erotica  17 Curiosity - Hang On in There Baby  17 Michael Jackson - Remember the Time  13 Vanessa Williams - Save The Best For Last  09 Chaka Demus & Pliers - Tease Me

Sun 6 Oct 54 Nat King Cole — When I Fall In Love 50 Elvis Presley — King Creole 49 Dean Martin — Volare 40 Johnny Duncan & The Blue Grass Boys — Last Train To San Fernando +4 38 The Everly Brothers — Wake Up Little Susie 34 Marty Wilde — A Teenager In Love 31 Harry Belafonte — Banana Boat Song 27 The Everly Brothers — Bird Dog 17 Elvis Presley — Hard Headed Woman 17 Jim Dale — Be My Girl 17 Dean Martin — Return To Me 17 The Everly Brothers — ’Til I Kissed You 11 Debbie Reynolds — Tammy -6 06 Marino Marini & His Quartet — Come Prima

Sun 6 Oct 46 The Sisters of Mercy ft. Ofra Haza - Temple of Love (1992) 44 Spin Doctors - Two Princes  32 Billy Joel - The River of Dreams -6 32 Annie Lennox - Little Bird/Love Song for a Vampire 30 Richard Marx - Hazard 25 Whitney Houston - I Have Nothing 24 SWV - Right Here (Human Nature Remix) +4 21 Mr. Big - To Be With You  21 Faith No More - I’m Easy/Be Aggressive  21 Dina Carroll - Don’t Be a Stranger  21 Bizarre Inc ft. Angie Brown - I’m Gonna Get You  20 Michael Jackson - Remember the Time  20 Sub Sub ft. Melanie Williams - Ain’t No Love (Ain’t No Use)  19 Vanessa Williams - Save The Best For Last  17 Madonna - Erotica  17 Curiosity - Hang On in There Baby  13 Chaka Demus & Pliers - Tease Me 10 West End ft. Sybil - The Love I Lost 

Another great thing about this game is it reminds you of some absolute gold you've not thought of or listened to for a long while. Temple Of Love is one of those. Fucking epic.

Sat 5 Oct 50 Nat King Cole — When I Fall In Love 46 Elvis Presley — King Creole 45 Dean Martin — Volare 41 Johnny Duncan & The Blue Grass Boys — Last Train To San Fernando +4 35 The Everly Brothers — Wake Up Little Susie 32 Marty Wilde — A Teenager In Love 32 Harry Belafonte — Banana Boat Song 28 The Everly Brothers — Bird Dog 23 Debbie Reynolds — Tammy -6 20 Elvis Presley — Hard Headed Woman 20 Jim Dale — Be My Girl 20 Dean Martin — Return To Me 20 The Everly Brothers — ’Til I Kissed You 18 Marino Marini & His Quartet — Come Prima

Sat 5 Oct 46 Spin Doctors - Two Princes  46 The Sisters of Mercy ft. Ofra Haza - Temple of Love (1992) 34 Richard Marx - Hazard 30 Annie Lennox - Little Bird/Love Song for a Vampire 28 Billy Joel - The River of Dreams -6 27 Bizarre Inc ft. Angie Brown - I’m Gonna Get You +4 25 Whitney Houston - I Have Nothing 25 Vanessa Williams - Save The Best For Last  21 Mr. Big - To Be With You  21 Faith No More - I’m Easy/Be Aggressive  21 Dina Carroll - Don’t Be a Stranger  21 West End ft. Sybil - The Love I Lost  20 Michael Jackson - Remember the Time  20 Sub Sub ft. Melanie Williams - Ain’t No Love (Ain’t No Use)  20 SWV - Right Here (Human Nature Remix)  17 Madonna - Erotica  17 Curiosity - Hang On in There Baby  13 Chaka Demus & Pliers - Tease Me 01 Snap! ft. Niki Harris - Exterminate

Fri 4 Oct 46 Nat King Cole — When I Fall In Love 43 Dean Martin — Volare 42 Johnny Duncan & The Blue Grass Boys — Last Train To San Fernando +4 41 Elvis Presley — King Creole 38 The Everly Brothers — Wake Up Little Susie 33 Harry Belafonte — Banana Boat Song 31 Marty Wilde — A Teenager In Love 31 Debbie Reynolds — Tammy -5 28 The Everly Brothers — Bird Dog 22 Elvis Presley — Hard Headed Woman 20 Jim Dale — Be My Girl 20 Dean Martin — Return To Me 20 The Everly Brothers — ’Til I Kissed You 18 Marino Marini & His Quartet — Come Prima 15 Four Preps — Big Man 06 Elvis Presley — Don’t -1

Fri 4 Oct 42 Spin Doctors - Two Princes  40 The Sisters of Mercy ft. Ofra Haza - Temple of Love (1992) 36 Richard Marx - Hazard 28 Billy Joel - The River of Dreams -6 26 Annie Lennox- Little Bird/Love Song for a Vampire 25 Vanessa Williams - Save The Best For Last  23 Bizarre Inc ft. Angie Brown - I’m Gonna Get You +4 23 Whitney Houston - I Have Nothing 21 Mr. Big - To Be With You  21 Faith No More - I’m Easy/Be Aggressive  21 Dina Carroll - Don’t Be a Stranger  21 West End ft. Sybil - The Love I Lost  20 Michael Jackson - Remember the Time  20 Curiosity - Hang On in There Baby  20 Sub Sub ft. Melanie Williams - Ain’t No Love (Ain’t No Use)  20 SWV - Right Here (Human Nature Remix)  18 Chaka Demus & Pliers - Tease Me  17 Madonna - Erotica  08 Snap! ft. Niki Harris - Exterminate  06 Ugly Kid Joe - Everything About You  06 Madonna - This Used to Be My Playground 06 Rage — Next To You 05 Take That - Could It Be Magic

Thu 3 Oct 41 Dean Martin — Volare +1 40 Johnny Duncan & The Blue Grass Boys — Last Train To San Fernando +3 40 Nat King Cole — When I Fall In Love 38 Debbie Reynolds — Tammy 38 Elvis Presley — King Creole 34 Harry Belafonte — Banana Boat Song 33 The Everly Brothers — Wake Up Little Susie 29 Marty Wilde — A Teenager In Love 28 The Everly Brothers — Bird Dog 22 Elvis Presley — Hard Headed Woman 20 Jim Dale — Be My Girl 20 Four Preps — Big Man 20 Dean Martin — Return To Me 20 Marino Marini & His Quartet — Come Prima 20 The Everly Brothers — ’Til I Kissed You 13 Elvis Presley — Don’t 10 Pat Boone — Don’t Forbid Me 08 Elvis Presley — Party  02 The Teddy Bears — I Know Him, He’s A Knob -6

Thu 3 Oct 38 The Sisters of Mercy ft. Ofra Haza - Temple of Love (1992) 38 Spin Doctors - Two Princes +4 28 Richard Marx - Hazard  26 Billy Joel - The River of Dreams -6 24 Annie Lennox- Little Bird/Love Song for a Vampire 24 Vanessa Williams - Save The Best For Last  21 West End ft. Sybil - The Love I Lost  20 Michael Jackson - Remember the Time  20 Mr. Big - To Be With You  20 Curiosity - Hang On in There Baby  20 Snap! ft. Niki Harris - Exterminate  20 Faith No More - I’m Easy/Be Aggressive  20 Sub Sub ft. Melanie Williams - Ain’t No Love (Ain’t No Use)  20 Chaka Demus & Pliers - Tease Me  20 SWV - Right Here (Human Nature Remix)  20 Dina Carroll - Don’t Be a Stranger  20 Whitney Houston - I Have Nothing 18 Rage - Run To You  17 Bizarre Inc ft. Angie Brown - I’m Gonna Get You  17 Madonna - Erotica  14 Ugly Kid Joe - Everything About You  14 Madonna - This Used to Be My Playground 12 Take That - Could It Be Magic  05 Inner Circle - Sweat (A La La La La Long)

Wed 2 Oct 35 Nat King Cole — When I Fall In Love 35 Dean Martin — Volare 34 Harry Belafonte — Banana Boat Song 33 Johnny Duncan & The Blue Grass Boys — Last Train To San Fernando +4 33 Elvis Presley — King Creole 32 Debbie Reynolds — Tammy 30 The Everly Brothers — Wake Up Little Susie 28 The Everly Brothers — Bird Dog 25 Marty Wilde — A Teenager In Love 21 Elvis Presley — Hard Headed Woman 20 Jim Dale — Be My Girl 20 Elvis Presley — Don’t 20 Four Preps — Big Man 20 Dean Martin — Return To Me 20 Marino Marini & His Quartet — Come Prima 20 The Everly Brothers — ’Til I Kissed You 19 Pat Boone — Love Letters In The Sand 17 Pat Boone — Don’t Forbid Me 16 The Teddy Bears — To Know Him Is To Love Him -6 14 Elvis Presley — Party 06 The Mudlarks — Lollipop 02 Johnny Otis With Marie Adams & The Three Tons Of Joy — Ma (He’s Making Eyes At Me) Move It would’ve been next on my kill list but I was thankfully beaten to it. And that’s not because it’s Cliff; it’s because it’s shit.

Wed 2 Oct 29 Spin Doctors- Two Princes +4 26 The Sisters of Mercy ft. Ofra Haza- Temple of Love (1992) 25 Richard Marx - Hazard 24 Rage- Run To You 22 Whitney Houston- I Have Nothing 22 Vanessa Williams- Save The Best For Last 22 Billy Joel- The River of Dreams -6 21 Ugly Kid Joe- Everything About You 20 Michael Jackson- Remember the Time 20 Mr. Big- To Be With You 20 Curiosity- Hang On in There Baby 20 Madonna- This Used to Be My Playground 20 Bizarre Inc ft. Angie Brown- I’m Gonna Get You 20 Madonna- Erotica 20 Take That- Could It Be Magic 20 Snap! ft. Niki Harris- Exterminate 20 Faith No More- I’m Easy/Be Aggressive 20 West End ft. Sybil- The Love I Lost 20 Sub Sub ft. Melanie Williams- Ain’t No Love (Ain’t No Use) 20 Chaka Demus & Pliers- Tease Me 20 SWV- Right Here (Human Nature Remix) 20 Dina Carroll- Don’t Be a Stranger 19 Annie Lennox- Little Bird/Love Song for a Vampire 14 Shabba Ranks- Mr. Loverman 14 Inner Circle - Sweat (A La la la la Song) 90s Billy Joel? No. Just no.

Good. Works as a Ska banger, but this penny whistle bullshit can get entirely to fuck.

Mon 30 Sep 28 Dean Martin — Volare +2 26 Nat King Cole — When I Fall In Love 24 Harry Belafonte — Banana Boat Song 22 Johnny Duncan & The Blue Grass Boys — Last Train To San Fernando +2 22 The Everly Brothers — Wake Up Little Susie 22 The Everly Brothers — Bird Dog 20 Pat Boone — Don’t Forbid Me 20 Pat Boone — Love Letters In The Sand 20 Elvis Presley — Party 20 Debbie Reynolds — Tammy 20 Jim Dale — Be My Girl 20 Johnny Otis With Marie Adams & The Three Tons Of Joy — Ma (He’s Making Eyes At Me) 20 Elvis Presley — Don’t 20 Pat Boone — A Wonderful Time Up There 20 Four Preps — Big Man 20 Elvis Presley — Hard Headed Woman 20 Dean Martin — Return To Me 20 Elvis Presley — King Creole 20 Marino Marini & His Quartet — Come Prima 20 Cliff Richard & The Drifters — Move It 20 Little Richard — Baby Face 20 The Teddy Bears — To Know Him Is To Love Him 20 Marty Wilde — A Teenager In Love 20 The Everly Brothers — ’Til I Kissed You 14 Russ Hamilton — We Will Make Love 12 Elias & His Zigzag Jive Flutes — Tom Hark 12 The Mudlarks — Lollipop 06 Lonnie Donegan — Battle Of New Orleans -6 Lots to downvote here but let's start with Lonnie. Can't fucking stand the geezer.

Mon 30 Sep 64 Erasure — Blue Savannah 63 The Waterboys - The Whole of the Moon 54 Roxette - It Must Have Been Love 40 EMF - Unbelievable 31 Erasure - Chorus -6 24 MC Hammer - U Can’t Touch This +4

So sorry about the wait! Been mad busy. Pretty predictable top-5 there, possibly for good reason I guess. Anyway, Part 2 is here, and again, I'll do my scores a bit later as there're a few (read: most of them) I need to familiarise myself with here. 1957-59 20 Pat Boone — Don’t Forbid Me 20 Harry Belafonte — Banana Boat Song 20 Nat King Cole — When I Fall In Love 20 Russ Hamilton — We Will Make Love 20 Pat Boone — Love Letters In The Sand 20 Johnny Duncan & The Blue Grass Boys — Last Train To San Fernando 20 Elvis Presley — Party 20 Debbie Reynolds — Tammy 20 Jim Dale — Be My Girl 20 The Everly Brothers — Wake Up Little Susie 20 Johnny Otis With Marie Adams & The Three Tons Of Joy — Ma (He’s Making Eyes At Me) 20 Elvis Presley — Don’t 20 Pat Boone — A Wonderful Time Up There 20 Elias & His Zigzag Jive Flutes — Tom Hark 20 The Mudlarks — Lollipop 20 Four Preps — Big Man 20 Elvis Presley — Hard Headed Woman 20 Dean Martin — Return To Me 20 Dean Martin — Volare 20 Elvis Presley — King Creole 20 Marino Marini & His Quartet — Come Prima 20 Cliff Richard & The Drifters — Move It 20 The Everly Brothers — Bird Dog 20 Little Richard — Baby Face 20 The Teddy Bears — To Know Him Is To Love Him 20 Marty Wilde — A Teenager In Love 20 Lonnie Donegan — Battle Of New Orleans 20 The Everly Brothers — ’Til I Kissed You

Okay. Let’s try something new. Something that’ll hopefully not play into the hands of research-happy deadpooling grandees. Something that weeds out both the obvious and the obscure. So, first things first, you pick 5 names. I’d suggest a couple of subs as well in case of death or any of the rules (I’ll get to those) being broken before the start. Quite simply, first to a full house of deads is the winner. If more than one person gets across the line at the same time, the winner will be the team with the lowest average age of death. If the average ages of death are identical to the day, the world implodes and our lives will end All normal so far, right? But there are a fair few rules with which to comply, the reason being that this is meant to be a pool of punts (note please, name), rather than no-brainers. Not a single dead cert or “Whooooooo?” in sight. Deaths that’ll make us exclaim “Bloody hell!”, rather than mutter “About time”. Think David Hasselhoff rather than David Gulpilil. Now pay attention, you punts. Health Rules: These are, of course, to the best of public knowledge at the start time. They must have been born between 1931 and 2002. If they have cancer, the year of birth limit rises to 1961 and it can’t be terminal or any higher than Stage 3. If this is unknown, it's not allowed. Also, no more than one of these per team please. If they have Dementia of any kind, or Parkinson’s, the year of birth limit rises to 1951 and it must not have been diagnosed any more than 3 years ago. If it’s unknown when roughly they were diagnosed, it’s not allowed. Also, no more than one of these per team please. They must not have MND, ALS, COPD or any other degenerative illness I’ve not mentioned that will ultimately cause their death. Don't even question it. They must not have had a stroke, heart attack/failure or multiple organ failure in the last 5 years. I'll accept people with slightly dicky tickers who haven't had a heart attack/failure. They must not have been given a limited time to live, unless it was only by a charlatan clairvoyant. They must not have been sentenced to death. They must not be a missing person. They must be a fucking human, obviously. If it only becomes public knowledge after the start date that your pick contravened any of these health rules, you’re a lucky sod. But if I find any evidence of their illness from before the start date, I'll be on you like a puma. And finally, if you dare submit a single Famous For Being Ill pick (which of course would grossly contravene at least one of these rules), not only will you be instantly banned from entering this pool but I will dedicate the rest of my life to persecuting you mercilessly in what will be one of the most poisonous vendettas of all time. Fame Rules: These are the four criteria for fame, but your pick does not need to comply with all of these: They’ve had any article written about them within the last 12 months. Not fussy where, and it can be anything, even something as menial as being snapped taking the bins out à la Alex Trebek (though he’s not allowed, for obvious reasons). They’ve appeared in the world of film, TV, music, radio, sport, politics, podcasts, YouTube or their own published content within the last 18 months. They’ve more than 200k followers on Twitter, Instagram or Facebook. They’ve more than 1,000 words in their Wikipedia UK article. As I say, not all of these have to be complied with, but… If none of these criteria are met, your pick is not allowed. If 1 or 2 of them are met, I will choose 4 other posters (of a varied demographic) to PM and ask if they know who the pick is. If there’s more than one ‘no’ (including from me), your pick is not allowed. I won’t publicly name said posters I consult, and neither will I reveal to them who picked each name. If 3 or all 4 of the criteria are met, happy days, and thank you for making things a bit easier. Obit Rules: Qualifying Obits are pretty much a cut/paste from the DDP, with the exception of BBC regional news (must be national or world) and The S*n (I’m boycotting the cunts and I make no apology for that). If they obit after the start date but died before it, tough shit mate. A sub of yours comes into play. And Finally... Each name can only be picked by up to 3 people; this is on a first-come-first-served basis. Submit your team via PM to me. Don't post it here. As soon as I’ve approved it, I’ll let you know, and I'll update the master list. I reserve the right to ask you to prove compliance to any of the above rules before I allow it. Any rejected names (and names that’ve been picked 3 times) will be posted below. Remember, the rules apply right up to the start date, midnight GMT on Friday 1st January 2021. ALL of the above is in aid of getting big name picks that perhaps are often left out of existing pools because they're seen as being too likely to survive. I don’t expect this to be the most fast-paced of deadpools as, if this works how I intend, each and every death will be at least fairly surprising. With this in mind, I’ll make the whole exercise worthwhile and, much like how our highly regarded member for Maryport does with his pools, I have a charity pot. 30 quid will go to the winner’s established charity or JustGiving page of choice. Additionally, in another desperate effort to try and encourage big name picks that aren’t obviously at death’s door, whoever submits my personal favourite team earns their choice of aforementioned good cause a tenner on Christmas Day. Even if you don’t get a single hit, you’ve made a difference. Don't agree with who I pick? Sue me. Entries open immediately. The entry deadline is 00:00GMT, Friday 25th December 2020. Start time is 00:00GMT, Friday 1st January 2021. Now go on, fuck off and pick some people we’ve all heard of. Best of luck!

Sat 29 Sep 83 Dean Martin — That’s Amore 74 Nat King Cole — Smile 59 Elvis Presley — Hound Dog 59 Elvis Presley — Heartbreak Hotel -6 46 Frank Sinatra — (Love Is) The Tender Trap 27 Frankie Laine — Where The Winds Blow +4 20 Nat King Cole — Pretend 12 Frankie Vaughan — The Green Door 10 Lou Busch — Zambesi 06 Frank Sinatra — Learnin’ The Blues

Sun 29 Sep 60 The Waterboys - The Whole of the Moon 57 Roxette - It Must Have Been Love 54 Erasure — Blue Savannah -6 48 MC Hammer - U Can’t Touch This 46 EMF - Unbelievable 44 Erasure - Chorus +4 07 P.M. Dawn - Set Adrift on Memory Bliss

Sat 28 Sep 76 Dean Martin — That’s Amore 70 Nat King Cole — Smile 56 Elvis Presley — Hound Dog +4 55 Elvis Presley — Heartbreak Hotel -6 47 Frank Sinatra — (Love Is) The Tender Trap 28 Frankie Laine — Where The Winds Blow 25 Lou Busch — Zambesi 24 Frankie Vaughan — The Green Door 20 Nat King Cole — Pretend 14 Frank Sinatra — Learnin’ The Blues 08 Frankie Laine — Cool Water 03 Mantovani — Swedish Rhapsody

Sat 28 Sep 60 The Waterboys - The Whole of the Moon 56 Roxette - It Must Have Been Love 54 MC Hammer - U Can’t Touch This 51 Erasure — Blue Savannah -6 49 EMF - Unbelievable 36 Erasure - Chorus +4 11 Guns N’ Roses - You Could Be Mine 11 P.M. Dawn - Set Adrift on Memory Bliss  10 Madonna - Rescue Me

Fri 27 Sep 69 Dean Martin — That’s Amore 66 Nat King Cole — Smile 51 Elvis Presley — Heartbreak Hotel -6 51 Elvis Presley — Hound Dog 40 Frank Sinatra — (Love Is) The Tender Trap 32 Frankie Laine — Where The Winds Blow 30 Frankie Vaughan — The Green Door +4 29 Lou Busch — Zambesi 20 Nat King Cole — Pretend 20 Frank Sinatra — Learnin’ The Blues 17 Frankie Laine — Cool Water 13 Mantovani — Swedish Rhapsody 08 Winifred Atwell — Let’s Have A Party 06 Guy Mitchell — Cloud Lucky Seven