An Fear Beag

I gave you a Thanks, although the 9 day gap made me have to think about it for a bit! I'll add the points in the next update.

Thanks for running this again. I might as well be the first pain-in-the-ass to question a category. Simpsons Voice Actors - are we talking the original English speaking show, or are you allowing people who dubbed it into other languages?

It would appear that there have been some stirrings at the top, and at my age you cannot afford to ignore stirrings for too long!. A mini flurry of deaths, with some big name picks and some important hits, so probably time for an update. I am tempted to wait a bit and see what the story is with Noam Chomsky, but he could do a Jimmy and see the year out, so I will go for it now. Here is who I have: 9th June: Simon Cowell (not that one) 11th June: Adam Lewis 11th June: Francoise Hardy 11th June Tony Lo Bianco 17th June Dario G (Paul Spencer) 18th June Anouk Aimee 18th June: Willy Mays That small selection has yielded a huge upheaval at the top of the leaderboard. Two players managed a Cowell/Hardy/Dario triple, with a Dario joker hit to boot. Top of the pile is now @Funeralopolis, who becomes the first player across the 1000 point threshold. They are closely followed by @BuffaloPhilin second. @gcreptilebriefly took the lead with Cowell (not that one) before relinquishing it 8 days later - they now stalk the leader in 3rd, with @Hellvery closely behind in 4th. @John Key's lead from the previous update only lasted 6 days and in no time at all they have dropped down to 7th. Top 10 is as follows. Full leaderboard on page 1 Funeralopolis (1018 points) 8 hits [Dario G*, Dave Myers, Derek Draper, Francoise Hardy, Frank Field, Jonnie Irwin, Rob Burrow, Simon Cowell] Buffalo Phil (955 points) 7 hits [Dario G*, Francoise Hardy, Frank Field, Iris Apfel, Jonnie Irwin, Juan Vincent Perez, Simon Cowell] Gcreptile (797 points) 10 hits [Corey Williams, Frank Field, Franz Beckenbauer, Jason Smith, Jonnie Irwin, Josip Manolic, Paul Vachon, Simon Cowell, Thomas Stafford, Zhang Lixiong] Hell (794 points) 9 hits [Charlie Bird, Derek Draper, Frank Field, Glynis Johns, Jonnie Irwin, Josip Manolic, Rob Burrow, Simon Cowell, William Russell] Toast (783 points) 8 hits [Anouk Aimee, Dave Myers*, Francoise Hardy, Frank Field, Glynis Johns, Jonnie Irwin, Rob Burrow, Toby Keith] GrimUpNorth (778 points) 9 hits [Dario G, Dave Myers, Derek Draper, Frank Field, Jason Smith, Jonnie Irwin*, Rob Burrow, Simon Cowell, Toby Keith] John Key (773 points) 8 hits [Anastasia Zavorotnyuk, Derek Draper, Frank Field, Joe Shannon, Jonnie Irwin, Josip Manolic, Rob Burrow, William Russell] Arghton (720 points) 9 hits [Abdul Taib Mahmud, Beverly Lahaye, Jaako Valtanen, Ma Shitu, Paul Vachon, Solihin GP, Swami Smaranananda, Tin Oo, Zhang Lixiong] MariNisia (681 points) 7 hits [Alice Munro, Glynis Johns, Gudrun Ure, Jack Burke Jr., Thomas Stafford, Tony Lo Bianco, William Russell] Etushispushingupdaisies (669 points) 8 hits [Derek Draper*, Francoise Hardy, Frank Field, Franz Beckenbauer, Jonnie Irwin, Rob Burrow, Simon Cowell, Toby Keith]

The Hare's Pool would like to apologise to the families of the following people, the deaths of whom it has precipitated by posting an update to the scores earlier this week. It would also like to apologise in advance to the families of whichever poor bugger carks it prematurely on account of this one! 2nd June: Jeanette Charles 2nd June: Janis Paige 3rd June: William Russell 4th June: Parnelli Jones The main reason for the premature update is that we have a new leader. William Russell was a popular pick (1 pick short of making the "Most Popular Picks" team), but the only one of the leaders who had him was @John Key who hits the front as we head towards the halfway stage. @Hellnow lies just outside the podium places in 4th, while @MariNisiais well positioned in 6th. Only one player had 2 hits in this update - a certain @Death Impendswho continues to slowly stalk the leaders. Don't say you were not warned! Top 6 is as follows, full scoreboard is on Page 1. John Key (773 points) 8 hits [Anastasia Zavorotnyuk, Derek Draper, Frank Field, Joe Shannon, Jonnie Irwin, Josip Manolic, Rob Burrow, William Russell] Arghton (720 points) 9 hits [Abdul Taib Mahmud, Beverly Lahaye, Jaako Valtanen, Ma Shitu, Paul Vachon, Solihin GP, Swami Smaranananda, Tin Oo, Zhang Lixiong] Gcreptile (637 points) 9 hits [Corey Williams, Frank Field, Franz Beckenbauer, Jason Smith, Jonnie Irwin, Josip Manolic, Paul Vachon, Thomas Stafford, Zhang Lixiong] Hell (634 points) 8 hits [Charlie Bird, Derek Draper, Frank Field, Glynis Johns, Jonnie Irwin, Josip Manolic, Rob Burrow, William Russell] Captain Chorizo (529 points) 7 hits [Glynis Johns, Jaime De Arminan, Lynne Reid Banks, Paul Vachon, Philip De Gaulle, Rob Burrow, Roland Bertin] MariNisia (519 points) 6 hits [Alice Munro, Glynis Johns, Gudrun Ure, Jack Burke Jr., Thomas Stafford, William Russell]

Good on him - that's exactly what he needs to do to get elected. I understand why Starmer is a disappointment to staunch socialists like yourself. But the reality is that he is mostly doing the right things. At this point, all he has to do to get elected is a. Not be the Tories b. Not say or do anything that will frighten the middle class voters who decide elections. You may well prefer a more left-wing Corbyn type leader. But the British public don't, and any time they have been offered that in the past, they have completely rejected it. So if Starmer has any sense (and it seems like he does), then he will play it bland, and give the Conservatives nothing to attack him with. That will be enough to romp home with a large majority. It might not be enough to get him re-elected, but that's a problem for another day

It's the start of a new month, so what better time to take stock of who has croaked it over the past few weeks. One person who has definitely gone to meet her maker, but without much fanfare is Canadian centenarian educator Isabella Dryden. The only obit I can see is from Gilbert nursing home, and we all know that that doesn't cut the mustard around here. @BabyBluecan now scour the internet for any further mentions of her passing in order to claim the points on offer. They can be joined in that endeavour by @Salmon Mousse who is still looking for anyone who has noticed Bobby Hehir's death other than his family. The following are definite bona fide hits for their pickers. If I have missed any obscure deaths, please let me know. In any case, I will likely pick up the stragglers when I google all of the names at the half way point at the end of the month. I can hardly wait - another day of my life spent googling obscure Russian scientists. May 13th: Alice Munro May 14th: Gudrun Ure May 16th: Dabney Coleman May 17th: Bud Anderson May 25th: Richard. M Sherman May 29th: Anastasia Zavorotnyuk June 1st: Ruth MAria Kubitschek June 1st: Tin Oo June 2nd: Rob Burrow Tin Oo's unlikely passing means that the ding-dong battle between @arghton and @gcreptile swings back Arghtons way as they regain top spot. A Zavorotnyuk/Burrow double brings @John Keyup into third place, and they also have the unusual distinction of having a hit in every month so far. Alice Munro seemed an unlikely Joker hit for both @GuyFromFutureand @JoeMoneypenny, until I remembered that they were two of the lazy feckers who didn't submit a Joker, and so were assigned the first name on their list. Unsurprisingly, Rob Burrow was a popular selection - the 21 picks making him the 6th most popular pick of the year, and making a lot of Bank Holiday work for your host. Especially when he incorrectly put the date of death into the spreadsheet 21 times as June 1st, and then had to back and change it 21 times. Down at the bottom, 2 players have hauled themselves up off the bench, done a few stretches, and wandered out onto the track. @Yvonnegot their first every hit in this pool with Dabney Coleman, and so loved the experience that she followed it up the next day with Bud Anderson. And ominously for all other players, the deadpooling beast that is @Death Impendshas finally stirred into action with a Gudrun Ure hit. Watch your back everyone! Here is the top 10. As always, the full scoreboard is on page 1. Arghton (720 points) 9 hits [Abdul Taib Mahmud, Beverly Lahaye, Jaako Valtanen, Ma Shitu, Paul Vachon, Solihin GP, Swami Smaranananda, Tin Oo, Zhang Lixiong] Gcreptile (637 points) 9 hits [Corey Williams, Frank Field, Franz Beckenbauer, Jason Smith, Jonnie Irwin, Josip Manolic, Paul Vachon, Thomas Stafford, Zhang Lixiong] John Key (619 points) 7 hits [Anastasia Zavorotnyuk, Derek Draper, Frank Field, Joe Shannon, Jonnie Irwin, Josip Manolic, Rob Burrow] Captain Chorizo (529 points) 7 hits [Glynis Johns, Jaime De Arminan, Lynne Reid Banks, Paul Vachon, Philip De Gaulle, Rob Burrow, Roland Bertin] Hell (480 points) 7 hits [Charlie Bird, Derek Draper, Frank Field, Glynis Johns, Jonnie Irwin, Josip Manolic, Rob Burrow] Nantonian (468 points) 7 hits [Derek Draper, Frank Field, Jack Burke Jr., Mario Zagallo, Petyer Oosterhuis, Rob Burrow, Stan Bowles] Toast (452 points) 6 hits [Dave Myers*, Frank Field, Glynis Johns, Jonnie Irwin, Rob Burrow, Toby Keith] GrimUpNorth (450 points) 7 hits [Dave Myers, Derek Draper, Frank Field, Jason Smith, Jonnie Irwin*, Rob Burrow, Toby Keith] Drol (426 points) 8 hits [Frank Field, Jonnie Irwin, Ma Shitu, Mario Zagallo, Manohar Joshi, Toby Keith, Yuri Solomin, Zhang Lixiong] The RadGuy (404 points) 7 hits [Brian Barczyk, Charlie Bird, Franz Beckenbauer, Joe Shannon, Jonnie Irwin*, Rob Burrow, Toby Keith]

Also, that is a touch harsh!

That's a fair point. I promise not to run over any gay people with my lawnmower for the entire month of June. But be warned - come July 1st, its open season!!

Wow! I feel like a boxer who psyched himself up for the big fight, only to get knocked out with the first punch. Congratulations @drol

At this point, I am absolutely convinced that you are just trolling. In which case, I tip my hat to you. Nice work.

I gave Sarmiento and Andrade a skip as well - just not convinced that they are actually dying. What's the news on Lord Henry? I didn't see anything to suggest he is on his way out in the immediate future , but I'm not on any social media, so I presume something ominous has been posted?

Now there's a fucking surprise!

Paul Harrell for me please

Close, but no cigar. That is almost certainly an obituary submitted by his family. That falls foul of rule 3.3: "Paid for obituary sites are not specialist websites and will be not accepted as proof of death, as unscrupulous (and frankly desperate) players could pay for an obituary. The same applies to death notice sections of otherwise acceptable sources."

Checking it again, when I click on it, it goes to www.eu.telegram.com, so a version of the paper for European browsers. The EU version only lets me see the most recent page, and doesn't let me see obituaries. Can you post up a screenshot of what you are seeing, and we'll decide if that is acceptable as an obit?

No points in any pool based on that Obit, I'd have thought. Not even the extremely lax Hare's pool will accept paid for/funeral home obits. I'd imagine its only a matter of time before something more solid shows up, but you'd never know. I've been surprised in the past few years how even local papers can ignore local celebrities when they die.

Also a DDP pick for my Irish Theme Team. RIP Bean Baron.

I have no idea why that happens, but it is the same when I click on that link as well. Even if I go onto the Worcester Telegram website and click on Obituaries, it still stays on the mainpage. It is strange, because I can get into every section apart from Obituaries and Weather. (As an aside, their "Comics" sections leads to the comic strips from USA Today, and man, they are fucking awful! I've had root canal that was more amusing than anything on that page)

The Worcester Telegram would certainly count. However that link just brings me to the current page of the telegram, with no mention of Bobby Hehir to be seen. A quick google of Bobby Hehir Worcester Telegram brings up things about his diagnosis, but not about his death.

Update time! A couple of small bits of housekeeping first. Jason Smith was a January hit, and the date of death was scored here as 25th January. The correct date was actually a day earlier on Jan 24th. As a result @gcreptile@Grim Up North@Salmon Mousseand @WEPall lose the grand total of 1 point! Hope it is not costly at the end. Also, it appears that Ice Hockey player Bobby "Rocket" Hehir, a pick for @Salmon Moussedied back in February, according to tweets from the Boston Bruins alumni. However, those tweets seem to be all we have got - nothing in the line of a proper obit. They are definitely not acceptable, even for this pool, so unless something better appears, it is nul points for SM. Here is who we have lost since the last update. Let me know if I have missed anyone. April 4th: Dickie Rooks April 9th: Jaime De Arminan April 14th: Beverly Lahaye April 15th: Josip Manolic April 22nd: Brian Tobin April 23rd Frank Field May 2nd Peter Oosterhuis May 5th: Cedar Luis Menotti May 9th: Roger Corman May 10th: Corey "Homicide" Williams And we have a new leader! @gcreptilefollowed up the popular Field/Manolic double with the unique pick of Corey Williams to take the lead with an impressive (?) 9 hits. All too early? @arghton and @drolcontinue to rack up the early hits to lie in 2nd and 3rd respectively, while @Wormfarmer, @John Keyand @Hell all do the Field/Manolic double to rise up the rankings. At the bottom, @BabyBluegets their first hit of the game with Menotti, leaving only 7 players yet to trouble the scorer. The top 8 is as follows, full scoreboard is on page 1. Gcreptile (637 points) 9 hits [Corey Williams, Frank Field, Franz Beckenbauer, Jason Smith, Jonnie Irwin, Josip Manolic, Paul Vachon, Thomas Stafford, Zhang Lixiong] Arghton (558 points) 8 hits [Abdul Taib Mahmud, Beverly Lahaye, Jaako Valtanen, Ma Shitu, Paul Vachon, Solihin GP, Swami Smaranananda, Zhang Lixiong] Drol (426 points) 8 hits [Frank Field, Jonnie Irwin, Ma Shitu, Mario Zagallo, Manohar Joshi, Toby Keith, Yuri Solomin, Zhang Lixiong] Captain Chorizo (376 points) 6 hits [Glynis Johns, Jaime De Arminan, Lynne Reid Banks, Paul Vachon, Philip De Gaulle, Roland Bertin] Wormfarmer (350 points) 4 hits [Frank Field, Iris Apfel, Josip Manolic, Phillipe De Gaulle] John Key (349 points) 5 hits [Derek Draper, Frank Field, Joe Shannon, Jonnie Irwin, Josip Manolic] Hell (327 points) 6 hits [Charlie Bird, Derek Draper, Frank Field, Glynis Johns, Jonnie Irwin, Josip Manolic] Nantonian (315 points) 6 hits [Derek Draper, Frank Field, Jack Burke Jr., Mario Zagallo, Peter Oosterhuis, Stan Bowles]

Thanks for that @YoungWillz- I didn't know, so I did look him up. It's a bit depressing to read through the details now, and to contemplate how little has changed in the intervening 45 years.

Am I missing something here? Would it not be cheaper and easier to buy them a house and chuck them half a million quid to live on, rather than spending £1.8m a head like this? I get that it is supposed to act as some sort of deterrent. But these are people who have travelled half way around the world in the back of a sealed-up truck, or sailed across the Channel on a dustbin lid. If the threat of suffocation or drowning hasn't deterred them, will the threat of a first-class ticket to Rwanda really do the trick?

Yeah I seriously considered going to that at the time, and eventually decided against it. When I see the Red Sox in person for the first time, I want it to be in a ballpark, preferably Fenway. Seeing a game in the London stadium just wouldn't be the same.

Never made it to Fenway, but it's number 1 on my bucket list. Fell in love with the game when I spent a summer in Woostah in the mid 90s, but I had to go home early to repeat college exams, so I never got to go. Had planned to catch a game when I went to Boston as part of honeymoon in 2003, but after 9/11 the other half got cold feet about flying to the US, so we ended up staying in Europe. Now I just have to wait until these parasitic kids leave home before I can afford to go!

Nah - I'm in Ireland. A completely plastic fan! I follow the Red Sox via the internet, which is a lot easier to do now than it was in 2004!