Octopus of Odstock

Not dead, but her husband last month. https://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-11594983/This-Mornings-Deidre-Sanders-tears-reveals-husband-died-just-Christmas.html Nothing in the article about her cancer

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-64152344 Body found of Aled Davies .

Michel Ferte, excellent in lower formulae and sportscars, but never able to break through to Formula 1, has died after a long illness, aged only 64. https://www.ouest-france.fr/sport/24-heures-du-mans/24-heures-du-mans-l-ancien-pilote-michel-ferte-est-decede-4b890164-8c54-11ed-9fb2-0b86ee40425f

2007 was the first year of Microsoft Access with Rude Kid trialling it out. So in 2008 and 2009, it was still the same format as I believe it is now. 2006 would've been the last year but it was actually Excel before Access. Probably Big Iain used pen and paper.. 2008 was a stressfest with Access not working and thankfully Rude Kid had patience. 2009 I think I got the site loaded in about 10 days but.... There were less players, less picks, less teams, no theme teams and I remember taking holiday from work deliberately to do the DDP. Old Crem was well meaning with a date but all it needs is for something to go wrong and it screwed up everything and that was 15 years ago. I knew with a child, now nearly 13(!) on the way, I couldn't do the same commitment and thankfully TMIB stepped in. I really don't envy anyone now the task let alone the Pele and Benedict shenanigans. There's a possibility 2024 might see me actually have the time to properly help the DDP runners, but I doubt I'd ever solely run it. Not sure anyone could on their own unless literally they spent all their spare time on it. So when I see some people go 'why isn't DDP up yet', I despair. A lot of them are the same that misspell their entries etc. It's MAMMOTH. I get they are excited and curious (I am, as I want to know if I have two uniques) but patience ..

I dropped Darby as he's still mobile. Of course, he can go downhill fast, such is the cruelness of MND, but I think he'll see in 2024. The key is that Steph Houghton, his wife, is still very active. If she stops, to look after him, then the countdown goes from there.

If he is near the end, then thank you @msc for your foresight all those years ago to disqualify Natalie Fornasier!

Well, now I measure myself Vs Spade and we have nine shared picks and the same joker Fornasier, in my view was less FFBI than Vicky Phelan but it's no biggie. Now I know you can enter three regular teams, it only reinforces my belief about more points for unique picks, but I've said enough.

Heart issues, it appears, for Beckenbauer. https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.thesun.co.uk/sport/20522325/germany-legend-beckenbauer-to-ill-to-fly-to-qatar/amp/

Well, that's a quickfire start. Not surprised though.

Here's mine: Gianluca Vialli (JOKER) Princess Bajrakitiyabha Rob Burrow Roberta Flack Eric Lamaze Jonnie Irwin Steve McMichael George Alagiah Frank McGarvey Nick Anderton Simon Cowell (WIldlife) Mutulu Shakur Andy Taylor Jimmy Calderwood Nigel Starmer-Smith Ryuichi Sakamoto James Whale Kate Keltie Natalie Fornasier Tongo Only one team this year

Many octagenarians and nonagenarians were dropped simply because I didn't think they would make drop 40 so: Giorgio Napolitano Sonny Rollins Malachy McCourt Mahoman Singh Harry Greenway Alpha Conde All made way for younger people, but I wouldn't be suprised if they all go. Didn't pick Rolf Harris, Tom Oliver, Brian Reader, Ted Kaczynski, Carlos Bilardo, Horst-Dieter Hottges, Milos Zeman, Randy Jackson and Pervez Musharraf as I don't think they're as ill as suggested. Simply had no space for Joe Kinnear, but wouldn't be surprised if he goes. Doubted Bill Campbell would get an obit. Almazbek Atambyev and Mikheil Saakashvili seem politically ill to me. Rhod Gilbert... I eventually left off. Hopefully the surgery did the trick. Likewise Abi Phillips. Graham Thorpe was too vague as to his illness, Stephen Darby's MND isn't that far gone and Johnny Ruffo..... Just couldn't really fit him in, nor did I really want to for some reason Finally, Mark Stokes - I suspect he's already dead and would end up being a wasted DDP pick. I suspect Oxford Uni will announce he died before or around Christmas when they return in the New Year.

Same here! I thought you could only have one regular team. If I'd known that, then I'd definitely had entered a second team. Ah well.

Not sure about Hal Linden, he seems very healthy for his age. Taylor, Rollins, Sakamoto all make sense.

Hmmm.. an unusual pick considering this: https://www.marketwatch.com/story/barney-miller-actor-hal-linden-now-91-says-he-never-plans-to-retire-11664026192

I'm in. Still can't bring myself to pick Frank Field and decided against picking Hanif Kureishi. No Winnie Ewing for me this year, because I don't think she'll make the drop 40 and why pick someone who will only be 5 points, when there's tons of other candidates. That said, all three are my subs, so they may make it after all if anyone else drops. Good luck to everyone.

In the last three days, every time I've dropped Frank Field from my DDP team (He's clearly terminally ill, but is it long-term?) someone has died. Pele, Strife and now Pope Benny. It's almost as if someone is trying to tell me something...

He wouldn't have been unique, but I have to admit I was astonished he lasted so long in hospice.

Charlton has put out a comment about Pele though, or at least on his behalf. Denis Law, another dementia sufferer too: Sir Bobby Charlton is the latest to pay tribute to Pele. The 1966 World Cup winner with England said: “Pele was a truly magical footballer and a wonderful human being. It was an honour to have shared a pitch with him and I send my sincerest condolences to his family, friends and the Brazilian people.” And former Scotland international Denis Law said: “This is very sad news indeed. "Pele was an ­unbelievable footballer; he had style, grace, flair and made everything look so easy. The precision in the way he played made him such a joy to watch. "However more than anything he was a good man with a great ­presence and a fantastic smile.”

Well, there's highs and lows here It secures my top 40 place in DDP and gives me an oh-so-needed space free on 2023's list. The low is the loss of one of the very greatest of all time, who toe-punt Vs Wales aside, had skills that pretty much sowed the seeds of the inspiration behind some of the other greatest footballers of all time (Cruyff, Maradona, Zico)

It's not non-celebs, as regards borderline FFBI. 2 of them are footballers, 1 is a motor racing driver and one is a boxer. Although irony is with so many people about to drop, I may end up playing none of them.

I've said before, that although the DDP is run quite brilliantly, I've always felt the unique bonus deserves more. Everyone will pick Pele, and get another 3 points for doing so which is easy and lacks skill, research etc. Picking a good unique - especially these days- is bloody hard and deserves more than just 4 points. I'd like to see that doubled to eight points myself for 2024. That's my view, although I know uniques for theme tems can skew this a bit.

It is with immense sadness I learn of Philippe Streiff's death today https://f1i.autojournal.fr/infos/disparition/deces-de-philippe-streiff/ A friend of mine, his courage and outlook on life after his crash in 1989 was an inspiration to us all.

Last chance - surely - of an obit has likely gone: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/sports-personality/63860954

Peter Butler gets the QO for the DDP - and even a photo. https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/sports-personality/63860954 But nothing for Ronnie Hellstrom or Maryan Wisniewski

Tambay didn't have dementia. Parkinson's might be an issue though. Jacques Laffite and Wilson Fittipaldi both have it. But the numbers are still quite small as opposed to dementia in football. I've not seen a specific trend yet to really say there's a serious problem, unless Parkinsons cases increase. The problem is of course that many drivers were killed, so a thorough study of a whole group is going to be difficult for at least another 20 years.