Me 2013 - A year of two halves

By Simon Wright – Follow me on Twitter @Siwri88

IN this annual piece 12 months ago, I came up with this final sentence.

“I do hope 2013 is a little bit less dramatic and a bit quieter though!”

Wishful thinking then as it has been another action-packed 12 months for me. However as the festive season gathers pace, I can finally say I’m settled, secure and happy for the first time in ages. It was a year where I had to deal with personal tragedy, knockbacks in job searching and changes in both technological devices and friendships but when I think about my 2013 – I feel satisfied that the hard work has paid off.

The closest I will probably ever get to Sebastian Vettel!

That wasn’t the case at the start of the year. An underwhelming trip to the Autosport International Show started 2013 off but I will back in attendance next month. Any plan I came up with unravelled pretty quickly. A lack of funding opportunities put paid to the option of going back to University to enhance my qualifications and although there was freelance work, it was low pay. The radio venture with BeeVocal ended due to their high-risk strategy which meant payment couldn’t be guaranteed. That was a shame as I really enjoyed hosting radio shows at the backend of 2012. I did write short news articles for football website A Different League but 25p per article isn’t proper payment if you ask me. One new aspect that kept me going as winter turned to spring was some work as a travel writer for Holiday-Weather.com. I had a brilliant mentor, the pay was good and the work was something completely different and out of my comfort zone. I wrote travel guides for Auckland in New Zealand, the Costa del Sol and the Costa Blanca and I really enjoyed researching and writing those pieces. The work sadly dried up by mid-May but it offered me more skills and gave me more confidence in writing for different target audiences.

The nights began to draw out but my frustrations in the job market continued in regards to finding something permanently. In February, I did have the experience of my first interview for a graduate position – a junior content editor role with Mohsen – a digital-based company based in Lancaster for mobile phone applications in their sports department. I narrowly missed out on this position due to a lack of office experience but I did well considering it was my first crack after hundreds of failed applications. Further interviews followed with two positions in Northampton and another in London but I was turned down for all roles. I seeked career guidance in May and made radical changes to covering letters and CVs. It still didn’t lead to much. By June, I was desperate and even tried to return to my former retail position at Clarks. This also ended as a dead end. I was unhappy, frightened with the lack of options and also suffering from low self-esteem. At the end of June, I decided to give it one more month before giving up and going travelling for 18 months to find my feet and possibly a future in another country. Then the opportunity arose with my current position.

Amidst the desperate tactics saw me advertising my services on Gumtree. A senior member of the team at Topps Europe Ltd saw my advert and offered me an interview for a role as a picture researcher and production assistant. The interview itself I felt wasn’t my best but I clearly did enough to impress the team. Less than 24 hours after seeing them for the interview on 2 July, I was offered the job. Unsurprisingly, I took it despite having another two interviews scheduled, one at the Phones4U Head Office in Newcastle-Upon-Lyme. I had done it finally after 14 months of sheer frustration, constant rejections and regular knockbacks.

The Topps experience started in mid-July and I went past the five-month mark last week. Working on the sports team, my role is to liaise with picture agencies, create database lists, write short content and sub-edit a subscription magazine on a variety of the licenses we have. There have been tough days but also very good days and it feels great when a project I work on comes out in the various markets. My contract was initially for three months and was extended to the end of April at the start of October. Two months later, I signed a permanent contract which I am absolutely thrilled about. Writing is my passion and always will be. Ultimately that is the job I want to do in the future when it comes to longer term ambitions but I am very happy where I am in the short term and hope to have a long and successful stint with Topps.

It was hello to the Sony Xperia Z for me this year

Of course my year wasn’t all about work and finding a position in the first place. It was a year of technology change. May saw the end for my Toshiba laptop as it went into sleep mode and never woke up! Its replacement is a HP with Windows 8.1 and I’m very happy with the choice I made. That is only the third laptop I’ve had in seven years but my mobile phone devices are now well into double figures. The BlackBerry broke again, got a replacement and then eventually traded it in well before the end of my contract. The sorriest excuse for a smartphone has been replaced by the slick Sony Xperia Z (pictured). Again this was a wise choice. The battery life isn’t brilliant but you’d be hard pushed to find a smartphone that lasts more than 2/3 days before it needs a charge nowadays.

Pictured with the world's greatest cup competition; The FA Cup

May also took me to the home of English football, though it wasn’t to see a match. I had purchased tickets to take a VIP tour of Wembley Stadium in an access all areas afternoon of one of football’s greatest arenas. I got my picture taken with the FA Cup (pictured), led a team out onto the touchline, visited the UEFA museum integrated for the Champions League final and gained access to the media rooms and England team dressing rooms. The weather was rubbish but the rest of the day was brilliant.

Friendships went through their usual course of either getting distant or staying in touch. I’m still in touch with many of my coursemates from University and that’s a nice feeling. I did learn later in the year that some people who you trust and thought were always going to be there for you no matter what, weren’t. There comes a point where you have to say enough is enough. Making effort to stay in touch shouldn’t work one-way and if it does, then you have to question the point of communication. Many people sent me messages of support when in October; the sad news came through of a passing of one of my family relatives. It was a sad time and one where I had to keep things together and not show in public that I was struggling. It wasn’t easy, far from it but by working hard throughout the weeks that followed, it was the best thing I could do to help the grief. As mentioned, I did get some lovely messages but some who I thought I could count on were not there and that hurt. Best thing to do was move on and I have.

One person who I do want to mention is Victoria Chapelow who has become one of my closest and most reliable friends of the past 12-18 months. Victoria is kind, caring, very friendly and always has been there for me. We have developed a strong bond and I’m delighted to know that I can talk to her about almost anything. We’ve seen each other a few times this year which is nice too and I hope to see more of her in 2014. Friendships are largely in a strong place then but the chances of romance have all but gone. With no experience of relationships whatsoever, I have come to the acceptance at my age now that I will never find the special one. There have been the inevitable crushes and occasionally, I have developed feelings but nothing worked out. It is sad for me to admit but there isn’t any point in pining about it. Like dying friendships, it is best to move on and not reflect on these elements too much. There will be areas where being single probably has its advantages too!

There was no foreign holiday for the second year running despite all that travel guide work at the start of the year. That drought is likely to end with a summer holiday in 2014 to somewhere hot. Saying that, you couldn’t complain too much about the British summer this year – we had a nice one for a change. In November, I went to my first football match in six years when Milton Keynes Dons met Coventry City in a League One encounter at Stadium MK. The atmosphere was very good and the stadium facilities brilliant. The local Dons team lost 3-1 but it was a good occasion to be at, especially with the Sky Blues bringing a record crowd down to MK for a League One match.

The New Year resolutions set at the start of the year ended with a mixed bag. Limited use of Facebook was stuck to, as was the paranoia effect I had – others like exercising didn’t work unless you can count walking to work on a regular basis. I was delighted that with my job, I can now support two charities with regular monthly contributions in the British Heart Foundation and Teenage Cancer Trust – two causes I value in their fantastic work. Another foundation who deserves a mention is The Big Issue and Centrepoint regarding finding homes for the homeless. The Skins actress Kathryn Prescott put on her first major photography exhibition called ‘What Makes Us Care’ in the autumn and I went to see it in September. It was a tremendous gallery of photos from a multi-talented individual and the two causes at the heart of this raised a magnificent amount of money. As time goes on, I hope to be able to donate more to other charities as I feel this is both important for my career but also because I like to help others. I also began writing a book in the summer called ‘The Premier League – Changing History.’ Progress on this halted after getting my full-time job but this is something I will start to spend more time on in the New Year and beyond. That meant the difficult but right decision to stop updating my football website last week due to the lack of available time I have.

Merry Christmas everyone!

Looking ahead to 2014 and I am settled, happier and content for the first time in ages. No predictions this time on the amount of drama but I don't think I'll need to worry about insecurity in the next 12 months. The journey to the golden sky continues.

I would also like to take the opportunity to wish all my readers and in fact everyone a Merry Christmas and a happy and prosperous New Year. This is my last piece of 2013 but Viewing Perspectives will continue into next year. There also might be a new look to this website in the future.

Thank you, Merry Christmas and you’ll hear from me soon again

Simon

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Categories: 2013, Autosport International Show, Friendship, Interview, Job, New Year, Sony Xperia Z, Topps, Tragedy, Wembley

Sport 2013 - Another unforgettable year

By Simon Wright – Follow me on Twitter @Siwri88

It was always going to be tough to topple the memorable sporting year of 2012 but 2013 certainly was a brilliant cameo to last year’s events. The Brits finally had a Wimbledon winner, continue to reign on two wheels in Paris and a distance god made his success into world domination. There was also the retirement of football’s greatest manager, a won and lost Ashes series, Lions roar to glory Down Under and an invincible German take Formula One by storm. It is fair to say that there were many highlights over the past calendar year.

There is only one place where this review can start and that is to lookback on a remarkable year of tennis. In the women’s game, Serena Williams almost swept the board. The American won the French and US Open, the WTA Championships in Istanbul and regained her number one world ranking. Her Wimbledon defence ended though in the last 16, beaten by Sabine Lisicki of Germany. Lisicki made it to the final but crumbled on the main stage, allowing Frenchman Marion Bartoli – often the bridesmaid to finally become the bride. A straight sets victory for Bartoli saw her claim the only Grand Slam title of her career. A sudden retirement followed in August due to injury but no-one can take away the rose bowl dish won at SW19. Victoria Azarenka won the Australian Open and it was good year for Laura Robson as she made the second week at Wimbledon. Fellow Brit Heather Watson struggled with illness for the majority of the year whilst retirement beckoned for Anne Keothavong and Elena Baltacha. With Roger Federer enduring his worst season in 11 years – failing to reach any of the semi-finals at the Grand Slam events and claiming only one ATP win all season, the main honours were divided between three men. Serbian Novak Djokovic started the year in brilliant fashion, beating Andy Murray in four sets to win again in Melbourne. Despite a shock first round elimination in south west London, Rafael Nadal returned from career threatening injury to win the US Open and triumph for an eighth time at Roland Garros. That leads us to the unforgettable day on Sunday, 7 July 2013.

Andy Murray ended the long British drought of 77 years at Wimbledon

Injury meant Murray missed the French Open and his draw looked tough too, until all of his potential opponents were wiped out on ‘Holby City Wednesday’ on the opening week. Buoyant from his victory at Queens Club, Murray (pictured) made it to the final despite a huge scare in the quarter-finals against Fernando Verdasco. He would play Djokovic after his own five-hour epic with Juan Martin del Potro of Argentina. The final which should have been a tense affair turned into a classy performance from the Brit. Murray won all the crucial points and it was Djokovic who made the mistakes when put under pressure. In searing heat and at 5.25pm on Centre Court, Djokovic found the net and that was that. The longest drought in British sport was over – we had a Wimbledon Men’s Singles Champion and that was Andy Murray after 77 years of hurt. It was an emphatic performance and guaranteed him BBC Sports Personality of the Year in December.

Rugby Union had a powerful 12 months of competitive action. Leicester Tigers defeated Northampton Saints in a bad tempered Aviva Premiership final whilst Toulon were crowned Heineken Cup winners, inspired by Jonny Wilkinson in the final. On the international scene, New Zealand went through an entire calendar year undefeated which included autumn international victories at Twickenham and Dublin. In the RBS Six Nations, there was a final weekend showdown for the championship as Wales met England. An English victory would secure their first Grand Slam in a decade. However it was the Welsh who prevailed with a record win over their opponents 30-3. Leigh Halfpenny was top points scorer in the championship with 74 points. France meanwhile ended up with the wooden spoon. Then it was onto the summer’s big contest in Australia as the British and Irish Lions aimed to win their first overseas series since 1997. It was 1-1 after two very close games with the Lions snatching the first test 23-21 in Brisbane but losing the second 16-15 in Melbourne. It went down to the finale in Sydney and the Lions played the Aussies off the park, routing them 41-16 to win the series 2-1. It was their first series win in Australia in 24 years. Halfpenny was the star again, scoring 49 points over the three tests.

Sailing is not the most popular sport but it produced an incredible story and one of sport’s greatest comebacks in September. The year started sadly when Team GB medallist in Beijing and London, Andrew Simpson died in May when the yacht he was on training for the Americas Cup capsized. The final between Emirates Team New Zealand and Team Oracle USA was a tale of two halves. New Zealand stormed into an 8-1 lead and looked like they were going to be convincing winners. They hadn’t counted on the greatest Olympic sailor in history on the other side. Sir Ben Ainslie led a monumental fightback to turn the momentum USA’s way. In San Francisco for the final race, the comeback was complete. The US won 9-8 to win sport’s oldest trophy. Ainslie was hailed as the master again and talks are underway for a Team GB entry into the race in future years to come.

Chris Froome continued Britain's success in the Tour de France

The cycling year didn’t start well when one of sport’s believed to be heroes confessed all. Lance Armstrong admitted to doping on a regular basis when he stormed to his seven Tour de France wins from 1999 to 2005. The sporting world was rocked and cycling left to fight more bad headlines of drug use in competition. Armstrong has rightfully been stripped of his titles and now goes down as one of the biggest cheats in sporting history. None of that bothered Chris Froome (pictured) though on the 100^th anniversary of the Tour de France. After bronze at last year’s Olympic time trial and finishing runner-up on the 2012 tour to Sir Bradley Wiggins, Froome went one better in 2013. He dismantled the competition to claim the yellow jersey on the eighth stage and won the prestigious race for Team Sky. After waiting a lifetime, Britain now has two tour winners in two years, as Froome was flanked home by his team-mates on the Champ Elysees. Wiggins missed the tour due to injury but completed a successful year for our country with victory in September’s Tour of Britain. On the track, there were nine medals for Great Britain at the World Track Cycling Championship in Minsk in February. Becky James was the star with four medals in her first championships – two of them were gold. Laura Trott was beaten in the Omnium by Sarah Hammer of the United States but retained her Team Pursuit title and was the inaugural winner of Ride London this summer too.

Another sport to suffer the old story of drug scandals was athletics. American sprinter Tyson Gay, Jamaica’s Asafa Powell and Kelly-Ann Baptiste from Trinidad & Tobago were among the big names to fail tests. All face two-year bans. It was a successful year for British sprinting with James Dasaolu breaking the magical 10-second barrier at the British Championships in Birmingham, whilst both he and Adam Gemili made major sprinting finals later in the year. The Sainsbury’s Anniversary Games in the Olympic Stadium were a huge success before the best in the business headed off to Moscow for the IAAF World Athletics Championships in August. From a British perspective, the year belonged to Mo Farah. He repeated his Olympic double at long distance in the Russian capital. He won both the 5000m and 10,000m in tight finishes, something he couldn’t quite achieve in Daegu two years ago. In the women’s 400m, Christine Ohuruogu produced another great finish to steal the gold medal from chief rival Amelie Montsho to win her second world championship gold. In the process, she grabbed Kathy Cooke’s long-standing national record. There was also a brilliant bronze medal in the women’s 110m hurdles for Tiffany Porter. Usain Bolt wasn’t quite at his fearsome best but he still won three gold medals, matched by Jamaican team-mate Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce. The Russians were delighted when home favourite Yelena Isinbayeva won a dramatic pole vault final, helping Russia top the medals table and there were other outstanding world performances from the likes of Valerie Adams (New Zealand) and Teddy Tamgho (France). Sadly, the drug abuse from some of the world’s most recognised track stars tainted the track and field year.

Cricket’s oldest rivalry was renewed not once but twice as England and Australia clashed in the Ashes. The summer belonged to England as they retained the urn 3-0 in a series which was overshadowed by failings in technology such as Hotspot. England won the first test by a dramatic 14 runs in Trent Bridge before crushing the Aussies by a staggering 347 runs at Lord’s. The Ashes were retained after rain brought an end to an Australian fightback in Manchester before victory at Chester-Le-Street rubbed salt into the wounds of the tourists. Only the darkness at The Oval prevented an even heavier beating for Australia. Ian Bell was the man of the series with three centuries scored and 562 runs achieved as he finally came of age. Unfortunately for England, their winter tour Down Under has been nothing but a complete shambles. The Ashes have been already been lost to Australia and with two to play, England stare down the barrel of a 5-0 annihilation like in 2007. Jonathan Trott left the tour after one test due to stress and Graeme Swann announced his retirement with immediate effect recently. English cricket is currently in crisis. On the domestic front, the main honours went to Durham (County Championship) and Northamptonshire (Twenty20 Cup), whilst one of the best batsmen to play the game, Sachin Tendulkar of India retired.

Jockey AP McCoy celebrates his magical 4000th winner at Towcester

Horse racing brought another remarkable story in November. At Towcester, Mountain Dunes took AP McCoy (pictured) to another historic landmark as he achieved his 4000^th winner. He is the first jump jockey to achieve this and is now champion jockey 18 times. He now has 4029 winners (as of last week) and all this was achieved after being injured for the first month of this year. The favourite Bob’s Worth won the Cheltenham Gold Cup in March as trainer Nicky Henderson and jockey Barry Geraghty combined to leave the Paul Nicholls/Ruby Walsh combination trailing in their wake. Ruler of the World won the Epsom Derby and outsider Auras Encore took the honours in the Grand National, as all 40 horses that started made it back safely at Aintree this time around.

There was British success on two wheels as Tom Sykes became World Superbike champion and Tai Woffenden became Britain’s first world Speedway Grand Prix champion in 13 years. In MotoGP, there was a new rookie sensation who took the paddock by storm. Spaniard Marc Marquez became the first newcomer since Kenny Roberts Jr in 1978 to win the championship at his first attempt. A run of four successive victories in mid-season was the turning point and he finished third in a tense season finale in Valencia to hold off a determined challenge from Jorge Lorenzo. ‘The Doctor’ returned to the top step of the rostrum as Valentino Rossi won the Dutch TT at Assen – his first win in almost three years. Britain’s Cal Crutchlow scored two pole positions and three podiums in another impressive year, earning himself a works ride for next season with Ducati.

On four wheels, Allan McNish became the endurance sportscar champion and won at Le Mans again before bowing out into retirement. Fellow Scot Dario Franchitti was forced to give up IndyCar racing after sustaining career-ending injuries in a terrible crash at an event in Houston. Scott Dixon won the championship, while Brazilian Tony Kanaan was the winner of the Indy 500. Andrew Jordan won the British Touring Car Championship, holding off late challenges from Jason Plato and Gordon Shedden to win his maiden title. In Formula One, only one man dominated the season. Sebastian Vettel broke records for fun as he claimed his fourth consecutive world championship. The unstoppable German won 13 races to equal Michael Schumacher’s mark from 2004 and matched Alberto Ascari’s long-standing achievement of nine consecutive victories, the first to do it in a season. He is unbeaten since July. Red Bull team-mate Mark Webber retired and moves into sportscars next season with Porsche while six Pirelli tyre blowouts turned the British Grand Prix at Silverstone into a joke. It was sparse success for British drivers. Lewis Hamilton disappointed many in his first campaign with Mercedes but did win the Hungarian Grand Prix again. Jenson Button and McLaren didn’t even score a single podium in 2013 and Paul di Resta’s lack of consistency means his career in the sport is also over.

There were happier British experiences in the world of golf. At the US Open, there was major success at long last for Justin Rose. On Father’s Day, he held off a late surge from Phil Mickelson to become the first English major winner since Nick Faldo back in 1996. Tiger Woods might have missed out on the main prizes but did regain his number one status. Mickelson made up for his US Open disappointment with a brilliant final day to win The Open Championship. Jason Dufner edged out Jim Furyk to take the honours in the USPGA Championship whilst Adam Scott landed the prestigious green jacket at the US Masters in Augusta. It was a troubled year for Rory McIlroy who lost form and slipped to number six in the world rankings. Elsewhere, Europe’s Ladies team won their first ever Solheim Cup in the States, thrashing the home side 18-10.

In football, the greatest football manager of his generation retired. Sir Alex Ferguson left on a high and went out on top as Manchester United cruised to a 13^th Premier League title. There were new winners in a dramatic year. Liverpool Ladies became WSL champions; Swansea City defeated Bradford City to claim their first major silverware in the League Cup final and Ben Watson’s injury time header won the FA Cup for Wigan Athletic against Manchester City. Rafa

There was another European success for Chelsea - this time in the Europa League

Benitez guided Chelsea to more European success as they beat Benfica in Amsterdam to win the UEFA Europa League (team pictured). A few days earlier, Frank Lampard had become the club’s all-time record goalscorer. Benitez moved to Napoli and he was replaced by the ‘Happy One’ as Jose Mourinho returned. The all-German UEFA Champions League final went to Bayern Munich at Wembley. Arjen Robben scored the late winner to defeat Borussia Dortmund, part of a German treble. Spain won the European Under-21 championship, Germany the Women’s Euros as both England teams woefully exited at the group stages. The senior male side though did qualify for the World Cup finals and Gareth Bale became the most expensive player in the history of football, joining Real Madrid for £85.3m.

In other sport, Ellie Simmonds won three gold medals as Team GB claimed 29 gold medals in World Paralympic Championships in athletics and swimming. There were over 70 medals in total and Hannah Cockroft was a leading star. She followed up her two London gold medals last summer with double gold in the wheelchair racing T34 category at both 100m and 200m. She also won both races at the Sainsbury’s Anniversary Games. Phil ‘the Power’ Taylor won a 16^th PDC World Darts title at the start of the year but has already been knocked out this time around, so will have to wait for number 17. There were big crowds at the Rugby League World Cup held in the autumn. Hosts England lost in the semi-finals to holders New Zealand but it was Australia who took the cup back with them to Oz after seeing off the Kiwis in the final. Wigan Warriors rekindled their glory days of the 1990s with victory in both the Challenge Cup final and Super League. Oxford won the University Boat Race and 36,000 competitors took part in the London Marathon, just six days after the two bombs that killed three in the closing stages of the Boston Marathon. Carl Froch retained his IBF and WBA Super Middleweight belts which included a controversial win over George Groves in November and stars of London 2012, Nicola Adams, Andrew Selby and David Florence all won world championships in 2013.

As ever, sport has not disappointed in 2013 and in fact, it was another cracking year. 2014 should be even better with the World Cup finals in Brazil, the Commonwealth Games coming to Glasgow, Zurich hosting the European Athletics Championships, another Ryder Cup in this country and the regular editions of Wimbledon, the Six Nations, a new-look Formula One and England summer cricket tests against Sri Lanka and India. Let’s face it – we are experiencing a golden generation of sport so embrace it while we are in the heart of these great contests and unexpected triumphs.

Categories: 2013, Andy Murray, AP McCoy, Chelsea, Chris Froome, Ellie Simmonds, Sport, Tour de France, UEFA Europa League, Wimbledon

Adverts 2013 - The top 25 commercials

By Simon Wright – Follow me on Twitter @Siwri88

IT is that time of year again where several areas have got the review treatment from me and one of the annual areas is the advert.

Advert of the Year is here - who has made the top 25 in 2013?

So what was the best commercial of 2013 (logo pictured)? Some will see these messages as pointless and the perfect opportunity to make a quick phone call or to put the kettle on, post a message on social media or take a comfort break. Others enjoy the commercials, either for laughter, the serious effect or if it sells the message it is directing to you, the consumer.

John Lewis has come out on top in the last two years with their Christmas adverts. This time, the Xmas advert hasn’t made the top 25 but will the company still make it a hat-trick in 2013. This is Advert of the Year.

25. Apple (Photos Every Day)

Apple’s domination of the technology market has been marginalised in recent years by the Android effect. However the iPhone remains the most popular smartphone and it can share great memories from an early age to retirement. This advert promotes the camera tool, showing that photos can be taken everyday and cherished forever.

24. Halfords (Tour de Britain)

There was more British success in the Tour de France this summer with Chris Froome winning the classic event. However Halfords elected to put a funny spin on this recent control by staging the Tour de Britain in a 40-second advert. See what happens by clicking ‘Play.’

23. AXA (Little Things Mean A Lot)

It might not be as funny as some others in this list but there is real sentimental value to the new advertising campaign ran this year by AXA to promote their home insurance. This commercial follows a romantic couple who are enjoying a break in Brighton but the female of this loved-up pair is devastated when a break-in at home sees some priceless jewellery stolen. So if it can’t be returned, AXA will sort the small things out and make things better. Sometimes, it is the little things that mean more than the big, bulky items in life.

22. Jessops (Are You In)

It has been a difficult year for camera chain Jessops. In January 2013, the company slipped into administration and within days, all 187 UK stores had been closed, taking 1,370 jobs with it. Dragons’ Den entrepreneur Peter Jones though bought the assets two months later and is attempting to reform them as both an online and retail business. In this commercial, Jones spends the day undercover in the main Oxford Street shop to attempt customer service skills. It doesn’t quite work but it indicates that sometimes, one-to-one interaction is better than just placing an order online on the internet. It will be interesting to see if Jessops progresses under its new owner in 2014. The advert has some comic appeal and I personally hope Jones makes a success of the brand.

21. PlayStation 4 (This is for the Players)

The world of gaming went up a gear this year with the launch of both Xbox One and PlayStation 4 in November 2013. PlayStation’s advert isn’t quite as appealing as some of the older versions of the console but this still attracts the consumer, grabs their attention and makes sure they are number one. From early reviews, it seems like Sony might have nudged back ahead of Microsoft in this battle. PlayStation 4 is for the players.

20. TSB (Welcome Back to Local Banking)

Another name many were delighted to see return to the high street and the banking industry this year were TSB. TSB had been around for over 100 years until 1995 when Lloyds Bank merged with them to form Lloyds TSB. A ruling of the European Commission stated the group had to sell a portion of its business as it categorised a 43.4 per cent stake by HM Government as state aid.

Therefore, Lloyds decided to buy out the Cheltenham & Gloucester brand and disband the TSB name, reforming as Lloyds Bank. Consequently, TSB is now back and this is a lengthy commercial showing the story of its founder, the Reverend Henry Duncan. Only time will tell to see how much impact they will have but it is nice to have TSB back in many retail outlets up and down the land.

19. Harvester (Junior Chefs)

This commercial is cheeky in many ways. Two little chefs battle it out in the kitchen, branding out orders to more senior members of the team. This was part of a competition by Harvester which saw a vote to see if Ben or his little sister Annie won the battle in the cooking department. There’s a little Jamie Oliver in all of us!

18. Whiskas (Big Cat, Little Cat)

While it lacks the power or the knockout punch of other adverts in 2013, this is one of the more heart-warming ones, particularly for lovers of cats. It shows the cheetah, known as the fastest safari animal running quickly after hearing the barking sound of a dog. He then enters a cat flap, and transforms into a little cat, all based around the love for Whiskas. Other cat foods are available!

17. Virgin Media (Terrible Speed)

Two adverts from Virgin Media have made the top 25 this year and this is the first, promoting their broadband. Former Doctor Who star David Tennant seems to be frustrated with the terrible speed his broadband service is providing and therefore, promotes Virgin Media’s superfast broadband with the help of Sir Richard Branson and Usain Bolt. My favourite part is when Bolt asks the Doctor to put his hand down but is bluntly told ‘NO!’ by Tennant.

16. Royal Mail (We Love Parcels)

Royal Mail hadn’t done a major TV advertising campaign since 2007 so it was about time they did something and it is a good return to form. Featuring the postmen and women who deliver their parcels, this advert came out just in time for Christmas at a crucial time of the year for gifts and presents. The advert shows the staff working extremely hard to bring joy and delight to the faces of many across the nation. This features the voices of the Royal Mail Choir with the cover of ‘All You Need Is Love’ by The Beatles being sung from the famous Abbey Road Studios.

15. Sky Broadband (Toy Story of Terror)

Another broadband advert and while it is no longer on the big screen, the animation doesn’t stop for Toy Story. Wi-Fi 2000 can’t handle the amount of internet usage and it eventually causes a powercut in the town. It all started because Rex was watching a move that was struggling to buffer. Use your head Rex, that’s your best use! The advert is to highlight Sky’s Fibre Broadband service which is totally unlimited and superfast but that’s what they say. I can’t judge who is the quickest because honestly, I’m not too bothered by these statistics.

14. Guinness (Wheelchair Basketball)

I don’t drink Guinness and nor will I ever but the advertising and marketing geniuses have come up with some memorable adverts down the years. ‘Evolution’ and ‘Surfers’ are two that spring to mind. This one with music from the Cinematic Orchestra shows a group of friends enjoying a game of competitive wheelchair basketball, dedicated to winning but also staying loyal to their personal friendships. It ends down the local with a pint of Guinness. You can’t really argue with the results.

13. Sony Xperia (Momentous Events)

Japanese manufacturer Sony made its big breakthrough onto the smartphone market this year with the Xperia Z. This shows some of Sony’s evolution through the years from the Walkman’s inception to the birth of the PlayStation in 1995. It ultimately combines with a couple taking photos of a colourful carnival and testing how water resistant the phone is. The music is David Bowie’s classic Sound and Vision, remixed by Sonjay Prabhakar. I liked the commercial so much, I bought the phone in late August and it is a decision I haven’t regretted.

12. EE (Conga Dance)

I find Kevin Bacon, the man behind the EE adverts a tad irritating but this is a corny advert. After the results come in which shows EE has the fastest 4G broadband service (yes that word again), Bacon joins a Conga line which never seems to end. It also involves the conga invading the Deal or No Deal set in Bristol, leaving host Noel Edmonds slightly bemused. Shame the identity of ‘The Banker’ wasn’t revealed.

11. Kronenbourg 1664 (The Farmers of Alsace)

While I might not be the biggest fan of Bacon (both person and the food), Eric Cantona is of a different scale. A genius on the football field, this temperamental Frenchman has become a filmstar and now a commercial ace. Here, he promotes the good tasting Kronenbourg 1664 and the farmers in a local French town of Alsace, who are appreciated as much as English footballers. Cue some farmer statues, a couple of curious facial expressions and then Cantona hoping to get lucky at the end, when a woman asks him if he is a father too!

10. Sky (Moments)

The selection of Christmas TV adverts has been largely disappointing this year and that’s a pity. However, this is my personal favourite. The music by Jonathan Goldstein has become so popular; it is now available to be downloaded as a full-length track on iTunes. Sky’s Magical Moments season follows three families or individuals hoping to feel happy or lucky in the festive season. It starts sad and full of regret or sorrow but provides a happy ending for all three outcomes. A lovely advert by Sky, showing magic can happen at Christmas.

9. Allianz (School Run)

The busy school run can have its pressures, such as remembering lunchboxes, having the right kind of shoes and the annoyance parents’ get of regular shouts of ‘Are We There Yet.’ Filmed at what looks like the Rockingham Oval in Northamptonshire, this advert for Allianz portrays all these issues in a battle to see who can get to the chequered flag first. The pressure of winning or just getting there in one piece is empathised by Allianz and it has its comical moments in this advert.

8. Argos (Awesome Stuff)

The Argos Aliens returned for another year of interesting commercials and their spring one was one of frustration for one member of the family. Seeing a product he is after online on a third-party website, he seems happy to accept the 3-5 day delivery wait, believing it will come earlier than that. As seen, that is not the case and going to Argos is probably cheaper, quicker and easier. Awesome stuff!

7. John Lewis (Things Matter)

The ranking here guarantees that it won’t be a hat-trick of top honours for John Lewis but things do matter and home insurance is one of these. This advert shows the precious pieces and some clever work in design studios to ensure everything in the house from furniture to books makes a bid for freedom before the family of five pose for a picture outside. Insure everything precious to you. Nina Nesbitt sings a cover of the 1980s song ‘Don’t Stop’ by Fleetwood Mac and has just completed her debut album. She could be an artist to watch in the coming year.

6. BT Sport (Great Sport Happens Here)

BBC’s Formula One coverage went downhill from the moment Jake Humphrey signed off as anchor after the 2012 Brazilian Grand Prix. Frustrated at being the number two/three choice for major BBC sporting events, Humphrey elected to move to BT Sport and become the number one presenter. Here, he promotes the channel’s first TV advert featuring stars such as Brian O’Driscoll, Joe Hart, Lawrence Dallaglio and Robin van Persie. With top pick matches from the Barclays Premier League alongside Aviva Premiership Rugby, MotoGP, WTA tennis and from 2015, the UEFA Champions League – BT Sport is here to stay. Great sport is really happening and Sky have been warned.

5. Virgin Media (Three Tennants)

Isn’t it a grave disappointment when three programmes you want to watch are on at the same time? Well, if you have the TiVO service from Virgin Media, this isn’t a problem. As demonstrated by David Tennant and a feisty battle between three lookalikes for supremacy, the three Tennants eventually get silenced by Richard Branson. Still, it was a great duel while it lasted and just squeezes into my top five in 2013.

4. Carling (Trick Shot)

In May, Carling launched a new advertising campaign featuring Jon and Dylan getting up to wild and wacky adventures. The first commercial sees Dylan heading up to the pool table to tackle the ultimate trick shot, not seen since the days of Big Break. It looks like target has been achieved until the white ball changes course – will it stay on the table or drop into the hole? Click ‘Play’ to find out.

3. British Airways (Today, Tomorrow)

Two years on from the classic To Fly, To Serve ad, British Airways introduced their new advert featuring the classy Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft. The commercial illustrates the comforts available to make a plane journey better than ever before. They are still the world’s favourite airline today, will be tomorrow and for some time to come on this evidence.

2. Comparethemeerkat.com (Fat Sergei)

Runner-Up this year goes to Aleksandr and the hilarious meerkats who have starred in adverts this year with Gary Barlow and become new sponsors of ITV soap opera Coronation Street. This is my favourite though as it sees Aleksandr’s Meerkat assistant Sergei putting on quite a bit of weight. It means he looks completely out of sync in comparison to his Meerkat toy and will require an intense fitness programme to get back into shape. Fat Sergei though does the work required to his normal size before the advert ends. This is another tremendous advert in the collection. Simples!

1. Three (The Dancing Pony)

The number one advert of 2013 is one by the mobile phone company Three. Often put in the shade by rivals EE, O2 and Vodafone, they’ve come up with this catchy commercial which sees a pony pulling off some exceptional dance moves that wouldn’t look out of place on Strictly Come Dancing. You simply have to love this advert, even though there isn’t much reference to what Three actually sells. I guess the moral is never to underestimate anyone, as people or creatures can be capable of the strangest talents possible.

So, congratulations to Three and their Dancing Pony, voted as Viewing Perspectives’ Advert of the Year for 2013. 

Categories: 2013, Adverts, British Airways, Carling, David Tennant, John Lewis, Meerkats, Richard Branson, Three, Virgin Media

TV 2013 - Growth and choice continues

By Simon Wright - Follow me on Twitter @Siwri88

12 months on the box have seen the evolution of what we watch continue to change. More HD services arrived, it was the end for some groundbreaking British dramas of the last decade and new reality show winners were crowned. So it was another classic year in television.

BBC Television Centre closed its doors for the final time in March

More movements were being made to the ever expanding MediaCityUK in Salford. Coronation Street moved its studios into the department at the end of November and long-running Channel 4 daytime quiz show Countdown switched from the Granada Studios  at the start of the year. Meanwhile, BBC Television Centre (pictured) officially closed its doors for the last time as its final programmes moved out. The BBC News was broadcast for the first time at its new home of Broadcasting House in March. Three months later, the Queen officially opened the building and appeared behind the screen as a bulletin was being read out on BBC News 24. Not such a good year for Simon McCoy though. The newsreader stated the obvious outside the hospital when the Duchess of Cambridge went into labour: “I’m outside the hospital where there is no news!” McCoy went on to beat this later in the year when he opened a bulletin carrying a packet of A4 plain paper (video below), mistaking that for a tablet!

At the National Television Awards, Corrie beat EastEnders to Best British Soap, whilst This Morning won Best Daytime Programme and there was a Lifetime Achievement Accolade for Joanna Lumley. There was a historic first in August for the Channel 4 daytime programme Deal or No Deal. 18-year-old Paddy Roberts (video below) became the first male winner of the main £250,000 jackpot eight years after the programme first went onto the air.

There was a new challenger in the sports market as BT Sport burst onto our screens at the start of August. Ex-BBC Formula One anchor Jake Humphrey was signed up to lead the coverage and plans for an explosive entrance began with the purchase of ESPN’s channels in Britain and Ireland in February. BT had already bought the rights to some first pick live matches from the Barclays Premier League, along with exclusive rights to the Aviva Premiership, the WTA tennis tour and next year’s MotoGP from the BBC.

ITV had another testing year. In January, the corporation rebranded itself from ITV1 to ITV after 12 years. New idents arrived along with an update of the online services offered and a change in logo too. The new changes received a mixed response from viewers but everyone quickly moved on. Their football department though was in deep trouble. By the end of the year, live FA Cup football had been lost to the BBC for 2014-15 and their live 20-year association of the UEFA Champions League was coming to an end too, as newcomers BT paid out for a record deal to snatch the UEFA live rights away from ITV and BSkyB.

It was a year where broadcasters and actors had the ordeal of police allegations following the Jimmy Saville scandal last year. Stuart Hall was jailed after an investigation into historic allegations. Coronation Street stalwarts Michael Le Vell and William Roache were subject to police cases amidst allegations of child sex and indecent assault offences. Le Vell was cleared of his case in September, while Roache faces trial next year. Both of their on-screen characters disappeared when the news broke but ITV has remained in full support of both actors. Rolf Harris is another high-profile name who faces trial next year. With the economic recession starting to ease, money for telethons continued to rise. A record £75m was made for charity in March for Comic Relief. ITV’s Text Santa night for six fundraising causes made over £4m and there was another record total for Children in Need with £31m raised on their special night in November.

In the soaps, Coronation Street’s iconic Rovers Return pub burned down for only the second time in its history, killing two characters. Ronnie Mitchell (Samantha Womack) returned to EastEnders, while her on-screen sister Roxy (Rita Simons) was dumped on her wedding day by Alfie Moon (Shane Ritchie). Alfie and Kat (Jessie Wallace) were therefore reunited. In Emmerdale, a storm, a pub siege and electrocution in the pub cellar finally brought an end to serial killer Cameron Murray (Dominic Power).

It was another unlucky day for Toadie as his wedding exploded in Neighbours

One of Hollyoaks’ most evil characters in the show’s history, Claire Cunningham (Gemma Bissix) also didn’t see out the year as she was run over by dodgy Doctor Browning. That wasn’t before a homemade bomb which exploded in council houses, killing three other characters. Bryan Kirkwood's return to the show revived the fortunes of Hollyoaks after a difficult two years for the Chester soap. Lastly the unluckiest groom in soap had another nightmare day. After marrying Sonya (Eva Morey), Toadfish ‘Jarrod’ Rebecchi (Ryan Maloney) could only watch on in horror as a gas explosion (pictured) at the reception ruined his big day again in Neighbours. Doctor Rhys Lawson (Ben Barber) and school principal Priya Kapoor (Menik Gooneratne) lost their lives in the aftermath which saw the Ramsey Street show go into a primetime evening slot for the first time.

As ever, reality TV had its highs and lows. Olympic gymnast Beth Tweddle won a forgettable series of Dancing on Ice. The skating programme will return for one final series in the New Year featuring stars from the past as Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean decided to retire from the rink once the 2014 edition ends. The X-Factor endured its lowest average ratings for nine years as Sam Bailey from Leicestershire scooped the top prize and is likely to win the coveted Christmas number one prize with it. Attraction were the winners of Britain’s Got Talent. The Hungarian group won a final where the main headline saw Simon Cowell being egged live on the final show by a member of a backing group from one of the final acts. Andrea Begley was crowned winner of The Voice UK as series two went the same way as series one – starting strongly and then fading once the Blind Auditions were concluded. Westlife singer Kian Egan won a stormy edition of I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out Of Here, dominated by allegations of cheating and bending the rules against the model Amy Willerton. Lastly, model and TV personality Abby Clancy was crowned the winner of the hugely successful series 11 of Strictly Come Dancing. Averaging 12m viewers per week, she beat BBC Breakfast presenter Susanna Reid and former Coronation Street actress Natalie Gumede to the Glitterball trophy.

Kids’ television choices continued to move to digital outputs. CBeebies quickly moved away from BBC Two in the New Year and would only continue to be shown on their dedicated station. Meanwhile CITV reached 30. On their anniversary weekend, classic archive programmes like Fun House and Art Attack were back on their own channel. The move away from mainstream to digital programming was criticised by the creator of Teletubbies Anne Wood, who accused the BBC of ‘ghettoising children’s television.’ In March, BBC Two launched in HD for the first time, as did More4. BBC also announced plans to launch BBC One+1 at some point next year.

Channel 4 and E4 made some changes with the departure of some classic British programming, all having reached a natural conclusion. At the end of May, Shameless ended after 11 hilarious series over nine years. Created and produced by Paul Abbott, the show set on the Chatsworth council estate had won critical acclaim throughout the years from many sources and won major awards at both the BAFTAs and British Comedy Awards. 

Emily, Effy and Naomi returned as Skins bowed out in the summer

In August after six years, it was the end of the road for Skins. Replacing the primary cast every two years, the show set in Bristol continued to remain fresh with new talent coming through with every generation. It bowed out (three main characters pictured above) with a seventh series in the summer which saw Effy (Kaya Scodelario), Naomi (Lily Loveless), Emily (Kathryn Prescott), Cassie (Hannah Murray) and Cook (Jack O’Connell) return as the show took a more adult approach to life after college. There was financial mismanagement, weird stalkers, a tragic cancer storyline that left fans of the popular ‘Naomily’ couple heartbroken and the consequences of drug dealing amidst the final storylines. Both shows are missed but came to an end at just the right time. Comedy series the IT Crowd featuring the humorous Richard Ayoade also bowed out in 2013.

It wasn’t just these shows that drew to a conclusion. In 1998, it started as a new quiz phenomenon and offered the first £1m prize on British television. After 15 years though, Chris Tarrant decided to call time on hosting Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? The show never fully recovered from the Major Charles Ingram scandal in 2002, when he cheated his way to the jackpot prize. The show’s last live show recently went out on the air, with two more pre-recorded shows being shown early next year. It was the end for detective drama series Lewis. Following seven successful series, both Kevin Whately and Laurence Fox decided to move onto other projects, although it might return next year for a one-off special. Luther, Whitechapel, Misfits, Cash in the Attic and Agatha Christie’s Poirot were other shows to bow out this year as David Suchet played the Belgian detective Poirot for the last time.

There will be a new doctor next year for Doctor Who. Northamptonshire born actor Matt Smith announced his departure in the spring and he will be replaced by Peter Capaldi, who becomes the 12^th timelord. Doctor Who celebrated its 50^th anniversary in 2013 – with David Tennant and Billie Piper among those former stars who appeared in the celebration programme in November. 10.2m watched it. Another show celebrating an anniversary this year was This Morning. Original hosts Judy Finnigan and Richard Madeley returned to the Albert Dock in Liverpool where the show was first aired to host the 25^th anniversary programme alongside current hosts Holly Willoughby, Phillip Schofield, Ruth Langsford and Eamonn Holmes. The most watched programme of the year was a sporting event on July 8. 17.3m viewers tuned in to the end of the Wimbledon Men’s Singles final which saw Andy Murray defeat Novak Djokovic and become the first Brit to win the men’s championship at SW19 in 77 years. Murray later went on to win BBC Sports Personality of the Year.

Other shows that did make a return this year included the ever popular Ant and Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway. Last shown four years ago, the Newcastle duo returned for a successful series which even saw them go to number one in the charts and announcement that they will take the show live on tour next summer. Catchphrase returned with Mr Chips but no Roy Walker as Stephen Mulhearn took over as host and 15-to-1’s successful celebrity special in September to celebrate a 80s special night on Channel 4 has led to a full series being commissioned next year. The wild Keith Lemon brought Through the Keyhole back and Paul O'Grady returned with his teatime show to ITV after a four-year absence.

It is fair to say that the evolution of television does not stop. New programming will always arrive and classics must end at some point. The acting pool of talent is in a healthy and strong place and while it will always have its critics and loathers, TV will continue to have an impact on many of our lives. More of the same in 2014 please!

Categories: 2013, Andy Murray, BBC, BT Sport, Doctor Who, HD, Neighbours, Skins, Strictly Come Dancing, TV

Football 2013 - New winners and fond farewells

By Simon Wright – Follow me on Twitter @Siwri88

12 months of the beautiful game came and went pretty quickly. It was a fairly eventful year too which saw dreams dashed in miserable summer tournaments for our country (no change there), incidents that led to condemnation from governments, records broken in the transfer market and first time winners in cup competitions. 2013 also saw the end of a football dynasty as the greatest boss bid goodbye to football and to Manchester United.

The greatest manager to have lived, Sir Alex Ferguson bowed out in May

It was Wednesday, 8 May 2013 and this wasn’t going to be an ordinary day. That morning, just after 9am came a statement on the official website of the Red Devils which confirmed Sir Alex Ferguson (pictured) was to retire as first team manager at the end of the season. It brought the curtain down on the most unbelievable run of success he’d had through 26 years of management at the Theatre of Dreams. When Ferguson arrived after a successful stint north of the border with Aberdeen, Manchester United had been in the doldrums in November 1986. He turned them around from constant underachievers into the most dominant English club of the last two decades. 13 Premier League titles, five FA Cups, four League Cups, the Cup Winners’ Cup and two UEFA Champions League prizes among the many honours he won as a manager at Old Trafford.

It was a day of celebration four days later when United played their final home game of another title-winning campaign. They beat Swansea City 2-1 but the game itself was just a side event to the announcement made by Ferguson days earlier. He thanked the fans and was given the honour by Nemanja Vidic and Patrice Evra to hoist the Premier League trophy aloft for the last time. He bowed out a week later with an incredible 5-5 draw away to West Brom and slipped quietly away from the dugout. His replacement David Moyes has had a tough few months with the club looking very distant already in terms of launching a title challenge but a semi-final in the League Cup and a favourable last 16 draw in the Champions League means there is still plenty to look forward to in 2014 for fans at Old Trafford.

Ferguson brought out an explosive autobiography in October which did break record sales for a non-fiction book but did cause some fallout with strong criticism aimed in the direction of David Beckham and Roy Keane especially. Beckham was another famous face to retire from professional football in May and he wasn’t the only one. Michael Owen quit after several injury-hit years for a career as a racehorse trainer and commentator for the new look BT Sport, whilst Jamie Carragher also hung up his boots for a media role with Sky Sports. Paul Scholes completed the list of former England stars to call it quits at the end of the last campaign.

Keane was back in football management in an assistant role by the end of the year. The Republic of Ireland failed to qualify for the World Cup finals next summer which spelt the end for Giovanni Trapattoni. Keane is now number two to Martin O’Neill who will look to revive Irish fortunes. Chris Coleman signed a contract extension to his position as Wales manager and Michael O’Neill hung on to his Northern Ireland job despite embarrassing World Cup defeats to Azerbaijan and Luxembourg. Gordon Strachan’s first full year in the Scotland role was a success. Three wins in their final four qualifiers combined with an excellent performance in a high intensity friendly international with England in August meant the Tartan Army faithful have their heads held high going into qualification for Euro 2016.

With all the other home nations failing to launch serious challenges, it was down to England to keep the flag flying for Brazil and the Three Lions did it but not without some bumps along the way. A cagey goalless draw in Kiev in September saw Roy Hodgson come under some unfair criticism and his response was two tremendous performances when needed at home to Montenegro and Poland. Six points were required, six points gained and with an unbeaten campaign, England topped their group and will be joining the world’s best next summer. However the group with Uruguay, Italy and Costa Rica will be tough to get out of. It was also a year where new talent such as Ross Barkley, Adam Lallana and Andros Townsend made their mark on the squad alongside the usual suspects. Back-to-back home friendly defeats at the end of the year to Chile and Germany reminded everyone of the tough task ahead. There was disappointment for England's tournament teams as both the Under-21 male team and the women's squad at their respective European Championship events crashed out in the group stages. Stuart Pearce and Hope Powell paid the price as both lost their jobs. There was another change in the WSL as Liverpool became champions, ending Arsenal's decade dominance of the game.

September saw Gareth Bale get his dream move to Real Madrid

Meanwhile a Welsh wizard was making his mark in the Premier League, so much so, he became the world’s most expensive footballer. The biggest transfer in football finally went through after plenty of negotiation between Tottenham and Real Madrid. It saw Gareth Bale (pictured) seal his Real deal for £85.3m. Bale left after scooping the double of PFA Players’ Player of the Year and the Football Writers’ Award. After a slow start, Bale is starting to find his feet at the Bernabeu, becoming only the second English player to hit a hat-trick in the history of La Liga in November. Tottenham thought the answer to all this was to buy seven new players for the Bale money with Erik Lamela, Roberto Soldado, Paulinho and Etienne Capoue among the new arrivals. It ultimately finished Andre Villas-Boas off in England. The uncompromising Portuguese boss was sacked in mid-December after a 6-0 battering at Manchester City, followed by a humiliating 5-0 home defeat by Liverpool a few weeks later. AVB wasn’t the only manager to bite the dust in the top flight. Exactly a year after winning the Premier League title, Roberto Mancini was dismissed as Manchester City boss. Failing to win any silverware saw the Italian ousted and he seeked sanctity with Galatasaray. He was replaced by Chilean Manuel Pellegrini. Mauricio Pochettino became only the second Argentine to manager in England when he succeeded Nigel Adkins at Southampton at the start of the year. This change has worked well with the Saints threatening the European positions. Sunderland sacked O’Neill in March, hired then fired Paolo di Canio when the Italian completely lost the plot and finally settled on Gus Poyet in October. Other managers to leave their positions included Ian Holloway (Crystal Palace), Martin Jol (Fulham) and Steve Clarke (West Brom).

Another manager who moved on was Rafa Benitez but not until his reputation as a world class boss was restored. Considered damaged goods by Liverpool in his final year with them in 2010 and after a difficult six months with Inter Milan, the Spaniard reminded everyone of his capabilities at Chelsea. The faithful didn’t want him at Stamford Bridge with the ‘Rafa Out’ banners becoming a common theme. He had enough after an FA Cup replay win at Middlesbrough in late February and let his emotions out in a post-match TV interview. The fans relented and it led to the Blues having a strong end to the 2012-13 campaign. Frank Lampard surpassed Bobby Tambling’s all-time goalscoring record for Chelsea when he scored two away to Aston Villa in May. A top three league finish was backed up by another European trophy in the cabinet. Branislav Ivanovic’s stoppage time header beat Benfica 2-1 in the UEFA Europa League final. With job done, Benitez moved on to Napoli. 

Napoli lost star striker Edinson Cavani to PSG for £55m but bought Gonzalo Higuain with the money received. Another star striker who was on the move was Radamel Falcao as he swapped Atletico Madrid for newly oil-wealthy AS Monaco for just over £50m. There were other movers in the managerial market. After the fans and the Spanish media fell out of love with him at Madrid, Jose Mourinho made a homecoming to Chelsea, insisting he should now be called the ‘Happy One.’ Barcelona was made to change their manager as Tito Vilanova had to step aside to continue his cancer battle. Geraldo Martino succeeded him in the summer.

The enigma that is Luis Suarez continued to write more headlines. In April, everyone was stunned when he took a bite out of Ivanovic during a Premier League match between Liverpool and Chelsea. Fined by the club, Suarez was then suspended for 10 matches by the FA and the outrage was so strong, even Prime Minister David Cameron condemned the actions in the House of Commons! Feeling unloved, Suarez then attempted to force a move to Arsenal in the summer and claimed he would take the club to court over a broken promise in his contract regarding clauses. The Gunners’ bid of £40,000,001 led to jokes all over social media but the Reds dug in and kept their star asset. The result has led to 19 Premier League goals already this season meaning he is a shoe-in to win the Golden Boot in 2013/14. Suarez has recently signed a new four-year contract, making him LFC’s most expensive footballer in the process.

There was a new name on the FA Cup and that was Wigan Athletic

Of course the year wouldn’t be complete without a wrap for the various trophies given out. Wembley hosted a couple of brilliant fairytale stories. In February, Bradford City from the fourth tier of English football emerged from the tunnel to compete in the League Cup final. They were the first team from this level to appear in a domestic final in over four decades. Outclassed in the final 5-0 by Swansea City but the Bantams came back to the home of English football to defeat Northampton Town 3-0 in the League Two play-off final three months later. For Swansea, it was their first major piece of silverware won and they would be joined in that group by Wigan Athletic (players celebrating pictured above). Dave Whelan’s dreams came true as Ben Watson returned from a broken ankle sustained six months earlier at Anfield to head home a stoppage time winner against highly fancied Manchester City. They deserved it on the day too and it reminded everyone that money doesn’t always guarantee success. Sadly the club were relegated from the Premier League 72 hours later and boss Roberto Martinez elected to take the vacancy left by Moyes at Everton. Uwe Rosler is now in charge after Owen Coyle’s managerial return lasted an inconsistent five months. 

Later that month, Crystal Palace edged out Watford after extra-time to win the Championship play-off final and join Cardiff City and Hull City in being promoted to the elite. 40-year-old Kevin Phillips scored the winner from the penalty spot. Bayern Munich lay to rest the ghosts of 2012 with a historic treble campaign of their own. The UEFA Champions League was theirs in the German invasion on Wembley. Arjen Robben’s 88^th minute goal crushed Borussia Dortmund as the Bavarians gave the retiring Jupp Heynckes the perfect gift. Pep Guardiola succeeded him. Brazil won the warm-up to the World Cup as Spain were outclassed and overpowered 3-0 in the Confederations Cup final while Doncaster Rovers beat Brentford with almost the last kick of the League One season to earn promotion and the title in the process.

There were sad stories throughout the year too. Bury were saved from going bust by a consortium takeover, while Coventry City had to move to Northampton to play their home games as a row over rent payments between the local council and unreliable owners SISU nearly put the club on the brink of extinction. Kettering Town weren’t so lucky and were wound up in the High Court in September. Football had to deal with the passing of Bill Foulkes, one of the survivors of the Munich air disaster. Ecuadorian striker Christian Benitez died suddenly, suffering a cardiac arrest hours after his debut in the Qatari League and there were fond goodbyes to Bert Trautmann, Dave Hickson, Ron Davies, Tony Gubba and David Oates.

Football in 2013 has been an eventful 12 months and with a World Cup in 2014 to come in Brazil, the next calendar year has the promise to be even more spectacular. 

Categories: 2013, Football, Gareth Bale, Manchester United, Premier League, Rafa Benitez, Real Madrid, Sir Alex Ferguson, Wigan Athletic, World Cup