WWE's Cardiff Event Gets Named

WWE's event, scheduled to take place from the Principality Stadium in Cardiff on September 3rd, was given its name yesterday.

Clash at the Castle.

My initial thought was 'that's crap'. Now, with a little over twelve hours removed from first learning of the title, my opinion remains exactly where it was from the off.

It sounds rubbish because it's not really accurately describing the event. The show is not being held 'at the Castle'.

Cardiff Castle is a five minute walk from the Stadium. I suppose, or would rather bet the house, on WWE making the set - inside the venue - look like a castle. But that's a push.

It's like calling a show from any arena in London 'Battle at the Palace'. 

Or am I being pedantic?

Cardiff Clash. The Clash in Cardiff. I just threw out two better names. In my opinion, of course.

Tickets are set to go on sale on May 20th.

A Couple Of Draft Thoughts

I caught some of the opening action of the 2022 NFL Draft this morning after having recorded it last night.

There isn't really much I can offer other than that, but I'll try.

It was interesting to see that the first batch of selections picked were defensive players. 

Going by reactions on social media, as well as the bit I watched, it looks like the New York Jets had the most interesting night with a trade late in the night after having picked two players beforehand. 

Let's see if that does anything on the field within the next few years. Seeing as it's the Jets, there's a shadow of doubt!

2 Limited Edition Pringles Flavours

There are a couple of new Pringles flavours out there.

Sold in B&M Stores, and possibly elsewhere (I don't know!), the limited edition 'Pringles Passports' varieties have worldly themes.

As you can see, in the picture above, the first flavour is 'Italian Style Pepperoni Pizza' and the other is 'New York Style Cheeseburger'.

I've tasted both.

It wasn't the first time I've ever had pizza flavoured Pringles. I vividly recall eating a tube of them while my sister was enduring her early stages of labour in my living room over twenty-one years ago. I also recall Asda exclusively selling a newer pizza flavour within the last ten years or so.

Those two versions of pizza Pringles are better than this new kind. I suppose the difference is mainly because it focuses on the meaty - pepperoni - part of it.

Forgetting that they're partly branded as pizza, if I had to explain these pepperoni flavoured Pringles, I would liken them to a pasta which has pepperoni in it. I guess what I mean is this: these potato snacks should have been called 'Italian Pepperoni Pasta' flavour. 

I've eaten cheeseburger flavoured crisps in the past. I wrote about a Walkers brand almost two years ago. 

Just like the Walkers, and those Quarterback snacks you can find from Golden Wonder, there is a hint of gherkin which gives them the - time to create a word - burgery taste.

I like the cheeseburger Pringles more than the Pizza. However, if the previous pizza flavours - mentioned above - were to ever make a comeback, I'd immediately choose them over the burgery ones.

For now, however, New York Style Cheeseburger wins this head-to-head.

The Batman II Announced

Looks like The Batman is getting a sequel.

The news broke yesterday. 

As I have written in the past, I have been excited to see this version of the Batman story. I am awaiting The Batman's release on Blu-ray. Not long to go now, I hope.

Talk TV Debuts

Just like with last year's launch of GB News, I had been keen to see how Talk TV made its debut when it began airing last night.

The new channel, which is a simulcast of the Talk Radio station which has been on air for years, started off in a similar way to GB News because it had sound sync issues.

Those problems were immediately fixed. However, I was somewhat busy to continue watching past its initial few minutes.

The channel kicked off with some hard hitters, though. Last night's schedule had Piers Morgan beginning his new programme in the second hour. Morgan was followed by Sharon Osbourne an hour later.

I recorded the start of the channel, so was able to catch the first few minutes of Piers Morgan's show. He - just like Andrew Neil and Dan Wotton, on GB News' birth, set his agenda from the off: the programme would not be for 'woke snowflakes'. 

Piers Morgan is like Marmite. Some might call it being a shit stirrer. I am keen to see how his association with the channel develops. He is, without question, Talk TV's top draw and I feel its success - as a TV product - is on his shoulders.

I remember February 14 1995. 

That was the date when I first tuned into Talk Radio UK on its debut night. That station eventually morphed into TalkSport by the end of the 20th Century. Then, somewhere along the way - during the age of digital radio - Talk Radio came along as TalkSport's 'sister station'. And now we have what I would call a rebrand of sorts with 'Talk TV' being the televised arm of Talk Radio.

The reason why I mentioned the brief history of Talk Radio UK - and how I began following it from the start - is because last night reminded me of something.

Talk Radio UK also began with some big names. When ratings didn't go the way the top brass had hoped, some of those hosts found their way out of the door long before Talk Radio UK celebrated its first anniversary.

Will Piers Morgan and Sharon Osbourne make it to year two? 

Will Talk TV?

It's sure going to be interesting to see how this plays out.

Not In Draft Mode (Yet)

The NFL Draft takes place later this week.

Usually, I am in draft mode by now. Not this year. I suppose part of it is because I chose not to bother going all-in with the annual yearbook purchase. With that said, there is no excuse for me not reading the plethora of mock drafts scribbled up by American football analysts as the months to the first pick have turned to weeks.

And now days.

There's no doubt that I will be in draft mode sometime this week. It might just kick off on Thursday.

Triple Header Of NFL Games This Christmas Day

It's going to be an interesting Christmas for NFL fans.

For the first time ever, a triple header of games is set to be added to the league's schedule. 

According to reports, there will be two afternoon games - one aired by CBS, the other by Fox - followed by a night game on NBC.

Christmas Day of 2022 falls on a Monday. Therefore, it's safe to guess that the majority of that week's games will be played on Christmas Eve in their regular Sunday slots.

I've written many times in the past that I enjoy watching the NFL on December 25th when the day is nearing its end. This new schedule means I'll have to get in the mood for football a little earlier than usual.

The Next Stop

The next stop, in my quest to read every book by Stephen King, came yesterday when I started to read Firestarter.

This is one novel I am sure I haven't read before. As well as that, I know that - even though I have seen the cover/poster and its trailer - I have not watched the movie which came out in the early 1980's.

As of the time of writing, I have read a little over fifty-two percent. It - to me - is like a cross between Carrie and The Dead Zone. The latter is one of my favourite books by Stephen King. Therefore, it could find its way near the top of the ranking I am working on as I try my hardest to complete this, what will be, many-year journey through King's work.

Coincidentally, there is a remake of Firestarter coming out next month. I found this out yesterday when I came across the front cover of the upcoming issue of Total Film.

The Poke

I've seen, and heard, a lot of dumb things over the years. I added another thing to that list yesterday.

Why, oh why would you think it is cool to annoy a fellow passenger on a flight? Even more - why the hell would you do it if you know said fellow passenger is Mike Tyson?

I've seen a lot of people react to the clip that has been making the rounds with Tyson punching the obnoxious guy. Many commentators have prefaced their opinion with 'I'm not one to condone violence, but..' I thought I'd add my own statement.

I don't condone violence on innocent people. That guy got what he was asking for. You don't poke bears. Especially bears who got where they are through; for want of a better word: violence.

In, Or Rather Out Of, The Bin

I have had a new waste bin in my bedroom for almost a year now and I have become a terrible aim since it arrived.

Every time I throw a rolled up paper, I seem to miss. It bugs me because - for years - I have thought of myself as a sharpshooter when it comes to throwing paper into bins. 

This newer bin has become my Kryptonite.

I'm not just talking the long throws either. I've even failed when I am right near the bin after having missed the gap by centimetres.

This is the kind of post you get immediately after I miss on the first throw of the day.

The 7th Minute

There was a show of sympathy held during the seventh minute of the Liverpool versus Manchester United game last night.

It was done to acknowledge the passing of Cristiano Ronaldo's child a couple of days ago.

The seventh minute was symbolic because it's Ronaldo's shirt number. The United fans cheered and the Liverpool fans sang You'll Never Walk Alone for the sixty seconds while play continued.

It was very nice to see the rivals come together for that minute. 

Pepsi And 7-Up SodaStream Mixes Now Available

Check out what is finally available from SodaStream in the UK.

Pepsi and 7-Up mixes have been something I had wanted ever since I first learnt that PepsiCo had bought SodaStream almost four years ago.

I'm unsure if I will be buying the Pepsi now, though. Caffeine doesn't like me anymore. However, I might attempt the 7-Up when I stock up on new gas for my machine.

29 Years Later

With Sonic the Hedgehog 2 currently in the cinemas, and an animated Super Mario Bros. film on the horizon, my nephew asked if I had ever seen the original Super Mario Bros movie when it first came out

I hadn't.

And I couldn't give a good reason why I hadn't.

After a very short search online to see if it was streaming anywhere (I checked out Amazon Prime Video first and it was there!), I decided that the twenty-nine year wait would end. We were going to watch the Mario Bros. movie on Easter Sunday.

Oh. My. God.

It was bad.

I can tell you this for starters - if the teenage version of me watched that film, I would have hated it. This isn't a case of a mature version of me hating on it. I genuinely cannot see how my younger self would have enjoyed the movie.

At that point in my life, I had been a fan of the Super Mario games for possibly three or four years. I would have known a fair bit about the games and felt that the story I was being told on screen was a long way off from what Nintendo would have liked.

It just came across as a film cashing in on the popularity of the video game.

After watching the movie, I read a little bit about its reception. I found it quite funny to read how Bob Hoskins - who played Mario - was still explaining to people in interviews how he regretted signing up for the film many years after he made it. Other sources I read pointed to Hoskins and his on-screen brother - John Leguizamo - drowning their sorrows in-between takes.

Dennis Hopper - who played the movie's villain; King Koopa - also noted that he was initially meant to film for five weeks. Those five weeks turned into seventeen. Scripts were changed constantly. Even during the filming process.

By the way, in the video game, King Koopa is like a giant turtle-dinosaur thing. In the movie, Hopper didn't dress up. 

The more I watched it, the more I thought that maybe I had watched Super Mario Bros. back when it first came out but my brain had simply forced me to forget about its existence.

I genuinely cannot figure out why I didn't bother watching it in 1993. I would have remembered if I had, wouldn't I?

Wouldn't I?!

Kinder Cards

Kinder is going through a bad time at the moment, so I thought I would write about one of its new products.

The new biscuits - Kinder Cards - were not in the list of products that were taken off the shelves in fear of food poisoning.

I saw them advertised on TV recently, and - as the Kinder connoisseur that I am - I just had to give them a try.

The biscuits come in a box containing four packets. Each packet has two biscuits inside.

They have a wafer texture. Even though I liked them, I have to be fair and say I didn't get the 'Kinder' feeling I would get from products I would associate with Kinder. If that makes sense.

If I could say they were reminiscent of anything, I'd point to the Nutella B-Ready bars. I suppose it is due to both items having wafer textures and with a chocolate flavour. As well as that, they're both part of the Ferrero family.

They're nice, but I wouldn't go out of my way to hunt them down. If I see them, and I like the price, I might buy them again.

Morning Post About Morning Post

I was given a free £5 to bet on a horse at today's Newbury races.

Nothing stood out at first.

Then I came across one called Morning Post.

I thought I would write about Morning Post in this morning's post. So here you go.

The horse runs in the 4:45PM. Fingers are crossed.

110 Years On

If all goes to plan, the post you are currently reading would have been published at 6:18AM.

The reason why I chose this time is because it'll be 110 years to the recorded time of when RMS Titanic sank after hitting an iceberg in the North Atlantic Ocean.

It's one of the disasters that has intrigued me ever since I read a book about it while staying at a relative's home during the summer of 1995. That relative works on the water, so it is obviously a story that was of interest to him hence the book being on his bookshelf.

Then, of course, came the movie a few years after that.

All these years later, I am still keen to watch documentaries, podcasts and more about that tragic journey. Even this week I found myself reading a work of fiction about the sinking of a passenger ship.

Futility, or The Wreck of the Titan was written by Morgan Robertson. It is about a liner - named Titan - which sinks after hitting an iceberg.

Some may see a brief synopsis and state that the piece of fiction, which it is, used the Titanic for inspiration. To those I say this: Robertson's book was written fourteen years before Titanic sank!

How uncanny.

59,000+ Interested In WWE Cardiff

WWE has reportedly received over 59,000 people interested in the September 3rd event that is set to take place from the Principality Stadium here in Cardiff.

The company sent out a press release on Tuesday with the news that the first stadium show in the UK, since SummerSlam 1992, would take place in the Welsh capital. Readers were asked to leave their email address in order to receive more information whenever it becomes available.

According to the BT Sport Twitter account, the 59,000 number is a new one-day record. Even beating out WWE's biggest show of the year - WrestleMania. 

Going by this kind of interest, at this stage, I think it's safe to state right now - this event will be a sell out.

Waiting To See Home & Away's New Neighbour

With Neighbours coming to an end over the summer, I can't help but wonder what will become of some of the actors on the soap.

One of the big questions I have, because I am sure it is going to happen, is which of the current cast will end up making their way to Home and Away first?

It's bound to happen. If I were a bookmaker, it would be a market I'd consider pricing up. Obviously, there would be some important rules involved like the person you're betting on has to be a member of the Neighbours cast at the time of the wager being struck and they'll only be settled as soon as that actor makes their appearance on the other programme. 

I don't even know who would be my favourite. I'd possibly leave the main names, like Stefan Dennis (Paul Robinson), Jackie Woodburne (Susan Kennedy) and Alan Fletcher (Karl Kennedy), in the middle of my list.

Ryan Moloney - who has played Toadfish since 1995 - strikes me as someone who would be a perfect fit for Home and Away.

To be fair - they're all soap stars, so they all would be perfect. It's just that I can see Moloney hanging around Summer Bay more than I could any of the cast members I have listed in front of me.

It's still such a shame to see Neighbours end in this fashion.

WWE's Coming To Cardiff

WWE sent out a press release this morning to announce that there will be a show from Cardiff's Principality Stadium on September 3rd.

It'll be the first stadium show held in the UK since SummerSlam 1992.

Thirty years ago!

Amazing news. 

With that said - I would have preferred it to have been one of the big named shows like SummerSlam, Money in the Bank, Survivor Series or even the Royal Rumble (I'm not crazy enough to put 'WrestleMania' in that list).

I guess beggars can't be choosers.

No Draft Mags For '22

I often write about it being NFL draft season shortly after I purchase a magazine about the event.

Not this year.

This is, of course, a draft post. However, it is not being written after I've bought a draft mag.

The prices for those publications have become a joke. Last year, I spent a little over ten Pounds for it. I thought that was bad enough considering I used to pay around about seven Pounds. This year, the website I order from wanted twelve. 

A £2 price jump year-to-year? No chance.

Like I've written many times, whenever I've written about these annuals, all that has to happen between the publication date and the day of the draft is for some big trade to occur and for teams to switch places. This would obviously result in some of the content immediately becoming obsolete.

Does the lack of a mag mean I won't be interested in what happens from April 28th onwards? Of course not!

Schefter's Disrespectful Tweet About Dwayne Haskins

I had to do a double take when I read a tweet from American football reporter Adam Schefter yesterday.

Before I even write any more, I'll share what was written. 

I initially found myself having to reread it because it did not, in any way, feel like the announcement of a death.

It was. Obviously. However, I found it extremely disrespectful for the reporter to put Haskin's challenging professional career ahead of the shocking news.

Talk about kicking dirt.

The tweet was later deleted and reworded. The damage - and the distaste it caused - was already done by then.

As for Haskins himself - what a tragedy. Twenty-four, nearly twenty-five, is far too young.

I'll remember the 2019 draft because a friend of mine had bet on him to be picked by Washington. Therefore, he was one of the few names I was keeping an eye out for when I followed the picks coming in.

To repeat... it's far too young.

In A Name: Grand National 2022 Edition

It's the Grand National today, so I thought I would share the horse I am blindly backing.

I'm going for a name which stands out and it's...

BRAHMA BULL.

The reason? It's a nickname The Rock used during his days in the WWF. He had a bull tattoo and that turned into one of the logos. I even have a t-shirt with the bull on it.

I surmise that the bull may have been etched on Dwayne Johnson's arm because he, like me, was born on May 2nd - with Taurus the Bull as a star sign.

The horse is 80/1.

I'll need a lot of luck.

Words About Wordle

I have been playing Wordle each day for quite some time.

Sometimes I do okay. Then there are times I am completely rubbish.

Today had one of those mornings when I think I did great. 

I got the word in my third attempt.

The first word, what I use every time I play, has been cropped from the image because I don't want my little trick to get out there.

I promise I'll reveal it if I ever get the word on my first attempt.

The Wait

I thought I'd waste a bit of a scammer's time yesterday morning. The joke kind of ended up on me in the long run, though.

The call came in at 8:58AM on a landline number I rarely get calls from. The person on the other end introduced himself as an employee of Microsoft and then proceeded to tell me the story about my PC being compromised.

I was planning to head for a shower before the call interrupted my routine. When he got to the point where I was asked to switch on my computer, I had no idea where I was going to take him.

'I have to go get my laptop,' I lied. 'I'll be back in a moment.'

'Okay, take your sweet time.'

Sweet time? As soon those two words were uttered, I knew what was going to happen.

I put the receiver down on the desk and went for my shower. He did tell me to take my time after all.

I ultimately forgot that the phone was off the hook for most of the day. It wasn't until almost 4:40PM when I remembered.

Let's be realistic, he likely waited only a few minutes before giving up. However, I hope it saved someone from the con.

Thirty Years Since Mania VIII

I wrote the following tweet earlier this morning.

I was referring to the closing moments of WrestleMania VIII when Hulk Hogan's match against Sid Justice was interrupted by Papa Shango. 

The voodoo master sided with Justice to assault Hogan resulting in The Ultimate Warrior - who hadn't been seen since SummerSlam 1991 - coming to the rescue.

I loved Mania VIII. I still do.

It's somewhat ironic that it was held in the Hoosier Dome where my favourite NFL team - the Indianapolis Colts - used to play their home games back then.

Here's how it went down - I stayed up to watch the first hour of WrestleMania. I caught the opener between Shawn Michaels and Tito Santana, then it was a Legion of Doom interview which introduced Paul Ellering to the WWF. That was followed by The Undertaker beating Jake 'The Snake' Roberts and then it was the Intercontinental Championship match which saw Bret Hart regain the strap over 'Rowdy' Roddy Piper.

I had promised my mum I would go to bed after an hour and I pretty much kept my word. I woke up early a few hours later and finished off watching the event before I went to school.

When I told my mother I had watched only an hour, she said something like 'I thought you'd have stayed up to watch all of it'. 

I immediately wished I had!

June Brown

June Brown, who played Dot Cotton in Eastenders, passed away over the weekend. She was ninety-five years old.

Dot Cotton is arguably one of the greatest characters in British soap opera. Brown portrayed her incredibly well.

As I think back, a few episodes stand out to me. I remember one with just Dot and Ethel Skinner. I cannot recall if it aired in the late-80's or early-90's. However, the entire thirty minutes featured only those two characters.

I remember it because someone had complained about it when I was on the bus the following morning. I - on the other hand - thought it was a cool idea just to feature two characters in that way.

There was also the episode years later, once again featuring Dot and Ethel, which wrote Ethel out of the series. I cannot recall if that was with just those two in the episode, but - as I sit here writing without doing any research - it wouldn't surprise me.

I have not watched Eastenders regularly in many, many years. With that said, I am aware that Dot was a key part in one of the most recent anniversary celebrations when she wouldn't help her son - Nick Cotton - when he was from his heroin addiction. It was a symbolic death considering the very first episode began with a group of Albert Square residents breaking into that very same room to find a dying Reg Cox. 

Nick Cotton was later revealed to the audience as Cox's killer.

You cannot write about Dot Cotton without mentioning Nasty Nick. You also cannot mention those two without referring to Nick's 'Hello, Ma' lines that would be said almost every time he came back out of the woodwork. I mention that line because it would not surprise me if any of the tabloids have written about Brown's death with two words - 'Goodbye, Ma' - as the headline.

Post-WrestleMania 38 Post

It's 5AM BST exactly as I am beginning to write this.

WrestleMania 38 is now in the history books. What a fun weekend it has been.

With that said, I have to admit that I detest two-night Manias. In my opinion, they're so much better as a one night event. But, I'm not the one in charge. And it looks like they're going to be a regular thing especially with the company announcing the extra day for next year's edition.

For me, the highlight of the event was Saturday's main event. It saw 'Stone Cold' Steve Austin return to the ring - for a wrestling match! - for the first time since 2003. He beat Kevin Owens in the impromptu outing.

As for tonight - well, the match I was looking forward to the most - Brock Lesnar versus Roman Reigns - didn't turn out as good as I had hoped.

I was also a bit disappointed with the lack of Dwayne Johnson at the conclusion of tonight's event. I thought there was a chance he'd show his face so they could start setting up something for a match between he and Reigns.

It's now 5:05AM. Time for bed. WrestleMania is done. Until next year.

Group B

I watched the group draw for the 2022 World Cup on Friday evening.

Obviously, I am keen to see which teams Wales COULD play against later this year if they are able to progress against either Scotland or the Ukraine.

The winning team out of the three-team qualification conundrum, brought on by the war in the Ukraine, will find themselves in Group B along with:

Iran

USA

England

Yep, England! 

It would be so cool to see Wales in the World Cup. Especially with me knowing a lot of English and American people online. It would be fun to have the banter with them when the time comes.

I shouldn't build my hopes up, however. I've learned from following Wales never to look ahead. Never.

Vader's Book

In a few hours from when this post is published, Vader will be posthumously inducted into WWE's Hall of Fame. To honour the moment, I have spent the past few days reading his autobiography.

Vader, or - Big Van Vader - as he was called when I first started following his career, was one of the major names in pro wrestling during my childhood. He was even the WCW World Champion, and defended the strap against the British Bulldog, when I went to my first WCW event.

As for the book - I found most of it interesting as it allowed me to learn about some of the things which went down during his runs in both WCW and the WWF. Unfortunately, there were parts of the book I felt needed some attention in regards to editing and fact-checking. 

One example, which stood out to me, was the chapter in which Vader wrote about the scissors fight between Arn Anderson and Sid Vicious which took place in the early hours of October 27th 1993 when WCW was on its Halloween Havoc tour.

I know a fair bit about the fight because I had seen WCW hours before it occurred. I also know enough about the remainder of the tour. With both of the wrestlers shelved, the company was forced to change line-ups.

According to Vader, some of the dates were cancelled because of the fight. This is untrue.

Furthermore - later in the book, Vader recounts the match against Cactus Jack (Mick Foley) in Germany which resulted in Foley losing his ear after becoming tangled in the ring ropes. Vader, or his ghost writer, claimed that this match took place on the same tour as the stabbing incident.

That is also not correct. The match was part of a German tour which took place during the spring of 1994.

I know it's nit-picking on my part. However, when I know for sure that certain details are inaccurate in anything, it makes me question things I am not clued in on.

Gripes with editing and fact checking aside, I found Vader's story interesting I enjoyed reading about his childhood and part of his football career. His exploits in Japan - where there is no question he found the most fame - is also given a lot of detail. I just hope that most of what I read is the truth and not misuse of authorial licence by the writer/s.

Buy It's Vader Time by Leon White on Amazon UK

Dr. Pepper Baked Beans

I received an email from one of those companies that imports American foods to British shores the other day.

There was a new item added to the website which intrigued me. 

Here goes...

Yes, today is April 1st. The conniving part of me thought it would be fun to write about Dr. Pepper Baked Beans today just to have you wonder if they really are a thing or if what you see before you is an April Fool's Day prank post.

I can assure you, I received the email - and saw the product - long before 12AM BST today.

Would I try them? Of course!