The National Lottery Loses The Spirit Of Christmas

If you've regularly visited this blog for countless years, especially around Autumn, you're bound to have seen me hype up the annual National Lottery Advent scratch cards.

I play one each year, scratching off one window a day from December 1st through to Christmas Eve.

Unfortunately, I've made the decision not to buy one for Christmas 2026. Here's why.

The National Lottery's current owners - Allwyn - have made some drastic changes to the 'Christmas Countdown' theme.

As you can see above, this year's card offers players thirty-two chances of winning a £1 Million jackpot. On the surface, that's excellent, giving six opportunities more than previous versions of the £5 cards.

There's one of a few problems, however.

These cards were devised using an Advent calendar theme. There should only be twenty-four windows. Thirty-two 'windows', in this game, is losing the spirit.

Sure, I could change things up by scratching once a day from late November.

The design doesn't even look like a regular Christmas theme. For example, check out the cards I played in 2014 and even the previous version. 

This year's looks like a generic scratch card with a half-assed attempt to make it look somewhat festive using colours associated with Christmas and throwing a bit of decorations here and there.

Contrasted with every single Advent card I've ever played in my lifetime, it is shoddy.

This isn't the only change Allwyn has made to the traditional National Lottery business this year. 

A few months ago, the operator - who picked up the licence in 2024 - introduced a new way of playing the regular National Lottery. Players' numbers are now entered into two draws each Wednesday and Saturday.

Just like with this scratch card shake up, I found the new approach pointless. As did a family member who opted to stop buying tickets after being a weekly player since the first draw in 1994.

I could close by stating 'if it ain't broke, why fix it?' but that would mean I'd know how good or bad the National Lottery's business is doing right now. 

What I do know is this: Advent begins December 1st. Not November 22nd. 

'Uh Oh', Gremlins 3 Gets A New Release Date

Gremlins 3  has a new release date.

The third film is set to hit cinemas on October 6th 2028. That's eleven months later than what was announced last year.

This news was revealed in a teaser posted by Warner Bros. on social media overnight.

The seconds-short clip shows Gizmo's head visible from inside of a bag. He utters 'uh oh' in his famous Mogwai tone.

And that's it. For now.

The first Gremlins flick in thirty-eight years

Gremlins 3 will be the first movie in the franchise since 1990's Gremlins 2: The New Batch. The original was released forty-two years ago and is one of my favourite films. 

I loved Gremlins, but found its sequel to be a letdown. Despite that, I am keen to revisit the franchise after all this time.

I Try Some World Menu Heist Menu Items From McDonald's

McDonald's UK has relaunched its World Menu Heist promotion by bringing out new and intriguing items to its menu.

I ordered a few things yesterday for my lunch. Here's what I had.

Paprika McShaker Fries (from the Netherlands)

For the previous edition of McDonald's World Menu Heist, the company introduced its customers to 'McShaker Fries'. All you do is place your fries in a bag, throw in some seasoning and then shake. Last time we were given sour cream and black pepper to mix with the fries. Apparently, that way of serving fries is accustomed to Poland. Now it's the Netherlands' paprika fries.

As a fan of paprika flavoured Pringles and Walkers Max crisps, it wasn't surprising to realise I enjoyed having the fries seasoned with this spice. In fact, I came away from this experience thinking I should use paprika seasoning when I next cook chips in my air fryer.

Maple & Cheddar Chicken (from Canada)

The main event, from yesterday's lunch, was the Maple and Cheddar Chicken burger from Canada.

It was delicious.

To steal McDonald's own words, this burger consists of 'a 100% chicken breast fillet in a crispy coating, mustard maple sauce, citrus mayonnaise, cheddar cheese, slivered and crispy onions, lettuce, tomato' inside a toasted poppy and sesame seed bun. 

Here's a messier photograph which shows most of the ingredients closeup. 

As noted, I found this to be really nice. I've enjoyed foods with chicken and maple together in the past. This has that sweet and savoury mix. However, the addition of the mustard (and likely the citrus mayonnaise) adds a bit of a kick.

With all that said, I am also keen to try the beef patty that's also part of this promotion.

Other McDonald's World Menu Heist Products

The Big Rosti is a beef patty which contains 100% British and Irish beef along with a crispy rosti potato, bacon, cheese, baconnaise and cheese sauce inside a glazed sesame seed bun.

I'll give that burger a try when I next order from McDonald's.

Also available are the returning Mac and cheese triangles, which are apparently found on the menus in the United Arab Emirates. 

There's also a S'mores McFlurry (Canada) and a Guava X Sprite drink from India. 

Those who like to dip can also find a Szechuan style from the McDonald's China menu.

Breakfast is also covered in the latest World Menu Heist

The morning menu is offering a couple of foreign breakfast takes with a chicken and egg McMuffin from Singapore as well as an Australian chicken and bacon McMuffin.

Intriguing. 

2026 Booker Prize Shortlist Confirmed

The Booker Prize shortlist for 2026 has just been announced at an event held at the Southbank Centre in London.

I was able to watch the livestream of the event from the venue's website. Here are the titles which made it to the next stage of the voting process.

The 2026 Booker Prize Shortlist

• Black Bag by Luke Kennard
• John of John by Douglas Stewart
• May We Feed the King by Rebecca Perry
• The Disappearers by Marlon James
• The End of Everything by M. John Harrison
• The Things We Never Say by Elizabeth Strout

This year's judges

This year's judging panel is chaired by Mary Beard. Her fellow panellists are Raymond Antrobus, Jarvis Cocker, Rebecca Liu and Patricia Lockwood.

When the 2026 Booker Prize winner will be announced

The winner of the 2026 Booker Prize will be revealed on Monday 9th November at a ceremony scheduled to be held at Old Billingsgate in London.

The winning author will receive £50,000. The runners up will each earn £2,500.

The 2026 Booker Prize Marathon

Since 2021, I've written posts in which I have read every book of the that particular year's shortlist and then had a gamble on the title, or titles, I have felt had a chance of winning. I'm happy to reveal that I will be running the Booker Prize Marathon once again. You can read the previous exploits below:

The 2021 Booker Prize Diary

The 2022 Booker Prize Diary

The 2023 Booker Prize Diary

The 2024 Booker Prize Diary

The 2025 Booker Prize Diary

I Knew It

I knew it.

I rarely watch Sunday Night Football (or Monday Night Football, for that matter) live. I had planned to do so last night, because the Colts were on the road against the Kansas City Chiefs. However, tiredness - plus knowing I could watch the main parts on the NFL GamePass 'Game in 40' option - won out.

I clicked on the Game in 40 this morning. I saw the length. Forty-eight minutes. 'This one's going to overtime' immediately crossed my mind.

I knew it.

A brilliant back-and-forth. Both teams were at 27 in regulation. They were also tied for 30-30 in OT until the last second of the game, when the Chiefs won 33-30.

Obviously not the result I had been hoping for, but it was a positive performance. Kinda.

Indianapolis are now 0-2. Huge negative.

Batman Day Was Yesterday

In a weird coincidence, I opted to write about Spider-Man yesterday. I should have really written something about Batman considering it was Batman Day.

The fact is, even though I am aware that Batman Day is a thing, I didn't know when it's celebrated.

I now know it's honoured on either the third or fourth Saturday of every September.

The first Batman Day wasn't in September

The first-ever Batman Day wasn't celebrated in September, though. It initially took place on Wednesday 23rd July 2014. 

That date coincided with it being the year of Batman's 75th Anniversary and when the San Diego Comic Con was going on.

September became the traditional month to give the Dark Knight his flowers from 2015 onwards. 

If I remember next year, I'll spend a couple of hours, or so, watching a Batman movie. Which one will depend on my mood at the time!

Spider-Noir Cancelled, Plus A Futuristic Hope

I have only just noticed I didn't write a post about the cancellation of Nicolas Cage's Spider-Noir series.

As I wrote earlier this year, the programme was something I had been looking forward to watching as soon as I first became aware it had entered production.

I wasn't disappointed. The Marvel series, with a detective noir take on Spider-Man, more than met my expectations. 

Cage played the role of the hard-boiled detective - Ben Reilly - whose alter-ego, The Spider, works within 1930's New York City,

According to reports, the decision to nix the series after its initial run was due to costs. Some have pointed to the fact the programme was filmed in both colour and black-and-white. I opted to view it in the latter. It made more sense to do it in that fashion because it felt more authentic considering the genre.

Also noted in the news about the cancellation is Amazon/MGM and Sony are exploring other opportunities to put Spider-Man content on the small screen.

I have one idea.

Spider-Man 2099!

Back when I was a teen, I regularly bought the 2099 series of comics produced my Marvel. One of the titles was based on a futuristic version of Spider-Man.

It would fit the theme, too. Viewers were able to see how a Spidey character existed in 1930s America. How about one from the advent of the 22nd Century?

Spider-Man 2099 hasn't been forgotten since the 90s. I've seen the character pop up in the Spider-Verse movies. It would be cool to see him get his own series. A live-action one at that.

Stadia

I woke up early, to watch the highlights of the Lions versus Bills, this morning.

It's one of the Week 2 games I was looking forward to the most because it saw Buffalo host their first regular season game from the new Highmark Stadium.

Bills outscore Lions

The Bills won 41-31. A great start at their new home. The good news: I had them to win in the regular pick 'em contest. The bad: I had the Lions to cover the +4.5 spread in the spread pick 'em! I thought it would have been closer than it ended up being.

Fury .vs. Joshua rumoured for Cardiff

Speaking of sporting venues - it looks like my local, Cardiff's Principality Stadium, will host the Tyson Fury versus Anthony Joshua fight. The rumour floating around is it'll be on Friday December 11th.

It won't be the first time Cardiff has hosted a fight between two of Britain's biggest names in boxing.

Cardiff's last major fight between two British heavyweights

In 1993, Lennox Lewis defended the WBC Heavyweight Championship against Frank Bruno at Cardiff Arms Park.

The fight - labelled 'The Battle of Britain' - was huge for the Welsh capital. It felt special to my young eyes because it put my home on the sporting map. I'll always remember the buzz around town leading up to the fight. 

I also recall the weather. It was damp on the morning ahead of the fight. I recall watching GMTV before school. They had a reporter there hyping up the bout. Part of the focus was on concern about the rain

Weather fears took a backseat long before the opening bell.

Lewis won in the seventh.

Back to the weather, though. Check out what happened on TAFKA as Twitter last night. Imagine wishing bad weather on a big sporting event. Now imagine doing so for a fight that's set for a roofed stadium!

I hope it really does end up being fought out in Cardiff. Rain, shine or anything in-between.

Devastating

I'm sure I was one of many who were upset yesterday when the news that Noah Woods' body had been found.

The three-year-old had gone missing a day earlier after going out with his grandfather. It was covered across the national news for most of the day.

His community searched high and low. Unfortunately, their efforts were in vain. The child's body was recovered from a lake yesterday.

Devastating. I feel for every single member of his family. 

Reader Of The Purple Sage

During the early 1990s, I went through a phase in which I liked watching the two Young Guns movies. That fascination led to me loaning a Western novel from my local library.

Big time let down.

I cannot recall, for sure, what the title was. However, I know I quit on it. 

Nowadays, I enjoy modern Cowboy programmes like Yellowstone. I also finish books until the end whether I dislike the experience or not.

You know where this is going, right?

Yes - I picked up a cowboy novel over the past few weeks. It came in a collection of eBooks with over one hundred and fifty titles. I believe it only cost me something like 49p. 

Book one in the collection is Zane Grey's Riders of the Purple Sage.  That's where I started. It's likely where I'll end as well.

Cowboy novels are simply not for me. I'm finding it such a chore to finish the book. I know I could quit, but I want to see it out considering how much time I've already invested. Plus, I wanted to give it a chance unlike I gave the book I tried when I was a child.

Wouldn't it be funny if the book I gave up on in the '90s was also Riders of the Purple Sage? That sure would be something.

Pringles' Christmas Flavour For 2026

Do you remember the build up to last Christmas, when I tested Pringles' Santa's Secret Flavour? It resulted in me writing a blog post titled 'Worst. Pringles. Flavour. Ever.' because, well.. because it truly was the worst flavour of Pringles I had ever sampled.

Trust me. I'm a self-proclaimed Pringles connoisseur. They were bad.

After taking one bite, I knew it was not for me. I handed the tube away, hoping to never see one again. 

Well, look what was at Tesco last week.

Yes, the folks at the Pringles UK have launched a similar promotion for Christmas 2026. I had to buy a tube. Will some wrongs from 2025 be righted this festive period (even though it's only September)? Find out below.

Sampling Pringles' Santa's Secret Flavour for Christmas 2026

Well, well, well.... this flavour is miles better than what I experienced last year. The bar was set below zero, however!

Pringles have indeed righted the wrong from Christmas '25.

What was Santa's Secret Flavour of Christmas 2025?

Pringles revealed that Santa's Secret Flavour from last year was truffle and butter. I came close because 'truffle' was one of my guesses last November. I also suggested 'Beef Wellington' and 'Garlic Mushrooms', though.

Guessing Santa's Secret Flavour for Christmas 2026

This year's flavour has a garlicy taste to it. Initially. I thought it could be 'Garlic Bread', but - as I munched on (something I didn't do in 2025!) - I feel it might stick to a festive theme and is 'stuffing' or some sort of seasoning.

Week 1 NFL Survivor Sinking And Look Ahead To Week 2

One of the new things I added to the this year's edition of Taylor's Pro Football Gambling Annual was to spotlight one team for each week of the 2026 NFL season as a 'Survivor Lean'.

Each selection was picked because it either had stats, trends or angles working in their favour for that particular week. The intent was to place that particular side up for consideration in survivor contests.

What's a survivor contest?

For those who don't know, a survivor contest is a season-long elimination competition in which participants select one team to win straight up each week. Once a team is picked, they cannot be used as a play later in the contest. If that team wins for their picker, the person continues to the subsequent week of games. If not, they're eliminated.

My survivor pick for Week 1

I chose the Los Angeles Chargers as the team to consider for Week 1. I also added it to the ESPN survivor game I entered ahead of the season.

My reasoning initially focused on the Chargers having a 6-4 (60%) overall straight up record over the Cardinals in games dating back to 1995. Narrowing it down, I pointed out the Chargers were 4-1 (80%) from five home games in this period.

That's not all.

Another stat I highlighted was that the Los Angles Chargers' head coach had a perfect record in winning Week 1 games as a HC.

Jim Harbaugh had gone 4-0 (100%) straight up in Week 1 games while in charge of the San Francisco 49ers between 2011 and 2014. He was also 2-0 (100%) straight up from his first couple of week one fixtures on the Chargers' sideline. 6-0 (100%) was a great stat. If I said so myself.

Harbaugh's run crashed out, along with my Survivor entry, yesterday following the Cardinals' 26-14 shocking win.

As well as winning outright, Arizona covered as closing +8.5 road dogs. They had been backed down from the +11.5 punters would have found them in Las Vegas following the release of the 2026 NFL schedule earlier this year.

A look at Las Vegas' elimination results following the Chargers loss

The LA Chargers' loss wiped out a lot of contestants from two marquee eliminator contests last night.

Circa Sports' survivor contest, which has a $1,000 buy-in, saw 7,585 players ousted because they sided with Harbaugh and his Chargers. That was 30.3% of the field.

As you'll see below, the Chargers were the second-best picked team from Week 1's entries. At the top of the list were the Jacksonville Jaguars. The 8,127 players who backed the Jags progress to Week 2 following the Florida-based team obliterating the Browns 34-10.

Circa also hosts a high roller elimination tournament which demands a $100,000 buy-in. The Los Angeles Chargers selection was the top pick in the Grandissimo, with 28 backers. The result wiped out 36.4% of the field.

Twenty-four players had Jacksonville. The ten who opted for the Lions must have wiped sweat from their brows after the Saints missed a two-point attempt in the closing play of overtime to give Detroit a 31-30 win.

The Week 2 survivor lean is also controversial

Ever since the opening game of the season, I had concerns over the second survivor lean in Taylor's Pro Football Gambling Annual.

That's because I have the Seattle Seahawks to win their Week 2 meeting with the... Cardinals!

Seattle's quarterback - Sam Darnold - was injured early in Wednesday's season kick off. Despite that, the Super Bowl Champions eked out a 13-10 victory over the Patriots. 

174 Circa Survivor players had Seattle to win.

What I wrote about the Seattle versus Arizona game for Week 2

Here's an extract from the chapter for Week 2 in Taylor's Pro Football Gambling Annual 2026.

...there’s a collision of betting strategies for Arizona’s home game against the Seattle Seahawks.

First – with the Cardinals playing the Super Bowl Champions, they automatically become the team to consider on that fact alone.

The ‘Beat the Champs’ chapter suggests that it would take a brave gambler to back Arizona under these conditions because they currently hold 2-7 (22%) straight up and 4-5 (44%) against the spread numbers from all games against current titleholders. Those numbers surprisingly worsen at home with 1-5 (17%) SU and 2-4 (33%) ATS.

Also working against the Cardinals is the schedule.

Arizona would have played at the Chargers, on Sunday afternoon, while the Seahawks had a four-day headstart due to playing the season opener on Wednesday 9^th September.

The Cardinals are already in a hole against the Seahawks before a ball is even kicked. That’s because Seattle swept them once more in 2025 moving the Seahawks to 9-0 (100%) straight up and 8-1 (89%) against the spread from the last nine meetings between these NFC West division rivals.

The Super Bowl Champions are currently 31-18-1 (62%) straight up and 27-21-2 (56%) ATS overall from the fifty times they’ve met since 1995. On the road against the Cardinals, Seattle are 15-9-1 (60%) straight up and 13-10-2 (57%) to the spread.

This current series has seen the Over-Under go 24-26 (52% to the Under). The O-U is 14-11 (56% to the Over) from Arizona.

SIDE NOTE: Seattle won 35-6, as nine-point favourites, when they last visited Arizona as Super Bowl Champions.

The game, from Week 16 of the 2014 regular season, went Over its total of 37.

Oddsmakers installed the Seahawks as ten-point favourites in their early lines for 2026. The total opened at 44.5.

Spread for Seattle @ Arizona in Week 2

With the benefit of Week 1's results, and everything mixed in, I am even more curious to see the result of the Cardinals versus Seahawks.

For what it's worth, the Cardinals are currently +4.5 home dogs for the visit from the Super Bowl winners. That's a huge drop from May's +10.

I'll be watching.

Taylor's Pro Football Gambling Annual 2026 can be ordered from these bookshops

2Pac 30

I have been listening to a lot of music by Tupac Shakur this weekend. I'm doing so to honour the thirtieth anniversary of his passing.

As I have written countless times on this blog over the past twenty-plus years, I was a 2Pac fan at the time of his death. His music has carried with me ever since.

I first began following Shakur in 1994. It was from two of his tracks - Loyal to the Game and Pain - appearing on the single of Warren G and Nate Dogg's Regulate.

Not long after that time, I read about Shakur being sent to prison. I actually recall the exact place I was when I read that news bit. It was in the South Wales Echo as I was delivering them one evening. 

2Pac's music appeared on MTV a lot while he was serving time. Dear Mama and Temptations are the ones I recall seeing the most. 

Those two songs appear on 2Pac's Me Against the World album. The title track brings back another memory of mine - a lad who was in my year at school arrived to pick up his GCSE results in a car blasting that tune out of it as my friends and I were leaving.

Every time I've listened to Me Against the World since that day,  I find myself landed back to that final walk down towards the school gates with my results in hand.

A few months after that, 2Pac was bailed out and signed to Death Row Records. That's when my interest in Shakur's music intensified. Death Row, at that time in my life, was my favourite record label. It was a perfect fit.

I have so many fond memories from the Death Row content. My parents bought me Pac's double album - All Eyez On me - for my birthday that year. Drunkenly dancing to California Love when they played it at the nightclub we used to go to (which - I must add - never played West Coast Rap!). 

Quite a few friendships I made at sixth form stemmed from being a Death Row and 2Pac fan. 

Another thing I've written a lot over the years is where I was when I found out Pac had died.

One of my best friends at the time, who I introduced to 2Pac's music earlier that year, told me about the Las Vegas shooting shortly after it had happened. I foolishly thought 2Pac would pull through because he had escaped death two years earlier, when he was shot in New York. 

On Saturday 14th September, I was on a hunt for a WWF Raw magazine that had sold out of the two shops I would find it. I took a chance on it being at a petrol station. As I walked across the forecourt, that very same friend - who was on his lunch break from his job in that area - came out. The news was broken to me at that point.

It's one of those 'Where Were You?' moments I'll never experience again due to how fast news works in this current age we live in.

My memories from the weeks, and months, following the news are just as vivid. 

The best one is seeing that 2Pac's first posthumous album had been released. If I recall correctly, I bought it on November 5th. I know it was from Spillers Records in Cardiff.

That album, which was released under 2Pac's Makaveli alias, became my favourite 2Pac record. In fact, depending on my mood, it could arguably be my favourite album from any artist.

The Seven Day Theory is gritty. I legitimately get goosebumps every time I listen. I make sure to have it on at least once a year. I listened to a few tracks last night and I'm certain to remind myself to play it when the thirtieth anniversary of its release.

I plan to listen to some more music across the day.

Seeing as I mentioned them early in this post, I'm going to play Loyal to the Game and Pain next...

£1 Bet Builder On United/City

I was given a £1 free bet to create a bet builder wager on any of the Premier League games for this weekend.

For today's post, because it's getting late and I don't have much to write about right now, I thought I'd ask Microsoft Copilot to come up with its own bet builder for tomorrow's Manchester derby.

It gave me five things to pick. As soon as I saw one of them, I slowly bowed by head as I shook it from side-to-side.

Copilot was immediately given the night off.

It suggested 'Casemiro to get carded'.

Casemiro left United - for Inter Miami - over the summer.

So, here's a non-AI bet builder for tomorrow's clash:

1. Erling Haaland 2+ shots on goal

2. Yes (Goal scored in both halves)

3. Over 2.5 goals

Kick off is at 4pm BST on Sunday.

UPDATE: None of the selections won! Manchester City won 1-0 from a Haaland second half goal.

Is The Chase Around The World A One And Done?

I recently read that ITV has seemingly decided not to commission a second series of The Chase Around The World.

In an article on the Mirror's website, the showbiz team declared the programme had been axed because it was seen to be 'one big flop'.

For what it's worth, a 'series spokesperson' has denied such a decision has been made. However, if the broadcaster has indeed pulled the plug on future series' of the unique game show, I would consider it unsurprising.

As I wrote on Friday July 17th, a day after watching the first ep, I floated the instinct that the game show - which saw teams of two go on trivia hunts across cities of the World with the prospect of facing two Chasers if they finish last - had potential of being a one and done.

Well, it looks like my guess could turn out to be accurate. There's no smoke without fire and all that.

I noticed lukewarm-to-negative reactions to episode one across social media. That despite the series, and most  - but not all! - of its contestants, growing on me as the episodes progressed.

The Chase Around the World was a fun spinoff of the teatime quiz show. I'll miss it if those initial reports turn out to be true.

1-0 Following Seattle's Season Kick Off

I suppose you could call last night a positive start to my NFL pick 'em campaign for the 2026 season.

I'm currently 1-0 in three of the four contests I've entered on the ESPN website. The fourth has yet to run.

The season kicked off with the Super Bowl Champions - Seattle - coming back from behind to beat the New England Patriots 13-10.

Seattle's QB1, Sam Darnold, was injured early in the game resulting in Drew Lock coming on to spare the home team's blushes.

I had Seattle to win in the straight up pick 'em contest entries. However, the Patriots +3.5 was my selection for the spread entry.

Yes, I consider it a fluke of sorts. A win is a win is a win, though.

Betting On The Showdown in Oz

Next up is the LA Rams versus San Francisco 49ers from Melbourne, Australia. I wrote a lot about it in THIS POST from last week.  I have the 49ers to win straight up and cover the +3.5 spread.

My fourth ESPN contest will kick in with this game because I have San Francisco as one of the five plays.

I find myself on the side which believes the 49ers have made the correct approach to the game by landing in Australia close to a week before the game. 

My theory contradicts the Rams' approach of arriving a little over twenty-four hours before kick off. 

Fallout From 49ers/Rams Travel Schedule

A lot has been made of the two methods. Even if my opinion turns out to be the losing one, both teams' returns to the USA will also make for an intriguing diagnosis. As I noted in Taylor's Pro Football Gambling Annual 2026, the 49ers' Week 2 game will be played at home in a Sunday afternoon while the Rams have a home fixture against the New York Giants on Monday Night Football.

The Rams then have to travel to Denver for Week 3's Sunday Night Football. San Francisco would have played earlier that day with a home visit from the Arizona Cardinals.

I cannot shake off the thought that the Australia approaches, and the schedules that follow for both teams, are a test by the NFL to see which method works best for the future of NFL games Down Under.

We're certain to find some things out over the next three-to-four weeks. Good or bad.

Manningcast Schedule For The 2026 NFL Season

Peyton and Eli Manning have revealed the 2026/27 schedule for their famous Manningcast.

The NFL legends will return with their talk show which is simulcasted alongside Monday Night Football games on ESPN TV in the USA and available on the premium NFL GamePass package here in the UK.

Twelve games will get the Manning treatment this season. It all starts with this coming Monday's meeting between the Denver Broncos and Kansas City Chiefs that will close out Week 1. 

Speaking of closing out - the final Manningcast of its sixth season will air live from the Super Bowl on February 14th. The brothers have never covered the big game in this fashion before. That's likely because ESPN has the rights to air Super Bowl LXI - a first for the forty-seven year old broadcaster.

Manningcast Schedule for 2026/27

Here are all of the games Peyton and Eli Manning will watch, as part of the Manningcast, in 2026 and beyond.

Week 1 - Denver Broncos @ Kansas City Chiefs (September 14)

Week 2 - NY Giants @ LA Rams (September 21)

Week 4 - Atlanta Falcons @ New Orleans Saints (October 5)

Week 5 - Buffalo Bills @ LA Rams (October 12)

Week 7 - Dallas Cowboys @ Philadelphia Eagles (October 26)

Week 8 - Chicago Bears @ Seattle Seahawks (November 2)

Week 10 - LA Chargers @ Baltimore Ravens (November 16)

Week 11 - Cincinnati Bengals @ Washington Commanders  (November 23)

Week 13 - Dallas Cowboys @ Seattle Seahawks (December 7)

Week 15 - New England Patriots @ Kansas City Chiefs (December 21)

Week 17 - Houston Texans @ Green Bay Packers (January 4)

Super Bowl Sunday (February 14)

When did the Manningcast launch?

The Manningcast first launched at the start of the 2021 NFL season. Peyton and Eli covered the Las Vegas Raiders versus Baltimore Ravens game which ended with the former winning 33-27 in overtime. 

The guests for that game were Charles Barkley, Ray Lewis, Travis Kelce and Russell Wilson.

The most famous Manningcast guest

The most famous guest to ever appear on the Manningcast is arguably George W. Bush.

The 43rd President of the United States appeared in Week 11 of the 2025 season when the Mannings covered the Dallas Cowboys' visit to Las Vegas.  The road team won 33-16.

The Picks Are Being Picked

It's that time of the year.

My friend sent across the lines for the NFL handicapping contest we play in. I'm now looking through Taylor's Pro Football Gambling Annual 2026 before sending him my selections.

It still seems surreal to be using my very own book to handicap the games. 

Just like last year, every single pick I make will be made using Taylor's Annual. That approach turned in a positive strike rate of 55.2%. I obviously hope to do better than that.

I also intend to play in some of the ESPN contests. Especially the pick 'em game.

One more sleep!

Last Sunday

Yesterday was the final Sunday without NFL football until 2027. 

It felt somewhat peculiar to me. For the first time in fourteen years or so, it was the first Sunday without participating in an NFL fantasy draft.

No Draft Day For Me

The league I played in seemingly didn't host the annual Sunday-before-NFL draft it has ran since the 2010s.

As I've written countless times over the years, I didn't know anyone in the league. I joined it from the late NFL UK Forum and I've been a part of it for fourteen(ish) seasons. 

ESPN took over the NFL Fantasy game during the offseason and, even though there was an email sent informing of my team being migrated to the new platform, it didn't appear as though the league we played in has been set up for 2026.

It's a double shame. First, because I won't get to play fantasy football with the group any more. It also bugs me that I couldn't get to thank them for allowing me to play with them for all these years.

The Calms Before and After the Storms

One thing I noticed yesterday, as I reflected on the upcoming season, is the fact that there seemed to have been a calmness about the day. I reminded myself that 'this time next week, I'll be in NFL regular season mode' eating up all the news and everything about the sport. It then struck me that there's another calmness on the first Sunday after the Super Bowl.

I know which one I'd prefer to be in...

The Butcher Dies

I woke up yesterday to read the news that The Butcher, who wrestled for All Elite Wrestling during its founding years, had a medical emergency at an independent wrestling show on Saturday night.

A certain wrestling news aggregation website claimed Andy Williams had died. Unfortunately,  the hedging turned out in favour of the 'report' because - later that day - a more reputable source (and I use that term lightly) - TMZ - broke the sad news. He was only 48.

Bill Dundee Passes Away

The Butcher wasn't the only person in pro wrestling to pass away over the weekend. Bill Dundee, a well-known face in Memphis wrestling but toured the world for other promotions in his day - was another.

The Australian began his career in the early 1960s. As I noted, he travelled the world. One stop crossed paths with yours truly. 

It was October 1993 - World Championship Wrestling's first stop on the Halloween Havoc tour. At the time, Dundee worked as 'Lord' Steven Regal's butler - Sir William. Both were on the Cardiff card because Regal squared off against Ric Flair.

Dundee was brilliant on that night. He managed to stir the crowd up with his antics. It truly is one of the many lasting memories I have of that brilliant night I experienced as a wrestling fan.

That's a perfect spot  to end today's post. Back tomorrow!

I've Finally Watched The Mandalorian & Grogu

I finally watched The Mandalorian and Grogu this week. 

The Star Wars movie premiered on Disney Plus this past Wednesday. I caught it as soon as I had the chance.

To be frank, I had low expectations going in because I caught a couple of reviews earlier this year, when the film was in cinemas. Both of those reviews were negative. 

Maybe I'm biased, but I didn't hate it at all. I enjoyed it for what The Mandalorian and Grogu is - a new chapter in a tale I've followed in the Disney Plus series. It's also another step towards a movie that will accumulate The Mandalorian and other Star Wars series' in a 'climatic story event' (if such an idea is still on the table).

The DVD/Blu-ray release is set for September 28th. I've preordered it because I'd like to own a copy for my collection of Star Wars films.