The current Umbrella protests in Hong Kong made me reflect upon some of the more obscure and surreal things I saw during my visit to the islands back in 2004; so I decided to Google ‘Wan Kee Seafood’, a restaurant I came across on Lamma Island.
Unsurprisingly, it’s gone out of business, but proof that it existed!!!
I’ll have to dig out my photo of me pointing to the sign with a huge grin on my face.
Went to the EGX Eurogamer Expo at Earls Court yesterday; think it was the busiest one I’ve attended over the years.
Heard some foreign languages and accents this year too; it really has grown from the rag tag collection of games several years ago that’s for sure.
That said, I was disappointed with the expo this year.
Dragon Age Inquisition had a 2.5 hour waiting time to play games, all because they only had 8 consoles; I have pre-ordered this game and was looking forward to a hands-on preview.
From what I did see, the game looked amazing with great visuals and smooth gameplay. Guess I’ll just have to wait…..
Bioware should have managed this better, especially when you look out from the balcony next to the Dragon Age section and spot the obscene use of space for Call Of Duty…..I wish that franchise would just die already.
Battlefield Hardline was a lot of fun to play, although it did feel like there was a an over balance of vehicle combat (just run people over in cars) and I hope they fix that.
Elite Dangerous looked amazing, would have liked to see a running demo where you could freelance as opposed to the dog fighting demo they were showcasing. Still, that took me back to my BBC Acorn Electron days!
The Batman Arkham Knight preview was my first experience of being in a mini movie theatre watching video game footage; the guy providing commentary whipped up a frenzy amongst the fan boys, screaming about how Batman could remote control the Batmobile during the game.
I might be a geek, but I’m not in the league of people who clap because Batman can daisy chain grapple hooks during his ascension of Arkham.
I loved the look of the game; but there is something very annoying about the voice of the Arkham Knight and I can’t wait to smash his face in.
The cosplay twats were out in force again; I was told the scene was dying out when I visited Shibuya on a Sunday afternoon in October 2005. Someone should tell all the idiots who turned up wearing the same Assassins Creed outfit…..uber fail cunts!
Nintendo had a pretty paltry showing considering the amount of new games they have coming out AND now that the WiiU is starting to get a little momentum going in the market.
I thought Yoshis Woolly World had plagiarised Little Big Planet (one console to try) a bit having a knitted character (like Sackboy) and wasn’t that impressed with the format; whereas I can only praise the developers of Little Big Planet 3 (a dozen consoles to play) for their innovative game.
I honestly think the organisers were greedy and sold far too many tickets compared to the amount of opportunities you had to play the games.
Why was the Indie section so tucked away this year; that was a shame?
Why was the Nintendo stage limited to two tired geeky presenters who were stalling for time in between asking silly questions for prizes and organising Hula Hoop competions? It was amateurish like being back at Pontins.
Why have security when they don’t read your ticket credentials or inspect your bags anymore?
Why do they let call of duty have so much exposure for such a small amount of product (think that sums up the Games too)?
Why do you allow Game to peddle their wares at such ridiculous prices?
Sort it out Eurogamer you flids!
Apparently, my reviews are in the top 5% for Trip Advisor in Croydon…..whoop-de-fucking-doo!
I’m surprised that there are 14,034 people in Croydon who can read!?!
The Invictus Games closing ceremony was how I originally found out about the whole thing!
The ‘Foo Fighters’ were to headline the closing ceremony concert and play in the UK for the first time in several years; several other artists would also give their support by playing: James Blunt, Rizzlekicks, Bryan Adams, Ryan Adams, Ellie Golding and my own favourites, Kaiser Chiefs.
However, the closing ceremony was far more than that; the main stars were the athletes from the games…..and wow, how they were applauded!?!
Everyone came onto the stage and 40,000 people gave several minutes of racious applause in appreciation from the athletes who came from all over to take part.
Certainly, the two biggest cheers came for the USA and team Great Britain; but everyone was celebrated, and quite rightly so.
Prince Harry gave a great speech and would not be rushed by the hungry crowd to allow the Foo Fighters to begin their set (even he was chomping at the bit to see Dave Grohl).
The Foo Fighters played some incredibly relevant and fitting songs to play out the heroes of the games; what a band!!!
It was the perfect end to an amazing weekend for me! Huge respect to the organisers for getting it all together in 7 months!!!
Ladies and gents, I salute you.
I can honestly say that attending the Invictus Games was one of the most humbling and inspiring experiences of my life.
The Invictus games are sporting events for injured service men and women from several countries around the World; Prince Harry was apparently inspired to create the whole thing after seeing the American ‘Warrior Games’.
I was privileged to attend the Wheelchair Basketball, weightlifting and Sitting Volleyball events; all of which were held around Olympic Park in Stratford, East London.
It was the perfect setting for such amazing athletes to show families, friends and supporters how sports had helped them reclaim their lives after receiving life-changing injuries whilst serving in the military.
There were representatives from The United States of America, Australia, New Zealand, The Netherlands, Georgia, Estonia, France, Italy, Afghanistan, Denmark and Great Britain.
The home crowd got behind the British team, but everybody, and I mean EVERYBODY, was applauded and encouraged as they gave their all for their teams.
Inspiration was around every corner. From wheelchair basketballers righting themselves after going over in their chairs due to breakneck speeds, to seeing amazing men and women lift more than their body weight after losing limbs to IED’s and terrible burns.
Israel Del Toro of the United States, absolutely conquered the weight lifting and that was a stand out moment for me. He suffered terrible burns, but stood up as a perfect example of “I Am The Captain Of My Soul”.
Life does go on; these amazing people epitomise that.
I know I can get very mushy and emotional in my blog, but the Invictus Games brought out some of the best moments of humanity that I think I’ve ever seen.
Prince Harry is a credit to us all in Great Britain and I have nothing but admiration for the organisers and participants; I only hope that I will be lucky enough to get tickets at the next Invictus Games.
Amazing!
I scratched Chaz ‘n Dave off of my bucket list recently when I finally saw them play Fairfield Halls in Croydon on the 12th of September.
Chaz n Dave were superstars when I was a kid, bashing out cockney rock classics for fun! Singers who didn’t sing in American accents, massive respect.
Tunes like ‘Rabbit’, ‘Snooker Loopy’ and ‘Glory glory Tottenham Hotspur’ always seemed to be on TV or played at one of my parents parties for a laugh. Well, not the Spurs track!
My Uncle Joe was a huge Tottenham Hotspur fan though, he always used to play the comical song ‘Gercha’ to amuse me when I was a wee nipper; I absolutely love that song to this day.
So it was an absolute pleasure to sit and watch the legendary duo bash out their extensive discography.
The first half of the concert was Chaz n Dave ‘pub years’ and contained some great covers of songs they played in the 70s; the second half of the show was a greatest hits and got everybody off of their feet dancing.
The crowd were…..fucking odd….. I’ve been around some scummy Londoners in my time (Upton Park on match day springs to mind), but there were some truly pikey mutant North London throwbacks there that night.
Even Chaz n Dave looked a bit disappointed with how rowdy certain sections of the audience were! I bet they’ve played enough rough pubs to be immune to it too!
It’s truly humbling listening to how good Chaz is on the piano; I think he’d give Jules Holland a run for his money when playing Boogie Woogie!!
Dave is still a fantastic melodic bass player and it’s immediately obvious why he’s been the perfect match to Chaz’s piano all these years.
They both look like they enjoy playing together a great deal and it was fantastic to see them both.
Gerchyou cowson! Gercha!
I’m decorating my Mum’s front room at the moment; having stripped away the old wallpaper, I came across some old scribblings on one of the walls that had been left by my grandfather.
Pop (aka Skinhead) was such a hilarious old bastard (I miss him greatly); he was an avid West Ham fan who took every opportunity to wind my Dad up for supporting Manchester United.
Hilarious! Likening the greatest club team in the history of the game to feces!!
The drawings are close to 30 years old now; I find it amusing that they are something of a time capsule and will hopefully offend a nice middle class family when they buy and decorate my parents house in years to come.
Jethro is an ageing Saki Monkey at Monkey World in Dorset; he’s absolutely my favourite monkey ever.
I’ve been to Monkey World a few times now; the pictures below were taken a couple of months ago and were the first time that I’d seen Jethro outside of his boudoir.
Born in 1990, Jethro is already twice the average life expectancy of a Saki Monkey; he is fascinating to sit and watch because I think he’s a bit eccentric in his advanced years???
He actually sits and watches YOU, all the while poking his tongue out or putting his fingers down his throat and stroking his tongue…..
Cool dude isn’t he?
The caravan and camping club site at Milton Keynes has a new en-suite camping den; I tried it out a couple of weekends ago!
The en-suite den is different to the other unfurnished glamping dens located on this club site:
Sleeps up to four (two adults and two children). No pets
Settee converting into a double bed
1 bunk bed with mattresses
Microwave
Patio furniture
Toilet
Hand basin
Shower
Prices
Minimum two night stay.
Security deposit is required
Review
The en-suite den is a fun getaway for two people sharing a weekend together; I think you’d get cabin fever if you spent more than 4 nights here as a couple, let alone a family of four!!!
Although the space is a little tight (if you’re a grizzly bear like me), the sofa bed is very comfortable indeed; I am 6’4″ and I had just the right amount of room to stretch out my legs when laying down.
I didn’t risk the bunk beds because I had visions of plummeting through the top bunk into the bottom one or waking up with claustrophobia; the bunk beds are partially enclosed and look like torpedo tubes on a submarine. Kids will love them though.
The wash basin is directly under the microwave and you will need to take care not to bang your head when you brush your teeth. Bit daft that?
My advice would be to take advantage of the en-suite loo, but use the main shower block instead of the shower.
There are various mains supply sockets throughout the den along with mains lighting.
Don’t let my tongue in cheek comments put you off!!
With access to Milton Keynes central , Bletchley and Bicester, the en-suite den is great value for money; after all, it’s not much more per night than a standard pitch cost for a tent with electric hookup.
Below is the standard den if you want to compare.
The standard den is a bit like Arthur Fowler’s allotment shed?
Milton Keynes Holywood bowling has a Mach Storm arcade cabinet!!!
Mach Storm is an air combat simulator with a cockpit-style cabinet to sit in; the unique dome screen gives players an almost 180 degree view of the high definition action in the sky.
Players have five different missions to choose from and all are set in real cities around the world. Each city has a set difficulty.
The huge screen really pulls you into the game and the fast pace makes the game a truly immersed experience; not only do players see the action all around but they also feel the action through the force feedback in the joystick as well as the thundering bass installed in the flight seat.
I absolutely loved how old school Mach Storm felt, retro gameplay with state of the art projection.
Well worth a couple of quid!!!
You can be my wingman!!!
The Antikrish 
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