Perhaps a slightly disappointing Neat-O crop this week in terms of quantity but perhaps that’s due to me picking a crap theme. Apologies if that is the case, hope the next one is more inspirational for you. Anyway, thanks to all who entered. Eight contestants submitted a total of 12 entries, with 10 of the 12 being tickers. And then, in extra time, having already thrown his shirt into the crowd at the end of the game and then had to go and ask for it back (any Arsenal fans in here?), a very late entry. Was it the last-gasp winner though?
Firstly, honourable mentions to those whose entries were picked up by the editors and put on the front page, but my judgement is not so shallow as to be influenced by such success. On the contrary, my assessment of the entries is based primarily on favouritism towards those that have said good things about my subs in the past.
Of the tickers, my top three are:
3rd: Weematt with ‘Old MacDonald has a smart farm, with an AI, AI hoe.’ I have to confess that I initially thought AI referred to Artificial Insemination but I live in the West Country where there be farming folk who occasionally talk of such things. That’s my excuse anyway.
2nd: Weematt again with ‘Scientist claims Artificial Intelligence is now a reality.’ Simple, and yet clever.
1st: Charlies_Hat with ‘GCHQ Intelligence decipher pigeon code: "I'm hiding from Dastardly and Muttley".' Yes, the late entry swoops into the lead; a few points off because it doesn’t make much sense if you don’t know the story but it must also have been a challenge to get inside the character limit for a ticker, so you’re forgiven.
But was it enough to take the overall title? I also need to consider two very different full-length entries.
A close second in this category was Dick Everyman’s ‘Child genius chokes on abacus bead’ which I thought was a nice dig at MENSA but the winner in this category was Gerontius’ ‘Satire in crisis warns Cbeebies producer.’ An all-out attack on several members of our friendly little community, bitingly satirical with some great lines in it, but slightly illogical in places implying 6 year olds are toddlers that wear nappies and sleep in cots. And totally unsuitable for a wider audience, so the editors will have marked it with a big red ‘NO’.
So, Charlies_hat or Gerontius? It’s a tricky one but, on the grounds of nothing much more than it made me laugh the most, I declare the winner of this week’s Neat-O is ..... Gerontius. Over to you sir.
Charlies_hat is no doubt sick as a pigeon that he is the victim of a somewhat controversial decision but, as I know only too well, the referee’s decision is final, even if he is a twat.
