late addition

This is also worthy of inclusion in the 'best song' category.

Barts SM 2019

Best Song

Vagabon – Water Me Down

Hot Chip – Spell

Elbow – White Noise White heat

The Comet Is Coming – Summon The Fire

DJ Shadow - Rocket like Rocket Fuel

Ride – Future Love

Best Lyric That Makes Me Laugh Every Time I Hear It

Black Country, New Road – Sunglasses – “Leave Kanye out of this”

Richard Dawson – Two Halves – “Stop fannying around, keep it nice and simple, you're not Lionel Messi, just pass the bloody ball”

Best Musical Re-discovery

It wouldn’t be a very long album, but The Best of Weezer would be ace.

Best Middle-Aged Man/Men Doing Excellent – If Hardly Ground-breaking – Stuff

Iggy Pop – Love’s Missing

Best Book

Only 3/5s through but really enjoying The Secret History. Think I’ve known the twist for a hundred or so pages.

Also: Alone in Berlin – Hans Fallada

Best Gig/Event

Suede, Albert Hall – all men in midlife should aspire to be like Brett

Best TV Programme

Not new but really enjoyed Gameface and The End of the F***ing World. Otherwise: All European crime drama on BBC4 at 9pm on Saturday, Catastrophe, Stranger Things

Best Radio Programme (That I Haven’t Previously Nominated)

The World Service – when the news here is dominated by one too many cunts, it’s a nice refuge.

Best Sporting Moment

The World Cup final was the most excruciatingly exciting piece of sport I’ve ever witnessed.

Website

Vice – Rental opportunity of the Week – sample: https://www.vice.com/en_uk/article/bvggmq/flat-to-rent-willesden-green-two-bed

Worst Purchase / Disappointment

Not going to a proper music festival this year. I intend to ensure that doesn’t happen this year

Best Child-Related Thing

Not best, necessarily, but secondary school and the attendant freedom/lack of control has been an interesting learning curve.

Best Lifestyle Change

Scaling up from last year – joining a Fell Running club

Sort

Aisling Bea

Person, People or Thing You’d Most Like to See Set Upon By a Pack of Wolves

VAR

The Winning Thing You’d Most Recommend Your Fellow Judges to Own/Have/Consume/Do

Aspire to be like Brett

Barts 2019: Darbyshire

Best Album

Vampire Weekend: Father of the Bride

Elbow: Giants of All Sizes

Metronomy: Metronomy Forever

These were all “ok”. Would have been also rans in an era when I was buying 20-30 albums a year.

Best Song 

Fat White Family: Feet

Best Musical Re-discovery 

Around the World in a Day. Discovered I didn’t have the CD so Ebayed it. The first thing that shocked me was how unfamiliar it was. The fact that I didn't have the CD makes me think the last time I had a copy was indeed a cassette copy which probably means I haven't listened to it in 25+ years. And that it wasn't one of my favourites at the time.

I still think it's one of the weaker ones from "The Run". The singles are great, obviously, but I find myself switching off at other times. It must have been a head-wobbler for an American teen who'd bought Purple Rain and was hoping for more of the same. Though you might say the same for Parade and that is a work of genius....

Middle-Aged Man/Men Doing Excellent – If Hardly Ground-breaking – Stuff 

See my album list, first albums first released by those bands 1999-2005. See also my gigs list.

Best Film 

Stan and Ollie

Lion

Best Book 

James Ellroy: Blood’s a Rover

Best Gig/Event 

Dead heat between Suede and Tears for Fears.

Best TV Programme

Chernobyl
The Marvelous (sic) Mrs Maisel

Mindhunter

Dead Pixels

Mum

World War 2 in Colour

This Way Up

Sex Education

After Life

Handmaid’s Tale

The Irish doppleganger on Alan Partridge which was otherwise meh.

Best Radio Programme 

A sore point

Best website 

Twitter 

Best Sporting Moment 

World Cup Final Super Over

Revelation 

n/a

Worst Purchase / Disappointment 

6 music’s daytime schedule.

Best Child-Related Thing 

Burgeoning morning independence

Sort 

Rachel Brosnahan

Person, People or Thing You’d Most Like to See Set Upon By a Pack of Wolves 

Right wing politics

The Winning Thing You’d Most Recommend Your Fellow Judges to Own/Have/Consume/Do

Chernobyl/Mrs Maisel

Barts 2019: Kelly

Best Album
Bruce Springsteen: Western Stars 
The National: I Am Easy To Find 
Tindersticks: No Treasure But Hope 
Sharon Van Etten: Remind Me Tomorrow 
The Delines: The Imperial 
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds: Ghosteen

Best Song 
Michael Kiwanuka: You Ain’t The Problem 
Lizzo: Juice 

Best Musical Re-discovery 
Otis Redding: Otis Blue 

Middle-Aged Man/Men Doing Excellent – If Hardly Ground-breaking – Stuff 
As usual, this pretty much defines my album shortlist: but Springsteen is probably the best match 

Best Film 
Capernaum 

Best Book 
George Orwell: 1984 

Best Gig/Event 
Lankum @ The Trades Club 

Best TV Programme
Mortimer & Whitehouse: Gone Fishing  

Best Radio Programme 
Huey Morgan 

Best website 
National Rail 

Best Sporting Moment 
Those Champion’s League comebacks 

Revelation 
Good to see Elbow back with a couple of songs with a bit of bite. 

Worst Purchase / Disappointment 
The results of the election later this week 

Best Child-Related Thing 
Same as last year. Amateur dramatics getting both of them out of the house for 6 – 8 hours a week. 

Sort 
Bargain Hunt’s Natasha Raskin Sharp 

Person, People or Thing You’d Most Like to See Set Upon By a Pack of Wolves 
Where to start? 

The Winning Thing You’d Most Recommend Your Fellow Judges to Own/Have/Consume/Do
Read 1984 if you haven’t done so. Assuming you probably have: watch Capernaum.