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The Sherbys – Review of the Year 2008

Due to legal proceeding, our coverage of this year’s Sherbys has been delayed for a week. We apologise for any inconvenience to our many fans.  But we still maintain that ***** ****** did meet ******* **** and thoroughly ****** his ***** out.

Anyway, on with the show:

 

The Date: 27th December 2008

The Place: The Royal Albert Hall

The Occasion: The 73rd Annual Sherby57 Awards 2007 aka The Sherbys

A glittering array of stars were present at the Royal Albert Hall, as this year’s hosts, husband and wife team, Clive and Pamela Anderson, hosted the prestigious award ceremony. Clive managed to wow the audience with his wits, while Pamela wowed them with her natural charm(s). Let’s take a look at some of the winners and losers.

 

Artwork of the Year

Another busy year for Art, saw Art jump up and bite itself firmly on the butt cheeks (buttocks).  The once humdrum mundanery of modern existence, could now be seen purely for its own aesthetic worth, whilst true skill and talent were taken out back and pummeled with a snooker ball in a sock.  Which was regarded as something of an artistic triumph. Quelle surprise!

Runners-Up:

Elvis

Elvis

A stunning sculpture, this shows ‘The King’s’ more sensitive side. Mainly cos his head is foam.

Doctor Angel

Dr. Angel

She’s a doctor, and she’s an angel?? Look through the haze and you will be amazed. She is.

 

And the Winner is:

Bored In a Meeting

 

What does it all mean?

What does it all mean?

 This sumptuous drawing, making the most of biro and marker pen on printer paper, really sums up the modern workplace.  From the vampire, which symbolises frustration, to the key, which shows us inner turmoil, the whole piece comes together as a whole and congeals in your mind. A worthy winner in this and every year.

 

TV Show of the Year

The big TV story of the year was Brand/Ross-gate (Bwossandgate?). Which was weird cos it happened on the radio.   We’ll forget the scandal and just look at some of the quality programming that 2008 had to offer.

Runners-Up:

Celeb Kebab House – In a year when even the whiff of another lame celebrity reality show made the population vomit so hard that it went back in time, and was hence responsible for the rise of life on the planet, Celeb Kebab House bucked the trend.  It’s sole virtue is that it didn’t make my eyes bleed. 

Inside The Institute – Blending heartwarming human interest stories with the hard-nosed bastard that is science is never easy. Well it wasn’t until Inside The Institute hit our screens.  Based in Warrington’s Torben Piechnik Institute, we learned to love arrogant, yet caring, Dr. Glen Medeiros.  It was very close to winning this years award.

And the Winner is:

Fear My Clit – Programme makers should be rewarded for genuinely innovative and ground-breaking television, and boy are the makers of Fear My Clit being rewarded.  With its extreme subject matter and the traumatic levels of humiliation heaped on all participants, it really went to show what could be achieved with a limited budget. Let’s hope that series 2 isn’t delayed too much by all the court cases. That would be the real tragedy.


Comment of the Year

Sherby57 is a democratic organisation and is open to comments by any of its fans. In recognition of this we present a special award for the best fan comment of the year.

Runners-Up:

Anne on Hans Across America

“Hi Hans,

surely your german is better than my english, therfore I’ll change -)now:
Leider kann ich kein “Lonely Heart” bieten, da ich “Happy married” bin.
Da Du mich aber vor ca. 1000 gefühlten Jahren in München einmal ausgeführt hast und dies für mich ein sehr aufregender Super-Abend war (für Dich evtl. etwas öde) sende ich Dir auf diesem Wege liebe Wintergrüße aus Bayern.
Ich hoffe Dir geht’s gut, Anne”

Dr Angel on Where Do Spuds Come From?

“I live ten minutes away from Burscough and can confirm the following:

1. Burscough has a ‘yoof’ problem and has at least 600 youth clubs despite only having a population of 200 people.
2. They train pole dancers in Burscough. The pole dancers are then recruited to Stefan Dennis’ chain of erotic boutiques ‘Slutz Emporia’.
3. Mysterious wagons are seen driving from Burscough to Skelmersdale’s industrial village ‘Pimbo’. Is this where the potato is manufactured?The only way to find out is to join a staffing agency and try and infiltrate the very bowels of Pimbo itself.”

 

And the Winner is:

Russell Hobbs on Toast Conspiracy?

“Speculation is rife that the WBC toasters were removed in order to prevent potentially earth destroying crumb collision experiments by maverick scientists attempting to create the conditions that existed a billionth of a second after the first bread was toasted. Government scientists fear such experiments could result in the creation of black holes, a condition that occurs when the bread becomes superheated and turns black before igniting, sometimes resulting in a hole in the bread.

It was initially believed that effects of these “black holes“ could be negated by an over-application of butter and jam, but further scientific speculation has suggested that they could result in the END OF THE WORLD !!!

News channels have reported that a group involved in a failed attempt at using crumb collision technology in a café on Fleetwood pier yesterday have fled to Europe and gone underground. Intelligence reports expect them to be making further attempts today.”

It was an extremely competitive field this year for comments, with a special mention going to Dr. Angel for her tireless work and yet cruelly pipped at the post when it came to winning the award.  Dr. Angel’s nemesis, Stefan Dennis, has also been a regular contributor, which is welcome despite his despotic tendencies.  

In the end, the award had to go to Russell Hobbs for his devastating analysis of the whole Warrington-based scandal Toastergate.

Poem of the Year

As Boyzone so eloquently sang, “It’s only words, and words nurr nurr nurr, will take your breath away”. It was definitely something along those lines anyway. So without further flurry in to the fully-formed festivities and fling furtively with final fretful fears, here is some poems.

Runners-Up:

Toast Me – A poem about toast.  Did you like this one the most?

Bit of a Dark Rug – This one makes me shrug.  Why write a poem about a rug?

And the Winner is:

Show Me Magic 

The voting has been frozen

The winner has been chosen

It fills my heart with gaiety

To mock a pretend deity

 

Video of the Year

Due to contractual obligations there were no original Sherby57 created videos on the site this year. Instead we present a round up of our youtube favourites.

Runners-Up:

The Bushwhackers


The key is not to watch Cousin Butch (the one speaking), but to watch Cousin Luke’s dedication to wobbling his head. It’s truly a joy to behold.

Release The Kraken

I could listen to it all day and still not understand why he says ‘Release the Kraken’.  And I have actually done that.  And I didn’t.

And the Winner is:

Steve McLaren Goesh Dutch

I don’t know why it’s so funny but it makes me laugh every time. 

 

Photo of the Year

Pick up a camera and take a snap. What have you got? It’s a photograph!

Runners-Up:

Missing Todd

We miss you
We miss you

 

Luckily he came back to us safely.  Don’t go away ever again sweet prince.

Mmmmmm

 

Toby Carvery Feast

Why can’t somebody invent a machine that can turn photos in to real life, cos I would love to devour that feast right now.

And the Winner is:

Toaster Amnesty Hits Warrington

toaster-trolley

If there is a sadder sight than a load of toasers in a shopping trolley then I’d like to know what it was. Breathtaking.

 

News Story of the Year

If you look at old news stories, should you call them olds?

Runners-Up:

Blind-Duh-Date Syndrome – Another dazzling medical expose, this story highlighted those poor unfortunates who suffer from this terrible affliction.  We learn of the work of Dr. Pepsi Shirley at the unparalleled Torben Piechnik Institute, and what she is doing to help people with such a bizarre vocal condition.

Hot Shower – There had been no new information on the upcoming Fireheart! The Movie in months when this story appeared.  Although trivial in nature, on publication it gave the millions of Fireheart! fans around the world something to hang on to.  And boy, Hot Shower is such a good song!

And the Winner is:

Toaster Amnesty Hits Warrington – This was the story that started the whole Toastergate scandal.  Who could have predicted what an uproar it would cause to the people of Warrington? Not I.   We are still feeling the repercussions now, with conspiracy theories popping up left, right and centre.  It’s unlikely we’ll ever learn the truth about this, but it won’t stop us from trying.

Villain of the Year

Booooooooooo. Hisss.

Runners-Up:

The Hacker Formerly Known as ‘JLS’ – This ‘man’ had the audacity to try and fiddle a sanctioned Sherby57 poll on the hilarious A-Team joke.  It can only be pure evil that would drive a man to do this, to such a well loved and respected jokesmith as myself.  It’s rumoured he is an associate of the following runner-up.

Goot “Goot The Crow” The Crow – He’s still the most evil man in the world, and on merit should have won.  But he’d probably just show off to all his supervillain buddies that he’d won this award two years in a row; and I won’t give him that satisfactions.  The are rumours that the Masked Avenger is turning his sights to the evil empire.  There will be blood spilled this year.

And the Winner is:

Me – For coming up with the idea for the hideous ‘Post From the Past‘ and then insisting on persisting with it.  It’s really annoying and unsatisying to do, but there is the miniscule chance that someone will click on one of the links and get me an extra hit, and so I will keep doing it till the end of time. Awful.

Hero of the Year

Well, it’s getting to the end of the ceremony now, and there’s only one more statuette to present.  But, we’ve saved the best to last.  Last year’s winner, Dave Burley, was there in person to present the award.  It was an emotional moment for us all.

Runners-Up:

Clarence Crapper – The hero of the excellent novel, A Hazard Of Parsnips.  Although fictional, he is such a powerful and erotic prescence that many readers believe him to be real.  We all look forward to more of his adventures in 2009.

Chester Spangleton – He’s had a rough year and only been able to post on FAB twice,  but we still love old Cheshy and hope that this mention gives him a boost with his medical problems. Get well soon Chester!

And the Winner is:

Hans Klaussner – He’s not only our favourite German, he’s our favourite person full stop.  Hans has been away in America for much of the year and returned especially for The Sherbys.  The audience gasped as they realised he was there in person to accept the award and not a dry eye in the house when he and Dave Burley embraced on the podium.  It was the only fitting way to end such a magical evening.

And that’s it, all done and dusted for another year.  Let’s hope 2009 brings us as many tales of daring, emotion and conflict. 

A bientot!

Sherby57

6 Comments »

Rock The Goot

The net tightens.  Following an anonymous tip-off, our intrepid team of researchers has discovered the following letters which some believe were written by The Crow himself:

http://archive.thisischeshire.co.uk/1997/8/9/246393.html

http://archive.warringtonguardian.co.uk/1998/10/23/236319.html

Who is this Andy Gauton character? Could he really be the infamous Goot the Crow? It seems unlikely that the criminal mastermind could be so sloppy as to leave such a big clue to his identity online. We fear it may be a trap.  However, the team is committed to ending his reign of terror and will forge ahead in their endeavours. If you are a rock music fan in the Warrington area, can you help? Have you spotted this man in the Barley Mow? Were you at Lancaster University in 1998? Please help if you can.

In related news, we found the following piece of scientific research:

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/26/science/26crow.html?_r=2&oref=slogin&oref=slogin

Could the uncanny ability of crows to recognise faces be the superhuman ability that allowed Goot to rise to his current status? If you are going to make waves, wear a balaclava.

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Waugh On Corruption

Today has been a day of startling corruption.  First we learn how the X-Factor’s voting has been compromised by showing the wrong phone number for contestant Ruth Lorenzo:

http://www.mirror.co.uk/celebs/latest/2008/10/23/x-factor-s-ruth-lorenzo-s-low-vote-due-to-phone-blunder-115875-20829737/

Shocking stuff, but worse is yet to come. Yesterday, we launched the first poll on Sherby57 based on how funny my A-Team joke was (read it here).  I mean, I’m not being biased but it is pretty hilarious, and so I expected the voting to reflect this. Imagine my horror when I spot 4, yes 4, votes for “Rubbish”.

 Well, I don’t want to sound conceited, but I knew that these were false.  Quickly deploying the Sherby57 Internet Security Team (SIST), they found that I had been the victim of a notorious hacker, know only as “JLS”.

 The infamous JLS is suspected to be in league with none other that, yes you guessed it, Goot the Goddamn Crow. Will this never stop? When will the people rise up against this tyranny?? He must be stopped!!

 Anyway, on a lighter note, here is an X-Factor joke:

 Q: Why did the spanish X-factor contestant like to be on a ferry?

A: Because the Ruth (roof) is always near the Sealink (ceiling).

1 Comment »

Toast Of The Town

Enough time has now passed, from the now infamous Toastergate, for us to look back and reflect on what actually happened.

The first mention of the scandal was in the article, “Toaster Amnesty Hits Warrington”, which initially seemed like a straightforward measure to combat crime.  A representative of the scheme, a Mr Shaun Kelly of Liverpool, claimed that toasters were being collected in order to curb violent toaster-based violence.  

Any regular readers will know that the Sherby57 team take nothing at face value.  After creating the Sherby57 Tactical Toaster Task Force (aka The S57TTTF), and setting them loose of the mean streets of ‘The Wire’ (not to be confused with Baltimore), it was only a day later that the cracks in the story became apparent.  We then published the article “Toast Conspiracy?“, which compared a similar removal of toasters in Aberdeen.  Reported in The Daily Telegraph, the story documents how Aberdeen Council have removed toasters from all offices, in a (sad) attempt at saving some money. Could a similar thing be happening in Warrington? It was difficult to prove.

From this point forward, many differing theories arose on what was actually going on.  One of the first steps we took was to speak to our Goot Investigative Team (GIT) and see if the Evil One was likely to be involved.  They had heard some rumours that The Crow was developing a technique to use 3rd party firmware on standard toasters to turn them in to a £600 model.  We looked on E-Bay but could find no evidence for this.  The Crow is a tricky customer though, and so we cannot write this theory off. Please let us know if you have bought a toaster recently in suspicious circumstances.

Many of the other theories came from avid Sherby57 readers. Aside from useless comments from the likes of Bettys, who said, “Make mine a bagel, lightly browned”, many interesting ideas came to light.

Dixonsmafia, was quick to praise the scheme in it’s original intent, commenting on other white goods-based crime, “A member of staff in our office was enjoying a cool glass of water when these thugs burst in and put the water in a kettle. The member of staff had no option but to settle for a hot drink!”. This gave some credence to the original story, but things were soon to change.

Someone calling themselves ‘I wish to remain anonymous’, believed it was actually a hidden agenda from the government called “Toaster Evaluation” linked to the controversial staff-robbing national Job Evaluation scheme.  This was quickly followed up by ‘Disgruntled Toast Fan’, who exclaimed, “Is it a “Toast Restructure”? or a “Re-organisation of Toasters”?”.  Both of these citizens seem to believe that this is a sinister government programme, possibly attempting to remove toast from our diets.

The Invisible College, spouted some metaphysical stuff that made my head ache. And maybe that was the point.  After wearing a fiction-suit of David Dickinson for a few days before returning to the supercontext, I have to say that they may actually have a point.

Next, we were joined by Miss Dionne Warwick (no relation to the singer), who won the 2007 Sherby for Comment of the Year.  Miss Warwick attempted to enrich the debate by quoting some of the many times that toast appears in Shakespeare.  Who could forget immortal lines such as, “Toast, Toast! My kingdom for Toast!”, and ““Is this Toast which I see before me…”?  She then further enlivens the debate by giving us some scientific information on the nature of toast.  What is this mysterious Maillard reaction to which she speaks? Is it something to do with ducks? Well I’ll just have to check on Wikipedia. I’ve just checked and it’s some kind of chemical reaction. You can read about it here.  And it’s nothing to do with ducks.

The final theory comes from Russell Hobbs, whose ideas deserve to be repeated in full:

“Speculation is rife that the WBC toasters were removed in order to prevent potentially earth destroying crumb collision experiments by maverick scientists attempting to create the conditions that existed a billionth of a second after the first bread was toasted. Government scientists fear such experiments could result in the creation of black holes, a condition that occurs when the bread becomes superheated and turns black before igniting, sometimes resulting in a hole in the bread.

It was initially believed that effects of these “black holes“ could be negated by an over-application of butter and jam, but further scientific speculation has suggested that they could result in the END OF THE WORLD !!!

News channels have reported that a group involved in a failed attempt at using crumb collision technology in a café on Fleetwood pier yesterday have fled to Europe and gone underground. Intelligence reports expect them to be making further attempts today.”

Russell certainly provides us with the most thought through theory, and by some twisted logic, it makes it most likely to be true.  The “WBC” of which he writes is thought to be the avant-garde pseudo-terror cell, the Warrington Bread Collective.  One theory suggests that the WBC is secretly controlled by none other than…Goot The Crow.  It’s like spirals within cogs, within windmills, within wheels, all wrapped up in a juicy melon. We’re through the looking glass here people.

The quest will never end until we have the answers we need and deserve. If you have any further insights to the whole affair, please leave a comment. Although we don’t have any factual answers, I did attempt to solve the emotional quandary in the moving poem, Toast Me.  I hope it helps.

Until next time, keep toasting.

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Crow History

Things may seem to have gone quiet regarding Lex Luthor with a pony-tail, Goot “The Crow”; but behind the scenes we have been working tirelessly to expose him. Being such a tricky character it’s been slow going, but we have found the following three items:

1) http://www.the-crow.co.uk/history.html - This long lost web-page seems to contain information on the early stages in the development of The Crow – and does it contain his real name?? Or is it just more smoke and mirrors?

2) http://www.pointless.net/pipermail/manchesterwireless/2005-November.txt - Why was Goot the Crow getting involved in wireless networking? Was he trying to create a SkyNet style system capable of enslaving the world? It seems far-fetched but we can only assume that he was.

3) Crowfoot Movers. Our spies were carrying out surveillance on a suspected Crow hideout when they spotted this van:

Is The Crow involved?

Is The Crow involved?

Is it too much of a coincidence for The Crow not to be involved? We certainly think so. What is the significance of the name “Crowfoot”? Is it a cover for a more sinister purpose? If you have any information PLEASE let us know.

The hunt continues, stay tuned….

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