Danskcolin: Tuesday September 3rd 2024 "It's not easy sharing a name with somebody famous, is it!"

Do YOU share a name with a famous celebrity? If the answer's 'yes' I bet your life is no "walk in the park" or "a piece of cake", is it.

And if your initial "gut reaction" to my question is "No, Colin, I've just got some random name", then, if you will, just check out, first, this list below, a list of the 8 most famous people in the world [source: respected Internet software 'search engine' Google ®].

You might just find your name is right there in the list, even if you're not actually the celebrity that most people think of when they hear your name.

There, you see! I bet a few of you are "blessed", or should I say "cursed" (!) with going through your life carrying a name like 'Walt Disney', who, if you weren't aware, was once a world-famous producer and actor, a talented guy who played occasional stand-in 'bit parts' in the film that was basically his own pet project - "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs" (1937)!

Am I right? Or am I right!

And look at all the problems it caused British army "top brass" celebrity and former head of the British Army, General "Sir" Michael Jackson back in the 1990's. People were always getting him confused with the famous music artist, weren't they.

I think I've proved my point there now, haven't I?

Even I myself am "cursed" with having one of the world's most popular forenames - yes, you've guessed it (!), it's Colin, of course!

Just look at the numbers. And remember - these are from just one American state. Imagine the result if these figures were multiplied worldwide.

flashback to July 2023: official data supplied to this blog

by Steve, my American brother-in-law

I'm just thankful my name isn't Rhys, or even worse, Rocco. It hardly bears thinking about, really - what a nightmare that must be for some poor "schmucks" (!), or rather, a lot of poor "schmucks" (!).

The name Colin has even invaded the animal kingdom, hasn't it, and from there to the culinary world, with the UK's most popular cake, the "Colin the Caterpillar" cake. Do you remember, Colin was the root cause, back in 2021, of some undignified and bruising litigation between leading UK supermarkets Aldi and Marks & Spencer, who each claimed to have the original "Colin cake" on their shelves.

flashback to April 2021: M&S sue Aldi Supermarkets

over the right to market "Colin the Caterpillar" cakes

"But why are you giving us this elongated sob-story about your unfortunate name, Colin?", I hear you cry. [Not me, I went away to make a cup of tea, several - like - a billion, column inches ago! - Ed]

Well, seeing as how you're asking (!), it's all because of the excitement mounting here in the UK over the first programme tonight in the much-awaited second series of Australian sitcom, "Colin From Accounts", all about arguably the most famous Colin in the world, not a person in this case, but the beloved little handicapped dog belonging to Gordon (Patrick Bramall) and his current "squeeze", Ashley (Harriet Dyer).

Awwwww, dear little Colin the Dog !!!!

the "teaser-campaign" story about the series in this morning's Guardian

And, as the 2nd series starts, couple Gordon and Ashley are still trying to reclaim their former pet, beloved dog Colin, from the beloved dog's new owners, because they've got "a Colin-shaped hole in their hearts". Awwww !!!!!

Maybe you've had one of those "Colin-shaped holes" yourself at one time or another? [No! - Ed]

Did you see the listing, and the "blurb" in this week's Radio Times?

You're probably anticipating that I'm now going to give you one of my trademark "reviews" of the first episode in Colin From Accounts series 2 - and my reviews can "make or break" a sitcom series, can't they. Many's the run that has been cancelled by TV bosses after programme one, whenever I've published a review containing even a slightly damning reference to the show. It's frightening to have this kind of power, but what can I do?

I'm going to have to disappoint you today, however. "Colin from Accounts" isn't on till 10pm, a time which sends strong "Go to bed" signals in the minds of my medium-to-long-suffering wife Lois and me.

[You tease, Colin! - Ed]

We plan to watch it tomorrow, in the company of our own handicapped stuffed-toy, Rover the dog-faced pony, the one we've adopted from our granddaughters Lily and Jessica, who've abandoned poor Rover this week to fly off from London's Heathrow Airport with their parents, our daughter Sarah (48) and husband Francis, to a new life in Perth, Western Australia.

tomorrow's iconic page in my smartphone's calendar

flashback to last Sunday: Lois and I say goodbye to our

daughter Sarah and family with a farewell lunch at Alcester's

Royal Oak pub: (left to right) Lily, Sarah, Francis, Lois and Jessica.

Tomorrow (Wednesday) the family will be starting a new life in Australia

flashback to Monday: our twin granddaughters Lily and Jessica

in the back seat of their taxi from Alcester to London's Heathrow Airport,

on their way to a new life in Australia

flashback to this morning: the twins plus their father Francis,

our son-in-law, having breakfast at a hotel near Heathrow

So watch this space for my review of "Colin From Accounts (Series 2) ", right here in this blog tomorrow.

Lois and I have set aside some time for reviewing the programme, discussing it three-ways, both amongst ourselves and also with the twins' former stuffed-toy Rover, and then dashing off some trademark review or other - so cancel everything you've got planned for tomorrow: my review is going to be a real "doozy", I can promise you that!

flashback to a few days ago: me (right) showcasing

Rover, the dog-faced pony on wheels, with his "best mate"

Buckles the Unicorn, stuffed toys that our twin granddaughters

Lily and Jessica tried, but failed (!) to "stuff" into the hand-luggage

for Wednesday's flight to Perth, Western Australia

me, sharing a moment with handicapped dog-faced pony

Rover (left), complete with his orthopaedic wheels, the "third animal"

in mine and Lois's marriage, and keen TV critic.

included for comparison purposes: Colin, the cute real-life

"dog on wheels" (right), from the TV series, seen here

with former owners, Ashley and Gordon

(played by Harriet Dyer and Patrick Bramall)

[Have you finished talking about that now, Colin ? - Ed]

[not quite ! - Colin]

I personally feel a real empathy with both of these "wheeled icons": Colin from Accounts and also Rover, the Dog-Faced Pony, because 5 months ago, I was lying in a hospital bed in Redditch, "sporting" a shiny new hip, and recovering from the previous day's replacement operation. I see now that doctors could have fitted me with a pair of orthopaedic wheels to go home with, when they discharged me, but maybe that wouldn't have been such a good idea - your views please, on a postcard as usual, and I guarantee to pass them on to Worcestershire NHS, to consider and pronounce upon, "in their wisdom" (!) .

flashback to April: me, a recovering 'hippo-holic', in my hospital bed

in Redditch, being visited by stuffed toy Black & White Cat,

my daughter Sarah, and my granddaughter Lily - awwwww!!!

And today, 5 months after my operation, there's a small victory personally for me, a bit of a "milestone", when, as a fully-paid-up "recovering hippo-holic", I decide to return the orthopaedic aids that the NHS did issue me with, so that they could be used by some other poor sod! I haven't used the aids actually since May, but I was hanging on to them, just to be on the safe side - call me risk-averse if you like haha!

I showcase the 3 NHS orthopaedic aids, that I was

issued with on my discharge from hospital: a perching-stool,

a toilet frame, and a pair of crutches

21:00 Anyway, to resume (!), Lois and I get ready for bed tonight with another episode of the 1980's sitcom series " 'Allo 'Allo ", based on the World War II saga of French café-owner René (played by Gorden Kaye), trying to keep the peace between his German officer-demographic-customer-base and the local French Resistance, while also carrying on behind his wife's back with one or other of the café's two waitresses Maria (Francesca Gonshaw) and/or Yvette (Vicki Michelle).