ADELE PWNS CALL OF DUTY IN 2011 CHARTS
Last week the official entertainment charts for 2011 were released by the UK’s Official Charts Company, settling the long-lasting arguments between kids and parents, friends and neighbours over what 2011 was really about. Everyone who is anybody will have an opinion about the latest trends in music, film and gaming – whether they approve of the trends or not.
With some huge artists, films and video games hitting the scene, there was much speculation over who would be crowned king or queen of the media charts. With huge anticipation, the results announced finally showed a worthwhile winner for the title of the UK’s biggest entertainment product of the year – Adele with her album ‘21’, selling over 1.1million more copies than the second position.
01 21 - Adele (3.9m) Album
02 Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 (2.8m) Game
03 Harry Potter & The Deathly Hallows 1 (2.5m) Video
04 FIFA 12 (2.2m) Game
05 Harry Potter & The Deathly Hallows 2 (2.1m) Video
06 The Inbetweeners Movie (2.1m) Video
07 The King's Speech (1.9m) Video
08 Christmas - Michael Buble (1.3m) Album
09 Doo-Wops & Hooligans - Bruno Mars (1.3m) Album
10 19 – Adele (1.3m) Album
11 Battlefield 3 (1.2m) Game
12 Now That's What I Call Music 80 (1.2m) Album
13 Despicable Me (1.2m) Video
14 Pirates of the Caribbean - On Stranger (1.1m) Video
15 Paul (1.1m) Video
16 Zumba Fitness (1.1m) Game
17 Tangled (1.0m) Video
18 The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (1.0m) Game
19 Peter Kay - Live - The Tour That Didn't (1.0m) Video
20 Bridesmaids (980,000) Video
2011 proved a fantastic year for the loveable Essex-favourite Adele, not only with her latest album, but her album ‘19’ from 2008 also made a reappearance in the charts, placing 10th for the year overall. Following the singer, Call of Duty’s Modern Warfare 3 came second with 2.8m copies sold – remarkable seeing as the game was only released in early November. In third position, Harry Potter’s first part of the final Deathly Hallows came third, with the second part placing 5th.
For more information and the latest charts, why not check out the Official Chart’s Companies website for the latest news – www.theofficialcharts.com.
With some huge artists, films and video games hitting the scene, there was much speculation over who would be crowned king or queen of the media charts. With huge anticipation, the results announced finally showed a worthwhile winner for the title of the UK’s biggest entertainment product of the year – Adele with her album ‘21’, selling over 1.1million more copies than the second position.
01 21 - Adele (3.9m) Album
02 Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 (2.8m) Game
03 Harry Potter & The Deathly Hallows 1 (2.5m) Video
04 FIFA 12 (2.2m) Game
05 Harry Potter & The Deathly Hallows 2 (2.1m) Video
06 The Inbetweeners Movie (2.1m) Video
07 The King's Speech (1.9m) Video
08 Christmas - Michael Buble (1.3m) Album
09 Doo-Wops & Hooligans - Bruno Mars (1.3m) Album
10 19 – Adele (1.3m) Album
11 Battlefield 3 (1.2m) Game
12 Now That's What I Call Music 80 (1.2m) Album
13 Despicable Me (1.2m) Video
14 Pirates of the Caribbean - On Stranger (1.1m) Video
15 Paul (1.1m) Video
16 Zumba Fitness (1.1m) Game
17 Tangled (1.0m) Video
18 The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (1.0m) Game
19 Peter Kay - Live - The Tour That Didn't (1.0m) Video
20 Bridesmaids (980,000) Video
2011 proved a fantastic year for the loveable Essex-favourite Adele, not only with her latest album, but her album ‘19’ from 2008 also made a reappearance in the charts, placing 10th for the year overall. Following the singer, Call of Duty’s Modern Warfare 3 came second with 2.8m copies sold – remarkable seeing as the game was only released in early November. In third position, Harry Potter’s first part of the final Deathly Hallows came third, with the second part placing 5th.
For more information and the latest charts, why not check out the Official Chart’s Companies website for the latest news – www.theofficialcharts.com.
O2 Signs Landmark Deal to Create Europe’s Largest Wifi Zone Ready for the 2012 London Olympics
Visitors to and residents in the Westminster and Kensingston & Chelsea areas are to enjoy free wifi access on their mobile phones, laptops and tablet devices following a landmark deal between Westminster City Council, the Royal Borough of Kensington & Chelsea and network operator O2. The deal will result in the largest free wireless internet hub in Europe – making free wifi available to millions of visitors and residents in the region.
The deal, which will cost nothing to the councils nor the taxpayer, is part of the plan to open up London to the millions of visitors to the city. Not only will it give them the best experience, maximising on the cities offerings, but it will also allow visitors to share their experiences worldwide through social media websites.
The wireless network is due to be installed from this month, with Metro wireless network devices installed onto street furniture. Initially, the network will be available across limited areas, but O2 hope to eventually roll out the free, fast and open wifi network on a large scale throughout the UK/
“I think the network is a great idea, it’ll be great to be able to interact with the rest of the world during the Olympics” said Harry, who is employed in the Westminster borough. “I’m going to two of the Olympic events, so being able to tweet about what’s going on, as well as catch up with others will allow the world to unite and enjoy the experience together.”
The new network will allow integration of multiple media types, increasing the interactivity of viewers from across the globe. Not only will users be able to watch the events through their television and via the internet, they will now be able to engage in discussion and can be part of the bigger picture.
“Westminster welcomes over a million tourists a day, is home to 250,000 residents, employs over half a million people and sees 4,000 business start-ups each year” said Cllr Philippa Roe, Cabinet Member for Strategic Finance at Westminster City Council. “Next summer’s Olympic Games mean that London will be putting on the biggest show on earth and as Westminster has a starring role, visitors to London will easily be able to share their pictures and updates of the Olympic events across social networking sites.”
Chief Operating Officers for O2 said: “this groundbreaking deal – the first of its kind int he UK – will see us deliver high quality connectivity across London in time for London 2012. Our longer-term aim is to expand our footprint of O2 Wifi, which is open to everyone, ad also intelligently enhance our services as street level, where people need the network the most.”
The £500m network investment programme aims to integrate multiple layers of technology, enabling a seamless and high quality customer experience.
For additional details, visit news.o2.co.uk/press-releases.
The deal, which will cost nothing to the councils nor the taxpayer, is part of the plan to open up London to the millions of visitors to the city. Not only will it give them the best experience, maximising on the cities offerings, but it will also allow visitors to share their experiences worldwide through social media websites.
The wireless network is due to be installed from this month, with Metro wireless network devices installed onto street furniture. Initially, the network will be available across limited areas, but O2 hope to eventually roll out the free, fast and open wifi network on a large scale throughout the UK/
“I think the network is a great idea, it’ll be great to be able to interact with the rest of the world during the Olympics” said Harry, who is employed in the Westminster borough. “I’m going to two of the Olympic events, so being able to tweet about what’s going on, as well as catch up with others will allow the world to unite and enjoy the experience together.”
The new network will allow integration of multiple media types, increasing the interactivity of viewers from across the globe. Not only will users be able to watch the events through their television and via the internet, they will now be able to engage in discussion and can be part of the bigger picture.
“Westminster welcomes over a million tourists a day, is home to 250,000 residents, employs over half a million people and sees 4,000 business start-ups each year” said Cllr Philippa Roe, Cabinet Member for Strategic Finance at Westminster City Council. “Next summer’s Olympic Games mean that London will be putting on the biggest show on earth and as Westminster has a starring role, visitors to London will easily be able to share their pictures and updates of the Olympic events across social networking sites.”
Chief Operating Officers for O2 said: “this groundbreaking deal – the first of its kind int he UK – will see us deliver high quality connectivity across London in time for London 2012. Our longer-term aim is to expand our footprint of O2 Wifi, which is open to everyone, ad also intelligently enhance our services as street level, where people need the network the most.”
The £500m network investment programme aims to integrate multiple layers of technology, enabling a seamless and high quality customer experience.
For additional details, visit news.o2.co.uk/press-releases.
Worm Steals Facebook Passwords
Social networking website, Facebook, has been hit by a malware worm, with thefts of at least 45,000 Facebook passwords, say security experts.
According to Seculert, who have been tracking the worm, focus has been predominately on users in the UK and France, but has affected accounts worldwide.
The culprit, Ramnit, is a well known piece of malware, originally designed to gather information such as browser cookies and banking credentials. Now targeting Facebook users, the malware is far more invasive, compromising tens of thousands of users’ accounts.
Facebook, who is said to be looking into the breach of security, has notified those who they believe to be affected. With accounts frequently compromised via various methods, the Ramnit worm looks to be one of the biggest in recent social networking history.
'Miss Weeble' at mlm
According to Seculert, who have been tracking the worm, focus has been predominately on users in the UK and France, but has affected accounts worldwide.
The culprit, Ramnit, is a well known piece of malware, originally designed to gather information such as browser cookies and banking credentials. Now targeting Facebook users, the malware is far more invasive, compromising tens of thousands of users’ accounts.
Facebook, who is said to be looking into the breach of security, has notified those who they believe to be affected. With accounts frequently compromised via various methods, the Ramnit worm looks to be one of the biggest in recent social networking history.
'Miss Weeble' at mlm
Ed Byrne’s Crowd Pleaser at The Brighton Dome (13/10/2011)
When bespectacled Irish funny-man and Mock the Week regular Ed Byrne strode onto the stage, pint in hand, he was greeted by rapturous applause from a bizarrely depleted crowd inside the Brighton Dome. Confronted with a venue that was only two thirds full Byrne responded with the type of loveable self-deprecation that seems reserved for on the most jovial of comedians. With a wry smile playing across his lips he quipped; ‘Well I’ve been here twice on this tour and collectively I’ve sold it out once...not bad goin’!’
His nerdy appearance and keen to please manner skilfully mask the precision and masterful comic timing that this road hardened comedian possesses. His comedy comes from observational type storytelling and razor sharp observations that at times can veer dangerously close to rambling but always lead to a clever, witty and impeccably delivered punch line often building up to the payoff with increasingly funny jokes (a process that he mentions throughout in a self aware and meta fashion).
Byrne is erudite, articulate and unlike many of his peers his jokes never stray into cruel territory which gives him a charm that is hard to match. Even when he interacts with the crowd his responses never set out to attack or mock the audience member but instead ask them to think about it from a different point of view. At one point he asked the audience to tell him about times that celebrities had been less than courteous to them. One particularly disgruntled man, who works as a chef on film sets, said that he thought Michael Cane had been rude because he asked for an omelette at 3am ‘just because he could’ to which Byrne replied; ‘Don’t you think he might just have been hungry?’ The only snippet of genuine hate and vitriol was directed towards Peirs Morgan which, needless to say, got one of the biggest cheers of the night.
Byrne’s topics of observation ran the gamut from his own pedantic nerdyness to celebrity culture to the trials and tribulations of being a father. His comedy is closely bound up in stories of his own life. Some of the best material comes when he describes the relationship between him and his wife. The interactions that they share not only let you get to know Ed Byrne as a person but also communicate universal truths that are implicit in any and all relationships. Byrne’s likeable, nerdy and affable manner coupled with a hilarious, expertly honed comic act made for a fantastic night of comedy. If the Dome continues to host top talent like this the Brighton Comedy festival will go from strength to strength.
'BadIdeaDan' at mlm
His nerdy appearance and keen to please manner skilfully mask the precision and masterful comic timing that this road hardened comedian possesses. His comedy comes from observational type storytelling and razor sharp observations that at times can veer dangerously close to rambling but always lead to a clever, witty and impeccably delivered punch line often building up to the payoff with increasingly funny jokes (a process that he mentions throughout in a self aware and meta fashion).
Byrne is erudite, articulate and unlike many of his peers his jokes never stray into cruel territory which gives him a charm that is hard to match. Even when he interacts with the crowd his responses never set out to attack or mock the audience member but instead ask them to think about it from a different point of view. At one point he asked the audience to tell him about times that celebrities had been less than courteous to them. One particularly disgruntled man, who works as a chef on film sets, said that he thought Michael Cane had been rude because he asked for an omelette at 3am ‘just because he could’ to which Byrne replied; ‘Don’t you think he might just have been hungry?’ The only snippet of genuine hate and vitriol was directed towards Peirs Morgan which, needless to say, got one of the biggest cheers of the night.
Byrne’s topics of observation ran the gamut from his own pedantic nerdyness to celebrity culture to the trials and tribulations of being a father. His comedy is closely bound up in stories of his own life. Some of the best material comes when he describes the relationship between him and his wife. The interactions that they share not only let you get to know Ed Byrne as a person but also communicate universal truths that are implicit in any and all relationships. Byrne’s likeable, nerdy and affable manner coupled with a hilarious, expertly honed comic act made for a fantastic night of comedy. If the Dome continues to host top talent like this the Brighton Comedy festival will go from strength to strength.
'BadIdeaDan' at mlm
What happened to the iPhone 5?
So, this October, after months of baited breath, Apple announced the release of the brand new iPhone to hit the worldwide market. “Finally, the iPhone 5,” so many stated....but, alas, it was not meant to be. With a somewhat anticlimactic launch, the new iPhone 4S will hit the high-streets at the end of October this year.
Despite specifications most techies and mobile-designers could only dream of, hitting all the right spots, the iPhone 4S was not what the excited public were expecting. Cosmetically, it looks just like the iPhone 4, which was only launched last year. Whilst many people love the look, there are still some holding on to the old-style iPhone with the smooth casing, including me- I just love the way it feels to hold. In my opinion, it was somewhat disappointing to see the the chunkier design was to continue.
However, cosmetic design aside, the technical features of the phone look fantastic. With an even faster operating system and a camera that can be ready to shoot in seconds, you’ll never miss that spontaneous and hilarious moment ever again. I’m not saying the previous iPhone’s aren’t fast, but, every time I see something worthwhile, it’s usually gone by the time the cameras booted up! And, with another 200 brand new features set to be introduced, it is an exciting time to be an Apple customer.
But, the question that is on everyone’s lips is where is the iPhone 5? Discussions suggest that Apple were planning the spectacular launch, however, with time tight before the Christmas rush, it would be impossible to roll out the 5 in time. With a period of quiet, it was essential that Apple release a new model, even if it is just to keep them looking busy and at the forefront of innovation. Perhaps the biggest hint of a failed iPhone 5 is the new operating system, named iOS5. Making the iPhone 4S just that little bit different, the iOS5 launch is also available across the iPhone 3GS and the iPhone 4.
So, what else is new in the world of Apple...
• iOS5 - brings 200 new features to the Apple devices
• iCloud – the free service that allows you to sync, access and update content wirelessly wherever you are across your different Apple devices
• Siri – the intelligent personal assistant who will answer to verbal instructions and requests
So, in my opinion....I'd wait for the iPhone 5, hopefully there will be some real changes. If I wanted a new camera, I'd grab a cheap one from Argos for £50. Does the job and doesn't matter if you lose it on a night out.