The Hoddle of Coffee: Tottenham Hotspur news and links for Wednesday, December 5

Hey, folks!

Back to another jungle recap, where someone said “jam roly poly” in episodes 15 and 16, and it wasn’t Harry Redknapp!

Ramble of the Day

I’ve found that parting has become, as William Shakespeare once put it, such sweet sorrow. Much as I did not expect the I’m a Celebrity contestants’ attachment to each other and affection for one another, I was surprised with how sad I got over the eliminations of two contestants in episodes 15 and 16. Harry Redknapp, though, is a bit more picky about just how attached he’s gotten to everyone, but even on a pessimistic note there were hints of optimism.

As episode 15 began, we ran into Redknapp with the members of the since disbanded Team Roo, shower buddy James McVey and Fleur East, easily his best mate in camp. As always, he had compliments for East; he called her boyfriend “lucky” for having a girlfriend who sings every morning (East said her boyfriend’s over it) and calling her a “midfield dynamo” good enough to play for Liverpool or Manchester United before she went off to her Bushtucker trial. She earned everyone in camp a meal, and soon it was Redknapp’s turn to do a challenge of his own.

Paired with Rita Simons, they had to use a sieve to find enough (I’m guessing) fake pieces of gold to earn some dingo dollars and a chance at a treat. Simons uttered the words “jam roly poly,” something they both hoped would be waiting for them on the other side. The two got to change into plaid shirts and overalls, and elected to do a range of accents, from American Southern to the Australian, which Redknapp argued is similar to the Cockney accent. On the other side, they didn’t see jam roly poly but instead had the option to pick up some ice pops, though they didn’t get them. For the end of the episode 15 food recap, the group had wallaby wings for dinner, but Redknapp didn’t comment much on it.

Malique Thompson-Dwyer, one of the two people that taught Redknapp a rap for his wife, was the next contestant voted off. I was sad, and so was the group; John Barrowman, who sprained his ankle and missed elimination by taking a trip to the hospital, was sad on delay. Redknapp wasn’t, and he had good reason; it’s not like they won’t ever see Thompson-Dwyer again. He’s alive, just not in the Australian wilderness with them anymore. I’m thinking now of that sweet reunion, because I’m sure Thompson-Dwyer would love to run into Redknapp again. In his exit interview, he talked about how much he loved listening to his stories and called Redknapp “a geezer” with a lot of banter. I hope their paths cross in the future; I don’t think I could bear it if they didn’t.

Episode 16 was about the movies, and after a High School musical pun, cupcakes, and an enjoyable dinner of ostrich egg, it was Redknapp’s turn to talk about them. The show, as if it read my ramble about how much I enjoyed Blockbuster, because and Emily Atack had to go to Bug-buster to win some dessert. Upon arrival, Redknapp admitted something: “Last time I went to go see a film, Emily, was Doctor Zhivago” in 1965 while he was still courting Sandra. They had to place VHS tape lookalikes with famous lines from films into boxes on shelves while bugs dropped on them. Atack easily was able to identify the films, while Redknapp had no issue looking for the titles and handling the bugs, and eventually shared knowledge of the films. On The Wizard of Oz, he said he “hadn’t seen that,” and on Toy Story, he said, “I’ve never even heard of that.”

They were eventually successful, bringing back ice cream, popcorn, and cold drinks. Another cruel elimination came in the morning, as Sair Khan exited after 17 days in the jungle. I was again sad, as she was starting to gain some screen time and confidence, but her time was up. I’ll try not to dwell on it, but she did predict that Redknapp might win the whole thing.

I think she might be right.

tl;dr: Sentimentality, accents, and films with Harry Redknapp.

Links of the Day

Manchester City reportedly could be banned from next season’s Champions League for violating Financial Fair Play rules.

Former FIFA executive committee member Rafael Salguero said his vote for the 2018 World Cup host was motivated by a bribe that he never ended up receiving.

Gareth Bale believes he should have won this year’s Puskás Award for his goal in the Champions League final instead of Mohamed Salah.

Today’s longer read: Simon Kuper on the bizarre night that was this year’s Ballon d’Or ceremony for ESPN