What a night. Two records made and a roomful of happy punters at the end of the night. Round IV of GOTG saw actor Gaston Vadasz regale a packed room with talk of his change in direction in life ... at the tender age of 60. Images of him as the Archbishop of Canterbury are etched on my brain. Ailsa Spindler entertained us with a tale of two carriages - her account of a train journey from Istanbul to London. Viki Vegh reminisced about her year in Ireland, while Richard Holmes debated the merits of being fat or fit. Lasting images of a fit, naked Richard, are now competing in my brain with the Archbishop! Finally Owen Good fought valiantly against the sterotype of the Irish male and acquainted us all with the concept of out-Irishing someone.
Heading into the second half, the audience proved its worth and a slew of difficult topics followed. First up, Gaston had to face Why Ireland is more successful than Hungary and The flu. The audience chose the latter and we all learned something about the ailments of aging actors and that phobia Hungarians have about draughts. Next up, the audience had no problem deciding that they'd rather hear Viki talk about a first exprience with sex than the relatively tamer topic of trust. And Viki obliged. Beware the dangers of peppermint! Ailsa showed true dexterity when she managed to turn the audience's choice of Craziness in elections into something entertaining and worth listening to. Her other option? The fiscal cliff! Rather cruelly, methinks, the audience served Owen Italian men rather than boxers or briefs and this proved a tad difficult for the man in the woolly jumper. Richard had to go back for a recheer to decide the audience call for Langos over An embarrassing experience.
When the judges - Virginia, Zsuzsa, Matt, Pat, and Zsolt - had done their bit and Jeremy had totalled the scores, we had two ties with the difference between first and fifth just three points! This was our closest competition ever. Time penalties were rigorously applied (to those who ran over and ran under) and the net result was a speech-off between Viki and Owen. The subject? Sexy Bald Men.
Owen morphed into a cute baby cub bear during his account of a Christmas party featuring a cuddly Canadian chap named George. Viki talked of the need for balance in body baldness and the virtues of a having a hairy back. In our first, ever, clean sweep of straight 10s, Viki secured her place in the final on March 14th.
Thanks to all who participated, judged and those who came along to support the cause. Thanks to Kath for doing the door, Ilona for her stewardship, Jeremy for his regulating, Steve for his photographs, and David for the webmanagement. Thanks particularily to our sponsors: Bombay Express, Gerard Lucey, and the IHBC.
See ye all next month. Same time, same place.
Heading into the second half, the audience proved its worth and a slew of difficult topics followed. First up, Gaston had to face Why Ireland is more successful than Hungary and The flu. The audience chose the latter and we all learned something about the ailments of aging actors and that phobia Hungarians have about draughts. Next up, the audience had no problem deciding that they'd rather hear Viki talk about a first exprience with sex than the relatively tamer topic of trust. And Viki obliged. Beware the dangers of peppermint! Ailsa showed true dexterity when she managed to turn the audience's choice of Craziness in elections into something entertaining and worth listening to. Her other option? The fiscal cliff! Rather cruelly, methinks, the audience served Owen Italian men rather than boxers or briefs and this proved a tad difficult for the man in the woolly jumper. Richard had to go back for a recheer to decide the audience call for Langos over An embarrassing experience.
When the judges - Virginia, Zsuzsa, Matt, Pat, and Zsolt - had done their bit and Jeremy had totalled the scores, we had two ties with the difference between first and fifth just three points! This was our closest competition ever. Time penalties were rigorously applied (to those who ran over and ran under) and the net result was a speech-off between Viki and Owen. The subject? Sexy Bald Men.
Owen morphed into a cute baby cub bear during his account of a Christmas party featuring a cuddly Canadian chap named George. Viki talked of the need for balance in body baldness and the virtues of a having a hairy back. In our first, ever, clean sweep of straight 10s, Viki secured her place in the final on March 14th.
Thanks to all who participated, judged and those who came along to support the cause. Thanks to Kath for doing the door, Ilona for her stewardship, Jeremy for his regulating, Steve for his photographs, and David for the webmanagement. Thanks particularily to our sponsors: Bombay Express, Gerard Lucey, and the IHBC.
See ye all next month. Same time, same place.