MAGAZINE ARCHIVE : Q – DECEMBER 2012

It’s the end of 2012 and there’s a killer on the cover of Q. Not an actual killer, but Brandon Flowers, lead singer of The Killers.

2013 will see the 50th anniversary of The Rolling Stones, a year which will see new music and a documentary, this getting a single page feature from Q.

Charlotte Church gets a two page interview, where she reveals pensioners still turn up at her concerts thinking she will perform her opera hits.

The band Keane get a five page profile as Q goes on tour with them in Japan, and are having a more successful time that Roy Keane did in Japan ten years previously.

Also featured is someone else looking to have success in a foreign country, asking why Breaking Bad isn’t available in the UK.

Q features the recent trend of musicians becoming DJs, with a profile of Radio 6 Music stars Cerys Matthews, Jarvis Cocker, Guy Garvey and Huey Morgan.

Cover star Brandon Flowers is interviewed as part of an eight page feature on The Killers, revealing that he believes he will one day overtake The Osmonds as the world’s most famous Mormon.

In live reviews, Q goes to see George Michael in London, back on the concert trail after a near fatal bout of pneumonia.

The magazine ends with a Q and A with Florence Welch, who reveals she has no plans to follow David Cameron on Twitter.

MAGAZINE ARCHIVE : Q – SEPTEMBER 2012

“Last chance to see” screams the headline accompanying cover stars Blur. That turned out to be a lie, as I saw Blur in August 2013.

As you open the magazine, there are five pages dedicated to Stone Roses comeback with a large scale concert at Heaton Park in Manchester.

Talking of concerts, there is a look at the recent trend of Meet and Greets, looking at the various packages on offer and the fans who have taken advantage of them.

In future albums, there is a page dedicated to Foals, who are working on a new album for release in “Early 2013”.

Graeme Swann takes Q through his record collection, singing the praises of Queen, Oasis, Stereophonics, The Bluetones and Pink Floyd.

The subject of this month’s Cash For Questions is Wayne Coyne of Flaming Lips, who states that he would make a good Doctor Who.

As the summer is now long gone, Q dedicates eight pages to reviewing the festivals of 2012 in the UK, although they did manage to go to Portugal for one.

Cover stars Blur get seven pages, as the band gets ready for a concert at Hyde Park, unsure of what direction for the band to go next.

The magazine ends with a Q and A with Tom Meighan from Kasabian, who reveals he would like to do a Mowtown covers album.

MAGAZINE ARCHIVE : Q – OCTOBER 2012

It’s October 2012 and Muse, with a space background are the cover stars of Q.

Blur get a two page photo special as they reunited to play Hyde Park, but do a couple of low key gigs first.

That concert was part of the Olympic celebrations, with a two page feature on the musical highlights of that sporting event.

Q goes for lunch with Daryl Hall, who talks about doing ads for Google with bad puns.

Also meeting Q is Bloc Party, who are back together three years after splitting up.

Tulisa gets a three page profile, as she is described as Britain’s Most Ambitious Pop Star, leading into a nine page profile of Muse.

The magazine ends with a Q and A with Professor Green, who reveals that he was once arrested when he was in hospital awaiting surgery.

MAGAZINE ARCHIVE : WORLD SOCCER – JANUARY 2012

Lionel Messi is the cover star of this edition of World Soccer, which looks back at football in 2011.

The magazine begins with two obituaries, a full page for Socrates, while Gary Speed surprisingly gets a small mention on the following page.

Algerian internationals from the 1980s have demanded an inquiry into possible doping by the Team Doctor after it emerged that eight players from that era have fathered disabled children.

Manchester United’s elimination from the European Cup gets focused on, with one columnist suggesting that the team lacks flair.

Jaiyah Saelua of American Samoa made history as the first transgender footballer to play in an international.

Brian Glanville uses his column to bemoan the number of dead rubber games in the group stages of the European Cup.

The draw for Euro 2012 has taken place and there is a full fixture list, as well as a look at the goalkeepers who will be taking part in Ukraine and Poland.

In Spain, Real Madrid looked to have blown their chance of winning La Liga.

Qatar are struggling in their bid to reach the 2014 finals, as they aim to reach the World Cup before hosting it in 2022.

Hoping to take part in the 2022 World Cup Qualifiers in Gibraltar, and their application to join UEFA is given a full page profile.

With the African Cup Of Nations near, there is a profile of Morocco, now under the management of Eric Gerets, and aiming to win the competition,

There is eight pages dedicated to looking back at 2011, as well as a look at stars of the future, with Eden Hazard, Mario Gotze, Marco Reus, Jack Rodwell and Christian Eriksen predicted for great things.

There is also six pages looking back at Lionel Messi’s year.

There is also a tactical look at how Chelsea’s high line is costing them dear.

Istanbul is the subject of a two page feature called Soccer Cities, offering advice to anyone wanting to travel there to watch football.

There is three pages reviewing how each European national team performed in 2011, while the focus of the club round-up is of both Manchester clubs crashing out of the European Cup.

MAGAZINE ARCHIVE : WHEN SATURDAY COMES – JULY 2012

England are at the European Championship, with Ashley Young on the cover of When Saturday Comes confidently predicting that England will do better than they did at Euro 2008.

He has good reason for his optimism, as England failed to reach Euro 2008.

There is a review of the recent Scottish Cup Final, where Hearts beat Hibs 5-1, including a feature on 102 year old Hibs fan Sam Martinez, who says he hopes to see Hibs win the Scottish Cup before he dies, with their drought now at 111 years.

In Northern Ireland, Linfield won their sixth double in seven years, to some apathy from fans, with one fan arguing that history will be a lot kinder to David Jeffrey in the future than it is now.

To cover the full length of the UK, we then move to Wales, where Cardiff City fans are upset at an attempt to rebrand the club, including a change of colours by Vincent Tan.

At Aston Villa, there is an article on the future of manager Alex McLeish, whose time was believed to up when he celebrated a draw at home to Stoke.

Match Of The Month is the Championship Play-Off Final between Blackpool and West Ham, two clubs aiming to return to the Premier League at the first time of asking.

There is also review of the season in all three divisions of the Football League.

On the continent, Serbia’s Cup Final was held outside Belgrade and ended up in a riot, while Auxerre have been relegated from France’s top flight.

MAGAZINE ARCHIVE : WHEN SATURDAY COMES – AUGUST 2012

Joined by Juan Mata, Fernando Torres is the cover star of this month’s When Saturday Comes, looking back in a horrendous season for him that saw him become a European champion for club and country, top scorer in Euro 2012 and an FA Cup winner.

Euro 2012 dominates this edition, with a day by day diary of the competition, looking back at every game, including a photographic look at how fans watched the tournament in the UK, while there was a feature on those who did travel to Poland and Ukraine, where the welcome for travelling fans wasn’t as bad as feared.

There is a look bad at some of the tournament’s failures, with group stage exiters Holland and Russia getting full page features on their failure.

Underdogs get profiles, with Republic of Ireland and Greece getting a full page looking back at their respective fortunes, as did both finalists Spain and Italy.

There is a look forward to Euro 2016, with sceptical analysis on the decision to increase the tournament from 16 teams to 24 teams.

In club football, there is a look at Harry Redknapp’s sacking as Tottenham Hotspur manager, and the polarising nature of the reaction to his departure from fans and media.

STATISTICAL ANALYSIS OF A FOOTBALL YEAR

Having done a statistical analysis of the 2011-2012 season, I thought i’d do one for my football watching in 2012, with today having been my last match attended of the year.

Here is the breakdown.

Games : 48

Goals Seen : 149

(Should have been 151, but I managed to miss two goals this year. Was late for second-half of Linfield v Portadown on 27.10.2012 and missed a goal. Missed the start of Northern Ireland v Azerbaijan on 14.11.2012 and missed a goal)

Red Cards: 10

(Doesn’t include red cards awarded in the dressing room to David Armstrong and Terry Fitzpatrick during Dungannon v Linfield on 13.10.2012)

Missed/Saved Penalties : 4

Hat-Tricks : 3

Aaron Burns (Linfield v Dungannon Swifts)
Peter Thompson (Linfield v Newry City)
Matthew Tipton (Orangefield OB v Linfield)

Teams Seen : 33

Ajax (1st time), Australia (1st time), Azerbaijan, B36 Torshavn (1st time), Ballinamallard United (1st time), Ballymena United, Carrick Rangers, Cliftonville, Coleraine, Crusaders, Donegal Celtic, Dungannon Swifts, Excelsior Rotterdam (1st time), FC Utrecht (1st time), Glenavon, Glentoran, Harland and Wolff Welders (1st time), Heart of Midlothian, Hibernian, Holland (1st time), Linfield, Lisburn Distillery, Luxembourg (1st time), Manchester United, Newry City, Northern Ireland, Norway, Orangefield OB (1st time), Portadown, Queens Park Rangers (1st time), Rosenborg, Scotland, VVV Venlo (1st time)

Stadiums Visited : 16

Amsterdam Arena (1st time), Ballymena Showgrounds, Ballyskeagh, Easter Road, Ferney Park (1st time), Gibson Park (1st time), Mourneview Park, Old Trafford, Seaview, Shamrock Park, Solitude, Stangmore Park, The Oval, Tillysburn Park (1st time), Windsor Park, Woudestein (1st time),

Competitions : 9

County Antrim Shield, Eredivise, European Cup, FA Premier League, Irish Cup, Irish League, Scottish Premier League, UEFA Cup, World Cup

Curiosities

4th February – Watched a match in a stand named after Robin Van Persie

18th February – Twins (Aaron and Andrew Burns) on opposing sides in a competitive game