Results - 16.03.2012

Categories: Comedians/comic actors & Food

I knew full well when I threw these categories into the mix that it'd end up being a colossal week. After just an hour or so the board was swollen and pulsating with upper echelon Punnery. In fact, it was such a strong start that I feared the lunch time Pun-Rush would be crippled by repeats and removals.

There were a fair few repeats but they were all around the same Puns - John Cheese & Stephen Fry-up seemed to dominate; which is interesting because in the real world these two are dominant in comedic, and at well over 6 feet tall, in physical terms too. With that in mind it seems that The Pun-off is beginning to mirror society; in its own tiny way. I'm not sure what micro-status that bestows upon me and Punning House. I can assure you that any comparisons to ephemeral, bearded super-beings will not be taken kindly. Also, while our flat is jolly nice I'd hardly claim it to be a cloud-based Utopian paradise. We need new carpets for a start and our elderly neighbour Marie is quite simply the maddest individual I've ever been shouted at by. She's a joy.

Despite the field being so strong I was able to identify my favourites quite quickly. They just jumped off the board and into my face like a recently disenfranchised ferret. Here we go-eth:

In 3rd place...I loved this straight away because it is as technically sound as you could expect a Pun to be.

Pizza Sellers - Melissa Wharton

It starts off slow, you're thinking to yourself: "What's going on here? I'm seeing nothing...I've been ripped off!" and then BANG it hits you in the shins like a tiny boxer. It's the phonic similarities that does it for me. I know that won't make everyone's vessel buoyant but for me it's a key factor. Wharton had a very strong week and perhaps this will be the confidence booster she needs to compete with the the best.

"Black pepper? Chilli Oil?"

In 2nd Place...he's a friend of and contributor to Punning House:

Steve Amouse Bouche-emi - Tim Evans

As a youth I play rugby for Mold RFC. The coach's son played too. He was a brilliant player and should have been the first name on the team sheet every week. However, his dad Derek, fearing scrutiny from the other dads couldn't live with the idea that people thought him to be bias in his selection. So occasionally, for no reason obvious to us he would drop his son to the bench and put another deeply inferior child in his place. It would anger us because Derek seemed to do it to protect himself from accusations of being bias - which may or may not have been warranted. So, as his son's fat asthmatic replacement wheezed and waddled his way around the park I would look on and think to myself: "Have some balls Derek, don't worry what people will think, make quality your guide, skill your beacon and technical process your shepherd". This is what I've done here. I mean, look at it! It really is an excellent double-Pun; a rare thing these days. 

And in 1st Place...I've not encountered a Punner more desperate for victory. I'm delighted that it might now all starting to come together for him:

Veginald Pea Hunter - Rich Dinham

I really am very fond of this one but it divides me. I'm not sure what it is about it that I like the most. Is it the combination of the obvious and subtle changes on display? Is it the fact that the Pun almost self references - Veg? Pea? Peas are vegetables...you dig? Or is it the fact that Rich, as recently as Thursday, declared himself incapable of generating a winning Pun.  It has everything a orthodox winning Pun should have (are you taking notes?): flow, syllabic integrity, well known content, non-aggressive but assertive and silly. Many congratulations to you Rich, I know how much Punning means to you and I know how high your ambitions are in the world of competitive word-play.  

And so to this week's PEOPLE'S CHAMPION! With a very respectable 12 "Likes" we have a long-time player, first time winner:

Seth Rogan Josh - Alex Jones

It's a simple addition and a big pay-off for Jones here. With such a strong field of play it was hard for Punners to get their efforts noticed. Jones' timing was a factor here, throwing it in very early - just seventeen minutes into the day. Jones has got a good eye for a Pun and is developing his style with each week. I'm confident we'll see more of him in Pun-Offs to come. Well done Alex!

Debuts

Dan Ginger Adamski - One of the best debut Puns we've seen - "Spike Chilligan"

Tim Ratcliffe - A wildcard. Prone to outburst and prolonged spells of confusion. Likely to develop into a contender.

Laura Cassidy - Showed promise and has a good circle of Punning friends; she'll benefit from a little more game time to fully develop her skill set. Promising Debut.

Will Dobson - Will confessed to me the other day that he always watches The Pun-Off but never joins in. I rebuked him accordingly and it was a treat to see he took my advice.

Gareth Ray - A couple of solid, high concept entries from Gareth "The Sting" Ray. Many a debutant before him has come in and thrown down complex Puns before reevaluating and finding their true Punning Voice. I'm encouraged.

Acknowledgement of Good sperm

Punning House would like to congratulate two of our regular Punners who have just had babies. Gavin Griffiths and his wife Laura now have a little boy called Oliver and Thomas Hughes and his wife Gemma have a son called George. Many congratulations! Good procreation folks.

"Let's Bissed again...like we did last summer!"

I'm enjoying the trend of people declaring themselves "Bissed" after they've entered their Puns. For those of you that don't know The Biss Clause is the name for rule limiting each Punner to five entries. It was brought in to promote quality and to acknowledge that a good pun is a commodity to be searched for and treasured. Can I please take this opportunity to declare that you're "Bissed" by using a Pun of some sort - perhaps a song title, band, movie or something else. Any opportunity.

Honourable mentions

There were so many notable Puns this week that I'll be doing a separate post in the week. Look out for that one. It was a very good week and I'm very proud that the standard continues to be high.

The Pun-off Annual Conference

The Pun-off Annual Conference will take place in May or June - more details to follow but please be aware it will require you to come to a venue and get drunk with other Punners. Yes.