the amsterdam stun · happy birthday in october to alan, alberto, anne, anneke, bailey, bernard,...

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ABOUT THE STUNAlthough every effort is made to ensure

the accuracy of information printed in ‘The Amsterdam Stun’, the Publisher accepts no liability for articles submitted by our contributors.‘The Amsterdam Stun’ is published by: Andy & Elly Reeves at Stun Publishing Amsterdam Tel.: 06-28 712 646 Fax: 0842-114 347 e-mail: [email protected] http://www.amsterdamstun.com

The Editor’s Bit is on page 4 this month.

The following people also contributed to this edition of the Amsterdam Stun:• Frank Weston• Franky van Hage• Ilze Klinsane• Kirsty Swan Cotton• Tommy McKeown• Zadok Jaring

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Clara and Bianca were behind the bar of the King’s Cross, where every night is party night!

Seeing as Susanna was serving solo in CC Muziekcafé,we canfinally put her photo onPage Three of the Amsterdam Stun.

Page ThreeEven though it was her night off, Eileen

joined her colleagues Soraya and Anouk for a photo behind the bar of the Stone’s Café.

Marta in the Flying Dutchman knew exactly where the cover photo of the last Stun was taken; it’s her favourite spot to stop for a smoke on her way home from work.

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Happy Birthday in October to Alan, Alberto, Anne, Anneke, Bailey, Bernard, Brenda, Brian, Carol, Caroline, Cassandra, Charlotte, Chiron, Chris, Conner, Cora, Daan, Danny, Danyel, Daphne, Dragon, Eligio, Els, Fred, Frits, Gary, Gavin, Geoffrey, Heather, Hester, Howard, Isobel, Ivan, Jaap, Jackie, Jan, Janice, Jason, Jayden, Jo, Joan, John, Johnny, Jozef, Julius, Karin, Kees, Kenny, Kerstin, Kym, Lamar, Laura, Liam, Lisette, Lonneke, Mak, Marie, Mark, Melanie, Micky, Mike, Monique, Montse, Neal, Nic, Nina, Pim, Remco, Rhadi, Ria, Roger, Roy, Ruben, Russell, Saoirse, Signe, Tony, Vivian, VJ, Zach, Zorro and Happy Anniversary Esteve & Montse, Iepe & Els, Peter & Berber.

Happy Birthday in November to Aileen, Angela, Bob, Bobby, Bronski, Bruce, Carole, Christopher, Clia, Colette, Daniel, Dave, David, Deva, Dom, Elly, Emma, Fiona, Franklin, Garry, Gerda, Hennie, Heulwen, Jack, Janni, Jared, Jerome, Jettina, Joanne, Joey, John, Jordy, Joshua, Karen, Kate, Lianne, Lilian, Louise, Luis, Maarten, Mah Noor, Maria, Milos, Mo, Neil, Nick, Noah, Noemí, November Graye, Patsy, Paul, PT, Ray, Remy, Renee, Reuben, Roxanne, Sean-Patrick, Spek, Steve, Susie, Tania, Terry, Theo, Tiny, Veronica, Walter, Yvonne.

Happy Birthday in December to my brother Hans, Andy’s sister Bonnie, Alan, Ana, Angelica, Annelies, Anouk, Arabella, Arjan, Bert, Betty, BJ, Brian, Caroline, Claudia, Click, Colin, Damian, Dario, Deirdre, Early, Eddie, Elisa, Emilia, Eva, Evertjan, Ferdia, Flo, Gary, Glenn, Gonzo, Haluk, Harry, Hazel, Heather, Hendrik, Ilja, Ilze, Iris, Jackie, Jake, Jan Willem, Janet, Jeff, Joe, John, Jonny Bravo, Jordan, Jorna, Julia, Kevin, Kira, Kym, Lilian, Luke, Maaike, Mandy, Mandy Celeste, Marie, Martin, Michael, Mitch, Nancy, Nathan, Neil, Newcastle Andy, Nico, Nicola, Nigel, Noel, Olly, Owen, Paudge, Pauline, Peter, Rachel, Rene, Ruairi, Rung,

The Editor’s BitDid you miss us? It’s not often we have such

a long gap between Stuns, but what can we do when the photographer, reporter, account manager, designer, webmaster, researcher and delivery boy are all off sick at the same time. OK, they’re all me, and if I can’t work on the Stun, there’s no Stun.

I had a bit of a heart scare in September, nothing serious, but I had to take it easy for a while. I toyed with the idea of an October Stun, but after Mark’s party (page 20), I knew I wasn’tfitforareturnyet.Imanagedtostayouta bit longer for Halloween (page 18) but still not enough stamina, so no November edition.

Now, here we are in December, the creative juicesareflowingagainand Iwillbehittingthe streets with this Stun very soon. It might take me a bit longer to get round all the bars, but I don’t want to rush it.

The answer to my last Cover Question was Brouwersgracht. Honourable mentions go to Marta,whowasinthefirstbarIdeliveredtheStun to and recognised it straight away, and Patricia & Dirk, who e-mailed the answer after picking up a Stun in the Magpie.

No prizes for guessing the what, where or why of this month’s cover; it’s last year’s Christmas tree on the Dam because it’s nearly Christmas. That’s it for now, so enjoy your Stun, have a merry Christmas and a happy New Year.

Andy

ELLY’S

they had 15 minutes notice that they were going to be parents!

The Beer-Pole that Café Pollux offered as a prize for June’s crossword is broken beyond

repair, so Justin showed us the substitute prize, a big bottle of Deugniet.

Tommy in the Coca Leaf Liquor Store drew the winner for September’s crossword and the prize of a bottle of Agwa De Bolivia goes to... Lesley Bathgate.

This month’s crossword prize is a €30 voucher from Coco’s Outback, so get puzzling!

Andy

Ryan,Sarah,Shawn,Soufian,Stephanie,Teddy,Tim, Tineke, Tracey, Traci, Trudy, Weir.

Happy 12th Wedding Anniversary to our football correspondent Frank and his wife Rung.

As Elly has been out even less than me sincethelastStuncameout,I’mgoingtofillher pages this month. With three months of birthdays and three photos, I won’t have to write too much.

We heard just too late for inclusion in the last Stun about the arrival of a Rock Planet baby. Luisa and her boyfriend Jim were surprised by the arrival of a baby boy, Hendrik Dylan, at the end of August.

Luisa had been working in the bar the night before and didn’t even know she was pregnant;

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Pasquale in Hotel Torenzicht

David in the Flying Dutchman

Eileen, George and Mayonne in Stone’s Café

Natasja and Hassan in Three Sisters Pub

BEHIND

Joe, Del Bhoy, Claire, Daniel and Larry, behind the bar in Durty Nelly’s.

Pamela was with Jan, who’s back in The End Karaoke while looking for a new challenge.

Bartel and Terry are well prepared for any emergencies in Bourbon Street.

BARS

TuesdayWeekly

20:00, BackStage Hotel, Open Mic Night, hosted by The Amsterdam Songwriters Guild 20:00, CC Muziek Cafe, Magic Gumball Night & Open Mic, 4 acts 20:30, Cafe Candela, International Karaoke Night, 22:00, Jazzcafe Alto, Conjunto Amsterdam, 22:00, The End, Karaoke, over 40,000 English/Dutch songs to choose from. Open til 3 22:30, Maloe Melo, Acoustic Session, with Kevin Chapman & Friends

8th December 201520:30, The Waterhole, Early Bird Jam with Onno, Special guests: Mosquito (Funk, Pop, Latin) 22:00, Bourbon Street, The Big Bounce, Blues, soul and rock ‘n roll of the highest order. €322:30, Maloe Melo, VSPA Student Night,

15th December 201520:00, Coco’s Outback, Pub Quiz, Entry price: €3, maximum 5 persons to a team. Great Prizes! 20:30, The Waterhole, Early Bird Jam with Onno, with Anno vd Werf (poprock, bluesrock) 22:00, Bourbon Street, The Trio, power blues & rock’n’roll €3

22nd December 201520:30, The Waterhole, Early Bird Jam with Onno, Special guest: Ramon Oosterhof (Funk, Soul) 22:00, Bourbon Street, Lamar Chase, Blues/Rock €3

29th December 201520:30, The Waterhole, Early Bird Jam with Onno, Special guest: Rayn Bechoe (Funk, Soul) 22:00, Bourbon Street, The Blues Summit, €3

MondayWeekly

19:30, Zaal 100, Goeie Zin, singer-songwriters & semi acoustic acts 20:30, Cafe Candela, International Karaoke Night, An explosive combination of international songs and funky people from all over the world 21:00, Café Caprice, Open Mic & Jam Session, 21:00, The Waterhole, Monday Music Meeting - bands playing originals, 22:00, Bourbon Street, Magic Monday, Open Jam hosted by Theo Mosquito 22:00, The End, Karaoke, over 40,000 English/Dutch songs to choose from. Open til 3 22:30, Maloe Melo, Acoustic Session, with Peter Lavell & his Gritmoaners

14th December 201520:00, Molly Malone’s, Pub Quiz, 8 rounds of brain-teasing questions! €2.50 per person, all money taken will be given back out in prizes. Booking ahead advised (0611958949) as they always fill up.

STUN GIG-LIST

ThursdayWeekly

20:00, CC Muziek Cafe, CC Soul Session, €522:00, Coco’s Outback, Karaoke Competition, Get a FREE shot before singing and be in with a chance of winning a nice prize! 22:00, The End, Karaoke, over 40,000 English/Dutch songs to choose from. Open til 3 23:30, Maloe Melo, Blues + Rock Session, with Lamar Chase (except 31st)

10th December 201520:00, Andas Bar, SweetCase Jam Session, 20:00, The Waterhole, Live Music, 20:30, Mixtree, Stand-up Comedy Show - In English!, Hosted by Maestro of the Underground, Ken Parsons with his trademark mix of daft headtrips and even dafter songs €322:00, Bourbon Street, Machiel Boon & Friends, Blues €322:00, Maloe Melo, Sugartown, a 5 piece band from Amsterdam playing Swampy Americana/Blues/Rock covers with own twist. €522:30, The Waterhole, Fen & the Judkins Band, Stevie Wonder, Funk, Soul

17th December 201520:00, The Waterhole, Live Music, 22:00, Bourbon Street, Kenny Bogan & The Lads, singer/songwriter €322:00, Maloe Melo, Bluestone, €522:30, The Waterhole, Live Music,

24th December 201520:00, The Waterhole, Samuel Wulf, 22:00, Bourbon Street, Nate Dizco, soul & funk €322:00, Maloe Melo, Blues + Rock Session, with Lamar Chase 22:30, The Waterhole, A Christmas Evening with Farida & Friends,

WednesdayWeekly

20:00, CC Muziek Cafe, Wonderful Wednesday Jam, Open podium & jam session hosted by Theo Mosquito 20:30, The Waterhole, Unplugged Open Mike Jam, with Stan 22:00, Cafe Pollux, Jukebox Rocola Jam Session, 22:00, The End, Karaoke, over 40,000 English/Dutch songs to choose from. Open til 3

9th December 201522:00, Bourbon Street, Michael Strobel, rock & blues €322:00, Maloe Melo, Maarten en de Rinaldo’s, followed by Nico’s After Midnight session €5

16th December 201522:00, Bourbon Street, Soulful NRG, Live energizing soul €322:00, Rockclub The Cave, Olly de Quartz, A rock band with a stage presence of over-flowing personality, they have an impressive playlist of covers and original songs. €522:00, Maloe Melo, Singer/Songwriter Night, hosted by Dzuana Bakker, followed by Nico’s After Midnight session

23rd December 201522:00, Bourbon Street, Steven De Geus, Rock/Soul €322:00, Maloe Melo, Open Mic & Jam Session, with Nico

30th December 201520:00, Molly Malone’s, Pub Quiz, 8 rounds of brain-teasing questions! €2.50 per person, all money taken will be given back out in prizes. Booking ahead advised (0611958949) as they always fill up. 22:00, Bourbon Street,TheShuffleBand,one of the best cover bands in Israel. €322:00, Maloe Melo, New Generation Bubbles & Blues Session, hosted by O-Dog

Your Venue in the Stun Gig-List?Contact Andy on 06-28 712 646

New Year’s Eve31st December 2015

20:00, CC Muziek Cafe, New Year’s Eve Party, A great evening with The Mosquitos and DJ Luke Skyfunker. €20

20:00, The Waterhole, Live Music,

21:00, Maloe Melo, Reggae Recipe New Year’s Eve Party, Live: Boss Capone €18

22:00, Coco’s Outback, Coco’s Casino Royale - New Year’s Eve, Bid your New Years Resolutions farewell and come and celebrate another year full of sins at Coco’s Outback and Walkabout Shooterbar! Bowties allowed! With DJ - Laser Show - Smoke Machines. Tickets available at the bar, pre-sale €10 or at the door €15, and includes a FREE glass of bubbly, plus fireworks at 18:00 and at midnight.

22:30, The Waterhole, Live Music,

FridayWeekly

21:00, The End, Karaoke, over 40,000 English/Dutch songs to choose from. Open til 3

11th December 201520:00, Maloe Melo, JURFEST, Benefit evening to support Jur. Line up: Darla Sinners, AutoBlonde, Giant Tiger Hooch, Clvstertrvck €1020:00, CC Muziek Cafe, WeaaH, Earthy grooves to make you move. €520:00, The Waterhole, JPR Strinxband, Real rock ‘n roll. 22:00, Bourbon Street, DatFunk, soul, funk, Motown and pop €522:00, Coco’s Outback, Hawaiian Winternight, Aloha! Escape the cold Winter night and get yourself lei’d at Coco’s… 22:30, Rockclub The Cave, Shoulders of Giants (NL) + Orange Maplewood (NL), Progressive Alternative Rock , Britgrunge €523:30, The Waterhole, The Wendies, Amsterdam’s ideal pop and rock cover band

18th December 201520:00, CC Muziek Cafe, Live Music, €520:00, The Waterhole, Riff, 21:00, Rockclub The Cave, Sweet Empire (NL) + X-Offenders (NL) + BEP (NL), punk €522:00, Bourbon Street, Hurricane Joy, Pop Rock €522:00, Jazzcafe Alto, Santanico, Much more than just a Latin cover band 22:30, The Waterhole, Red Maddies, 23:00, Maloe Melo, Dry Riverbed Trio, feat. Dusty Sigaar, Country, Rockabilly, Blues, Americana €5

STUN GIG-LIST

SaturdayWeekly

21:00, The End, Karaoke, over 40,000 English/Dutch songs to choose from. Open til 3

12th December 201520:00, CC Muziek Cafe, OMDB, rock, pop and soul €520:00, The Waterhole, Live Music, 21:30, Rockclub The Cave, Miscall (NL) + Buried in Black (DE) + The Hangman’s Lament (NL), Heavy Metal, Groove Metal, Thrash Metal €522:00, Bourbon Street, Nate Dizco, soul & funk €522:00, Cafe Del Mondo, Mosquito, Latin Pop Rock 22:30, The Waterhole, Shake it Naked, Pop, Rock 23:00, Maloe Melo, Pheromones, Rock €5

19th December 201520:00, CC Muziek Cafe, Andrew Laureth Band, Brazilian pop €520:00, The Waterhole, Live Music, 22:00, Bourbon Street, The Hats, Rock/Blues €522:00, Cafe Del Mondo, Mosquito, Latin Pop Rock 22:30, Rockclub The Cave, Vexation (NL) + Mother of Sin (NL), Heavy metal €522:30, The Waterhole, Waste, 90s festivalrock 23:00, Maloe Melo, The Sunprophets, Funky soul €5

26th December 201520:00, CC Muziek Cafe, Live Music, €520:00, The Waterhole, EXP Plays Hendrix, 22:00, Bourbon Street, Mosquito, latin rock €522:30, The Waterhole, Live Music,

SundayWeekly

22:00, The End, Karaoke, over 40,000 English/Dutch songs to choose from. Open til 3 22:30, Maloe Melo, Acoustic Session, with Lamar Chase

13th December 201516:00, CC Muziek Cafe, Singing Sunday - Vocal Session, with Carmen Gomes €220:00, CC Muziek Cafe, Special Bossa Nova session, 20:00, The Waterhole, Del Prado & Mr John, Acoustic pop covers 22:00, Bourbon Street, Super Sunday, funk, soul, pop 22:30, The Waterhole, Live Music,

20th December 201516:30, Checkpoint Charlie, The Ironic Curtain- Comedy and Curiosities, A new matinee comedy and variety show hosted Ken Parsons. 20:00, CC Muziek Cafe, Live Music, 20:00, The Waterhole,Goldfish,22:00, Bourbon Street, Lamar Chase & Francois Spannenburg, blues 22:30, The Waterhole, Live Music,

27th December 201516:00, De Barones, Woody & The Sidemen, blues/rock n roll 20:00, CC Muziek Cafe, Deep Funk Jam with Azubike, <21: €2, >21: €4, musicians free 20:00, The Waterhole, Soothing Strings, Acoustic pop covers 22:00, Bourbon Street, Lamar Chase, Blues/Rock

AMSTERDAMaround

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Find Out What's On, Where and How To Get There!

Ingrid was in the Waterhole’s smoking room with Pape, who we hadn’t seen in years!

DJ Lim de la Cruz was behind the decks in King’s Cross, where they have DJs playing ‘til the early hours every night!

Adva and Orna were enjoying their Saturday night in the Flying Dutchman.

Susie’s barman Steve introduced us to Robin, who’s brother Rhodi is married to Signe, who’s dad Lars owns Susie’s Saloon.

In the smoking room, John introduced us to Ruben, brother of Zadok in Excalibur, who ‘digitally enhanced’ the photo on page 18.

ROUND THE BARS

Toet was talking to Jur outside Maloe Melo, so we had to get the camera out.

Skip talked Justyna into having a photo taken with him at the bar in Excalibur.

Stone’s Café bosses George and Hany agreed to having their photo taken.

David, Nani and Sira posed on the terrace when we dropped into Josélito Café Tapas.

ROUND THE BARS

Peter and Mattias in the Waterhole

Arie in Café Corso

Lidor in the Flying Dutchman

Wam and Rik in the Poolhole

BEHIND MORE

Linda and Misha in Coco’s Outback

Jake, Emma and David, also in Coco’s

Stephanie, Mikey, Ewa, Shannon in Player’s

BARS

Hallo

Judit and Zad weren’t dressed up in Excalibur, so Zad used a bit of magic on our photo.

Josie, Janet and Nathalie were the only people we saw in costume in the Flying Dutchman.

Seeing Mark behind the bar, it was obvious they were in Party Mode at Molly Malone’s.

ween!

Finn Balor took third prize in the Best Costume competition

Paula’s woodland creature was a clear winner!

Runners-up were Bassie & Adriaan

Mark has been a friend of the Stun since hefirstarrivedinAmsterdam,sonothingwasgoing to keep us away from his 40th Birthday Party in Room 5 at Café Batavia. No captions, Mark’s friends know who they are.

MARK’S 40TH

Larry started working in Durty Nelly’s one day after arriving in Amsterdam and got his photo taken for the Stun the same night!

We couldn’t make it to the Magpie, so barmaid Kirsty sent us this photo of her Oma with friends Liz and Barbra.

Dave introduced us to his girlfriend Ilze, but knew we knew her; she’s a Stun regular.

Steven and Nuala were having a canal-side chat outside Molly Malone’s.

Otto and Brad haven’t been in the Stun for a while, so here they are in Susie’s Saloon.

MORE ROUNDS

Across

Down

1: Painters. (7)5: Cut. (7)9: Petticoat. (9)10: Fleshy art? (5)11: Before midnight. (7)12: Wriggles. (7)13: Walking unsteadily. (9)15: Small, decorative cases. (5)17: Swamps. (5)19: Coast. (9)22: They live the high life? (7)25: Relaxing moment? (3, 4)26: Aragorn’s love. (5)27: Gallivanting. (9)28: Recognise. (7)29: Toboggans. (7)

1: Archaic. (7)2: School-period. (9)3: Volcano output. (7)4: Garbage disposals (5, 4)5: Stairs. (5)6: Undertaking. (7)7: More crude. (5)8: Abstains. (7)14:Nocturnalfliers.(5,4)16: Implementing. (9)17: Gambrel. (7)18: Quiet. (7)20: Specimen. (7(21: Comes up? (7)23: Part of Wales. (5)24: Glossy fabric. (5)

Stun Prize CrosswordSponsored by Coco’s Outback

Last Month’s AnswersIf You Win, Say Nothing; If You Lose, Say Less!

Across: 1 Pilfer, 4 Fishpond, 10 Razor wire, 11 Rinse, 12 Mynah, 13 They eat in, 14 Dasheen, 16 Siam, 19 Figs, 21 Fulsome, 24 Illumines, 25 Whelm, 26 Liszt, 27 Animalist, 28 Syracuse, 29 Lesser. Down: 1 Pyramids, 2 Laziness, 3 Earth, 5 Ice seas, 6 Horsetail, 7 Ornate, 8 Duenna, 9 Minton, 15 Enigmatic, 17 Gobelins, 18 Geometer, 20 Sundays, 21 Fossil, 22 Yields, 23 Closer, 25 Weave.

And the prize goes to: Lesley Bathgate, who wins a bottle of Agwa De Bolivia generously donated by Coca Leaf Liquor Store.

This month’s Prize Crossword is sponsored by Coco’s Outback, Thorbeckeplein 8-12, who have generously donated a €30 Coco’s Voucher for the winner. All you have to do is put the letters in the shaded squares into the 2nd grid in the same order they appear to reveal the name of an Oscar winnerandthefilmtheyappearedin.E-mailyouranswer,alongwithname& contact details, to [email protected] or SMS 0628712646 to arrive no later than Thursday 31st December 2015. The winner will be drawn from all correct entries and announced in the next Stun.

Last year I left my Christmas shopping too late and ended up getting it all done at a petrol station on Christmas morning.I thought the limited selection would leave me in the shit but my 17-year-old daughter squealed with delight when she opened her ‘L’ plates and ran over to hug me.I don’t know why she went out to look on the driveway though.

*****Came home to find all my doors had beensmashed in and everything was gone. What sort of sicko does that to someone’s advent calendar?

*****Money is going to be tight this year, bringing back memories of a Christmas when I got a box containing two batteries. A sticker on the side stated “Toy Not Included”.

*****I bought a Christmas tree that was far too big to get in the car, so we had to cut the top off. Didn’t really mind, I’ve always wanted a convertible.

*****BBC News reported that British troops got a surprise visit from Santa. If I was a bloke with a beard and a big bag, I certainly wouldn’t be sneaking up on armed soldiers.

*****I think they should move Christmas to the middle of January. The shops aren’t so crowded and everything’s on sale.

*****I can’t wait to give my son his air hockey table for Christmas... It will go great with last year’s air guitar.

*****I finally found the true meaning of Xmastoday… It’s for people who can’t spell Christmas.

Marks And Spencer’s new advert states that it wouldn’t be Christmas without M&S. They’re right too. It’d be Chrita.

*****My wife has suggested that we do something Christmassy this afternoon to get into the festive spirit. I’m going to get drunk and start an argument.

*****Imagine my joy when I was getting out the Christmas decorations and found a present I forgot to give my kids last year. Their excited faces were a picture as they unwrapped it and opened the box. Such a pity; it was a puppy.

*****I went to the garden centre today and bought a Christmas tree. The assistant asked me, “Will you be putting that up yourself?”I replied, “No, you sick fuck. I’ll be putting it up in my living room.”

*****I got one of those Dyson Ball Cleaners for Christmas. Unfortunately, I misunderstood what it was, which is why I’m now in casualty...

*****‘Twas the night before Christmas, and all through the house, not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse...I really should have invested in one of those carbon monoxide detectors.

*****Every Christmas I’d come running downstairs to the big pile of presents and start unwrapping them as fast as I could. Sometimes there would be fights overwho had the best toys butwewould all make up later and sit down to have a three hour lunch before watching TV for the rest of the day. I really miss working at the RoyalMailsortingoffice.

*****When I was a child, I always used to search my parent’s drawers and cupboards in the run up to Christmas so I’d know exactly what to expect, but I never did receive the Vibratron Pleasuremax 3000.

JOKES

is providing us with not just a lot of shocks but some very entertaining football in the process.

The most boring side in the Premier these days is undoubtedly Manchester United, who

under Dutchman Louis van Gaal can defend and defend and defend but very little else, it has to be said.

I don’t know what his right hand man Ryan Giggs must be thinking of it all? We know what the great swathes of United supporters think though, because the Red Devils were booed off recently when they could not muster a single meaningful shot at Old Trafford against PSV Eindhoven, which resulted in a very drab bore draw.

Their rivals Manchester City still look odds-on to take the title, as the main challengers before the season kicked off, Chelsea, are a staggering 14 points behind them!

Some people seem to think Arsenal can steal it, but injuries and a loss of form usually blight any prospect of this occurring and I see no difference this term.

So far this season, the Premier League has been anything but predictable and what a breath of fresh air that is!

Whoforexamplewouldhavethoughtthatfirmfavourites Chelsea would findthemselves four points behind newly promoted Watford in 15th place in the table, and who, in their very wildest dreams, would have said after more than one third of the season completed that Leicester City would be joint top!

It has been an astonishing campaign and the shocks keep coming. In seventh place as this goes to print are unfancied Crystal Palace, having just thumped Newcastle United by fivegoalstoone!

Alan Pardew has performed miracles since he took over there and now the heat is on Steve McClaren as the Geordie natives are getting decidedly restive! Rumour has it he has until the end of this month to get things right.

West Ham United too are up there with the big fish in eighth place, level on pointswith Palace, and just one behind recharged Liverpool - who under German Jurgen Klopp really seem to be motoring again!

If we look at the three promoted clubs from the Championship, that unassailable gulf that exists between the Prem and the rest, appears to be narrowing a little.

Watford have found themselves in mid-table and Norwich and Bournemouth have certainly not been outclassed in a division that www.beingfrankonfootball.com

All the latest football news fromaround the world, updated daily!

Being Frank on Football

€30 food/drinks voucher, to be awarded to the person who is top of the Premier Predictions League table on New Year’s Eve, which is also the half-way point of the season. You can check out the latest stand on our website at www.amsterdamstun.com/prempred2015.php.

Here’s how the Premier Predictions League table looked on Monday 7th December 2015.

The League Cup semi-finals in Englandwill be an all Premier affair as Championship clubs Sheffield Wednesday, Hull andMiddlesborough allwent out to the big fish.The semi-final seesLiverpool,who thumpedSouthampton 6-1, Manchester City, Everton andStokebattleitouttoreachthefinal,whichof course will take place as usual at Wembley.

In Scotland, Celtic are running away with it again, but with Rangers still in a lower division these days, the Scots Premier is no longer a two horse race, with only one team capable of winning the title!

Over here in the Netherlands, it is Ajax of Amsterdam that lead the way, but Feyenoord andPSVarecloseenoughtostillruffleafewfeathers before the season ends, I think.

In the Sky Bet Championship, Brighton are the surprise leaders. I say surprise, because last time out they were almost relegated, so this is quite a transformation. I guess it might be a case of what Leicester can do, we can too!

In Italy, Napoli have a narrow lead from International and in Spain, Barcelona are four points clear of nearest rivals Atletico Madrid, with Real on their coattails!

In Portugal, it is Sporting Lisbon who have a five point lead over Porto, but their rivalshaveagameinhand.Benficaareinthirdspot,eight points behind the leaders.

The league is already all but wrapped up in the French Ligue One, with Paris Saint Germain an astonishing fourteen points ahead of second placed Caen!

So that is an up-date of all the European football highlights and now let us see what is happening domestically in our very own Premier Prediction League!

Frank Weston

PPL UPDATEI’ve got some good news for our

contestants! Our friends at Coco’s Outback have generously donated an extra prize of a

Pos. Name On Nr Pts1st Eric Donald 5 4 192nd Chris R 5 4 193rd Willie Wood 4 4 164th John Davies 3 7 165th Grouty 3 7 166th Paul Tandy 4 2 147th Philipp Roth 3 5 148th David Crawford 4 0 129th Carlos Macedo 3 3 1210th Nigel French 2 6 1211th Paddy Wynne 2 6 1212th Buster 3 2 1113th Callum Dickie 2 5 1114th Ronald Middelkoop 2 5 1115th Perth True Blues 3 1 1016th Jude Noonan 2 4 1017th Trish Steele 2 4 1018th Phil Rook 2 3 919th Sander Middelkoop 2 3 920th Elwin Borgman 2 3 921st Sydney Blok 2 3 922nd Arun Pankerd 2 3 923rd Boelenspark Rangers 2 2 824th Billy C 2 2 825th John Raftery 1 5 826th Gabriele Bertom 1 5 827th Alan Dempsey 1 5 828th Kenneth 2 1 729th Shaun 1 4 730th Ken Passey 1 4 731st Liveonsatfan 1 4 732nd Rick Middelkoop 1 4 733rd PollyCross 1 3 634th Stuart 0 6 635th Thomas Kuna 1 2 536th Frank Weston 0 5 537th Spen 0 5 538th Steven Krijger 1 1 439th Steve Mahon 0 4 440th Ben Steele 0 3 3

Dominik and Lilian are regulars at Paultjes Open Podium in CC Muziekcafé.

Willie was celebrating her birthday with Jackie, Dina and Patrice, the Schumich Girls.

My fellow former orange-picker Jamie was in town, which gave me the perfect excuse to leave my sick-bed and join him in the Flying Dutchman for a beer or two.

Waterhole band-booker Onno was in Durty Nelly’s,droppingoffflyers,whenwearrivedwith the latest Stun.

IN THE BACK


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HELPWhether you live in Amsterdam or are just visiting, we hope you don’t need to make

use of this list. But just in case...

Police/Ambulance/Fire (Emergency only) 112 Police HQ - Elandsgracht 020-559 91 11 Reporting minor crimes 0900 - 88 44Report crime anonymously 0800 - 70 00 Kruispost, O.Z.Voorburgwal 129, 020-624 90 31 Central Doctors Service 088-00 30 600 Pharmacies (Out of hours) 020-592 33 15 STD Clinic, Weesperplein 1, 020-555 58 22 Juridisch Loket (Legal Aid) 0900 - 8020 Emergency Vet 020-694 47 66Dierenambulance 020-626 21 21

Australian Embassy 070-310 82 00 British Consulate 020-676 43 43 Canadian Embassy 070-361 41 11Danish Consulate 020-575 17 79 French Consulate 020-624 83 46 German Consulate 020-673 62 45Indian Embassy 070-346 97 71 Irish Embassy 070-363 09 93 Italian Consulate 020-624 00 43 New Zealand Embassy 070-346 93 24Polish Consulate 020-565 11 55 South African Embassy 070-392 45 01Spanish Consulate 020-620 38 11Swedish Consulate 020-301 45 50Swiss Consulate 020-717 34 16 U.S. Consulate 020-575 53 09

The following should be more usefulPublic Transport Info 0900 - 9292TCA Taxi 020-677 77 77

Night-Shops(Close around midnight)

Avondmarkt De Wittenkade 94 Dolf’s Willemsstraat 79 Sterk De Clerqstraat 1-7 Sterk Waterlooplein 241

I’m glad I managed to make it to Mark’s 40th Birthday party in Café Batavia.

Matthew,whoflewinfromLisbonfortheparty, was at the bar with Alex when I arrived...

With Lizzie and Kerri behind the bar.

the amsterdam stun · happy birthday in october to alan, alberto, anne, anneke, bailey, bernard,...

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