Monday 31 December 2012

Predictions - how'd we do on 2012?

Hi Futurology fans, and did we all enjoy last night's BBC2 showing of Blade Runner, set in 2019 with its flying cars and smoking indoors? Well, the time has come once more to try predicting the coming year, and looking back on how well we did last year.



Last year, in this column, I tried predicting what might happen in 2012. How hilariously inaccurate was I? Let's see. The questions were...

1) Which classic TV show will be remade in 2012?
2) Which TV shows will be cancelled in 2012?
3) Who will surprise by getting their own hit TV series?
4) What new movie franchise will be announced/made?
5) How much will litre of petrol cost in Dec '12 (currently approx £1.30)?
6) Who will win Edinburgh Comedy Award 2012?
a) Best act? b) Best newcomer?
7) Celeb on the Slab?
8) Who will win the 2012 Eurovision Song Contest?
9) Who will become Mayor of London?
10) Who will be 13th Doctor Who?
11) Who will win US Presidency?
12) Who will be Labour leader at end of 2012?
13) Will any countries leave the Euro? If so who?
14) Surprise country to have a revolution/uprising?
15) What will be surprise invention/technicological advance?
16) Will average UK house prices rise or fall by Dec '12?
Predict:
17) Biggest scandal
18) Biggest change in national newspapers
19) Biggest weather news
20) Christmas Number 1

Here were my guesses on Jan 1st 2012. How did I do?

1) The Good Life, The Avengers, Danger Mouse, Adam Adamant Lives, Fawlty Towers (the musical)
0 out of 5
2) Top Gear, Doctor Who, X Factor, Never Mind The Buzzcocks, Hollyoaks
0 out of 5
3) Christine Bleakley
Not that I'm aware of
4) Desperate Dan
Should have put him in the cancelled column
5) £1.30 (ie no overall change)
YES - I got one right! Go - me! Go - me! Go - me!
6) a) A former Cambridge Footlighter b) An Avalon act
a) No. Wrong, it was an American, Doctor Brown
b) No, Wrong, it was a Norwegian, Daniel Simonsen
7) Prince Phillip - during the Olympics
Quack quack oops. Nope, even that didn't kill him. 
8) Croatia
No, Wrong, it was Sweden
9) Boris Johnson again
Yes. Got another one right. Less proud of this one, but right all the same.
10) Himish Patel (plays Tamwar in Eastenders)
The jury is still out on this one, but now I've changed my guess
11) Barack Obama again
YES - Third one right. And I bet I am the ONLY person who predicted that one. Right?
12) Ed Miliband still
YES - Another one right. Not that it was in question, but well done in getting the obvious ones, me.
13) No. Italy.
YES, and no
14) Southern states of USA
Silly suggestion, not even worth considering
15) The roll-up iPad
Was there a technological advance? If so, I missed it.
16) Fall by 5%
Up by 3.5%
17) Ricky Gervais jailed
Didn't happen, despite all his best efforts
18) Sun adds Sunday edition
YES, another bleeding obvious thing went ahead and happened
19) Snow & ice begins in October
No, rain and rain continued from May to December
20) Poverty charity single inc Bananarama
No, it was a Hillsborough justice charity record, and Bananarama were conspicuous by their absence.

So, out of 20 possible predictions, I got 6 right. Is that good? Let's move on and start predicting 2013 shall we..?

(NB: Here's how I fared in Paul Cornell's This Time Next Year quiz, which may well have inspired my own guessing game.)

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