Well I suppose it made me laugh !

I'm talking at a conference in September and have to send the conference organisers a short professional introduction to myself. I wrote this and sent it to my boss to proof read. He returned it with tne necessary ammendments . Just before I sent it off to the conference organisers I noticed the last sentence.........My boss had inserted "I have a touching faith in the waning abilities of Alan Shearer" !!!!!!

-- Anonymous, August 10, 2001

Answers

Haha funny boss

-- Anonymous, August 10, 2001

You should complain...at my leaving do for my previous job (in London), my boss paid tribute to her hard working "Geordie" colleague before presenting me with a leaving gift of a Toffs™ 1973 Sunderland top.

-- Anonymous, August 10, 2001

Which raises the inevitable question - is it possible to be both a Geordie and a Mackem? Presumably people born on Tyneside who support SAFC qualify as both? Or would a Mackem voluntarily relinquish his birthright forever - or use both titles as convenient?

These are momentous issues, and it seems to me there are some real grey areas requiring clarification. ;-{)

-- Anonymous, August 10, 2001

Simple Clarky. Any Geordie who supports the Mackems should be put down (preferably at birth if it can be spotted early enough). The world would be a purer place.

-- Anonymous, August 10, 2001

Bonsentration Bamps in Walker? I can't see the council going for that (c:

-- Anonymous, August 10, 2001

Disagree - the more Mackems the better. I just love to have a lot of people to feel superior to....

-- Anonymous, August 10, 2001

I would say that anyone from the North East of England who supports either of the North West Red teams should be summarily executed, Screach.

-- Anonymous, August 10, 2001

I hope you all had your best Irony hats on there or I'd be worried.

I have to agree with "Eva Braun" (wtf?). Me and our lass joke on about running over ppl in barcodes on pedestrian crossings, but the rags are a far greater concern. They have dangerous inferiority complexes, whereby they need to associate themselves with "winners", and in particular very successful football teams. They should be imprisoned before they turn into nonces or serial-killers.

As for Mackem/Geordies, I remember fondly the Fulwell end Mackem/Geordie shouting matches of the 80's. Indeed a lot of Geordie SAFC fans are still proud to call themselves Geordies, but I am from Sunderland so it's pretty academic in my case.(like moi)

ml

-- Anonymous, August 10, 2001

It's so obvious, mackems were born out of sheer frustration and jealousy at the lack of opportunity to see the mags play. It is a troublesome thing for sure, IMHO this whole "mackem" thing is an illness, but it's nothing a good 12 step program and plenty of "geordie" support wouldn't help. Sure, in retrospect they will always be a tad confused, but at least there is help for those that need it.

-- Anonymous, August 10, 2001

sparxx, I would rather be buggered senseless by a rabid rhinoceros than be forced to support the Hamma-hoyas. No offence, like.

ml

-- Anonymous, August 10, 2001

once and for all it's "makem", i consulted the oxford english dictionary and the makem is derived from the word "make" as in

areyaganaamakuslike

another correct pronounciation is hackem but mackem doesn't mak sense at all

-- Anonymous, August 10, 2001

ML, I've had the Geordie/Makem Red debate with Lancaster Red of this parish several times. There's a really high profile Man United supporter who has written books on Man United and is big in IMUSA who comes from Durham and says people from Durham aren't Newcastle or Sunderland so it's perfectly logical to support Man United. It pisses me off to be on a train to Liverpool or Manchester for a game and for there to be loads of North East Reds taking the p...s out of the North East teams: they are the Anti-Christ.

-- Anonymous, August 10, 2001

there's a family of NE rags living in a cooncil hoos opposite the old bingo hall in Leadgate. Be sure to wave nicely to them next time you drive past.

-- Anonymous, August 10, 2001

We must unite to face the common enemy - The Judean People's Liberation Front!

-- Anonymous, August 10, 2001

Feck awf, were the People's front of Judea, Judean peoples front....splitters.

-- Anonymous, August 10, 2001

We are saved its the Suicide Squad...............

-- Anonymous, August 11, 2001

born in Newcastle...its on the passport.... fisrt ever football game watched... NUFC vs Chelsea.... bred in Durham... chose SAFC....

was a bit of a player in me yoof..... when the schoolboy forms were presented by both NUFC and SAFC and a few others including the smogs....!!! chose the greatest clubn, team and supporters in rthe world.... SAFC for me......

but still proud to be a Geordie....

-- Anonymous, August 11, 2001

What about a mackem who supports Newcastle? I am a tynesider.A geordie in most eyes but as it goes hand in hand with being a Newcastle fan i do not carry it. I think "geordies" carry their tag as if it made them something special.However their hatred for Mackems neutralizes any special rights that they feel accompany their birthright.Agree with the man u stuff thougth,although i feel that Liverpool get off far too lightly on this subject.

-- Anonymous, August 11, 2001

Agree with you about the Scousers Sooper. Never liked them since one of the bar stewards ran into the back of me car after the 4-0 stuffing in the Cup then it turned out he had no insurance. The most amazing this about this story is that I was surprised when I found out.

I also have an unhealthy dislike of the "fans" of Chelsea, Spurs, Crystal Palace, Tranmere Rovers, Portsmouth, Sjoke City, Millwall, Man Ure and Cardiff. I can actually tolerate Makems by comparison.

-- Anonymous, August 11, 2001

Palace?? Tranmere?? I agree that the others have dodgy reputations but what about the first two? And what about Leeds? They hate everyone!

-- Anonymous, August 11, 2001

I actually quite like the Leeds fans I know personally! Palace are a bunch of cockney wide boys who think the world owes them a living (left over from Venables time there no dount) whereas Tranmere is near enough to Liverpool to dislike them on principle. It's also the only ground in the country where I've been the victim (in a minor way I agree) of football hooliganism. Also, the pies there are bloody awful.

-- Anonymous, August 11, 2001