title: IBM and the Holocaust

text: On April 12, 1933, the German government announced plans to conduct a long-delayed national census. The project was particularly important to the Nazis as a mechanism for the identification of Jews, Roma, and other ethnic groups deemed undesirable by the regime. Dehomag offered to assist the German government in its task of ethnic identification, focusing upon the 41 million residents of Prussia. This activity was not only countenanced by Thomas Watson and IBM in America, Black argues, but was actively encouraged and financially supported, with Watson himself traveling to Germany in October 1933 and the company ramping up its investment in its German subsidiary from 400,000 to 7,000,000 Reichsmark—about $1 million (equivalent to $ in ). This injection of American capital allowed Dehomag to purchase land in Berlin and to construct IBM's first factory in Germany, Black charges, thereby "tooling up for what it correctly saw as a massive financial relationship with the Hitler regime".


title: IBM and the Holocaust

text: Black also cites documents regarding a "secret deal" that was made between Heidinger and Watson during the latter's visit to Germany which allowed Dehomag commercial powers outside of Germany, enabling the "now Nazified" company to "circumvent and supplant" various national subsidiaries and licensees by "soliciting and delivering punch card solution technology directly to IBM customers in those territories". As a result, Nazi Germany soon became the second most important customer of IBM after the lucrative U.S. market. The 1933 census, with design help and tabulation services provided by IBM through its German subsidiary, proved to be pivotal to the Nazis in their efforts to identify, isolate, and ultimately destroy the country's Jewish minority. Machine-tabulated census data greatly expanded the estimated number of Jews in Germany by identifying individuals with only one or a few Jewish ancestors. Previous estimates of 400,000 to 600,000 were abandoned for a new estimate of 2 million Jews in the nation of 65 million.


title: IBM and the Holocaust

text: As the Nazi war machine occupied successive nations of Europe, capitulation was followed by a census of the population of each subjugated nation, with an eye to the identification and isolation of Jews and Romani. These census operations were intimately intertwined with technology and cards supplied by IBM's German and new Polish subsidiaries, which were awarded specific sales territories in Poland by decision of the New York office following Germany's successful Blitzkrieg invasion. Data generated by means of counting and alphabetization equipment supplied by IBM through its German and other national subsidiaries was instrumental in the efforts of the German government to concentrate and ultimately destroy ethnic Jewish populations across Europe. Black reports that every Nazi concentration camp maintained its own "Hollerith-Abteilung" (Hollerith Department), assigned with keeping tabs on inmates through use of IBM's punchcard technology. In his book, Black charges that "without IBM's machinery, continuing upkeep and service, as well as the supply of punch cards, whether located on-site or off-site, Hitler's camps could have never managed the numbers they did."


title: IBM and the Holocaust

text: Major changes were made for the 2002 paperback editions on Three Rivers Press/Time Warner Paperbacks and the 2012 expanded edition on Dialog Press. In the updated 2002 paperback edition, the author included new evidence of the connection between IBM's United States headquarters and its Polish subsidiary during Nazi occupation. In 2012 Black published a second expanded revision with more documents. The 2012 expanded edition provides 32 pages of new photographic and documentary evidence.


title: IBM and the Holocaust

text: A revised 2002 paperback edition provides additional evidence that IBM New York established a special subsidiary in Poland called Watson Business Machines to deal with railway traffic in the General Government. Edwin Black asserts that IBM did so after the September 1, 1939 Nazi Invasion of Poland, and continued this business relationship during the Holocaust in Poland. Watson Business Machines operated a punch card printing shop near the Warsaw Ghetto.


title: IBM and the Holocaust

text: In a 2002 editorial in the "SFGate", Black documented that this Polish subsidiary reported to IBM Geneva which in turn reported to IBM New York. Black further states that IBM's European general manager reported directly to Thomas Watson Sr., that some machines in Poland were sent to Romania to assist in the Jewish census there, and that these Polish machines were later replaced.


title: IBM and the Holocaust

text: In his book, Black quotes Leon Krzemieniecki, the last surviving person involved in the administration of the rail transportation to Auschwitz and Treblinka, as stating he knew the punched card machines were not German machines, because the labels were in English. Black details how income from the machines leased in Poland was sent through Geneva to IBM in New York.


title: IBM and the Holocaust

text: Edwin Black details how IBM not only leased Nazi Germany the machines, but then provided continuous maintenance service, and sold the spare parts and the special paper needed for the customized punch cards.


title: IBM and the Holocaust

text: After the publication of the 2012 expanded edition, he wrote for the "Huffington Post", "The punch cards, machinery, training, servicing, and special project work, such as population census and identification, was managed directly by IBM headquarters in New York, and later through its subsidiaries in Germany, known as Deutsche Hollerith-Maschinen Gesellschaft (DEHOMAG), Poland, Holland, France, Switzerland, and other European countries." He added that the punch cards bore the indicia of the German subsidiary Dehomag.


title: IBM and the Holocaust

text: Though IBM has never directly denied any of the evidence posed by the book, it has criticized Black's research methods and accusatory conclusions. IBM claimed it does not have any other information about the company during its World War II period or the operations of Dehomag, as it argued most documents were destroyed or lost during the war.


title: IBM and the Holocaust

text: IBM also claimed that an earlier dismissed lawsuit, initiated by lawyers representing concentration camp survivors, was filed in 2001 to coincide with Black's book launch. Lawyers for the Holocaust victims acknowledged the timing of the lawsuit to coincide with Black's book release, explaining their public relations strategies played an important role in their record of achieving Nazi-era settlements totaling more than $7 billion without winning a judgment.


title: IBM and the Holocaust

text: After the publication of Black's updated 2002 paperback edition, IBM responded by stating it wasn't convinced there were any new findings and there was no proof IBM had enabled the Holocaust. IBM rejected Black's assertion that IBM was hiding information and records regarding its World War II era. Several years previously, IBM had given its corporate records of the period to academic archives in New York and Stuttgart, Germany, for review by undefined "independent scholars".


title: IBM and the Holocaust

text: In early 2021, Black published the 20th anniversary edition with special public events and a syndicated article stating that in twenty years, "not a comma has been changed", adding that "IBM has never requested a correction or denied any facts in the book."


title: IBM and the Holocaust

text: In 2010, Black reported on unidentified Wikipedia editors marginalizing his research on IBM's role in the Holocaust. It is not clear whether the editors involved were IBM employees, but Black states that, "[they were] openly fortified by official IBM corporate archivist Paul Lasewicz using his real name, and others"; Black nevertheless calls Lasewicz a "man of integrity" and points out that he deferred taking the lead because of potential conflict of interest and then recused himself entirely.


title: IBM and the Holocaust

text: The book was published on February 11, 2001, simultaneously in 40 countries in 14 languages, with numerous subsequent expanded editions, and hundreds of published reviews in many languages have appeared.


title: IBM and the Holocaust

text: At the first edition release in 2001, "Newsweek" called the book "explosive", adding, "backed by exhaustive research, Black's case is simple and stunning. ... Black clearly demonstrates that Nazi Germany employed IBM Hollerith punch-card machines to perform critical tasks in carrying out the Holocaust and the German war effort ... Black establishes beyond dispute that IBM Hollerith machines significantly advanced Nazi efforts to exterminate Jewry."


title: IBM and the Holocaust

text: In 2003, the American Society of Journalists and Authors acknowledged "IBM and the Holocaust" with its award for Best Non-Fiction Book of the Year.


title: IBM and the Holocaust

text: Richard Bernstein, writing for "The New York Times Book Review" about the original 2001 first edition, said "Edwin Black makes a copiously documented case for the utter amorality of the profit motive and its indifference to consequences" but that Black's case "is long and heavily documented, and yet he does not demonstrate that IBM bears some unique or decisive responsibility for the evil that was done".


title: IBM and the Holocaust

text: In a 2001 review in the "Los Angeles Times", historian and UCLA professor Saul Friedlander wrote, "The author convincingly shows the relentless efforts made by IBM to maximize profit by selling its machines and its punch cards to a country whose criminal record would soon be widely recognized. Indeed, Black demonstrates with great precision that the godlike owner of the corporation, Thomas Watson, was impervious to the moral dimension of his dealings with Hitler's Germany and for years even had a soft spot for the Nazi regime."


title: IBM and the Holocaust

text: In another review of the first edition, David Cesarani of Southampton University stated that Black provided "shocking evidence" that IBM in America continued to provide punch cards and other services to the Nazis "in defiance of Allied regulations against trading with the enemy."


title: IBM and the Holocaust

text: In a 2001 review of the first edition in "The Atlantic", Jack Beatty wrote, "This is a shocking book ... Edwin Black has documented a sordid relationship between this great American company and the Third Reich, one that extended into the war years."


title: IBM and the Holocaust

text: Prof. Robert Urekew's review in the "Harvard International Review" stated: "Black's meticulous documentation reveals an undeniable fact: after the outbreak of the World War II, the IBM corporation knew the whereabouts of each of its European-leased machines, and what revenues it could expect from them."


title: IBM and the Holocaust

text: After the updated paperback edition in 2002, Oliver Burkeman wrote for "The Guardian", "The paperback provides the first evidence that the company's dealings with the Nazis were controlled from its New York headquarters throughout the second world war." Sam Jaffe in "Businessweek" wrote: "With exhaustive research, Black makes the case that IBM and Watson conspired with Nazi Germany to help automate the genocide of Europe's Jews."


title: IBM and the Holocaust

text: Reuters reported in 2002 that historians on Black's research team stated the paperback edition had used newly discovered Nazi documents and Polish eyewitness testimony to link IBM's U.S. operations directly to the Third Reich operations in Poland.


title: IBM and the Holocaust

text: Several reviewers publicly retracted their negative reviews, with signed written apologies and donations to Holocaust museums, including reviewers in "The Jerusalem Report", "Nature Magazine", "AudioFile" magazine, "Annals of the History of Computing", and the World Association of International Scholars.


title: IBM and the Holocaust

text: In February 2001, an Alien Tort Claims Act claim was filed in U.S. federal court against IBM for allegedly providing the punched card technology that facilitated the Holocaust, and for covering up German IBM subsidiary Dehomag's activities. There was no evidence in the suit that IBM officials in New York explicitly ordered that technology be supplied to the Nazis with the understanding it would be used in concentration camps; however, lawyers representing victims of Nazi oppression claimed Dehomag's founder Heidinger expressed pride in giving Hitler data that could be used in "corrective interventions", and pledged to "follow his orders blindly". In April 2001, the lawsuit was dropped after lawyers feared the suit would slow down payments from a German Holocaust fund for Holocaust survivors who had suffered under Nazi persecution. IBM's German division had paid $3 million into the fund, while clearly avoiding admission of liability.


title: IBM and the Holocaust

text: In 2004, the Roma human rights organization Gypsy International Recognition and Compensation Action (GIRCA) filed suit against IBM in Switzerland. However, the case was dismissed in 2006 under the relevant statute of limitations.


title: IBM and the Holocaust

text: The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) said in a 2015 unrelated lawsuit filed in U.S. federal court against IBM, "We point out the disturbing parallels between IBM's actions "vis-à-vis" South Africa and Nazi Germany: IBM New York purposefully 'facilitated gross human rights abuses by the Third Reich.'"


title: Social club

text: A social club may be a group of people or the place where they meet, generally formed around a common interest, occupation, or activity. Examples include: book discussion clubs, chess clubs, anime clubs, country clubs, charity work, criminal headquarters (e.g., the Cage or the Ravenite Social Club), final club, fishing club, gaming club, gentlemen's clubs (known as private clubs in the US), hunting clubs, military officers' clubs, political clubs, science clubs, university clubs, Christian fellowships and other religious clubs. This article covers only three distinct types of social clubs: the historic gentlemen's clubs, the modern activities clubs, and an introduction to fraternities and sororities. This article does not cover a variety of other types of clubs having some social characteristics. Social clubs have commonly been used by the Mafia as meeting places, some mob crews even being named after the club that they are based out of (The Palma Boys Crew, The Gemini Crew, The Veterans & Friends Crew)


title: Social club

text: Working men's clubs developed in Britain during Victorian times as institutes where working class men could attend lectures and take part in recreational pursuits. The Reverend Henry Solly founded the Working Men's Club and Institute Union (CIU) for this purpose in 1862. Many middle class social reformers founded these clubs during the temperance movement as a place to relax without alcohol, but in time this changed. They became a combination of public houses (pubs), music-halls, and clubs, becoming places to be entertained, to drink socially, and to play bar games. Working Men's clubs are still prevalent across the United Kingdom, though not as popular.


title: Social club

text: Modern clubs include: San Francisco's Urban Diversion, which opened in 2003 as a general adventure and activities social club; and Soho, London's Groucho Club, which opened in 1985 as "the antidote to the traditional club." The "traditional club" referred to is the elitist gentlemen's club, a fixture of upper class male British society. This is not to be confused with the modern use of the phrase, which now stands as a euphemism for a strip club.


title: Social club

text: Clubs in England and Wales were not controlled by the licensing system until the Licensing Act of 1902 was passed, or in Scotland until the Licensing (Scotland) Act 1903 was passed. They were passed mainly to check the abuse of “clubs” being formed solely to sell intoxicating liquors free from the restrictions of the licensing acts, but it applied to all kinds of clubs in England and Wales. The act required the registration of every club that occupied any premises habitually used for the purposes of a club and in which intoxicating liquor was supplied to members or their guests. The secretary of every club was required to give a return to the clerk to the justices of the petty sessional division with this information:


title: Social club

text: Social and recreational clubs may be considered tax-exempt 501(c)(7) organizations under certain circumstances.


title: Social club

text: Typically a social club has a constitution which states the club’s objects, its structure, location of its activities, requirements of members, membership criteria, and various other rules. British clubs are usually run by a committee which will also include three ‘officer’ positions: chair, secretary and treasurer.


title: Social club

text: Social activities clubs are a modern combination of several types of clubs and reflect today's more eclectic and varied society. These clubs are centered on the activities available to the club members in the city or area in which the club is located. Some have a traditional clubhouse, bar, or restaurant where members gather; others do not.


title: Social club

text: Events can include a broad range of activities from sporting events and social parties to ballet, arts or book clubs. Unlike traditional clubs they are not limited to one kind of event or special interest but include a broad range of events in their monthly calendars. The members choose the events in which the club is going to take part, based upon the changing interests of the members. The members themselves determine the events they will attend of those offered.


title: Social club

text: Because the purpose of these clubs is split between general social interaction and taking part in the events themselves, both single and married people can take part. However clubs tend to have more single members than married, and many clubs exist for only single people, only married couples, or only people with certain sexual orientations (homosexuality, pansexuality, bisexuality or heterosexuality).


title: Social club

text: Membership can be limited or open to the general public, as can the events. Most clubs have a limited membership based upon specific criteria, and restrict the events to members to increase their feeling of security, creating an increased sense of camaraderie and belonging. There are many examples of private social clubs including the University Club of Chicago, The Mansion on O Street in D.C., Penn Club of New York City and New York Friars' Club.


title: Social club

text: Social activities clubs can be for profit, non-profit, or a combination of the two (A for profit club with a non-profit charitable arm, for instance).


title: Social club

text: Some social clubs have function halls which members or, sometimes, the general public can rent for parties.


title: Social club

text: A number of Jewish community centers and other organizations such as the YMCA have social clubs for people with social anxiety and learning disabilities. Membership in these clubs is limited to individuals with these conditions.


title: Social club

text: Fraternities and sororities are part of "Greek life" prevalent in universities. Many young men and women pledge during their freshman year of college in order to become a "brother" or "sister" of a fraternity or sorority. These clubs are founded on principles of camaraderie and communal bonding. As social clubs they are sometimes also philanthropic, hosting fundraisers for charities or on-campus events.


title: Sam Pepper

text: Samuel Pepper (born 26 March 1989) is a British internet personality. He created his YouTube channel in 2010, which has accumulated over 2 million subscribers and 55 million video views . New content has not appeared on his channel since March of 2017. Pepper has since amassed more than 4 million followers on TikTok as of October 2021.


title: Sam Pepper

text: Pepper was born in Ashford, Kent, England. He is of half Greek descent. He attended Pent Valley Technology College.


title: Sam Pepper

text: In 2010, Pepper took part in the 11th season of the British reality television series "Big Brother" as a housemate, entering the house on day 52 as Laura's replacement as part of the "Ignore the Obvious" task. He was evicted on day 73 with 14.6% of the public vote.


title: Sam Pepper

text: On 8 September 2010, Pepper created his YouTube channel and began uploading videos, mainly consisting of pranks, voicing himself in Element Animation's "The Crack!" in 2011. From late-2013 to mid-2014, Pepper, alongside friend and fellow YouTube personality Marius "Maz" Listhrop, began his worldwide comedy tour, "WDGAF Tour".


title: Sam Pepper

text: In September 2014, Pepper uploaded a controversial video titled "Fake Hand Ass Pinch Prank". In the video, Pepper would go up to women and ask for directions before pinching their buttocks. Soon after the video was published, many people online (later identified as trolls) claimed to have been sexually harassed by Pepper in the video, which soon gained mainstream media attention. Subsequently, the hashtag #ReportSamPepper trended on Twitter, along with many people criticising Pepper's actions. Pepper released another video a few days later where women would go behind men and pinch their buttocks. On the same day, he published another video explaining that his first prank was a "social experiment" and that the video was "staged and scripted" with actors, the online claims of "participants" having been fake. He went on to say that bringing attention to the issue of sexual harassment was "the focal point of the experiment", with the harassment claims online untrue jokes. Pepper removed both of these videos from YouTube shortly after their releases. Rival video blogger Laci Green consequently published a video called "Sam Pepper Exposed", addressing the online harassment allegation campaign on Pepper. Green also wrote an open letter calling on Pepper to "stop violating women and making them uncomfortable on the street for views". The letter received more than 100 thousand signatures.


title: Sam Pepper

text: In November 2015, Pepper uploaded a video entitled "Killing Best Friend Prank". The video features internet personalities Sam Golbach and Colby Brock. In the video, a masked Pepper kidnaps Golbach and Brock (both of whom were in actuality in on the prank alongside Pepper), who are parked at an unknown location, shoving Golbach into the trunk of the car with a bag over his head. Brock helps Pepper tie up Golbach and take him to a rooftop, where he is forced to watch Pepper "shoot" Brock, leaving Golbach in tears. The video caused a backlash on social media, also hitting media headlines. British newspaper "Metro" compared the video to an "ISIS-style execution". A subsequent online petition to have Pepper removed from YouTube gained over 100,000 signatures. In an interview with "Metro", Pepper stated that the criticism towards the video and himself was "shocking". In the same interview, Golbach stated that the message of the video was "about living life to the full... not taking life for granted and loving it because it's short". In response to the ongoing criticism, Pepper started a GoFundMe campaign, stating that he would delete his YouTube channel if $1.5 million was pledged to him. The campaign was removed shortly afterwards, along with the accompanying video that was posted on his YouTube channel.


title: Sam Pepper

text: On 21 February 2016, Pepper made all of his YouTube videos private and deleted all of his tweets, save for one stating "I give up". He uploaded a 20-minute video on 24 February titled "i'm sorry". In the video, Pepper confessed that many of his pranks, including his controversial "Killing Best Friend Prank", were staged. He also denied all online allegations of harassment towards him, attributed to a trolling campaign. He apologised for his videos, calling himself an "idiot" and stated that he would continue uploading on YouTube and "make content that I really believe in". After the video was published, Pepper stopped uploading prank videos and began uploading vlogs, subsequently receiving a more positive response.


title: Sam Pepper

text: In 2018, Pepper stopped uploading on his main channel and rebranded to his "Sam Pepper Live" channel, where he began vlogging and frequently live streaming alongside fellow live streamer Ice Poseidon. The following year, Pepper rebranded once again and became inactive on YouTube, subsequently shifting to TikTok. He mainly posts short comedy videos consisting of "challenge videos, life–hacks, and stunts"; the "Metro" described his presence on the platform as a "fully-fledged comeback".


title: Sam Pepper

text: In 2021, Pepper, who was living and frequently collaborating with former FaZe Clan member Frazier Kay, was accused by Kay of ordering a developer on the cryptocurrency Save the Kids Token to change a mechanism within the currency, which after its change, would allow for the cryptocurrency to be used as a pump and dump scheme. Pepper has not commented on the allegations since Kay accused Pepper of masterminding the pump and dump.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: The 2017–18 season was Futbol Club Barcelona's 118th in existence and the club's 87th consecutive season in the top flight of Spanish football. This was also the first year under head coach Ernesto Valverde.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: The team produced a solid season, clinching the domestic double, going undefeated in the league up until match day 37, where Barça lost to Levante 4–5, and producing an emphatic 5–0 victory over Sevilla in the Copa final. However, in the Champions League, Barcelona crashed out in the quarter-finals for the third year in a row, losing to Roma 0–3 and being eliminated on away goals as a result (after a 4–1 home victory). The season was the first since 2012–13 season without Neymar, who departed to join Paris Saint-Germain.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 29 May, the club announced Ernesto Valverde would be the new Barcelona coach following the departure of Luis Enrique at the end of the previous season.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 29 May, Barcelona and goalkeeper Marc-André ter Stegen negotiated a five-year contract extension lasting until 30 June 2022.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 30 June, goalkeeper Jordi Masip's contract expired; he was not resigned and was therefore released.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 30 June, the club announced they have reached an agreement with Real Betis for the transfer of Cristian Tello for €4 million.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 7 July, Barcelona and Jérémy Mathieu agreed to mutually terminate the defender's contract. Mathieu subsequently joined Portuguese club Sporting CP on a free transfer.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 13 July, Barcelona and Benfica reached an agreement for the transfer of right-back Nélson Semedo for €30 million.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 21 July, Barcelona defeated Juventus 2–1 in a pre-season friendly. Neymar notched two impeccable first-half goals as the Catalans rolled past the Italian champions before 82,104 fans at a sold-out MetLife Stadium in the 2017 International Champions Cup. Giorgio Chiellini pulled one back for Juventus in the 63rd minute, not enough to keep the Ernesto Valverde era from beginning with a convincing win.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 26 July, Barcelona won 1–0 against Manchester United in a pre-season friendly. Neymar scored in the 31st minute.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 29 July, Barcelona defeated Real Madrid 3–2 in their final match of the U.S. tour, winning the United States edition of the 2017 International Champions Cup. Messi, Ivan Rakitić and Gerard Piqué each scored one goal.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 3 August, Barcelona confirmed the unilateral termination of Neymar's contract as Neymar's legal representatives paid his €222 million buyout clause. In turn, Barcelona announced a turnover of operation details to UEFA so as to allow UEFA to determine any disciplinary responsibilities that may arise. Neymar subsequently joined Paris Saint-Germain on a five-year contract.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 4 August, Barcelona drew 1–1 with Gimnàstic in a pre-season friendly game in Tarragona. Manu Barreiro put the hosts ahead in the 11th minute only for Paco Alcácer to score the equalizer for the "Blaugrana" from a free-kick in the 79th minute.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 7 August, Barcelona defeated Chapecoense 5–0 in the 52nd edition of the Joan Gamper Trophy. Gerard Deulofeu, Sergio Busquets, Messi, Luis Suárez and Denis Suárez were the scorers for "Barça"; Messi and Deulofeu also assisted two goals each. Busquets was named the Man of the Match.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 13 August, Barcelona lost 1–3 to Real Madrid in the first leg of the 2017 Supercopa de España. The first half of the match ended goalless. Five minutes into the second half, Marcelo fired a cross that deflected off Piqué's foot, resulting in an own goal. In the 77th minute, Luis Suárez was brought down in the box by goalkeeper Keylor Navas, resulting in a penalty which was converted by Lionel Messi. Messi's hit marked his 25th goal in the fixture. In the 80th minute, Real Madrid scored their second through a counterattack when Isco assisted Cristiano Ronaldo, who shot into the top right corner from the edge of the box. Ronaldo was booked for removing his shirt as part of his celebrations. Two minutes later, he was booked again for a dive in the penalty box, which resulted in a red card and a subsequent suspension for the second leg. Real's last goal was scored in the 90th minute in similar fashion to the second, when Marco Asensio shot into the top left corner following an assist from Lucas Vázquez.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 14 August, Barcelona announced they had reached an agreement with Guangzhou Evergrande Taobao for the transfer of Paulinho for €40 million. His release clause was set at €120 million.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 16 August, Barcelona lost 2–0 (agg. 1–5) to Real Madrid in the second leg of the 2017 Supercopa de España. The first goal of the match came quite early through a Real throw-in the fourth minute which resulted into getting the ball to Marco Asensio, who scored from long range. Nine minutes after the half-hour mark, Marcelo crossed in for Karim Benzema to control, who finished it with a half-volley into the net which was enough for the win for Real.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 20 August, Barcelona defeated Real Betis 2–0 in their first Liga match of the season, following an own goal from Alin Toșca and a second within three minutes by Sergi Roberto.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 25 August, Barcelona announced they had reached an agreement with Borussia Dortmund for the transfer of Ousmane Dembélé for €105 million plus add-ons. The player signed a five-year contract and his buyout clause was set at €400 million.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 26 August, Barcelona defeated Alavés 0–2 at Mendizorrotza. Messi scored both goals, although having a penalty saved by Pacheco. Paulinho made his debut for Barcelona.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 29 August, Nice and Barcelona reached an agreement for the loan of Marlon for two years, with a buy-back option for Barcelona after the first year.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 31 August, Barcelona and Benfica reached an agreement for the loan of Douglas until the end of the 2017–18 campaign.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 1 September, Barcelona and Alavés reached an agreement for the loan of Munir until the end of the 2017–18 campaign.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 5 September, midfielder Carles Aleñá signed a new contract, keeping him at the club for a further three years with an optional extra two years.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 9 September, Barcelona defeated Espanyol 5–0 in the Derbi barceloní. Messi scored a hat-trick while Piqué and Suárez topped off the scoring. Ousmane Dembélé made his debut, coming on as a substitute for Gerard Deulofeu in the 68th minute; he set Suárez up for the final goal.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 12 September, Barcelona beat Juventus 3–0 in their first game of the 2017–18 UEFA Champions League, following a brace by Messi and another goal by Rakitić.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 16 September, Barcelona defeated Getafe 1–2 in a hard-fought game at the Coliseum Alfonso Pérez. Shibasaki scored a stunning goal for Getafe in the first half while both of Barcelona's goals came in the second half from substitutes Denis Suárez and Paulinho, the latter of whom scored his maiden Barcelona goal.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 19 September, Barcelona defeated Eibar 6–1, with Messi scoring four and Paulinho and Denis Suárez getting the other goals. Eibar's only goal was scored by Sergi Enrich.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 23 September, Barcelona defeated Girona 0–3 in their first ever Catalan derby. Girona captain Aday and goalkeeper Iraizoz inadvertently steered the ball into their own net to give Barcelona a two-goal lead, before Luis Suárez topped off the scoring.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 27 September, Barcelona defeated Sporting Lisbon 0–1 on the 2nd matchday of the Champions League, at the Estádio José Alvalade. Barça were dependent on a lone own goal by Sebastián Coates.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 1 October, Barcelona defeated Las Palmas 3–0 in a game played behind closed doors at the Camp Nou, due to violence in Catalonia relating to an ongoing independence referendum. Sergio Busquets scored through a header, while Messi topped off the scoring with a brace. Prior to the game, two directors, Jordi Monés and Carles Vilarrubí, handed in their resignations in protest to the game being played.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 3 October, Barcelona joined the country-wide strike called by ‘Taula per la Democràcia’ (Table for Democracy) and therefore the club offices remained closed. None of the professional teams nor the youth teams at FC Barcelona trained. The Tour Camp Nou Experience and the Museum as well as the OAB were also closed.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 6 October, midfielder Andrés Iniesta signed a lifetime contract with Barcelona, keeping him with the club for the remainder of his career.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 14 October, Barcelona were held by Atlético Madrid to a 1–1 draw at the Wanda Metropolitano, which effectively ended their winning streak. Saúl scored early into the game to give Atlético the lead, but Luis Suárez saved Barça's day with a last-gasp header.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 18 October, Barcelona won against Olympiacos 3–1 at home. The Catalans maintained a perfect start thanks to an early own-goal, Messi's 100th European goal, and one from Digne, although the visitors did pull one back at the last minute. Barcelona had a goal ruled for offside and one deemed to have touched Piqué's hand and entered the net, resulting in his second yellow of the night, and his suspension for the return game.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 21 October, table-toppers Barcelona defeated winless Málaga 2–0 at home. Deulofeu controversially grabbed an early goal, while Iniesta added a second later in the final half.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 24 October, Barcelona defeated Real Murcia 3–0 in their Copa del Rey opener. Paco Alcácer scored a header just before the break, while Deulofeu scored in the second half and Barça B youngster José Arnaiz quickly added the third on his debut with the first team.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 28 October, Barcelona won against Athletic Bilbao 0–2 away at the Nuevo San Mamés. Goals from Messi and Paulinho split the teams in Bilbao to ensure the Catalans stay four points clear at the top of the Liga table.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 31 October, Barcelona were held by Olympiacos to a goal-less draw at the Karaiskakis Stadium in Piraeus.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 4 November, Barcelona defeated Sevilla at a rainy night at the Camp Nou. Paco Alcácer opened the scoring with a goal early in the game, while Pizarro headed in the equaliser in the second half, Alcácer netted his second and also the match deciding goal few minutes later.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 18 November, Barcelona won against Leganés 0–3 at the Estadio Municipal de Butarque. Suárez ended his 5-game goalless streak with two strikes from rebounds, while Paulinho added the final touch. Piqué received his 5th yellow card of the season, meaning he misses Barça's next match.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 22 November, Barcelona were held to a 0–0 draw against Juventus at the Allianz Stadium, thereby qualifying for the Round of 16 of the Champions League.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 25 November, Messi signed a new deal with Barcelona, keeping him with the club till the end of the 2020/21 season. His buyout clause was set at €700 million.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 26 November, Barcelona tied with Valencia at the Mestalla Stadium. A Messi shot was dropped into the goal by Neto, but was disallowed by the referee. In the second half, Rodrigo put Valencia in the lead, but Jordi Alba scored through a Messi assist in the dying minutes.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 29 November, Barcelona thrashed Real Murcia 5–0 (agg. 8–0) at the Camp Nou. Paco Alcácer, Piqué, Aleix Vidal, Denis Suárez and José Arnaiz, were the scorers.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 2 December, Barcelona were held to a 2–2 draw by Celta Vigo at the Camp Nou. Iago Aspas scored at the 20-minute mark, but Messi equalized within a few minutes. Luis Suárez put Barça in the lead in the second half, but again, the score was equalized by Maxi Gómez.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 5 December, Barcelona defeated Sporting Lisbon 2–0, with a goal from a Paco Alcácer header, and an own goal from ex-Barça player Jérémy Mathieu.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 10 December, Barcelona won against Villarreal 0–2 at Estadio de la Cerámica. Both goals came late into the game, with one each scored by Messi and Suárez. Villarreal's Raba got a direct red for a challenge on Sergio. Messi's goal equalled the record in Europe's major leagues of the Bayern Munich striker Gerd Müller with 525 goals with one club.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 17 December, Barcelona won against La Coruña 4–0, Suárez and Paulinho scored two goals each on a fabulous night for both.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 23 December, Barcelona defeated Real Madrid 0–3 at the Bernabéu. Suárez, Messi and Aleix Vidal each scored a goal that saw the Blaugrana head into the Christmas break 14 points clear of the defending champions.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 4 January, Barcelona were held to a 1–1 draw by Celta Vigo. A gripping cup first leg ended at Balaídos all square on the night that Ousmane Dembélé made his long-awaited return from injury.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 6 January, Barcelona announced that they had reached an agreement with Liverpool for the transfer of Philippe Coutinho. The player signed a contract for the remainder of the season and five more, and has a buyout clause of €400 million.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 7 January, Barcelona won against Levante 3–0, Ernesto Valverde's men kicked off the New Year in La Liga with an impressive team performance and goals from Messi, Suárez and Paulinho.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 11 January, Barcelona and Sociedade Esportiva Palmeiras reached an agreement for the transfer of Yerry Mina for the remainder of the season and five more until June 30, 2023. The cost of the transfer was €11.8 million and his release clause was set at €100 million.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 11 January, Barcelona defeated Celta Vigo 5–0 (agg. 6–1) at the Camp Nou. Four goals in the first 31 minutes (2 from Messi and one each from Jordi Alba and Luis Suárez) got the job done early and Rakitic headed in a late fifth as the Catalans cruised into the quarter-finals of the Copa del Rey.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 13 January, Barcelona and İstanbul Başakşehir F.K. agreed on a loan deal for Turkish midfielder Arda Turan for the remainder of the season and two more.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 14 January, Barcelona defeated Real Sociedad away at the Anoeta Stadium with a score of 2–4. This was the first time Barça beat La Real away since May 2007. Barça were 2–0 down at the 35th minute, until Paulinho scored Barça's first in the 39th minute. Suárez scored in the 50th and 71st minute, and Messi scored a free kick in the 85th minute to complete the comeback.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 17 January, Barcelona was defeated by Espanyol 1–0 away. Barça dominated in Cornellà but failed to find the net as the home side snatched a winner three minutes from the end.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 19 January, Barcelona and Sergi Roberto reached an agreement to renew his contract through to 30 June 2022.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 21 January, Barcelona beat Real Betis 0–5 away at the Estadio Benito Villamarín. Valverde's men won in style with five second-half goals within 30 minutes as Rakitic, Messi (2), and Suárez (2) all found the net.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 22 January, Barcelona announced that they had reached an agreement with Inter Milan for the loan of Rafinha until 30 June 2018. Inter has an option to purchase the player for €35M+€3M euros in variables, which must be confirmed before the end of the current season.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 25 January, Barcelona defeated Espanyol 2–0 (agg. 2–1) at home. Philippe Coutinho's debut, and goals from Lionel Messi and Luis Suárez brought the Camp Nou to its feet as Barça reached the semi-finals of the Copa del Rey.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 28 January, Barcelona beat Alavés 2–1 at home. Barça equaled a club record by going unbeaten in first 21 league games of the season thanks to a second half comeback win with goals from Suárez and Messi.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 1 February, Barcelona defeated Valencia 1–0 at the Camp Nou. A Luis Suárez header broke the deadlock in a frustrating encounter.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 4 February, Barcelona were held by Espanyol to a 1–1 draw away at the RCDE Stadium. Gerard Moreno's opener was cancelled out by a towering header from Gerard Piqué in a torrential downpour. This draw marked the 22nd consecutive unbeaten game in the league for Barcelona, which is a new club record, beating the previous record of 21 games under Pep Guardiola in the 2009–10 season.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 8 February, Barcelona defeated Valencia 0–2 (0-3 on aggregate) at the Mestalla. Coutinho claimed first goal in a blaugrana jersey and Rakitic added a second to send the Catalans into the Copa del Rey final against Sevilla on April 21


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 11 February, Barcelona drew with Getafe 0–0 at the Camp Nou. The Blaugranas couldn't break down the team from Madrid's resolute defending in a hard-fought game with few clear-cut chances.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 17 February, Barcelona beat Eibar 0–2 at Ipurua. Goals from Luis Suárez and Jordi Alba secured three hard-earned points in the Basque Country to match the Club record unbeaten run in La Liga.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 20 February, Barcelona drew with Chelsea 1–1 at Stamford Bridge. Iniesta-Messi connection canceled out Willian's opener to set up an enticing second leg at Camp Nou in three weeks' time.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 24 February, Barcelona defeated Girona 6–1 at the Camp Nou. A hat-trick from Suárez, two goals from Messi plus a Coutinho special helped Barça to an exciting win over an opponent who took the lead and were always willing to get forward themselves.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 1 March, Barcelona were held by Las Palmas to a 1–1 draw away from home. A wondrous Messi free kick puts the Catalans in command but the Islanders leveled up from the spot.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 4 March, Barcelona won against Atlético Madrid 1–0 at home. Another Lionel Messi special was enough for Barça to see off determined opponents who fought for the win right to the very end.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 7 March, Barcelona defeated Espanyol at the Camp d'Esports in Lleida. The third edition of the Supercopa de Catalunya went down to penalties in Lleida, and the Blaugrana made no mistake and brought the trophy home.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 10 March, Barcelona won against Málaga 0–2 away. Fabulous first half goals from Suárez and Coutinho were enough to secure a comfortable victory in a top-against-bottom clash.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 11 March, FC Barcelona confirmed that an agreement had been reached with Grêmio for the purchase option of Brazilian midfielder Arthur. If Barcelona exercises the option in July 2018, the transfer will cost €30m plus €9m in added variables.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 14 March, Barcelona won against Chelsea 3–0 (agg. 4–1). Dembélé notched his debut goal and Messi scored his 99th and 100th career Champions League goals as Barça went through to the last eight for a record-extending 11th straight season.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 18 March, Barcelona defeated Athletic Bilbao 2–0 at the Camp Nou. A scintillating first-half display from the Blaugranes secured a comfortable 2–0 win with goals from Alcácer and Messi at the Camp Nou.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 31 March, Barcelona recorded a heart-stopping 2–2 draw at the Ramón Sánchez Pizjuán. Two late goals from Luis Suárez and Lionel Messi earned a draw for Barça after Sevilla had opened up a two-goal lead through Franco Vázquez and Luis Muriel.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 4 April, Barça took a 4–1 aggregate lead into the second leg after two own goals by Roma and a third from Gerard Piqué; Edin Dzeko answered for Roma before Luis Suárez added some late insurance.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 7 April, Barca defeated Leganes 3–1 drawing level with the joint-record of 38 unbeaten games set by Real Sociedad, thanks to a Messi hat-trick.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 10 April, Barça lost 3–0 to Roma. Goals from Džeko, De Rossi and Manolas allowed the Italians to turn around a three-goal deficit and qualify for the semi-finals on the away goals rule.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 14 April, Barca defeated València 2–1 with goals from Luis Suárez and Samuel Umtiti that secured the longest unbeaten streak (39) in La Liga history.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 17 April, ten-man Barça held on for a 2–2 draw with Celta Vigo at Balaídos. Ousmane Dembélé scored his first La Liga goal and Paco Alcácer got the other. Sergi Roberto was sent off in the 71st minute but Barca held on to remain unbeaten in the league.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 21 April, Barcelona cruised to their fourth consecutive Copa del Rey title as they beat Sevilla 5–0 at the Wanda Metropolitano. The goals were scored by Luis Suarez (2), Messi, Iniesta and Coutinho.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 27 April, Andrés Iniesta announced that he would be leaving the club at the end of the season after 22 incredible years. Iniesta, a World Cup winner with Spain, won nine La Liga titles alongside four Champions League wins and six Copa del Rey crowns.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 29 April, Barcelona defeated Deportivo La Coruna 4–2 to win their 25th La Liga title. Coutinho scored the opening goal before Messi sealed the title with a hat trick.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 6 May, 10-man Barcelona held on for a dramatic 2–2 draw in El Clasico against Real Madrid to extend their unbeaten streak in the league. Luis Suarez and Leo Messi scored the goals for Barca which were cancelled out by goals from Cristiano Ronaldo and Gareth Bale. Sergi Roberto was sent off in first-half injury time following an altercation with Marcelo.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 9 May, a much changed Barcelona side defeated Villareal 5–1. Barca's new signings Coutinho, Paulinho and Dembele (2) were all on target with Messi getting the other goal.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 13 May, Barcelona's unbeaten run came to the end when they lost to Levante 4–5. Barcelona mounted a spirited comeback after trailing 1–5 but fell agonizingly short. The only bright spot in the game was a hat-trick by Philippe Coutinho. The other goal was scored by Luis Suarez from the penalty spot.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: On 20 May, Barcelona defeated Real Sociedad 1–0 in Iniesta's final game as a Barcelona player. The only goal of the game was a breathtaking strike from Iniesta's heir apparent – Coutinho. Iniesta received a standing ovation from the Camp Nou when he was substituted in the 82nd minute. This game also marked the last appearance for Real Sociedad legend Xabi Prieto.


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: ! colspan=14 style=background:#dcdcdc; text-align:center| Players who have made an appearance or had a squad number this season but have left the club


title: 2017–18 FC Barcelona season

text: Includes all competitive matches. Players listed below (excluding goalkeepers) made at least one appearance for Barcelona first squad during the season.


title: Anointing of Jesus

text: The anointings of Jesus’s head or feet are events recorded in the four gospels. The account in Matthew 26, Mark 14, and John 12 takes place on the Holy Wednesday of Holy Week at the house of Simon the Leper in Bethany, a village in Judaea on the southeastern slope of the Mount of Olives.


title: Anointing of Jesus

text: In Matthew and Mark, he is anointed by an unnamed woman. In John, the woman is identified as Mary of Bethany, the sister of Martha and Lazarus. The event in Luke features an unknown sinful woman, and is in the northern region, as Luke 7 indicates Jesus was ministering in the northern regions of Nain and Capernaum. The honorific anointing with perfume is an action frequently mentioned in other literature from the time; however, using long hair to dry Jesus's feet, as in John and Luke, is not recorded elsewhere, and should be regarded as an exceptional gesture. Considerable debate has discussed the identity of the woman, the location, timing, and the message.


title: Anointing of Jesus

text: The event (or events – see discussion below) is reported in Matthew 26, Mark 14, Luke 7, and John 12. Matthew and Mark are very similar:


title: Anointing of Jesus

text: While Jesus was in Bethany in the home of Simon the Leper, a woman came to him with an alabaster jar of very expensive perfume, which she poured on his head as he was reclining at the table. When the disciples saw this, they were indignant. "Why this waste?" they asked. "This perfume could have been sold at a high price and the money given to the poor." Aware of this, Jesus said to them, "Why are you bothering this woman? She has done a beautiful thing to me. The poor you will always have with you, but you will not always have me. When she poured this perfume on my body, she did it to prepare me for burial. Truly I tell you, wherever this gospel is preached throughout the world, what she has done will also be told, in memory of her."


title: Anointing of Jesus

text: While he was in Bethany, reclining at the table in the home of Simon the Leper, a woman came with an alabaster jar of very expensive perfume, made of pure nard. She broke the jar and poured the perfume on his head. Some of those present were saying indignantly to one another, "Why this waste of perfume? It could have been sold for more than a year's wages and the money given to the poor." And they rebuked her harshly. "Leave her alone," said Jesus. "Why are you bothering her? She has done a beautiful thing to me. The poor you will always have with you, and you can help them any time you want. But you will not always have me. She did what she could. She poured perfume on my body beforehand to prepare for my burial. Truly I tell you, wherever the gospel is preached throughout the world, what she has done will also be told, in memory of her."


title: Anointing of Jesus

text: When one of the Pharisees invited Jesus to have dinner with him, he went to the Pharisee's house and reclined at the table. A woman in that town who lived a sinful life learned that Jesus was eating at the Pharisee's house, so she came there with an alabaster jar of perfume. As she stood behind him at his feet weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears. Then she wiped them with her hair, kissed them and poured perfume on them. When the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, "If this man were a prophet, he would know who is touching him and what kind of woman she is—that she is a sinner." Jesus answered him, "Simon, I have something to tell you." "Tell me, teacher," he said. "Two people owed money to a certain moneylender. One owed him five hundred denarii, and the other fifty. Neither of them had the money to pay him back, so he forgave the debts of both. Now which of them will love him more?" Simon replied, "I suppose the one who had the bigger debt forgiven." "You have judged correctly," Jesus said. Then he turned toward the woman and said to Simon, "Do you see this woman? I came into your house. You did not give me any water for my feet, but she wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. You did not give me a kiss, but this woman, from the time I entered, has not stopped kissing my feet. You did not put oil on my head, but she has poured perfume on my feet. Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven—as her great love has shown. But whoever has been forgiven little loves little." Then Jesus said to her, "Your sins are forgiven." The other guests began to say among themselves, "Who is this who even forgives sins?" Jesus said to the woman, "Your faith has saved you; go in peace."


title: Anointing of Jesus

text: Six days before the Passover, Jesus came to Bethany, where Lazarus lived, whom Jesus had raised from the dead. Here a dinner was given in Jesus' honor. Martha served, while Lazarus was among those reclining at the table with him. Then Mary took about a pint of pure nard, an expensive perfume; she poured it on Jesus' feet and wiped his feet with her hair. And the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume. But one of his disciples, Judas Iscariot, who was later to betray him, objected, "Why wasn't this perfume sold and the money given to the poor? It was worth a year's wages." He did not say this because he cared about the poor but because he was a thief; as keeper of the money bag, he used to help himself to what was put into it. "Leave her alone," Jesus replied. "It was intended that she should save this perfume for the day of my burial. You will always have the poor among you, but you will not always have me."


title: Anointing of Jesus

text: Mark, Matthew, and John all place the incident in Bethany, a village in Judea. Mark and Matthew specify that it occurred at the home of Simon the Leper. Luke 7:36 states that Jesus had been invited to dinner at the home of Simon the Pharisee. Luke 7:39 makes clear that the sinful woman was living in the town/city (Greek: ἐν τῇ πόλει, "en têi pólei") Jesus was staying in; the preceding narrative of the Raising of the son of the widow of Nain (7:11–17) makes clear that this "polis" (translated in English as 'town' or 'city') was Nain. Luke 7:11–17 labels Nain a "polis" three times, in verses 7:11 and 7:12. On the other hand, the unnamed place where Mary and Martha live in Luke 10:38–42 is labelled a 'village' (Greek: κώμη, "kómé") in verse 10:38. Luke therefore linguistically connects the sinful woman to the (larger) town/city of Nain, and distinguishes the unnamed place of Mary and Martha as a (smaller) village. Since Luke 7's sinful woman lived in Nain, Luke 10's Mary lived in a village somewhere else in Galilee, and John 11–12's Mary lived in Bethany, Judea, most modern scholars agree they are three different characters, and there is no reason to assume that the sinful woman was named 'Mary' as well. Finally, the hosts receiving Jesus at their house seem to be four different characters across the stories: Simon the Leper in Mark and Matthew, Simon the Pharisee in Luke 7, Martha in Luke 10, and Lazarus of Bethany in John 11–12.


title: Anointing of Jesus

text: John and Luke differ from Matthew and Mark by relating that the anointing is to the feet rather than the head. This, some argue, points to the idea that Luke is speaking of an entirely different event. J.K. Elliott says that, "It is generally agreed among scholars that all four accounts relate to the same episode." He explains the variations as the result of all four evangelists adapting the account to their own "...theological, and dramatic purpose...", using the oral and written traditions to convey their "...own apologetic aims".


title: Anointing of Jesus

text: Luke's gospel speaks of Jesus' feet being anointed by a woman who had been sinful all her life and who was crying; and when her tears started landing on the feet of Jesus, she wiped his feet with her hair. Also unique to Luke's version is the inclusion of the Parable of the Two Debtors in the middle of the event. An argument can be made that this story could not have occurred only a few days before the crucifixion, due to the numerous events that followed in Luke's gospel. names her Mary, and the text assumes her to be Mary, a sister to Lazarus, as it also identifies her sister Martha. The iconography of the woman's act has traditionally been associated with Mary Magdalene, but there is no biblical text identifying her as such (she is mentioned by name for the first time, immediately following this episode, at the beginning of Luke chapter 8). According to , the perfume in his account was the purest of Spikenard.


title: Anointing of Jesus

text: Another debate is over the implications of "the poor you always have with you"; some criticized this response as lax morality, others have responded that, due to his impending crucifixion, Jesus is simply explaining that what was done was not a choice between two moral acts, but a necessity, and would no more be criticized in Jesus' day as a modern man purchasing a coffin for a loved one, even though there are poor that could be fed instead. In the autobiographical "Palm Sunday", author Kurt Vonnegut reports being invited to preach on Palm Sunday in 1980, and chooses for his text the Gospel of John's version of the anointing. Vonnegut did so because he had "seen so much un-Christian impatience with the poor encouraged by the quotation"; he questioned the translation, saying that it lacked the mercifulness of the Sermon on the Mount, and took the opportunity to offer his own translation.


title: Anointing of Jesus

text: The "Scholars Version" note to Mark 14:3–9 states: "The disciples miss the point, which Jesus makes clear: the woman has signaled his impending death and burial. It must be unintentional irony when Mark has Jesus predict that this story will always be "told in memory" of a woman whose very name escapes him."


The COVID-19 pandemic in the Republic of Ireland is part of the worldwide pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). In the Republic of Ireland, it has resulted in 1,684,717 cases and 8,270 deaths.


title: COVID-19 pandemic in the Republic of Ireland

text: 89.4% of those who died were aged over 65 and 76% had underlying illnesses with a median age of death at 82 years old. During 2020 and 2021, the country had one of the world's lowest excess death rates, which is an overall indicator of the pandemic's impact, at an estimated 12.5 deaths per 100,000 population.


text: The virus reached the country in late February 2020 and cases soon confirmed in all counties. The government first introduced public health and economic measures to mitigate its impact by shutting schools, childcare facilities and cultural institutions in March 2020. Large gatherings were cancelled, including St Patrick's Day festivities. On 27 March, the first stay-at-home order banned all non-essential travel and contact with others. People were made to keep apart in public, and those most at risk were told to cocoon. The Oireachtas passed an emergency act giving the state far-reaching powers to control the virus's spread, and the Gardaí given powers to enforce the lockdown.


text: The state's first lockdown in 2020 was the longest in Europe, especially for hospitality and retail. It caused a severe recession and an unprecedented rise in unemployment. Infections and deaths dropped to low levels by June and restrictions were gradually lifted, while schools remained closed for summer break. Pubs that served food were allowed to reopen in late June. However, "wet" pubs, or pubs that don't serve food, could not reopen until September. Ireland had the longest closure of pubs compared to other countries in Europe.


text: In October 2021, another statewide lockdown was imposed following a surge in cases, excluding schools.


text: In early December 2020, Ireland's infection rate was the lowest in the EU, and restrictions were eased. There was another surge in late December, and on Christmas Eve, another statewide lockdown was imposed. This was soon tightened to include schools, and was one of the strictest in the world. The vaccination programme began on 29 December, and has been praised as one of the most successful rollouts in the world.


text: In February 2021, the government imposed testing and quarantine rules on incoming travellers for the first time. Infections fell sharply, and schools re-opened in March. The lockdown was gradually lifted from May, but unlike most of Europe, indoor hospitality remained shut. Infections rose again in July due to the Delta variant but there were fewer deaths. Indoor hospitality reopened under strict rules, while vaccinations sped up. Despite Ireland's high vaccination rate, there was another surge in late 2021 due to the Omicron variant, with record-breaking cases being reported. Proof of vaccination or non-infection became mandatory to enter most indoor venues, but the government imposed another curfew on indoor hospitality from 20 December. Cases fell sharply, and the majority of restrictions, including mandatory mask wearing and social distancing, were eased in January and February 2022.


text: As well as the major strain on Ireland's healthcare service, the pandemic severely damaged Ireland's economy, disrupted education and had far-reaching impacts on society, including politics, religion, crime, the arts and sports.


text: The surveillance of COVID-19 cases was integrated into existing national Computerised Infectious Disease Reporting (CIDR) system since COVID-19 was made a notifiable disease on 20 February 2020. CIDR is the information system used to manage the surveillance and control of infectious diseases in Ireland, both at regional and national level. Daily epidemiological reports on COVID-19 were prepared by the Health Protection Surveillance Centre (HPSC) for the National Public Health Emergency Team (NPHET). Additional information was provided by the Health Service Executive (HSE) in its daily operations updates.


text: In February 2022 the Health Protection Surveillance Centre (HPSC) launched their Epidemiology of COVID-19 in Ireland Data Hub. The Data Hub provided the latest data relating to cases, deaths and outbreaks in Ireland.


text: By 13 December 2022, the Department of Health had confirmed 1,684,717 cases and 8,270 deaths; a rate of 334,757 cases per million, 1,625 deaths per million and 2,563,228 tests per million population.


text: The National Public Health Emergency Team (NPHET), a group within the Department of Health, began monitoring the spread of the virus before it was confirmed to have reached Ireland. The Coronavirus Expert Advisory Group—a subgroup of NPHET chaired by Dr Cillian de Gascun, the UCD-based Director of the National Virus Reference Laboratory – met for the first time on 5 February in Dublin.


text: On 27 February, the first case on the island of Ireland was announced—a woman from Belfast who had travelled from Northern Italy through Dublin Airport. Two days later, on 29 February, the first confirmed case in the Republic of Ireland was announced involving a male student from the east of the country, who had arrived there from Northern Italy. Authorities shut a secondary school linked to the case as a precautionary measure.


text: On 11 March, an elderly patient in Naas General Hospital in County Kildare (south-west of the country's capital city, Dublin) became Ireland's first fatality from the virus.


text: On 12 March, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar announced the closure of all schools, colleges and childcare facilities until 29 March. The announcement came one day after the World Health Organization formally declared the outbreak a pandemic.


text: On 15 March, the Government ordered bars and public houses to close and advised against house parties.


text: On 27 March, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar announced a national stay-at-home order with a series of measures which he summed up as: "Stay at Home". The measures, which coincided with an escalating death toll, were also a response to increased reliance on intensive care units (ICUs) to treat critically ill patients, and an attempt to lower this number before capacity was reached.


text: On 16 April, the National Public Health Emergency Team reported that lockdown and other measures had driven the growth rate of the pandemic "as low as it needs to be" and was "close to zero".


text: On 1 May, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar announced the extension of the current restrictions to 18 May at the earliest. A roadmap to easing restrictions in Ireland that included five stages was adopted by the government and subsequently published online. COVID-19 restrictions began to be eased from Monday 18 May.


text: On 7 July, the Health Service Executive (HSE) released the COVID Tracker contact tracing app that uses ENS and Bluetooth technology to record if a user is in close contact with another user, by exchanging anonymous codes, with over one million downloads within two days after its launch.


text: On 7 August, Taoiseach Micheál Martin announced a series of measures for counties Kildare, Laois and Offaly following significant increases of COVID-19 cases in the three counties.


text: On 4 October, following an increase in cases, the National Public Health Emergency Team recommended the highest level of restrictions for the entire country – Level 5 for four weeks. The Government rejected NPHET's recommendation, and instead moved every county in Ireland to Level 3 COVID-19 restrictions with improved enforcement and indoor dining in pubs and restaurants banned.


text: After 1,205 cases—the highest number of confirmed cases recorded in a single day since 10 April—was confirmed by the Department of Health on 15 October, on 16 October, NPHET recommended the Government to move the entire country to Level 5 restrictions for six weeks.


text: COVID-19 restrictions began to be eased from 1 December, with the reopening of all non-essential retail shops, hair and beauty providers, gyms and leisure centres, cinemas, museums and galleries, while thousands of restaurants, cafés, gastropubs and hotel restaurants reopened three days later.


text: On 21 December, the Chair of the NPHET Irish Epidemiological Modelling Advisory Group Philip Nolan announced that a third wave of COVID-19 in Ireland was clearly underway.


text: On 22 December, the Government agreed to move the entire country to Level 5 lockdown restrictions with a number of adjustments from Christmas Eve until 12 January 2021 at the earliest.


text: On Christmas Day, Chief Medical Officer Tony Holohan confirmed that the new Alpha variant of COVID-19 had been detected in the Republic of Ireland by whole genome sequencing at the National Virus Reference Laboratory in University College Dublin. By week 2 of 2021, the variant had become the dominant strain in Ireland.


text: On 30 December, the Government agreed to move the entire country to full Level 5 lockdown restrictions from midnight until 31 January 2021 at the earliest.


text: On 31 December, a further 1,620 cases and 12 deaths were reported, bringing the end of 2020 totals to 91,779 cases and 2,237 deaths.


text: On 2 January 2021, it was revealed that there were approximately 9,000 positive COVID-19 tests not yet logged on the HSE's IT systems, due to both limitations in the software; and lack of staff to check and input details, meaning there is an effective ceiling of approximately 1,700 to 2,000 cases that can be logged each day.


text: On 6 January, COVID-19 restrictions were re-imposed statewide, which included the closure of schools.


text: On 30 January, Chief Medical Officer Tony Holohan announced that more cases had been confirmed in one month than throughout 2020 with over 1,000 deaths and more than 100,000 cases confirmed in January.


text: On 31 January, a further 1,247 cases and 15 deaths were reported, bringing the totals to 196,547 cases and 3,307 deaths.


text: On 10 February, the World Health Organization praised Ireland's recovery from the third wave of COVID-19 but warned of the danger of a fourth wave.


text: On 23 February, the Government published its new revised Living with COVID-19 plan, which included the phased reopening of schools and childcare and the extension of the COVID-19 Pandemic Unemployment Payment and the Employment Wage Subsidy Scheme.


text: On 28 February, Ireland officially marked one year since the first case of COVID-19 in the country was confirmed on 29 February 2020. A further 612 cases and 6 deaths were reported, bringing the end of February totals to 219,592 cases and 4,319 deaths.


text: COVID-19 restrictions began to be eased throughout the summer, despite the arrival of the Delta variant in June. By 24 June, 210 cases of the Delta variant had been detected in Ireland.


text: On 29 June, due to the rapidly increasing incidence of the Delta variant, the Government announced that the planned reopening of indoor dining and drinking in restaurants and pubs on 5 July would be delayed until at least 19 July when a system to verify vaccination or immunity would be implemented, while 50 guests would be permitted to attend wedding celebrations as an exception from July.


text: People who were awaiting full vaccination were urged to "take every precaution", with the highest cases among the 16–34 age cohorts, a significant shift from previous waves. On 17 July, a further 1,377 cases were reported, the highest recorded in six months.


text: Despite the increasing cases, the Government agreed that indoor dining in pubs and restaurants could resume on Monday 26 July for fully vaccinated and COVID-19 recovered people, after President Michael D. Higgins signed the legislation underpinning new guidelines into law.


text: On 14 September, Chief Medical Officer Tony Holohan warned that new COVID-19 restrictions could not be ruled out and "may be required in the future", despite very high levels of COVID-19 vaccine uptake.


text: Remaining COVID-19 restrictions, including the reopening of nightclubs and requirements on social distancing, mask wearing and vaccination certificates, were due to be eased on 22 October.


text: On 19 October, the Government announced that nightclubs were allowed to reopen on 22 October, but vaccination certificates, social distancing and mask wearing measures would remain in place. A further 2,399 cases were reported, the highest daily number since 22 January. On the day nightclubs reopened, a further 2,466 cases were reported, the highest daily number since 21 January.


text: On 11 November, a 14-year-old teenager became Ireland's youngest person to die with COVID-19. 5,483 cases were reported the next day. A further 5,959 cases were reported on 20 November.


text: On 27 November, the NPHET Epidemiological Modelling Advisory Group began meeting to monitor the Omicron variant situation in Europe, and began considering further required measures.


text: On 30 November, a further 5,471 cases were reported, bringing the totals to 570,115 cases and 5,652 deaths.


text: On 1 December, the Omicron variant arrived in Ireland. On 3 December, COVID-19 restrictions were re-imposed amid concerns of the Omicron variant, with nightclubs to close, bars and restaurants to revert to six adults per table and no multiple table bookings allowed, indoor cultural and sporting events to operate at 50% capacity, a maximum of four households allowed to meet indoors and the requirement of vaccination certificates extended to gyms, leisure centres and hotel bars.


text: On 9 December, health officials announced that five further cases of the Omicron variant had been detected, bringing to six the total number of cases that had been identified in Ireland following whole genome sequencing. On 12 December, four additional cases of the variant were detected, bringing to 10 the total number of cases that had been identified. Cases of the Omicron variant continued to increase rapidly.


text: On 15 December, Chief Medical Officer Tony Holohan urged people to take precautions to avoid being in isolation for Christmas.


text: A fifth wave of COVID-19 had arrived in Ireland on 19 December, according to the Health Protection Surveillance Centre.


text: Further COVID-19 restrictions were imposed on 20 December for the Christmas period, with an 8pm closing time for bars, restaurants, live events, cinemas and theatres. A further 7,333 cases were reported the next day, the highest number reported since early January. On 19 December, the Omicron variant became Ireland's dominant variant after it was confirmed that 52% of cases were now due to the variant.


text: On Christmas Day, a record 13,765 cases were reported, while a further 16,428 cases were reported on 29 December. Chief Medical Officer Tony Holohan expressed concern and stated that "every individual should consider themselves potentially infectious". A record 20,554 cases were reported the next day, as it was confirmed that 92% of cases were now due to the Omicron variant. Holohan urged people to keep social contacts low and not to hold household gatherings on New Year's Eve, while Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly announced new advice on COVID-19 testing and the period of isolation.


text: On 31 December, a further 20,110 cases were reported, bringing the end of 2021 totals to 788,559 cases and 5,912 deaths. On New Year's Day, 23,281 cases were recorded, as health officials warned that the true number of cases was likely to be higher, due to increased pressure on the PCR testing system. On 8 January, a record 26,122 cases were reported – the highest daily number reported since the pandemic began. By 10 January, 1,000,000 total cases had been confirmed, with more cases recorded in the first five days of 2022 than in the whole of 2020.


text: Cases fell sharply after the 8 January peak, and on 21 January, Taoiseach Micheál Martin announced the easing of almost all COVID-19 restrictions, with the requirements of vaccine certificates and social distancing to end, restrictions on household visits and capacity limits for indoor and outdoor events to end, nightclubs to reopen and pubs and restaurants to resume normal trading times, while rules on isolation and the wearing of masks in certain settings would remain. Remaining restrictions were agreed to be removed from 28 February, with mask wearing in schools, indoor retail settings and on public transport to be voluntary, restrictions in schools to end and testing to be scaled back, while it was agreed that the National Public Health Emergency Team (NPHET) be disbanded.


text: By March 2022, cases and hospitalisations began to increase again, as Ireland entered a new wave of the Omicron variant.


text: Despite this, celebrations took place across the country to mark St Patrick's Day, following a two-year absence due to COVID-19, with around 400,000 people attending festivities in Dublin. Figures showed on 21 March that 63,954 people had tested positive for COVID-19 since St Patrick's Day. The World Health Organization said Ireland eased restrictions too "brutally" and was now seeing a spike in cases as a result.


text: Dr Tony Holohan announced a few days later that he would step down as Chief Medical Officer on 1 July, after being appointed to a new role at Trinity College Dublin. This caused several days of controversy, and as a result, Holohan announced that he would retire as CMO on 1 July and would not take up his planned academic position at TCD.


text: On 27 March, hospitalisations reached its highest level in 14 months with 1,569 COVID-19 patients. Two days later, Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly said there were no plans for restrictions to be re-introduced, despite the number of COVID-19 cases likely to be "hundreds of thousands" per week, while he said the BA.2 variant now accounted for about 95% of cases in Ireland.


text: A new COVID-19 advisory group was established on 8 April 2022. By early April, case numbers began to decrease but remained high. On 16 April, hospital and ICU numbers continued to decrease to its lowest levels since 5 March.


text: On 10 June, Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly urged people to take up their booster vaccine after COVID-19 hospitalisations began to rise, while Tánaiste Leo Varadkar warned of a potential summer wave of COVID-19.


text: By 20 June, there were 606 patients in hospital with COVID-19, an increase of 153 from the previous week. HSE Chief Clinical Officer Dr Colm Henry said he was "very concerned", while a virologist at UCD said it was too late to reintroduce mandatory mask wearing, adding that the latest wave of infection had been "completely predictable".


text: COVID-19 vaccination in the Republic of Ireland began on 29 December 2020. Annie Lynch, a 79-year-old woman, became the first person in the Republic of Ireland to receive the Pfizer–BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine at St. James's Hospital, Dublin, and received the second dose three weeks later on Tuesday 19 January 2021.


text: Maura Byrne, a 95-year-old woman, became the first nursing home resident in the Republic of Ireland to receive the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine on 5 January 2021, while Dr Eavan Muldoon, an infectious diseases consultant, became the first healthcare worker in the Mater University Hospital to receive the vaccine.


text: By the end of January, three effective vaccines of Pfizer–BioNTech, Moderna and Oxford–AstraZeneca were in use in Ireland.


text: Ireland's vaccination rollout has been praised as one of the most successful rollouts in the world and was ranked number one in the European Union in terms of its percentage of adult population fully vaccinated, and was also ranked number one in the EU for the number of booster vaccines administered.


text: A booster programme began in late September 2021 and a second and third booster programme began throughout 2022.


text: The developing and delivering of testing of Ireland was led by the staff in the National Virus Reference Laboratory. With the acquisition of the sequence of the virus, they used this to develop and validate in-house assays in advance of obtaining any commercial diagnostic kits. The NVRL played a vital role in the early detection of COVID-19 cases in Ireland, and began playing a vital role in the detection of new variants of COVID-19 in 2021.


text: Like most countries in the world, the pandemic's emergence and the lockdowns it led to deeply impacted the Irish economy, causing it to plunge into a recession. While there were job losses in all sectors primarily due to stay-at-home orders, individuals working in tourism, hospitality, food and retail were most likely to be affected.


text: The social impact of the pandemic had far-reaching consequences in the country that went beyond the spread of the disease itself and efforts to quarantine it, including political, criminal, religious, educational, artistic and sporting implications.


text: The 2020 Leaving Certificate, 2020–2021 Junior Certificate and all 2020–2021 Irish language summer courses in the Gaeltacht were cancelled. The 2020 Dublin Horse Show was cancelled, the first time since 1940 that the event did not occur. The Tidy Towns competition was cancelled for the first time in its 62-year history. The Rose of Tralee was cancelled for the first time in its 61-year history. The 2020 National Ploughing Championships and Ballinasloe Horse Fair also did not take place. The All-Ireland Senior Football Championship and All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship were completed in December in between the second and third waves of the virus to hit Ireland, maintaining their record of having been held annually since 1887.


title: Art Attack

text: Art Attack is a British children's television programme revolving around art, currently hosted by Lloyd Warbey on Disney Junior, and originally airing on CITV hosted by Neil Buchanan from 1990 to 2007.


title: Art Attack

text: The original programme aired on CITV between 15 June 1990 and 19 May 2007, and was presented by one of its creators, Neil Buchanan, throughout. Buchanan also wrote and produced the programme, and came up with a majority of the creative ideas.


title: Art Attack

text: A new series launched on Disney Junior (UK & Ireland) on 6 June 2011 and was presented by Jassa Ahluwalia. Each show involved Ahluwalia voicing-over footage of an artist producing three works of art, taking the viewer through the various stages of production step by step. Ahluwalia was later replaced with Lloyd Warbey at the start of the British second revived series.


title: Art Attack

text: The programme was originally a TVS production, devised by two TVS employees, Neil Buchanan and Tim Edmunds. Buchanan and Edmunds met each other at Southern Television in 1978, and worked together on "No. 73" and "Do It!".


title: Art Attack

text: The first Art Attacks were a strand within No. 73, and this segment proved so popular, Nigel Pickard, the executive producer of children's programming at TVS, green-lit the pilot. The Art Attack pilot was shot on location at a disused swimming pool in Gillingham, Kent in 1989, and the series began the following year.


title: Art Attack

text: When TVS lost its franchise, Edmunds and Buchanan bought the rights to the show and produced "Art Attack" through their company, The Media Merchants. The Media Merchants used STV Studios (then known as "SMG Productions"), as the ITV company to get the series onto the network: this was partly down to the fact that Nigel Pickard had moved to Scottish Television. In 1993 another ex-TVS employee, Peter Urie set up a production management company, Television Support Services. Television Support Services managed and co wrote all the Media Merchants productions.


title: Art Attack

text: For most of its run, the show was filmed at The Maidstone Studios, Maidstone, Kent. In 1998, Disney bought the rights to produce foreign-language versions of Art Attack. Each version had a different local host for each territory, and was made in Maidstone, on a similar set to the original version. Neil Buchanan's Big Art Attacks were retained in the international shows, as was The Head, who was dubbed by relevant local voice artists. Buchanan also produced the artwork for the foreign versions - footage of his hands creating the pieces would be voiced over by the local host, who would show the artwork in-between stages and explain what to do next. Disney ended production of the foreign shows in 2005.


title: Art Attack

text: ITV announced the cancellation of the series in July 2007. Until January 2014, the show was regularly repeated on CITV, usually on weekend afternoons. After the programme's demise, many of the production team transferred to "Finger Tips" and "Mister Maker", both recorded at The Maidstone Studios.


title: Art Attack

text: In 2010, Disney announced an updated version of the series would air on Disney Junior around the world. Production was moved to Disney's studios in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Once again, several versions were made for each market; these were produced in an equivalent manner to the previous international versions. The first series of the new UK version was presented by Jassa Ahluwalia. Local artist Alexiev Gandman was brought in to create the Big Art Attacks.


title: Art Attack

text: In December 2012, Buchanan was featured in a segment dedicated to the programme's original run in the one-off documentary special "30 Years of CITV": a 1992 episode was broadcast on the CITV channel shortly after the above was broadcast, as part of its "Old Skool Weekend" marathon.


title: Art Attack

text: "The Head" was a puppet stone bust who would humorously recap the steps needed to produce the last art piece made. After doing this, he would usually show his own creation of the previous Art Attack, most times however getting it comically wrong to his own sorrow or annoyance. However, on occasion, by accidentally doing part of the instructions incorrectly, he would create a different effect to that desired and be proud of his work. At other times he would tell jokes or make puns, particularly after the Big Art Attacks. In Series one, 'The Head' was played by Jim Sweeney, in series 2, Andrew O'Connor; and from series 3, having been redesigned as a puppet, he was voiced and operated by Francis Wright. 'The Head' did not appear in series 12 or 13, or in series 18 and 19.


title: Art Attack

text: In the revived series, The Head was replaced by a talking palm tree called "Vincent Van Coconut", voiced by Tim Hibber. The name is a parody of Dutch painter Vincent van Gogh.


title: Art Attack

text: No DVD releases have been issued in the UK, except DVDs bundled with "Art Attack" books and DVDs which came free with newspapers. In India, "Art Attack" was released in three volumes by Disney DVD in 2010.


title: Art Attack

text: Disney Channel and its various offshoots have broadcast "Art Attack" in most territories since the late 1990s, producing localised versions of the programme for many countries. In Australia, it was broadcast on ABC from July 1995 to October 1999; later episodes were broadcast on Disney Channel, with the revived series being broadcast on Disney Junior and on various channels of the Seven Network. In Canada, the programme has aired variously on TVOKids, Family Jr. and Knowledge Kids; in the United States, it was broadcast on WAM! during the 1990s. "Art Attack" has also aired in several other countries such as SABC2 in South Africa, StarHub and Disney Channel in Singapore, TVB in Hong Kong, KTN in Kenya, Channel 33 in the United Arab Emirates, Fun Channel and Disney Channel in the Middle East and RTB in Brunei.


title: Art Attack

text: The original series, hosted by Neil Buchanan, has also been dubbed or subtitled in various non-English speaking countries, having been broadcast in various forms by Dragon Club in China, ET1 in Greece, Disney Channel in Taiwan and TRT in Turkey; in the Middle East, the Turkish version of the revived series has been subtitled into Arabic and broadcast by Jeem TV. In much of Latin America, the programme was broadcast on Discovery Kids during the 1990s, dubbed into Spanish and Portuguese. From 2000 to 2002, localised versions in Spanish and Portuguese were produced by Disney, which aired on Disney Channel Latin America and Disney Channel (Brazil), as well as Disney Channel (Portugal), respectively, and hosted by Rui Torres; in later years, the British version was dubbed and broadcast by Disney in these territories. A Hindi version has been produced for India from 2011 to 2014, hosted by Gaurav Juyal; previously, the UK version was aired, dubbed in Hindi. A Scandinavian version of the program, hosted by Leon Jilber and produced in Swedish (with Danish and Norwegian dubs also available) initially aired on the Scandinavian version of Disney Junior, but has since moved to Disney Channel Scandinavia. An has been produced for Italy from 1998 to 2005 and from 2011 to 2014, hosted by .


title: Art Attack

text: The series was also broadcast on armed forces television on BFBS (which broadcasts thousands of television series and films from the UK as well as a number of television series and films other countries) and its defunct channel SSVC Television (which went from 1982 to 1997) as part of their children's blocks "Room 785" and "Children's SSVC". The channels have aired the show in a number of countries including Germany, Cyprus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Gibraltar, Belize and Falkland Islands.


title: Ghostwatch

text: Ghostwatch is a British reality–horror/pseudo-documentary television film, first broadcast on BBC1 on Halloween night, 1992. Written by Stephen Volk, and directed by Lesley Manning, the drama was produced for the BBC anthology series "Screen One" by Richard Broke, Ruth Baumgarten and Derek Nelson.


title: Ghostwatch

text: Despite having been recorded weeks in advance, the narrative was presented as live television. During and following its first and only UK television broadcast, the show attracted a considerable furor, resulting in an estimated 1,000,000 phone call enquiries to the BBC switchboard on the night of broadcast, comprising a mixture of complaints and praise for the programme's unique presentation.


title: Ghostwatch

text: "Ghostwatch" has never been repeated on UK television. It has been repeated internationally, on stations such as the Canadian digital channel Scream for Halloween 2004, and the Belgian channel Canvas in 2008. From 2017 to 2019, "Ghostwatch" was available on the American streaming video service Shudder, and was made available on the Internet Archive in 2017.


title: Ghostwatch

text: There have been two UK home video releases. In 2002, the British Film Institute released a 10th Anniversary edition on VHS and DVD, and in 2011, 101 Films issued a DVD release. In 2016, BBC Store made the film available as part of the "Frightmares" collection, marking Halloween.


title: Ghostwatch

text: A retrospective documentary, "", based on the film's lasting impact, was released on DVD in 2013 (having been in production between 2007 and 2012), featuring interviews with many of the original cast and crew. It too was made available as part of the BBC Store "Frightmares" collection, and shortly after release, the BFI Mediatheque.


title: Ghostwatch

text: "Ghostwatch" is presented as a live broadcast, hosted by Michael Parkinson, in an attempt to present concrete evidence of paranormal phenomena. To achieve this, the programme launches an on-air investigation into a house in the fictional Foxhill Drive, Northolt, Greater London. Pamela Early (Brid Brennan) and her daughters Suzanne (Michelle Wesson) and Kim (Cherise Wesson) are tormented by a poltergeist referred to by Kim as “Mr. Pipes”, his name originating from the noises made by the house’s plumbing. Pipes routinely possesses and harms Suzanne, and is said to dwell in the house’s basement, referred to as the “Glory Hole”.


title: Ghostwatch

text: Parkinson is supported by fellow hosts Sarah Greene, who ventures into the house to spend the night with the Earlys; her husband Mike Smith, who oversees staged phone calls from the public who wish to share their own ghost stories; and comedian Craig Charles, who interviews the locals regarding the street’s violent history. Greene is accompanied by her camera crew, Chris Miller and Mike Aiton, played by actual BBC technicians. Parkinson is joined in the studio by Dr. Lin Pascoe (Gillian Bevan), a psychologist studying the phenomena.


title: Ghostwatch

text: At first, the broadcast seems harmless, but supernatural phenomena occur in the house, until Suzanne is exposed making noises, convincing Parkinson that the whole affair is a hoax. Suzanne then speaks with a demonic voice and develops scratches across her arms. The public share their ghost stories, but numerous callers mention they have seen Pipes lurking in the house, and that paranormal incidents are happening in their own homes.


title: Ghostwatch

text: Pipes’ background is slowly pieced together. An interviewed neighbour mentions of Mother Seddons, a Victorian baby farmer, who murdered children, reimagined as a bogeyman by the locals. Later, an anonymous call from Pipes’ probation officer reveals he is named Raymond Tunstall, a disturbed paedophile who believed he was possessed by Seddons, hanging himself in the Glory Hole, where his body was eaten by his relatives’ cats.


title: Ghostwatch

text: As the house grows increasingly more dangerous, Suzanne disappears and is heard from within the locked Glory Hole. The camera crew force the door open, only for a mirror to fall and wound Aiton. Abruptly, the footage shows the house has returned to normal. However, Pascoe realises the footage is from earlier in the broadcast. She realises that Pipes has used the broadcast to create a nationwide séance circle, invading the public's homes. The live broadcast resumes as Pamela, Kim, and the injured Aiton are evacuated from the house. Inside, Greene and Miller attempt to rescue Suzanne, but Greene is dragged through the cellar door, which slams shut.


title: Ghostwatch

text: The programme concludes with Pipes taking over the studio, causing all on-set save Parkinson to flee. Parkinson wanders about in the darkened studio, beginning to show signs that he has been possessed by Pipes.


title: Ghostwatch

text: The story is based on the tale of the Enfield Poltergeist. The presentation contained realistic elements which suggested to a casual viewer that it was an actual documentary. The studio scenes were recorded in Studio D, BBC Elstree Studios, Clarendon Road. The scenes at the house and the street were all shot on location around 5–6 weeks before the recording of the studio scenes. The recorded scenes in the house and street were then played into the studio, where Michael Parkinson, Mike Smith, and the fictional Dr. Pascoe had to interact with them.


title: Ghostwatch

text: A phone number was shown on the screen so that viewers could "call in" and discuss ghostly phenomena. The number was the standard BBC call-in number at the time, 081 811 8181 (also used on programmes such as "Going Live!"), and callers who got through were connected first to a message telling them that the show was fictional, before being given the chance to share their own ghost stories. However, the phone number was besieged by callers during the showing and many people who telephoned simply got an engaged tone. This commonly happened when phoning BBC "call in" shows and inadvertently added to the realism instead of reassuring viewers that it was fiction.


title: Ghostwatch

text: "Ghostwatch" was originally conceived by writer Stephen Volk as a six-part drama (similar to "Edge of Darkness") in which a fictional paranormal investigator and a TV reporter investigate poltergeist activity at a North London housing estate, gradually discovering more elements of the mystery each week. This would have culminated in the final episode in a live TV broadcast from the property, in the vein of Nigel Kneale's "The Quatermass Experiment" and "Quatermass and the Pit", in both of which "all hell breaks loose". However, when producer Ruth Baumgarten doubted the viability of an entire mini-series and recommended instead a 90-minute TV special, Volk suggested that they "do the whole thing like Episode Six", portraying it as an actual "live" broadcast fronted by well-known TV personalities.


title: Ghostwatch

text: The BBC, however, became concerned about the effect the broadcast would have on the public and very nearly pulled the show shortly before broadcast. Ultimately they insisted on adding opening credits including the writer's name, in addition to a "Screen One" title sequence.


title: Ghostwatch

text: The film's fictional villainous spectre, referred to by the children as "Pipes" and credited simply as "Ghost", is depicted as a merging of negative spiritual energies, which parapsychologist Dr. Pascoe theorises have been accumulating for years, possibly back to prehistory. Its physical appearance mostly resembles that of deceased child molester Raymond Tunstall, a fictional character who, it is revealed by a phone-in caller, killed himself at the haunted property some time in the 1960s after himself being possessed by the entity. His eyes are missing and his face is badly mauled, owing to Tunstall locking himself up with his multiple pet cats prior to his suicide, and the cats having "gotten hungry" in the week prior to the discovery of Tunstall's body. The entity also wears a black woman's dress, likely that of "baby farmer" and child killer Mother Seddons.


title: Ghostwatch

text: It is suggested that the character of Suzanne Early may become the next "layer" in the ghost's spiritual make-up, and in the final moments of the film the entity possesses television host Michael Parkinson.


title: Ghostwatch

text: In May 2010, at a public screening of the film at The Invisible Dot in Camden, director Lesley Manning revealed that she provided the voice of Pipes the ghost after the professional voice artist hired for the production could not accurately replicate the style of voice she had intended.