It's A Knockout

Irish Stamp

Irish Stamp

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Been catching a few repeat editions on Challenge TV of late. How funny was that show?

Saw one indoors from Derby Bath's in Blackpool and the competitors had to canoe as a team to the end of the swimming pool, their female team member had to jump onto a raft and then they rowed back and so on until each female team member was safely on the raft. The funniest thing ever though was that each canoe was attached to elastic :lol:
 
Jeux san Frontier was better. With the Italians spending fortunes on theatrical and eloborate games, where as the BBC's budget extended to little more than, a swimming pool and some balloons and a few oversized ex pantomine costumes from the props wardrobe.

The Germans always managed to get represented by a substantial city approx population 700,000+ where as we had quaint villages.

"Representing Germany this week is a team from Stuttgart, and representing Britain is Stow on the Wold". Let the ritual mismatch and consequent slaughter begin. The GB team was invariably made up of a motley crew dragged from the local pub, who'd clearly suffered by trying to drink the contents of the legendary dip stick. I think we sneaked Loughborough in one year, who were clearly PE students in disguise, and they did ok. I'm trying to think who competed?

Germany, Britain, France, Italy, the Netherlands, the Swiss, Austria? did the Portugese get in after Salazar died? Luxembourg I reckon? and I've got a recollection of Lichenstein fielding a team once? I think Belgium were also involved? Don't recall the Spanish playing
 
They always mentioned "the winner goes into Europe" with Exmouth travelling to Lausanne and Sunderland erm staying in Sunderland but they don't show that on the repeats, they move on to the 1982 series, minus Eddie Waring.

Still least we have Arthur going "2 points to Plymouth" and then Stuart Hall repeating him (this happened without fail)
 
Tragic as it seems the following is from Wikipedia. At least my impression was right about the Germans winning, but I didn't realise it had such a rich history, or lasted so long as it did (must have moved to Eurosport after the BBC ran out of beanstalks or comedy over sized footwear)

Jeux Sans Frontieres is the European version of It's a Knockout. It ran from 1965 to 1999 and featured teams from different European countries in outlandish costumes (often large latex (foam rubber) suits) competing to complete bizarre tasks in absurd games.

The idea of the show came from the General Charles de Gaulle, whose wish was that French and German youth would meet in a series of funny games to reinforce the friendship between France and Germany. The games were inspired by the matches between French cities. Some games were played in swimming pools. In 1965, three French men (Pedro Brime, Claude Savarit, Jean-Louis Marest) brought the idea of the games to all Europe with success. Teams representing France, Germany, Belgium, and Italy took part in the first edition of the show called "Inter Nations Games". [1]

The games were umpired by two "international" judges, Gennaro Olivieri and Guido Pancaldi.

The series will be launched again in June 2007, after many fans of the series forced EBU to relaunch it after 7 years of inactivity.

Between the span of 1965 and 1999, the show featured 17 countries:

Germany 6 wins
Portugal 5 wins
United Kingdom 4 wins
Italy 4 wins
Czech Republic (earlier as Czechoslovakia) 3 wins
France 3 wins
Hungary 3 wins
Belgium 2 wins
Switzerland 2 wins
Spain 1 win
Malta no wins
Greece no wins
Netherlands no wins
San Marino no wins
Slovenia no wins
Tunisia no wins
Yugoslavia no wins

The show inspired Peter Gabriel's 1980 hit single, "Games Without Frontiers" (the direct English translation of the title), in which Kate Bush sings "jeux ... sans frontières" during breaks. The lyrics also refer to the original title: "It's A Knockout"
 
Agree Warbler, the European version was much better, hilarious at times. Stuart and Eddie made it their own and I would love to see repeats of it. Some of the costumes were brilliant!

Just found this, I am tempted.

Video
 
Games without Frontiers -
P Gabriel

Hans plays with lotte, lotte plays with jane
Jane plays with willi, willi is happy again
Suki plays with leo, sacha plays with britt
Adolf builts a bonfire, enrico plays with it
-whistling tunes we hid in the dunes by the seaside
-whistling tunes were kissing baboons in the jungle
Its a knockout
If looks could kill, they probably will
In games without frontiers-war without tears
Games without frontiers-war without tears

Jeux sans frontieres
Jeux sans frontieres
Jeux sans frontieres

Andre has a red flag, chiang chings is blue
They all have hills to fly them on except for lin tai yu
Dressing up in costumes, playing silly games
Hiding out in tree-tops shouting out rude names
-whistling tunes we hide in the dunes by the seaside
-whistling tunes we piss on the goons in the jungle
Its a knockout
If looks could kill they probably will
In games without frontiers-wars without tears
If looks could kill they probably will
In games without frontiers-war without tears
Games without frontiers-war without tears

Jeux sans frontieres
Jeux sans frontieres
Jeux sans frontieres

:cry: Personally I'm mortified, I always assumed there was a quasi political backdrop to this song, what with Adolf's bonfire, and Andre's Red Flag, and war without tears etc for years I've sung Jeux sans Frontieres (a chorus of sorts?) completely wrong in my mind, interpreting as a completely different lyric :lol: . Well you learn something new everyday, though I certainly don't recall a Chinese team taking part
 
Well they say laughings infectious. It's certainly difficult to listen to that commentary (I use the word in the loosest possible way) without permitting yourself a smile at the minimum
 
"Whistling tunes we piss on the goons in the jungle" - are you sure you've got the right version, Warbler? :brows: I realize that Viet Nam wasn't included at the time, but may I suggest a re-write in the interest of international friendship for the next version?
 
I'm not massively familiar with the song (other than early teenage memory) and just downloaded the first hit I got. Its the first time I'd seen a full lyric sheet, as I was struggling to believe that any one could write a song about Jeux San Frontier as Wikipedia suggests. Looking at it again though, it appears to be capable of being read as an allegory of American expansionism that uses Jeux San Frontier as the allegorical vehicle, hence the somewhat puzzling inclusion of South East Asian names in the second verse? It did occur to me as I read it the first time that a mischievously satirical re-write in light of current events was possible.
 
Spoke to person slightly older than I today about this. Yes he said that it is an allegory, and I should have known that!!! also its a comment on the public school system!!! (which I can only imagine) and the lyrical difference is down to an album and 'radio play' accepted version. Apparently this was well known at the time, but I was a wee bit too young to pick up on it :unsure:
 
Frankly, this is pederast-pleasing filth, isn't it? It's aimed at young people, yet we have "Hans 'plays' with Lotte", and then "Lotte plays with Jane" in what one can only construe as male-female sexual domination, followed by lesbianism. After that, "Jane plays with Willi", which I think requires little comment, other than that the message is that you can't start daisy-chaining too young.

This was highly subversive stuff, and I think one should run any revised lyrics through Social Services first, to root out any similar innuendo and encouragement of the young into depravity and vice. And as for young Adolf and his bonfire... one shudders to think of the implications!
 
Even so..... The mileage for a contempoaray re-write is screaming out!!! Or even a TH version ....... ;)
 
It'd probably have to be a rap version now, to be 'relevant' (that dread word), as I'm not sure that little Adolf making bonfires would be too cool in da hood.
 
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