In a first for You've Been Blacklisted, the spotlight finally turns on the man behind the microphone. Stand-in host Kellie Johnson takes the chair this week, putting founder Matt Black in the hot seat alongside ‘Radio Ed’ Nell and special guest ‘AI Ian’ Bowley, the show's resident artificial intelligence with strong opinions and questionable nicknames.

Across five rounds the trio battle it out over overrated remakes, irritating motivational phrases, childhood nostalgia, modern streaming gripes and songs that have overstayed their welcome. As always, the arguments are loud, the research from AI Ian is unexpectedly thorough, and nothing gets resolved cleanly.

Key Takeaways

The RoboCop remake split the room down the middle.

Matt argued the 2014 version stripped all the grit from a violent, brilliant original. Ed disagreed entirely, claiming the special effects had aged badly enough to justify a reboot.

Marley and Me was Radio Ed's pick for false advertising.

Sold as a comedy, Ed found it traumatic and miserable instead, with the dog treated badly throughout before a devastating final act.

Be the change you want to see and you can't take it with you

Matt's case against the first centred on Ed using it to win an argument. Kellie's against the second focused on its murky logic about the afterlife.

Mousetrap the board game Vs TV on wheels.

Matt's argument that it takes longer to set up than to play wasn't enough to beat Ed's case against being shown traumatic educational films at primary school.

Streaming services with paid ad-removal tiers Vs ticket resellers in the modern life round.

Both arguments were strong, but Kelly ultimately sided against being charged twice to avoid adverts she didn't sign up for in the first place.

Wonderwall Vs Westlife's Swear It Again in the final round.

Matt's dislike of Oasis as people took on Ed's case against manufactured pop.

Key Moments

"Any film about a dog, the dog's always gonna die." - Matt Black

"I think the special effects hold up in the original. It's just a bit rubbery in places." - Radio Ed

"If you want the world to be more social, you should be more social." - Matt Black

"Any game that takes longer to set up than it does to play should be blacklisted." - Matt Black

"It's the biggest song of a band I cannot stand." - Matt Black on Wonderwall

About You've Been Blacklisted

You've Been Blacklisted is the show where small annoyances get treated like they should be illegal. Hosted by Matt Black from Matte Black Marketing, each episode brings two guests together for five rounds of debate, strong opinions and absolutely no resolution.

It is the podcast where logic takes a day off and the smallest inconvenience gets dragged through the mud. If you have a grievance that deserves a hearing, this is the show for you.

How to Get in Touch

You've Been Blacklisted is brought to you by Matt Black Marketing.

Guest host this episode: Kellie Johnson - My Midlands

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