c4countdown

I set about trying to compile a list of the Irish contestants who have taken part over the years... and in so doing I have visited thousands of contestant pages from S01-S82.

While these are fresh in my mind, I have feedback...

1. The pages that have no picture and simply say "X was a contestant in series Y" with a summary of their game(s) in a table beneath. These pages need not exist. They give no info that wasn't already available from the overall Series summary page.

2. The ones with biographical information, are far more interesting. Even a brief sentence stating occupation and home town is better than nothing. A quirky fact based on Nick's introductory chat with them, could improve matters more.

3. Whoever has been doing those pages since S79... THANK YOU! That there was some basic biographical info included for each and every contestant, made the task of identifying Irish contestants much easier.

4. Larger pictures were used for S76 than any other series before or since (350x399). They were great! How come ye decided to revert to a smaller image size (200x152)?

They'd be my main comments regarding contestant pages,
Thanks to all editors, your work is very much appreciated.

L'oisleatch McGraw wrote: ↑Sun Jan 19, 2020 5:48 pm 1. The pages that have no picture and simply say "X was a contestant in series Y" with a summary of their game(s) in a table beneath. These pages need not exist. They give no info that wasn't already available from the overall Series summary page.

I disagree with this, and stuff can be added later, which would be more awkward if only some people had their own page. And there's no real downside to having these pages unless space is limited.

Gavin Chipper wrote: ↑Sun Jan 19, 2020 8:43 pm

L'oisleatch McGraw wrote: ↑Sun Jan 19, 2020 5:48 pm 1. The pages that have no picture and simply say "X was a contestant in series Y" with a summary of their game(s) in a table beneath. These pages need not exist. They give no info that wasn't already available from the overall Series summary page.

I disagree with this, and stuff can be added later, which would be more awkward if only some people had their own page. And there's no real downside to having these pages unless space is limited.

Ok... I agree with you, of course. You misunderstand the point I was (ineloquently) trying to make with that comment... It seems odd that the basic biographical info (from Nick's introductory chat) was omitted at the time from the series' that have happened since the wikia has existed. Those records (from around 2008 onwards) should really be complete.

But, before anyone hops on me for grumbling about that, I understand that that job is done by a small team of dedicated volunteers, and that getting the actual game info up is the priority, and that we should be grateful that that gets done in a timely manner. i.e. count our blessings, etc, etc.

I don't think it's a massive issue, but I do suspect that a good number of contestants would prefer not to have biographical information out there. I understand that people consented to be on TV and have their information broadcast to the nation (and potential for the rest of time on cable channels) but plenty of people carefully curate their online presence and don't necessarily want extra visibility.

sean d wrote: ↑Tue Jan 28, 2020 2:55 pm I understand that people consented to be on TV and have their information broadcast to the nation (and potential for the rest of time on cable channels)

To me, that part of your response is the only bit that has relevance.
Anything broadcast on the programme is fair game for inclusion on the wiki.