Sausage in tomato sauce: a Sicilian way to taste sausage

Do you know how to cook Sicilian sausage in tomato sauce? It's very easy and it will take you about 40 minutes at the most. You will only need: 1 kg Sicilian sausage - tomato sauce - olive oil

In Sicily sausage is called "sasizza" and butchers prepare it binding the sausages all together with some kitchen string making one big long sausage.

First of all what we normally do is to roll it up using some thin wooden sticks (just like shown in the picture here). After that you have to cook it either in the oven or in a pan. Cooking time is similar.


If you choose the oven put it at 180°c for about 15-20 minutes, while in the frying pan add a little bit of water. At half cooking time stick a fork on the meat all around the sausages. This is a very important step because it helps eliminate the fat inside.


In the meantime, put on a medium heat, a sauce-pan with tomato sauce. Adjust with salt, sugar and spices if needed. Don't overdo with the spices as this kind of sausage is already very tasty.

When the sausage is cooked and the tomato sauce is about to bubble, you can transfer the sausage in the sauce pan, lower the heat and let cook with a lit for about 10 more minutes. Finally add some olive oil and serve hot.

This dish is very common in Sicily, especially if you cooked sausages the day before and you have some left over that want to re-use. We also have it as a delicious tasty sauce for our pasta at lunch time. You only need to cut the sausage in smaller pieces. These are absolutely the best ways to enjoy this great dish!

NUSANTARA SPICY RADISH RECIPES- EAT RADISH TO CURE YOUR COUGHS.

NAME OF COOKING-VARIETIES RECIPE:
RADISH,FISH BALLS AND RIDGE GOURD SOUP

 WHITE RADISH VEGETABLE

 

RADISH SOUP RECIPE- WITH  FISH BALLS AND RIDGE GOURD ADDED
 FOR A MORE FLAVORFUL TASTE

Take note: Do not eat radish 1 hour before or after you take your medicine,
because the radish properties will wash it away.
Ingredients: from cooking-varieties
1 small Ridge Gourd- remove ridge and scrape the skin, then cut into 2 cm slices
10 pieces fish balls- whole or halves
1 medium size white radish- peel and cut into 2 cm slices
3 pieces shallots- fine slices
2 pieces garlic- minced
2 tablespoon soup powder- mix with a bit of water to form a thick paste
1 tablespoon minced coriander leaves (optional)
2 tablespoon olive oil
Pepper and salt
3- 4 cups of water
Heat up oil in a non-stick pan. Fry onion and garlic until light brown. Add soup powder.
Stir for 1 minute, add water and fish balls. After 10 minutes, add ridge gourd, radish slices, salt and pepper. Cook until radish changes in color texture or crisp tender. Put off fire and add coriander leaves. Serve hot.
Radish taste has a sharp bite and children will not like it.
SHARE THIS AMAZING STORY ABOUT RADISH  FROM MY FRIEND, KAT. 
EAT RADISH, A NATURAL HOME REMEDY FOR COUGHS

RAW RADISH SLICES

RADISH? My 2nd son was premature, weighed only 900gms, 11inches 28weeks at birth. He was so small and was paced in the incubator for over 60days. He had health problems, as the film covering of his brain (selaput otak) did not mature. He had fits & also suffered ASTHMATIC bouts.
I had 2maids, one to just clean the house, as dust will trigger his Asthmatic attacks. Bedcovers, pillow cases have to be washed daily, even put out his mattress in the sun daily too. No carpets, no toys. Daily steam bath for 30mins, every 3am-took him to the balcony for a whiff of fresh air, to ease his endless coughing. I tried all tips…
Then, i found a book on FOOD CURES & REMEDY- this American Chinese Doctor… I tried all his remedial tips & alhamdulliah- found the cure. NO MORE ASTHMATIC ATTACKS from age 2yrs till 19yrs now- it disappeared!! I followed this RADISH FOOD CURE.

I blend about 5cm (or2inches) white radish with sugar/honey and fruits, for a more flavorful taste and sometimes with ice cubes. DRINK FRESH. He will sleep peacefully until the next day. I cut thin slices & add in fried rice, cucur udang, soups, mixed vegetables and noodles. When we travel, I will prepare radish cubes, boil in a little water till tender. If he coughs, i gave him a few cubes to chew.
Alternative recipe is to grate the radish, then marinate for half hour with lime or orange juice. For children,
eat 1 tablespoon of grated radish at a time and 2 tablespoons for adult. Today, at the slightest signs of an oncoming flu, i sure include radish in our family diet.
I GAVE THE SAME TIPS TO A FEW PROBLEMATIC KIDS (Asthma) and it worked too.

Kat’s website is on “Learning how to pronounce English words the Phonics way”,
“Google translate” available- please click  at  Bloggers Link on the right side of this blog
http://www.where2-where2.blogspot.com/

johnny Depp

John Christopher "Johnny" Depp II (born June 9, 1963) is an American actor and musician known for his portrayals of offbeat, eccentric characters in a wide variety of dramas and fantasy films. He has won the Golden Globe Award and Screen Actors Guild award for major roles in recent films.

Depp rose to prominence on the 1980s television series 21 Jump Street, quickly becoming a teen idol. Turning to film, he was notable as the title character of Edward Scissorhands (1990), and later found box office success in films such as Sleepy Hollow (1999), Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003), and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (2005).

He has collaborated with director and close friend Tim Burton in seven films, the most recent of which are Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (2007) and Alice in Wonderland (2010). Depp has gained acclaim for his portrayals of people such as Edward D. Wood, Jr., in Ed Wood, Joseph D. Pistone in Donnie Brasco, Hunter S. Thompson in Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, and George Jung in Blow. More recently, he portrayed the bank robber John Dillinger in Michael Mann's 2009 film Public Enemies.

Films featuring Depp have grossed over $2.6 billion at the United States box office and over $6 billion worldwide.[1] He has been nominated for top awards numerous times; he won the Best Actor Awards from the Golden Globes for his role in Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street and from the Screen Actors Guild for Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl.

Childhood

Depp was born in Owensboro, Kentucky, the son of Betty Sue Palmer (née Wells), a waitress, and John Christopher Depp, Sr., a civil engineer.[2] He has one brother, Daniel, who is a novelist, and two sisters, Christie (now his personal manager) and Debbie. According to one recent biography, the Depp family in the United States began with a French Huguenot immigrant, Pierre Deppe or Dieppe, who settled in Virginia around 1700,[3] part of a refugee colony situated above the falls on the James River.

The family moved frequently during Depp's childhood, and he and his siblings lived in more than 20 different locations, settling in Miramar, Florida, in 1970. In 1978, Depp's parents divorced. He engaged in self-harm as a child, due to the stress of dealing with family problems. He has seven or eight self-inflicted scars. In a 1993 interview, he explained his self-injury by saying, "My body is a journal in a way. It's like what sailors used to do, where every tattoo meant something, a specific time in your life when you make a mark on yourself, whether you do it yourself with a knife or with a professional tattoo artist".[4]
1980s

With the gift of a guitar from his mother when he was 12, Depp began playing in various garage bands. His first band was in honor of his girlfriend, Meredith. A year after his parents' divorce, Depp dropped out of high school to become a rock musician. As he said on Inside the Actors Studio, he attempted to go back to school two weeks later, but the principal told him to follow his dream of being a musician. He played with The Kids, a band that enjoyed modest local success. The Kids set out together for Los Angeles in pursuit of a record deal, changing their name to Six Gun Method, but the group split up before signing a record deal. Depp subsequently collaborated with the band Rock City Angels[5] and co-wrote their song "Mary", which appeared on Rock City Angels' debut for Geffen Records titled Young Man's Blues.

On December 24, 1983, Depp married Lori Anne Allison, a makeup artist and sister of his band's bass player and singer. During Depp's marriage, his wife worked as a makeup artist while he worked a variety of odd jobs, including a telemarketer for pens. His wife introduced him to actor Nicolas Cage, who advised Depp to pursue an acting career. They divorced in 1985. Depp later dated and was engaged to Sherilyn Fenn (whom he met on the set of the 1985 short film Dummies).
Career

Johnny Depp at the 1992 Cannes Film Festival.
Television

Depp starred in a lead role on the Fox TV television series, 21 Jump Street, which premiered in 1987. Depp accepted this role to work with actor Frederic Forrest, who inspired him. Depp's long time friend Sal Jenco joined the cast as a semi-co-star as the janitor named Blowfish. The series' success turned Depp into a popular teen idol during the late 1980s. He felt "forced into the role of product."[6] Depp decided to appear only in films that he felt were right for him.[6]
Film roles

Depp's first major role was in the 1984 horror film A Nightmare on Elm Street, playing the heroine's boyfriend and one of Freddy Krueger's victims. In 1986, he appeared in a secondary role as a Vietnamese-speaking private in Oliver Stone's Platoon. In 1990 he undertook the quirky title role of the Tim Burton film, Edward Scissorhands. The film's success began his long association with Burton.

Depp, a fan and long-time friend of writer Hunter S. Thompson, played a version of Thompson (named Raoul Duke) in 1998's Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, based on the writer's pseudobiographical novel of the same name. Depp accompanied Thompson as his road manager on one of the author's last book tours.[7] In 2006, Depp contributed a foreword to Gonzo: Photographs by Hunter S. Thompson, a posthumous biography published by ammobooks.com. Depp paid for most of Thompson's memorial event, complete with fireworks and the shooting of Thompson's ashes by a cannon, in Aspen, Colorado, where Thompson lived.[8]

Critics have described Depp's roles as characters who are "iconic loners."[9] Depp has noted this period of his career was full of "studio defined failures" and films that were "box office poison,"[10] but he thought the studios never understood the films and did not do a good job of marketing.[9] Depp has chosen roles which he found interesting, rather than those he thought would succeed at the box office.[9]

Depp wearing a mustache and goatee similar to the style used in Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl.

The 2003 Walt Disney Pictures film Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl was a major success,[9] in which Depp's his lead performance as the suave pirate Captain Jack Sparrow was highly praised. Studio bosses were more ambivalent at first,[11] but the character became popular with the movie-going public.[9] According to a survey taken by Fandango, Depp was a major draw for audiences.[12] The film's director, Gore Verbinski, has said that Depp's character closely resembles the actor's personality, but Depp said he modelled the character after Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards.[13] Depp was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actor for the role.

In 2004, he was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actor, for playing Scottish author J. M. Barrie in the film Finding Neverland. Depp next starred as Willy Wonka in the 2005 film Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, a major success at the box office and earning him a nomination for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a Musical or Comedy.[13][14]

Depp returned to the role of Jack Sparrow for the sequel Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest, which opened on July 7, 2006 and grossed $135.5 million in the first three days of its U.S. release, breaking a box office record of the highest weekend tally.[15] The next sequel to Pirates of the Caribbean, At World's End, was released May 24, 2007. Depp has said that Sparrow is "definitely a big part of me", and he wants to play the role in further sequels.[16] Depp voiced Sparrow in the video game, Pirates of the Caribbean: The Legend of Jack Sparrow.[17] Johnny Depp's swashbuckling sword talents as developed for the character of Jack Sparrow, were highlighted in the documentary film Reclaiming the Blade. Within the film, Swordmaster Bob Anderson shared his experiences working with Depp on the choreography for The Curse of the Black Pearl. Anderson who also trained Errol Flynn, another famous Hollywood pirate, described in the film Depp's ability as an actor to pick up the sword to be, "about as good as you can get."[18]

Depp and Gore Verbinski were executive producers of the album Rogues Gallery, Pirate Ballads, Sea Songs and Chanteys. Depp played the title role of Sweeney Todd in Tim Burton's film adaptation of the musical, for which he won a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy. Depp thanked the Hollywood Foreign Press Association and praised Tim Burton for his "unwavering trust and support."[19]

In 2007, Depp accepted Warner Bros.' proposal to make a film of the gothic soap opera Dark Shadows, a series that aired on ABC from 1966 to 1971. He had been a fan as a child. Depp and Graham King will produce the movie with David Kennedy, who ran Dan Curtis Productions inc. until Curtis died in 2006. Depp will also appear in a film version of writer Hunter S. Thompson's book, The Rum Diary,[7] portraying the main character, Paul Kemp. Depp played the former Heath Ledger character in the 2009 film, The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus along with Jude Law and Colin Farrell. All three actors gave their salaries from the film to Ledger's daughter, Matilda.[20] He portrayed the Mad Hatter in Burton's Alice in Wonderland, and will play Tonto in a future Lone Ranger film.[21] Disney Studios announced a fourth installment of the Pirates series is in development.[21]
Collaboration with Tim Burton

Depp has collaborated with director and close friend Tim Burton in seven films, beginning with Edward Scissorhands (1990), opposite Winona Ryder and Vincent Price. His next role with Burton was in the 1994 film, Ed Wood. Depp later said that "within 10 minutes of hearing about the project, I was committed."[22] At the time, the actor was depressed about films and filmmaking. This part gave him a "chance to stretch out and have some fun"; he said working with Landau "rejuvenated my love for acting".[22]

Producer Scott Rudin once said, "Basically Johnny Depp is playing Tim Burton in all his movies,"[23] although Burton personally disapproved of the comment. Depp, however agrees with Rudin's statement. According to Depp, Edward Scissorhands represented Burton's inability to communicate as a teenager. Ed Wood reflected Burton's relationship with Vincent Price (very similar with Edward D. Wood, Jr. and Béla Lugosi).

Depp's Hollywood Walk of Fame star received on November 19, 1999.

Depp's next venture with Burton was the role of Ichabod Crane in Sleepy Hollow (1999), opposite Christina Ricci. Sleepy Hollow reflected Burton's battle with the Hollywood studio system.[24] For his performance, Depp took inspiration from Angela Lansbury, Roddy McDowall and Basil Rathbone.[23] Depp stated, "I always thought of Ichabod as a very delicate, fragile person who was maybe a little too in touch with his feminine side, like a frightened little girl."[25]

Depp did not work with Burton again until 2005 in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, in which he played Willy Wonka. Depp modeled the character's hair on Anna Wintour.[26] The film was a box office success and received positive critical reception.[27][28] Gene Wilder, who played Willy Wonka in the 1971 film, initially criticized this version.[29] Charlie and the Chocolate Factory was released in July, followed by Corpse Bride, for which Depp voiced the character Victor Van Dort, in September.

Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (2007) followed, bringing Depp his second major award win, the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy as well as his third nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actor. Burton first gave him an original cast recording of the 1979 stage musical in 2000. Although not a fan of the musical genre, Depp grew to like the tale's treatment. He cited Peter Lorre in Mad Love (1935) as his main influence for the role, and practiced the songs his character would perform while filming Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End.[30] Although he had performed in musical groups, Depp was initially unsure that he would be able to sustain Stephen Sondheim's lyrics. Depp recorded demos and worked with Bruce Witkin to shape his vocals without a qualified voice coach. In the DVD Reviews section, Entertainment Weekly's Chris Nashawaty gave the film an A minus, stating, "Depp's soaring voice makes you wonder what other tricks he's been hiding... Watching Depp's barber wield his razors... it's hard not to be reminded of Edward Scissorhands frantically shaping hedges into animal topiaries 18 years ago... and all of the twisted beauty we would've missed out on had [Burton and Depp] never met."[31]

In his introduction to Burton on Burton, a book of interviews with the director, Depp called Burton "...a brother, a friend,...and [a] brave soul".[32] The next Depp-Burton collaboration was Alice in Wonderland (2010). Depp played the Mad Hatter alongside Helena Bonham Carter, Anne Hathaway and Alan Rickman.
Personal life

Depp backstage at the Ahmanson Theatre on December 31, 2006

In 1994, Depp was arrested and questioned by police for allegedly causing serious damage to a New York City hotel suite.[33] Since 1998, following a relationship with British supermodel Kate Moss, Depp has had a relationship with Vanessa Paradis, a French actress and singer whom he met while filming The Ninth Gate.[34] He was arrested again in 1999 for brawling with paparazzi outside a restaurant while dining in London with Paradis.[35]

The couple have two children. Daughter Lily-Rose Melody Depp was born May 27, 1999, and son John "Jack" Christopher Depp III was born April 9, 2002.[36] In 2007, his daughter recovered from a serious illness, an E. coli infection that began to cause her kidneys to shut down and resulted in an extended hospital stay.[37] To thank Great Ormond Street Hospital, Depp visited the hospital in November 2007 dressed in his Captain Jack Sparrow outfit and spent 4 hours reading stories to the children. He later donated £1 million (about $2 million) to the hospital in early 2008.[38]

Although Depp has not remarried, he has stated that having children has given him "real foundation, a real strong place to stand in life, in work, in everything."[16] "You can't plan the kind of deep love that results in children. Fatherhood was not a conscious decision. It was part of the wonderful ride I was on. It was destiny; kismet. All the math finally worked." The family divides its time between their home in Meudon, located in the suburbs of Paris, Los Angeles, an island he bought in The Bahamas, and their villa in Le Plan-de-la-Tour, a small town 20 km from Saint-Tropez, in the south of France.[39][40] Depp also acquired a vineyard estate in the Plan-de-la-Tour area in 2007.[41]

Depp has 13 tattoos, many of them signifying important persons or events in his life. They include a Native American in profile and a ribbon reading "Wino Forever" (originally "Winona Forever", altered after his breakup with Winona Ryder) on his right biceps, "Lily-Rose" (his daughter's name) over his heart, "Betty Sue" (his mother's name) on his left biceps, and a sparrow flying over water with the word "Jack" (his son's name; the sparrow is flying towards him rather than away from him as it is in Pirates of the Caribbean) on his right forearm.

In 2003, Depp's comments about the United States appeared in Germany's Stern magazine: "America is dumb, is something like a dumb puppy that has big teeth — that can bite and hurt you, aggressive."[42] Although he later asserted that the magazine misquoted him and the quotation was taken out of context, Stern stood by its story, as did CNN.com in its coverage of the interview. CNN added his remark that he would like his children "to see America as a toy, a broken toy. Investigate it a little, check it out, get this feeling and then get out."[43] The July 17, 2006 edition of Newsweek reprinted the "dumb puppy" quotation, verbatim, in the context of a Letter to the Magazine. Depp has also disagreed with subsequent media reports that he says paint him as a "European wannabe", saying that he just likes the anonymity of living in France and his simpler life there.[42]

On October 8, 2010, Depp made an unannounced appearance at a London Primary School near where he was filming scenes for the fourth installment of the Pirates of the Caribbean film series. He turned up dressed as his character Jack Sparrow after receiving a letter from a pupil asking for his help with a class mutiny.[44]

Depp bought a 17th century Palazzo Dona Sangiantoffetti in Venice worth £8.5 million after falling in love with the city during the filming of The Tourist.[45]
Other interests
Music

As a guitar player, Depp has recorded a solo album, played slide guitar on the Oasis song "Fade In-Out" (from Be Here Now, 1997), as well as on "Fade Away (Warchild Version)" (b-side of the "Don't Go Away" single). He also played acoustic guitar in the movie Chocolat and on the soundtrack to Once Upon a Time in Mexico. He is a friend of The Pogues' Shane MacGowan, and performed on MacGowan's first solo album. He was also a member of P, a group featuring Butthole Surfers singer Gibby Haynes and Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist Flea. He has appeared in Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers' music video "Into the Great Wide Open".
Winemaker and restaurateur

Depp and Paradis grow grapes and have wine making facilities in their vineyard in Plan-de-la-Tour north of Saint-Tropez.[41][46][47] He is known for a fondness of French wines: among Depp's favorites are the Bordeaux wines Château Calon-Ségur, Château Cheval Blanc and Château Pétrus, and the Burgundy wine Domaine de la Romanée-Conti. Interviewed in Madame Figaro, he stated, "With those wines, you reach nirvana".[48] Along with Sean Penn, John Malkovich and Mick Hucknall, Depp co-owned the Parisian restaurant-bar Man Ray, located near the Champs-Élysées.[49]
Awards and nominations
Main article: List of awards and nominations received by Johnny Depp

Some of the awards that Depp has won include honors from the London Film Critics Circle (1996), Russian Guild of Film Critics (1998), Screen Actors Guild Awards (2004) and a Golden Globe for Best Actor. At the 2008 MTV Movie Awards, he won the award for "Best Villain" for his portrayal of Sweeney Todd and "Best Comedic Performance" for Jack Sparrow. Depp has been nominated for three Academy Awards, in 2004 for Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, in 2005 for Finding Neverland, and in 2008 for Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street. Depp won his first Golden Globe for his portrayal of Sweeney Todd in 2008.
Filmography
ActorYear Title Role Notes
1984 A Nightmare on Elm Street Glen Lantz
1985 Private Resort Jack Marshall
1986 Platoon Specialist Gator Lerner
1990 Cry-Baby Wade "Cry-Baby" Walker
1990 Edward Scissorhands Edward Scissorhands Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy
1991 Freddy's Dead: The Final Nightmare Teen on TV Cameo (as Oprah Noodlemantra)
1993 What's Eating Gilbert Grape Gilbert Grape
1993 Benny & Joon Sam Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy
1993 Arizona Dream Axel Blackmar
1994 Ed Wood Edward D. Wood, Jr. London Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actor also for Don Juan DeMarco
Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy
1995 Nick of Time Gene Watson
1995 Dead Man William Blake
1995 Don Juan DeMarco Don Juan/John R. DeMarco London Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actor (also for Ed Wood)
1996 Cannes Man Himself
1997 Donnie Brasco Donnie Brasco/Joseph D. Pistone Nominated—Chlotrudis Award for Best Actor
1997 The Brave Raphael Nominated—Best Actor Award (Cannes Film Festival)
1998 Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas Raoul Duke playing Hunter S. Thompson
1998 L.A. Without a Map Himself/William Blake Cameo
1999 Sleepy Hollow Ichabod Crane Nominated—Satellite Award for Best Actor - Motion Picture Musical or Comedy
Nominated—Saturn Award for Best Actor
1999 The Astronaut's Wife Spencer Armacost
1999 The Ninth Gate Dean Corso
2000 Chocolat Roux Nominated—Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture
2000 Before Night Falls Lt. Victor, Bon Bon
2001 From Hell Frederick Abberline Nominated—Saturn Award for Best Actor
2001 The Man Who Cried Cesar (Limited release)
2001 Blow George Jung
2003 Once Upon a Time in Mexico Sheldon Sands Nominated—Satellite Award for Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture
2003 Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl Captain Jack Sparrow Empire Award for Best Actor
Irish Film Award for Best International Actor
Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role
Nominated—Academy Award for Best Actor
Nominated—BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role
Nominated—Broadcast Film Critics Association Award for Best Actor
Nominated—Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Actor
Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy
Nominated—Online Film Critics Society Award for Best Actor
Nominated—Phoenix Film Critics Society Award for Best Actor
Nominated—Satellite Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy
Nominated—Saturn Award for Best Actor
Nominated—Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association Award for Best Actor
2004 Happily Ever After L'inconnu Cameo
2004 Finding Neverland J. M. Barrie Nominated—Academy Award for Best Actor
Nominated—BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role
Nominated—Broadcast Film Critics Association Award for Best Actor
Nominated—Empire Award for Best Actor
Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama
Nominated—London Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actor
Nominated—Satellite Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama
Nominated—Saturn Award for Best Actor
Nominated—Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role
Nominated—Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture
2004 Secret Window Mort Rainey
2005 The Libertine John Wilmot, 2nd Earl of Rochester Nominated—British Independent Film Award for Best Actor
2005 Charlie and the Chocolate Factory Willy Wonka Empire Award for Best Actor
Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy
Nominated—Irish Film Award for Best International Actor
Nominated—London Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actor
2005 Corpse Bride Victor Van Dort voice role
2006 Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest Captain Jack Sparrow Empire Award for Best Actor
Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy
Nominated—National Movie Award for Performance – Male
2007 Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End Captain Jack Sparrow
2007 Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street Sweeney Todd/Benjamin Barker Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy
National Movie Award for Performance – Male
Nominated—Academy Award for Best Actor
Nominated—Broadcast Film Critics Association Award for Best Actor
Nominated—Saturn Award for Best Actor
2009 Public Enemies John Dillinger Nominated—Satellite Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama
2009 The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus Tony (1st transformation)
2010 Alice in Wonderland Mad Hatter Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy
Nominated—MTV Movie Award for Global Superstar
Nominated—National Movie Award for Best Performance
Nominated—Teen Choice Award for Best Fantasy Actor
2010 The Tourist Frank Tupelo/Alexander Pearce Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy
2011 Rango Rango voice role
post-production
2011 The Rum Diary Paul Kemp post-production
2011 Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides Captain Jack Sparrow post-production[50]
2011 Jack & Jill Cameo
filming
2012 Dark Shadows Barnabas Collins pre-production
2012 The Lone Ranger Tonto pre-production

DirectorYear Title Notes
1992 Stuff short film
1997 The Brave
2011 Keith Richards Documentary

DocumentaryYear Title Role Notes
1999 The Source Jack Kerouac
2002 Lost in La Mancha Himself Uncredited role
2006 Deep Sea 3D Narrator
2007 Runnin' Down A Dream Himself
2008 Gonzo: The Life and Work of Dr. Hunter S. Thompson Narrator
2010 When You're Strange Narrator

MusicYear Title Songs
2000 Chocolat "Minor Swing",
"They're Red Hot",
"Caravan"
2003 Once Upon a Time in Mexico "Sands' Theme"
2007 Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street "No Place Like London",
"My Friends",
"Pirelli's Miracle Elixir",
"Pretty Women",
"Epiphany",
"A Little Priest",
"Johanna (Act II)",
"By The Sea",
"The Judge's Return",
"Final Scene (Part 1)",
"Final Scene (Part 2)"

ProducerYear Title Notes
2011 The Rum Diary post-production
2011 Hugo Cabret filming[51]

TelevisionYear Production Role Notes
1985 Lady Blue Lionel Viland Episode: "Beasts of Prey"
1986 Slow Burn Donnie Fleischer TV film
1987–1991 21 Jump Street Officer Thomas "Tom" Hanson, Jr. TV series (57 episodes)
1987 Hotel Rob Cameron Episode: "Unfinished Business"
1999 The Vicar of Dibley Himself Episode: "Celebrity Party"[52]
2000 The Fast Show Himself Episode: "The Last Ever Fast Show"[53]
2004 King of the Hill Yogi Victor (voice) Episode: "Hank's Back"
2009 SpongeBob SquarePants Jack Kahuna Laguna (voice) Episode: "SpongeBob vs. The Big One"[54]

WriterYear Title
1997 The Brave

Anchovy & orange Salad - The Video of February

Dear readers, today I want to show you how to prepare a delicious unique salad with very few ingredients typical of our territory: oranges, anchovies and red onions (or green onions).
Have a look at the video and do not hesitate to try this lovely dish. Enjoy!

Thanks to Patrizia Laria for the video editing.

Meow meow kat tenom

Hi there, it's perfectly a month that I did not update my blog. Been laze around and doing some simple shooting recently.
Went back to father's hometown celebrate Chinese New Year. As usual the place where we stay has a lot of kitties, dogs, chickens. But i prefer to share picture of kitties with you all :D



This daddy cat stare at me with fierce eyes when I'm getting close to it. Ahahaha!!







Kitties with same pattern, sleep together.




Another shot of cat daddy, he tilt his head away D:







Cat mother is breast feeding to her babies.

VegNews Vegan Alfredo

If you have the March-April edition of VegNews, you might have seen the recipe for fettuccine alfredo. If you haven't yet, you've got to try it.

I tried to find the recipe published online, but I couldn't find it, which is a shame. I think they send out the edition to subscribers before it hits the shelves in the stores, so I'll keep looking for it. Maybe when they update their website with the March-April edition, the recipe will be available online.

The sauce is your average cashew cream variety with some pine nuts thrown in, then thinned with water, lemon juice, and some garlic, nutmeg, and black pepper. (I left out the nutmeg for a fussy eater.)

The recipe didn't call for it, but I added a tablespoon of white miso, a few drops of ume plum vinegar and extra garlic...for garlic lovers, this is a great vehicle for some intense garlic action. Oh yeah, and I tossed in a handful of mozzarella-style Daiya, since I had some in the fridge I needed to use up. It all came together for a tasty sauce.

Then, I sauteed some yellow pepper, slivered garlic, (in keeping with the intense garlic theme) and broccolini to toss with the pasta and the alfredo sauce. Garnished with green onion slices and fresh oregano, it was a flavor bomb. Oh, and don't forget plenty of fresh ground black pepper.

It hit the spot with some spinach and roasted eggplant rollups: thinly sliced eggplant brushed with garlic-infused olive oil and a pinch of sea salt, then roasted until brown and garnished with a squeeze of fresh lemon. They're tasty little treats; we ate most of them before they made it onto the plate! 

Roseann LaPonte

Rosanne Tobin

Manchester United

Manchester United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, that plays in the Premier League. Founded as Newton Heath LYR Football Club in 1878, the club changed its name to Manchester United in 1902 and moved to Old Trafford in 1910.
In 1968, under the management of Matt Busby, Manchester United was the first English football club to win the European Cup, ten years after the Munich air disaster that claimed the lives of eight players. The current manager, Alex Ferguson, is the most successful manager in the club's history, having won 26 major honours since he took over in November 1986.[3]
Having won 18 league titles, four League Cups and a record 11 FA Cups,[4] Manchester United is one of the most successful clubs in the history of English football. The club has also won three European Cups and is unique in having won a Premier League, FA Cup and UEFA Champions League Treble, in the 1998–99 season.
Manchester United is one of the wealthiest and most widely supported football teams in the world.[5][6][7][8] The club is said to be worth £1.19 billion, making it the most valuable football club in the world.[9] After being floated on the London Stock Exchange in 1991, the club was purchased by Malcolm Glazer in May 2005 in a deal valuing the club at almost £800 million.[10]

Early years (1878–1945)
Main article: History of Manchester United F.C. (1878–1945)


A chart showing the progress of Manchester United F.C. through the English football league system from joining as Newton Heath in 1892–93 to 2007–08
Manchester United was formed in 1878 as Newton Heath LYR Football Club by the Carriage and Wagon department of the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway depot at Newton Heath.[11] The team initially played games against other departments and rail companies, but on 20 November 1880, they competed in their first recorded match; wearing the colours of the railway company – green and gold – they were defeated 6–0 by Bolton Wanderers' reserve team.[12] By 1888, the club had become a founding member of The Combination, a regional football league. However, following the league's dissolution after just one season, Newton Heath joined the newly formed Football Alliance, which ran for three seasons before being merged with the Football League. This resulted in the club starting the 1892–93 season in the First Division, by which time it had become independent of the rail company and dropped the "LYR" from its name.[11] After just two seasons, the club was relegated to the Second Division.[11]


The Manchester United team at the start of the 1905–06 season, in which they were runners-up in the Second Division
In January 1902, with debts of £2,670 – equivalent to £210,000 as of 2011[13] – the club was served with a winding-up order.[14] Captain Harry Stafford found four local businessmen, including John Henry Davies (who became club president), each willing to invest £500 in return for a direct interest in running the club and who subsequently changed the name;[15] on 24 April 1902, Manchester United was officially born.[16][17] Under Ernest Mangnall, who assumed managerial duties in 1903, the team finished as Second Division runners-up in 1906 and secured promotion to the First Division, which they won in 1908 – the club's first league title. The following season began with victory in the first ever Charity Shield[18] and ended with the club's first FA Cup title. Manchester United won the First Division for the second time in 1911, but at the end of the following season, Mangnall left the club to join Manchester City.[19]
In 1922, three years after the resumption of football following the First World War, the club was relegated to the Second Division, where it remained until regaining promotion in 1925. Relegated again in 1931, Manchester United became a yo-yo club, achieving its all-time lowest position of 20th place in the Second Division in 1934. Following the death of the club's principal benefactor, J. H. Davies, in October 1927, the club's finances deteriorated to the extent that Manchester United would likely have gone bankrupt had it not been for James W. Gibson, who, in December 1931, invested £2,000 and assumed control of the club.[20] In the 1938–39 season, the last year of football before the Second World War, the club finished 14th in the First Division.[20]
Busby years (1945–1969)
Main article: History of Manchester United F.C. (1945–1969)


The Busby Babes in Denmark in 1955
In October 1945, the impending resumption of football led to the managerial appointment of Matt Busby, who demanded an unprecedented level of control over team selection, player transfers and training sessions.[21] Busby led the team to second-place league finishes in 1947, 1948 and 1949, and to FA Cup victory in 1948. In 1952, the club won the First Division, its first league title for 41 years.[22] With an average age of 22, the media labelled the back-to-back title winning side of 1956 "the Busby Babes", a testament to Busby's faith in his youth players.[23] In 1957, Manchester United became the first English team to compete in the European Cup, despite objections from The Football League, who had denied Chelsea the same opportunity the previous season.[24] En route to the semi-final, which they lost to Real Madrid, the team recorded a 10–0 victory over Belgian champions Anderlecht, which remains the club's biggest victory on record.[25]


A plaque at Old Trafford in honour of the players who died in the Munich air disaster
The following season, on the way home from a European Cup quarter-final victory against Red Star Belgrade, the aircraft carrying the Manchester United players, officials and journalists crashed while attempting to take off after refuelling in Munich, Germany. The Munich air disaster of 6 February 1958 claimed 23 lives, including those of eight players – Geoff Bent, Roger Byrne, Eddie Colman, Duncan Edwards, Mark Jones, David Pegg, Tommy Taylor and Billy Whelan – and injured several more.[26][27]
Reserve team manager Jimmy Murphy took over as manager while Busby recovered from his injuries and the club's makeshift side reached the FA Cup final, which they lost to Bolton Wanderers. In recognition of the team's tragedy, UEFA invited the club to compete in the 1958–59 European Cup alongside eventual League champions Wolverhampton Wanderers. Despite approval from the FA, the Football League determined that the club should not enter the competition, since it had not qualified.[28][29] Busby rebuilt the team through the 1960s by signing players such as Denis Law and Pat Crerand, who combined with the next generation of youth players – including George Best – to win the FA Cup in 1963. The following season, they finished second in the league, then won the title in 1965 and 1967. In 1968, Manchester United became the first English club to win the European Cup, beating Benfica 4–1 in the final[30] with a team that contained three European Footballers of the Year: Bobby Charlton, Denis Law and George Best.[31] Matt Busby resigned as manager in 1969 and was replaced by the reserve team coach, former Manchester United player Wilf McGuinness.[32]
1969–1986
Main article: History of Manchester United F.C. (1969–1986)


Bryan Robson was the captain of Manchester United for 12 years, longer than any other player.[33]
Following an eighth-place finish in the 1969–70 season and a poor start to the 1970–71 season, Busby was persuaded to temporarily resume managerial duties, and McGuinness returned to his position as reserve team coach. In June 1971, Frank O'Farrell was appointed as manager, but lasted less than 18 months before being replaced by Tommy Docherty in December 1972.[34] Docherty saved Manchester United from relegation that season, only to see them relegated in 1974; by that time the trio of Best, Law, and Charlton had left the club.[30] The team won promotion at the first attempt and reached the FA Cup final in 1976, but were beaten by Southampton. They reached the final again in 1977, beating Liverpool 2–1. Docherty was dismissed shortly afterwards, following the revelation of his affair with the club physiotherapist's wife.[32][35]
Dave Sexton replaced Docherty as manager in the summer of 1977. Despite major signings, including Joe Jordan, Gordon McQueen, Gary Bailey, and Ray Wilkins, the team failed to achieve any significant results; they finished in the top two in 1979–80 and lost to Arsenal in the 1979 FA Cup Final. Sexton was dismissed in 1981, even though the team won the last seven games under his direction.[36] He was replaced by Ron Atkinson, who immediately broke the British record transfer fee to sign Bryan Robson from West Bromwich Albion. Under Atkinson, Manchester United won the FA Cup twice in three years – in 1983 and 1985. In 1985–86, after 13 wins and two draws in its first 15 matches, the club was favourite to win the league, but finished in fourth place. The following season, with the club in danger of relegation by November, Atkinson was dismissed.[37]
Ferguson years (1986–present)
Main article: History of Manchester United F.C. (1986–present)


Alex Ferguson has been manager of Manchester United since November 1986.
Alex Ferguson and his assistant Archie Knox arrived from Aberdeen on the day of Atkinson's dismissal,[38] and guided the club to an 11th-place finish in the league.[39] Despite a second-place finish in 1987–88, the club was back in 11th place the following season.[40] Reportedly on the verge of being dismissed, victory over Crystal Palace in the 1990 FA Cup Final replay (after a 3–3 draw) saved Ferguson's career.[41][42] The following season, Manchester United claimed its first Cup Winners' Cup title and competed in the 1991 UEFA Super Cup, beating European Cup holders Red Star Belgrade 1–0 in the final at Old Trafford. A second consecutive League Cup final appearance followed in 1992, in which the team beat Nottingham Forest 1–0 at Wembley.[37] In 1993, the club won its first league title since 1967, and a year later, for the first time since 1957, it won a second consecutive title – alongside the FA Cup – to complete the first "Double" in the club's history.[37]


Ryan Giggs is the most decorated player in English football history.[43]
Manchester United's 1998–99 season was the most successful in English club football history as they became the first team to win the Premier League, FA Cup and UEFA Champions League – "The Treble" – in the same season.[44] Losing 1–0 going into injury time in the 1999 UEFA Champions League Final, Teddy Sheringham and Ole Gunnar Solskjær scored late goals to claim a dramatic victory over Bayern Munich, in what is considered one of the greatest comebacks of all time.[45] The club also won the Intercontinental Cup after beating Palmeiras 1–0 in Tokyo.[46] Ferguson was subsequently knighted for his services to football.[47]
In 2000, Manchester United competed in the inaugural FIFA Club World Championship in Brazil,[48] and won the league again in the 1999–2000 and 2000–01 seasons. The team finished as runners-up in 2001–02, before regaining the title in 2002–03. They won the 2003–04 FA Cup, beating Millwall 3–0 in the final at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff.[49] In the 2005–06 season, Manchester United failed to qualify for the knockout phase of the UEFA Champions League for the first time in over a decade, but recovered to secure a second-place league finish and victory over Wigan Athletic in the 2006 Football League Cup Final. The club regained the Premier League in the 2006–07 and 2007–08 seasons, and completed the European double by beating Chelsea 6–5 on penalties in the 2008 UEFA Champions League Final in Moscow's Luzhniki Stadium. Ryan Giggs made a record 759th appearance for the club in this game, overtaking previous record holder Bobby Charlton.[50] In December 2008, the club won the 2008 FIFA Club World Cup and followed this with the 2008–09 Football League Cup, and its third successive Premier League title.[51][52] That summer, Cristiano Ronaldo was sold to Real Madrid for a world record £80 million.[53] In 2010, Manchester United defeated Aston Villa 2–1 at Wembley to retain the League Cup, its first successful defence of a knockout cup competition.[54]
Crest and colours



Manchester United badge in the 1960s
The club crest is derived from the Manchester City Council coat of arms, although all that remains of it on the current crest is the ship in full sail.[55] The devil stems from the club's nickname "The Red Devils"; it was included on club programmes and scarves in the 1960s, and incorporated into the club crest in 1970, although the crest was not included on the chest of the shirt until 1971 (unless the team was playing in a Cup Final).[55]
A photograph of the Newton Heath team, taken in 1892, is believed to show the players wearing a red-and-white quartered jerseys and blue shorts.[56] Between 1894–96, the players wore distinctive green and gold jerseys[56] which were replaced in 1896 by white shirts, which were worn with blue shorts.[56] After its name change in 1902, the club colours were changed to red shirts, white shorts, and black socks, which has become the standard Manchester United home kit.[56] Very few changes were made to the kit until 1922 when the club adopted white shirts bearing a deep red "V" around the neck, similar to the shirt worn in the 1909 FA Cup Final. They would remain part of their home kits until 1927.[56] In 1934, players sported cherry and white hooped shirts, but the following season the red shirt was recalled after the club's lowest ever league placing of 20th in the Second Division.[56] The black socks were changed to white from 1959 to 1965, where they were replaced with red socks up until 1971, when the club reverted to black. The current home kit is a red shirt with a white collar, worn with white shorts and black socks.[57]
The Manchester United away strip has more often than not been a white shirt, black shorts and white socks, but there have been several exceptions. These include the navy blue shirt with silver horizontal pinstripes worn during the 1999–2000 season,[58] and the current away kit which is a white shirt with red and black flashes on the sleeves, with black shorts and white socks.[59] An all-grey away kit worn during the 1995–96 season was dropped after just two games because players claimed to have trouble finding their team-mates against the crowd.[60] In 2001, to celebrate 100 years as "Manchester United", a reversible white/gold away kit was released, although the actual match day shirts were not reversible.[61] The club's third kit is often all-blue, this was most recently the case during the 2008–09 season, to celebrate 40 years since it was worn for the club's first European Cup win in 1968.[62] Exceptions include blue-and-white striped shirts worn during the 1994–96 season, an all black kit worn during the Treble winning season, and white shirts with black-and-red horizontal pinstripes worn between 2003–05.[63] The club's 2008–09 season away kit – a white shirt with blue and red trim, worn with blue shorts and white socks – was used as the club's third kit during the 2009–10 season.[64][65]
Grounds

Main articles: North Road, Bank Street, and Old Trafford
Old Trafford
Theatre of Dreams

Location Sir Matt Busby Way,
Old Trafford,
Greater Manchester,
England
Broke ground 1909
Opened 19 February 1910
Owner Manchester United
Operator Manchester United
Construction cost £90,000 (1909)
Architect Archibald Leitch (1909)
Capacity 75,957 seated[2]
Tenants
Manchester United (1910–present)
Newton Heath initially played on a field on North Road, close to the railway yard; the original capacity was about 12,000, but club officials deemed the facilities inadequate for a club hoping to join The Football League.[66] Some expansion took place in 1887, and in 1891 Newton Heath used its minimal financial reserves to purchase two grandstands, each able to hold 1,000 spectators.[67] Although attendances were not recorded for many of the earliest matches at North Road, the highest documented attendance was approximately 15,000 for a First Division match against Sunderland on 4 March 1893.[68] A similar attendance was also recorded for a friendly match against Gorton Villa on 5 September 1889.[69]
In June 1893, after the club was evicted from North Road by its owners, Manchester Deans and Canons, who felt it was inappropriate for the club to charge an entry fee to the ground, secretary A. H. Albut procured the use of the Bank Street ground in Clayton.[70] It initially had no stands, by the start of the 1893–94 season, two had been built; one spanning the full length of the pitch on one side and the other behind the goal at the "Bradford end". At the opposite end, the "Clayton end", the ground had been "built up, thousands thus being provided for".[70] Newton Heath's first league match at Bank Street was played against Burnley on 1 September 1893, when 10,000 people saw Alf Farman score a hat-trick, Newton Heath's only goals in a 3–2 win. The remaining stands were completed for the following league game against Nottingham Forest three weeks later.[70] In October 1895, before the visit of Manchester City, the club purchased a 2,000-capacity stand from the Broughton Rangers rugby league club, and put up another stand on the "reserved side" (as distinct from the "popular side"). However, weather restricted the attendance for the Manchester City match to just 12,000.[71]
When the Bank Street ground was temporarily closed by bailiffs in 1902, club captain Harry Stafford raised enough money to pay for the club's next away game at Bristol City and found a temporary ground at Harpurhey for the next reserves game against Padiham.[72] Following financial investment, new club president J.H. Davies paid £500 for the erection of a new 1,000-seat stand at Bank Street.[73] Within four years, the stadium had cover on all four sides, as well as the ability to hold approximately 50,000 spectators, some of whom could watch from the viewing gallery atop the Main Stand.[73]
However, following Manchester United's first league title in 1908 and the FA Cup a year later, it was decided that Bank Street was too restrictive for Davies' ambition;[73] in February 1909, six weeks before the club's first FA Cup title, Old Trafford was named as the home of Manchester United, following the purchase of land for around £60,000. Architect Archibald Leitch was given a budget of £30,000 for construction; original plans called for seating capacity of 100,000, though budget constraints forced a revision to 77,000. The building was constructed by Messrs Brameld and Smith of Manchester. The stadium's record attendance was registered on 25 March 1939, when an FA Cup semi-final between Wolverhampton Wanderers and Grimsby Town drew 76,962 spectators.[74]
Bombing in the Second World War destroyed much of the stadium; the central tunnel in the South Stand was all that remained of that quarter. After the war, the club received compensation from the War Damage Commission in the amount of £22,278. While reconstruction took place, the team played its "home" games at Manchester City's Maine Road ground; Manchester United was charged £5,000 per year, plus a nominal percentage of gate receipts.[75] Later improvements included the addition of roofs, first to the Stretford End and then to the North and East Stands. The roofs were supported by pillars that obstructed many fans' views, and they were eventually replaced with a cantilevered structure. The Stretford End was the last stand to receive a cantilevered roof, completed in time for the 1993–94 season.[32] First used on 25 March 1957 and costing £40,000, four 180-foot (55 m) pylons were erected, each housing 54 individual floodlights. These were dismantled in 1987 and replaced by a lighting system embedded in the roof of each stand, which remains in use today.[76]
The Taylor Report's requirement for an all-seater stadium lowered capacity at Old Trafford to around 44,000 by 1993. In 1995, the North Stand was redeveloped into three tiers, restoring capacity to approximately 55,000. At the end of the 1998–99 season, second tiers were added to the East and West Stands, raising capacity to around 67,000, and between July 2005 and May 2006, 8,000 more seats were added via second tiers in the north-west and north-east quadrants. Part of the new seating was used for the first time on 26 March 2006, when an attendance of 69,070 became a new Premier League record.[77] The record was pushed steadily upwards before reaching its peak on 31 March 2007, when 76,098 spectators saw Manchester United beat Blackburn Rovers 4–1, with just 114 seats (0.15 percent of the total capacity of 76,212) unoccupied.[78] In 2009, reorganisation of the seating resulted in a reduction of capacity by 255 to 75,957.[2][79]
Support

Manchester United is reputed to be the most popular football club in the world, with the highest average home attendance in Europe.[80] The club's worldwide fan base includes more than 200 officially recognised branches of the Manchester United Supporters Club (MUSC), in at least 24 countries.[81] The club takes advantage of this support through its worldwide summer tours. Accountancy firm and sports industry consultants Deloitte estimate that Manchester United has 75 million fans worldwide,[6] while other estimates put this figure closer to 333 million.[7]
Supporters are represented by two independent bodies; the Independent Manchester United Supporters Association (IMUSA), which maintains close links to the club through the MUFC Fans Forum,[82] and the Manchester United Supporters' Trust (MUST). After the Glazer family's takeover in 2005, a group of fans formed a splinter club, F.C. United of Manchester. The West Stand of Old Trafford – the "Stretford End" – is the home end and the traditional source of the club's most vocal support.[83]
Rivalries
Main articles: Manchester derby, Liverpool F.C. and Manchester United F.C. rivalry, and Leeds United A.F.C. and Manchester United F.C. rivalry
Manchester United has major ongoing rivalries with three clubs: Liverpool, Manchester City and Leeds United.[84][85] The most hotly contested derby fixture is often versus Liverpool, described by Ryan Giggs as "probably the most famous fixture in English football",[86] as both teams have dominated certain periods of English football.[87] The rivalry is considered a manifestation of the cities' competition during industrial times, when they competed for supremacy of the north-west; Manchester was famous for its textile industry, while Liverpool was considered the world's pre-eminent port.[88] This fixture also has a history of hooliganism; at the 1996 FA Cup Final, an unidentified Liverpool fan spat at Eric Cantona and threw a punch at Alex Ferguson as a victorious Manchester United team walked up the steps at Wembley Stadium to collect the trophy from the Royal Box.[89] At an FA Cup match in 2006, an ambulance carrying Alan Smith, who had broken his leg during the match, was attacked by Liverpool fans.[90]
Informally known as the "Roses Rivalry",[91] the rivalry with Leeds United has its origins in the Wars of the Roses fought between the House of Lancaster and the House of York, Manchester United representing Lancashire and Leeds representing Yorkshire.[92] Independent research by the Football Fans Census showed that in English football Leeds and Manchester United are among the top three clubs which fans of other sides feel passionately against.[93]
Global brand

Manchester United has been described as a global brand; a 2009 report valued the club's trademarks and associated intellectual property at £329 million, and gave the brand a strength rating of AAA (Extremely Strong).[94] In 2010, Forbes magazine ranked Manchester United second only to the New York Yankees in its list of the ten most valuable sports team brands, valuing the Manchester United brand at $285 million (16 percent of the club's $1.835 billion value).[8] The club is currently ranked third in the Deloitte Football Money League (behind Real Madrid and Barcelona).[95]
The core strength of Manchester United's global brand is often attributed to Matt Busby's rebuilding of the team and subsequent success following the Munich air disaster, which drew worldwide acclaim.[83] The "iconic" team included Bobby Charlton and Nobby Stiles (members of England's World Cup winning team), Denis Law and George Best. The attacking style of play adopted by this team (in contrast to the defensive-minded "catenaccio" approach favoured by the leading Italian teams of the era) "captured the imagination of the English footballing public".[96] Busby's team also became associated with the liberalisation of Western society during the 1960s; George Best, known as the "fifth Beatle" for his iconic haircut, was the first footballer to significantly develop an off-the-field media profile.[96]
As the first English football club to float on the London Stock Exchange in 1991, the club raised significant capital, with which it further developed its commercial strategy. The club's focus on commercial and sporting success brought significant profits in an industry often characterised by chronic losses.[97] The strength of the Manchester United brand was bolstered by intense off-the-field media attention to individual players, most notably David Beckham (who quickly developed his own global brand). This attention often generates greater interest in on-the-field activities, and hence generates sponsorship opportunities – the value of which is driven by television exposure.[98] During his time with the club, Beckham's popularity across Asia was integral to the club's commercial success in that part of the world.[99]
Because higher league placement results in a greater share of television rights, success on the field generates greater income for the club. Since the inception of the Premier League, Manchester United has received the largest share of the revenue generated from the BSkyB broadcasting deal.[100] Manchester United has also consistently enjoyed the highest commercial income of any English club; in 2005–06, the club's commercial arm generated £51 million, compared to £42.5 million at Chelsea, £39.3 million at Liverpool, £34 million at Arsenal and £27.9 million at Newcastle United. A key sponsorship relationship is with sportswear company Nike, who manage the club's merchandising operation as part of a £303 million 13-year partnership established in 2002.[101] Through Manchester United Finance and the club's membership scheme, One United, those with an affinity for the club can purchase a range of branded goods and services. Additionally, Manchester United-branded media services – such as the club's dedicated television channel, MUTV – have allowed the club to expand its fan base to those beyond the reach of its Old Trafford stadium.[6]
Sponsorship
In an initial five-year deal worth £500,000, Sharp Electronics became the club's first shirt sponsor at the beginning of the 1982–83 season, a relationship that lasted until the end of the 1999–2000 season, when Vodafone agreed a four-year, £30 million deal.[102] Vodafone agreed to pay £36 million to extend the deal by four years, but after two seasons triggered a break clause in order to concentrate on its sponsorship of the Champions League.[102]
To commence at the start of the 2006–07 season, American insurance corporation AIG agreed a four-year £56.5 million deal which in September 2006 became the most valuable in the world.[103][104] At the beginning of the 2010–11 season, American reinsurance company Aon became the club's principal sponsor in a four-year deal reputed to be worth approximately £80 million, making it the most lucrative shirt sponsorship deal in football history.[105]
The club's first kit manufacturer was Umbro, until a five-year deal was agreed with Admiral Sportswear in 1975.[106] Adidas received the contract in 1980,[107] before Umbro started a second spell in 1992.[108] Umbro's sponsorship lasted for ten years, followed by Nike's record-breaking £302.9 million deal that will last until 2015; 3.8 million replica shirts were sold in the first 22 months with the company.[109][110] In addition to Nike and Aon, the club also has several lower-level "platinum" sponsors, including Audi and Budweiser.[111]
Ownership and finances

See also: Malcolm Glazer ownership of Manchester United
Originally funded by the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway Company, the club became a limited company in 1892 and sold shares to local supporters for £1 via an application form.[15] In 1902, majority ownership passed to the four local businessmen who invested £500 to save the club from bankruptcy, including future club president J.H Davies.[15] After his death in 1927, the club faced bankruptcy yet again, but was saved in December 1931 by James W. Gibson, who assumed control of the club after investing £2,000.[20] Gibson promoted his son, Alan, to the board in 1948,[112] but died three years later; the Gibson family retained ownership of the club,[113] but the position of chairman passed to former player Harold Hardman.[114]
Promoted to the board a few days after the Munich air disaster, Louis Edwards, a friend of Matt Busby, began acquiring shares in the club; for an investment of approximately £40,000, he accumulated a 54 percent shareholding and took control in January 1964.[115] When Lillian Gibson died in January 1971, her shares passed to Alan Gibson who sold a percentage of his shares to Louis Edwards' son, Martin in 1978; Martin Edwards went on to become chairman upon his father's death in 1980.[116] Media tycoon Robert Maxwell attempted to buy the club in 1984, but did not meet Edwards' asking price.[116] In 1989, chairman Martin Edwards attempted to sell the club to Michael Knighton for £20 million, but the sale fell through and Knighton joined the Board of Directors instead.[116] . Manchester United was floated on the stock market in June 1991 (raising £6.7 million),[117] and received yet another takeover bid in 1998, this time from Rupert Murdoch's British Sky Broadcasting Corporation. This resulted in the formation of Shareholders United Against Murdoch – now the Manchester United Supporters' Trust – who encouraged supporters to buy shares in the club in an attempt to block any hostile takeover. The Manchester United board accepted a £623 million offer,[118] but the takeover was blocked by the Monopolies and Mergers Commission at the final hurdle in April 1999.[119] A few years later, a power struggle emerged between the club's manager, Alex Ferguson, and his horse-racing partners, John Magnier and J. P. McManus, who had gradually become the majority shareholders. In a dispute that stemmed from contested ownership of the horse Rock of Gibraltar, Magnier and McManus attempted to have Ferguson removed from his position as manager, and the board responded by approaching investors to attempt to reduce the Irishmen's majority.[120]
In May 2005, Malcolm Glazer purchased the 28.7 percent stake held by McManus and Magnier, thus acquiring a controlling interest through his investment vehicle Red Football Ltd in a highly leveraged takeover valuing the club at approximately £800 million (then approx. $1.5 billion).[121][122] In July 2006, the club announced a £660 million debt refinancing package, resulting in a 30 percent reduction in annual interest payments to £62 million a year.[123][124] In January 2010, with debts of £716.5 million ($1.17 billion),[125] Manchester United further refinanced through a bond issue worth £504 million, enabling them to pay off most of the £509 million owed to international banks.[126] The annual interest payable on the bonds – which mature on 1 February 2017 – is approximately £45 million per annum.[127] Despite restructuring, the club's debt prompted protests from fans on 23 January 2010, at Old Trafford and the club's Trafford Training Centre.[128][129] Supporter groups encouraged match-going fans to wear green and gold, the colours of Newton Heath. On 30 January, reports emerged that the Manchester United Supporters' Trust had held meetings with a group of wealthy fans, dubbed the "Red Knights", with plans to buying out the Glazers' controlling interest.[130]

Champions League

The UEFA Champions League (usually referred to as simply the Champions League or historically as the European Cup) is an annual association football cup competition organised by UEFA since 1955 for the top football clubs in Europe. The final of the competition is the most watched annual sporting event worldwide, drawing just over 100 million television viewers.[1]

Prior to 1992 the tournament was officially called the European Champion Clubs' Cup but was usually referred to as simply the European Cup or European Champions' Cup. The competition was initially a straight knockout competition open only to the champion club of each country. During the 1990s the tournament began to be expanded, incorporating a round-robin group phase and more teams. Europe's strongest national leagues now provide up to four teams each for the competition. The UEFA Champions League should not be confused with the UEFA Europa League, formerly known as the UEFA Cup.
The tournament consists of several stages. In the present format it begins in mid-July with three knockout qualifying rounds and a play-off round. The 10 surviving teams join 22 seeded teams in the group stage, in which there are eight groups consisting of four teams each. The eight group winners and eight runners-up enter the final knockout phase, which ends with the final match in May. Since the tournament changed name and structure in 1992, no club has managed consecutive wins, with Milan being the last club to successfully defend their title, in 1990. The winner of the UEFA Champions League qualifies for the UEFA Super Cup and the FIFA Club World Cup.
The title has been won by 21 different clubs, 12 of which have won the title more than once. The all-time record-holders are Real Madrid, who have won the competition nine times, including the first five seasons it was contested. Spain's La Liga and Italy's Serie A are marginally the most successful leagues, having amassed 12 wins, between two and three clubs respectively. The English league has produced 11 winners from four clubs. English teams were banned from the competition for five years following the events at Heysel in 1985.[2] Internazionale are the current champions, having beaten Bayern Munich 2–0 in the 2010 final.

The tournament was inaugurated in 1955, at the suggestion of the French sports journalist and editor of L'Équipe Gabriel Hanot,[3] who conceived the idea after receiving reports from his journalists over the highly successful Campeonato Sudamericano de Campeones of 1948.[4] As a reaction to a declaration by the British press on the part of Wolverhampton Wanderers being "Champions of the World" after a successful run of European friendlies in the 1950s, Hanot finally managed to convince UEFA to put into practice a continent-wide tournament. The tournament was conceived as a competition for winners of the European national football leagues, as the European Champion Clubs' Cup, abbreviated to European Cup.
The competition began as the 1955–56 using a two-leg knockout format where the teams would play two matches, one at home and one away, and the team with the highest overall score qualifying for the next round of the competition. Until 1997, entry was restricted to the teams that won their national league championships, plus the current European Cup holder. In the 1992–93 season, the format was changed to include a group stage and the tournament was renamed the UEFA Champions League. There have since been numerous changes to eligibility for the competition, the number of qualifying rounds and the group structure. In 1997–98, eligibility was expanded to include the runners-up from some countries according to UEFA's coefficient ranking list. The qualification system has been restructured so that national champions from lower ranked countries have to take part in one or more qualifying rounds before the group stages, while runners-up from higher ranked countries enter in later rounds. Up to four clubs from the top-ranked countries are currently given entry to the competition.
Between 1960 and 2004, the winner of the tournament qualified for the now defunct Intercontinental Cup against the winner of the Copa Libertadores of South America. Since then, the winner automatically qualifies for the FIFA-organised Club World Cup with other winners of continental club championships.
[edit]Anthem

Main article: UEFA Champions League Anthem
The UEFA Champions League anthem, officially titled simply as "Champions League", is an adaptation by Tony Britten of George Frideric Handel's Zadok the Priest from the Coronation Anthems. UEFA commissioned Britten in 1992 to arrange their anthem, and the piece was performed by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and sung by the Academy of St. Martin in the Fields chorus in the three official languages used by UEFA: English, German, and French. The anthem's chorus is played before each UEFA Champions League game, as well as at the beginning and end of television broadcasts of the matches. The complete anthem is about three minutes long, and has two short verses and the chorus. The anthem has never been released commercially in its original version.
[edit]Format

[edit]Qualification
See also: UEFA coefficients


Map of UEFA countries whose teams reached the group stage of the UEFA Champions League
UEFA member country that has been represented in the group stage
UEFA member country that has not been represented in the group stage
Not a UEFA member
As of 2009, the UEFA Champions League commences with a round-robin group stage of 32 teams, which is preceded by two qualification 'streams' for teams that do not receive direct entry to the tournament proper. The two streams are divided between teams qualified by virtue of being league champions, and those qualified by virtue of finishing 2nd-4th in their national championship.
The number of teams that each association enters into the UEFA Champions League is based upon the UEFA coefficients of the member associations. These coefficients are generated by the results of clubs representing each association during the previous five Champions League and UEFA Europa League/UEFA Cup seasons. The higher an association's coefficient, the more teams represent the association in the Champions League, and the fewer qualification rounds the association's teams must compete in.
5 of the remaining ten qualifying places are granted to the winners of a four round qualifying tournament between the remaining 39 or 38 national champions, within which those champions from associations with higher coefficients receive byes to later rounds. The other 5 are granted to the winners of a two round qualifying tournament between the 15 clubs from the associations ranked 1-15, which have qualified based upon finishing 2nd-4th in their national league.
In addition to sporting criteria, any club must be licensed by its national association to participate in the Champions league. To obtain a license, club must meet certain stadium, infrastructure and finance requirements.
In 2005-06, Liverpool and Artmedia Bratislava became the first teams to reach the Champions League group stage after playing in all three qualifying rounds. In 2008-09, both BATE and Anorthosis Famagusta achieved the same feat. Barcelona, Manchester United, and Porto are the teams that have appeared most often in the group stage: fourteen times each. FC Porto have only won the tournament once since the establishment of the group stage (2004), Manchester United twice (1999 and 2008) and Barcelona 3 times (1992, 2006 and 2009).
Between 2003 and 2008, no differentiation was made between champions and non-champions in qualification. The sixteen top ranked teams spread across the biggest domestic leagues qualified directly for the tournament group stage. Prior to this, three preliminary knockout qualifying rounds whittled down the remaining teams, with different teams starting in different rounds.
[edit]Tournament
The tournament proper begins with a group stage of 32 teams, divided into 8 groups. Seeding is used whilst making the draw for this stage, whilst teams from the same country may not be drawn into groups together. Each team meets the others in its group home and away in a round-robin format. The top two teams from each group progress to the round of 16, which commences the knock-out tournament. The third team enters the UEFA Europa League.
For this stage, one group's winners play against another group's runners-up, and teams from the same country may not be drawn against each other. From the quarter-finals onwards, the draw is entirely random, with country protection no longer in force.
The group stage is played through the autumn, whilst the knock-out stage starts after a winter break. The knock-out ties are played in a two-legged format, with the exception of the final. This is typically held in the final two weeks of May.
[edit]Referee

[edit]Ranking
The UEFA Refereeing Unit is broken down into five experience based categories in which a referee is ranked; (from highest to lowest rank) Elite Category, Premier Category, Category 2, Category 3, and Category 4. Upon certification, an international referee is placed into Category 4 with the exception of referees from France, Germany, England, Italy, or Spain. Referees from these five football giants are comfortable with top professional matches and are therefore directly placed into Category 3. Every match a referee’s performance is observed and evaluated and twice per season his or her Category may be revised. A referee cannot be promoted directly from a Category 3 to the Elite Category.[5]
[edit]Appointing
In cooperation with the UEFA Refereeing Unit, the UEFA Referee Committee is responsible for appointing referees to matches. Referees are appointed based on previous matches, marks, performances, and fitness levels. To discourage bias, the Champions League takes nationality into account. No referee may be of the same origins as any club in his or her respecting groups. Referee appointments, suggested by the UEFA Refereeing Unit, are sent to the UEFA Referee Committee to be discussed and/or revised. After a consensus is made, the name of the appointed referee remains confidential up to two days before the match for the purpose of minimizing public influence.[5]
[edit]Limitations
Since 1990, a UEFA international referee cannot exceed the age of 45 years. After turning 45, a referee must step down at the end of his/her season. The age limit was established to ensure an elite level of fitness. Today UEFA Champion’s League referees are required to pass a fitness test to even be considered at the international level.[5]
[edit]Prize money

As of 2010–11, UEFA awards €2.1 million to each team in the play-offs round. For reaching the group stage UEFA awards €3.9 million, plus €0.55 million per group match played. A win in the group is awarded €0.8 million and a draw is worth €0.4 million.
In addition, UEFA pay teams reaching the first knockout round €3.0 million, each quarter finalist €3.3 million, €4.2 million for each semi-finalist, €5.2 million for the runners-up and €9 million for the winners.[6]
A large part of the distributed revenue from the UEFA Champions League is linked to the "market pool", the distribution of which is determined by the value of the television market in each country. For the 2008-09 season, both Manchester United and Bayern Munich, who reached the final and quarter-final respectively, earned more than Barcelona, who won the tournament.[7]
[edit]Sponsorship

Like the FIFA World Cup, the UEFA Champions League is sponsored by a group of multinational corporations, in contrast to the single main sponsor of the Barclays Premier League, the Ligue 1 or Serie A TIM. When the Champions League was created in 1992, it was decided that a maximum of eight companies should be allowed to sponsor the event, with each corporation being allocated four advertising boards around the perimeter of the pitch, as well as logo placement at pre- and post-match interviews and a certain number of tickets to each match. This, combined with a deal to ensure tournament sponsors were given priority on television advertisements during matches, ensured that each of the tournament's main sponsors was given maximum exposure.[8]
The advertising boards are a source of criticism, due to their larger size compared to those in other leagues such as the Premier League. Their larger size means that, at some grounds, such as Celtic Park, Old Trafford, Anfield and Stamford Bridge, the front rows of seating cannot be used as their views of the pitch are blocked by the extreme size of the boards; accordingly, some season ticket holders are not guaranteed tickets for games and have to sit in seats other than their usual ones for games. Additionally, some stadia use the flat area in front of the front rows of seating for wheelchairs and disabled seating, so the boards drastically reduce these grounds' disabled supporter capacity.


The Champions League logo is shown on the centre of the pitch before every game in the competition
The tournament's current main sponsors are:
Ford
Heineken (excluding Norway, Spain, France, Switzerland and Russia, where alcohol sponsorship is restricted. In Norway the Heineken adboard is replaced by a chalk art picture adboard, In Spain, France, and Switzerland the Heineken adboard is replaced by a "open your world" adboard and in Russia the Heineken adboard is replaced by a "No To Racism" adboard)
MasterCard
Sony Europe[9]
BRAVIA is the brand advertised.
Sony Computer Entertainment Europe[10]
PlayStation is the brand advertised.
UniCredit[11]
Adidas is a secondary sponsor and supplies the official match ball, as they do for all other UEFA competitions. Konami's Pro Evolution Soccer is also a secondary sponsor as the official Champions League video game.
Individual clubs may wear jerseys with advertising, even if such sponsors conflict with those of the Champions League. However, only one sponsorship is permitted per jersey (plus that of the manufacturer), and if clubs play a match in a country where the relevant sponsorship category is restricted (such as the case of France, alcohol, and betting), then they must remove that logo from their jerseys.
[edit]Alcohol and betting websites sponsorship
Teams may be forced to remove alcohol or betting sponsorship logos from their kits if they travel to a country with sponsorship restrictions.
For example, when Liverpool played away to Lyon, Liverpool was forced to remove Carlsberg from their kits, as France, including state sponsors, restrict such sponsorships. Other cases occurred in Switzerland; when Milan and Real Madrid played away at Zürich, both teams were forced to remove bwin.com from their kits. There are similar restrictions in Norway and The Netherlands[citation needed].
[edit]Media coverage

Main article: List of UEFA Champions League broadcasters
The competition attracts an extensive television audience, not just in Europe, but throughout the world. The matches are broadcast in over 70 countries with commentaries in more than 40 languages[citation needed] each year. With an estimated audience of 109 million people, the 2009 Champions League final surpassed that year's Super Bowl (106 million viewers) for the first time as the most-watched annual single sport event in the world.[12]
[edit]Records and statistics

Main article: European Cup and UEFA Champions League records and statistics
[edit]By club
Club Won Runner-up Years won Years runner-up
Real Madrid 9 3 1956, 1957, 1958, 1959, 1960, 1966, 1998, 2000, 2002 1962, 1964, 1981
Milan 7 4 1963, 1969, 1989, 1990, 1994, 2003, 2007 1958, 1993, 1995, 2005
Liverpool 5 2 1977, 1978, 1981, 1984, 2005 1985, 2007
Bayern Munich 4 4 1974, 1975, 1976, 2001 1982, 1987, 1999, 2010
Ajax 4 2 1971, 1972, 1973, 1995 1969, 1996
Barcelona 3 3 1992, 2006, 2009 1961, 1986, 1994
Internazionale 3 2 1964, 1965, 2010 1967, 1972
Manchester United 3 1 1968, 1999, 2008 2009
Benfica 2 5 1961, 1962 1963, 1965, 1968, 1988, 1990
Juventus 2 5 1985, 1996 1973, 1983, 1997, 1998, 2003
Nottingham Forest 2 0 1979, 1980
Porto 2 0 1987, 2004
Celtic 1 1 1967 1970
Hamburg 1 1 1983 1980
Steaua Bucureşti 1 1 1986 1989
Marseille 1 1 1993 1991
Feyenoord 1 0 1970
Aston Villa 1 0 1982
PSV Eindhoven 1 0 1988
Red Star Belgrade 1 0 1991
Borussia Dortmund 1 0 1997
Stade Reims 0 2 1956, 1959
Valencia 0 2 2000, 2001
Fiorentina 0 1 1957
Eintracht Frankfurt 0 1 1960
Partizan 0 1 1966
Panathinaikos 0 1 1971
Atlético Madrid 0 1 1974
Leeds United 0 1 1975
Saint-Étienne 0 1 1976
Borussia Mönchengladbach 0 1 1977
Club Brugge 0 1 1978
Malmö FF 0 1 1979
Roma 0 1 1984
Sampdoria 0 1 1992
Bayer Leverkusen 0 1 2002
Monaco 0 1 2004
Arsenal 0 1 2006
Chelsea 0 1 2008